JPH0259068B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a thermal transfer printing device useful for, for example, a ticket printing machine that prints and issues tickets using a thermal transfer film.

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional ticket printing and issuing machine that prints and issues tickets using a thermal transfer film is shown in FIG. This is a belt-shaped thermal transfer film F that is wound up into a roll with the side coated with a transfer agent facing outward and is mounted on a feeding reel 1. After passing it over arm 2,
It passes between the feed roller 3 and the pinch roller 4, is wrapped around the guide roller 5, and is sandwiched between the thermal printing head 6 and the head pressing drive roller 7, and further,
After passing over the separation roller 8, the feed roller 9
and the pinch roller 10, and after being stretched over the tension arm 11, it is wound up on the take-up reel 12. The pinch rollers 4 and 10 are urged by a spring (not shown) and constantly press the feed rollers 3 and 9. Further, the thermal printing head 6 is rotatably arranged in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure and is urged by a spring (not shown) to press the head pressing drive roller 7.

Then, the original note P supplied from the original note supply mechanism 14 is printed by the printing head 6, and after being fixed, the printed original note P is stored in a note discharge section (not shown) via the note conveyance path 15. is configured to do so.

However, in this type of ticket printing and issuing machine, the separation roller 8 that separates the band-shaped thermal transfer film F from the transfer-printed original ticket is far away from the thermal printing head 6, so it takes a lot of time to unwind the film. , the ticket is fixed or magnetically recorded and ejected to the ticket ejection port before the rewinding of the thermal transfer film is completed, which slows down the issuing speed in cases where tickets are issued continuously, and also reduces the winding process. The transfer pattern cooled down and re-adhered to the transfer film by the time it was returned, resulting in defects such as gaps in the pattern on the card surface, making it difficult to see.

This invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and it is possible to shorten the distance between the separation roller and the thermal printing head, shorten the time for rewinding the thermal transfer film, and increase the ticket issuing speed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal transfer printing device that has a simple configuration and can supply a highly reliable product at low cost.

This invention will be described with reference to an embodiment shown in the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a ticket printing and issuing machine which is an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory view showing the inside thereof, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional plan view of the thermal transfer printing mechanism. Fig. 5 is a front view of the printing head portion, Fig. 6 is a cutaway side view of the same portion, and Fig. 7 is a
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the winding mechanism of the thermal transfer film, and FIG. 9 is a rear view of the link mechanism.
A front view of the pressure fixing mechanism, FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the same,
FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional view of the writing section, FIG. 12 is a front view of the distribution gate section, and FIG.
A perspective view of the original note storage member, FIGS. 14A and 14B are a plan view and a side view of the original note, FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the printing yield of the thermal transfer film, and FIG. 16 is
FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a printing device to which an embodiment of a ticket printing and issuing machine is applied. In each figure,
128 is a ticket printing and issuing machine, and this ticket printing and issuing machine 128 has an original ticket supply mechanism 2 in the issuing machine main body 20.
1, thermal transfer printing mechanism 33, link mechanism 73, thermal transfer film winding mechanism 74, pressure fixing mechanism 9
6 and a ticket storage mechanism 127.

The issuing machine main body 20 has doors 132 and 13 on the front.
3 is attached so as to be freely openable and closable, and casters 142 are attached to the lower surface so as to be movable (see FIG. 2). As shown in FIG. 3, the original note supply mechanism 21 is arranged at the upper right side of the issuing machine main body 20 in the figure, and is adapted to feed the original notes P in the form of a belt to the thermal transfer printing mechanism 33 one by one. ing. As shown in FIGS. 14A and 14B, this original note P has one side as a printing surface Pa and the other side as a magnetic recording surface Pb.
The original note supply mechanism 21 has a hopper 22 that stores an original note P formed in advance into a card shape so that the printed surface Pa always faces upward.
In the top row of the original tickets P, which contains a large number of tickets,
A card holding member 23 is placed. This card holding member 23 has a recess 23a formed on the bottom surface in the feeding direction of the original note P, and the recess 23a serves as an escape route for a picker 25, which will be described later.
It is configured to feed out one sheet at a time up to the original sheet P at the top. Further, this card holding member 23 is formed with relief portions (not shown) for actuators of detectors 31A and 31B, which will be described later. A picker 25 and a throat knife 26, which are rotated in the direction of arrow A by a ticket feed motor 24, are arranged below the hopper 22.
When the ticket feed motor 24 operates according to the ticket issuing command, the picker 25 rotates in the direction of arrow A, and the rotation of the picker 25 causes the original ticket P to be passed one by one through the throat knife 26 and sent to a plurality of sets of feed rollers 27A, 2.
7B. This original note supply path 28 includes an original note detector 29.
is arranged, and this original note detector 29 detects 1
Detects that the sheet is fed from inside the hopper 22,
The supplied original note P is configured so that one original note P is kept waiting at a predetermined position, that is, in front of the thermal printing head 30. Further, in the lower part of the hopper 22, a shortage detector 31A for detecting a shortage of original notes P in the hopper 22 and a non-existence detector 31B for detecting a state of no original notes P in the hopper 22 are arranged, respectively. .

