JPH03169668A - Thermal transfer recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To stop a drive circuit by detecting the erroneous mounting of an ink ribbon by mounting a ribbon sensor detecting the type of the ink ribbon on a carriage loaded with a recording head and a driving stopping means for stopping printing on the basis of the signal of the ribbon sensor. CONSTITUTION:A ribbon sensor 45 is arranged at the front part of a carriage 23 and detects a color ribbon, a black ribbon and the ends of both ribbons and is composed of an optical coupling apparatus. The detection result of the ribbon sensor 45 is displayed on a display part 45a by an erroneous ribbon mounting display means 83a and the coincidence and non-coincidence of a printing mode and the mounted ribbon can be confirmed on the basis of the detection result and the completion of the ribbon can be informed. A reflecting plate 46 is provided to the second paper guide plate 38 in opposed relation to the ribbon sensor 45. For example, the discrimination between the color ribbon and the black ribbon is performed by the signals of the high level (color) and low level (black) of the reflected light on the basis of the light signal reflected from the reflecting plate 46 to the ribbon sensor 45. Further, a ribbon end is discriminated on the basis of the signal from the stripe pattern of an ink ribbon 26.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording device capable of multicolor printing, etc.

<Prior Art> This type of multicolor thermal transfer recording device includes a carriage on which a recording head is mounted and moves back and forth in the scanning direction, a cassette stand on which a plurality of ink ribbon cassettes are stacked and placed above the carriage, and a recording head. and a lifting device for lifting and lowering the cassette stand relative to the carriage in order to select a desired ink ribbon from among the plurality of ink ribbon cassettes to face the recording head while scanning the cassette a plurality of times.

Then, by raising and lowering the cassette stand, a desired ink ribbon can be brought to face the recording head and printed on the recording paper. At this time, if ink ribbons of three colors yellow, magenta, and cyan are used in multiple ink ribbon cassettes, the three primary colors will be subtracted and mixed on the same location on the recording paper, resulting in black, blue, cyan, green, yellow, and red. , magenta, and white (paper color) are obtained, resulting in a multicolor recorded image.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> However, in the above-mentioned conventional technology, there are cases where printing is performed by accidentally forgetting to attach the black ribbon during color printing. In this case, it is not known that the ribbon is black until it is printed, and it is only noticed after printing, so the black ribbon must be replaced with a colored ribbon and printed on another recording paper, which requires a complicated operation. did.

In view of the above, the present invention detects the error and stops the drive circuit to prevent waste of recording paper and ribbon even if the user forgets that a black ribbon is attached during color printing and attempts to print. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a thermal transfer recording device that can improve operability.

<Means for Solving the Problem> The problem solving means according to the present invention includes a ribbon sensor 45 that detects the type of ink ribbon 26 on the carriage 23 on which the recording head 22 is mounted, and a ribbon type signal of the ribbon sensor 45. Accordingly, the drive stop means 83b is provided to stop printing when the ribbon types are different.

Effect> In the above-mentioned means for solving the problem, which color of ink ribbon is to be used for printing is selected by the recording command.

During this printing, the ribbon sensor 45 detects that, for example, if a black ribbon is attached, the output of the sensor 45 is low level, and if a color ribbon is attached, it is high level. Identify whether the ribbon is a color ribbon or a black ribbon.

If a black ribbon is attached during color printing, the drive stop means stops printing.

Therefore, even if the user attaches the black ribbon by mistake, erroneous printing can be prevented.

Example Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a thermal transfer recording device that is an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the control section, FIG. 3 is a control flowchart, and FIG. 4 is a state in which a cassette is installed in the thermal transfer recording device. 5 is a plan view of the carriage, FIG. 6(a) is a diagram showing a black ink ribbon, FIG. 6(b) is a diagram showing a color ink ribbon, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a scanning section of the carriage. 8 is a perspective view of the thermal transfer recording device, FIG. 9 is a side view of the carriage, FIG. This is a rotational drive device for the recording head.

As shown in the figure, the thermal transfer recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a carriage 23 on which a recording head 22 is mounted on the apparatus main body 2l and reciprocates in the scanning direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction, and a plurality of ink ribbon cartridges above the carriage 23. A cassette stand 25 on which sets 24 are stacked and placed, and the recording head 2
The cassette stand 25 is used to sequentially select a desired ink ribbon 26 from among the plurality of ink ribbon cassettes 24 and make it face the recording head 22 while the ink ribbon 26 is scanned a plurality of times.
A lifting device 27 for raising and lowering the carriage 23 relative to the carriage 23 is provided.

