JP2001277626A - Ink sheet cartridge and replacement ink sheet set - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) Abstract: An ink sheet 21 can be mounted on a cartridge body 30 of an ink sheet cartridge 20 without error. SOLUTION: Three engaging members 52 are protruded from a shaft portion 48 with one flange 48a on the winding side of an ink sheet 21 and are disposed inside shaft holes 50 of one side plate 31a of a cartridge body 30. From the first rotary member 46 with the transmission gear 47 so as to irremovably engage with the three fitting holes 53. One end of the core tube 41 on the winding side is fitted into the base 48 a of the shaft 48 via the intermediate connector 56. Spools 39, 36, and 37 each having a flange 43 are fitted to the other end of the core tube 41 and both ends of the supply-side core tube 40, respectively. Fit freely. Since only the one shaft portion 48 cannot be detached from the side plate 31a, the core tube 41 can be mounted without erroneous mounting.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an ink sheet cartridge having a replaceable wide ink sheet for use in an image forming apparatus such as a printer or a facsimile apparatus, and a structure of a replacement ink sheet set applicable thereto. It is about.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When printing on recording paper such as plain paper using a thermal printer, an ink ribbon cartridge is usually used because of its easiness of replacement and simplicity of handling. And if the thermal printer is a line printer,
A wide ink sheet is used. A conventional ink sheet cartridge of this type is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-8174.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-193732 and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-193732, the ink sheet supply side spool and the take-up side spool can be rotatably supported to exchange the ink sheet with the cartridge body. And was configured to be detachable.

[0003]

However, if the user incorrectly attaches the supply side spool and the take-up side spool to the cartridge body and the right and left positions of the spools, the front and back surfaces of the new ink sheet become inconsistent with the cartridge body. However, there is a problem that the printing operation cannot be performed because the normal setting state cannot be obtained.

In general, one side of the supply side spool and the take-up side spool is provided with a gear portion for transmitting power from the main body of the image forming apparatus and rotating each spool. In this case, if the mounting side of the gear portion is wrong, the supply of the ink sheet becomes impossible. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange the gear portion on the correct side surface of the cartridge main body and set it in the main body of the apparatus in the correct direction.

Therefore, there has been a problem that a normal user is confused or troublesome in attaching the supply-side spool and the winding-side spool to the correct positions and orientations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and the work of attaching a supply spool and a take-up spool for replacing an ink sheet can be extremely easily performed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink sheet cartridge capable of improving the image quality and a replacement ink sheet set applicable thereto.

[0007]

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink sheet cartridge according to the present invention, wherein an ink sheet supply spool and a take-up spool are attached to and detached from left and right ends of each ink sheet. In an ink sheet cartridge rotatably mounted on left and right side plates of a cartridge body via a freely mounted flanged shaft portion, the at least one flanged shaft portion is irremovably mounted to the side plate. It was done.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ink sheet cartridge according to the first aspect, a shaft portion with a flange is detachably inserted into one of right and left ends of a take-up spool. And a first rotating member with a transmission gear are engaged with the first and second rotating members through shaft holes formed in the side plate so that the first and second rotating members cannot come off from inside and outside.

The invention described in claim 3 is the same as the invention in claim 2
In the ink sheet cartridge described in the above, the shaft portion with the flange is arranged on the inner surface side of the side plate, while the first rotating member with the transmission gear is arranged on the outer surface side of the side plate, and a shaft hole formed in the side plate. And an engaging body protruding from the flanged shaft portion is irremovably engaged with the first rotating member.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the ink sheet cartridge according to the third aspect, a joining portion between the flanged shaft portion and the first rotating member serves as a positioning portion for a rotation center axis. It is what was constituted.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a replacement ink sheet set comprising an ink sheet, a supply side core tube of the ink sheet, and a take-up side core tube,
The ink sheet cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4 can be mounted.

[0012]

Next, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a facsimile apparatus 1 having an ink sheet cartridge 20 mounted thereon, FIG. 2 is an enlarged side sectional view of a main part of a setting portion of the ink sheet cartridge 20,
3 is a plan view of the ink sheet cartridge 20, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge 20, FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of parts of the ink sheet cartridge, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a spool connecting portion on the winding side. .