At the rear end of the original note supply path 28, as shown in FIGS. 3, 4, 5, and 6, there is a thermal transfer printing mechanism that thermally transfers and prints visual information on the printed surface of the original note P. 33 are arranged. This thermal transfer printing mechanism 33 performs dot matrix type thermal printing in which the thermal recording surface 30a is positioned at a desired angle so that it can come into contact with the leading end surface of the original document P supplied to the vicinity of the end of the original document supply path 28. A head 30 and a head pressing drive roller 32 are arranged opposite to the head 30, and a thermal transfer film F is stretched such that the intermediate portion thereof is in close contact with the heat generating portion 30b of the thermal recording surface 30a of the thermal printing head 30. . The head block 40 holding the thermal printing head 30 has a fourth
5 and 6, it is attached to one end of a support shaft 48 which is rotatably supported on the issuing machine main body 20, and is arranged to be rotatable in the direction of arrow I. Further, the support shaft 48 has a bearing 49
The housing 50 is inserted into the housing 50 and attached to the issuing machine main body 20 via a screw 50a, so that the housing 50 is rotatable. A lift plate 51 is pivotally attached to the support shaft 48, and a pin 52 attached to the lift plate 51 is loosely fitted into the head block 40 and is attached to the lift plate 51. A set shaft 53 is inserted through the extending portion on the side to which the pin 52 is attached. In addition, the lift plate 51
The spring 55, whose movement in one direction is restricted by the holder 54 attached to the set shaft 53, biases the stop ring 56 fitted to the set shaft 53 in the direction of arrow B. It is adapted to be inserted into a set hole 57 provided in the. Also, on the back side of the set hole 57,
A detector such as a micro switch 58 is provided to ensure that the set shaft 53 is correctly set in the set hole 57.
It is designed to detect whether or not it has been set. Reference numeral 59 in the figure indicates a head pressing spring, one end of which is hooked to the spring retainer 60 of the lift plate 51, and the other end of which is in contact with the head block 40. The biasing force 59 is applied to the headblock 40 and is biased to press the thermal printing head 30 attached to the headblock 40 against the head pressing drive roller 31. 6
1 is a holding hole provided in the issuing machine main body 20,
In this holding hole 61, the set shaft 53 is placed.
(See Figure 5). Further, a link holder 63 to which a ring pin 62 is attached is attached to the other end of the support shaft 48 via a screw 63a. One end portions of a pair of links 64 and 65 are loosely fitted and supported by the link pin 62 of the link holder 63, respectively. The other ends of the pair of links 64, 65 are attached to the pinch rollers 37, 43.
The bosses 68, 6 of the levers 66, 67 that pivotally support the
They are loosely fitted and supported by link pins 62 attached to the respective parts 9. Also, this lever 66, 67
is pivoted by a lever shaft 70 attached to the issuing machine main body 20. the lever 66,
67 bosses 68 and 69 have spring hangers 71
The spring 72 has one end attached to the issuing body 20 and the other end of the spring 72 is attached to the spring hanger 71.
The biasing force is applied by 2, and the pinch roller 37
are in contact with the return feed roller 36, and the pinch rollers 43 are in contact with the feed roller 42, respectively. The head block 40, support shaft 48, and set shaft 5 configured in this way
3. A link mechanism 73 is constituted by the link holder 63, links 64, 65, and levers 66, 67 (see FIG. 7). The link mechanism 73 is configured to bring the pinch roller 37 and the pinch roller 43 into contact with and away from the return feed roller 36 and the feed roller 42 which are rotated by the motor 46 and the transmission member 46a. The conveyance path is expanded during loading.

The thermal transfer film F has a width smaller than the width in the direction intersecting the conveying direction of the original note P, and is wound up into a roll with the transfer agent coated side facing outward and is repeatedly reeled. 34, and this feeding end is attached to the issuing machine body 2.
After the film is stretched over a tension arm 35 whose one end is rotatably supported at 0, the film passes between a return feed roller 36 equipped with a one-way clutch having a counterclockwise sliding action and a pinch roller 37, and a film no-detector is detected. 38, is passed over a guide roller 39, is sandwiched between the thermal printing head 30 and the head pressing drive roller 32, and is further pivoted to the head block 97 holding the thermal printing head 30. The tension arm 44, which has one end pivoted to the issuing machine main body 20, passes between a feed roller 42 equipped with a one-way clutch having a clockwise sliding action and a pinch roller 43. across the
It is adapted to be wound onto a take-up reel 45. The feed roller 42 and the return feed roller 36 are configured to transmit information through a transmission member such as a belt 46a on the back side, but for the thermal transfer film F, only one roller 36 or the feed roller 42 is always driven. It serves as a mechanism for transmitting force. This drive is performed by a forward/reverse motor 46 in synchronization with the head pressing drive roller 31. 47 in the figure is a film shortage detector.

