JPH1016264A - Thermal transfer printer - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract: PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermal transfer capable of suppressing a heat transfer between a thermal head, an intermediate transfer member and a pressing means, stabilizing a set temperature of each of these components to an optimum temperature, and performing high quality recording. Providing a printer. SOLUTION: A thermal head 3 and intermediate transfer members 1, 21 are provided.
And a control means 14 for controlling the heat transfer between the pressure contact means 7 and the pressure contact means 7 and controlling the temperatures of the components 1, 3, 21, 7 so as to maintain the optimum temperatures during recording.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a thermal transfer printer, and more particularly, to a method in which ink on an ink ribbon is selectively melted by a thermal head to transfer the ink to an intermediate transfer member, and the ink is retransferred to recording paper. The present invention relates to a thermal transfer printer that performs desired recording.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ink layer of an ink ribbon is selectively melted by the heat of a thermal head, ink is temporarily transferred to an intermediate transfer member, and the ink is re-transferred to a recording paper to perform desired recording. An intermediate transfer type thermal transfer printer for performing the transfer is known.

[0003] Such a conventional thermal transfer printer is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, an intermediate transfer roller 1 in which a rubber member as an intermediate transfer member is coated on a surface of a cylindrical metal member
The roller heater 2 for heating the intermediate transfer roller 1 is provided inside the intermediate transfer roller 1. In the vicinity of the intermediate transfer roller 1, a thermal head 3 is provided. The thermal head 3 has a plurality of heating elements arranged in a straight line so as to face the center of the intermediate transfer roller 1. On both sides of the thermal head 3, ink ribbons 5 are provided.
Are arranged between the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the thermal head 3 in a substantially linear manner.

A drum 7 serving as a pressing means pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 with a strong pressing force is provided at a position of the intermediate transfer roller 1 opposite to the thermal head 3 in a diametrical direction with a stepping motor (not shown). ) Is rotatably disposed. Inside the drum 7, a drum heater 10 for heating the drum 7 is provided. Also, plain paper or O
A clamper 9 for holding one end of a predetermined recording paper 8 such as an HP film is provided.

The thermal head 3 and the intermediate transfer roller 1
The drum 7 is provided with a temperature sensor (not shown) for detecting a surface temperature. And
The temperature detected by each temperature sensor is output to a control unit (not shown). Based on the detection result of the temperature sensor, the control unit heats and maintains the temperature of each component to a predetermined temperature. It has become.

The purpose of preheating the thermal head 3 is to assist the transfer of the ink 6 from the ink ribbon 5 to the intermediate transfer roller 1 by separating the ink 6 during heating.
Has a role of keeping the temperature of the ink ribbon 5 until it is released from the ink ribbon 5 by the heat generated by the heating element.
Therefore, the preheat temperature was around 40 ° C.

The purpose of heating and maintaining the temperature of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is to maintain the temperature at which the ink 6 is peeled off when hot on the intermediate transfer roller 1. This is for keeping 6 in a molten or semi-molten state. Therefore, the temperature of the intermediate transfer roller 1 was 55 to 58 ° C. when the type of the ink ribbon 5 was a WAX ink ribbon.

The purpose of heating and maintaining the temperature of the drum 7 is to assist in re-transferring the ink 6 of the intermediate transfer roller 1 to the recording paper 8, and the temperature may be roughly 40 to 60 ° C.

On the other hand, the ink ribbon 5 has four colors of yellow (hereinafter abbreviated as Y), magenta (hereinafter abbreviated as M), cyan (hereinafter abbreviated as C), and black (hereinafter abbreviated as Bk). It is a color dander ribbon formed repeatedly in order in the longitudinal direction.

The recording order in the conventional example is Y → M → C → B
Since it is k, the ink ribbon 5 is first wound up so that the head position of the Y ink 6 is opposed to the thermal head 3.
The determination of the color of the ink ribbon 5 is performed while recognizing a marker (not shown) printed between the inks 6 of each color by a photo sensor or the like (not shown).

Next, the operation of the conventional thermal transfer printer will be described.

First, the drum 7 is rotated while one end of the recording paper 8 is held between the clampers 9. Thereby, the recording paper 8
Is wound around the drum 7 and the recording start position is specified by a sensor (not shown), the rotation of the drum 7 is temporarily stopped. Then, the drum 7 is pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 with a strong pressing force.

On the other hand, while transporting the ink ribbon 5 at a constant speed and winding up the ink ribbon 5,
Each heating element of the thermal head 3 generates heat based on a desired recording signal. Then, the Y ink 6 of the ink ribbon 5 is partially melted by selective heat generation of each heating element of the thermal head 3 and transferred to the surface of the intermediate transfer roller 1. The Y ink 6 transferred to the surface of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is retransferred to the conveyed recording paper 8 by the pressing force of the drum 7.

When the Y ink 6 on the ink ribbon 5 has been re-transferred to the recording paper 8, the ink ribbon 5 is conveyed in the empty state, and the head position of the next M ink 6 is located. Then, the thermal head 3 and the intermediate transfer roller 1 are subjected to the same process as the transfer and retransfer with the Y ink 6 described above.
And the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7
And recording on the recording paper 8.