First, the structure of a facsimile machine 1 as an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be schematically described. The facsimile apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment reads an image or the like from a document 8, transmits the image data as facsimile data to another facsimile apparatus via a communication line such as a telephone line, and connects the communication line such as a telephone line. In addition to receiving the facsimile data transmitted from another facsimile device via the facsimile device and forming an image on the recording paper 4, the function as a normal facsimile device, and wireless communication such as a printer cable or infrared rays from a personal computer or a word processor. It has a function as a printer that receives print data transmitted through the printer and forms an image in accordance with the data.

A receiver (not shown) is arranged on one side of the main body case 2 of the facsimile apparatus 1. The upper cover body 6 covering the upper surface of the main body case 2 having an open top surface is pivotally attached to the upper rear end of the main body case 2 so as to be rotatable up and down around a rotation fulcrum 6a at the rear end. An operation panel 3 having a key switch 3a, a liquid crystal display device 3b, and the like is provided on a front side of an upper surface of the upper cover body 6. The operation panel 3 is also configured so that the front side can be opened upward and turned in order to remove the document 8 when the document 8 is not properly fed. At the rear of the upper surface of the main body case 2, a paper feed table 5 for stacking and placing the recording paper 4 in an obliquely downward state is provided rotatably with respect to the rear of the upper cover body 6. A document table 7 is detachably mounted in the middle of the upper and lower surfaces of the main body case 2.

In the main body case 2, a feed roller pair 9 for conveying a document 8 from the document table 7, a contact image scanner (CIS) 10 and its reading are provided below the operation panel 3. A document pressing body 11 and a pair of paper discharge rollers 12 are arranged above the unit.

In the main body case 2 below the paper feed table 5, a paper feed roller 15 for transporting the recording paper 4 from the paper feed table 5 one by one and a spring is urged on the upper peripheral surface thereof. The paper feed unit 14 includes a separated pad 16 and the like.

A roller-shaped platen 17 as a printing unit, a thermal head 22 on a printing table 19 urged by a spring 18 toward the lower surface of the platen 17 A storage section 13 for an ink sheet cartridge 20 is provided so as to straddle the printing table 19 in the front-rear direction (see FIG. 1).

In the ink sheet cartridge 20 in the accommodating portion 13, the supply sheet spool 25 for the ink sheet 21 is disposed at the rear side of the main body case 2, the take-up sheet spool 26 is at the front side of the main body case 2, and It is arranged in a forwardly inclined shape (hip-up shape) such that the supply-side sheet spool 25 is at a high position and the winding-side sheet spool 26 is at a low position. Therefore, the storage unit 1
The lower part of the main body case 2 is located on the rear side of the lower surface of the main body case 2, and a large space is formed at the rear lower part of the main body case 2 in combination with the configuration of the ink sheet cartridge 20 being inclined forward. Thus, a control board 29 for executing the operation of the facsimile machine 1 and the like is arranged in this space, that is, below the storage section 13.

The ink sheet 21 wound from the supply side sheet spool 25 to the front take-up side sheet spool 26
Is a thermal head 22 and a tension body 2 made of a spring plate.
3 and reaches the lower peripheral surface side of the take-up side sheet spool 26. At this time, the ink surface of the ink sheet 21 is on the upper surface. The recording paper 4 overlapping the upper surface (ink surface) of the ink sheet 21 is printed by a printing section where the platen 17 and the thermal head 22 overlap, and then is printed on the upper side of the ink sheet cartridge 20 on the winding sheet spool 26 side. The paper passes through the upper surface of the formed partition chute 24 having the function of the transport chute, and is discharged to the front of the main body case 2 via the pair of discharge rollers 28. An upper chute 27 of a plurality of rib-shaped transfer chutes protruding downward is arranged on the lower surface of the upper cover body 6 so as to extend from the upstream side to the downstream side with the platen 17 interposed therebetween. It is configured such that the recording paper 4 can pass between the partition plate 24 and the cartridge 20.

On the other hand, the ink sheet 21 is bent downward at the top surface of the tension body 23, passes through the lower surface of the partition plate 24, and is wound up on the lower circumferential side of the winding-side sheet spool 26. Have been.

Next, the configuration of the ink sheet cartridge 20 according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

The ink sheet cartridge 20 includes a cartridge body 30, an ink sheet 21, and a pair of left and right supply-side spools 3 as supply-side sheet spools 25.
6 and 37, and a pair of left and right take-up spools 38 and 39 as the take-up sheet spool 26.

The spools 36, 37, and 39 are flanged shafts which are detachably fitted to both ends of core tubes 40, 41 for winding the ink sheet 21, respectively. It is integrally formed by molding or the like, and only one spool 38 is configured by combining a plurality of components.