Next, the thermal transfer film winding mechanism (also referred to as the thermal transfer film supply mechanism) 74 shown in FIG. 8 will be explained. A brake mechanism 76 is attached to the back side of the feed reel 34 (on the issuing machine main body 20 side). This brake mechanism 76 is connected to the reel shaft 7
An adjusting bolt 80 for adjusting the biasing force of the compression spring 79 whose movement on one side is restricted passes through the presser plate 77 that is fitted into the presser plate 77 . Reference numeral 78 denotes a brake plate, and the brake plate 78 has one side in sliding contact with the presser plate 77 and the other end in sliding contact with the feeding reel 34. By pressing the brake plate 78 through the presser plate 77 with the biasing force of the compression spring 79, the feed reel 34
The brake plate 78 also comes into pressure contact with the brake plate 78. As a result, the brake is applied by the frictional force between the brake plate 78 and the feed reel 34. 8
Reference numeral 1 denotes a lid that presses the thermal transfer film F so that it does not shift, and this lid 81 has an internal engaging projection 8.
1a is a recess 82a in the shaft core 82 of the feed reel 34
The lid 81 is configured to be detachable from the shaft core 82.
It is designed to be attached to the In addition, the shaft center 8
2, a leaf spring 83 is attached to the hub around which the thermal transfer film F is wound.
F' is arranged so that it does not rotate within the feed reel 34. Next, the operation of attaching and detaching the thermal transfer film F within the feed reel 34 will be explained. First, the lid 81 is pulled out in the direction of arrow C in the drawing, so that the engaging protrusion 81a of the lid 81 is pushed out from the recess 82a of the shaft core 82. Remove the lid 81 and screw 81b to it.
One frame 34a of the reel 34 attached via the frame 34a will come off. Next, the leaf spring 8 is attached to the shaft center 82.
Take out the empty hub F′ held through 3,
The hub F' around which a new thermal transfer film F is wound is fitted, the lid 81 having the frame 34a is engaged with the shaft core 82, and the engaging protrusion 81a is engaged with the recess 82a.

On the other hand, the mounting portion of the take-up reel 45 is constructed as follows. In other words, the issuing machine body 2
A locking mechanism 85 consisting of a leaf spring 86 and a stop fitting 87 for holding the take-up reel 45 is attached to a shaft core 84 rotatably attached to the reel shaft 75A attached to the reel shaft 75A.
The stop hole formed in the take-up reel 45 at a position opposite to the stop fitting 87 fits into the stop metal fitting 87 to set the take-up reel 45 in a fixed position, and the take-up reel 45 is configured to be detachable from the shaft core 84. has been done. Further, a leaf spring 88 is attached around the axis of the take-up reel 45, into which the leading end of the thermal transfer film is fitted. A motor 89 for driving the take-up reel 45 is disposed on the back side of the take-up reel 45, and the driving force is transmitted through a gear 90 attached to the motor shaft 89a. . Further, the brake gear 91 that meshes with the gear 90 is fitted with the presser plate 77A, and is also in sliding contact with the shaft core 84. The presser plate 77A has an adjuster bolt 80 that fits into the reel shaft 75A and adjusts the biasing force of the compression spring 79A.
A passes through the presser plate 77A by pressing the presser plate 77A with the biasing force of the compression spring 79A.
The brake gear 91 fitted with the gear 7A is pressed into contact with the brake gear 91. As a result, the driving force of the motor 89 is transmitted to the brake gear 91 via the motor shaft 89a and the gear 90, and the frictional force between the brake gear 91 and the shaft core 84 drives the shaft core 84, causing the take-up reel 45 to rotate. The drive mechanism 140 is constituted by these parts. Further, when an excessive load is applied to the thermal transfer film F wound on the take-up reel 45, that is, when the thermal transfer film F is reversely fed, the brake gear 91 and the shaft core 8
4 constitutes a slip mechanism that prevents the heat-sensitive transfer film F from breaking by dispersing excessive force when slip occurs. Reference numeral 81A denotes a lid for holding the wound thermal transfer film F in place, and the lid 81A has an internal engaging protrusion 81b that can be detachably attached to the recess 84a of the shaft core 84 of the take-up reel 45. The lid 81A is configured to be attached to the shaft core 84. Next, the operation of attaching and detaching the take-up reel 45 will be explained. First, the lid 81
When A is pulled out in the direction of arrow D in the drawing, the engaging protrusion 81b of the lid 81A is detached from the recess 84a of the shaft core 84, and the lid 81A and the screw 84b are attached thereto.
The take-up reel 45 attached via the holder will be detached. Next, remove the used thermal transfer film F wound around this winding reel 45,
Insert the empty take-up reel 45 into the shaft core 84, and close the lid 8.
The engaging protrusion 81b of 1A is engaged with the recess 84a of the shaft core 84 and held. The brake mechanism 76 of the feed reel 34 is configured to prevent the feed reel 34 from idling due to the tensile force of the thermal transfer film F being fed.