The carriage 23 is box-shaped, as shown in Fig. 4.9.11, and has a sliding hole 30 formed in the front part 23a in the scanning direction, into which the guide rod of the main body 2l of the apparatus is inserted. 3l is fitted.

In order to move this carriage 23 in the scanning direction, the drive device 32 includes a pair of left and right pulley gears 33 arranged at both ends in the scanning direction, as shown in FIG.
It consists of an endless timing belt 34 that is wound around the belt and fixes the front part 23a of the carriage 23, and a scanning motor 35 that rotationally drives the boolean gear 33.

The recording head 22 mounted on the carriage 23 is a thermal head, and as shown in FIG. It is supported by the front part of the carrying horn 23.

The rotation drive device 22A for the recording head 22 includes a head drive cam 22b that rotates from a motor shaft 22d of a motor (not shown), and a driven cam 22b that is fixed to the lower end of the recording head 22 and contacts the cam of the head drive force cam 22b. It is composed of a piece 22c. Further, the recording head 22 is energized by an energizing circuit 22e (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Further, a bow peeling lever 36 is disposed adjacent to the recording head 22 in the scanning direction. This tear-off lever 36
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 12, like the recording head 22, it is supported by a carriage 23 so as to be rotatable forward (in the direction of the platen) about a shaft 22a at the lower end. The driving means 36A of this peeling lever 36 is a peeling angle variable cam 36a fixed to the outer periphery of the driving force ram 22b.
and a driven piece 36b that comes into contact with the cam surface of a variable cam 36a fixed to the lower end of the peeling lever 36. By rotating the peeling lever 36, the angle at which the ink ribbon is peeled off can be adjusted in accordance with the printing speed.

Further, in the carriage 23, a first paper guide plate 37 and a second paper guide plate 38 are arranged on both sides of the recording head 22 and the peeling lever 36.

The first paper guide plate 37 is connected to the recording head 22 of the paper after printing.
In order to prevent side bending, the upper end side is curved toward the platen (front side) and fixed to the carriage 23.

The second paper guide plate 38 is used to prevent the paper from bending toward the recording head 22 and from swelling during printing, and has an upper end curved toward the platen (front side), and an end portion on the printing direction side. is curved toward the platen (front side), and the carriage 23
Fixed.

Further, a take-up reel 39 is rotatably supported on the carriage 23 so as to pass through the cassette stand 25 on the rear side of the recording head 22 . As shown in FIG. 7, the rotational drive mechanism 40 for the take-up reel 39 has a rack 41 disposed in the scanning direction behind the carriage 23, and a rack 41 that engages with the rack 41 in response to the rotation of the recording head 22 to rotate the carriage 23. and a pinion shaft 43 (see FIG. 9) that rotates in accordance with the movement of the roller and transmits this rotation to the winding roll 39. In addition, in FIG. 9, 44 is a roller for supporting the carriage, and the rack 4 is
1 slides on the top surface of the toothless slide table 41a.

Furthermore, a ribbon sensor 45 is provided at the front of the carriage 23.
are arranged. The ribbon sensor 45 detects the color ribbon, the black ribbon, and the end of the ribbon, and is composed of an optical coupling device. The ribbon sensor 4
The detection result No. 5 is displayed on the display 45a by the ribbon erroneous attachment display means 83a, thereby making it possible to confirm whether the print mode and the attached ribbon match or not, and to notify the end of the ribbon.

The second paper guide plate 3 faces the ribbon sensor 45.
8 is provided with a reflective plate 46. For example, the color ribbon and the black ribbon can be distinguished by the optical signal reflected from the reflection plate 46 to the ribbon sensor 45.As shown in FIG. 6, since the color ribbon is transparent and the black ribbon is opaque, the reflected light This is done using high level (color) and low level (black) signals. Further, the ribbon end is determined based on a signal from the striped pattern of the ink ribbon 26.

As shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, the ink ribbon cassette stand 25 is of an open top type surrounded by side walls, and in this example, the ink ribbon cassette stand 25 has three different colors of yellow, red, and blue. The ink ribbon cassette 24 is polymerized. In FIG. 7, reference numeral 47 denotes a cassette holder that has elasticity and prevents the ink ribbon cassette 24 from wobbling.

The lifting device 27 is as shown in Fig. 9.1 0.1 1.
One end is connected to the carrier 23 by the bin 51.52, {tb
A link mechanism 55 whose ends are respectively connected to the cassette stand 25 through bins 53-54, and a link mechanism 55 which is rotatably supported by the carriage 23 via a drive shaft 56, and whose cam surface abuts the bottom surface 25a of the cassette stand 25. It is composed of a current size cam 57 and a drive mechanism 59 that rotationally drives the current size cam 57.

The link mechanism 55 is arranged on both left and right sides of the cassette table 25, and on each side, a first link 6l and a second link 62 are provided.
and is a pantograph mechanism connected at the center by a pin 63. Then, the upper end pin 54 of the first link 61 is fitted into the horizontal groove 64 of the cassette stand 25, and the second link 62
A lower end pin 52 is fitted into a lateral groove 65 of the carriage 23.

Furthermore, a link 66 is provided at the upper end of the second link 62 to connect the link mechanisms 55 on both the left and right sides of the cassette stand 25.

The actual size cam 57 has a ratio of 1:1 between the cam stroke and the stroke of the moved cassette table 25, and is supported by a drive shaft 56 extending between the left and right walls of the carriage 23, as shown in FIG. , example de L ika se se }. sha'l
) Fl = Ii! }It is said that his Majesty's bribe was a shame.

The drive mechanism 59 of the actual size cam 57 includes a worm wheel 68 that is fitted and fixed to the drive shaft 56, a worm 69 that meshes with the worm wheel 68, and a rotation drive of the worm 69 via a gear machine +t470a. It is composed of a stepping motor 70 that causes the

In FIG. 8, reference numeral 7■ indicates a feed roller, and reference numeral 72 indicates a motor that rotationally drives this feed roller 7I. Further, in FIG. 4, 73 is a guide plate, and 74 is a recording paper.

The printer drive circuit 8l includes the carriage drive device 32, the cassette table lifting device 27, the recording head rotation drive device 22A, the recording paper conveyance motor 70, the ribbon take-up reel rotation drive mechanism 40, and the recording head energizing circuit 22e.
and a control device 82 that controls the display section 45a.

This control device 82 determines the type of ribbon (black or color)
A ribbon erroneous attachment display 83a that notifies the ribbon erroneous attachment 83a to the ffr record display 45a based on the above, and the ribbon sensor 45
drive stop means 83b that stops printing based on the ribbon mis-installation signal; ribbon position storage means 83c that stores the stop position of the cassette table lifting device 27 by the drive stop means 83b; and input after the ink ribbon 26 is replaced. A printing restart means 83d is provided for restarting printing from the vertical position stored by the ribbon position storage means 83c based on a printing restart signal from the printing restart switch 85 of the section 84.

The control circuit 83, which consists of the ribbon erroneous attachment display means 83a, the drive stop means 83b1, the ribbon position storage means 83c, and the printing restart means 83d, is composed of a general one-piece microcomputer as shown in FIG. It has RAM, program ROM, CPU, and input/output circuit (I/O).

In the above configuration, in response to a recording command, the elevating device 27 is operated to select which color ink ribbon is to be used for printing. In the elevating device 27, first, when the stepping motor 70 is driven, the gear machine side 7031 worm 69 and the worm wheel 68 rotate, and the rotation of the drive shaft 56 causes the current size cam 57 to change from a descending attitude to an ascending attitude, for example. Rotate. When the actual size cam 57 rotates, the cassette stand 25 that is in contact with it is pushed up, and the link mechanism 55 raises the cassette stand 25 while maintaining the horizontal state at least on both the left and right sides.

When the desired ink ribbon cassette 24 is located at the printing position, the drive motor 35 drives the pulley gear 33
The timing belt 34 is driven to scan the carriage 23. Then, the recording head 22 melts the ink in the ink ribbon cassette 24 and thermally transfers the ink to the paper on the platen side.

