JPH02200467A - Ink cartridge and recording device using the ink cartridge - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To record a high-quality image having no omission part and the like by a method wherein a guide member for preventing a recording head from being pressed up by an ink sheet is mounted on an ink cartridge. CONSTITUTION:Because an ink sheet 1 is guided by a guide shaft 4k disposed between both raised pieces 4k1 on the inner walls of both side plates 4a2 of an ink cartridge A, there is no possibility that a recording head 6a may be pressed up by the ink sheet 1 even if the front tension of the ink sheet 1 is high. Therefore, the pressing force of the recording head 6a on a platen roller 6b is invariably constant, and the possibility of an omission of image and the like is eliminated.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION <Industrial Application Field> The present invention relates to an ink cartridge used in a thermal transfer recording method and a recording apparatus using the ink cartridge.

<Prior Art> Today, facsimile machines are widely used not only in offices but also in ordinary homes.

In order to facilitate miniaturization of these facsimile machines, a so-called heat-sensitive recording method using a heat-sensitive sheet that develops color when heated is generally used.

However, in recent years, facsimile devices using a so-called thermal transfer recording method using an ink sheet have also been developed.

The thermal transfer recording type facsimile apparatus has the advantage that plain paper or the like can be used as the recording sheet, and images can also be recorded clearly.

<Problems to be Solved by the Invention> Since the ink sheet is an extremely thin sheet, wrinkles are likely to occur. Therefore, it takes time and effort to load the ink sheet into the main body of a recording apparatus without causing wrinkles in the ink sheet. It was hanging. Therefore, in recent years, a method has been proposed in which the ink sheet is stored in a cartridge and the cartridge is loaded into the main body of the apparatus or replaced.

When performing recording using the ink cartridge, an ink sheet and a recording sheet are conveyed between a recording head and a platen roller, and thermal transfer recording is performed by selectively heating the recording head. If the recording head does not press the platen roller with a constant force, image waves may occur.

However, during printing, ink cartridges are transported from the supply reel to the take-up reel while applying tension to the ink sheet to prevent wrinkles, and the tension of the ink sheet causes the recording head to move around the platen roller. The force may be applied in the opposite direction to the direction in which it is pressed.

As a result, the pressing force between the recording head and the platen roller changes, and high-quality images may not be recorded.
There was a u.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems and to provide an ink cartridge that can prevent the pressing force of a recording head from changing due to the tension of an ink sheet, and a recording apparatus using the ink cartridge.

<Means for Solving the Problems> Typical means of the present invention for solving the above problems include a supply reel for supplying an ink sheet, a take-up reel for winding up the ink sheet, and a A container for holding a reel and a take-up reel, and a guide for guiding the ink sheet so that the tension of the ink sheet wound from the supply reel to the take-up reel does not apply an urging force to the recording end. According to the above means, when the ink cartridge having the above structure is loaded into a recording device and recording is performed, the ink sheet is conveyed while being applied with tension. is guided by a guide member and conveyed without energizing the recording head.

Therefore, the recording head is not urged by the conveyance of the ink sheet, and the recording head always presses, for example, the platen roller with a constant force.

<Embodiment> Next, an ink cartridge according to an embodiment of the present invention to which the above means is applied and a recording apparatus using the ink cartridge will be described.

[First example]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of an ink cartridge A, and FIG. 2 is a recording apparatus B loaded with the ink cartridge A.
FIG.

First, to explain the general structure of the entire ink cartridge A, a long ink sheet 1 is wound around a supply reel 2 and a take-up reel 3, and both reels 2 and 3 are rotatably housed in a container 4. It is configured as follows. This ink cartridge A is configured to be positioned and loaded into the loading section 5 of the recording apparatus B, and includes a recording head 6a and a platen roller 6.
When the ink sheet 1 and the recording sheet 7 are superimposed and conveyed in the recording section consisting of b, the ink of the ink sheet 1 is transferred and recorded on the recording sheet 7 in an image pattern.

Next, the structure of the ink cartridge A will be specifically explained.

