JPH0632982B2 - Thermal transfer printer - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal transfer printer having a thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer tape such as a typewriter.

2. Description of the Related Art First, an automatic scoring device will be described as an example of a conventional thermal transfer printing device.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a conventional thermal transfer printing apparatus during an automatic scoring operation, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, and 1 is a platen. The thermal transfer tape 5 is supplied from the supply side reel 4, passes through the tape guide rollers 6 and 6 ′, and is stuck between the thermal print head 7 and the platen 1 with the paper attached to the platen 1, and then the tape guide roller 6 ", And is wound up on the winding-side reel 3 connected to the tape winding motor 2.

The operation of the automatic scoring device, which is one of the conventional thermal transfer printing devices configured as described above, will be described below.

First, during the automatic scoring operation, the thermal print head 7 is attached to the paper attached to the platen 1 via the thermal transfer tape 5, and the platen 1 is applied while applying an appropriate voltage pulse to the thermal print head 7. It is possible to draw a ruled line by moving from the position where the ruled line is drawn to the position where the ruled line is finished. The thermal transfer type tape 5 is supplied from the supply side reel 4, and the tape guide roller 6 that moves according to the change in the tension keeps the tension constant, and the thermal printing is performed at the time when it comes between the thermal print head 7 and the platen 1. The heat of the head 7 attaches it to the paper on the platen 1, passes through the thermal print head 7, and then is wound up on the winding side reel 3.

When the ruled line is drawn up to a predetermined position, the voltage application to the thermal print head 7 is stopped, and at the same time, the thermal print head 7 is lifted to complete the automatic ruled work. At this time, the tape winding motor 2 connected to the winding side reel 3 stops the winding when the voltage application to the thermal print head 7 is released.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION However, in the above-mentioned configuration, the tape guide roller 6 is the only means for eliminating the slack of the thermal transfer type tape 5 after the completion of the automatic scoring work, and in some cases it may be insufficient. The slack of the tape 5 may remain, in which case the thermal transfer tape 5 may be moved to the next automatic scoring operation or during the transfer operation.
Is caught on the platen 1, or the thermal transfer tape 5 comes off the tape guide rollers 6 ', 6 "during the next automatic scoring work and does not properly match with the thermal platen head 7 so that the ruled line cannot be drawn or is blown. Further, since the slack of the thermal transfer type tape 5 is eliminated by the tape guide roller 6 toward the supply side from the thermal print head 7, the start of the ruled line is the end of the previous ruled line during the next automatic crease operation. Since it overlaps with the heat transfer type tape 5 in the part of, the part where the heat transfer type tape 5 that has been used once is used again can be formed, and the ink is not attached at the starting part of the next ruled line, and the printing quality is deteriorated. This is a general problem of thermal transfer printers, not limited to automatic marking devices.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer printing apparatus that eliminates overlapping of thermal transfer type tapes and can reliably apply ink from the beginning during a transfer operation.

Means for Solving the Problems According to the present invention, when the voltage application to the thermal print head is released, the operation of the tape winding motor is temporarily stopped while the thermal print head is lowered, and then the thermal print head is raised. After that, a motor control means for temporarily driving the tape winding motor is provided in order to finely wind the thermal transfer tape.

Operation By configuring in this way, the slack of the thermal transfer type tape,
Also, it is possible to eliminate the overlap of the thermal transfer type tapes at the next transfer operation.

Embodiment FIG. 3 shows a state of an automatic scoring device during automatic scoring work as an embodiment of the thermal transfer printing device of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a side view of the thermal transfer printing device. In FIGS. 3 and 4, 8 is a platen, 9 is a tape winding motor, 1
0 is a take-up reel, 11 is a supply reel, 12 is a thermal transfer tape, 13, 13 ', 13 "are tape guide rollers,
14 is a thermal print head.

