JPS62170355A - Recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the frictional resistance between a film and a seal member and ensure secure contact between the film and a heat generating element surface, by a construction wherein that side of the film which is brought into contact with a film winding shaft can be brought into contact with the heat generating element surface of a thermal head. CONSTITUTION:When film winding shafts 137, 138 are rotated counterclockwise as indicated by arrows, a film 2 is also moved leftward (counterclockwise) as indicated by an arrow, and is wound around the film winding shafts 137, 138. The angle alpha between the film 2 and a heat generating element surface 108 of a thermal head 1 at the point at which the film 2 comes into contact with a top part of the thermal head 1 and that beta at the point at which the film 2 comes into contact with the shaft 137, 138 are set to be 0-45 deg.. Accordingly, the contact area between the film and a film guide member 135 is reduced, and the film 2 is brought into secure contact with the heat generating element surface 108 without any gap therebetween.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus, and more particularly to an inkjet recording apparatus that ejects ink thermally.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

Using micro holes formed in the film as nozzles, a heating element such as a thermal head is brought into contact with the film to heat it, generating bubbles in the ink that has entered the holes.
A method of ejecting ink has been proposed (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 1983
-71260 etc.).

In such a system, a film cartridge is constructed by holding and housing a film, an ink supply unit that supplies ink to the film, a film drive mechanism that drives the film, and a seal member that regulates the inflow and outflow of air or ink in a container. It is used. This film cartridge is constructed so that the film is wrapped around two film winding shafts and then stored in the container, but the problem here is that the film and sealing member are not connected properly when the film cartridge is installed. The problem is how to reduce the frictional resistance of the thermal head, and how to ensure the contact between the film and the heating element forming surface of the thermal head.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and its purpose is to reduce the frictional resistance between the film and the sealing member, and to ensure the contact between the film and the heating element forming surface of the thermal head. The purpose is to provide a recording device.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, a film is wound around two film winding shafts, and
In a recording device using a film cartridge in which the film is held and housed in a container together with an ink supply section, a film drive section, and a sealing member that prevents air or ink from entering and exiting, the surface of the film facing the film winding shaft; The present invention is characterized in that the film is wound around a film winding shaft such that the surface thereof faces the heating element forming surface of the thermal head.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained with reference to an illustrated embodiment.

1, 2, 3, and 4 show an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of the main part of FIG. 1, and FIG. ■-■ Cross-sectional view, Figure 4 is IV-IV of Figure 1
There is a cross-sectional view. In FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4, reference numeral 8 denotes a recording sheet as a recording member, which is stored in a cassette 35 and fed by a feed roller 9. As shown in FIG.

The cassette 35 is placed on the lower frame 39, and the convex portion fits into the hole of the first paper feed guide 73, thereby being fixed to the main body housing.

In response to a recording command from an image data processing device 79 connected to the device, the feed roller 9 transfers the power of a paper feeding motor (not shown) to a timing belt (not shown) to feed the recording paper 8. The pulley transmits the signal to the feed roller gear 63 (FIG. 3) of the feed roller 9, and the feed roller gear 63 starts feeding the paper by releasing the feed roller lock spring 65 using the one-way clutch 64.

The recording paper 8 rises along the first paper feed guide 73,
The first aligning roller 12. It is aligned at the position where the second aligning roller 13 rolls into contact.

The first aligning roller 12 is driven by a motor 50 for conveying the recording section.
(FIG. 4) are connected to each other by a timing belt 52 for conveying the recording section, and the second aligning roller 13 is connected to the first aligning roller 13.
The aligning roller 12 is connected to the aligning roller 12 via a first aligning roller gear 77 and a second aligning roller gear 78, and the power of the recording unit conveyance motor 50 is transmitted to the second aligning roller 13.

The timing for starting the rotation of the first aligning roller 12 is such that a certain period of time has elapsed after the leading edge of the recording paper 8 hits the paper feed switch 20 and the paper feed photo sensor 19 is turned on. The rolling contact portions of the lining roller 12 and the second aligning roller 13 abut and are aligned to produce an appropriate deflection at a predetermined timing.

By doing this, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 is reliably pushed into the rolling contact portion of the first aligning roller 12 and the second aligning roller 13, and the first aligning roller 12 and the second aligning roller
This ensures that the recording paper 8 is caught by the aligning roller 13.

In this way, the recording paper 8 caught between the first aligning roller 12 and the second aligning roller 13 is conveyed on the recording section guide 41 (FIG. 2) and reaches the head roller 14 above the heating element 3. reach.

As shown in FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b), the recording unit guide 41 and the head roller 14 are attached to a head roller mounting arm 23 that can move vertically using the first aligning roller 12 as a fulcrum. As the head roller mounting arm 23 moves up and down, the recording section guide 4 and the head roller 14 also move up and down.

Further, a recording section guide member 42 made of a flexible film having a thickness of 0.2++us and having water-blocking properties on the surface is attached to the recording section guide 41 on the side in contact with the recording paper 8. The leading end of the guide member 42 is always in contact with the head roller 14 to prevent it from separating. Therefore, since the recording paper 8 that has reached the head roller 14 is always held between the head roller 14 and the recording section guide member 42, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 may bend and come into contact with the film 2, staining the recording surface. There isn't.