The ink sheet 1 according to this embodiment is made by applying thermally transferable (heat-melting, heat-sublimating, etc.) ink onto a long support sheet with an 84 width or A4 width, and when the support sheet is heated, it forms a heated pattern. The ink is melted accordingly, and this ink sheet 1 itself is a known one. This elongated ink sheet 1 has one end wound around a supply reel 2 and the other end wound around a take-up reel 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, both the supply reel 2 and the take-up reel 3 have flanges 2b1. 2
bz, 3bt, and 3bt are formed, and reel gear 2 is formed on one of the collars 2b+ and 3b+ of both reels 2 and 3.
c and 3c are integrally formed.

Further, both ends of the reel shafts 2a, 3a are connected to the gears 2c, 3.
c and collars 2 bt and 3 bt, and bearings 8 are provided at both ends of the reel shafts 2 a and 3 a, respectively.
are configured so that they are rotatably fitted. The reels 2 and 3 around which the ink sheet 1 is wound are connected to a container 4.
Next, the structure of this container 4 will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 1, this container 4 is configured such that a first casing 4a and a second casing 4b are rotatably connected by a hinge (not shown), thereby being able to be opened and closed.

The first casing 4a has sides 1j4at upright on both sides of a substrate 4a+ whose ends are arcuate, and these side plates 4a
At the predetermined position of t, there are two pairs of U grooves 4C on the left and right at a certain interval.
and 4d are formed. and said one groove 4C
The bearing 8 of the supply reel 2 is fitted into the other U-groove 4.
By fitting the bearing 8 of the winding rule 3 into d,
The supply reel 2 and the take-up reel 3 are configured to be loaded into the first housing 4a. As shown in FIG. 5, the bearing 8 is loaded with some play (in the height direction of the cartridge A) relative to the U grooves 4c and 4d.

Further, on the extension line connecting the U grooves 40 and 4d, an ink cartridge A is provided at the hinge side end of the both side plates 4ax.
A guide pin 4e for attaching the recording device B to the recording device B is provided in a protruding manner. This guide pin 4e serves as the center of rotation when loading the ink cartridge A into the recording apparatus B, as will be described later.

Furthermore, a predetermined position of the substrate 4al, specifically, the U groove 4
An opening 4f for inserting the recording head 6a is formed approximately in the center between C and 4d, and a double door type 14g is attached to this opening 4f. Its composition is two lids 4
g are rotatably attached to the substrate 4a+ by hinges 4h, and a torsion coil spring 41 is attached to the end of each lid 4g, and this spring 4M causes the lid 4g to move outward from the inside of the container. Being pressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a regulating plate 4j is provided at a predetermined position on the substrate dat for regulating the biasing of the lid 4g by the torsion coil spring 41.

Further, in the vicinity of the position where the take-up reel 3 is loaded, on the inner wall side of the both sides vi and 4at, the upright piece 4 has a number 1 protruding from it, and the re-erecting piece 4 has a number 1 in between, as will be described later. A guide shaft 4k serving as a guide member for guiding the conveyance of the ink sheet 1 is provided.

On the other hand, the second casing 4b also has side plates 4b8 upright on both sides of a board 4bt whose ends are arcuate, similar to the first casing 4a described above. A window portion 41 is formed for inserting the platen roller 6b when the platen roller 6b is loaded into the platen roller.
A notch 4Il is formed in both side plates 4b, continuous with the window 47, for allowing the platen roller shaft to escape.

Further, gears 2c of the supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3 housed in the container 4 are located at predetermined positions on the substrate 4b+.

An opening 4m is formed for exposing portion 3c. The gear 2c is exposed from this opening 4m.

3c is connected to a motor attached to the recording device B as described later, and rotational force is transmitted to the supply reel 2 and the take-up reel 3.

Furthermore, a locking protrusion 4n is protruded at a predetermined position on the open end of the second housing 4b, and by locking the locking protrusion 4n with a locking spring of the loading section 5, which will be described later, the ink cartridge A is inserted. It is configured such that it is loaded into the recording bag NB.

Further, a handle 4° is provided on the side plate 4bg of the second housing 4b so as to protrude outward, and when removing the ink cartridge A loaded in the recording apparatus B, the handle 4o
The locking protrusion 4p and the locking spring can be released from the locked state by holding the locking protrusion 4p and the locking spring.