The tension arm 35 is connected to the arrow E in FIG.
When the thermal transfer film F fed out from the feeding reel 34 is reversely fed and returned, an appropriate tension is applied to the thermal transfer film F. A tension arm 35 is provided below this tension arm 35.
A detector 93 is arranged to detect the position of the
In the normal state, that is, when the thermal transfer film F is fed out or reversed and returned, the position of the tension arm 35 is determined by the detector 93.
It is located higher up and is less likely to be detected. If the thermal transfer film F breaks or becomes too slack between the feeding reel 34 and the return feed roller 36, the tension arm 35 rotates downward due to its own weight, and the detector 93
It will be detected. Further, the tension arm 44 is rotatable in the direction of the arrow J shown in the figure, and is supported by a spring (not shown).
4 is always urged in the original document transport direction, and the speed becomes slower than the winding speed of the thermal transfer film F.
It is configured to apply appropriate tension to the slack thermal transfer film F between the feed roller 42 and the take-up reel 45. Also, tension arm 4
A detector 94 for detecting the position of the tension arm 44 is disposed on the right side of the tension arm 44. When the feed roller 42 is not operating, the tension arm 44 is at a position where it is detected by the detector 94, and the roller 4
2, the thermal transfer film F is fed, the tension arm 44 is rotated to the left by the biasing force of the spring, and when it is no longer detected by the detector 94, the motor 89 is driven and the take-up reel 45 is rotated.
The thermal transfer film F is wound up. Further, as the thermal transfer film F is wound, the tension arm 44 is rotated to the right, and when detected by the detector 94, the motor 89 is stopped and the take-up reel 45 also stops rotating. It's getting old.

Furthermore, if the thermal printing film F breaks between the take-up reel 45 and the feed roller 42 for some reason, the tension arm 44 is rotated to the left by the biasing force of the spring, and the detector 94 detects a break. Since it is no longer detected, it is clear that the thermal transfer film F is cut. In addition, the separation roller 41
If the thermal transfer film F is cut between the tension arm 44 and the tension arm 44, the feed roller 42 feeds the thermal transfer film F, and when the cut end on the feed roller side passes the feed roller 42, the detector 94 is detected as described above. is detected. Further, if the thermal transfer film F breaks between the return feed roller 36 and the guide roller 39, it is detected by the film non-detector 38 and it is known that the thermal transfer film F is broken. As a result, the detector 94, the film non-detector 38, the tension arms 35, 44, etc. constitute a detection mechanism for the thermal transfer film F.

Further, in the original note transporting direction of the thermal transfer printing mechanism 33, there is a ticket transport path 95 for transporting the transfer-printed original ticket P separated from the thermal transfer film F by the separation roller 41, a pressure fixing mechanism 96, and a ticket transport path. 108 are arranged continuously, and are configured to be driven by a motor 98 through a transmission member such as a belt on the back side. The ticket conveyance path 95 is composed of a conveyance roller 99 and a variable speed feed roller 100, and conveys the transfer-printed original note P at a medium speed.
The image is transferred to a pressure fixing mechanism 96 whose details will be described later. Further, the pressure fixing mechanism 96 includes:
As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the issuing machine body 2
A fixing feed roller 101 attached to a frame 96A fixed to the frame 96A, and a pressure roller 102 of a frame 96C disposed on the lower side opposite to this and swingably attached to the frame 96A via a pin 96B. , an intermediate roller 103 in contact with the fixing feed roller 101, and a silicon-impregnated roller 104 in contact with the intermediate roller 103. Further, the frames 96A, 96C
The portion opposite to the pivot portion is biased by a biasing member such as a large number of disc springs 96D so that both rollers 101 and 102 come into contact with each other. Then, this pressure fixing mechanism 96 passes the original note P printed by the thermal transfer printing mechanism 33, which is moved by the note conveying path 95, between the fixing feed roller 101 and the pressure roller 102. At the same time, the visual information on the printed surface of the original note P is fixed by the pressure of It is designed to be transported. Note that 105 in the figure is a detector that detects that the original note P has reached the pressure fixing mechanism 96.

In addition, the ticket transfer path 108 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 11.
As shown in the figure, two pairs of upper and lower conveyor belts 106a,
106b, 107a, 107b and the extended portions of the lower conveyor belts 106a, 106b and the mutually opposing surfaces of the variable speed feed roller 109. It is designed to be transported by 110a, 110b are belt drive rollers; 111a, 111b,
112 and 113 are belt guide rollers. Further, a magnetic recording device 97 for magnetically recording machine-readable information on the magnetic recording surface of the original note P is arranged in the middle of the note transfer path 108. This magnetic recording device 97 has a structure including a write magnetic head 114 and a read magnetic head 115 provided at a subsequent stage.