Further, the recording paper 8 is transferred to the film 2 on the thermal head 1 by the head roller 14 via the recording section guide member 42.
Since the recording surface of the recording paper 8 is lightly pressed against the thermal head 1, the recording surface of the recording paper 8 forms a minute gap with the surface of the film 2, which moves while being in close contact with the thermal head 1. It can be moved while always maintaining 2mm.

Here, the head roller 14 described above. Recording section guide 41
．． The vertical movement mechanism of the head roller mounting arm 23 that supports this will be described.

In FIGS. 2, 3, 5(a) and 5(b), the head roller 14 and the recording section guide 41 are connected by a head roller mounting arm 23 with the first roller and inning roller 12 as a fulcrum. It is supported on both sides, and the head roller attachment arm 23 has an arm link 44 (
Figure 5(B)) shows the installation.

The arm link 44 has a link rotation fulcrum 66 supported by the upper frame casing, and moves the link movable fulcrum 67, which is a protrusion fitted into the head roller attachment arm 23, around the link rotation fulcrum 66. The head roller attachment arm 23 is moved up and down.

When recording is not being performed on the leading or trailing edge of the recording paper 8, the head roller 14 is in close contact with the heating element 3 and is spaced apart from the moving film 2 by S2, as shown in FIG. 5(b). Carry out transportation.

That is, if the film 2, which moves in close contact with the head roller 14 and the heat generating element 3, is too close, the leading and trailing ends of the recording paper 8 will bend and fold, causing contact with the film 2 and staining it, and if it is too far away, It takes time to move the recording unit guide member 42 to the film 2 using the head roller 23 and press it lightly, and the non-recording area increases accordingly. Therefore, in experiments with this apparatus, the above-mentioned S2 was set to about 0.75 mm. did.

Next time you record, first set the solenoid 3G in Figure 2.
is excited to pull the solenoid spring 27 in the direction B. Then, the floating part 25 is moved to C by the solenoid spring 27.
By moving in the direction, the arm links 44 on both sides move in the D direction, and the head roller arm 23 moves in the E direction.
By lowering the head roller 14 in this direction, the recording section guide member 42 is lightly pressed against the film 2. At this time, the hedra roller 14 transports the paper while being separated by 51 from the film 2, which is moving in close contact with the heating element 3.

Note that the distance S1 is determined by the thickness of the recording section guide member, and according to performance experiments using this apparatus, it was found that a distance of 0.2 W or less is desirable.

Here, the floating part 25 is the arm link 4 on both sides.
Due to the convex part of 4 and the convex part of the floating part stopper 28, 3
Since it is supported at a point and is not in contact with the surface of the upper frame 38, it can be moved smoothly with less force from the solenoid 30.

Further, since the floating portion 25 is subjected to the action of the absorber 29, the head roller 14 does not impact against the thermal head 1, and therefore the heating element 3
Never be damaged.

Furthermore, the recording unit guide member 42 by the head roller 14
The pressing force against the thermal head 1 is generated by the head roller support springs 2 on both sides of the head roller mounting arm 23.
4 supports the weight of the head roller portion, the pressing force is determined only by the floating portion spring 26, and therefore an extremely light pressing force can be easily obtained.

Here, the method of driving the head roller 14 is as follows. This is a recording method stretched between the second pulley 59 for the first aligning roller (FIG. 4) of the first aligning roller 12 and the pulley 61 for the head roller. Since the driving force of the recording unit conveying motor 50 is transmitted by the third timing belt 60 for conveying the recording unit, it is not affected by any other driving force transmission mechanism, so extremely accurate paper conveyance can be performed.
As a result, clear records can be made.

Next, the positional relationship between the head roller 14, the recording section guide member 42, and the heating cord 3 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 5(a), during recording, the center of the head roller 14 is located at a distance P from the center of the heating element 3 in the direction of the first aligning roller 12, and The tips are positioned at a distance of Q in the same direction. In addition, the values of P and Q are as follows:
Through experiments, it has been found that it is best to set it as follows.

First, in order to enable the recording section guide member 42 to accurately hold the recording paper 8 in the vicinity of the heating cord 3 without blocking the jetting path of the recording ink, the recording section guide member 42 must be
It is desirable that the time is 1 ms or less.

Further, the head roller 14 accurately presses the recording section guide member 42 onto the film 2 moving on the heating cable 3, brings the film 2 and the heating element 3 into close contact, and the pressing force of the head roller 14 This prevents the distal end of the recording unit guide member 42 from separating near the heating cable 3 and changing the gap between the recording surface of the recording paper 8 and the film 2 and the heating element 3, and also prevents the head from changing. roller 1
This is designed to prevent the recording surface of the recording paper 8 from coming into contact with the film 2 and getting dirty due to deformation of the recording paper 4 itself. It is desirable to do so. In addition, it was confirmed by the performance test of this example that printing quality is adversely affected even if the speed is too fast or too close.

