Incremental printing of symbolic information – Light or beam marking apparatus or processes – Scan of light
Reexamination Certificate
1998-06-09
2001-05-08
Le, N. (Department: 2861)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Light or beam marking apparatus or processes
Scan of light
C347S172000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06229558
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printer in which a latent image is formed by scanning through a carriage provided with three kinds of light emitting elements consisting red, green, and blue light over print paper onto which photosensitive microcapsules are applied, and by applying a mechanical pressure through a print roller to the print paper with the latent image formed thereon. The present invention also relates to a printing system and a printing method using the printer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional photosensitive microcapsule type print paper is separated into a roll film with microcapsules encaplulating in combination color developing material and photo-curing material applied thereto and a sheet paper with an image receiving layer applied thereto for carrying out developing by bringing the image receiving layer into close contact to the surface of the roll film onto which the microcapsules are applied.
In a printer using this conventional photosensitive microcapsule type print paper, first, the roll film is sent, while a carriage provided with LEDs for applying light scans to apply light from the LEDs so as to correspond to image data to selectively cure which the microcapsules are applied and the image receiving layer of the sheet paper are put together and guided between pressure rollers to apply pressure and collapse microcapsules which were not cured. Further, heating is carried out to accelerate developing of color of the color developing material brought into contact with the image receiving layer to develop an image on the sheet paper. Finally, the roll film is separated from the sheet paper and is wound.
Therefore, in the conventional printer, a cassette containing a stack of a plurality of sheet paper with the image receiving layer applied thereto is inserted into a chassis. Also, the conventional printer is comprised of: a roll film support device to which the roll film with the microcapsules applied thereto is attached; a winding device for winding the roll film; a feed roller to send the roll film; a pickup roller for feeding the sheet paper from the cassette; an exposing means for flickeringly applying the light of specific wavelength to the print paper fed from the cassette corresponding to image data inputted from the external such that microcapsules exposed to the light are made to be uncollapsible; a pressurizing means for applying pressure to the roll film and the sheet paper put together and guided between a pair of pressure rollers to collapse the microcapsules which were not exposed to the light and thus did not cure to be in contact with the image receiving layer thereby causing color developing reaction of the color developing material; a heating means for heating the color developing material which can react with the image receiving layer in contact to develop color thereby accelerating developing of color to develop an image on the print paper; a motor; a power transmitting means for transmitting rotation of the motor to movable elements including the pickup roller and the feed roller; and a controller for controlling the devices.
In order to identify the print paper contained in the cassette as monochrome or full color, or, in order to know the sensitivity of the print paper or the like, paper on which a bar code is printed is put on top of the print paper at the top and is fed, the bar code is read and decoded to specify the kind of the print paper, and the intensity or the time period of application of the light of specific wavelength is varied according to the kind of the print paper.
The conventional printer has the following drawbacks.
(1) Since the print paper is separated into the roll film and the sheet paper, each of the film and the sheet paper has to be supplied and wound independently. Thus, the printer has to be large-sized (desk-top).
(2) Although high-speed pressurization can be possible since the pressurizing means for applying pressure to the print paper is the two rollers, because the two rollers apply pressure in line contact, in order to secure sufficient pressurization power, a chassis has to be thick and large, and at the same time, a member for applying extremely high pressure is necessary. For this reason, the printer has to be considerably heavy and large.
(3) In the case where the cassette is exchanged for another cassette with some of the print paper remaining therein, and then the original cassette is again wanted to be used, since the paper on which the bar code necessary to know the sensitivity is printed can not be fed again, the kind of the print paper can not be specified. Accordingly, it is impossible to exchange a cassette for another cassette with some of the print paper remaining therein, and then the original cassette is again used. As a result, it is necessary to spend all the print paper, and therefore, it is impossible to, for example, carry out sepia printing and then full color printing.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is made to solve the problems mentioned in the above of the conventional printer, and therefore has an object of the present invention to provide a printer using print paper with photosensitive microcapsules applied thereto which develops an image by forming a latent image by applying light over the print paper with photosensitive microcapsules applied thereto so as to correspond to image data inputted from the external and applying high pressure thus collapsing microcapsules which were not cured and making color developing material brought into contact with image receiving layer.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a printer which is ultraminiaturized to be palm top.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a printer with which, even if the cassette is freely exchanged for another cassette with some of the print paper remaining therein, the kind of the print paper can be specified and thus printing can be carried out while the print paper is freely exchanged.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a printer in which the developing time can be shortened.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a printer in which displacement of the print paper due to application of pressure can be suppressed to prevent blur of an image and noise caused during printing.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a printer which can smoothly send the print paper.
A yet further object of the present invention is to provide a printer which, by eliminating deflection of the carriage guided by the carriage guide, can precisely detect the position of the carriage with a linear sensor and can prevent displacement of the position of emission of light, thus preventing a striped pattern and blur of the printed image.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a printer of lower manufacturing cost by making smaller the number of parts and by facilitating the assembly.
A yet further object of the present invention is to provide a printing system and a printing method using these printers.
In order to attain the above objects, according to an aspect of the present invention, a printer using print paper with photosensitive microcapsules applied thereto uses print paper with photosensitive microcapsules encaplulating color developing material and photo-curing material and an image receiving layer applied thereto for developing color by reacting the color developing material with the image receiving layer, and is comprised of a carriage provided with a light emitting element emitting light of specific wavelength for scanning over the print paper with the light emitting element emitting light to form a latent image on the print paper, a carriage guide for guiding movement of the carriage in the scanning direction and a pressurizing means for applying mechanical pressure to the print paper with a latent image formed thereon to collapse microcapsules which were not exposed to the light of specific wavelength and thus did not
Fujioka Hidenori
Hosoi Yuji
Imai Saburo
Inagaki Shigeru
Maeda Takashi
Adams & Wilks
Le N.
Nguyen Lamson D.
Seiko Instruments Inc.
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