JPS6453879A - Electrothermal transfer printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve the shape of dots per one picture element, contrive a more uniform density and enhance image quality, by providing a part having a surface resistance lower than that of a heat generating resistor layer in a transfer medium, in a current path in the resistor layer. CONSTITUTION:When a voltage is impressed between a plus electrode 1-1 and a minus electrode 2-1 in an energizing head, an electric current is shunted from the plus electrode 1-1 to flows through a resistor layer 6 to intermediate electrodes 3-1, 3-2. The shunted currents again flow into the resistor layer 6, and are at the minus electrode 2-1. The resistance of the intermediate electrode 3-1 (3-2) is set to be lower than that of the resistor layer 6. As a result, the currents flow via the electrodes 3-1, 3-2, so that heat generation in the resistor layer 6 occurs between the electrodes 1-1 and 3-1, between the electrodes 3-1 and 2-1, between the electrodes 1-1 and 3-2, and between the electrodes 3-2 and 3-1, and the heat is transferred to a transfer film 5 to melt or sublime a part of an ink of an ink layer 8, resulting in transfer of the ink onto a recording paper. Therefore, four dots are formed for one picture element corresponding to one pair of the electrodes 1-1, 2-1.