Next, the configuration of the cartridge body 30 as the cartridge body will be described with reference to FIGS. The cartridge body 30 includes a pair of left and right side plates 31a, 31b extending from the sheet supply side to the take-up side so as to surround the outer sides on both right and left sides of the ink sheet 21, and winding of the supply side of the ink sheet 21 around the pair of side plates 31a, 31b. It is composed of an upper cover piece 32 connected to both sides of the left and right sides to cover the upper side of the portion, and a partition plate 24 that also covers a pair of side plates 31a and 31b so as to cover an upper portion on the winding side of the ink sheet 21. It is integrally produced by injection molding using a resin material. Therefore, a portion surrounded by the supply-side upper cover piece 32 in the left-right direction, the winding-side partition plate 24, and the left and right-side plate connecting pieces 31a and 31b becomes a window hole portion where the ink sheet 21 is exposed. The roller-shaped platen 17 faces from the upper side of the section, and the printing table 19, the thermal head 22, and the tension body 23 face from below the window hole section (see FIGS. 1 and 2). Further, both left and right end portions of the partition plate 24 or a pair of left and right side plates 31
Pins 35, 35 having a fin shape or the like protrude upward from a, 31b.

The side plates 31a and 31b have:
Except for the take-up side left spool 38, the outer shafts 44 of the supply-side right spool 37 and the take-up right spool 39
A shaft support groove 33 of one end open type is formed in which the support shaft of the supply-side left spool 36 is loosely fitted (see FIGS. 6 and 8). The side plates 31a, 31a are connected to the shaft support groove 33 and extend radially outward.
b, each outer shaft 44
When the (support shaft) is pushed upward with its axis substantially crossing the shaft support groove 33, the width between the lower open groove edges of each shaft support groove 33 expands elastically.
In the free state, each outer shaft 44 (support shaft portion) is
3 so as not to fall off.

The ink sheet 21 is formed by forming an ink layer on one entire surface of a wide resin film. As shown in FIG. 8, the ink sheet 21 is wound around a pair of cylindrical core tubes 40 and 41 made of paper or the like. Have been. The recording paper 4 is formed on the ink layer of the ink sheet 21.
Are sandwiched between the platen 17 and the recording surface of the thermal head 22 which is a line printer, and the heating resistor of the thermal head 22 is energized in accordance with image data. An image is formed.

Core tube 40 on the supply side and core tube 41 on the winding side
The supply-side right spool 37 and the take-up-side right spool 39 which are fitted to the right ends (the right side as viewed from the discharge side of the recording paper 4) have the same shape as shown in FIG. 4
1) an inner cylindrical portion 42 fitted to the inner diameter of the right end portion, a large-diameter flange portion 43, and a small-diameter cylindrical outer shaft 44 as a support shaft portion rotatably disposed with respect to the cartridge body 30 described later. It is composed of

The supply-side left spool 36 fitted to the left end of the supply-side core tube 40 fits into the inner diameter of the left end portion of the core tube 40, and has an inner cylindrical portion with an engagement claw 42a that engages with a notch groove. 42
A large-diameter flange portion 43, a support shaft portion (not shown) provided outside the flange portion 43 and rotatably disposed with respect to a cartridge body 30 described later, and a gear portion provided outside the support shaft portion. 45 (see FIG. 8).

On the other hand, the take-up left spool 38 fitted to the left end of the take-up core tube 41 is attached to the shaft hole 50 of the one side plate 31a of the cartridge body 30 so as not to come off. A first rotating member 46 having a transmission gear 47 disposed outside the one side plate 31a, and a flange 48a connected to the first rotating member 46 from inside the one side plate 31a.
And a shaft portion 48 with a shaft. The intermediate connector 56 is detachably fitted to the flanged shaft portion 48, and the intermediate connector 56 is fitted to the inner diameter portion at the left end of the core tube 41 on the winding side. Are each formed by injection molding of a synthetic resin material.

FIGS. 10A, 10B and 10
(C) and FIG. 10 (d) show the first rotating member 46,
In the inner diameter portion of the transmission gear 47, an inner cylindrical portion 46a is formed long along the axis, and one side notch portion 46c of the inner cylindrical portion 46a is formed.
In this case, a rod-shaped elastic body 51 extending along the axial direction is integrally formed. On the free end side of the elastic body 51, a locking claw 51a is integrally formed radially outward. A fan-shaped base 46b divided into three along the circumference is provided outside the radius of the inner cylindrical portion 46a. Further, a substantially rectangular fitting hole 53 is formed between the base portion 46b and the fitting portion 53, in which the distal claw portions 52a of the three engaging members 52 of the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a are fitted. A step portion 53a as an engaging portion is formed on the outer peripheral side of each fitting hole 53. In addition, a positioning projection 54 projecting from the side surface facing the shaft portion 48 and extending in the radial direction is integrally formed on the base portion 46b.

