JPS63233883A - Thermal transfer ink film - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent an increase in the amount of an ink film wasted for cueing of the leading end of an ink film part, by locating markers at predetermined intervals, and detecting a color of the ink film on the basis of differences in the interval of the markers. CONSTITUTION:An ink film has three colors Y, M, C, and markers are located at the right end of the ink film in parallel to the feeding direction of the film. The markers are provided on a base layer (a polyethylene film or the like) of the ink film by applying an appropriate color material, and the presence or absence of the marker is detected by a marker sensor. The ratio of the length of the marker to the length of a gap between the markers is 1:1 for Y, 2:1 for M, and 1:2 for C, so that the colors can be detected based on the ratio. At the time of feeding the ink film, the film is once fed to such a position that the marker is absent, then the film is fed sequentially to a marker-present position, a marker-absent position and a marker present position, and the lengths corresponding to the positions are detected, whereby it is known which of the colors of the ink film is set in position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a multicolor thermal transfer ink film for use in a thermal transfer printer device.

[Prior Art] In conventional multicolor thermal transfer ink films, markers are placed to locate the beginning of each color of ink film, and color differences are detected by the number of markers. For example, the first method is yellow (hereinafter referred to as Y) as shown in Figure 2.
, magenta (hereinafter referred to as M), cyan (hereinafter referred to as C)
Mark 2 markers on the Y part with an ink film using 3 colors.
When printing in the order of Y, M, and C with one marker attached to each of the M and C sections, feed the ink film until two markers are detected before printing Y, and then , print Y, then feed the ink film until one marker is detected, print M, then feed the ink film until one marker is detected, and print C. was. If you want to print with the same ink film in the order of MCY, feed the ink film until two markers are detected, then feed until one is detected, print M, then feed until one is detected, and so on. Print C, then send it until two lines are detected, then press Y.
was printing.

As a second method, as shown in Figure 3, with an ink film using three colors of Y, M, and C, one, two, and three markers are attached to each of the Y, M, and C areas, respectively. If you want to print in the order of , C, when printing Y, feed the ink film until one marker is detected, cue, print Y, then two markers are detected. Until then, the ink film was fed and M was printed, and then the ink film was fed and C was printed until three markers were detected. M, C, Y with the same ink film
If you want to print in the order of 2.3.1.
I sent it to him to find a book and had it printed.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the first conventional method, for example, if the film position is between Y and M before printing and you want to print from C, the ink film is not moved until Y is detected. Then, the ink film must be sent while detecting markers in order, and M, C, 'Y,
M's ink film is wasted.

With the second method, you can reliably locate the number within one cycle of ink films Y, M, and C, but since the number of markers for each color is different, the more colors there are, the longer the marker position on the ink film will be in the feeding direction. , a large amount of ink film is wasted due to cueing.

In common with the first and second methods, the current position of the ink film is unknown, and the currently set colors are used as they are, and the printing order of Y, M, and C is changed appropriately.
There is a problem in that when you want to take a picture, you cannot immediately know the current color of the ink film.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention solves the above problems, and uses a method in which markers are arranged at regular intervals and the color of the ink film is detected based on the difference in the intervals of the markers. .

[Example] Next, an example will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an ink film showing one embodiment of the present invention. The ink film has three colors: Y, Iv(, C),
A marker is arranged at the right end of the ink film in parallel to the feeding direction. The marker is painted in an appropriate color on a base layer of ink film (such as polyethylene film), and the presence or absence of the marker is detected by a marker sensor (not shown).
Detect with.

11 is an area painted with Y ink, 12 is an area painted with M ink, 13 is an area painted with C ink, 14, 16, 18 is an area painted with a marker, and 15, 17, 19 is an area painted with no marker. This is the area where the page layer is visible. The marker 14 for detecting the Y ink 11 and the gap 15 therebetween have a one-to-one length in the ink film feeding direction, and the marker 16 and the gap 17 for detecting the M ink 12 have a one-to-one length in the ink film feeding direction. The lengths of the markers 18 and the gaps 19 between the markers 18 and 19 for detecting the C ink 13 are respectively 1:2 in the feeding direction of the ink film. Furthermore, each marker and gap are arranged in such a manner that one marker and one gap form one set, and a plurality of sets are repeatedly arranged.

Next, the operation will be explained. Since the markers on the ink film are arranged as above, if the ratio of the length of the marker to the gap is 1:1, it is Y, if it is 2:1, it is M, and if it is 1:2, it is C. It can be seen that it is. The way to feed the ink film is to feed it to a place where there is no marker, then check whether there is a marker or no marker.
You can tell what color the ink film is by sending them in the order with markers and detecting the length of each one. In other words, the color of the ink film can be recognized while the ink film is fed enough to detect at most two sets of one marker and one gap. Note that the ratio of the length of the marker to the gap is other than that shown in this example.
Of course, it may be set arbitrarily.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, the current color of the ink film can be recognized with a very small amount of feeding, and there is less waste of the ink film when locating a desired color. effective. Furthermore, printing corresponding to the current color of the ink film can be easily performed.

Furthermore, by monitoring the markers during printing, it is possible to check whether the ink film is being fed smoothly, and even if the film runs out, it can be detected immediately.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an ink film according to the present invention. FIGS. 2 and 3 are schematic diagrams showing conventional ink films. 11, Y (yellow) ink 12
,,M (magenta) ink 13
, , C (cyan) ink 14, 16, 18,
24, 25, 26, 34, 35, 36 ,,
Markers 15, 17, 19, etc. Gaps between markers Fig. 2, Applicant Seiko Epson Corporation

Claims (1)

[Claims] A multicolor thermal transfer ink film characterized in that markers are arranged at regular intervals, and the color of the ink film is detected by the difference in the intervals of the markers.