JP4309374B2 - Thermal transfer ink film and thermal transfer recording apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermal transfer ink film and a thermal transfer recording apparatus for a thermal transfer recording apparatus mounted on a facsimile machine, a printer, a copying machine, and the like.

  In general, this type of thermal transfer ink film includes a film supply reel, a film take-up reel, and a film body wound on the film supply reel and having a tip attached to the film take-up reel. This thermal transfer ink film can be replaced by the user of the apparatus.

  On the other hand, the thermal transfer recording apparatus is a means for engaging and rotating the film take-up reel of the thermal transfer ink film mounted on the apparatus, and winding up the film body wound around the film supply reel onto the film take-up reel. And means for feeding the recording paper, and a thermal head that generates heat in a pattern based on the input data.

  A film body of a thermal transfer ink film is disposed between the recording paper and the thermal head, and the ink contained in the film body heated by the thermal head that generates heat in a pattern based on the input data is transferred onto the recording paper in the pattern. Is done.

  In such a configuration, due to the inertia of the film supply reel, the film body wound up on the film take-up reel may be unwound more than necessary from the film supply reel and may be loosened. In this case, printing failure may occur. For this reason, it is necessary to prevent excessive rotation of the film supply reel and the bending of the film body by applying a load in the rotation direction of the film supply reel. Conventionally, as a means for preventing over-rotation of a film supply reel, for example, the following structure is adopted.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which a support structure including a metal spring that generates a braking force against rotation of a film supply reel is detachably attached to a thermal transfer recording apparatus.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a thermal transfer recording apparatus in which a film supply reel bearing or friction pad that generates a braking force against the rotation of the film supply reel is used in a cassette type thermal transfer ink film apparatus housed in a case. A configuration provided for is disclosed.

  Patent Document 3 discloses a configuration in which a case is provided with a film supply reel bearing that generates a braking force against the rotation of the film supply reel in a cassette-type ink film housed in the case.

JP 2003-80783 A JP-A-2-164574 JP-A-6-87255

  However, the configuration disclosed in Patent Document 1 is a complicated structure consisting of a large number of parts called a support having a metal spring, and when replacing the ink film, the user needs to remove the support. It is also necessary to do this.

  The configuration disclosed in Patent Document 2 is based on a cassette-type ink film, and is disadvantageous in terms of cost compared to a non-cassette-type ink film that does not require a case. Moreover, it is considered that it is difficult for the film supply reel bearing or the friction pad to generate a certain amount of friction force until the ink film is used up.

  The configuration disclosed in Patent Document 3 is based on a cassette-type ink film, and is disadvantageous in terms of cost compared to a non-cassette-type ink film that does not require a case.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer ink film having no case, which has a simple configuration, a light burden on the user at the time of replacement, and a thermal transfer in which the film body is not unnecessarily drawn out from the film supply reel and bent. An ink film is provided.

According to the present invention, a non-cassette having no case , comprising a film supply reel, a film take-up reel, and a film body wound on the film supply reel and having a tip attached to the film take-up reel. The thermal transfer ink film of the type is made of a single material, and is always in a state where the axial end region of the film supply reel is constantly pressed by the biasing force generated by the spring portion , and is integrated with the film supply reel. in further comprising a brake member mounted on said film supply reel, with the recess extending annularly on the peripheral surface of the end region of the film supply reel is formed, the brake member from entering the recess By providing the elastic part, the brake member is prevented from falling off from the film supply reel. When the thermal transfer ink film is attached to a thermal transfer type recording apparatus, the brake member is fixed to a thermal transfer type recording apparatus, a thermal transfer ink film is obtained which is characterized in providing an always load in the rotational direction of the film supply reel .

  The spring part of the brake member may function as the elastic part.

The brake member may be made of resin or metal. Further, the film supply reel, the steel cylinder body paper, Ri consists a resin brake member mounting portion that is mounted on an end portion of the tubular member, the brake member mounting portion, the said film supply reel It may act as an end region . At this time, the brake member mounting portion and the brake member may be made of the same kind of resin.

Alternatively, the entire film supply reel may be made of resin. In this case, when further the brake member is also made of resin, the film supply reel and the brake member may be a resin made of the same.

  Furthermore, the brake member may include a wedge-shaped tip portion that can be inserted into a recess formed in the thermal transfer recording apparatus, and a hooked base portion whose movement is restricted by the recess when inserted.

  The present invention also provides a thermal transfer recording apparatus that uses the thermal transfer ink film interchangeably.