FIGS. 11 (a), 11 (b) and 11
(C) shows the configuration of the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a. A disk-shaped flange 48a protrudes outward in a radial direction from a cylindrical base portion 48b, and one end of the base portion 48b has an arc-shaped cross section with a slightly smaller radius. Is extended in the axial direction, and the elastic body 51 and its distal end hook 51a can pass through the inner diameter of the base 48a and the guide 48c in the axial direction. Three engaging members 52 protrude from a halfway radius of the flange 48a in a direction opposite to the base 48b. A positioning hole 55 into which the positioning protrusion 54 of the first rotating member 46 fits is formed at the base of the base 48b and the flange 48a.

With the above configuration, the cartridge body 30
In the embodiment, from the outside of the left side plate 31a shown in FIG. 4, as shown in FIG.
Then, the elastic body 51 of the first rotating member 46 is inserted, the flange 48a of the shaft portion 48 is approached from the inside of the side plate 31a, and the three engaging members 52 are inserted into the shaft hole 50.
Then, each tip claw portion 52a of each engaging body 52 is inserted into each fitting hole 5 on the inner diameter side of the transmission gear 47 in the first rotating member 46.
Fit into 3. As a result, the front claw portions 52a are engaged with the step portions 53a on the outer peripheral side of the respective fitting holes 53, and are integrally formed as the left spool 38 on the winding side, and cannot be removed from the shaft hole 50, and furthermore, from the cartridge body 30. It is. In this case, since the rod-shaped elastic body 51 is brought into phase with the guide groove 48d of the notched guide portion 48c in the shaft portion 48, the positioning projections 5 on the first rotating member 46 are formed.
The shapes of the positioning holes 4 and the positioning holes 55 in the shaft portion 4 are made different for each phase. Further, in a state where the spool is integrated as the take-up side left spool 38, the outer periphery at the joining portion of the base portion 48 b of the shaft portion 48 and the divided base portion 46 b of the first rotating member 46 becomes cylindrical, and the shaft hole 50 is formed. 14 (a) and 14 (b) with respect to the transmission gear 47 and the take-up spool 38.

Further, in the present embodiment, there is provided a tubular intermediate connector 56 inserted between the end of the core tube 41 on the winding side and the shaft portion 48. FIG. 12 (a), FIG. 12 (b)
12 (c), 13 (a) and 13 (b) show the intermediate connector 56. The inner diameter portion 57a on the base end side of the cylindrical base portion 57 is formed by the base portion 48b of the shaft portion 48. The tip portion of the base portion 57 is integrally formed with a triangular cam portion 58 in the circumferential direction so as to be fitted tightly and rotatably. The guide portion 48c of the shaft portion 48 is configured to be rotatably fitted on the inner diameter side surrounded by the two cam portions 58.

When the intermediate connecting member 56 is relatively rotated with respect to the base portion 48b of the shaft portion 48, the tip locking claw 51a of the cam portion 58 is flattened against the elasticity of the elastic body 51. Pressed by the inner diameter portion, it is rotatable only in one direction (the direction opposite to the winding (when the intermediate connector 56 is rotated clockwise in FIG. 13C)), and can be rotated in the winding direction (FIG. 13).
(When the intermediate connecting body 56 is rotated counterclockwise in (c)), the distal end locking claw 51a urged radially outward by the elastic force of the elastic body 51 is connected to the adjacent 2 The two cam portions 58, 58 are configured to fit in the radial gap and to be able to rotate integrally. In addition, the intermediate connector 5
6, a two-row stop projection 61 protruding from the outer periphery of the base 57
Fits into the notch 62 formed by cutting out the end of the core tube 41 (see FIG. 12B). Thus, the transmission torque from the main body of the image forming apparatus to the transmission gear 47 can be reliably transmitted to the take-up spool 26.