Now, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 moves further forward and reaches the paper discharge vapor guide 37. The recording paper 8 that has passed through the head roller section is moved to the paper discharge vapor guide 37 by wind pressure from the proa fan 34 provided below the paper discharge vapor guide 37.
It is transported while being sprayed with water. Note that the edge portions 5 to 10 of the paper discharge vapor guide 37 on the side facing the head roller 14
The direction in which the 11th copy of III moves away from the recording paper 8, that is, 106 to 45 degrees upward, α0 in FIGS. 5(a) and (b)
Further, the discharged paper vapor guide 37 is located above the film 2 that moves in close contact with the heat generating element 3 by an amount R, and is located above the head roller 1 when not recording.
Since the distance S2 between the recording paper 4 and the film 2 is set such that R>S2, the leading edge of the recording paper 8 can be prevented from penetrating toward the upper surface of the paper discharge vapor guide 37. ing.

In FIG. 1, when the upper frame 38 is opened in the inward direction, at least the head roller 14. Recording section guide 41. Recording section guide member 42. A paper discharge vapor guide 37 moves integrally with the upper frame 38. By doing this,
This makes it easy to attach and detach the ink cartridge 100, and also makes it easy to remove jams in the recording section of the recording paper 8.

The recording paper 8 moves further forward, and as shown in FIG. 6(a), the first
The paper is held and conveyed by the paper roller 16 and the second discharge roller 17. At this time, the recording surface of the recording paper 8 is as shown in FIG.
As shown in b), the tip of the second paper ejection roller 17 is 15" to 60".
', forms an acute angle of γ0 in the figure, and 15" to 60"
The acute angle part of 15'' to 30' is supported in a dotted manner by star-shaped rollers provided at a pitch of β0 in the figure, and reference roller portions 69 and 70 are provided at both ends of the first paper ejection roller 1.
Since it is in rolling contact with 6, it is held and conveyed without applying excessive pressure, so that the problem of disturbing the undried recorded image does not occur.

The recording paper 8 advances further, and when the trailing edge of the recording paper 8 passes the head roller section, the conveyance force of the recording paper 8 becomes the conveyance force of the first paper ejection roller 16 and the second paper ejection roller 17, and this alone is insufficient. Therefore, the first haishi roller 16 and
A pinch roller is provided between the head rollers 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, the lower pinch roller 45 is supported by a lower pinch roller arm 46, and a lower pinch roller spring 47 is attached to the lower pinch roller arm 46.
is pressed against the upper pinch roller 15 by.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the upper pinch roller 15 includes:
There is a pulley 55 for the upper pinch roller, and the driving force is transmitted by a second timing belt 54 for conveying the recording section stretched between the first pulley 53 for the first aligning roller of the first aligning roller 12. ing. The recording paper 8 is conveyed while the upper pinch roller 15 and the lower pinch roller 45 hold one of the non-recording portions of several mm on both sides thereof. In addition, since the portions not pinched by the pinch rollers are blown against the paper ejection vapor guide 37 by the wind pressure of the proa fan 34, the paper does not come into contact with the film 2 and stain the recording surface, and the paper can be conveyed extremely smoothly. Ru.

Further, the recording paper 8 moves forward, and the leading edge of the recording paper 8 hits the paper ejection switch 22, turning on the paper ejection photo sensor 21, and then the rear end of the recording paper 8 touches the first paper ejection roller and the second paper ejection roller. When it passes, the paper discharge photo sensor 21 is turned off and this signal is detected to detect that the recording paper 8 has been surely discharged.

Next, the film cartridge 100 will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 7, the film cartridge 100 includes an ink supply section 101. The printing section 102 is composed of a drive system 103 and a foot 104, and an ink bottle 105 is attached to the ink supply section 101.

The installation of the film cartridge 100 into the printer main body 106 will be explained. First, as shown in FIG. 8, one frame 38 of the printer body 106 is subjected to first alignment a.
- The printer body 106 is rotated about the axis of the printer body 106 to the position shown by the dashed line, and the upper part of the printer body 106 is opened. Next, the film cartridge 100 is inserted into the printer main body 106 from above, and the bottom surface of the film cartridge 100 is placed on the mounting base 107 shown in FIG. At this time, film cartridge 10
The four feet 104 are inserted into the four square holes 1 formed in the mounting base 107 so that the film 2 housed in the mounting base 107 faces the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head l.
The film cartridge 100 is placed on the mounting base 107 so as to fit into the mounting base 107.

The two right feet 104 of the film cartridge 100 are fitted into the two right square holes 109 of the mounting base 107.
As shown in FIG. 10, the two leaf springs 112 come into contact with two leaf springs 112, one end of which is fixed to a bracket 111 attached to the right frame 110 of the printer main body 106.

Two right feet 104 of film cartridge 100
are subjected to leftward pressure by the elastic force of the two leaf springs 112 that are curved due to contact, and the film cartridge 100 is moved leftward on the mounting base 107 by the four feet 1.
When the bottom surface of the groove formed in the groove 04 abuts the left end surface of the four square holes 109 into which they are respectively fitted, the movement of the ink cartridge 100 is stopped, and the ink cartridge 10
0 is fixed to the mounting base 107 via a leaf spring 112.

