JP3472040B2 - Recording apparatus, recording method, and ribbon cassette - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording apparatus and a ribbon cassette, and more particularly to a recording apparatus and a recording method for recording using a ribbon cassette containing a thermal sublimation transfer ink ribbon, and a recording apparatus or a recording method thereof. Regarding the ribbon cassette used.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, a thermal head having a plurality of heating elements as recording heads arranged in an array is provided in front of a platen for supporting recording paper and an ink ribbon coated with a desired ink. A thermal transfer printer that records an image such as a desired character on a sheet by selectively heating the heating elements arranged in the thermal head based on the print information while reciprocating along the platen with the carriage. However, because of its high printing quality, low noise, low cost, and ease of maintenance, it is widely used as an output device for computers, word processors and the like.

The ribbon cassette mounted on such a thermal transfer printer has a pair of rotatable reels in its main body case, and the ink ribbons are wound from both ends on these reels. There is. When the ribbon cassette is mounted on the carriage of the thermal transfer printer, one reel serves as a supply reel that supplies the ink ribbon to the thermal head arranged downstream in the traveling direction, and the other reel serves as a portion used for recording. It is a reel for winding up the ink ribbon.

In the ribbon running path between the supply reel and the take-up reel, a part of the ink ribbon is led out to the outside of the main body case, and the thermal head is in the ink ribbon lead-out portion. Are arranged so as to face the paper via the ink ribbon.

In such a ribbon cassette, a pair of rotatable pinches are provided between the supply reel and the ink ribbon lead-out portion and between the take-up reel and the ink ribbon lead-out portion. A pinch roller arranged on the supply reel side keeps the load on the sending side constant, and a pinch roller arranged on the winding reel side reliably peels the ink ribbon used for recording from the paper. Is configured.

[0006]

By the way, the carriage on which the ribbon cassette is mounted and the thermal head is arranged is a carriage drive motor and is arranged on the winding reel for winding the ink ribbon and on the winding side. The pinch rollers are configured to be driven by respective winding drive motors, so that the drive operation timings of the carriage drive motor and the take-up motor are the same or the drive operation start timings of the take-up motor are advanced. Was controlled. Therefore, the ink ribbon is maintained in a tensioned state between the thermal head and the winding pinch roller, and the ink ribbon is stably wound.

However, when a heat-meltable ink ribbon is used, maintaining the ink ribbon in a tensioned state between the thermal head and the winding pinch roller as described above results in stable ribbon running. However, when recording is performed using a heat sublimable ink ribbon, it is necessary to supply a large amount of printing energy in order to perform good recording, and the ink is always provided between the thermal head and the winding pinch roller during recording. If the ribbon is kept in a tensioned state, there is a disadvantage that the ink ribbon will be broken due to heat damage. Further, in order to supply a large amount of printing energy, the moving speed (V2) of the carriage (thermal head)
And it is necessary to slow the ink ribbon transport speed (V1) of the pinch roller for winding the ink ribbon.
In this case, it is necessary to slow down the rotation speeds of the carriage drive motor and the take-up drive motor, and the vibration of the motor is transmitted to the thermal head through the ink ribbon stretched in a tension state, and the quality of the recorded image is remarkably deteriorated. I found that the problem occurs.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points. Even when the recording speed is slowed and sufficient printing energy is supplied to the thermal sublimation ink ribbon, the damage to the ink ribbon is small, and the motor is not damaged. recording equipment and recording it is possible to obtain a good recorded image as a possible cold time of peeling of the stable ink ribbon without any influence of vibration
It is an object to provide a method and a ribbon cassette .

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a recording apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention is provided with a carriage driving means for reciprocating a carriage and a ribbon cassette mounted in the carriage. And a take-up reel driving means for rotating a take-up reel among a pair of reels for winding the ink ribbon, and a pulling means for separating the recorded ink ribbon arranged in the ribbon cassette from a recording sheet and carrying it. A recording apparatus comprising: a pinch roller drive means for rotating a peeling pinch roller; and a control section for controlling the drive of these drive means, wherein the control section is such that the drive start timing of the pinch roller drive means is a carriage. The drive is controlled to be delayed from the drive start timing of the drive means, and the drive stop of the pinch roller drive means is performed.
The stop timing is the drive stop timing of the carriage drive means.
It is characterized in that it is configured to control so as to be delayed from the imming .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording device, wherein a carriage driving means and a take-up reel among a pair of reels for winding an ink ribbon, which are arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage, are rotated. Take-up reel driving means, pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller arranged in the ribbon cassette for peeling and transporting an ink ribbon after recording from recording paper, and drive control of these driving means. And a control unit for performing the above, wherein the control unit sets the relationship between the moving speed V1 of the carriage and the conveying speed V2 of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller to be V1> V2. Control and stop the driving of the pinch roller driving means.
The imming is a drive stop timing of the carriage driving means.
It is characterized in that it is configured to control so as to be delayed from the ringing .