Further, in the intermediate connector 56, the outermost diameter portion 57b on the outer peripheral side of the base portion 57 has the same diameter as the outer diameter of the core tube 41, and a pair of elastic claws 5 are formed from the outermost diameter portion 57b.
9 and 59 are protruded so as to extend along the axis.
When the base 57 of the intermediate connector 56 is inserted from the end of the core tube 41 on the winding side, each elastic claw 59 is
Plan view L for a pair of detents formed by cutting out the ends of
It is locked in a U-shaped stop groove 60 (only one is shown in FIG. 12B). As a result, a take-up spool made by another company without the stop groove 60 in the core tube 41 cannot be mounted on the ink sheet cartridge 20 of the present invention, and is mistakenly attached to an image forming apparatus such as a facsimile machine manufactured by the present applicant. Erroneous use of ink sheets 21 of different qualities is eliminated, and troubles such as deterioration of print quality and print defects can be prevented by not using regular ink sheets 21.

With the above-described structure, the first rotating member 46 and the shaft portion 48 with the flange 48a are attached to the predetermined shaft hole 50 of the cartridge body 30 so as not to come off in advance and the take-up left spool 38 (FIG. 14)
(See (a)) On the other hand, the intermediate connector 56 is attached to the end (right end) of the core tube 41 on the winding side so that it cannot be pulled out.

Next, an embodiment in which a replacement ink sheet set is mounted on the cartridge body 30 will be described. The replacement ink sheet set includes the supply side core tube 4.
This is a set of a new ink sheet 21 wound around the core tube 41 and a take-up side core tube 41. If desired, the intermediate connector 56 may be attached to a predetermined end of the core tube 41 in advance. . In these cases, the width dimension of the ink sheet 21 is preferably a dimension from the outer end of the outermost diameter portion 57b of the intermediate connector 56 connected to one end of the core tube 41 to the other end of the core tube 41. . In addition, a new ink sheet 21
Is attached to the outer periphery of the core tube 41 with an adhesive tape or the like. Then, a take-up right spool 39 is inserted into the right end of the core tube 41 and mounted. As shown in FIG. 8, the supply-side left spool 36 and the supply-side right spool 37 are inserted and attached to both ends of the supply-side core tube 40, respectively. Next, the shaft portion 4 is attached to the inner diameter portion 57a of the intermediate connector 56.
8 and the intermediate connector 56 is relatively rotated, and the distal end locking claw 51a is pressed by the flat inner diameter portion of the cam portion 58 against the elasticity of the elastic body 51, and is moved in one direction. (In the direction opposite to the winding direction (in FIG.
6 can be rotated only when it is rotated clockwise (see FIG. 15). As described above, the four spools 36, 3
One of the spools 7, 38, and 39 (the left spool 38 on the winding side) is undetachably mounted to the cartridge body 30. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the side on which the transmission gear 47 is disposed is the cartridge body 30. It becomes clear that it is one of the left and right sides, and when the user replaces the ink sheet 21 with a new one, errors in the direction and the like when attaching both ends of the core tubes 40 and 41 to each spool are reduced.
The ink sheet 21 can be replaced quickly and easily.

In the above state, the take-up side right spool 39, the supply side left spool 36 and the supply side right spool 37
To the shaft support grooves 3 in the cartridge body 30 respectively.
3, 33, and 33, and the core tube 41 on the winding side is rotated so as not to loosen the ink sheet 21.

The ink sheet cartridge 2 having the above configuration
When 0 is set in the storage unit 13 of the facsimile machine 1,
The left and right side plates 31a, 31b and the like of the cartridge body 30 as the cartridge body are supported in a predetermined posture,
At this time, the inner diameter portions of the outer cylinders 44 and 44 of the winding-side right spool 39 and the supply-side right spool 37 are fitted on shafts (not shown) projecting from the main body frame (not shown), while the supply is performed. The gear portion 45 and the transmission gear 47 of the side left spool 36 and the winding side left spool 38 mesh with a power transmission gear (not shown), respectively, and the outer shaft of the supply side left spool 36 and the winding side left spool 38. Is fitted on a shaft (not shown) projecting elastically in the axial direction from the body frame side. As a result,
The supply-side sheet spool 25 and the winding-side sheet spool 26 can rotate smoothly.

The output of a print command on the operation panel 3 or a print command command from an external computer (not shown), or the reception of facsimile data from another facsimile apparatus activates the control board 29 to perform a printing (recording) operation. Is started, first, the paper feed roller 15 rotates to start paper feed. After the leading end of the recording paper 4 detects a paper sensor (not shown), the recording paper 4 is conveyed a predetermined distance, and
, Power is transmitted to the gear portion 45 and the transmission gear 47 of the platen 17 and the ink sheet cartridge 20, and the conveyance of the ink sheet 21 and the feeding of the recording paper 4 are started, and printing is performed by the thermal head 22 which is a printing portion. Is performed.