At this time, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the idle gear 113 of the film cartridge drive system 103 is replaced by the transmission gear 1 of the drive force transmission system 114 of the printer body
It meshes with 15.

Finally, lower the upper frame 38 of the printer main body 106 gently downward and backward, and press down the upper frame 38 until the upper rotary cap 31 and lower opening-tally cap 32 are engaged, as shown in FIG. 2(a). do.

Through the above steps, the film cartridge 100 is attached to the printer main body 106. To remove the film cartridge 100 from the printer main body 106, the above operations can be performed in reverse order.

The supply of ink 4 to the film cartridge 100 will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 12, before the ink bottle 105 is attached to the film cartridge 100, the spherical part of the valve 116 is pressed against the inner surface of the cap 118 by the pressure of the compression spring 117, so that the ink bottle 105 is injected into the ink bottle 105. The ink 4 does not leak from the ink outlet 119 at the bottom of the cap 118.

After installing the film cartridge 100 in the printer main body 106, the ink supply section 10 of the film cartridge 100
The ink bottle 105 is inserted into the hole 120 formed in the ink supply section 101 from above the ink supply section 101 with the cap 118 at the bottom. At this time, as shown in FIG.
The tips of the two pole plungers 122 fit into the grooves 121 formed on the outer periphery of the ink bottle 105, and the ink bottle 105 is fixed.

On the other hand, the tip of the cap 118 of the ink bottle 105 and the tip of the rod of the valve 116 are connected to the prepared hole 1 of the ink supply section 101.
It collides with the circular plate 124 placed on the compression spring 123 placed at 20c, compresses the compression spring 123, and moves the circular plate 124 downward. But at the same time
The elastic modulus is thicker than that of compression spring 117 (1 compression spring 123
The pressure causes the valve 116 to be lifted upward, and the tip of the cap 118 and the tip of the rod of the valve 116 are aligned. At this time, the spherical part of the valve 116 separates from the inner surface of the cap 118, and the ink 4 injected into the ink bottle 105 flows out from the ink outlet 119, and the pilot hole 120c
flows into

Furthermore, the ink 4 that has flowed into the pilot hole 120c is
As shown in the figure, the ink passes through the ink supply path 125 formed in the ink supply section 101 and enters the groove 128 formed by fitting the lid 126 and case 127 of the film cartridge 100 shown in FIG. 15(a). Figure 15 (
The ink flows out from the left and right holes 129 formed in the case 127 shown in b) to the tip of the ink supply member 130 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 16, a groove 13 is provided at the bottom of the case 127.
1 is formed, and since the ink 4 flows through this groove 131, the ink 4 is uniformly absorbed from below the ink supply member 130 over the length direction of the film cartridge 1oo.

The ink 4 is injected into the ink bottle 105 by removing the cap 118 screwed onto the ink bottle body 132 and from the threaded side of the ink bottle body 132.

As shown in FIG. 13, the state where the ink 4 is no longer in the ink bottle 105, that is, the ink empty state, is as shown in FIG.
Infrared light emitting diode 133 and phototransistor 13
Detect using 4. That is, if the liquid level of the ink 4 is higher than the optical axis that enters the phototransistor 134 than the infrared light emitting diode 133, the infrared light emitting diode 13
The light emitted from the ink 3 is absorbed by the ink 4 and does not reach the phototransistor 134. However, when the ink 4 is consumed and the liquid level of the ink 4 falls below the optical axis, the light emitted from the infrared light emitting diode 133 is transferred to the phototransistor 134.
reaches and detects ink empty.

Next, the configuration and printing method of the film cartridge printing section 102 will be explained.

16 is a sectional view of the film cartridge printing section 102 seen from the right, FIG. 17(a) is a top view of the vicinity of the inner end surface of the film cartridge 100, and FIG. 17(b) is a top view of the inner end surface of the film cartridge 100. A nearby sectional view, FIG. 17(c), is a diagram of the components of the sealing member.

As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the film cartridge printing section 102 includes a lid 126. Case 127. Film guide member 135. Film seal member 136. left,
Right film winding shaft 137.138. Ink supply member 130. Film 2. It is composed of a side end seal member 139.

The lid 126 and the case 127 are made of synthetic resin such as methacrylic resin, and the lid 126 is fitted from above the case 127, and the fitting surfaces are bonded or welded. The film guide member 135 is glued to the case 127,
The film 2 is guided by the curved portion, and the edge portion is brought into pressure contact with the thermal head 1 when the film cartridge 100 is installed.

The film seal member 136 is bonded to the lid 126, has an edge shape at the negative end, and is in contact with the curved surface of the film guide member 135 via the film 2.

Film guide member 135 and film seal member 136
For example, styrene-butadiene rubber.

Water-resistant rubber such as nitrile rubber and chloroprene rubber is used.

The side end seal member 139 is shown in FIG. 17(a).