By repeating such a process for the C ink 6 and the Bk ink 6, a desired recording was obtained.

[0016]

However, in the conventional thermal transfer printer, each temperature of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7 is about 4 degrees.
Different temperatures were controlled between 0 ° C and 70 ° C.

That is, the thermal head 3 has a temperature of 40 ° C.
Before and after, the intermediate transfer roller 1 was controlled to maintain a temperature of 55 to 58 ° C., and the drum 7 was controlled to maintain a temperature of about 40 to 60 ° C. Therefore, when the thermal head 3 and the intermediate transfer roller 1 are pressed against each other or when the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7 are pressed against each other, heat moves from the high temperature side to the low temperature side, and The temperature sometimes fluctuated.

This may have an adverse effect on thermal peeling, such as the ink 6 of the ink ribbon 5 not being completely transferred to the intermediate transfer roller 1, or the recording quality on the recording paper 8 may be degraded.

The environmental temperature, such as the operation guarantee temperature of the thermal transfer printer, is usually 5 to 35 ° C. However, there is a problem that the temperature of each part is easily affected by the change of the environmental temperature, and the temperature becomes unstable. there were.

The present invention has been made in view of these problems, and suppresses heat transfer between a thermal head, an intermediate transfer member, and a pressing means, and stabilizes a set temperature of each of these components to an optimum temperature. It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermal transfer printer capable of performing high-quality recording by using a thermal transfer printer.

[0021]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a thermal transfer printer according to the present invention, wherein heat transfer between a thermal head, an intermediate transfer member, and a pressing means is suppressed. It is characterized in that it has a control means for controlling the temperature of each component to maintain the optimum temperature during recording. And by adopting such a configuration,
It is possible to suppress heat transfer between the thermal head, the intermediate transfer member, and the pressing means, and to stabilize the set temperature of each of these components at an optimum temperature.

A feature of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention is that the thermal transfer printer has a control means for controlling the preheating temperature of the thermal head, the temperature of the intermediate transfer member, and the temperature of the pressure contact means all to the same temperature. By employing such a configuration, heat transfer between the thermal head, the intermediate transfer member, and the pressing means can be suppressed, and stable recording can be performed.

The thermal transfer printer according to the present invention is characterized in that the preheating temperature of the thermal head, the temperature of the intermediate transfer member, and the temperature of the pressing means are lower than the melting temperature of the ink ribbon, and the operation assurance temperature is maintained. It has a control means for controlling the temperature to be higher than the temperature. By adopting such a configuration, stable recording can be performed without being affected by the operation guarantee temperature.

A feature of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention is that the thermal transfer printer has control means for controlling the preheating temperature of the thermal head, the temperature of the intermediate transfer member, and the temperature of the pressure contact means in accordance with the type of the ink ribbon. is there. Then, by adopting such a configuration, it is possible to set an optimum temperature for the ink ribbon and obtain high-quality recording.

[0025]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The same components as those of the conventional thermal transfer printer will be described with the same reference numerals.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are explanatory diagrams of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part of a thermal transfer printer according to a first embodiment. In this thermal transfer printer, a cylindrical intermediate transfer roller 1 is rotatably disposed as an intermediate transfer member. Inside the intermediate transfer roller 1,
A roller heater 2 for heating the intermediate transfer roller 1 to a predetermined temperature is built in. The intermediate transfer roller 1 is formed by coating a surface of a cylindrical cored bar 1a with a silicone rubber (not shown) as a rubber material to form a rubber portion 1b, and can also serve as a platen roller. The surface of the rubber portion 1b of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is coated with an intermediate transfer member (not shown) having adhesiveness.
A driving device (not shown) such as a motor is connected to the intermediate transfer roller 1.

The intermediate transfer roller 1 preferably has a diameter of 20 mm or more from the viewpoint of securing its rigidity. However, if the rigidity can be ensured by the material of the core bar 1a, it can be further reduced. In the first embodiment, the core 1
The outer diameter of a is 31 mm, the inner diameter is 28 mm, and carbon steel Ni plating is used for the material of the core bar 1a. Further, in the first embodiment, the thickness of the rubber portion 1b formed by coating the surface of the core metal 1a of the intermediate transfer roller 1 with the silicone rubber is 0.5 mm, and the rubber portion 1b is laminated on the surface of the rubber portion 1b. The intermediate transfer member made of silicone rubber made of a material different from the silicone rubber of the rubber portion 1b, and the thickness of the layer was 150 μm.

Although a 500 W halogen lamp is used as the roller heater 2 of the first embodiment, the ink transferred to the surface of the intermediate transfer roller 1 may be used in addition to the 500 W halogen lamp. Any roller heater 2 that can generate heat that can maintain the melted and softened state of the ink 6 of the ribbon 5 may be used.
A 00W cartridge heater or the like can also be used.