  The thermal transfer ink film according to the present invention is a thermal transfer ink film having no case and can be manufactured at a low cost with a simple configuration, and the film body is unnecessarily drawn out from the film supply reel even though the burden on the user at the time of replacement is light. Will not bend and will not cause printing defects.

  The present invention will be described below.

  The thermal transfer ink film according to the present invention has a brake member that can be detachably fixed to the thermal transfer recording apparatus while being mounted in a state where the rotation of the film supply reel is allowed to the axial end region of the film supply reel. The brake member is made of a single material, and includes a spring portion that applies a load in the rotation direction of the film supply reel by pressing the end region of the film supply reel.

  As described above, since the thermal transfer ink film according to the present invention is in the form of a single assembly to which the brake member is attached, the user can easily attach and detach the thermal transfer ink film to and from the thermal transfer recording apparatus. Moreover, when the thermal transfer ink film is mounted on the thermal transfer recording apparatus, the brake member is held and fixed by the thermal transfer recording apparatus, and the inertia in the unnecessary rotation direction of the thermal transfer ink film is regulated by the fixed brake member. That is, both the thermal transfer recording apparatus and the thermal transfer ink film have a large number of parts as in the conventional example, and there is no need to provide a complicated brake structure.

  In this thermal transfer ink film, an end portion of the film supply reel is formed with a recess extending in an annular shape on its peripheral surface, and the brake member has elasticity that enters into the recess while allowing the film supply reel to rotate. The brake member may be prevented from falling off from the film supply reel. Furthermore, the spring part of the brake member may function as an elastic part. Furthermore, the brake member may include a wedge-shaped tip portion that can be inserted into a recess formed in the thermal transfer recording apparatus, and a hooked base portion whose movement is restricted by the recess when inserted.

  As a result, the brake member does not easily come off from the thermal transfer ink film, and the wedge-shaped tip portion provides an insertion guide when mounted, and the handleability is excellent. Further, the brake member of the mounted thermal transfer ink film is securely held and fixed by the thermal transfer recording apparatus.

  In addition, the brake member is made of resin, and the film supply reel is composed of a paper cylinder and a brake member attachment part attached to the end of the cylinder, and the brake member attachment part is the same type as the brake member. It may be made of resin. Alternatively, the brake member and the film supply reel may be made of the same kind of resin.

  In this way, by sharing the material of the components of the present thermal transfer ink film having a small number of components, it is easy to separate dust when the used thermal transfer ink film is discarded.

  The present invention also provides a thermal transfer recording apparatus that uses the thermal transfer ink film interchangeably.

  This thermal transfer recording apparatus suppresses unnecessary rotation of the film supply reel despite the fact that the structure of the portion that accommodates the thermal transfer ink film is simple, and as a result, normal printing can be performed without the film body being bent. realizable.

  Next, more specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a main part of a facsimile apparatus as a thermal transfer recording apparatus to which a thermal transfer ink film according to this embodiment is attached and detached. 2A, 2B, and 2C show the main part of the thermal transfer ink film according to the present embodiment, its brake member, and the thermal transfer recording apparatus equipped with the thermal transfer ink film.

  Referring to FIG. 1 and FIGS. 2A to 2C, the thermal transfer ink film 20 is wound around a film supply reel 21, a film take-up reel 22, and a film supply reel 21 as in the prior art. And a film body 23 having a tip attached to the film take-up reel 22. The film supply reel 21 includes a paper cylinder and a brake member mounting portion 24 that is fixedly mounted to an end of the cylinder. The brake member mounting portion 24 is made of, for example, polystyrene (PS). An annular recess 241 is formed on the peripheral surface of the brake member mounting portion 24. The film take-up reel 22 includes a paper cylinder and a passive gear 25 fixedly attached to the end of the cylinder. The passive gear 25 is made of, for example, polypropylene.

  On the other hand, the thermal transfer type recording apparatus 10 has a supply reel accommodating portion 11 for accommodating a film supply reel 21 and a take-up reel accommodating portion 12 for accommodating a film take-up reel 22 as accommodating portions for the thermal transfer ink film 20. Yes. The take-up reel accommodating portion 12 is engaged with the passive gear 25 of the film take-up reel 22 of the thermal transfer ink film 20 mounted on the apparatus, and rotationally drives the film body to be wound around the film supply reel 21. A drive gear 13 is provided to wind up 23 onto the film take-up reel 22. Between the supply reel accommodating portion 11 and the take-up reel accommodating portion 12, a line-type thermal head 16 that generates heat in a pattern based on input data is provided. A platen 15 for feeding the recording paper 50 and pressing the recording surface against the thermal head 16 with the film body 23 of the thermal transfer ink film 20 in between is also detachably mounted between the two accommodating portions. A passive gear 151 is provided at the end of the platen 15. The platen 15 is rotationally driven by the drive gear 14 that meshes with the passive gear 151. A brake member accommodating portion 111 for accommodating a later-described brake member 26 of the thermal transfer ink film 20 and an eaves support portion 112 at the upper end of the brake member accommodating portion 111 are formed at the end of the supply reel accommodating portion 11. The accommodating portion of the thermal transfer ink film 20 is covered with an openable / closable lid (not shown) except for the insertion portion of the recording paper 50.

