JP2576122B2 - Thermal recording device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal recording apparatus for recording image information by a thermal transfer recording method, for example, as a kind of facsimile apparatus, and particularly relates to an ink donor as a thermal transfer recording medium. The present invention relates to a thermal recording apparatus that prevents unnecessary consumption of a film.

"Prior art" A thermal recording apparatus using an ink donor film selectively heats or sublimates the heat-fusible ink applied to the film surface by a heat pulse and transfers the ink to a paper sheet, which consumes less power. This makes it possible to record on plain paper.

FIG. 6 shows a main part of a conventionally proposed thermal recording apparatus. This thermal recording apparatus includes a supply roll 12 around which an ink donor film (IF) 11 is wound. Ink donor film 11 fed from supply roll 12
Is passed between a thermal head 13 and a pressure roll 14 disposed opposite to the thermal head 13 and wound up by a winding roll 15. The recording paper 16 sent out one by one from a supply tray (not shown) joins the ink donor film 11 in front of the thermal head 13. Then, the ink donor film 11 is actuated by the action of the pressure roll 14.
At the same time, it is pressed against the recording surface of the thermal head 13. At this time, the recording surface of the thermal head 13 generates a heat pulse corresponding to the image information, and the ink of the corresponding portion of the ink donor film 11 is transferred to the recording paper 16. Recording paper 16
After that, it is separated from the ink donor film 11 and
It is discharged to 17. The portion of the ink donor film where recording has been completed is sequentially wound up after the winding roll 1.

In such a thermal recording apparatus, an apparatus main body 21 is provided with a lid 22 which can be freely opened and closed, and is used for replacement of the ink donor film 11 and various adjustments of the recording section 23. The pressure roller 14 is attached to the lid 22 via a support member 24, and the driving force of the motor 25 is transmitted by driving means such as a belt (not shown). That is, in the state where the lid 22 is closed, the pressure roll 14 comes into contact with the recording paper 16 or the donor film 11 and can transport it in the direction of arrow 26 (the transport direction of the ink donor film 11). I have. On the other hand, when the lid 22 is open, the main power supply 27 of, for example, +24 V is turned off by an interlock switch (not shown), so that power is not supplied to the motor 25 and the like. This is to ensure safety when making adjustments and the like inside the apparatus.

Note that the apparatus is also provided with an auxiliary power supply 28. The auxiliary power supply 28 is, for example, a power supply of +5 V, and always supplies power to a logic circuit and a nonvolatile memory (both not shown) even when the main power supply 27 is off.

In such a thermal recording apparatus, when the lid 22 is opened, the ink donor film 11 is slackened, and even when the lid 22 is closed, the slack is not completely eliminated. Therefore, when recording is started after the lid 22 has been opened and closed once, wrinkles may be generated on the ink donor film 11 between the supply roll 12 and the thermal head 13, thereby causing uneven density or wrinkles in the recording. In some cases, image distortion occurred.

Therefore, conventionally, as shown in FIG. 7, when the lid 22 is opened (step) and the main power supply 28 is turned off (step), even if the lid 22 is closed again (step),
The main power supply 28 is kept off (step), and when the recording operation starts, the main power supply is turned on (step). Then, the pressure roll 14 is rotated for a predetermined time to move the ink donor film 11 to the arrow 26. Predetermined amount in direction (approx. Several cm)
It was moved (step). Then, after the slack of the ink donor film 11 is eliminated, the actual recording is started (step).

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In such a thermal recording apparatus, when the signal for recording does not arrive, the main power supply 28 is turned off to reduce the power consumption of the entire apparatus. This is commonly done. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, in a standby state where the main power is off (step; Y), when the recording operation is started by pressing a start button (not shown) or the like (step; Y). 7 cannot be distinguished from the steps in FIG. 7, and after the main power is turned on (FIG. 8 step), the transport of the ink donor film 11 is started (step). That is, in this apparatus, the ink donor film 11
Is carried out, and the ink donor film 11 is wasted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal recording apparatus that does not wastefully consume an ink donor film even when a main power supply is turned on and off except for opening and closing a lid.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In the present invention, (a) a thermal head, (b) a supply roll around which an ink donor film is wound, and (c) an ink donor film fed from the supply roll are wound around the supply roll. A take-up roll to be taken; (d) a lid which is openably and closably disposed on an apparatus body incorporating at least the thermal head, the supply roll and the take-up roll; and (e) a pivot of the lid facing the thermal head. Attached freely, while keeping the state of non-contact with the ink donor film applied between the supply roll and the take-up roll with the lid open,
A pressure roll that comes into contact with the ink donor film spread between the supply roll and the take-up roll with the lid closed, and presses against the thermal head so as to loosen the ink donor film, and (f) detection that detects opening and closing of the lid Means, (g) storage means for storing the detection result of the detection means, (h) conveyance means for conveying the ink donor film fed from the supply roll in the feeding direction, and (iii) storage means for storing the lid. Drive control means for driving the transport means for a predetermined time prior to the start of the recording operation by the thermal head when the opening / closing is stored; and (nu) clearing the stored content of the storage means when the drive control means operates. And means are provided in the thermal recording apparatus.

