JPH03169667A - Apparatus for controlling take-up of ink ribbon - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make the length of an ink ribbon taken up in one take-up operation constant by outputting a signal from a taken-up ribbon quantity detection means in proportion to the residual quantity of the ink ribbon in a supply reel or the take-up quantity of the ink ribbon in a take-up reel. CONSTITUTION:A photosensor 5 emits light to the silver vapor deposition part 4 of the ink ribbon 1 taken up by a take-up reel 3 and detects the change of the quantity of the reflected light thereof. As the distance between the photosensor 5 and the silver vapor deposition part 4 in the take-up reel 3 becomes short, the quantity of the light received by the photosensor 5 increases. The distance between the photosensor 5 and the silver vapor deposition part 4 in the take-up reel 3 is proportional to the take-up quantity of the ink ribbon 1 taken up by the take-up reel 3, that is, the ribbon diameter of the take-up reel 3. Therefore, when a CPU 6 performs operation on the basis of the detection output of the photosensor 5 and the drive time of a ribbon motor 7 is changed, the take-up quantity of the ink ribbon 1 taken up by the take-up reel 3 during a time when the ribbon motor 7 is once driven can be always kept constant.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention Industrial Field of Application The present invention relates to an ink ribbon take-up control device, and particularly to an ink ribbon take-up control device such as the one used when printing using a thermal head. It is related to.

<Prior Art> A thermal printer is known in which a thermal head generates heat to transfer heat-melting ink coated on a thermal transfer ribbon onto paper.

When printing characters etc. with a thermal printer, the frictional force between the paper and the thermal transfer ribbon is sufficiently larger than the frictional force between the thermal transfer ribbon and the thermal head. There is no relative movement of the thermal transfer ribbon, and the thermal transfer ribbon is fed out from the supply reel by the amount that the thermal head moves.
No. 2977, page 2, bottom right column).

Because of this technical background, no inventions or ideas have been made to precisely control the winding amount of the ink ribbon, for example, when winding up the slackened ink ribbon at the end of printing.

As a proposal for preventing the ink ribbon from loosening at the end of printing, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-297083
There is something described in the publication. The invention described in the publication is
A spring rotates the supply reel to prevent the ink ribbon from loosening.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention> By the way, when an ink ribbon fed out from a supply reel is wound up with a take-up reel, when the ink ribbon is new,
The winding diameter of the ink ribbon wound around the supply reel is relatively large, and the winding diameter of the ink ribbon wound around the take-up reel is relatively small. Conversely, when the ink ribbon is about to be replaced (old), the diameter of the ribbon wound around the supply reel becomes relatively small, and the diameter of the ribbon wound around the take-up reel becomes relatively large. Therefore, when the take-up reel is rotated at a constant angular velocity for a certain period of time, the amount of ink ribbon taken up by the take-up reel will be larger depending on whether the ink ribbon is new or old. Change.

That is, in order to prevent the ink ribbon from becoming loose, or to feed (wind up) the ink ribbon by a certain amount at the end of printing, there is a difference in the amount of winding when the ink ribbon is new and when it is old. If the winding time of the take-up reel is adjusted to the time when the ink ribbon is new, the amount of winding increases as the ink ribbon gets older, which has the disadvantage of unnecessarily winding up more ink ribbon. .

Even with the structure that uses a spring to prevent slack as introduced in the prior art, the amount of rotation of the supply reel must be changed depending on the ribbon diameter on the supply reel, so it is difficult to wind the ribbon even when the ribbon diameter is small. If the spring is adjusted so that the ink ribbon can be removed, there is a problem in that when the ribbon diameter is large, tension continues to be applied to the ink ribbon even after winding.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an ink ribbon winding control device that can control the winding amount of the ink ribbon to a constant amount when winding the ink ribbon.

