JPH0211342A - Electrotransfer recording head - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the title recording head forming a recording electrode pattern with good reproducibility and excellent in the contact with an ink member by forming a recording electrode part from a coil body of a conductive wire and constituting a recording electrode of a large number of the cut pieces of the wire. CONSTITUTION:A recording electrode part 26 is constituted by winding a conductive wire 32 around the surface of a support member 31 in a coil form and a part of the wire 32 is cut in the axial direction to form a large number of recording electrodes 26a, 26a.... A conductive ink sheet 41 and recording paper 42 are mutually laminated and driven while pressurized by a platen roller 43 so as to be pressed to the recording part 26. A pulse current is supplied to each recording electrode 26 from a drive circuit 24 through a wiring layer 23. This pulse current passes through the conductive layer of the conductive ink sheet 41 to flow to a return electrode 44. The ink of a thermal ink layer is melted by Joule heat to be transferred to the recording paper 42.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention provides the following features:
The present invention relates to an electric transfer recording head in an electric transfer recording method that partially melts a heat-sensitive ink layer of an ink sheet and transfers it to plain paper.

(Prior Art) A recording device using thermal transfer is called a non-impact type recording device, and because of its simple structure and low printing noise, it has come to be widely used in various recording devices.

This thermal transfer recording involves a method in which a print head containing a built-in heating element is brought into contact with an ink sheet containing thermal ink made of a dye substance that melts due to heat, and the thermal ink is melted and transferred onto plain paper. There are two types of methods: a method in which a conductive ink sheet consisting of a conductive layer, a resistive layer, etc. is passed through an electrode, and the Joule heat generated in the resistive layer melts the heat-sensitive ink and transfers it to plain paper.

Comparing the structures of these print heads, the former type has a heating element sandwiched between individual electrodes and a common electrode, and the electrodes are covered with an oxidation-resistant and abrasion-resistant protective film. On the other hand, the latter method requires only individual electrodes that selectively supply a constant current, and there are limitations such as the need to select a conductive material with excellent wear resistance for the individual electrodes that are exposed. However, since the head has a simple structure, it has advantages such as lower manufacturing costs.

In addition, the former method has the problem of slow printing speed because the heating element has a heat storage property, but the latter method has almost no heat storage property in the print head and can be driven at a high duty cycle, resulting in high-speed printing. Are suitable. This latter method is called an electric transfer recording method, and has been increasingly used recently.

By the way, in the print head used in such an electric transfer recording method, the better the contact between the electrodes and the conductive ink sheet, the better the print quality.For example, if the flatness of the recording electrode is poor, the resolution will decrease. Resulting in.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5, for example, the current transfer recording head has a large number of recording electrodes 2 arranged in a row on an insulating substrate 1, and each recording electrode 2 is individually connected to a drive circuit 3. , except for the portion necessary for transfer, is covered with an insulating film 4. Transfer recording is carried out by first disposing a conductive ink sheet 8 on which a resistive layer 5, a conductive layer 6, and a heat-sensitive ink layer 7 are laminated in order and a recording paper 9 on the side of the electrically conductive transfer recording head. The stacked state is pressed against the recording electrode 2 by the platen roller 10. Next, when a constant current pulse is selectively applied to each recording electrode 2, a current flows from the resistive layer 5 through the conductive layer 6 to the return electrode 11, and at this time, a current is generated by applying current to the resistive layer 5. The ink in the heat-sensitive ink layer 7 is selectively melted by the Joule heat and transferred onto the recording paper 9.

Here, for example, if the flatness of the insulating substrate 1 is poor, the contact state between the recording electrode 2 and the conductive ink sheet 8 will be poor in some parts, and the contact resistance will impede the conduction of electricity, and the conductive ink sheet 8 There is a problem in that the ink becomes difficult to transfer to the recording paper 9, resulting in a decrease in print quality.

In order to solve this problem, as a method of improving the pressing condition, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, 1. The present applicant has proposed a method in which the recording electrode 2 is formed on the convex portion la provided on the insulating substrate 1, or the recording electrode 2 is formed at the end of the insulating substrate 1 as shown in FIG. I thought about it.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, the fine pattern of the recording electrode 2 is usually formed by a photoetching method, and in the method of forming the recording electrode 2 on the convex portion 1a of the insulating substrate 1 described above, When the height of the convex portion 1a is 0.1 to 0.15 cm or more, there is a problem in that the accuracy of fine patterns deteriorates, short circuits, ovens, etc. occur, and the reproducibility of the recording electrode pattern decreases. . Furthermore, the method of forming the recording electrodes 2 on the edges of the substrate has limitations, such as the difficulty of applying photoetching resist to the edges of the substrate with high accuracy, and similarly there is the problem of poor pattern reproducibility. there were.