  The thermal transfer ink film 20 is further mounted on the brake member mounting portion 24 fixed to the end region in the axial direction of the film supply reel 21 while allowing the film supply reel 21 to rotate, while the brake member of the thermal transfer recording apparatus. It has the brake member 26 which can be fixed in the accommodating part 111 so that removal is possible. The brake member 26 is made of, for example, polyoxymethylene (POM), and applies a load in the rotation direction of the film supply reel 21 by pressing the brake member mounting portion 24 in the end region of the film supply reel 21 in the radial direction. Three cantilever spring portions 263 are provided. The magnitude of the load applied to the film supply reel 21 is determined by the friction coefficients of the brake member mounting portion 24 and the brake member 26, the diameter of the bottom surface of the annular groove portion 241 of the brake member mounting portion 24, and the cantilever spring portion 263. It is set in advance in consideration of size, shape, contact area, pressing allowance size, and the like. Although the brake member 26 is not attached to the thermal transfer ink film 20 in FIG. 2A, the brake member 26 is actually attached to the brake member attachment portion 24, that is, takes the form of a single assembly. Marketed as thermal transfer ink film 20.

  As described above, the annular recess 241 is formed in the brake member mounting portion 24 fixed to the end region of the film supply reel 21. The brake member 26 includes a tip of a cantilever spring portion 263 as an elastic portion that enters the annular recess 241 in a state in which the rotation of the film supply reel 21 is allowed, and the brake member 26 is prevented from dropping from the film supply reel 21. Is prevented. Since the tip of the cantilever spring portion 263 is tapered and the edge of the brake member mounting portion 24 is chamfered, the cantilever spring portion 263 of the brake member is not damaged when the thermal transfer ink film 20 is assembled. Easy to install. Further, when it is necessary to remove the brake member 26 when the thermal transfer ink film is used up and discarded, the user can easily remove the brake member.

  The brake member 26 includes a wedge-shaped tip 261 that can be inserted into the recess 111 formed in the thermal transfer type recording apparatus without any delay, and the brake member 26 inserted at a fixed position in the recess 111 of the brake member housing 111. And a hooked base portion 262 whose movement is restricted by the hook support portion 112. Further, although not shown, the hooked base portion 262 supported at a fixed position in the hook support portion 112 may be restrained by the above-described openable / closable recording device lid or the like so that the hooked base portion 262 does not fall upward. Good. In the present invention, the wedge shape includes all shapes that taper as approaching the tip, and therefore the tip portion 261 of this example, which is circular when viewed from the side, also has a wedge shape.

  Hereinafter, the replacement method and operation of the thermal transfer ink film 20 will be described.

  The user opens a lid (not shown) of the thermal transfer recording apparatus 10. Remove the platen 15 and remove the used ink film. Then, the new thermal transfer sink film 20 is accommodated in the take-up reel accommodating portion 12 and the film supply reel 21 in the supply reel accommodating portion 11. At this time, the brake member 26 is easily mounted in the brake member accommodating portion 111 due to the shape of the tip end portion 261 thereof. The hooked base 261 is set on the hook support 112. The user attaches the platen 15 and closes the lid of the thermal transfer recording apparatus 10.

  During the printing operation, the film body 23 of the thermal transfer ink film 20 is wound on the film take-up reel 22 according to the movement of the recording paper 50, and the film body 23 is supplied from the film supply reel 21. At this time, the cantilever spring portion 263 of the brake member 26 applies a frictional force to the brake member mounting portion 24 fixed to the end of the film supply reel 21, so that the film supply reel 21 does not rotate excessively. Unnecessary bending or loosening of the film body does not occur.

  The used thermal transfer ink film 20 is removed from the thermal transfer recording apparatus 10 and then decomposed according to the material according to the garbage separation method prescribed for each municipality, and sent to disposal or recycling.

