JPS62211151A - Heat transfer printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the thermals efficiency, to simplify the structure and to enable high speed printing by forming a bearing member where ink is filled in through-holes from a conductive material and polymerizing a resistive film then feeding power thereby thermally projecting the ink thus performing the printing. CONSTITUTION:An ink bearing member 1 is formed from a conductive member having many cylindrical through-holes 2 into an endless belt where ink 3 is filled in the through-holes 2. When a pin electrode 10 polimerized with the bearing member 1 and a resistor film 9 is faced against a recording paper 5 entrained about a platens 13, then power is applied from a power source 7 onto the pin electrode 10 corresponding to information, a current flows from the pin electrode 10 through the resistor film 9, the bearing member 1 and the roller 15a and returns to the power source 7. Consequently, a resistive film 12 in the resistor film 9 at the area contacting with the pin electrode 10 being applied with power is heated, thereby the ink 3 in the bearing member 1 at that area is heated and projected thereby transferred onto a recording paper 5.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Summary] A carrier whose through holes are filled with ink is formed of a conductive material, a resistive film is polymerized, electricity is applied, and the ink is heated so that it protrudes and prints. did.

[Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to the structure of a thermal transfer printer that heats ink on a carrier to cause it to protrude and form an image.

Currently, a wide variety of recording methods are widely put into practical use.

Among them, devices using electrophotography are experiencing rapid growth in the market.

However, such a device has a complicated structure, has the problem of inevitably increasing in size and price, and cannot be applied to a simple printer or the like.

On the other hand, the so-called impact method, which prints on paper by applying an impact through an ink ribbon using a type platen, wire dot, etc., is also widely used, but this method produces noise during printing, has speed limitations, and has a large number of parts. - This causes problems such as frequent failures and troublesome maintenance.

For this reason, a so-called thermal transfer recording method has been proposed, which eliminates the drawbacks of the impact method.

This method prints on recording paper using thermal printing ink or fluid ink that is in a solid phase at room temperature and reversibly becomes liquid or fluid when heated. A printing element configured to generate a predetermined character or figure locally heats the ink to form a predetermined character or figure to give it fluidity, and transfers the ink to print on recording paper. It is something.

In addition, the ink in this recording method is transferred to the recording paper via an ink carrier, and in order to print well, it is necessary to improve heat transfer to the ink layer. There is.

For this purpose, the ink carrier itself must be a very thin film and have mechanical strength, and the thickness of the ink applied to the ink carrier must be extremely thin and uniform, making it difficult to manufacture. Due to these limitations, there is a demand for a thermal transfer recording medium with better performance.

[Conventional technology]

The techniques shown in FIGS. 6 to 8 are well known and are disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No. 59-36879.

That is, as seen in the plan view shown in FIG. , Tetron, Teflon,
It is a synthetic resin film made of acrylic, polycarbonate-11, polyimide, phenol, etc., and has heat resistance and flexibility, and its thickness is about 10 μm.

As shown in the figure, a large number of cylindrical through holes 2 are bored in the carrier 1, and each through hole 2 contains heat-sensitive solid ink that is in a solid phase at room temperature and softens or melts when heated. , or filled with fluid ink 3 to constitute a thermal transfer recording carrier.

Although the shape of the through hole 2 is not limited to a circular shape, a suitable through hole 2 is cylindrical with a maximum diameter of 100 μm or less.

As shown in the figure, the carrier 1 has a large number of through holes 2, but a mesoche-like plant made of fine stainless steel wire or heat-resistant synthetic resin fibers may also be used.

The carrier 1 described above is configured, for example, in the shape of an endless band, as shown in the perspective view of FIG.

Among the inks 3, in particular, the heat-sensitive solid ink 3 is a wax made of colorants such as dyes and pigments, fats and oils such as honey wax, mineral oil, or vegetable oil, or waxes, and higher fatty acids and their metal salts. It is composed of a thermoplastic resin such as polyvinyl chloride, polycarbonate, polystyrene, a copolymer of vinyl chloride and acrylic ester, etc.

In addition to dyes and pigments, coloring agents include long-chain fatty acid iron salts, phenols, organic noble metal salts, aromatic organic reducing agents,
Lactones and phenols, resorcinol and nitroso compounds, multi-component thermosensitive color formers, amine generators and PH supporting agents,
Indole is a thermal decomposition reaction component system based on the combination of an amine generator, a diazo compound, a coupler, an amine generator and fluorinated graphite, etc., which rapidly thermally decomposes when the temperature is reached, and the thermal decomposition product and a substance that causes a color reaction. It is possible to use an individual color-forming component that develops color when heated alone, such as a derivative, a pyrolone derivative, or a heavy metal salt of substituted aminodithioformic acid.

The above components are heated and kneaded, and while they are in a softened or molten state, they are filled into the through holes 2 of the carrier 1 by means such as coating or dipping.