Further, when recording electrodes are formed as a film as described above, there is a problem that the recording electrodes are subject to severe wear due to sliding contact with the conductive ink sheet and have a short service life.

The present invention has been made to address the problems of the prior art, and it not only improves the contact between the recording electrode and the conductive ink sheet, but also improves the formation of the recording electrode consisting of a fine pattern with good reproducibility. Another object of the present invention is to provide an electrically conductive transfer recording head that is easy to use and has improved durability of recording electrodes.

[Structure of the Invention] (Means for Solving the Problems) That is, the present invention provides an electrically conductive transfer recording head in which a recording electrode section having a large number of recording electrodes in contact with a conductive ink member is disposed on an insulating substrate. , the recording electrode section;
The conductive wire is made of a wound body in which a conductive wire is wound and fixed around a cylindrical support member made of an insulating material, and a part of the wound body is cut in the axial direction to electrically insulate the conductive wire. The recording electrode is characterized in that the plurality of recording electrodes are constituted by a plurality of cut pieces of wire.

(Function) Since the recording electrode part is constituted by a wound body made by winding and fixing a conductive wire around a cylindrical support member made of an insulating material, the reproducibility of the recording electrode depends on the winding of the conductive wire. It is determined only by the pitch, and therefore, by using a conductive wire with an appropriate diameter, it is possible to stably form a fine recording electrode pattern with good reproducibility. Furthermore, the recording electrode portion can be formed as an appropriate convex portion on the insulating substrate by appropriately setting the diameter of the cylindrical support member.
This results in excellent contact with the conductive ink member. Furthermore, simply by changing the diameters of the cylindrical support member and the conductive wire, the shape of the convex portions, the pitch of the recording electrodes, etc. can be changed, providing excellent versatility in design.

(Example) Next, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are diagrams showing the structure of an embodiment of the current transfer recording head of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 21 denotes an insulating substrate made of a ceramic member, etc. A wiring layer 23 having a bonding terminal 22 at one end is formed on this insulating substrate 21, and the other end of this wiring layer 23 is It is connected to the drive circuit 24. Further, this wiring layer 23 is covered with an insulating film 25 except for the bonding terminals 22.

On each bonding terminal 22, a recording electrode section 26 has a large number of recording electrodes 26a, 26a, . are individually connected by each wiring terminal 26b, and this recording electrode section 26 is fixed to the insulating substrate 21.

The recording electrode section 26 is constructed by winding a conductive wire 32 in a coil shape around the surface of a cylindrical support member 31 made of an insulating material, and fixing the conductive wire 32 with a fixing agent 33. conductive wire 3
2 is cut in the axial direction to form a large number of recording electrodes 26a, 2.
6a... are formed by a large number of cut pieces of the conductive wire 32.

The wound body that becomes the recording electrode section 26 is formed, for example, as follows.

First, as shown in FIG. 3(a), No5W, which has high hardness and excellent wear resistance, is applied to the surface of a cylindrical support member 31 made of an insulating material such as glass or alumina and having a diameter of several square meters to several tens of nua. The diameter consists of several tens of micrometers to several hundred
A conductive wire 32 having a diameter of approximately μm is wound at a constant pitch.

This conductive wire 32 is coated with, for example, polyimide resin having excellent heat resistance and insulation properties. Furthermore, by forming the guide groove 34 in advance on the surface of the cylindrical support member 31 according to the winding pitch of the conductive wire 32, the winding pitch of the conductive wire 32 is stabilized, and the reproducibility of the recording electrode is further improved. improves.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3(b), this cylindrical support F, 1
7. By applying a fixing agent 33 such as adhesive or varnish onto the conductive wire 32 wound on the surface of the member 31, the conductive wire 32 is fixed to form a wound body 35.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3(c), part of the fixing agent 34 on the upper surface 35a of the wound body 35, which will become the recording electrode, and the lower surface 35b, which will be connected to the wiring on the drive circuit side, is removed by polishing, etching, etc. After exposing the conductive wire 32, each exposed portion of the conductive wire 32 is coated with Au.

Plate a material such as Cu. Thereafter, by cutting a portion of the coiled conductive wire 32 in the axial direction, a large number of electrically insulated cut bodies 32a, 32a, . . . of the conductive wire 32 are formed. The portions of these many cut bodies 32a, 32a, . . . exposed from the upper surface 35a of the wound body 35 serve as recording electrodes.