In the vicinity of the intermediate transfer roller 1, a thermal head 3 is provided. This thermal head 3
Has a plurality of heating elements arranged in a straight line.
It is a line head of 00 to 600 dpi, and the width is 75 to
Use a 300 mm one. In the first embodiment, 300 dpi, 220 mm in width, and 2560 dots
Use dots. On both sides of the thermal head 3, a pair of ribbon rolls 4a, 4a for guiding the ink ribbon 5 wound around the bobbin 4 in a substantially linear manner between the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the thermal head 3 are provided. Have been. The ink ribbon 5 has the same configuration as the generally used ink ribbon 5 for thermal transfer. In the present embodiment, the base film is made of PET.
An ink ribbon 5 having a thickness of about 2 μm and a WAX layer of 3.5 μm was used.

A cylindrical drum 7 is rotatably mounted on the intermediate transfer roller 1 at a position opposite to the thermal head 3 in a diametrical direction. The cylindrical drum 7 is pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 with a strong pressing force. It is arranged in.

The drum 7 has an outer peripheral length sufficient to wind a recording paper 8 as a recording medium, and one end of the recording paper 8 is clamped on the surface of the drum 7 to be fixed to the drum 7. Is arranged in parallel with the axial direction of the drum 7. In the first embodiment, since the size of the recording paper 8 wound around the drum 7 is A4, letter size, the recording paper length (about 300 mm) as the outer peripheral length of the drum 7 and the installation space of the clamper 9 (about 14 mm), the diameter of the drum 7 is 1
00 mm.

The outer peripheral surface 7a of the drum 7 is cut such that the position where the clamper 9 is disposed is a flat flat surface 7b (also referred to as a D-cut surface), and is disposed on the flat surface 7b. The upper end 9 a of the clamper 9 is located inside the outer peripheral surface 7 a of the drum 7. The clamper 9 is moved up and down by a mechanism (not shown) to pinch or open the recording paper 8.

The recording paper 8 may be a general recording paper 8 or an OHP film.

A drum heater 10 for heating the drum 7 to a predetermined temperature is provided inside the drum 7. In the first embodiment, a 1 KW halogen lamp is used as the drum heater 10. However, the drum heater 10 may be any as long as it can generate heat that can heat and keep the recording paper 8 wound on the drum 7 to enhance the retransfer performance of the ink 6.

In the vicinity of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1, and the drum 7, a head temperature sensor 11, a roller temperature sensor 12, and a drum temperature sensor 13 are provided as temperature detecting means for detecting a surface temperature. Have been. These temperature sensors are constituted by a thermistor, an infrared radiation temperature sensor, or the like, and may be either contact type or non-contact type detection means. The temperature detected by each temperature sensor is determined by the control unit 14.
Is output to The control unit 14 controls the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1, and the drum 7 so that they are all maintained at the same temperature based on the detection result of each temperature sensor.

Here, the reason why the thermal head 3 is preheated is to keep the temperature of the ink ribbon 5 until the ink 6 is peeled from the ink ribbon 5 and to assist the thermal peeling of the ink 6.

Further, the intermediate transfer roller 1 is heated and kept warm by keeping the temperature at which the ink 6 is peeled off on the intermediate transfer roller 1 when hot, and by melting or heating the ink 6 until the ink 6 is re-transferred to the recording paper 8. This is for maintaining a semi-molten state.

Further, the purpose of keeping the temperature of the drum 7 warm is to assist in retransferring the ink 6 of the intermediate transfer roller 1 to the recording paper 8.

Next, the temperature control of these components will be described with reference to FIG.

When the head temperature sensor 11 detects the temperature of the thermal head 3, this temperature information is output to the head controller 15 of the controller 14. The head controller 15 determines a set temperature of the thermal head 3 based on temperature information. If the temperature of the thermal head 3 has not reached the set temperature, a command is issued to the head drive circuit 18 to increase the temperature of the thermal head 3 to cause the heating element to generate heat. If the temperature of the thermal head 3 has reached the set temperature, a command is issued to maintain the temperature and the heat generation for preheating the heating element is stopped. When the head control unit 15 outputs a heating command for the heating element to the head driving circuit 18, control is performed so that a pulse current is applied to the thermal head 3 to generate heat.

The temperature control of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is the same as that of the thermal head 3. That is, the temperature of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is detected by the roller temperature sensor 12, and based on the temperature information, it is determined whether or not the roller heater control unit 16 of the control unit 14 has reached a set temperature. When it is determined that the temperature is equal to or lower than the set temperature, a command is issued to the roller heater drive circuit 19 to cause the roller heater 2 to generate heat, and heating is performed until the temperature reaches the set temperature.

The temperature control of the drum 7 is the same as the temperature control of the intermediate transfer roller 1. That is, the temperature of the drum 7 is detected by the drum temperature sensor 13, and based on the temperature information, it is determined whether or not the drum heater control unit of the control unit 14 has reached the set temperature. If the temperature is equal to or lower than the set temperature, a command is issued to the drum heater drive circuit 20 to cause the drum heater 10 to generate heat, heating is performed until the set temperature is reached, and then the temperature is maintained. .