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording device including a carriage driving means for reciprocating a carriage, and a pair of reels for winding an ink ribbon arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage. A take-up reel driving means for rotating the take-up reel, and a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller which is arranged in the ribbon cassette and peels and conveys the recorded ink ribbon from the recording paper. A recording apparatus having a control unit that controls the drive of these drive units, wherein the control unit controls the drive start timing of the pinch roller drive unit to be delayed from the drive start timing of the carriage drive unit. to, the moving speed V1 before Symbol carriage, the conveying speed of the ink ribbon of the pinch roller the peeling V2 Relationship, and controlled to be V1 ≧ V2, further, drive stop motor of the pinch roller drive means
The imming is a drive stop timing of the carriage driving means.
It is characterized in that it is configured to control so as to be delayed from the ringing .

[0012] In any of the recording apparatus described above, it is possible to slacken the ink ribbon between said thermal head and peeling pinch roller, also, the Thermal
There is a slack between the head and the peeling pinch roller.
The ribbon can be wound up .

The recording apparatus of claim 4 is the same as that of claim 1.
A recording device according to any one of claims 3 to 4;
The control unit stops the driving of the pinch roller driving means.
Stop is delayed from the drive stop of the carriage drive means
Time (T2) and start of driving of the pinch roller driving means
Is a predetermined time after the drive start of the carriage drive means
The relationship of (T1) is controlled so that T2 ≧ T1.
It is characterized by being configured as follows .

Also in the recording apparatus of claim 4 , the server
Increase the space between the round head and the peeling pinch roller.
The bon can be slackened, and the slack ink ribbon can be completely wound up between the thermal head and the peeling pinch roller.

A recording apparatus according to a fifth aspect is the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects,
The control unit is configured to control such that the relationship between the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller and the winding speed V3 of the ink ribbon of the winding reel is V2 <V3. Is characterized by
A recording apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the recording apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein a slip applied to the ink ribbon by an elastic member that is in pressure contact with the peeling pinch roller. The relationship between the force (F1) and the rotational load (F2) for winding the ink ribbon on the winding reel by the winding reel driving means is as follows.
It is characterized in that the control is performed so that F2> F1.

According to these claims 5 or the recording apparatus according to claim 6, wherein with slack of the ink ribbon between the thermal head and the peeling pinch roller, and the winding pinch roller and the take-up reel An ink ribbon can be stretched between them.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, the peeling pinch roller for rotating the peeling pinch roller, which is arranged in the ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage of the recording device and separates and conveys the recorded ink ribbon from the recording paper. The drive start timing of the pinch roller drive means is delayed from the drive start timing of the carriage drive means for reciprocating the carriage, and the pinch roller drive means is driven.
The stop timing is the key to move the carriage back and forth.
The recording method according to claim 8 is characterized in that it is delayed from the drive stop timing of the carriage driving means, and the ink ribbon after recording is arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage of the recording apparatus. the conveying speed of the ink ribbon peel pinch roller for peeling to transport the recording sheet, slower than the moving speed of the carriage then
At the same time, a pin that rotates the peeling pinch roller is used.
The drive stop timing of the punch roller drive means
Stopping the driving of the carriage driving means for moving the ridge back and forth
It is characterized by delaying the timing .

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a peeling pinch roller for rotating a peeling pinch roller, which is arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on a carriage of a recording device and separates and conveys an ink ribbon after recording from a recording sheet, is carried out. The drive start timing of the pinch roller drive means is delayed from the drive start timing of the carriage drive means that reciprocates the carriage, and the conveyance speed of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller is slower than the movement speed of the carriage , Further, the drive stop of the pinch roller drive means
Set the stop timing to the carriage that reciprocates the carriage.
It is characterized in that it is delayed from the drive stop timing of the ridge drive means .

[0019] In any of the recording methods described above, it is possible to slacken the ink ribbon between said thermal head and peeling pinch roller, also, the Thermal
There is a slack between the head and the peeling pinch roller.
The ribbon can be wound up .

The recording method according to claim 10 is
The recording method according to any one of claims 7 to 9.
The drive stop of the pinch roller drive means is
A predetermined time that is later than the drive stop of the carriage drive means,
The driving of the pinch roller driving means starts the carriage driving
Being longer than the predetermined time that is delayed from the start of driving the means
Is characterized by.