Further, an engagement recess 4p is provided at the open end of the first housing 4a, and an engagement recess 4p is provided at the open end of the second housing 4b.
A locking protrusion 4q is provided that engages with both housings 4a.
, 4b are closed, the engagement recess 4p and the engagement protrusion 4q are engaged to maintain the closed state.

Next, the case where the ink sheet 1 is stored in the container 4 having the above structure will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 1, bearings 8 are fitted to both ends of the supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3 around which the ink sheet 1 is wound, and the bearings 8 are inserted into the U groove 4c of the first housing 4a.

4d respectively. At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the ink sheet 1 is set so that it is wound from the top to the bottom of the take-up reel 3. )

If you set ink sheet 1 as described above,
For example, if the ink sheet 1 is cut, when attaching the tip of the cut ink sheet l to the take-up reel shaft 3a, attach the tip of the ink sheet to the top of the take-up reel shaft 3a using tape 9 or the like as shown in FIG. You can paste it directly
If this is set so that the ink sheet 1 is wound up from the bottom to the top of the take-up reel 3, when pasting the cut ink sheet L, the tip of the ink sheet is wound from the bottom of the take-up reel 3, and the tip Take-up reel 3
After reaching the top of the screen, it must be attached with tape 9 or the like.

Therefore, as in this embodiment, the ink sheet 1 is placed in the first housing 4a.
By setting it to , the cutting repair work becomes a container. Further, in this embodiment, the U for fitting the bearing 8 is
Since the grooves 4c and 4d are provided only in the first housing 4a, and the ink sheet 1 cannot be set on the second housing 4b side, for example, during maintenance, the ink sheet 1 cannot be placed upside down in the second housing 4b. This prevents situations such as accidental attachment.

The supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3 with the ink sheet 1 wound thereon as described above are placed in the first housing 4a, and as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the second housing 4b is rotated to separate both housings. The engagement recesses 4P of 4a and 4b are engaged with the engagement protrusions 4q.

As shown in FIG. 6, the ink cartridge A having the above structure is provided with a lid 4g at the opening 4f for inserting the recording head, so when transporting or storing the ink cartridge A, the opening 4 is closed.
It is possible to prevent dust and the like from entering the cartridge A from the inside of the cartridge A, and it is also possible to prevent the ink sheet 1 from being damaged, and since the inside is hidden, it can give a sense of luxury.

Next, the configuration of the recording apparatus B for carrying out thermal transfer recording by loading the ink cartridge A will be described.

The recording apparatus B according to this embodiment is configured as a recording system of a facsimile machine having an image reading system C, as shown in FIG. This recording device B is constructed so that it can be opened and closed by rotating a main body 10 and a recording cover 1) around a hinge shaft 12, and is configured such that the ink cartridge A is loaded into the recording cover 1). ing.

On the side of the apparatus main body 10, there are a roll holder 13 for loading a sheet roll 7a in which a long recording sheet 7 is wound into a roll, a platen roller 6b serving as a conveying means for conveying the recording sheet 7, and a recording device. A cutter 14 for cutting the subsequent recording sheet 7 and a discharge roller 15 for discharging the sheet 7 are provided.

On the other hand, on the side of the recording cover 1), as shown in FIGS. 2 and 7 (^), a line-type recording head 6a is attached, which is made up of heating elements 6a1 that generate heat according to image signals arranged in a row. , when the recording cover 1) is closed, the recording head 6
a is configured to press the platen roller 6b by a pressing spring 6C. In addition, the recording cover 1
), the fork members 6d attached to both ends of the recording rack 6a sandwich and position the shaft 6bl of the platen roller 6b.

Furthermore, the configuration of the image reading system C is such that a plurality of originals 17 are stacked and stacked on an original placing table 16 formed on the upper surface of the recording cover 1), and the originals 17 are preliminary transported by preliminary transport rollers 18a and pressing rollers 18b. At the same time, the original document 17 is separated and fed one by one by a separation roller 19a and a pressure contact piece 19b that is in pressure contact with the separation roller 19a, and the document 17 is transported by a pair of transport rollers 20a and 20b and discharged onto a discharge tray 21. While the original 17 is being conveyed, a light source 22 irradiates the original surface with light, and the reflected light is reflected by a mirror 23 and a lens 2.
4 to a photoelectric conversion element 25 such as a CCD, and in the case of copy mode, transmits the image signal to its own recording system,
In the case of transmission mode, the data is configured to be transmitted to the recording system of another device.