Means for Solving the Problems> The present invention is a winding control device for winding up an ink ribbon fed out from a supply reel with a take-up reel, and the invention is a winding control device for winding up an ink ribbon fed out from a supply reel, and which controls the remaining amount of the ink ribbon on the supply reel or the amount of the ink ribbon on the take-up reel. a winding ribbon amount detection means for outputting a signal proportional to the winding amount of the ink ribbon; and a winding time control means for changing the winding operation time of the winding reel based on the output signal of the winding ribbon amount sensing means. 1 is an ink ribbon winding control device characterized in that:

Further, in the ink ribbon winding control device of the present invention, the ink ribbon includes a light reflecting surface provided along a side edge, and the winding ribbon amount detecting means is configured to detect a supply reel or a winding ribbon. Light is irradiated onto the light-reflecting surface of the ink ribbon, which is provided to face the reel in a predetermined positional relationship and is wound around the supply reel or take-up reel, and the winding is performed based on the reflected light. It is characterized in that it detects and outputs a change in the relative size of the diameter of the ink ribbon.

A signal is output from the winding ribbon amount detection means in proportion to the remaining amount of ink ribbon on the supply reel or the winding amount of ink ribbon on the take-up reel, and the winding operation time of the take-up reel is determined based on the signal. Since the length of the ink ribbon is changed, the length of the ink ribbon wound in one winding is constant.

Embodiment> An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. IA is an illustrative diagram showing the main part configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. IB is a supply reel in FIG. 1A,
FIG. 2 is an illustrative side view showing the relationship among a take-up reel, an ink ribbon, and a photosensor.

The ink ribbon 1 is a ribbon for thermal transfer on which a heat-melting ink is applied. This ink ribbon 1 is
In the initial state, it is wound around the supply reel 2, and its tip is connected to the core (not shown) of the take-up reel 3. With use, the take-up reel 3 is rotated, and the ink ribbon 1 fed out from the supply reel 2 is gradually taken up on the take-up reel 3.

Note that when the ink ribbon 1 is wound up by the take-up reel 3, the supply reel 2 is in a state where it rotates when a force equal to or greater than a certain frictional force is applied thereto.

One of the features of this embodiment is that a silver vapor deposited portion 4, for example, is provided along one side edge 1a of the ink ribbon 1 as a light reflecting surface. This silver vapor deposited portion 4 is provided on the surface of the ink ribbon 1 opposite to the ink application surface.

Another feature of this embodiment is that a photosensor 5 is arranged near the take-up reel 3, and the photosensor 5 determines the relative size of the take-up diameter of the ink ribbon 1 wound on the take-up reel 3. The change can be detected, and the detection signal is C
The CPU 6 controls the drive time of the ribbon motor 7 based on the detection signal from the photosensor 5.

To explain in more detail, the photosensor 5 irradiates light onto the silver deposited portion 4 of the ink ribbon 1 wound on the take-up reel 3, and detects a change in the amount of reflected light. The closer the distance between the photosensor 5 and the silver deposited portion 4 on the take-up reel 3 is, the greater the amount of light received by the photosensor 5 becomes. The distance between the photosensor 5 and the silver deposited portion 4 on the take-up reel 3 is determined by the amount of the ink ribbon 1 taken up by the take-up reel 3;
That is, it is proportional to the ribbon diameter on the take-up reel 3. Therefore, if the CPU 6 performs calculations based on the detection output of the photosensor 5 and changes the driving time of the ribbon motor 7, the ink ribbon that is wound by the take-up reel 3 while the ribbon motor 7 is driven once can be changed. 1 can be always kept constant.

In this embodiment, the diameter of the ink ribbon on the take-up reel 3 can be detected by the photosensor 5.
Ribbon diameter on supply reel 2 (i.e. remaining amount of ribbon)
may be detected by the photosensor 5. In such a case, it is necessary to provide the silver vapor deposited part 4 on the ink application surface of the ink ribbon 1, but if the width of the ink ribbon 1 is wide, for example, about 10 cm, it is necessary to provide the silver deposited part 4 on one side edge of the ink ribbon 1. Even if a narrow silver deposited portion 4 is provided along the line, there is no problem in printing.

Furthermore, when the ink-applied surface of the ink ribbon 1 or the opposite surface thereof is a surface that reflects light evenly, the ribbon diameter can be detected by the photo sensor 5 without providing the silver vapor deposition part 4.

Furthermore, if the diameter of the take-up shaft of the take-up reel 3 or the supply reel 2 is known in advance, it is also possible to detect/detect whether or not there is a remaining amount of the ink ribbon 1 using the photosensor 5.