[0021] Also in the recording method according to claim 10, wherein the support
Ink between the round head and the peeling pinch roller.
The ribbon can be slackened, and the slack ink ribbon can be completely wound up between the thermal head and the peeling pinch roller.

The recording method of claim 11 is the method of claim
The recording method according to any one of claims 7 to 10 , wherein the feeding speed of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller is set lower than the winding speed of the ink ribbon of the winding reel. The recording method according to claim 12 is the recording method according to any one of claims 7 to 11 , wherein the ink ribbon is wound around the winding reel. The rotation load for this purpose is set to be larger than the slip force applied to the ink ribbon by the elastic member that is in pressure contact with the peeling pinch roller.

According claim 11 was or is a recording method according to claim 12, together with the slack of the ink ribbon between said thermal head and peeling pinch roller, and said take-up pinch roller and the take-up reel An ink ribbon can be stretched between them, and the ink ribbon can be completely wound up.

A ribbon cassette according to a thirteenth aspect is reciprocally movable along a platen and is detachably mounted on an upper surface of a carriage on which a thermal head is mounted, and an ink ribbon is wound in a case body. Was done 1
A pair of supply reel and take-up reel are arranged, a supply pinch roller is arranged on the ink ribbon supply side of the thermal head mounted on the carriage, and an ink ribbon take-up side is arranged on the thermal head. A ribbon cassette having a peeling pinch roller and a plurality of guide rollers arranged in the running path of the ink ribbon, wherein the winding angle of the ink ribbon is 90 degrees with respect to the peeling pinch roller. The elastic member is pressed against the secured portion through the ink ribbon, and the slip force applied to the ink ribbon by the pressure contact is applied to the winding reel by the winding reel of the recording apparatus. It is characterized in that it is configured to be smaller than the rotational load required for winding.

The ribbon cassette according to claim 14 is
The ribbon cassette according to claim 13 is characterized in that the ink ribbon is a heat sublimable ink ribbon in which a heat sublimable ink layer is coated on a surface of a heat resistant film base material.

Also in these ribbon cassettes, an ink ribbon can be stretched between the peeling pinch roller and the winding reel.

[0027]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a plan view of an essential part shown by omitting an upper case of a ribbon cassette used in a thermal transfer printer showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 (a) is a plan view showing the shape of a leaf spring. FIG. 2 (b) is a front view showing the shape of the leaf spring, and FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing the main part of the thermal transfer printer of this embodiment in which the ribbon cassette is mounted.

As shown in FIG. 1, a ribbon cassette 1 used in a thermal transfer printer (hereinafter, referred to as a printer) of the present embodiment is a plane composed of an upper case and a lower case (only the lower case is shown) which are paired with each other. Inside a substantially rectangular case body 2, a pair of rotatably supported reels 3, a pair of rotatably supported pinch rollers 4, and a plurality of rotatably supported ribbon paths are provided. And a guide roller 5 of.

The pair of reels 3 are formed in a substantially cylindrical shape, and thermal sublimable ink ribbons 6 are wound around the outer peripheral surface of each reel 3 from both ends. When the pair of reels 3 is mounted on the carriage 7 of the printer in which the ribbon cassette 1 is used, one reel 3 shown on the left side in FIG. 1 winds the ink ribbon 6 of the portion used for recording. The take-up reel 3a is the take-up reel 3a, and the other reel 3 shown on the right side in FIG. 1 is the supply reel 3b for supplying the ink ribbon 6 for recording.

Further, a plurality of key grooves 8, 8 ... Are formed in a spline shape at intervals in the circumferential direction on the inner peripheral surface of each reel 3, and the winding reel shown on the left side in FIG. The inside of the inner peripheral surface of 3a is a winding hole 9 into which a winding bobbin 25, which will be described later, disposed on the carriage 7 of the printer shown in phantom in FIG. The inner side of the inner peripheral surface of the supply reel 3b shown on the side is a supply hole 10 with which the supply bobbin 27 is similarly engaged.

As described above, the pair of pinch rollers 4 are formed in a substantially cylindrical shape. When the pair of pinch rollers 4 are mounted on the carriage 7 of the printer, the pair of pinch rollers 4 shown in FIG.
In FIG. 1, the pinch roller 4 shown on the left side is a peeling pinch roller 4a for peeling off and winding up the ink ribbon 6 of the portion used for recording from the paper, and the pinch roller 4 shown on the right side in FIG. Supply pinch roller 4 for applying a predetermined load (back tension) to 6
It is assumed to be b. The inside of the inner peripheral surface of the peeling pinch roller 4a shown on the left side in FIG. 1 has a winding roller drive shaft 2 to be described later, which is disposed on the carriage 7.
6 is a winding engagement hole 11 for engagement, and the inside of the inner peripheral surface of the supply pinch roller 4b shown on the right side in FIG. The engagement hole 12 is formed.