The color printing operation starts with the upper ribbon (yellow).
However, after pressing the recording head 22 against the paper, the carriage 23 is moved and at the same time the upper printing ribbon in the ribbon cassette 24 is wound up with the reel 39, and the yellow print data is transferred to the recording head 22. Thereafter, a printing command is issued to generate heat in the recording head 22, thereby transferring the ink from the printing ribbon onto the recording paper, thereby printing yellow.

Next, the ribbon cassette 24 is moved up one level, and the middle ribbon (red) is printed on the same line.

Next, raise the ribbon cassette 24 one step and lower the ribbon (
(blue) is printed on the same line.

in this way,! Color printing is achieved by layering yellow, red, and blue on each line.

During this printing, when the printing ribbon is wound up with the reel 39, the sensor 45 detects that the output of the sensor 45 is at a low level if a black ribbon is attached, and that it is a high level if a color ribbon is attached. Then, the microcomputer manually determines the level and determines whether the attached ribbon is a colored ribbon or a black ribbon.

When printing in color on any row (color printing is printed sequentially as yellow on the upper row, red on the middle row, and blue on the lower row), if a black ribbon is installed, the ribbon will be judged before printing starts for that row. If a black ribbon is attached, printing is stopped and the user is informed that the ribbon is different.

When the user replaces the ribbon with a regular color ribbon and prints, printing resumes normally starting with the color of the column where printing was previously attempted.

As a result, even if the user mistakenly attaches black ribbon to blue, color printing can be performed normally.

Further, the control will be explained in detail based on the flowchart of FIG. 3. After printing starts, the recording head 22 is moved to the recording paper 7.
4, the carriage 23 is moved in the direction of A, and the printing ribbon 26 is wound up with the reel 39. However, when the motor is started before printing, the sensor 45 detects the level of transparency of the ribbon, and the ribbon Determine whether the ribbon attached to the cassette is a black ribbon or a color ribbon.

When a black ribbon is attached, the level is low, so the printing operation is stopped before color printing is performed, the ribbon is moved to a position where the ribbon is replaced, and the ribbon cassette is lowered.

At this time, the color code to be printed in color and the print data are stored in the microcomputer, and the display unit 45a informs the user that the ribbon is attached differently.
be displayed and notified.

When the user specifies to start printing after replacing a new ribbon in the carriage 23, the microcomputer side selects the color data that previously stopped printing and the ribbon type that matches the color code.
After reading from A M, in order to select the ribbon that matches the color code, move the cassette stand 25 of the carriage 23.
After raising and lowering, the printing operation is restarted, the color data is transferred to the recording head 22, and a printing signal is outputted for printing.

Repeat this operation until printing is completed.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and it goes without saying that many modifications and changes can be made to the above embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

<Effects of the Invention> As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, a ribbon sensor detects the type of ink ribbon on a carriage mounted with a recording head, and a ribbon type is detected based on a ribbon type signal of the ribbon sensor. Since it is equipped with a drive stop means that stops printing when the
If a black ribbon is attached, printing is stopped by the drive stop means, so even if the user attaches the black ribbon by mistake, there is an excellent effect of preventing erroneous printing.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a thermal transfer recording device that is an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the control section, FIG. 3 is a control flowchart, and FIG. 4 is a state in which a cassette is installed in the thermal transfer recording device. 5 is a plan view of the carriage, FIG. 6(a) is a diagram showing a black ink ribbon, FIG. 6(b) is a diagram showing a color ink ribbon, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a scanning section of the carriage. 8 is a perspective view of the thermal transfer recording device, FIG. 9 is a side view of the carriage, FIG. 10 is a front view of the elevating section of the cassette section, FIG. 11 is a side view thereof, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the thermal transfer recording device. This is a rotational drive device for the recording head. 22: Recording head, 23: Carriage, 24: Ink ribbon cassette, 25: Cassette stand, 26: Ink ribbon, 27: Lifting device, 45: Ribbon sensor, 83b: Drive stop means, 83c: Ribbon position storage means, 83d: Printing means of restarting. Applicant Sharp Corporation

Claims (1)

[Claims] The present invention is characterized by comprising a ribbon sensor that detects the type of ink ribbon on the carriage on which the recording head is mounted, and a drive stop means that stops printing when the ribbon type differs based on the ribbon type signal of the ribbon sensor. A thermal transfer recording device.