The above-described control by the control unit 14 is a control of turning on or off a pulse signal having a constant cycle at each temperature detection cycle by each of the temperature sensors 11, 12, and 13. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, a simple ON without depending on the pulse signal
And OFF, or control such as changing the pulse ON / OFF ratio and the pulse signal cycle according to the thermal characteristics of the thermal head 3, the heaters 2, 10, and the temperature sensors 11, 12, 13. May be performed.

Although not shown, a forced cooling means such as a fan may be provided near the intermediate transfer roller 1 or the like, and the temperature may be controlled by the control unit 14.

The thermal head 3 moves in the direction of the arrow A and holds the intermediate transfer roller 1 with the ink ribbon 5 interposed therebetween.
, And the drum 7 also moves in the direction of arrow C so as to be pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 at the same time as the thermal head 3.

The pressure pressure at this time, in the case of the thermal head 3 is a 100 to 300 g / cm ^2, in this embodiment there is a 200 g / cm ^2. The pressure of the drum 7 against the intermediate transfer roller 1 is 1 to
10 kg / cm ² , 5 kg / cm ² in this embodiment.
^{It is two} .

After being pressed by such pressing pressure,
The intermediate transfer roller 1 is rotated, and the ink ribbon 5 is transported by the frictional force. The drum 7 is also rotated by the frictional force with the intermediate transfer roller 1 via the recording paper 8.

The ink ribbon 5 is independently wound by a motor (not shown), and the winding speed is set to be always higher than the transport speed. These speed differences are slipped by a slip mechanism (not shown) so that the ink ribbon 5 after transfer is not always slackened.

Next, a recording method according to the first embodiment of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention will be described.

In the initial state, the thermal head 3 is
The thermal head 3 is also separated from the ink ribbon 5 by waiting in the direction of arrow B from the intermediate transfer roller 1. Further, the drum 7 also has an arrow D in FIG.
In a direction away from the intermediate transfer roller 1.

When power is supplied to the thermal transfer printer, a current flows through the roller heater 2 and the drum heater 10 to start heating the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7. Further, the temperature of the thermal head 3 is increased by intermittently applying a predetermined pulse to the thermal head 3.
Further, a separate heater may be attached to the thermal head 3, and the temperature of the thermal head 3 may be increased to a predetermined temperature by heating the heater.

These temperatures are determined by the head temperature sensor 1
1. Roller temperature sensor 12 and drum temperature sensor 13
, And the control unit 14 controls to heat to a predetermined temperature and keep the temperature.

This temperature control is performed by setting each of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7 to 50 to 70 ° C.
Are controlled so that they all have the same temperature. The set temperature is set to an optimum temperature condition depending on the type of the ink ribbon 5. In the case of the WAX ribbon described in the present embodiment, the temperature is controlled at about 55 to 58 ° C., for example, in the case of a metallic ribbon in which an ink layer is formed on a base film and a metal vapor deposition layer is formed thereon, about 65 ° C. ~ 70 ° C is appropriate. For a ribbon consisting of two ink layers on a base film, the lower layer being a WAX layer serving as a release layer and the upper layer being a resin layer (range layer) serving as an ink layer, about 60 ~ 6
5 ° C. is appropriate.

The temperature control and the operation of winding the recording paper 8 around the drum 7 are performed in parallel. This is provided with a paper feed tray (not shown), from which the recording paper 8 is conveyed to the drum 7 one by one.
The transported recording paper 8 is applied to a clamper 9 on the drum 7.
After being held at one end, the recording medium is conveyed to the initial recording position in such a manner that it is wound around the outer periphery of the drum 7 as the drum 7 rotates.

The rotation of the drum 7 is performed not by a driving mechanism dedicated to the drum 7 but by a frictional force with the intermediate transfer roller 1. That is, the drum 7 is moved in the direction of arrow C by the urging force of a spring (not shown) to press the drum 7 against the intermediate transfer roller 1, and then the intermediate transfer roller 1 is rotated by a drive mechanism (not shown). . With this rotation, the drum 7 is rotated by the frictional force with the intermediate transfer roller 1.

When the recording paper 8 is conveyed to a desired recording start position, the rotation of the intermediate transfer roller 1 is stopped to stop the rotation of the drum 7.

In this way, the recording paper 8 is conveyed to the initial recording position, and at the same time, the ink ribbon 5 is conveyed to locate the ink 6 of a desired color.

In the first embodiment, four color dander ribbons of Y, M, C and Bk are used, and the printing order is Y → M → C → Bk.
The ink ribbon 5 is conveyed so that the top position of the ink ribbon 5 is opposed to the thermal head 3. The determination of the ink color at this time is performed by a photo sensor (not shown) or the like recognizing a marker printed between the colors of the ink ribbon 5.