  Note that the cylinder of the film supply reel may be made of a resin such as PS similarly to the brake member mounting portion. From the viewpoint of recycling, the cylinder and the brake member mounting portion may be made of the same type of resin, or the three parts of the cylinder, the brake member mounting portion, and the brake member may be made of the same type of resin.

  Further, in the embodiment, the film supply reel was constituted by a paper cylinder and a resin brake member mounting portion fixed to the end portion thereof, but in the present invention, the film supply reel is A single unit made of resin in which the tube portion and the brake member mounting portion are integrated may be used. At this time, from the viewpoint of recycling, the single film supply reel and the brake member may be made of the same kind of resin.

  Further, the spring portion of the brake member is not limited to the cantilever spring that presses the outer peripheral surface of the film supply reel or the brake member mounting portion, and presses the inner peripheral surface or end surface of the film supply reel or the brake member mounting portion. The spring may be a double-supported spring or a spiral spring.

  In this example, a cantilever spring for applying a load is used as a structure for preventing the brake member from dropping from the film supply reel. However, a part having elasticity dedicated to preventing the drop may be formed in the brake member.

  The material of the brake member is preferably made of resin from the viewpoint of ease of manufacture and sharing of the material with the film supply reel or the brake member mounting portion, but may be made of metal.

  When the brake member, film supply reel, and brake member mounting part are made of resin, a material that can obtain the required coefficient of friction is basically selected. However, friction causes significant wear and a lot of wear powder is generated. Is preferably avoided.

  As a resin material of the brake member, polypropylene (PP), acrylonitrile / butadiene / styrene polymer (ABS), etc. can be used in addition to POM. Note that POM is preferable from the viewpoint of wear resistance and self-lubricating properties. In addition to PS, PP, ABS, or the like can be used as the resin material for the brake member mounting portion. Furthermore, PP, ABS, etc. can be used in addition to PS as the resin material for the cylinder of the film supply reel.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the technical scope described in the claims. Needless to say. For example, the present invention can be applied not only to a facsimile machine but also to a thermal transfer recording apparatus mounted on a printer, a copying machine, or the like.

1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a thermal transfer recording apparatus according to the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure for demonstrating the thermal transfer ink film and thermal transfer type recording apparatus of this invention, (a) is a perspective view of a thermal transfer ink film, (b) is a side view of a brake member, (c) is the thermal transfer with which the thermal transfer ink film was mounted | worn. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Thermal transfer recording apparatus 11 Supply reel accommodating part 111 Brake member accommodating part 112 Trap support part 12 Take-up reel accommodating part 13 Drive gear 14 Drive gear 15 Platen 151 Passive gear 16 Thermal head 20 Thermal transfer ink film 21 Film supply reel 22 Film take-up Reel 23 Film body 24 Brake member mounting part 241 Annular recess 25 Passive gear 26 Brake member 261 Tip part 262 Base with flange 263 Cantilever spring part 50 Recording paper

Claims (10)

In a non-cassette type thermal transfer ink film without a case, having a film supply reel, a film take-up reel, and a film body wound on the film supply reel and having a tip attached to the film take-up reel,
The film supply reel is made of a single material and is in a state where the axial end region of the film supply reel is always pressed by an urging force generated by a spring portion and is integrated with the film supply reel. further comprising a brake member mounted to,
The film of the brake member is provided with an annular recess formed on the peripheral surface of the end region of the film supply reel, and an elastic part that the brake member enters into the recess. Dropping from the supply reel is prevented,
The thermal transfer ink film, wherein when the thermal transfer ink film is mounted on a thermal transfer recording apparatus, the brake member is fixed to the thermal transfer recording apparatus and constantly applies a load in a rotation direction of the film supply reel. The thermal transfer ink film according to claim 1, wherein the brake member constantly presses an outer peripheral surface, an inner peripheral surface, or an end surface of the end region of the film supply reel.   The thermal transfer ink film according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the spring portion of the brake member is in the form of a cantilever spring, a doubly supported spring, or a spiral spring. The thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the spring portion of the brake member functions as the portion having elasticity. The thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the brake member is made of resin. The thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the brake member is made of metal. The film supply reel includes a paper cylinder and a resin brake member mounting portion mounted on an end of the cylinder, and the brake member mounting portion is the end region of the film supply reel. the thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 6 serve as. The thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 6 , wherein the film supply reel is made of resin. The brake member is a thermal transfer type recording apparatus and a distal end of the wedge which can be inserted into recess formed in claim 1 to 8 and a flanged base movement is restricted by the recess when inserted The thermal transfer ink film according to any one of the above. Thermal transfer recording apparatus for interchangeably using thermal transfer ink film according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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