That is, according to the present invention, the fact that the lid 22 is opened or closed is stored in the storage means, and when there is the fact that the lid 22 is opened or closed, the ink donor film is transported by a predetermined amount in the feeding direction prior to the start of the recording operation. Further, when there is no fact that the lid 22 is opened or closed, such a preliminary conveyance of the ink donor film is not performed. Since the storage contents of the storage means are cleared prior to the start of the recording operation, the conveyance for correcting the slack of the ink donor film 11 is started only when the opening / closing is performed.

"Example" Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to examples.

FIG. 1 shows a thermal recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description of these parts will be omitted as appropriate.

In this thermal recording apparatus, the driving force of the motor 25 is transmitted to the pressure roll 14 as described above, and also transmitted to the take-up roll 15 via a mechanical slip clutch 31. On the other hand, a mechanical brake 32 is attached to the supply roll 12 side, and a predetermined braking is applied to the feeding of the ink donor film 11. The main power supply 27 supplies +24 volts or +5 volts to the driver 33 and the control unit 34 of the motor 25 as shown by the broken line in the figure.

On the other hand, the auxiliary power supply 28 is a backup power supply,
5 volts are supplied to the storage unit 35. A detection signal is input to the storage unit 35 from a detection unit 37 that detects opening and closing of the lid 22. The detection signal 38 is also supplied to the control unit 34, and the main power supply 27 is turned off when the lid 22 is opened. The apparatus main body 39 is provided with a supply tray 41, and the recording paper 16 laminated thereon is fed one by one by a feed roll (not shown).

FIG. 2 specifically shows the configurations of the detection unit and the storage unit in the thermal recording apparatus.

A detection unit 37 for detecting opening and closing of the lid 22 (FIG. 1) is constituted by a microswitch 43 to which a pull-up resistor 42 is connected.
It becomes 5 volts (H level) and becomes 0 volts (L level) when closed. The storage unit 35 includes an inverter 44 for inputting the detection signal 38, and an output signal 45 of the inverter 44.
Is input to the trigger terminal T. The drive pulse 48 of the motor 25 is input to the reset terminal R of the flip-flop circuit 46 from the driver 33 shown in FIG. An open / close signal 49 indicating the open / closed state of the lid 22 is output from the output terminal Q. The opening / closing signal 49 is transmitted to the control unit 34 shown in FIG.
And is used for transport control of the motor 25 and the like.

FIG. 3 shows a control operation of the thermal recording apparatus based on the storage operation of the storage unit.

FIG. 7A shows the output signal 45 of the inverter 44. As shown in this figure, the output signal 45 is at the H level when the lid 22 is closed, and is at the L level when the lid 22 is closed. Now, the lid 22 is opened at time t ₁ for the replacement of the ink donor film 11, it is assumed closed again at time t _2. Then, the start pulse 51 the start button is pressed to initiate a recording operation at a time t ₃ after this has occurred to output (Fig b).

In such a case, the control unit 34 sends the lid 22
Is turned off, the main power supply 27 is turned off (FIG. 3c). The off state is maintained until the start button is pressed in order to ensure the safety of the worker and reduce the power consumption.

By the way, when the lid 22 is opened and closed once,
The output signal 45 at t ₂ rises. As a result, the flip-flop circuit 46 is set, and the open / close signal 49 changes from the L level to the H level as shown in FIG. 3D. When the start pulse 51 is supplied in a state where the open / close signal 49 is at the H level, the control unit 34 turns on the main power supply 27 on the condition of this and controls the driver 33 to drive the motor 25 for a predetermined time. As a result, the pressure roll 14 rotates for a predetermined time before the start of recording, and the slack of the ink donor film 11 between the supply roll 15 and the thermal head 13 is eliminated.