As shown in (b) and (c), it is adhered to the inner end surface of the lid 126, and is in contact with the surface of the film sealing member 136 on the side that comes into pressure contact with the film 2, and the inner end surface of the film cartridge 100 of the film guide member 135. It is crimped onto the surface.

The side end sealing member 139 is made of water-resistant rubber such as styrene-butadiene rubber, nitrile rubber, or chloroprene rubber, or a foamed rubber material, and the film sealing member 136 and the film guide member 135 We use something that offers more flexibility.

With this configuration, even if the dimensional accuracy of the length of the film guide member 135 and the film seal member 136 and the installation accuracy are relatively rough, the inner end surface of the film cartridge 100 can be sealed against air or ink 4. Completely done.

Therefore, the ink 4 will not leak from the film cartridge 100 and will not stain the printer body 106.

Further, the ink 4 does not evaporate from the film cartridge 100, and the film cartridge 100 can be used for a long period of time.
Ink 4 can be held within 00.

The left and right film winding shafts 137, 138 are connected to the lid 12.
It is rotatably supported by dry bearings (not shown) on both end faces (not shown) of 6.

Film 2 is attached to this left and right film winding shaft 137.13
8, and before the film cartridge 100 is installed, the film cartridge 100 is guided by a film guide member 135 as shown in FIG.
When installing, as shown in FIG. 16, the film guide member 13
5 and the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head 1 .

Film 2 is attached to the left and right film winding shaft 13 of film 2.
7. 13 so that the surface facing 138 becomes the surface facing the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head 1.
7. It is wrapped around 138.

That is, as shown in FIG. 16(a), when the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138 rotate to the left as shown by the arrow, the film 2 is moved to the left and right as shown by the arrow. Wrapping shaft 137.13
Wrap it around 8.

Further, as shown in FIG. 16(b), the film 2 and the top of the thermal head 1 start contacting each other, and the film 2 and the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138 start contacting each other. The angles α and β between the thermal head 1 and the heating element forming surface 108 are 0 to 45.
set at the same time. In addition, film 2 and thermal head 1
The angles α and β formed by the heating element forming surface 108 are set to 30 degrees in this embodiment.

With this configuration, the contact area between the film 2 and the contact member 135 and the film guide member 135 is reduced, and the frictional resistance force is also reduced. Thereby, the driving force for the film 2 can be reduced. Furthermore, since this frictional low power is small, the rotational moment, which will be described later and which is applied to the film winding shafts 137 and 138, can be used as tension in the film 2 with almost no loss. Furthermore, the angle α between the film 2 and the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head 1 is set to 0 to
Since the angle is set at 45 degrees, there is no gap between the heating element forming surface 108 and the film 2 due to the elasticity of the film 2, and the film 2 reliably adheres to the heating element forming surface 108. As a result, the ink 4 filled in the micropores 141 of the film 2 is reliably heated as will be described later, and the print quality is maintained at a good level.

The film 2 is a thin film having a thickness of 5 to 30 μm, and is made of, for example, a metal such as nickel or copper, a synthetic resin such as polyimide resin, or a multilayer stack of these.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 19(a), (b), and (c),
The micropore forming area 140 of the film 2 has holes with a diameter of 20 to 30 mm.
A large number of micro holes 141 with a hole pitch of 40 to 50 μm are formed. Printing area al of microhole forming area 140
As shown in Fig. 19(b), Xbl has hole pitch p,
As shown in FIG. 22(c), micropores 141 are formed at a hole pitch q in the boundary regions a2Xbo, a3XbO, and aOXb3 between the micropore formation region 140 and the micropore formation target region. Here, the hole pitches p and q are set so that p>q, and the hole pitch q is set so that it gradually becomes larger toward the region where micropores are to be formed. In this example, the printing area is 80x21
Set to 6mm, the boundary areas are a2, a3, b2, b3
Both are formed in the range of 0.1 to 2 mm, the hole pitch p is set to 40 to 50 μm, and the hole pitch q is set to 40 to 100 μm.
It is set to a value that gradually increases toward the region where micropores are to be formed in the range of μm. By doing this, it is possible to alleviate the lack of strength due to stress concentration at the boundary end area between the micropore forming region 140 and the region to be formed with micropores of the film 2, and prevent damage to the film 2 at the boundary. can do.

As shown in FIG. 16, the ink supply member 130 is filled in the case 127, and the curved portion of the ink supply member 130 is in pressure contact with the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138 around which the film 2 is wound.

The ink supply member 130 is made of Teflon felt, foamed nitrile rubber, foamed polyvinyl resin, or the like in consideration of water absorption and coating properties.

Next, a printing method using this device will be described.

Left and right film winding shafts 137 around which film 2 is wound
, 138 , the ink 4 that has permeated the ink supply member 130 is applied to the film 2 . At this time, the ink 4 is filled into the micropores 141 of the film 2 due to the surface tension of the ink 4.

The part of the film 2 where the ink 4 is applied is the film guide member 13
Excess ink 4 that adheres to the surface of the film 2 on the film sealing member 136 side at the contact point between the film guide member 135 and the film sealing member 136
is scraped off by the film seal member 136.