Such heat-sensitive solid ink 3 has thermoplasticity in the temperature range of about 40°C to 200°C, preferably about 40°C to 160°C, so that it can sufficiently respond to the heating of the head when a thermal head is used as a heating source. The composition ratio is defined in advance as shown.

An application example of this carrier 1 for thermal transfer recording will be described with reference to side views of FIGS. 6 and 7.

FIG. 6 shows a method of transfer recording using radiation as a thermal information source, in which a carrier 1 and a recording paper 5 as a transfer medium are stacked, and thermal information 6 is transmitted from the carrier 1 side. The heat is applied to heat the ink 3 at a location corresponding to the thermal information 6, causing it to protrude and transfer.

Examples of the means for providing thermal information 6 include flash light sources such as xenon and halogen, infrared lamps such as tungsten lamps, and laser light sources such as carbon dioxide, argon, and semiconductor.

Another method will be explained with reference to FIG. 7. A signal generated from the power source 7 is transmitted to the thermal head 8 via an electric circuit (not shown), the resistor of the thermal head 8 generates heat, and the ink 3 at the contact point is transmitted to the thermal head 8. is heated and protrudes as shown by arrow A in the perspective view of FIG. 8, and is transferred onto the recording paper 5 in the same manner as in FIG.

Examples of the thermal head 8 include a thin film head in which a resistor is formed by a vapor deposition method, a thick film head in which a resistor is formed by a method such as screen printing, and a semiconductor head in which a semiconductor manufacturing method is used.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

The thermal transfer recording carrier is constructed as described above, and ink on the carrier is thermally transferred to recording paper using, for example, a flash light source, an infrared lamp, a laser light source, a thermal head, or the like.

However, none of these methods apply heat from a heat source directly to the ink; in the case of light energy, an air layer is involved;
On the other hand, in the case of a thermal head, there are problems in that a portion of the heat escapes to the support portion, resulting in poor thermal efficiency, and the thermal head itself is expensive.

[Means for solving problems]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the principle of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention.

In the present invention, the ink carrier 1 is formed of a conductive member, the resistor film 9 that generates heat when energized is polymerized, and the resistor film 9 and the ink carrier 1 are energized via the pin electrode 10. The ink 3 on the ink carrier 1 is heated by the heat generated by the resistor film 9 to cause it to protrude and be transferred onto the recording paper 5.

[Effect]

A signal generated by the power source 7 is applied to the resistor film 9 via an electric circuit (not shown) and a pin electrode 10 to generate heat, and the ink 3 filled in the through hole of the carrier 1 at the heat generating location is applied to the resistor film 9.
is heated, protrudes, and is transferred onto the recording paper 5.

In this way, the structure can be simplified and the thermal efficiency can be improved.

〔Example〕

FIGS. 2 and 3 show an embodiment of the present invention.

Identical parts are designated by the same reference numerals throughout the design.

As shown in the plan view of FIG. 2(a), the thermal transfer printer of the present invention includes an ink carrier 1 made of a conductive stainless steel member having a thickness of, for example, about 5 to 10 μm, and a resistor that generates heat when energized. The film 9 is polymerized, and electricity is applied to the resistor film 9 and the ink carrier 1 through the pin electrode 10, and the heat generated by the resistor film 9 heats the ink 3 on the ink carrier 1 to make it protrude and transfer it to the recording paper 5. This is how it was done.

That is, as described above, the carrier 1 is made of, for example, stainless steel with a thickness of about 5 to 10 μm as a conductive member, and a large number of cylindrical through holes 2 of about 30 to 50 μm are bored therein by means such as etching. As shown in FIG. 5, it is formed into an endless band shape.

The through-holes 2 are filled with ink 3 which is in a solid phase at room temperature according to the prior art, but reversibly changes to a liquid phase or has fluidity upon heating.

On the other hand, as shown in the enlarged side view of the same figure (b), the resistor film 9 uses a substrate 11 made of, for example, stainless steel and has a thickness of about 5 to 10 μm, and is constructed by energizing one side of the film-like substrate 11. Heat-generating materials such as nichrome, tantalum nitride,
The resistive film 12 is formed by sputtering or other means of metal such as Cr-3i-0.

This resistor film 9 is also formed in an endless strip shape with the resistor film 12 on the outside.

The configuration and operation of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 2(a).

The figure shows a case where an endless belt-shaped carrier 1 filled with ink that is in a liquid phase at room temperature is used, and as shown in the figure, a thermal transfer printer has a plurality of bottle electrodes 10 arranged in the depth direction facing a platen 13, The platen 13 is equipped with the pin electrode 10.
The carrier 14 reciprocates as shown by the arrow B-C parallel to the
, rollers 15a-d mounted on the carrier 14 and tensioning the carrier 1 in a rotatable manner as shown in the figure, and a tension roller 16a biasing the carrier 1 in the direction of the arrow, also mounted on the carrier 14. It is comprised of rollers 15e-h that rotatably stretch the resistor film 9 as shown, and a tension roller 16b that urges the resistor film 9 in the direction of the arrow.