Further, in the case main body 2 of the ribbon cassette 1 on the side facing the platen 21 of the printer shown by the imaginary line in FIG. It is formed, and the middle portion of the ink ribbon 6 is led out in the recess 15.

Then, the ink ribbon 6 extends from the supply reel 3b through the guide roller 5a along the outer periphery of the supply pinch roller 4b, and through the guide roller 5b into the concave portion 15.
Of the peeling pinch roller 4a through the guide roller 5c and the guide roller 5d.
It is adapted to be wound up on the winding reel 3a via. In this embodiment, the guide roller 5d is disposed inside the case body 2 with respect to the peeling pinch roller 4a, and the ink ribbon 6 is approximately half (180 °) of the outer circumference of the peeling pinch roller 4a. It is designed to be wrapped around.

Each pinch roller 4 and ink ribbon 6
Means that the back surface of the ink ribbon 6 which is not coated with ink is in contact.

Further, in the ribbon cassette 1 of this embodiment, the case body 2 has two leaf springs 16A and 16B.
Is provided. Of these, the leaf spring 16A is a leaf spring as a tension applying member that applies a tension to the supplied ink ribbon 6 by pressing it against the guide roller 5a via the ink ribbon 6, and also the leaf spring 16A. The spring 16B is used for recording when the peeling pinch roller 4a is pressed against the peeling pinch roller 4a at a portion where the ink ribbon 6 is wound by 90 ° or more via the ink ribbon. The leaf spring 16B applies tension to the ink ribbon that is about to be ejected. Hereinafter, these leaf springs 16A,
Collectively referred to as 16B.

As shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), the leaf springs 16 are engaged at one end with the leaf springs 16 for engaging the case body 2 of the ribbon cassette 6. The stopper 16a is formed, and the other end of the press contact portion 1 presses against the ink ribbon 6, which is an object to be pressed, by its elastic force.
6b is formed. A felt slip member 17 for pressing the entire width of the ink ribbon 6 in the width direction is disposed on the surface of the pressure contact portion 16b facing the ink ribbon 6. The locked portion 16a is the leaf spring 16
Is formed by bending an end portion of the case into a U-shape, and the dimension in the height direction is formed by cutting into the outer peripheral wall 2a of the case main body 2 for locking the leaf spring 16 when the ribbon cassette 6 is assembled. The height of the engaging portion 18 is smaller than that of the engaging portion 18, and the leaf spring 16 is fixed by engaging the engaged portion 16a with the engaging portion 18.

In the present embodiment, the leaf spring 1 is
A locking portion 18A for locking the locked portion 16a of 6A is formed near the central portion of the recess 15 of the case body 2, and the leaf spring 18a extends from the locking portion 18a to the guide roller 5a. It is fixed so as to extend in the arrangement direction. A locking portion 18B that locks the locked portion 16a of the one leaf spring 16B is formed in the central portion of the side wall 2a of the case body 2 on which the winding reel 3a is disposed. The spring 16B is configured such that only the pressure contact portion 16b is inserted into the case main body 2 through the opening 19 that opens to the side of the side wall 2a of the case main body 2 where the platen 13 is disposed. It is arranged along the outside of 2a.

In the thermal transfer printer shown in FIG. 3, a flat platen 21 is arranged at a desired position on a frame (not shown) so that its recording surface 21a is substantially vertical. The guide shaft 2
2 is arranged in parallel with the platen 21. The carriage 7 is attached to the guide shaft 22 at an appropriate position. Further, the carriage 7 is not shown at 1
An appropriate drive belt (not shown) wound around a pair of pulleys is driven by an appropriate drive means (hereinafter, referred to as a carriage drive motor) such as a stepping motor (not shown) to move along the guide shaft 22. It can be reciprocally driven. Further, an FPC 23 that transmits electric power, control commands and the like from a control unit 20 provided in the thermal transfer printer to a desired mechanism in the carriage 7 is provided via one end of the carriage 7.

The carriage 7 is provided with a thermal head 14 as a recording means fixed to a thermal head mount 24 so as to face the platen 21. The thermal head 14 is provided with a plurality of heat generating elements arranged in an array that selectively generate heat based on desired recording information input by an appropriate input device such as a keyboard (not shown). Also, the thermal head mount 24
Is a platen 2 by a well-known head drive mechanism (not shown).
The thermal head mounting base 24 is configured to be moved toward and away from the platen 21 so that the thermal head 14 moves toward and away from the platen 21.