However, since the curved surface of the film guide member 135 is smooth, the excess ink 4 adhering to the surface of the film 2 on the film guide member 135 side is retained.

Further, the portion of the film 2 coated with the ink 4 moves, is guided by the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head 1, and reaches the heating element 3. At this time, when the printing control signal is input manually and the heating element 3 generates heat, the ink 4 filled in the micropores 141 of the film 2 is heated, bubbles are generated, and the bubbles increase instantaneously. is the micropore 14
It erupts from 1. At this time, film cartridge 100
Recording paper (not shown) is being conveyed above.
Ink 4 flies onto the heating element 3 and adheres to the recording paper.

Printing is performed as described above.

In the above embodiment, the ink supply member 130 was constructed as a single layer structure made of Teflon felt, foamed nitrile rubber, foamed polyvinyl resin, etc., but by making it a multilayer structure each having different characteristics, the ink supply member 130 It is possible to improve the ink absorption and coating properties of the ink.

By the way, since the film 2 is a thin film, the film 2
Tension must always be applied in the driving direction.

Next, a method of applying tension to the film 2 will be explained.

The driving part of the left film winding shaft 137 is shown in FIG. 20(a).
As shown, a left film drive gear 142 is attached to the left film winding shaft 137. A torsion spring 143 and a ring 144 are attached.

As shown in FIG. 20(b), the left film drive gear 142
The convex part and the concave part of the ring 144, the left film drive gear 14
The concave portion of No. 2 and the convex portion of the ring 144 are engaged and connected via a torsion spring 143.

The drive section of the right film winding shaft 138 is shown in FIG. 21(a).
As shown, the right film winding shaft 138 is connected to the right film drive gear 145. A tension spring 146 and a ring 147 are attached.

As shown in FIG. 21(b), one end of the tension spring 146 is connected to a pin 145 provided on the right film drive gear 145.
pin 14 with the other end provided in ring 147
9 and is attached around the right film winding shaft 138 in a state where it can be freely extended in the direction of shaft rotation.

To apply tension to the film 2, proceed as follows.

First, the floating gear 113 shown in FIG. 22 is removed, the left film drive gear 142 is fixed, and the right film drive gear 1
45 to the left and wind the film 2 onto the right film winding hook 138.

When the right film drive gear 145 is further rotated to the left from the state in which the film 2 is naturally stretched, the tension spring 146 shown in FIG. A rotational moment is generated between them, and tension is applied to the film 2 via the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138. In this state, the floating gear 113 is attached, and the left film drive gear 142 and the right film drive gear 145 are coupled via the floating gear 113.

In this way, tension is always applied to the film 2 in the driving direction, and the film 2 is reliably driven.

Also, it will not loosen, wrinkle, or break.

Further, the torsion spring 143 attached to the drive portion of the left film winding shaft 137 has the role of absorbing loosening of the film 2 due to friction with the thermal head 1 during driving.

Film cartridge 100 is driven as follows.

As shown in FIGS. 22 and 23, the film cartridge drive system 103 includes a left film drive gear 142. It consists of a right film drive gear 145 and a floating gear 113, and the left and right film drive gears 142 and 145 are connected via the floating gear 113 and rotate in the same direction and at the same speed.

Further, the driving force transmission system 11 is configured on a bracket 151 fixed to the left frame 150 of the printer main body 106.
4 is a motor 152. Motor gear 153, transmission gear 11
5, the floating gear 113 and the transmission gear 115 mesh with each other, and the motor 152
The driving force is transmitted to the film cartridge drive system 103 via the transmission gear 115.

In this embodiment, the reduction ratio from the motor gear 153 to the left and right film drive gears 142, 145 is 4.

Next, a film cartridge 1 according to the gist of the present invention will be described.
The running control of the film 2 in 00 will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 24, a first wave detector 154 is attached to the right film drive gear 145, and a second wave detector 155 is attached to the floating gear 113. Further, as shown in FIG. 25, the number of teeth of the left and right film drive gears 142 and 145 is 24, and the number of teeth of the floating gear 113 is 14. Therefore, the phases of the connected state of the right film drive gear 145 and the floating gear 113 become the same when the right film drive gear 145 rotates seven times. By the way, in this embodiment, both the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138 are designed to be able to wind up to 6 rolls of the film 2, and when the film 2 is being driven, the possible number of revolutions of the right film drive gear 145 is 6. be. Therefore, when the film 2 is driven, the phase of the connected state between the right film drive gear 145 and the floating gear 113 is uniquely determined. Therefore, if the phase of the connected state between the right film drive gear 145 and the floating gear 113 as shown in FIG. 25 is set to the initial position of the film 2, the second
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 23, the initial position of the film 2 is determined by detecting this state with a first detection element 156 and a second detection element 157 attached to a bracket 151 fixed to the printer body 106. can be detected. In this way, the initial position of the film 2 can be reliably detected, thereby
This prevents the film 2 from being damaged due to excessive winding on the right film winding shaft 138. Furthermore, the initial position of the film 2 can be reliably detected even after the recording paper jam is cleared or the power supply is unexpectedly cut off.