At this time, the resistor film 9 is located inside the carrier 1 and is polymerized at the pin electrode 10 portion.

Further, the roller 15a that stretches the carrier 1 is a metal roller, is insulated from the carrier 14, and is connected to the pin electrode 10 and the other electrode of the power source 7, which has one electrode connected to the other electrode. It is electrically conductive with the carrier 1 via the roller 15a.

On the other hand, an ink roller 17 made of felt, for example, impregnated with ink 3 so as to pinch the carrier 1 is provided on the roller L5d at a position opposite to the roller 15a, and supplies the ink 3 to the through-holes 2 of the carrier 1. There is.

The rollers 15f and 15b are feed rollers, and in conjunction with the reciprocating movement of the carrier 14, the carrier 1 and the resistor film 9 are rotated in either direction by a rotating mechanism (not shown). .

In such a configuration, a pin electrode 1O made of a polymerized carrier 1 and a resistor film 9 is opposed to a recording paper 5 wound around a platen 13, and a suitable power is supplied from a power source 7 to a pin electrode 10. When applied to the power source 7, the current flows from the bottle electrode IO to the resistor film 9, carrier 1, and roller 15a in this order.
Return to

When current flows in this way, the resistive film 12 of the resistive film 9 in the place where the pin electrode 10 to which power is applied is in contact generates heat, heating the ink 3 on the carrier 1 in the same place and causing it to protrude. The image is then transferred onto the recording paper 5.

On the other hand, when the ink is in a solid phase at room temperature, as shown in the side view of FIG.
9 or the like to press against the carrier 1, and heat roller 2 is placed inside.
0 is provided, and the solid ink 18 is melted and replenished by the heat.

Furthermore, by intentionally shifting the feeding speeds of the carrier 1 and the resistor film 9, cleaning of the resistor film 9, which is soiled with ink or the like due to sliding contact with each other, is constantly performed.

The above explanation has been made using a so-called serial type printer in which a plurality of bottle electrodes 10 are arranged in the depth direction.
By arranging them in the axial direction of the platen 13 for the printing width, a line type printer can be constructed.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, by using the thermal transfer printer of the present invention, thermal efficiency is improved, the structure is simplified, and printing speed can be expected to be increased, resulting in great economic and industrial effects.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the principle of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention, FIG. 2 (al is a plan view of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention,
Figure (b) is an enlarged side view of the resistor film, Figure 3 is a side view showing the method of filling solid ink into the carrier, Figure 4 (al is a plan view showing the ink carrier, Figure 4(b)
is a side view of the same figure (al), FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a carrier configured in an endless strip shape, FIG. 6 is a side view showing an application example of a thermal transfer recording carrier, and FIG. 7 is a side view of another thermal transfer recording carrier. Fig. 8 is a side view showing an example of application, and Fig. 8 is a perspective view seen from the carrier side in Fig. 7. In the figure, 1 is a carrier, 2 is a through hole, 3 is an ink,
5 is recording paper, 6 is thermal information, 7 is a power source, 8 is a thermal head, 9 is a resistor film, 10 is a pin electrode, 11 is a substrate, 12 is a resistive film,
13 is a platen, 14 is a carrier, 15a
-15h is a roller, 16a and 16b are tension rollers, 17 is an ink roller, 18 is solid ink, 19 is a coil spring, and 20 is a heat roller. A2g Monthly n issue Kuwasuta Mei Arinta n A9/I side map showing the village No. 1 Diagram Mokuuriro 8-Shishiso transcription 7'' Link n Plan view No. 2 (
a”) Hitsugi n A book n O Hiroto I Kushimen y Part z Figure (1)) Solid in 2d Tan I book Niri size 11 L nine method 1 indication Toda i
Fm figure 3 figure in 2 years old body 2 flat figure 4 figure (α) same figure (d) f 11 addition figure 4 hide (1) 1. J. and I. 447. Figure 5. Figure 5. Figure 5. Figure 5.
A lily d row diagram 6th month

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] The ink (3) of an ink carrier (1) having a large number of through holes (2) and filled with the ink (3) in the through holes (2) is heated. A thermal transfer printer that heats and protrudes information based on information and transfers it to a recording paper (5), the ink carrier (1) being formed of a conductive member, and a resistor film (9) that generates heat when energized. ) is polymerized, and electricity is applied to the resistor film (9) and the ink carrier (1) through the pin electrode (10), and the ink carrier (1) is heated by the heat generated by the resistor film (9). A thermal transfer printer characterized in that the ink (3) is heated to cause it to protrude.