Furthermore, to detect the ribbon diameter on the take-up reel 3 or the supply reel 2, instead of the photosensor 5, a microswitch 9 having an actuator 8 as shown in FIG. 2, for example, may be used. This micro switch 9
is a switch whose resistance value changes as the actuator 8 is displaced, so that different outputs can be derived.

Next, an information recording device incorporated in an embodiment of the present invention will be explained.

3A and 3B are illustrative diagrams showing the detailed configuration of the information recording device 20. In particular, FIG. 3A shows the information recording device 20 in a standby state, and FIG. 3B shows the information recording device 20 in operation. It represents the state inside.

The information recording device 20 is included in an electrophotographic copying machine, and is a device that can record desired information as additional information on a sheet of paper onto which an original image has been copied using an electrophotographic method.

Next, referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, the explanation will be as follows.
A fixing discharge port 21 is arranged at the exit of the fixing device 19 of the copying machine, and a fixing completion detection switch 22 is provided on the downstream side with respect to the paper conveyance direction. When the leading edge of the paper is ejected from the fixing and ejecting roller 21, the detection switch 22 is turned on by falling from the state shown by the solid line to the state shown by the dashed line, and the trailing edge of the paper is turned on when the leading edge of the paper is ejected from the fixing and ejecting roller 21. The switch returns to the solid line state and turns off the moment it finishes passing. Therefore, by detecting the switching edge of the fixing completion detection switch 22 from OFF to ON, the leading edge of the paper can be detected, and by detecting the switching edge from ON to OFF, the trailing edge of the paper can be detected. Can be detected.

The paper discharged from the fixing discharge port 21 is conveyed downstream in the conveyance direction by conveyance rollers 23 . A switching pawl 24 is provided on the downstream side of the conveyance roller 23 in close proximity to the conveyance roller 23 . The switching pawl 24 guides the paper toward the discharge roller 25 in the state shown by the solid line, and guides the paper toward the paper refeed path 18 in the state shown by the dashed line.

An information recording device 20 is provided on the path through which the paper is guided to the discharge roller 25 by the switching claw 24.

The information recording device 20 includes a platen roller 26 arranged on the paper conveyance path and a thermal head 2 that can be raised and lowered.
7 is included. As shown in FIG. 3A, the thermal head 27 is raised from the platen roller 26;
As shown in FIG. 3B, the headliner can be displaced to a lowered state in which it abuts around the platen roller 26.

More specifically, two mounting members rotatable about the support shaft 28 are provided, and the thermal head 27 is mounted on these two mounting members. The two mounting members are usually
Due to the reaction force of the leaf spring 31 that comes into contact with the casing 30,
In the figure, a clockwise moment is added. As a result, the thermal head 27 is placed on standby at a position elevated from the platen roller 26. The cam 32 is configured to be reversed by 180 degrees by a head elevating solenoid (not shown), and when reversed, rotates the two mounting members counterclockwise as shown in FIG. 3B. As a result, the thermal head 27 is lowered against the reaction force of the leaf spring 31 that contacts the casing 30, and is brought into contact with the peripheral surface of the platen roller 26. Note that when the thermal head 27 comes into contact with the circumferential surface of the platen roller 26, the contact force is kept constant by the reaction force of the leaf spring 31.

The information recording device 20 is equipped with the supply reel 2 and take-up reel 3 described above, and the ink ribbon 1 is stretched between these reels 2 and 3. Further, a photo sensor 5 is arranged near the take-up reel 3. The ink ribbon 1 is positioned so as to cover the headline line of the thermal head 27. Therefore, the thermal head is the third
As shown in Figure B, when the ink ribbon 1 comes into contact with the peripheral surface of the platen roller 26, it comes into contact with the headline line of the thermal head 27, and when the thermal head 27 is driven, the ink in the ink ribbon 1 is transferred to the platen roller. 26 side, that is, the paper side.

The ink ribbon 1 is preferably colored in a color different from the color in which the original image is recorded in the main body of the copying machine, for example, in a case where the original image is recorded in black, for example, in red. Of course, the ink ribbon 1 having the same color as the original image may be used.

In this embodiment, a solenoid for raising and lowering the head (not shown)
Although the cam 32 is rotated by 180 degrees and the thermal head 27 is thereby raised and lowered, the thermal head 27 may be raised and lowered directly by a solenoid.