After installing the film cartridge 100, the printer body 10
When the power switch 6 is turned on, the motor 152 is driven until the first detected element 154 and the second detected element 155 are in the state shown in FIG. 25, and the film 2 is wound around the right film winding shaft 138. . When the state shown in FIG. 25 is reached, the film 2 being wound around the left film winding shaft 137 has 0 rolls, and the film 2 being wound around the right film winding shaft 138 has 6 rolls. This state is the initial state, and the above operation is the initial operation.

When a print signal is input to the printer main body 106, a first print operation is started. The film 2 moves in the direction in which it is wound around the left film winding shaft 137, and
When the microhole forming region 140 shown in FIG. 9(a) reaches the heating element forming surface 108 of the thermal head 1, the heating element 3
A print signal is input to and starts printing. Immediately before the microhole forming region 140 of the film 2 passes the heating element forming surface 108, the printing signal input to the heating element 3 is stopped, and printing is completed. Thereafter, the film 2 further moves in the direction in which it is wound around the left film winding shaft 137, and after moving a certain distance, the motor 152 stops and the first printing operation ends.

At this time, the film 2 being wound around the left film winding shaft 137 has 6 turns, and the film 2 being wound around the right film winding shaft 138 has 0 turns. The second print operation is completely opposite to the first print operation. Therefore, in a continuous printing operation, the film 2 alternately changes its moving direction between the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138, and repeats reciprocating motion. The above operation is a printing operation.

When the printing operation is finally completed, the state is returned to the initial state.

That is, in the case of printing an odd number of sheets, since the film 2 is wound around the left film winding shaft 137 at the end of the printing operation, the film 2 is moved in the direction in which it is wound around the right film winding shaft 138. Return to the state shown in Figure 25. On the other hand, in the case of printing an even number of sheets, since the state shown in FIG. 25 is reached when the printing operation is completed, no operation is performed. The above is the end operation.

After the end operation, the power switch of the printer main body 106 is turned off.

FIG. 26 shows another embodiment of detecting the initial state of the film 2. In FIG. As shown in FIG. 26, a rotation transmission member 158 that rotates integrally with the right film winding shaft 138 is attached to the right film winding shaft 138.
An intermittent rotating member 160 is provided so that its outer periphery is in contact with the outer periphery of the boss portion 159 . The rotation transmission member 158 is provided with a protrusion 161, and the intermittent rotation member 16
The rotation transmitting member 1 is fitted into the groove 162 formed in the rotation transmitting member 1.
When the rotation member 58 rotates once, the intermittent rotation member 160 rotates by one groove. Therefore, the continuous rotation of the rotation transmission member 158 is converted into intermittent rotation by the intermittent rotation member 160.

In this embodiment, left and right film winding shafts 137
．． 138, the film 2 can be wound up to six times, and the number of possible rotations of the right film winding shaft 131T is six when the film 2 is being driven. On the other hand, since the number of grooves 162 of the intermittent rotating member 160 is eight, the film 2
During driving, the phase of the connection state between the rotation transmission member 158 and the intermittent rotation member 160 is uniquely determined. Therefore, the rotation transmission member 158 and the intermittent rotation member 160 as shown in FIG.
If the phase of the connected state is set as the state of the initial position of the film 2, the initial position of the film 2 can be detected by detecting this state.

Furthermore, FIG. 27 shows another embodiment of detecting the initial state of the film 2. In FIG. As shown in FIG. 27, a worm 163 that rotates integrally with the right film winding shaft 138 is attached to the right film winding shaft 138, and a worm wheel 164 is connected to the worm 163. Warm 1
When 63 rotates once, the worm wheel 164 rotates by l dentary, so the worm wheel 164 with 12 teeth
When the worm 163 rotates 12 times, the phase becomes the same again. However, in this embodiment, since both the left and right film winding shafts 137 and 138 are capable of winding the film 2 up to six times, the phase of the worm wheel 164 is uniquely determined when the film 2 is driven. 7th,
If the phase of the worm wheel 164 as shown in FIG. 27 is set to the state of the initial position of the film 2, the initial position of the film 2 can be detected by detecting this state.

FIG. 28 shows another embodiment in which a first drive stop member 158 and a second drive stop member 159 are further provided in addition to the embodiment shown in FIG.

In FIG. 28, the first drive stop member 158 is attached to the right film drive gear 145, the second drive stop member 159 is attached to the floating gear 113, and the first drive stop member 158 and the second drive stop member 158 are attached to the right film drive gear 145. The member 159 is adapted to contact the other pair near the intersection of the pitch circle of the right film drive gear 145 and the pitch gain of the idler gear 113. Further, a first electrode terminal 160 that is electrically connected to the first drive stop member 158 and a second electrode terminal 161 that is electrically connected to the second drive stop member 159 are provided.

In such a configuration, if the right film drive gear 145 is unexpectedly driven excessively, the first drive stop member 158 and the second drive stop member 159 are stopped before excessive tension is applied to the film 2. contacts, thereby stopping the drive of the right film drive gear 145 and turning off the power to the printer main body 106.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, the frictional resistance between the film and the film guide member can be reduced,
This makes it possible to reduce the driving force for the film.