A winding bobbin 25 and a winding roller drive shaft 26 projecting from the upper surface of the known carriage 7 are provided on the carriage 7 as an ink ribbon running device.
Similarly to the take-up mechanism composed of
A supply mechanism composed of a supply bobbin 27 and a supply roller drive shaft 28 protruding from the upper surface of is provided. The winding bobbin 25 and the winding roller drive shaft 26 are provided with a well-known friction mechanism so as to obtain a stable torque.

Then, the ribbon cassette 1 is attached to the carriage 7.
Is mounted, the winding bobbin 25 is engaged with the winding hole 9 of the ribbon cassette 1, and the winding roller drive shaft 2
6 is a winding engagement hole 1 of the peeling pinch roller 4a
1, the supply bobbin 27 is engaged with the supply hole 10 of the ribbon cassette 1, and the supply roller drive shaft 28 is engaged with the supply engagement hole 12, whereby the ink ribbon 6
Is run in the direction indicated by arrow A in FIGS. 1 and 3. In addition, in the present embodiment, the winding reel 3a is wound via the winding bobbin 25,
Further, the peeling pinch roller 4 disposed on the winding side
Reference numeral a is constituted by a gear connection (not shown) so as to be rotationally driven by a ribbon winding drive motor (not shown) via the winding roller drive shaft 26. In addition, the winding reel 3a and the peeling reel 3a are arranged so that the winding conveyance speed V3 of the ink ribbon 6 by the winding reel 3a becomes higher than the ribbon conveyance speed V2 of the peeling pinch roller 4a (V3> V2). The outer diameter of the pinch roller 4a is set. The supply bobbin 27 and the supply roller drive shaft 28 are configured to be rotatable via known friction mechanisms.

Further, in the present embodiment, the thermal head 14 for recording is set in the controller 20.
As shown in the operation sequence of FIG. 4, the carriage drive motor is driven first, and then the thermal head 14 is activated. The energization is started, and the winding motor is controlled to be driven after a lapse of a predetermined time T1 from the start of driving the carriage driving motor.

Further, in this embodiment, in order to apply sufficient thermal energy for recording to the ink ribbon 6, the control unit 20 separates the carriage 7 from the moving speed V1 (recording speed). Pinch roller 4
The relation with the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon 6 of a is V1 ≧ V
2, that is, the moving speed V1 of the carriage 7
Ink ribbon 6 of pinch roller 4a for peeling off
Is controlled to be equal to or lower than the feeding speed V2. When the drive start timings of the carriage driving motor and the winding motor are the same, the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon 6 of the peeling pinch roller 4a becomes slower than the moving speed V1 of the carriage 7 (V1> It is necessary to control V2).

Regarding the timing of stopping the energization of the thermal head 14 and the operation stop timing of each of the motors, first, the energization of the thermal head 14 is stopped,
Next, the drive of the carriage drive motor is stopped, and the drive of the pinch roller drive motor and the winding motor is controlled after a lapse of a predetermined time T2 from the stop of the drive of the carriage drive motor. At this time, the predetermined time T
2 is set in advance so as to be longer than the predetermined time T1.

Next, the operation of the recording apparatus of this embodiment having the above-mentioned structure will be described.

Carriage 7 of the printer having the above-mentioned configuration
Then, the ribbon cassette 1 accommodating the above-described thermal sublimation ink ribbon 6 is mounted. At that time, the winding bobbin 25 of the carriage 7 engages the winding hole 9 of the ribbon cassette 1, and the winding roller drive shaft 26 of the carriage 7 engages the winding pinch roller 4a of the ribbon cassette 6 for winding. In the hole 11, the supply bobbin 27 of the carriage 7 is in the supply hole 10 of the ribbon cassette 1, and the supply roller drive shaft 28 of the carriage 7 is in the supply engagement hole 1 of the ribbon cassette 7.
The thermal head 14 is inserted into the recess 15 formed in the case main body 2 of the ribbon cassette 1 via the ink ribbon 6 and the paper drawn out from the recess 15. The facing of the platen 21 against the platen 21 is as described above.

When the information necessary for recording is transmitted from the control unit 20 to the printer side, first, the thermal head 14 of the printer is brought into pressure contact with the platen 21, and then the carriage drive motor is turned on. Become. Then, the carriage 7 moves along the platen 21 to move the ink ribbon 6 of the ribbon cassette 1 of the present embodiment from the supply reel 3a to the guide rollers 5a and 5b.
The concave portion 15 which becomes the insertion portion of the thermal head 14 via the
In the thermal head 1 which is led to the outside of the case main body 2 and is energized to the heating element in accordance with a desired recording signal here.
Record the paper according to 4. After recording, the ink ribbon 6 is pulled back into the main body case 2, and the guide roller 5c and the peeling pinch roller 4a are drawn.
And it winds up on the winding reel via the guide roller 5d.

The peeling pinch roller 4a obtains a peeling force for peeling the ink ribbon 6 from the recording paper used for recording by the rotational force of the winding roller driving shaft 26 on the carriage 7 with which the peeling pinch roller 4a is engaged. It works. The drive of the winding motor that rotates the winding roller drive shaft 26 is controlled to start after the lapse of a predetermined time T1 from the start of the drive of the carriage driving motor. Means that the ink ribbon 6 is only fed out by the traveling of the carriage 7 without being wound for a predetermined time T1, and the ink ribbon 6 has a portion recorded by the thermal head 14 and a peeling pinch roller 4a. This will cause slack between the two. By controlling in this manner, the recording paper and the ink ribbon can be separated from each other while the ink ribbon 6 is sufficiently cooled, and further, the fluctuation of the rotation speed of the pinch roller 4a and the ink ribbon It is possible to prevent the stretching vibration from affecting the carriage 7 and causing uneven printing.

Further, since the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon 6 of the peeling pinch roller 4a is controlled to be slower than the moving speed V1 of the carriage 7, the ink ribbon 6 always has a slack in recording. In this state, the peeling pinch roller 4a peels off the recording portion. Therefore, for the ink ribbon 6,
Even if sufficient thermal energy for recording is applied, the ink ribbon 6 is not damaged because a peeling force is applied in a state where it is cooled and the damage is recovered, and sufficient thermal energy for recording is applied. Therefore, it is possible to obtain good recording results.

On the other hand, the peeling pinch roller 4a.
On the other hand, the pressure contact portion 16b of the leaf spring 16A is pressed via the ink ribbon 6, and thereby a load is applied to the ink ribbon 6. Therefore, when the ink ribbon 6 is wound by the rotation of the winding reel 3a, the ink ribbon 6 peeled off by the peeling pinch roller 4a is wound on the winding reel 3a.
At this time, the pinch roller 4a is wound.
At the contact portion of the pressure contact portion 16b, a tension with respect to the winding force is applied to the ink ribbon 6 by the urging force of the leaf spring 16. Further, in the present embodiment, the pinch roller 4a and the take-up reel 3a.
Between the ink ribbon 6 and the peeling pinch roller 4a, the portion where the ink ribbon 6 is wound 90 ° or more is pressed against the peeling pinch roller 4a via the ink ribbon 6, so that the ink ribbon 6 wound on the winding reel 3a is The peeling pinch roller 4a and the take-up reel 3a are wound with a constant tension applied.

As described above, when the stable winding operation is performed, problems such as winding deviation or winding thickening can be eliminated.

In the present embodiment, after the energization of the thermal head 14 based on the recording information is stopped and the driving of the carriage driving motor is stopped, the pinch roller driving motor and the winding motor are wound after a predetermined time T2 has elapsed. It is controlled to stop the driving of the pickup motor. The predetermined time T2 is set to be longer than the predetermined time T1 from the driving start of the carriage drive motor to the driving of the pinch roller drive motor and the winding motor as described above, and the carriage 7 moves. Speed V
In the printer of the present embodiment, the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon 6 of the peeling pinch roller 4a is controlled to be slower than that of 1.
The length of the ink ribbon 6 slackened between the peeling pinch roller 4a and the peeling-off pinch roller 4a is longer when recording is stopped than when recording is started. Therefore, the slack ink ribbon 6 is wound around the winding reel 3a. Of course, the required time is longer than the initial predetermined time T1. By controlling in this manner, it is possible to prevent the excess ink ribbon 6 from being drawn out in a slack state from the ribbon cassette 1 after the recording is completed. Although the slack of the ink ribbon 6 increases as the carriage 7 travels, the slack that occurs when recording in units of one line does not affect the recording even if the slack is maximized. Adjusting to eliminates this problem.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the winding motor and the pinch roller drive motor are used as means for slackening the ink ribbon 6 between the thermal head 14 and the peeling pinch roller 4a for performing cold peeling. There are two means, that is, a means for shifting the drive start timing of the carriage 7 and a means for controlling the feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon 6 of the peeling pinch roller 4a to be slower than the moving speed V1 of the carriage 7. Only one of the means may be taken. In this case, when the means for shifting the drive start timing of the winding motor and the pinch roller drive motor is selected, the predetermined time T
It goes without saying that 2 may be set to be the same as the predetermined time T1.