Reference numeral 116 denotes a head pressing roller arranged opposite to the magnetic heads 114 and 115. Further, in the ticket transfer path 108, there is a magnetic writing timing detector 117 and a magnetic reading completion detector 118, and furthermore, a magnetic writing timing detector 117 and a magnetic reading completion detector 118 are provided to determine whether visual information is printed on the printing surface of the original ticket P by the thermal transfer printing mechanism 33. A reflective print detector 119 is provided as a print discrimination device 141 for detecting. Further, a ticket storage mechanism 127 having a ticket storage member such as a ticket storage box 120 and a sorting gate 123 is provided at the terminal end of the ticket transfer path 108.
0 is configured as shown in FIGS. 3 and 13. That is, a part of the ticket storage box 120 from which the printed and issued tickets are discharged is protruded from the left side of the ticket printing and issuing machine 128.
It is designed to make it easier to take tickets. Ticket storage box 120 having the ticket removal notch 120a
is fitted with a pin 135 inside the device 128, and is configured to be rotatable in the direction of arrow G in the figure with this pin 135 as a fulcrum. When the ticket storage box 120 is rotated in the direction of the arrow G shown in the figure, it becomes a lid that covers the ticket takeout section 136, and the ticket storage box 120 is stored in the main body 20 of the ticket printing and issuing machine 128. Therefore, there is no risk of foreign objects entering the inside of the ticket printing/issuing machine 128, and since the ticket storage box 120 does not protrude outside the device, there is no risk of damage to the operator's clothes or injury. It disappears.

Further, a solenoid 137 and a spring (not shown) are attached to the ticket storage box 120, and the solenoid 137 is connected to the operating device 129.
A power switch 139 arranged on the operation unit 138 of
It is now working properly. When the power switch 139 of the operating device 129 is turned on, the solenoid 137 is energized, and the ticket storage box 1 is stored inside the main body 20 of the ticket printing and issuing machine 128.
20 is rotated against the biasing force of a spring, and is capable of storing a completed ticket issued by the ticket printing/issuing machine 128. Further, when the power switch 139 is turned off, the solenoid 137 is deenergized, and the ticket storage box 120 is rotated by the biasing force of the spring to become a lid that covers the winding outlet 136, and the ticket printing and issuing machine 12
8. Therefore, the ticket storage box 120 can be rotated simply by operating the power switch 139 at the start and end of the machine, which not only saves the effort of manually rotating it, but also prevents foreign objects from entering the ticket printing/issuing machine 128. There is no risk of intrusion, etc., and since the ticket ejection port does not protrude outside the device, there is no risk of damage to the operator's clothing or injury. As described above, it is possible to protect the printing and issuing machine main body 20 housed inside the ticket printing and issuing machine 128, and to ensure the safety of the operator and the like. In the above embodiment, the ticket storage box 120 is automatically operated using a combination of the solenoid 137 and a spring, but the configuration is not limited to this, and the configuration may be such that the operation is performed manually. It may also be a combination of the following. A sorting gate 123 is provided between the ticket transfer path 108 and the ticket storage box 120.
is provided, and this distribution gate 123
is adapted to be driven by a solenoid 124. That is, the gate 123 normally guides the tickets conveyed through the ticket transfer path 108 to the ticket storage box 120 via the spring 123a. On the other hand, when the solenoid 124 is actuated, the gate 123 rotates in the direction of the arrow H against the biasing force of the spring 123a, thereby guiding the conveyed original note P to the take-in path 121 and transferring it to the second note. It is designed to be stored in a storage box 122. In addition, 125 indicates that the original ticket P is in the ticket storage box 125.
This is an ejection detector that detects when a ticket is ejected. The separation roller 41 is a thermal transfer film F.
This is a roller for separating the original document P on which transfer printing has been carried out.While pushing the original document P with the separation roller 41, the thermal transfer film F is transferred by the feed roller 42 above the separation roller 41. The original document P and the heat-sensitive transfer film F are inevitably separated by pulling.

Next, the ticket issuing operation of the device will be explained.