The monochrome ink ribbon 5 (hereinafter referred to as M
Since the ink 6 does not need to be identified when using (i.e., abbreviated as k), the empty transfer of the ink ribbon 5 is not performed, but the empty transfer may be performed to eliminate the slack of the ink ribbon 5.

When the leading position of the Y ink 6 comes to a position facing the thermal head 3 by this empty conveyance,
The thermal head 3 moves in the direction of arrow A and is pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 via the ink ribbon 5,
The heat of the thermal head 3 causes the Y of the ink ribbon 5 to move.
The ink 6 is melt-transferred to the intermediate transfer roller 1. Since the intermediate transfer roller 1 is heated by the roller heater 2, the melt-transferred Y ink 6 rotates while maintaining a molten state or a semi-molten state on the intermediate transfer roller 1. Thereafter, the Y ink 6 is applied to the recording paper 8 wound around the drum 7 by the pressing force of the drum 7 against the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the heating of the drum heater 10 disposed in the drum 7. Is reliably re-transferred.

Then, the Y ink 6 on the ink ribbon 5
When printing with the next M ink 6 is performed after the printing in step S3, the pressing state of the drum 7 against the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the pressing state of the thermal head 3 against the intermediate transfer roller 1 are released. Instead, recording with the M ink 6 is started as it is.

Even after the recording of the Y ink 6 is completed, in order to perform the recording with the next M ink 6, the pressing of the thermal head 3 and the drum 7 to the intermediate transfer roller 1 is canceled or the ink ribbon is moved. The reason why the blank transport for detecting the head position of the M ink 6 is unnecessary is that the head position of the ink 6 of the next color is automatically opposed to the thermal head 3 after the printing of the previous color is completed. This is because the length of each color of the ink ribbon 5 is determined in advance so as to be conveyed to the position.

Therefore, transfer and retransfer for four colors can be continuously repeated.

When all the recordings for the Y, M, C, and Bk inks 6 are completed, the thermal head 3 moves in the direction of arrow B and separates from the intermediate transfer roller 1, and the drum 7 moves in the direction of arrow D. The recording paper 8 is released from the clamper 9 on the drum 7 and discharged.

In the first embodiment, recording of four colors is performed continuously. However, this is performed by detecting the leading position of each color of the ink ribbon 5 → the intermediate transfer roller 1, the thermal head 3, and the intermediate transfer roller. The printing may be performed while taking the operations of pressing the drum 1 and the drum 7 → primary transfer → retransfer → releasing the pressing between the printing operations for each color.

Further, in the first embodiment, the description has been made on the assumption that color recording is performed.
Chucking on the drum 7 by
In the case of performing single-color recording with the k ink 6 or the like, the recording paper 8 need only be ejected at the same time as retransfer, so that it is not always necessary to chuck the recording paper 8.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the control unit 14 controls the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1, and the drum 7 at the same temperature. Even if the thermal head 3 and the drum 7 are pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1 respectively, there is no heat conduction due to a temperature difference between the contact portions, and it is possible to prevent a negative effect such as a temperature drop.

Further, by setting the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the drum 7 to the same temperature of 50 ° C. or more, even if the environmental temperature changes, the environmental temperature becomes higher than the set temperature. Because it is low, it is hardly affected.

Furthermore, since the optimum temperature can be realized according to the type of the ink ribbon 5, more excellent recording can be performed.

Accordingly, the transfer of the ink 6 from the ink ribbon 5 to the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the re-transfer from the intermediate transfer roller 1 to the recording paper 8 are reliably performed, and high-quality recording can be obtained.

Next, a second embodiment of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The same components as those described in the first embodiment of the present invention are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description will not be repeated.

In the second embodiment, the above-described intermediate transfer roller 1 is an intermediate transfer belt 21, and the intermediate transfer belt 21 rotates while being tensioned by a platen roller 22 and a pressure roller 23. Has become.

A seamless belt is suitable as the intermediate transfer belt 21. However, even if another belt or the like having a seam is used, the ink 6 at the seam position may be used.
There is no problem if it is used while avoiding transfer and retransfer.
In the second embodiment, a seamless belt made of polyimide having a thickness of 50 μm is used as the intermediate transfer belt 21. Further, a coating rubber layer for transfer is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 21 with a thickness of 150 μm.

The platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23 have independent functions, and the platen roller 22 transfers the ink 6 to the intermediate transfer belt 21. Is for retransferring the ink 6 to the recording paper 8.

The platen roller 22 in the second embodiment
Uses an aluminum alloy having a diameter of 16 mm as the core metal 22a, and has a film thickness of 1 m made of silicone rubber on the outer periphery thereof.
m rubber part 22b is formed. Further, inside the platen roller 22, a halogen lamp having a power consumption of 200 W is used as the first roller heater 2a, and temperature control is performed so that the surface temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 becomes a predetermined temperature.

The backup roller 23 according to the second embodiment uses an aluminum alloy having a diameter of 42 mm as a metal core 23a, and a rubber portion 23b made of silicone rubber and having a thickness of 0.5 mm is formed on the outer periphery thereof. ing. Further, inside the backup roller 23, a halogen lamp with a power consumption of 200 W is used as the second roller heater 2b, and temperature control is performed so that the surface temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 becomes a set temperature.