At the rising edge of the head-raising completion signal indicating that the thermal print head 14 has risen sufficiently, 15 is in the output state of "1" to remove the slack of the thermal transfer type tape 12 and to prevent the thermal transfer type tape 12 from overlapping in the next automatic scoring operation. This is a monostable multivibrator having a set time T1 in which the tape winding motor 9 is driven to eliminate it by a time (T1) that is in the "0" output state for a sufficient time. Reference numeral 16 is an OR gate, and 17 is a driver of the tape winding motor 9.
Reference numeral 18 is a plunger that drives the thermal print head 14 up and down, and 19 is a switch that detects the rise of the thermal print head 14.

The operation of the automatic ruled line drawing apparatus of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described below.

First, during the automatic scoring operation, the thermal print head 14 is in close contact with the paper set on the platen 8 via the thermal transfer tape 12, and the platen 8 is moved while applying a pulse of an appropriate voltage to the thermal print head 14. The ruled line can be drawn by moving the ruled line from the starting position to the ending position. In addition, the motor O
The N signal passes through the OR gate 16 and enters the driver 17 to drive the tape winding motor 9. When the ruled line is drawn to a predetermined position, the application of voltage to the thermal print head 14 is released and at the same time the thermal print head 14 is raised by the plunger 18. Motor O at this point
The N signal is released and the tape winding motor 9 is once stopped. After that, when the thermal print head 14 is completely lifted and the head lift completion signal is output from the switch 19, the output of the monostable multivibrator 15 becomes "1" at the rising of the signal, and the tape winding motor 9 is turned on again. Is driven to wind up the thermal transfer type tape 12.
Monostable multivibrator 15 has set time T1
During this period, "1" is output, but thereafter, the output returns to the "0" output state, and at this time, the tape winding motor 9 stops driving again.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, as an example of the motor control means, the tape winding motor 9 is used with the thermal print head 14 completely raised after the completion of the automatic scoring work using the monostable multivibrator 15. By providing a circuit for winding the thermal transfer tape 12 by driving for a certain period of time, it is possible to completely eliminate the slack of the thermal transfer tape 12 and the overlap of the thermal transfer tape 12 with the next automatic scoring work.

Although the platen 8 has a cylindrical shape in this embodiment,
The platen 8 may be flat.

Also, to remove the slack of the heat transfer type tape 12 and eliminate the overlap of the heat transfer type tape 12 with the next automatic scoring work,
It goes without saying that it is also possible to forcibly cancel the work due to an emergency stop during the automatic crease work.

According to the present invention, in a thermal transfer printing apparatus for transferring ink on a thermal transfer type tape to paper on a platen, when the voltage application to the thermal print head is released, the tape take-up motor is lowered while the thermal print head is lowered. Is temporarily stopped, and then the thermal print head is raised, and then the motor control means for temporarily driving the tape winding motor in order to finely wind the thermal transfer tape is provided. It is possible to eliminate the slack and overlap of the thermal transfer type tapes at the time of the next transfer operation, and to reliably apply the ink from the beginning during the transfer operation.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a conventional thermal transfer printing apparatus, and FIG.
FIG. 3 is a front view of the drawing, FIG. 3 is a control block configuration diagram of a thermal transfer printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a side view of essential parts of the thermal transfer printing apparatus of the same embodiment. 8 ... Platen, 9 ... Tape winding motor, 12 ...
Thermal transfer tape, 14 ... Thermal print head, 1
5: Monostable multivibrator.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A platen, a thermal print head for thermally transferring the ink on the thermal transfer type tape to the paper on the platen, a take-up side reel for winding the thermal transfer type tape supplied from a supply side reel, A motor for driving the take-up side reel and a head drive means for vertically moving the thermal print head are provided, and the thermal print head is lowered onto the paper on the platen via the thermal transfer tape. In a thermal transfer printing apparatus that relatively moves the platen and the thermal print head while applying a voltage to the print head, when the voltage application to the thermal print head is released, the thermal print head is lowered and the motor The operation is temporarily stopped, and then the head driving means is controlled. After raising the serial thermal printhead,
A thermal transfer printing apparatus comprising motor control means for temporarily driving the motor to perform minute winding of the thermal transfer tape.