In FIG. 2, 26 is an electrical board, and 27 is a power source for driving members such as a motor, which will be described later.

A control system for driving and controlling the device is constructed as shown in the block diagram of FIG.

To explain the configuration in detail, in FIG. 8, the reading system C includes the aforementioned charge conversion element 25, the drive motor 5 for the preliminary conveyance roller 16, the pair of conveyance rollers 20a, 20b, etc.
It is equipped with 6. Line memory 50a in the control unit 50
is used to store image data for each line of image data; when transmitting or copying the original 17, one line of image data from the reading system C is stored; when receiving image data, it stores the combined received image data. Image data 1
Data for a line is stored. Then, image recording is performed by outputting the data stored in the line memory 50a to the recording pad 6a. 5
0b is an encoding/decoding unit that encodes the image information to be transmitted by MH encoding or the like, and decodes the received encoded image data to convert it into image data. 50 again
c is a buffer memory that stores encoded image data to be transmitted or received. Each part of the control unit 50 is controlled by a CPU 50d such as a microprocessor. In addition to the CPυ50d, the imm unit 50 includes a RAM50f that stores control programs for the cpu50d and various data, and a RAM50f that temporarily stores various data as a work area for the CPU50d.

The recording system 51 includes the recording head 6a described above and motors (reel drive motor 32 and platen motor 3, which will be described later).
7), and is driven by a signal from the CPυ50d. Reference numeral 52 denotes an operation section including various function instruction keys such as starting transmission, telephone number input keys, and the like. 5 more
Reference numeral 3 denotes a display section for displaying various functions provided in the operation section 52, the status of the device, and the like.

Further, 54 is a modem (modulator/demodulator), and 55 is a network control unit (NCU).

Next, the configuration of the loading section 5 for loading the ink cartridge A will be explained.

As shown in Figure 7(A), on both sides of the recording cover 1),
A positioning member 28 formed laterally symmetrically is attached. This positioning member 28 is the ink cartridge A.
a key-shaped groove 28a for locking the guide pin 4e;
U-grooves 28b and 28c are provided at a predetermined interval on the same extension line to fit and position the bearings 8 fitted to both ends of the reel 2.3. Further, a locking spring 29 for locking with the locking protrusion 4n of the ink cartridge A is provided near the open end of the recording cover 1).

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7(^), the guide pin 4e of the ink cartridge A is fitted into the key-shaped groove 28a, and the ink cartridge A is rotated around the guide pin 4e. As shown in Figure (B), the locking protrusion 4n
The ink cartridge A is loaded into the recording cover 1) by being locked to the locking spring 29. At this time, bearing 8
are the respective U grooves 28b.

28c.

When loading the ink cartridge A, the guide pin 4 of the ink cartridge A is
Since the U grooves 4c and 4d into which the bearings 8 and the bearings 8 are fitted are arranged in a straight line, when the ink cartridge A is rotated around the guide pin 4e, the bearings of the supply reel 2 and the take-up reel 3 8 is the U groove 28b of the positioning member 28, 2
They are positioned substantially simultaneously with respect to 8c. Therefore, the bearing 8 is reliably positioned and fitted into the U grooves 28b and 28c of the positioning member 28.

Furthermore, a U groove 4c into which the guide pin 4e and the bearing 8 are fitted;
4d are both provided on the first housing 4a side, and are arranged in a straight line, so that the key-shaped groove 28a and the U-groove 28b are formed in the member 28 for positioning these.
, 28c are also arranged in a straight line, so that the bearing 8 is accurately positioned with respect to the guide pin 4e. That is, high positional accuracy can be obtained when positioning the bearing 8 simply by arranging the key-shaped groove 28a and the U-grooves 28b, 28c in a straight line on the positioning member 28, which is one member.

Incidentally, the positioning member 28 of this embodiment has, in the thickness direction,
As shown in FIG. 9(A), the inner surface 28d is tapered so that the distance between the two positioning members 28 is wide at the bottom and gradually narrows toward the top. As a result, when the ink cartridge A is rotated around the guide pin 4e, it is guided along the taper, making it easy to load. This prevents wobbling in the direction of arrow Y).