Then, as shown in FIG. 3(d), solder reflow is performed on the bonding terminals 22 on the insulating substrate 21, which are formed to correspond to the winding pitch of the conductive wire 32 in the winding body 35. Next, the cut bodies 32a, 3 of the conductive wire 32 are cut on the lower surface 35b, which is the joint surface of the wound body 35.
After aligning the exposed portions 2a, . . . with the bonding terminals 22, the recording electrode portions 26 are formed by connecting them by face-down bonding.

Note that the mechanical fixation of the wound body 35 can be performed using metal fittings, screws,
This is done with adhesive, etc.

Recording and transfer by the energized transfer recording head having the above configuration is performed as follows.

That is, a conductive ink sheet 41 on which a heat-sensitive ink layer, a conductive layer, and a resistance layer are sequentially formed and a recording paper 42 are laminated so that the conductive ink sheet 41 is placed on the side of the recording electrode part 26. It is driven in the direction of the arrow in the figure while being pressed by the platen roller 43 so as to be pressed against the recording electrode section 26.

Then, a pulse current is applied from the drive circuit 24 to each recording electrode 26 via the wiring layer 23. This pulsed current passes through the conductive layer of the conductive ink sheet 41 and flows to the return electrode 44 provided so as to come into contact with the conductive ink sheet 41 at the rear in the traveling direction.

The Joule heat generated when this current flows through the resistance layer of the conductive ink sheet 41 melts the ink in the heat-sensitive ink layer and transfers it to the recording paper 42 . Then, as the conductive ink sheet 41 and recording paper 42 are driven in the direction of the arrow in the figure, printing is performed on the recording paper 42 one after another by selectively applying a pulse current.

As described above, according to the energized recording transfer head of this embodiment, since recording transfer is performed by the recording electrode section 26 having a convex shape, the conductive ink sheet 41 and the recording paper 42 are suppressed to the recording electrode section 26. It becomes possible to keep the condition stable and good, and it is possible to stably obtain good printing quality.

Moreover, since the large number of recording electrodes 26a% 26a... are formed by a large number of cut bodies 32a132a... formed by partially cutting the coil-shaped wound body of the conductive wire 32, By keeping the diameter and winding pitch of the conductive wire 32 constant, it is possible to form a fine recording electrode pattern with good reproducibility. Also, the diameter of the cylindrical support member 31 of the wound body and the conductive wire 32
By appropriately selecting the diameter of the insulating substrate 1, it is possible to easily change the shape of the protrusion from the insulating substrate 1 and the configuration of the recording electrode, and it is possible to easily create current-carrying recording transfer heads of various shapes according to specifications. can be provided.

Furthermore, since the recording electrode 26a is constituted by the conductive wire 32, it can be thicker and more durable than conventional recording electrodes formed by film formation.

Next, other embodiments of the present invention will be described.

As shown in FIG. 4, the cylindrical support member 31 of the wound body that becomes the recording electrode section 26 is attached to the upper side 31 corresponding to the recording electrode 26a.
1a is made of a hard insulating material as described above, and the lower side 31b corresponding to the wiring part 26b connected to the circuit side wiring is made of a highly elastic material such as hard rubber. A recording electrode portion was formed in the same manner as in the previous embodiment, and was fixed onto an insulating substrate 21 with, for example, screws 27 to constitute a current transfer recording head.

In this way, by forming the lower side of the cylindrical support member 31, that is, the wiring side, from a material with high elasticity, the contact between the recording electrode section 26 and the conductive ink sheet 41 is further improved, and the printing quality is improved. improves.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the current transfer recording head of the present invention, the recording electrode portion has a convex shape that has excellent contact with the conductive ink member and is composed of a fine recording electrode pattern. can be formed with good reproducibility, and the stability of printing quality can be significantly improved. Furthermore, since the recording electrode itself has excellent durability, it can be used stably for a long period of time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an energized transfer recording head according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the configuration when recording is performed using the energized transfer recording head of FIG. 1, and FIG. The figure is the first
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the main part of another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
6 and 7 are diagrams showing the structure of a conventional electrical transfer recording head. 21... Insulating substrate 26... Recording electrode portion 26a... Recording electrode 1... Made of insulating material Cylindrical support member 2... Conductive wire 2a... Cut piece of conductive wire 3...
...fixing agent

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In an electrically conductive transfer recording head in which a recording electrode section having a large number of recording electrodes in contact with a conductive ink member is installed on an insulating substrate, the recording electrode section is a cylindrical support member made of an insulating material. It consists of a wound body in which a conductive wire is wound and fixed, and a part of this wound body is cut in the axial direction to form a large number of electrically insulated cut pieces of the conductive wire. An electrically conductive transfer recording head characterized in that a recording electrode is configured.