Further, as another means for applying tension to the ink ribbon 6 when the ink ribbon 6 is wound on the winding reel 3a, there is the following means.

That is, drive motors for driving the winding reel 3a and the peeling pinch roller 4a are separately provided, and the ink ribbon 6 of the peeling pinch roller 4a is fed by the control unit 20 of the recording apparatus. The rotation speeds of the separate drive motors are controlled so that the speed V2 becomes lower than the winding speed V3 of the ink ribbon 6 by the winding bobbin 25 (V2 <V3), and at the same time, the peeling pinch roller 4a is pressed against the peeling pinch roller 4a. The relationship between the slip force F1 generated by the leaf spring 16A and the rotational load F2 of the winding bobbin 25 is F1 <F2 . Of course, the ribbon cassette 1 having a tension applying member such as a leaf spring 16A that applies a slip force F1 larger than the rotational load F2 of the recording apparatus in advance may be used.

With this structure, even if slack occurs between the portion recorded by the thermal head 14 and the peeling pinch roller 4a, the peeling pinch roller 4a and the winding reel 3a. Since the ink ribbon 6 is wound in a state in which a tension is always applied, problems such as misalignment of the ink ribbon 6 and thickening of the ink ribbon 6 can be eliminated.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, but various modifications can be made as necessary. For example, setting the feeding speed of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller to be slower than the winding speed of the ink ribbon of the winding reel does not require controlling the rotation speed of the driving means as described above. By increasing the outer diameter of the winding reel, conversely, the winding speed of the ink ribbon of the winding reel can be increased.

[0058]

As described above, the recording apparatus according to the present invention
The recording method and the ribbon cassette make it possible to apply sufficient heat energy for recording to the thermally sublimable ink ribbon, to enable cold peeling of the recording paper and the ink ribbon, and This makes it possible to wind the ribbon on the take-up reel in a state where tension is always applied. Therefore, stable ribbon winding can be performed, and good recording results can be obtained. Produce the effect of.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a main part showing an upper case of a ribbon cassette used in a thermal transfer printer showing an embodiment of the present invention with an upper case omitted.

2A is a plan view showing a configuration of a leaf spring used in the embodiment of the ribbon cassette shown in FIG.
(B) is the front view.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a main part of a thermal transfer printer of the present embodiment in which the ribbon cassette is mounted.

FIG. 4 is an operation sequence showing timings of starting energization of a thermal head for recording and starting operation of each motor.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Ribbon cassette 2 Case body 3a Take-up reel 3b Supply reel 4 pinch rollers 4a Pinch roller for peeling 4b Winding pinch roller 5 Guide roller 6 Ink ribbon 7 carriage 8 keyway 9 Winding hole 10 Supply hole 11 Winding engagement hole 12 Supply engaging hole 14 Thermal head 15 recess 16a Fixed part 16b Pressure contact part 17 Slip member 18 Locked part 19 opening 20 Control unit 21 Platen 22 Guide shaft 23 FPC 24 mounting base 25 Bobbin for winding 26 Rolling roller drive shaft 27 Supply bobbin 28 Supply roller drive shaft

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-1-247186 (JP, A) JP-A-3-151275 (JP, A) JP-A-6-48003 (JP, A) JP-A-2- 139251 (JP, A) (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 32/00 B41J 31/00 B41J 33/14

Claims (14)

(57) [Claims] 1. A carriage driving means for reciprocally moving a carriage having a thermal head facing a platen, and a pair of reels for winding an ink ribbon arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage. A take-up reel driving means for rotating the take-up reel, a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller arranged in the ribbon cassette for peeling and carrying the recorded ink ribbon from the recording paper, and these. And a control unit that controls the drive of the drive unit, the control unit controls the drive start timing of the pinch roller drive unit to be delayed from the drive start timing of the carriage drive unit , The pinchiro
The drive stop timing of the roller drive means is set to the carriage
Control so that it is delayed from the drive stop timing of the drive means.
Recording apparatus characterized by being configured to that. 2. A carriage driving means for reciprocating a carriage carrying a thermal head facing a platen and a pair of reels for winding an ink ribbon arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage. A take-up reel driving means for rotating the take-up reel, a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller arranged in the ribbon cassette for peeling and carrying the recorded ink ribbon from the recording paper, and these. And a control unit that controls the driving of the driving unit, the control unit including: a moving speed V1 of the carriage;
The peeling pinch roller is controlled so that the relationship of the conveyance speed V2 of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller is V1> V2, and the pinch roller is driven.
The drive stop timing of the means is the carriage drive means.
The recording apparatus is configured so as to be delayed from the drive stop timing of the recording apparatus. 3. A carriage driving means for reciprocating a carriage carrying a thermal head facing a platen, and a pair of reels arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on the carriage for winding an ink ribbon. A take-up reel driving means for rotating the take-up reel, a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller arranged in the ribbon cassette for peeling and carrying the recorded ink ribbon from the recording paper, and these. a recording apparatus having a control unit which controls driving of the drive means, the control unit may drive start timing of the pinch roller driving means, in together when controlled to lag the drive start timing of the carriage drive means , the moving speed V1 before Symbol carriage, conveyance of the ink ribbon of the pinch roller said peeling Relationship of the velocity V2 is controlled to be V1 ≧ V2, further, the pinch roller driving hands
The drive stop timing of the step is determined by the carriage drive means.
A recording apparatus configured to be controlled so as to be delayed from a drive stop timing . Wherein said control unit, said pinch roller driving means stop driving a predetermined time delayed from stop driving of said carriage drive means and (T2), the start of driving of the driving start carriage driving means of the pinch roller drive means The recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the predetermined time (T1) which is delayed further is configured to control so that T2 ≧ T1. Wherein the control unit includes a feeding speed V2 of the ink ribbon of the pinch roller the peeling, the relationship of the take-up speed V3 of the ink ribbon reel winding is controlled to be V2 <V3 the recording apparatus according be configured in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in as. 6. A slip force applied to the ink ribbon by the elastic member for pressing the pinch roller peeling the pull and (F1), by the take-up reel driving means of the ink ribbon according to reel the winding relationship between the rotational load (F2) for the take-up is according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that it is configured to control such that F2> F1 Recording device. 7. A drive start timing of a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller which is arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on a carriage of a recording device and which peels and conveys an ink ribbon after recording from a recording paper. and with delayed from the driving start timing of the carriage drive means for reciprocating the carriage, said pin
The drive stop timing of the punch roller drive means
Stopping the driving of the carriage driving means for moving the ridge back and forth
A recording method characterized by delaying the timing . 8. The conveying speed of the ink ribbon peel pinch rollers disposed in the ribbon cassette conveys peeling the ink ribbon after recording the recording sheet mounted on the carriage of the recording apparatus, the carriage Slower than the moving speed of the
Drive stop of pinch roller drive means for rotating
Drive the carriage to reciprocate the carriage.
A recording method characterized by delaying the drive stop timing of the moving means . 9. A driving start timing of a pinch roller driving means for rotating a peeling pinch roller which is arranged in a ribbon cassette mounted on a carriage of a recording device and peels and conveys an ink ribbon after recording from a recording paper. Is delayed from the drive start timing of the carriage driving means for reciprocating the carriage, and the conveyance speed of the ink ribbon of the peeling pinch roller is
Set it slower than the moving speed of the carriage , and
The drive stop timing of the punch roller drive means
Stopping the driving of the carriage driving means for moving the ridge back and forth
A recording method characterized by delaying the timing . The 10. predetermined time delayed from stop driving of the drive stop of the pinch roller driving means said carriage driving means, drive start of the pinch roller drive means is longer than the predetermined time delay from the start of driving of the carriage drive means Any one of claims 7 to 9 characterized in that
Recording method described in paragraph . 11. The method of claim 7, characterized in that the feed rate of the ink ribbon of the pinch roller peeling the pull was slower than the winding speed of the ink ribbon reel winding
The recording method according to claim 10 . 12. A rotational load for the winding of the ink ribbon according to reel the winding, is larger than the slip force applied to the ink ribbon by an elastic member for pressing the pinch roller said peeling The recording method according to any one of claims 7 to 11, wherein: 13. A pair of supply reels and windings, which are reciprocally movable along a platen and detachably mounted on the upper surface of a carriage on which a thermal head is mounted, and in which an ink ribbon is wound in a case body. A take-up reel is provided, and a supply pinch roller is provided on the ink ribbon supply side of the thermal head mounted on the carriage.
A ribbon cassette in which a peeling pinch roller is arranged on the ink ribbon take-up side from the thermal head, and a plurality of guide rollers are arranged in the running path of the ink ribbon. On the other hand, the elastic member is pressed against the portion where the winding angle of the ink ribbon is 90 degrees or more via the ink ribbon, and the slip force applied to the ink ribbon by the pressure contact is caused by the winding reel of the recording apparatus. A ribbon cassette, which is configured to have a load smaller than a rotational load applied to winding the ink ribbon applied to the winding reel. 14. The heat-sublimable ink ribbon according to claim 13, wherein the heat-resistant film substrate is coated with a heat-sublimable ink layer. > The ribbon cassette shown.