A first roller temperature sensor 12 a is provided near the platen roller 22, and a second roller temperature sensor 12 b is provided near the backup roller 23. These temperature sensors are for detecting the temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 and include a thermistor or an infrared radiation temperature sensor. Further, the thermal head 3 and the drum 7 are provided with a head temperature sensor 11 and a drum temperature sensor 13, respectively, as in the first embodiment. The temperature information detected from each temperature sensor is, as shown in FIG.
The data is output to the head control unit 15, the first roller heater control unit 16a, the second roller heater control unit 16b, and the drum heater control unit 17 of the control unit 14. Each control unit controls the temperature based on the temperature information. Is to be performed.

The control section 14 preheats the thermal head 3 so that the surface temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer belt 21 and the drum 7 are all the same, and controls the inside of the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23. The first and second heaters 2a and 2b disposed in the drum 7 and the drum heater 10 disposed in the drum 7 are respectively controlled.

This temperature control is performed similarly to the first embodiment.
The set temperature differs depending on the type of the ink ribbon 5, and the WA
About 55 to 58 ° C for X ribbon, about 65 to 70 ° C for metallic ribbon, about 60 to 65 for ribbon containing resin phase.
℃.

Next, the operation of the second embodiment will be described. The thermal head 3 is pressed against the platen roller 22 via the ink ribbon 5 and the intermediate transfer belt 21, and a plurality of heat generating elements of the thermal head 3 are selectively heated to the intermediate transfer belt 21. Is primarily transferred. At this time, since the temperature of the thermal head 3 and the temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 are the same, the ink 6 can be reliably transferred from the ink ribbon 5 to the intermediate transfer belt 21.

When the platen roller 22 is driven to rotate by a driving source (not shown), the intermediate transfer belt 21 wound in tension between the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23 moves in the direction of arrow E. The ink ribbon 5 is further conveyed at a constant speed by the frictional force with the intermediate transfer belt 21.

The ink 6 on the intermediate transfer belt 21 is
When the drum 7 is conveyed between the drum 7 and the backup roller 23, the drum 7 moves in the direction of arrow D and presses the recording paper 8 and the intermediate transfer belt 21 against the backup roller 23. At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 21 is heated by the second heater via the backup roller 23, and the drum 7 is also heated by the drum heater 10. Can be reliably retransferred.

As the intermediate transfer belt 21 is conveyed, the recording paper 8 is also conveyed, and the ink 6 is sequentially retransferred to obtain a final recorded material. After this, the drum 7
Recedes in the direction of the arrow, and the pressed state is released.

As described above, in the second embodiment,
Since the transfer position and the re-transfer position are separately formed on the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23, recording can be performed under optimum conditions corresponding to each transfer.

The controller 14 heats and maintains the first roller heater 2a and the second roller heater 2b disposed inside the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23, and reduces the temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 by the thermal transfer. The temperature of each of the head 3 and the drum 7 is controlled to be the same. For this reason, even if the thermal head 3 and the drum 7 are pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 21, respectively, there is no heat conduction due to a temperature difference between the contact portions, and it is possible to prevent a problem such as a temperature drop.

Further, by setting the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer belt 21 and the drum 7 to the same temperature of 50 ° C. or more, even if the environmental temperature changes, the environmental temperature becomes higher than the set temperature. Because it is low, it is hardly affected.

Further, since the optimum temperature can be realized in accordance with the type of the ink ribbon 5, more excellent recording can be performed.

Next, a third embodiment of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The same components as those described in the first embodiment of the present invention are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description will not be repeated.

The basic recording principle of the thermal transfer printer according to the third embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, but the drum 7 shown in the first embodiment is different from the pressure roller 24 in the third embodiment. Has become.

The pressure roller 24 comes into pressure contact with the intermediate transfer roller 1 when the ink 6 primarily transferred to the intermediate transfer roller 1 is re-transferred onto the recording paper 8, and the pressure contact portion of the recording paper 8 Only the heating mechanism is used.

The recording paper 8 like the drum 7 of the first embodiment
Since the mechanism for winding the recording paper 8 is not provided, there is no effect of heating and maintaining the entire recording paper 8.

In the recording process, recording of four colors is not performed continuously at once as in the first embodiment, but recording is performed by a swingback method. That is, after printing with the Y ink 6, the pressure contact of the thermal head 3 is released, the leading position of the next color of the ink ribbon 5 is located, the ink ribbon 5 is conveyed to give tension to the ink ribbon 5, and the recording paper 8 is moved. The sheet is conveyed backward to the first standby position, and printing is performed using the next color ink 6.