In response to a print start signal from an operation unit (not shown), one original document P waiting in the original document supply path 28 is sent to the head pressing drive roller 31 in synchronization with the start of the operation of the picker 25. The thermal film F fed by the feed roller 42 and the head pressing drive roller 31 start feeding at the same conveying speed as the original note P just before the original note P reaches the head pressure drive roller 31. Then, the thermal transfer film F is superimposed on the original document P, and is conveyed while being pressed against the thermal printing head 30 by the head pressing drive roller 31. Next, the thermal printing head 30 performs thermal transfer printing of visual information from the thermal transfer film F side using a dot matrix method. The timing of this thermal transfer printing is determined by operating a timer by detecting the trailing edge of the original note P with a note detector 29 that detects pooled notes. Original ticket P even after printing is completed
The thermal transfer film F is moved to a position beyond the separation roller 41, and the original document P on which the visual information has been transferred is separated from the thermal transfer film F, and is held between the conveyance roller 99 and the speed-changing feed roller 100.
The ticket is taken into the ticket conveyance path 95 with the speed changed from 50 mm/sec to 500 mm/sec. On the other hand, thermal transfer film F
is sent to the take-up reel 45 side by the feed roller 42 and is paid out from the pay-out reel 34, and as the tension arm 44 rotates to the left, the motor 89 is driven by the signal from the detector 94 and the take-up reel is 45. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15, the thermal transfer film F requires a printing area of only the L dimension for one original document P, and due to the separation between the original document P and the thermal transfer film F, the next printing area is The waste generated between the two, that is, the dimension l, cannot help but become extremely large. In order to separate the thermal transfer film F from the original document P, the thermal transfer film F is fed until it completely passes through the separation roller 41, so that the distance between the heat generating part 30b of the thermal printing head 30 and the separation roller 41 is determined by the dimension l. The distance is configured to make this dimension l as small as possible to improve the yield of the thermal transfer film F. That is, at the same time that the original note P is taken into the note conveyance path 95, the forward/reverse motor 46 is reversely rotated, and the thermal transfer film F is reversely conveyed by the return feed roller 36 and returned by a predetermined amount.

Further, the original note P separated from the thermal transfer film F and taken into the note conveyance path 95 is transferred to the conveyance roller 9
9. Convey at medium speed with the non-printed side edges held by the variable speed feed rollers 100;
The printed surface of the original ticket P is transferred to the pressure fixing mechanism 96, and at the same time the visual information printed on the printed surface of the original ticket P is fixed, silicone is applied to the printed surface to make it sufficiently durable for automatic ticket gates as mechanical reading devices. Obtainable.

Next, the original document P having passed through the pressure fixing mechanism 96 and on which the visual information has been fixed is transferred to the conveyor belts 106a, 106.
b and the variable speed feed roller 109,
The ticket is taken into the ticket transfer path 108 in a state where the speed is changed from mm/sec to 1500 mm/sec, and two pairs of upper and lower belts 106
A, 106b, 107a, and 107b hold both side edge portions and convey at high speed. Then, the original note P is conveyed with its magnetic recording surface facing the magnetic recording device 97, and after machine-readable information is magnetically recorded by the write magnetic head 114, the original note P is read and checked by the read magnetic head 115, and at the same time, it is sent to the print detector. 119, the level of the reflected light is checked, and it is detected that the printed surface of the original note P is printed. Then, the ticket is detected by the discharge detector 125 and discharged to the ticket discharge port 120. Thus, the information magnetically recorded on the original note P is read by the magnetic head 1.
15, and if it is determined that there is an abnormality, or if the level of reflected light is checked by the print detector 119 and it is determined that there is no printing, the solenoid 124 is energized. The sorting gate 123 rotates in the direction of the arrow H in the figure, and abnormal bills conveyed through the ticket transfer path 108 are taken into the ticket take-in path 121 and stored in the ticket storage box 122. Further, the sorting gate 123 is connected to the ticket transfer path 108 via a solenoid 124 deenergized by a timer.
The original note P being conveyed is discharged to a note discharge port 120. By automatically storing abnormal tickets in the aircraft in this way, abnormal tickets can be identified at a glance, and furthermore, it is possible to identify abnormal tickets from among a large number of tickets at the ticket ejection slot when consecutive tickets are issued. This will save you the trouble of searching.

Further, when the thermal transfer film F mounted on the feed reel 34 is detected to be absent by the film non-detector 38, a means is taken to send a signal to an operation section (not shown) to notify an attendant. Then, a new thermal transfer film F is loaded.

Next, a method of loading the thermal transfer film F will be explained.

By pulling out the set shaft 53 attached to the lift plate 51 which is pivoted to the support shaft 48 from the set hole 57 and rotating it in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure, the pin 52 loosely fitted into the head block 40 will come into contact with the head block 40. Since the contact head block 40 also rotates at the same time, the support shaft 48 also rotates. As a result, the link holder 63 attached to the other end of the support shaft 48 rotates and comes into contact with the pinch roller 37 and the feed roller 42 which are in contact with the return feed roller 36 through a pair of links 64 and 65. Each of the pinch rollers 43 is rotated in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure to separate them. Furthermore, by fitting the set shaft 53 into the holding hole 61, the pinch rollers 37 and 43 are moved back and forth between the return feed roller 36 and the feed roller 4.
2, and the head block 40
The thermal printing head 30 attached to the head is held and fixed at a distance from the head pressing drive roller 31. Thereafter, after loading a new thermal printing film F according to the loading path, the set shaft 53 inserted into the holding hole 61 is pulled out and inserted into the set hole 57, and the pinch rollers 37, 43,
The thermal printing head 30 returns to its original state, the thermal transfer film F is stretched, and preparations for issuing the next ticket are completed. In this way, the link mechanism 7 connects the thermal transfer printing mechanism 33 and the thermal transfer film winding mechanism 74.
3, a loading path for the thermal transfer film F can be formed with one touch, and the thermal transfer film F can be loaded with a single touch.
This makes it extremely easy to load the device into the device.