Further, when loading the ink cartridge A as described above, as shown in FIGS. 10(A) and 10(B), the fork member 6d attached to the recording head 6a twists the lid 4g of the ink cartridge A and releases the coil spring. The recording head 6a is pushed open against the biasing force of the ink cartridge 41, and thereby the recording head 6a is inserted into the inside of the ink cartridge A from the opening 4f.

Incidentally, when inserting the recording head 6a into the opening 4f,
The guide pin 4e is provided at the extreme end of the cartridge A, and since there is a certain distance from the guide pin 4e, which is the center of rotation, to the opening 4f, the opening 4f is large enough to insert the rad 6a into the recording medium. It is possible to make it approximately equal to the minimum necessary size.

In addition, the biasing force of the lid 4g due to the tear-proof coil spring 41 (
The force that attempts to return the lid 4g to the closed state) is shown in Figure 1θ (B
), insert the recording head 6a and
The force is such that it does not affect the pressing force when a is pressed against the platen roller 6b. Therefore,
In this embodiment, the recording pad 6a is pressed by the pressing spring 6c.
The pressing force between the platen roller 6b and the platen roller 6b is approximately 150 gf/cm.
On the other hand, the urging force of the lid 4g by the tear-off coil spring 41 is set to about 60 gf/cm.

When the ink cartridge A is loaded as described above, the recording head 6a automatically opens the lid 4g and is inserted into the cartridge A, so that the cartridge A can be easily loaded. Further, since the lid 4g is opened in a double-door manner by the pressure of the recording head 6a, the radius of rotation of each M4g is small, and the length of the ink cartridge A in the height direction can be shortened.

As described above, attach the ink cartridge A to the recording cover 1).
(the state shown in FIG. 7(B)), the cover 1) is closed, and the hook 30a of the apparatus main body 10 and the hook 30b of the recording cover 1) are engaged.

At this time, reel gears 2c and 3c integrally formed with the supply reel 2 and the take-up reel 3 are configured to mesh with a driving force transmission gear 31 attached to the apparatus main body IO side.

To explain this specifically, as shown in FIG. 7(B), a reel drive motor 32 for driving and rotating each reel 2.3 is attached to the main body lO side of the recording apparatus B, and The driving force from 32 is transmitted to gear trains 33a to 33.
The driving force is transmitted to the driving force transmission gear 31 via e. The gear 33e is attached to an arm 34 that is rotatable around the gear shaft of the gear 33d, and is configured as a so-called pendulum gear that can swing around the gear 33d while remaining in mesh with the gear 33d. ing. The driving force transmission gear 31 can swing integrally with the pendulum gear 33e, and is configured such that the rotational force from the pendulum gear 33e is transmitted via the slip clutch 35.

Note that 36 in FIG. 7(B) is a tension spring for pulling the arm 34 upward. Further, 37 is a platen motor for rotating the platen roller 6b, and the driving force of this motor 37 is transmitted to the platen roller 6b via gear trains 38a to 38c.

In the above configuration, when the recording cover l] is closed, the reel gear 2 exposed from the opening 4m of the ink cartridge A.
c, 3. c comes to mesh with the driving force transmission gear 31, but in this embodiment, the opening 4m is the first one in FIG.
), the hinge axis of the recording cover 1) as shown in (B)! The reel gear 2C93C is provided so as to be located on the rotation locus circle with the reel gear 2C93C as the center, and the driving force transmission gear 31 is also provided so as to be located on the locus circle.

Therefore, when the recording cover 1) is closed, the gears 2c and 3c exposed from the opening 4m press the driving force transmission gear 31 and are securely engaged. At this time, even if the parent gear 33d connected to the motor 32 is in the locked state, the pendulum gear 33e that swings integrally with the driving force transmission gear 31 will not be able to move the parent gear 33d.
In order to smoothly swing around the 3d, record cover 1
) can be closed smoothly.

Further, on the apparatus main body 10 side, as shown in FIG. 7(B), temporary springs 39 serving as pressing members are located at positions facing the bearings 8 of the ink cartridge A attached to the recording cover 1).
is attached to the U groove 28b of the positioning member 28.

28c side. For this reason, the bearing 8 is shown in FIG.
As shown in B), the height direction (direction of arrow Z in Fig. 7 (B))
positioning is performed reliably. The plate spring 39 is inserted into the U groove 28b of the positioning member 28 as shown in FIG. 9(B).
For example, if the plate spring 39 and the positioning member 28 are not aligned in the reel axial direction, the bearing 8
A twisting force is applied to the reels 2 and 3, and an unnecessary frictional force is applied to the rotation of the reels 2 and 3. However, in this embodiment, the above-mentioned disadvantage does not occur.

As described above, the bearing 8 is inserted into the U groove 28b of the positioning member 28.
, 28c, and the positioning when loading the ink cartridge A into the recording cover 1) and the positioning of the bearing 8 are configured independently.

That is, by directly positioning the bearing 8 to the recording apparatus B without using the ink cartridge A, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the parallelism between the reel 2.3 and the platen roller 6b. Further, since the ink cartridge A does not require strict positional accuracy of the bearing 8, there is no need to require rigidity or accuracy in the cartridge A, and therefore the cartridge A can be manufactured at low cost.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the recording cover 1) is closed,
As shown in FIG. 10(B), the pressure contact portion between the recording head 6a and the platen roller 6b is configured to be located approximately at the middle of the ink cartridge A in the height direction. When the pressure contact portion is located above the ink cartridge A, a notch 4 for escaping the shaft of the platen roller 6b shown in FIG.
j! 2 has to be made deeper, and the strength of the second housing 4b is weakened, and conversely, if the pressure contact portion is located lower in the ink cartridge A, the opening 4f for inserting the recording head 6a must be formed larger. However, in this embodiment, since the pressure contact portion is located approximately at the center, the strength of the second housing 4b is not weakened, and the opening 4f can be minimized. It is something.

Next, a case will be described in which printing is performed using the printing apparatus B loaded with the ink cartridge A.

During recording, the platen motor 37 and the reel drive motor 32 on the take-up reel side are driven, and the reel drive motor 32 on the supply reel side is locked. When the platen motor 37 is driven, the platen roller 6b
rotates in the direction of arrow a in FIG. 12, and conveys the recording sheet 7 and the ink sheet 1 superposed thereon in the directions of arrows a and c, respectively. In synchronization with this, the heating element 6a of the recording head 6a
+ generates heat in response to an image signal to heat the ink sheet 1 in an image pattern, and the ink melted by this heating is transferred to the recording sheet 7.

During the recording, the motor for driving the take-up reel 3 is operated so that the circumferential rotational speed of the take-up reel 3 is lower than the circumferential rotational speed of the platen roller 6b so that the ink sheet l conveyed by the platen roller 6b does not slacken. It is driven to become slightly faster, and the faster speed is absorbed by the slip clutch 35. As a result, the ink sheet 1 is wound onto the take-up reel 3 while being given front tension. On the other hand, since the reel drive motors 32 of the two supply reels are locked, the supply reels 2
5 and rotates as the ink sheet 1 is fed out. This slipping load imparts pack tensile strength to the ink sheet 1.

In addition, in FIG. 12, the ink sheet 1 is
If the front tension when the sheet is wound up causes a strong force to press the rad 6a upward toward the recording surface,
The pressing force of the recording pad 6a against the platen roller 6b changes, and in extreme cases, there is a possibility that the image method may be affected, but in this embodiment, the ink sheet 1 is guided by the guide shaft 4. Therefore, even if the front tension of the ink sheet 1 is strong, the recording head 6a is not pressed upward by the ink sheet 1.

Therefore, the platen roller 6b by the recording head 6a
The pressing force of is always constant, and there is no fear that the imaging method will cause etc.

Further, as shown in FIG. 12, the reel gear 2C on the supply reel 2 side receives an upward force due to the driven rotation of the driving force transmission gear 31 which is subjected to a sliding load. The U grooves 28b and 28c are installed so that the bearing 8 does not move upward because it is supported by the reel gears 2c and 3c. Therefore, the reel gears 2c, 3c do not move, and so-called tooth skipping between the reel gears 2c, 3c and the driving force transmission gear 31 is prevented.

Next, a case where the ink cartridge A is replaced or removed from the recording cover 1) will be explained.

In this case, as shown in Figure 7 (B), the recording cover 1)
When the handle 40 of the ink cartridge A is released and the handle 40 of the ink cartridge A is grasped and pulled, the engagement state between the locking protrusion 4n of the ink cartridge A and the locking spring 29 is released, and the ink cartridge A is opened as shown in FIG. 7(^). rotates around the guide pin 4e and can be easily removed from the recording cover 1).

At this time, since both the handle 4G and the locking protrusion 4n are provided on the second housing 4b side, even if the handle 40 is pulled, the engagement portion between the first housing 4a and the second housing 4b, that is, the engagement No force is applied to the engagement portion between the mating recess 4p and the engagement projection 4q. Therefore, when the locking projection 4n is removed from the locking spring 29, the first housing 4a and the second housing 4b are opened. It won't happen.

As described above, the ink cartridge A according to this embodiment can be easily loaded into the recording apparatus B to which the recording head 6a is attached with high positioning accuracy, and can be easily loaded into the recording apparatus B to which the recording head 6a is attached. It is possible to prevent gear tooth skipping and perform high-quality recording.

[Other Examples]

In the first embodiment described above, an example was shown in which the ink sheet 1 was conveyed in the same direction as the recording sheet 7 when recording.
As shown in FIG. 13, the ink sheet 1 may be transported in the opposite direction (direction of arrow d) to the transport direction of recording sheet 7 (direction of arrow d).

In this case, the structure of the ink cartridge A is the same as that of the first embodiment except that the supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3 are reversed.

In addition, in this configuration, the take-up reel 3 is glued to the lug gear 3.
C is configured to be connected to the reel drive motor via a gear train without using a slip clutch. In this configuration, during recording, the recording sheet 7 is conveyed in the direction of the arrow a by the rotation of the platen roller 6b, and the ink sheet l is conveyed in the direction of the arrow d by the drive of the reel drive motor on the take-up reel side. be.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, an example was shown in which the U grooves 28b and 28c for positioning the reel bearing 8 were provided on the recording cover 1) side, but the U grooves may also be provided on the device main body 10 side. good.

For example, as shown in FIG. 14, U grooves 40a, 40 for positioning the bearings 8 of the supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3
b is provided at a predetermined position on the apparatus main body 10, and a guide pin 4e for holding the ink cartridge A described above is provided on the recording cover 1) side.
A positioning member 41 having only a key-shaped groove 41a for positioning is provided, and a locking spring 29 for locking with the locking protrusion 4n of the ink cartridge A is provided.

Therefore, the ink cartridge A is attached to the recording cover 1) by fitting the guide pin 4e into the key-shaped groove 41a and locking the locking protrusion 4n with the locking spring 29 in the same way as in the embodiment described above. Next, when the recording cover 1) is closed, the bearings 8 are fitted into the U grooves 40a, 40b provided in the main body 10 and positioned, as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 15, reference numeral 42 indicates a pressing spring attached to the U grooves 40a and 40b, and when the recording cover 1) is closed, the upper end of the bearing 8 is pressed against the contact portion 41b of the positioning member 41.
It is brought into contact with the

If the means for positioning the bearing 8 is provided on the apparatus main body 10 side to which the platen roller 6b is attached as described above, the reel 2.3 positioned by the U grooves 40a, 40b and the platen roller 6b It is easy to achieve parallelism with high accuracy.

Further, as in the first embodiment described above, even if the reel gears 2c and 3c are pressed upward as shown in FIG. 15 by the driving force transmission gear 31 when transmitting the driving force to the reel 2. Since the tooth contacts the contact portion 41b and does not move in the height direction, so-called tooth skipping does not occur.

Further, in the first embodiment described above, the guide shaft 4k is used as a member for guiding the conveyance of the ink sheet 1, but it is natural that this may be a guide bar or a guide roller.