Inside the pressure roller 24,
A third roller heater 2c such as a halogen lamp is provided. The third roller heater 2c heats and maintains the surface temperature of the pressure roller 24 at the same temperature as the intermediate transfer roller 1. A third roller temperature sensor 12c for detecting the surface temperature of the pressure roller 24 is provided near the pressure roller 24.
The temperature information detected by the third roller temperature sensor 12c is transmitted to the third roller heater controller 16 of the controller 14.
c. Therefore, the third roller heater control section 16c performs control to heat and maintain the temperature of the pressure roller 24 at the same temperature as the intermediate transfer roller 1 based on this temperature information.

Since the intermediate transfer roller 1 is heated and kept at the same temperature as the thermal head 3, the pressure roller 24, the thermal head 3 and the intermediate transfer roller 1 are all maintained at the same temperature. I have.

As described above, according to the third embodiment, the control section 14 controls the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1, and the pressure roller 24 to the same temperature. Therefore, even if the thermal head 3 and the pressure roller 24 are pressed against the intermediate transfer roller 1, there is no heat conduction due to the temperature difference between the contact portions, and it is possible to prevent adverse effects such as a decrease in temperature.

By setting the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer roller 1 and the pressure roller 24 to the same temperature of 50 ° C. or more, even if the environmental temperature changes, the environmental temperature will be higher than the set temperature. Is low so it is hardly affected.

Furthermore, since the optimum temperature can be realized according to the type of the ink ribbon 5, more excellent recording can be performed.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the thermal transfer printer of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The same components as those described in the first to third embodiments of the present invention are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

The thermal transfer printer according to the fourth embodiment is a combination of the second and third embodiments.

That is, the drum 7 of the thermal transfer printer shown in the second embodiment is the pressure roller 24 shown in the third embodiment.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, in the fourth embodiment, the intermediate transfer belt 21 is configured to rotate while being tensioned by the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23. I have.

As in the case of the second embodiment, a seamless belt made of polyimide having a thickness of 50 μm was used as the intermediate transfer belt 21. Further, a coating rubber layer for transfer is formed on the intermediate transfer belt 21 with a thickness of 150 μm.

The function of the platen roller 22 and the function of the backup roller 23 are independent of each other. The platen roller 22 transfers the ink 6 to the intermediate transfer belt 21.
Numeral 3 is for re-transferring the ink 6 to the recording paper 8.

At a position facing the platen roller 22 with the ink ribbon 5 interposed therebetween, a thermal head 3 is provided so as to be able to advance and retreat in the directions of arrows A and B, so that the ink 6 on the ink ribbon 5 can be selectively used. To the intermediate transfer belt 2
1 is transferred.

At a position facing the backup roller 23 with the recording paper 8 and the intermediate transfer belt 21 interposed therebetween, a pressure roller 24 is provided so as to be able to advance and retreat in the directions of arrows C and D. When the pressure roller 24 moves in the direction of arrow C, a pressure contact pressure is applied to the backup roller 23, so that the intermediate transfer belt 2
The upper ink 6 is re-transferred to the recording paper 8.

A first roller heater and a second roller heater are provided inside the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23, respectively. These first
The roller heater and the second roller heater heat and maintain the surface temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 to a set temperature via the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23.

A third roller heater is provided inside the pressure roller 24 so as to partially heat the recording paper 8 sandwiched between the pressure roller 24 and the backup roller 23. Further, by heating the pressure roller 24, it is possible to prevent heat from being taken from the backup roller 23.

A first roller temperature sensor 12a is provided near the platen roller 22, and detects the temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 due to the heating of the first roller heater. Further, the backup roller 23
, A second roller temperature sensor 12b is disposed near the intermediate transfer belt 21 by the heating of the second roller heater.
Temperature is detected. Further, a third roller temperature sensor 12c is provided near the pressure roller 24.
Is provided to detect the temperature of the intermediate transfer belt 21 due to the heating of the third roller heater 2c. As in the other embodiments, a head temperature sensor 11 is provided near the thermal head 3 so as to detect a preheat temperature.

As shown in FIG. 8, a controller 14 is electrically connected to each of the temperature sensors. That is,
The thermal head 3 is controlled by the head control unit 15 via a head drive circuit 18, the first roller heater 2a is controlled by a first roller drive unit via a first roller heater drive circuit 19a, and the second roller heater 2b Is controlled by a second roller driving unit via a second roller heater driving circuit 19b, and the third roller heater 2c
Is controlled by a third roller driving unit via a third roller heater driving circuit 19c.

These temperature controls are controlled so that all of them have the same temperature. Therefore, the thermal head 3 is pressed against the platen roller 22, the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23 are contacted via the intermediate transfer belt 21, or the backup roller 23 and the pressure roller 2
The heat conduction due to the temperature difference when the pressure contact with the substrate 4 is performed can be suppressed.

The operation of the thermal transfer printer according to the fourth embodiment is the same as the operation described in the second embodiment. Instead of the drum 7 in the second embodiment, the pressure roller 24 has an arrow C. To transfer the ink 6 on the intermediate transfer belt 21 to the recording paper 8 again.

As described above, according to the fourth embodiment, the transfer position and the re-transfer position are formed separately on the platen roller 22 and the backup roller 23, respectively. Correspondingly, recording can be performed under optimal conditions.