Further, the cam 32 may be rotated by a motor.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the operation timing of the information recording device 20. Next, the control operation of the information recording device 20 will be explained with reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4.

The conveyance roller 23, discharge port roller 25, and platen roller 26 shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B are driven by a common step motor (not shown), and the speed thereof can be changed.

When the information recording device 20 is not selected for operation, the sheet coming out of the fixing device 19 is conveyed at the same speed by the conveyance roller 23 and the discharge roller 25, and is discharged to the discharge tray 16.

In this case, the step motor rotates at 300 mm/sec.

When the information recording device 20 is selected to be activated, the rotational speed of the step motor is changed as described below.

First, when the paper is ejected from one fixing device and the trailing edge of the paper finishes passing through the fixing completion detection switch 22, as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the detection switch 22 is switched from on to off. Therefore, by operating the information recording device 20 after a certain period of time with the off edge of the detection switch 22 as a reference, additional information can be recorded inward by a predetermined dimension from the trailing edge of the paper.

Next, when the information recording device 20 is selected to be activated, the step motor is stopped after a time t1 from the off edge of the fixing completion detection switch 22 (FIG. 4B). At this time, the trailing edge of the paper is, for example, 20 mm upstream of the platen roller 26.
It stops at the position. After the step motor stops, the head lifting solenoid is turned on and the cam 32 is reversed 180 degrees (
4C), the thermal head 27 is lowered to the state shown in FIG. 3B.

Then, in this state, the step motor is driven intermittently one step at a time, for example, 80 steps, and each time the step motor stops intermittently, additional information is recorded one line at a time by the thermal head 27 (Fig. 4). B).

In this case, since the additional information is recorded on the trailing edge of the copy paper, a portion of the copy paper does not remain in one fixing device;
There is no need to worry about it becoming deformed or turning black due to the heat.

The step motor is operated 80 steps, and when recording of additional information is completed, the step motor is temporarily stopped.

Then, turn off the head lifting/lowering solenoid. As a result, the thermal head 27 is raised by the reaction force of the leaf spring 31.

In response to turning off the head elevating solenoid, the ink ribbon motor 7 is rotated for a predetermined time t2, and the ink ribbon 1 that has been fed out during printing is wound onto the take-up reel 3.

Therefore, the ink ribbon 1 does not remain stuck to the paper, and the ink ribbon 1 does not become unnecessarily slack (FIG. 4D).

The rotation time t2 of the ink ribbon motor 7 is controlled by the CPU 6 as described with reference to FIG. 1A and the like. Therefore, even if the diameter of the ink ribbon on the take-up roll 3 changes, the drive time t2 of the ink ribbon motor 7 is changed in accordance with the change, so that the ink ribbon is not wound up in an unnecessarily large amount.

Effects of the Invention> Since the present invention is configured as described above, when winding the ink ribbon to prevent the ink ribbon from slacking, etc., it is possible to wind the ink ribbon without causing any waste in winding the ink ribbon. Can be controlled.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are illustrative views showing the configuration of characteristic parts according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an illustrative view showing another configuration example of the ink ribbon diameter detection switch. FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams showing the configuration of an information recording device 20 incorporating an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a timing chart showing the operation of the information recording apparatus shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. In the figure, 1... ink ribbon, 2... supply reel, 3... take-up reel, 4... silver vapor deposition section, 5... photosensor, 7... ribbon motor.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A winding control device for winding up an ink ribbon fed out from a supply reel with a take-up reel, the device comprising: controlling the amount of remaining ink ribbon on the supply reel or winding the ink ribbon on the take-up reel A winding ribbon amount detecting means for outputting a signal proportional to the winding amount, and a winding time control means for changing the winding operation time of the winding reel based on the output signal of the winding ribbon amount sensing means. An ink ribbon winding control device. 2. In the ink ribbon winding control device according to claim 1, the ink ribbon includes a light reflecting surface provided along the side edge, and the winding ribbon amount detection means is arranged on the supply reel or Light is irradiated onto the light-reflecting surface of the ink ribbon, which is placed so as to face the take-up reel in a predetermined positional relationship and is wound around the supply reel or take-up reel, and the winding is performed based on the reflected light. It is characterized in that it detects and outputs a change in the relative size of the diameter of the ink ribbon being drawn.