<Effects of the Invention> As described above, in the present invention, since the ink cartridge is provided with a guide member for preventing the ink sheet from urging the recording head, it is possible to load this ink cartridge into a recording device and perform recording. In this case, the force with which the recording head presses against, for example, the platen roller is always constant due to the tension of the ink sheet, and it becomes possible to record high-quality images without any missing images.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the parts of an ink cartridge, Fig. 2 is an overall explanatory diagram of the recording device with the ink cartridge loaded, Fig. 3 is a perspective explanatory diagram of the ink cartridge loaded with an ink sheet, and Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the ink sheet. 5 and 6 are perspective views of the appearance of the ink cartridge; FIGS. 7(A) and 7(B) are illustrations of the ink cartridge being loaded into the recording device; 8th
The figure is a block diagram of the control system, Figures 9 (A) and (B) are cross-sectional explanatory views with the ink cartridge attached to the positioning member and the recording cover closed, and Figure 10 (^),
(B) is an explanatory diagram of the relationship between the recording head and the lid when loading the ink cartridge, Figure 1) (A) and (B)
12 is an explanatory diagram of the relationship between the reel gear and the pendulum gear when the recording cover is closed, FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional diagram of the recording state, and FIG.
The figure is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in which the conveying direction of the ink sheet is reversed, and FIGS. 14 and 15 are explanatory diagrams of an embodiment in which a U-groove for positioning the reel bearing is provided on the apparatus main body side. A is an ink cartridge, B is a recording device, C is an image reading system, l is an ink sheet, 2 is a supply reel, 2a is a reel shaft, 2b+, 2bl are collars, 2C is a gear, 3 is a take-up reel, 3a is a reel Axis, 3b. 3bx is the tsuba, 3C is the gear, 4 is the container, 4a is the first casing,
4a+ is the board, 4at is the side plate, 4b is the second housing, 4b+
is the board, 4bg is the side plate, 4c and 4d are U grooves, 4e is the guide pin, 4f is the opening, 4g is the lid, 4h is the hinge, 4th is the torsion coil spring, 4j is the regulation plate, 4 is the guide shaft , 4, + is the standing piece, 41) is the window, 41! is a notch, 4
m is an opening, 4n is a locking projection 1.4o is a handle, 4p is an engaging recess, 4q is an engaging projection, 5 is a loading section, 6a is a recording head, 6a+ is a heating element, 6b is a platen roller, 6b, is A platen roller shaft, 6C a pressing spring, 6d a fork member, 7 a recording sheet, 8 a bearing, 9 a tape, l
O is the recording device body, 1) is the recording cover, 12 is the hinge shaft, 13 is the roll holder, 14 is the cutter, 15 is the ejection roller, 16 is the document placement table, 17 is the document, 18a is the preliminary conveyance roller, 18b is the press Roller 19a is a separation roller,
19b is a pressure contact piece, 20a and 20b are a pair of conveying rollers, 21
22 is a light source, 23 is a mirror, 24 is a lens, 25 is a photoelectric conversion element, 26 is an electrical board, 27 is a power source, 28 is a positioning member, 28a is a key-shaped groove, 28b, 2
8c is a U groove, 28d is an inner wall surface, 29 is a locking spring, 30a
, 30b is a hook, 31 is a driving force transmission gear, 32 is a reel drive motor, 33a to 33e are gears, 34 is an arm,
35 is a slip clutch, 36 is a tension spring,
37 is a platen motor, 38a to 38c are gear trains, 3
9 is a leaf spring, 40a, 40b are U grooves, 41 is a positioning member, 41a is a key-shaped groove, 41b is a contact part, 42 is a pressing spring, 50 is a control part, 50a is a line memory, 50b is encoding/decoding conversion part, 50c is buffer memory, 50d
is CPU. 50e is ROM, 50f is RAM, 51 is recording system, 52
53 is a display, 54 is a modem, 55 is a network control unit, and 56 is a motor.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A supply reel for supplying an ink sheet, a take-up reel for winding up the ink sheet, a container for holding the supply reel and the take-up reel, and from the supply reel to the take-up reel An ink cartridge comprising: a guide member for guiding the ink sheet so that the tension of the ink sheet being wound does not exert an urging force on the recording head. (2) a conveying means for conveying a recording sheet; a loading means for loading the ink cartridge according to claim (1); and heating the ink sheet housed in the ink cartridge in accordance with an image signal. A recording device comprising: a recording head for;