The control section 14 controls the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer belt 21, and the pressure roller 24 to the same temperature. For this reason, even if the thermal head 3 and the drum 7 are pressed against the intermediate transfer belt 21, respectively, there is no heat conduction due to a temperature difference between the contact portions, and it is possible to prevent a problem such as a temperature drop.

Further, by setting the temperatures of the thermal head 3, the intermediate transfer belt 21 and the pressure roller 24 to the same temperature of 50 ° C. or more, even if the environmental temperature changes, the environmental temperature becomes higher than the set temperature. Is low so it is hardly affected.

Further, since the optimum temperature can be realized according to the type of the ink ribbon 5, more excellent recording can be performed.

In each of the embodiments of the present invention described above, the case where recording is performed on only one side of the recording paper 8 has been described.
However, even when recording is performed on both sides of the recording paper 8, double-sided recording can be performed by repeating the recording according to the above-described embodiment on the front and back surfaces of the recording paper 8, respectively.

Therefore, a description will be given, with reference to FIG. 9 to FIG. 11, of the transporting means of the recording paper 8 when recording is performed on both sides of the recording paper 8.

FIG. 9 shows one means for conveying the recording paper 8 for performing double-sided recording.

In this method, recording is performed on one surface of the recording paper 8 by using the above-described thermal transfer printer, and the recording paper 8 discharged as it is is taken out by a user, and the recording paper 8 is recorded on the opposite surface. This is a means for setting the sheet on the sheet feed tray 25 again so as to perform double-sided recording.

The transport means of the recording paper 8 shown in FIG. 10 is similar in principle to that of FIG. 9, but simplifies the manual operation by the user.

That is, the paper discharge stacker 26 which can also be used as a paper supply tray is used.
The recording paper 8 recorded and discharged on one side is stored in the discharge stacker 26, and then the discharge stacker 26 is mounted upside down as a paper supply tray,
This is a means for performing recording on the opposite surface of the recording paper 8 to perform double-sided recording.

FIG. 11 shows a conveying means in which the recording paper 8 for double-sided recording is all conveyed in the thermal transfer printer.

This is because the recording paper 8 recorded on one side is not discharged, but is temporarily stored in the storage stacker 28 in the thermal transfer printer through the transport route 27a, and then the recording surface is turned to the opposite side. This is a conveying means for recording paper on the opposite side from the storage stacker 28 through the conveyance route 27b, and then discharging the paper to the paper discharge stacker 26 through the discharge route 27c.

By using such a conveying means, double-sided recording can be easily performed.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can be modified as needed.

[0131]

As described above, the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention suppresses the heat transfer between the thermal head, the intermediate transfer member and the pressing means, and stabilizes the set temperatures of these components to the optimum temperature. And high quality recording can be performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part showing a first embodiment of a thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of control means in the first embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a second embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the invention.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of control means in a second embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a principal part showing a third embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of control means in a third embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a main part of a fourth embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of control means in a fourth embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a recording sheet conveying unit when performing double-sided recording in each embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a recording sheet conveying unit when performing duplex recording in each embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a recording sheet conveying unit when performing duplex recording in each embodiment of the thermal transfer printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a sectional view of a main part showing a conventional thermal transfer printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Intermediate transfer roller 2 Roller heater 3 Thermal head 5 Ink ribbon 7 Drum 8 Recording paper 9 Clamper 10 Drum heater 11 Head temperature sensor 12 Roller temperature sensor 13 Drum temperature sensor 14 Control unit 15 Head control unit 16 Roller heater control unit 17 Drum heater control unit 24 Stacker for paper ejection

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Hiroyoshi Zama 1-7 Yukiya Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Alps Electric Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Toshihiko Hatakeyama 1-7 Yukitani-Otsukacho, Ota-ku, Tokyo Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A heating element arranged in a thermal head generates heat to transfer the ink of an ink ribbon to an intermediate transfer member by heat melting, and presses the ink against a recording medium by a pressing means while heating and maintaining the temperature of the intermediate transfer member. A thermal transfer printer that performs recording by re-transferring, and suppresses heat transfer between the thermal head, the intermediate transfer member, and the pressure contact unit, and the temperature of each of the components during recording is set to an optimum temperature. A thermal transfer printer, comprising: a control unit that controls to hold the thermal transfer. 2. The thermal transfer printer according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the preheating temperature of the thermal head, the temperature of the intermediate transfer body, and the temperature of the pressing unit all to the same temperature. . 3. The control means sets the preheating temperature of the thermal head, the temperature of the intermediate transfer member, and the temperature of the pressure contact means at a temperature lower than the melting temperature of the ink ribbon and higher than the operation guarantee temperature. The thermal transfer printer according to claim 1, wherein the control is performed such that 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit sets and controls a preheating temperature of the thermal head, a temperature of the intermediate transfer member, and a temperature of the pressing unit in accordance with a type of the ink ribbon. The thermal transfer printer according to any one of claims 1 to 3.