Further, due to this reduction in frictional low power, the rotational moment applied to the film winding shaft can be used as film tension with almost no loss. Furthermore, since the angle α between the film and the heating element forming surface of the thermal head is set to 0 to 45 degrees, the film reliably comes into close contact with the heating element forming surface, thereby maintaining good printing quality.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of a recording unit conveying section of the same device, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line , FIG. 4 shows the IV- of FIG.
IV sectional view, FIG. 5(a). (b) is an explanatory diagram of the mechanical operation of the recording section of the same device, and Fig. 6 (
a) ==convex≦ is a perspective view of the paper ejection roller section of the same device, Fig. 6 (b) is a shape diagram of the second paper ejection roller of the same device, and Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the ink bottle attached to the film cartridge. 8 is a sectional view of the printer main body before the film cartridge is installed, FIG. 9 is an external view showing the installation state of the thermal head and mounting base, and FIG. 10 is a front sectional view of the film cartridge mounting section. Fig. 11 is a top view of the film cartridge mounting section, Fig. 12 is a right sectional view of the ink bottle and the ink supply section of the film cartridge, and Fig. 13 is a right side view of the ink bottle installed in the ink supply section of the film cartridge. 14 is a front sectional view of the ink supply section of the film cartridge,
FIG. 15(a) is a right sectional view of the groove of the ink supply section of the film cartridge, FIG. 15(b) is a right sectional view of the hole of the ink supply section of the film cartridge, and FIG. 16 is a contact section between the film and the ink supply section. 17(a) is a sectional view of the vicinity, and FIG. 17(a) is a top view of the vicinity of the inner end surface of the film cartridge.
b) is a sectional view near the inner end surface of the film cartridge;
Fig. 17(c) is a component diagram of the sealing member, Fig. 18 is a right sectional view of the printing section before mounting the film cartridge, Fig. 19(a) is an external view of the film, and Fig. 19(b) is Partially enlarged view of the micropore forming region of the film, FIG. 20(a)
is a sectional view of the left film winding shaft drive section, FIG.
) is a component diagram of the left film winding shaft drive section, No. 21.
Figure (a) is a sectional view of the right film winding shaft drive section, the second
Figure 1(b) is a component diagram of the right film winding shaft drive section, Figure 22 is a top view of the film cartridge drive system and the drive transmission system of the recording apparatus main body, and Figure 23 is a top view of the film cartridge drive system and the recording apparatus main body. FIG. 24 is a front sectional view of the drive transmission system, FIG. 24 is a perspective view of the printing portion of the film cartridge, and FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram of film position detection based on the phase of the film drive gear and the floating gear. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Thermal head, 2... Film, 3... Heat generating element, 4... Recording ink, 5... Hole, 8...
Recording paper, 108...Heating element forming surface, 137...
Left film winding shaft, 138...Right film winding shaft. Figure 5 ((1) Figure 5 (b) Figure 6 (Q) Figure 6 (b) 1Jj Figure 7 Figure 9 Figure 12 Figure 13 Figure 15 (b) (Q) Figure 16 (b) Figure 16 Figure 17 (Q) Figure 17 (b) Figure 18 Figure 19 Figure 20 (b) Figure 21 (b)

Claims (6)

[Claims] (1) Controlling the running of a film in which a plurality of holes or recesses are formed between a recording ink supply section and a thermal head,
filling a plurality of holes or recesses of the film with the ink when the film passes through the ink supply section;
When the holes or recesses filled with the ink reach the surface of the thermal head, the ink in the holes or recesses is ejected onto the recording paper by the pressure of bubbles generated by rapid heating by the heating element of the thermal head. A recording device for recording, wherein the film is wound around two film winding shafts, and the film is placed in a container together with an ink supply section, a film drive section, and a sealing member that regulates the ingress and egress of air or ink. In a recording device using a film cartridge held and housed, the film is wound around the film winding shaft so that the surface facing the film winding shaft becomes the surface facing the heating element forming surface of the thermal head. A recording device characterized by being wrapped around. (2) A patent characterized in that the angle between the film and the heating element forming surface of the thermal head at the point where the film and the top of the thermal head start contact is set to an angle between 0 degrees and 45 degrees. A recording device according to claim (1). (3) A patent claim characterized in that the angle formed between the film and the heating element forming surface of the thermal head at the point where the film and the film winding shaft start contact is set to an angle between 0 degrees and 45 degrees. Range No. (1) or No. (2)
Recording device as described in section. (4) The micropore pitch in the boundary region between the micropore-forming region and the non-micropore-forming region of the film is set larger than the micropore pitch in other micropore-forming regions. The recording device described in (1). (5) The pitch of the micropores in the boundary region between the micropore-forming region and the non-micropore-forming region of the film is set to gradually increase toward the non-micropore-forming region. The recording device described in (4). (6) A tension spring extending in the axis rotation direction is provided around at least one of the two film winding shafts, and the two film winding shafts are driven via this tension spring. A recording device according to claim (1), characterized in that: