Incremental printing of symbolic information – Thermal marking apparatus or processes
Reexamination Certificate
1998-10-19
2001-04-17
Le, N. (Department: 2861)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Thermal marking apparatus or processes
C347S222000, C347S172000, C400S693100, C400S692000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06219077
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printer in which an image is formed or printed on a recording sheet using a thermal head.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, several types of printers, using a thermal head to form an image on a recording sheet, are known. One of them is a printer incorporating a thermal head to directly heat a thermal recording sheet, which is a heat sensitive color-developing sheet. The other is a printer in which an ink ribbon is heated so that molten ink is transferred onto a recording sheet.
Thus, the conventional printers are not suitably constructed to enable selective, interchangeable use of the materials, which include the thermal recording sheet, the ink ribbon and liquid ink, to suit a given situation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a printer system in which the thermal recording sheet, the ink ribbon and the liquid ink, can be selectively used.
According to the present invention, there is provided a printer system comprising a thermal printer, an ink transfer unit and a thermal printing unit. The thermal printer includes a thermal head and a platen roller facing each other to define a recording sheet passage therebetween. The ink transfer unit includes a film, having pores, and a plate member facing each other to define an ink storage space. The thermal printing unit includes a holding spool, holding an ink ribbon, a takeup spool, taking up the ink ribbon, and a ribbon passage leading the ink ribbon, unwound from the holding spool, to the takeup spool.
The ink transfer unit and the thermal printing unit are selectively mountable on the thermal printer, such that the film faces the recording sheet passage and the plate member faces the thermal head when the ink transfer unit is mounted, and the ribbon passage is positioned between the recording sheet passage and the thermal head when the thermal printing unit is mounted.
Preferably, the thermal printer comprises a printer housing and a cover rotatably attached to the printer housing. The platen roller is rotatably supported by the cover. The ink transfer unit and the thermal printing unit are mountable when the cover is open. The printer housing may be provided with a holding member by which the ink transfer unit and the thermal printing unit can be supported.
The thermal printing unit may comprise a first frame that supports the holding spool, a second frame that supports the takeup spool, and an intermediate frame that connects the first and second frames. The intermediate frame has an opening through which both surfaces of the ink ribbon are exposed.
The thermal printing unit may comprise a moving mechanism by which the takeup spool is rotated. Preferably, the thermal printer comprises a drive mechanism by which the platen roller is rotated. In this construction, the moving mechanism may be connected to the driving mechanism when the thermal printing unit is mounted on the thermal printer.
Preferably, the ink ribbon contains a plurality of color ink ribbon portions, each of the plurality of color ink ribbon portions containing differing color ink and being disposed with a predetermined pitch in the longitudinal direction of the ink ribbon. The recording sheet and one of the plurality of color ink ribbon portions are superposed on each other and moved downstream by the pitch so that an image of a first color corresponding to the one of the plurality of color ink ribbon portions is formed. Only the recording sheet is moved upstream by the predetermined pitch, and then the recording sheet and another one of the plurality of color ink ribbon portions are superposed on each other and moved downstream by the pitch so that an image of a second color corresponding to the other one of the plurality of color ink ribbon portions is formed. Thus an image containing the first and second colors is formed. The plurality of color ink ribbon portions may comprise at least three color of ink, so that a full color image is formable.
Preferably, the printer system further comprises a sensor that senses the thermal printing unit and the ink transfer unit when mounted on the thermal printer, and a heating unit that heats the thermal head based on a sensing result obtained by the sensor.
Furthermore, according to the present invention, there is provided a printer system comprising a thermal printer and an ink transfer unit. The thermal printer includes a thermal head and a platen roller facing each other to define a recording sheet passage therebetween. The ink transfer unit includes a film, having pores, and a plate member facing each other to define an ink storage space. The ink transfer unit is detachably mountable on the thermal printer.
The recording sheet is heated and pressed between the thermal head and the platen roller to form an image when the ink transfer unit is not mounted. The film faces the recording sheet passage and the plate member faces the thermal head so that the ink, stored in the ink storage space, is transferred through the pores due to heating by the thermal head to form an image when the ink transfer unit is mounted.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4561789 (1985-12-01), Saito
patent: 4731621 (1988-03-01), Hayamizu et al.
patent: 5164744 (1992-11-01), Yoshida et al.
patent: 5208612 (1993-05-01), Obu et al.
patent: 5481280 (1996-01-01), Lam et al.
patent: 0092871 (1985-05-01), None
patent: 1-051967 (1989-02-01), None
Asahi Kogaku Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Feggins K.
Greenblum & Bernstein P.L.C.
Le N.
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