It should be noted that the above embodiment is merely an example, and it goes without saying that each member can be replaced with another member having the same function. For example, in the above embodiment, the fixing mechanism is a pressure fixing mechanism, but the fixing mechanism is not limited to this, but a flash fixing mechanism having a xenon flash tube is used, and the fixing mechanism is a pressure fixing mechanism. The visual information on the original note may also be fixed.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a printing system mechanism to which a ticket printing and issuing machine is applied, showing a ticket printing and issuing machine 128 in which the issuing machine main body 20 is housed, an operating device 129 with a built-in control circuit, and an operating device. CRT display 13 that displays the guidance operated by 129
0 and a charge display 131 that displays the charge of the issued ticket.
The system consists of the following, and the ticket printing and issuing machine 128, CRT display 130, and fee display 131 are each controlled by the operating device 129.

FIG. 17 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing another embodiment of the ticket printing and issuing machine of the present invention, FIG. 18 is an enlarged view of the main part of the same example, and FIG. 19 is a control circuit diagram of the same example. , this is the same as in the previous embodiment, with the addition of a second original note supply mechanism 154 for supplying an original note P of a desired length. That is, the reel 153 is attached to the bottom right end of the issuing machine body 20 in the drawing. The reel 153 is loaded with a belt-shaped original note material P' that is wound up into a roll with the heat-sensitive printing surface facing outward. An original note material shortage detector 155 is disposed adjacent to the reel part 153, and the original note material shortage detector 155 is arranged adjacent to the reel part 153.
It has become possible to detect a shortage of P′. Further, an alignment roller 156 is arranged at a position close to the reel portion 153.
A conveyance roller 158 consisting of a presser roller 157a and a fixed-size feed roller 157b is disposed at a position spaced apart from 6 by a desired distance. The fixed size feed roller 157b is driven via a fixed size feed drive motor 160, which will be described later.
The original document material passing between the presser roller 157a and the presser roller 157a
It is configured to send P′. Between the conveyance roller 158 and the alignment roller 156, the original document material is
An original note material presence/absence detector that detects the presence or absence of P′, for example, an optical detector 159 consisting of a light emitting element and a light receiving element
is located.

The rear part of the conveyance roller 158 (alignment roller 1
56), a pair of feed rollers 160
a, 160b are arranged, and a cutter portion 161 having a pair of cutter blades 161a, 161b is provided between the conveyance roller 158 and the feed rollers 160a, 160b at upper and lower positions sandwiching the conveyance path. . The feed rollers 160a, 160
A printing section 162 that heat-sensitively prints visual information on the printing surface of the original note material P' is disposed at the rear part of b (on the opposite side of the cutter section 161). That is, the supply path 16 formed by the feed rollers 160a and 160b
Near the end of 3, there is a dot matrix type thermal printing head 30 whose heat-sensitive recording surface is positioned at an angle where it can come into contact with the leading end surface of the original note material P' to be supplied.
and a head pressing drive roller 32 are arranged to face each other. The feed rollers 160a, 160
An original document pool detector, for example, an optical detector 164 consisting of a light emitting element and a light receiving element, is arranged between the printing head 30 and the printing head 30.

As shown in FIG. 18, the heat generating part 30a of the printing head 30 and the center of the head pressing drive roller 32 are arranged so as to coincide with each other, and the distance between the center line M and the cutter part 161 is equal to the short paper P' It is arranged at a distance L longer than the length X of b and shorter than the length Y of the long ticket P'a. In addition, the original ticket material
P' is being transported to a position distant from center line M by L. That is, the distance from the cutter portion 161 is the same as the length Y of the short ticket P'a.