At this time, the flip-flop circuit 46 is reset by the drive pulse 48 (FIG. 3e) output from the driver 33. This is because the slackness of the ink donor film 11 is corrected by driving the motor 25 for a predetermined time, so that the stored contents are cleared. Thereafter, recording based on pressing of the start button starts. At this time, the drive pulse 48A for this is output from the driver 33.

FIG. 4 shows the operation of the thermal recording apparatus when the lid is not opened and closed.

Assuming that the lid 22 is in a closed state as shown in FIG. 2A, the output signal 45 of the inverter 44 holds the H level in this state. When the start button is pressed the start pulse 51 in order to start the recording operation at time t ₃ is output (Fig. B), the main power supply 27 is turned on and that was turned off for saving power consumption until it (FIG. 3c). If the lid has not been opened or closed since the previous recording operation,
The open / close signal 49 (FIG. 4D) indicating the open / close state of the switch 22 remains at the L level. Therefore, in this case, the operation of rotating the pressure roll 14 for a predetermined time is not performed prior to the start of recording, and the driving pulse 48A for recording is output immediately.

That is, when the main power supply 27 is turned on and off without opening and closing the lid 22, the waste of the ink donor film 11 is prevented.

FIG. 5 shows the flow of the above control operation in this embodiment. In this thermal recording apparatus, when the start of the recording operation is instructed (step), such as when the start button is pressed or recording is instructed from a host computer (not shown), the main power supply 27 is turned on (step). At the same time, the storage content of the storage unit 35 is checked (step), and if the lid 22 has been opened and closed (Y), a drive pulse 48 for removing slack in the ink donor film 11 is first output ( Step) Then, a drive pulse 48A for the original recording is output (Step).

On the other hand, if the lid 22 has not been opened or closed (Step; N), since the ink donor film 11 has not been slackened, the drive pulse 48 for recording is immediately issued.
A will be output (step).

In the above-described embodiment, the storage unit 35 is configured by the flip-flop circuit. However, for example, a nonvolatile memory may be used to store whether the lid is opened or closed. In the present embodiment, the detection unit 37 is configured by a micro switch, but other detection means such as an optical switch may be used. Furthermore, although a pulse motor is used in the present embodiment, it goes without saying that the slack of the ink donor film 11 can be similarly removed by using another motor.

As described above, according to the present invention, prior to the recording operation, it is checked whether or not the lid has been opened and closed in the past, and if necessary, the ink donor film is conveyed by a predetermined amount in the feeding direction. Therefore, even if the lid is opened and closed, no wrinkles are generated on the ink donor film during recording,
Good images can be obtained. If the lid is not opened or closed, the ink donor film is not fed in an idle manner, and the apparatus can be used economically.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 to 5 are views for explaining one embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a main part of a thermal recording apparatus, and FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detection unit and a storage unit. FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram showing a specific configuration, FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing the operation of the apparatus when the lid is opened and closed, FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing the operation of the apparatus when the lid is not opened and closed, and FIG. Is a flow chart showing the flow of the operation of this apparatus, FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventionally proposed thermal recording apparatus, FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing an operation when a lid is opened and closed by a conventional apparatus, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation when a lid is not opened / closed in a conventional device. 14 ... Pressure roll, 22 ... Lid, 25 ... Motor, 27
... Main power supply, 28 ... Auxiliary power supply, 34 ... Control unit, 35 ... Storage unit.

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A thermal head, a supply roll around which an ink donor film is wound, a winding roll for winding an ink donor film fed from the supply roll, and at least the thermal head, the supply roll and the winding roll. A lid that is openably and closably disposed on the built-in apparatus main body, and is rotatably mounted on a side of the lid facing the thermal head, and is hung between the supply roll and the take-up roll with the lid open. While keeping the ink donor film out of contact with the thermal head while keeping the lid closed and in contact with the ink donor film spread between the supply roll and the take-up roll to loosen it. Pressure roll, detecting means for detecting the opening and closing of the lid, and a storage means for storing a detection result of the detecting means. Transport means for transporting the ink donor film fed from the supply roll in the feeding direction, and when the storage means stores the opening and closing of the lid, the transport means prior to the start of the recording operation by the thermal head. A thermal recording apparatus comprising: a drive control unit that drives for a predetermined time; and a storage content clear unit that clears the storage content of the storage unit when the drive control unit operates.