The second original note supply mechanism configured in this way has 1
54, it is selectively used alternately with the first original note supply mechanism 21, and the second original note supply mechanism 154 further selectively supplies short notes P'a and long notes P'b. This makes it possible to print and issue at least three types of tickets with different lengths. In other words, when the signal of the short note P′a or the long note P′b is input to the control unit 171, the second original note supply mechanism 154
The printing unit receives the output signal from the control unit 171.
The signal is inputted to the cutter 161, fixed-size feed motor 170, and original bill pool detector 166, respectively, and is configured to operate each member. However, short ticket P′a
When the output signal from the control section 171 is input to the control section 171, the cutter section 16 is
1 operates to cut the original note material P' to the length X of the short note P'a, and then the short note P'a is transferred to the printing section, and at the same time, the fixed length feed motor 170 is driven. The original note material P' is transported by a fixed-size feed roller 158, and stopped when the leading end has been transported to a predetermined position. On the other hand, the cut short note P'a is printed by the printing head 30 and sent to the next pressure fixing mechanism 96. Further, when the signal of the long note P′b is input to the control unit 171, the sizing drive motor 170 is driven by the output signal from the control unit 171 to rotate the sizing feed roller 157b. The original note material P' is sent out by the rotation, and its leading end enters the printing section 162, and printing in the printing section 162 is started in response to a signal from the control section 171. Then, fixed size feed roller 157b
When the printing unit 16 sends the length Y of the long note P′b,
2 is temporarily stopped, and the sizing drive motor 170 is also stopped. When the printing section 162 and the sizing drive motor 170 stop, an output signal from the control section 171 causes the cutter blade 1 of the cutter section 161 to
61a and 161b operate to convert the original note material P' into a long note.
After cutting P′b to length Y, control section 1 is cut again.
The output signal from 71 is input to the printing section 162 and the fixed size drive motor 170, and the printing section 162 starts printing, and the fixed size drive motor 170 is driven to move the leading edge of the original note material P' to a predetermined position. It will be transported to. Further, the long paper P'b printed and cut by the printing section 162 is conveyed to the next pressure fixing mechanism.

In addition, by configuring the conveying path that holds the thermal transfer film in such a way that the thermal transfer printing mechanism is rotated and expanded when the thermal transfer film is loaded, the thermal transfer film can be easily attached. can.

The above points are different from those of the embodiment described above, and the other points are almost the same as the embodiments described above, so a detailed explanation thereof will be omitted.

As explained above, in this invention, the thermal printing mechanism is equipped with a separation roller that separates the printed base paper and the transfer film, and a mechanism that reversely transports the transfer film by a predetermined amount. Since the distance to the printing head can be shortened, the ticket issuing speed can be increased, and since the configuration is simple, highly reliable products can be supplied at low cost. . Moreover, since the thermal head and separation roller are close to each other,
Immediately after the pattern is transferred to the base paper, the thermal transfer film and the printed base paper are separated. Therefore, it also has the feature that there is less risk that the transferred pattern will cool down and re-adhere to the transfer film, thereby destroying the pattern.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing an example of a conventional thermal transfer printing device, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the thermal transfer printing device of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the inside of the same. 4 is a cross-sectional plan view of the thermal transfer printing mechanism, FIG. 5 is a front view of the print head, FIG. 6 is a cutaway side view of the same portion, and FIG. 7 is a link mechanism. 8 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the thermal transfer film winding mechanism, FIG. 9 is a front view of the pressure fixing mechanism, FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the same, and FIG. 11 is a writing section. Fig. 12 is a front view of the sorting gate part;
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the original note storage member, FIGS. 14A and B are a plan view and side view of the original note, FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the printing yield of the thermal transfer film, and FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing the printing yield of the thermal transfer film. , a system configuration diagram showing one embodiment of the thermal transfer printing device; FIG. 17 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing another embodiment of the thermal transfer printing device of the present invention;
FIG. 18 is an enlarged view of the main part of the same example, and FIG. 19 is a control circuit diagram of the same example. 20...Issuing machine main body, 21...Original note supply mechanism,
22... Hopper, 25... Picker, 30... Thermal printing head, 33... Thermal transfer printing mechanism, 34...
...Feeding reel, 35, 44... Tension arm, 40... Head block, 45... Take-up reel, 64, 65... Link, 73... Link mechanism, 76... Brake mechanism, 85... Lock mechanism, 92...Slip mechanism, 96...Pressure fixing mechanism, 104...Silicon impregnated roller, 120...
Ticket storage box, 128...Ticket printing and issuing machine, 130...
CRT display.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A base paper supply mechanism that supplies a base paper having a printed surface, and a thermal printing head that superposes the printed surface of the base paper supplied from the base paper supply mechanism with a thermal transfer film interposed therebetween. , a thermal transfer printing mechanism that thermally transfers necessary visual information, and a separation roller that separates the thermal transfer film from the transferred base paper sent out together with the thermal transfer film;
In a thermal transfer printing device having a thermal transfer film supplying mechanism that supplies the thermal transfer film to a thermal transfer printing mechanism, the separation roller is attached to the thermal transfer printing mechanism and is sent to a conveying path for the thermal transfer film. A return roller is provided, and means is provided for driving the return roller so as to transport the heat-sensitive transfer film backward by a predetermined amount after the polymer of the base paper and the heat-sensitive transfer film passes the separation roller. Features of thermal transfer printing equipment.