Immediately after printing is performed in a state where the ink sheet 21 and the recording paper 4 are sandwiched between the platen 17 and the thermal head 22, the ink on the ink sheet 21 is printed by the heat generated by the heating resistor of the thermal head 22. The ink sheet 21 melts according to the data (character) and appears on the recording paper 4, and then the ink is cooled, so that the ink sheet 21 remains attached to the surface of the recording paper 4. At the location of the top surface 23a of the tension member 23, as shown in FIG. 2, the ink sheet 21 is largely bent downward so as to be wound on the lower side of the outer periphery of the take-up sheet spool 26, so that the ink sheet 21 Of the ink is released. On the other hand, the recording paper 4 whose lower surface is a printing surface is placed on the upper surface of the partition plate 24 and conveyed, so that the recording paper 4 and the ink sheet 2
1 can be reliably separated from the transport path. The leading end of the partition plate 24 (on the side closer to the top surface 23a of the tension body 23) is bent downward to scoop up the leading end (the downstream side of conveyance) of the recording paper 4 in a free state. It can be prevented from moving downward.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, if a large number of ridges 24a are formed on the upper surface of the partition plate 24 in a longitudinal direction along the transport direction, the printing surface may be turned downward. When the recording paper 4 passes, the printing surface is not widely rubbed,
The stain on the recording paper 4 due to the adhesion of the ink can be reduced.

The partition plate 24 serves as a lower chute of a chute portion serving as a guide portion of the recording paper 4 conveyance path, and a rib-shaped upper chute portion 27 extending across the platen 17 and an upper surface of the partition plate 24. And the recording paper 4 can be guided reliably. Also, paper jam (paper jam)
Occurs, the space between the partition plate 24 of the ink sheet cartridge 20 disposed on the main body case 2 side and the upper chute portion 27 can be largely opened just by opening the upper cover body 6 upward. The paper jam of No. 4 can be removed very easily.

In the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to a facsimile apparatus, but is not limited to this.
The present invention can be used for various image forming apparatuses such as a printer, a copying machine, and a device having a plurality of functions thereof.

[0046]

As described above, the ink sheet cartridge according to the first aspect of the present invention has a flange on which the supply spool and the take-up spool for supplying the ink sheet are detachably mounted on both left and right ends. In the ink sheet cartridge, which is rotatably mounted on the left and right side plates of the cartridge body via the shaft portion, the at least one flanged shaft portion is irremovably mounted to the side plate. When the user replaces (replaces) with a new ink sheet, errors in the mounting direction, etc., between both ends of each spool and the flanged shaft part are reduced,
There is an effect that the ink sheet can be replaced (replaced) quickly and easily.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the ink sheet cartridge according to the first aspect, a shaft portion with a flange removably fitted to one of right and left ends of a take-up spool. And a first rotating member with a transmission gear are engaged with the first and second rotating members through shaft holes formed in the side plate so that the first and second rotating members cannot come off from inside and outside.

As described above, when the flanged shaft portion and the first rotating member are engaged with each other, the flange having a larger diameter than the shaft hole and the transmission gear are located inside and outside the side plate. This has the effect of being extremely easy.

The invention according to claim 3 is the same as the invention according to claim 2.
In the ink sheet cartridge described in the above, the shaft portion with the flange is arranged on the inner surface side of the side plate, while the first rotating member with the transmission gear is arranged on the outer surface side of the side plate, and a shaft hole formed in the side plate. And an engaging body protruding from the flanged shaft portion is irremovably engaged with the first rotating member. According to this structure, claim 2
In addition to the effects of the invention described in (1), since the engaging body protruding from the shaft section with the flange engages with the first rotating member in a state of being inserted into the shaft hole, an effect that the engaging operation can be simplified can be achieved.

Further, according to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the ink sheet cartridge according to the third aspect, a joining portion between the flanged shaft portion and the first rotating member serves as a positioning portion of a rotation center axis. Therefore, the center of rotation can be matched only by the engagement of the two members, the flanged shaft and the first rotating member, and the effect of eliminating the need for further centering is achieved.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a replacement ink sheet set including an ink sheet, a supply side core tube of the ink sheet, and a take-up side core tube,
Since the ink sheet cartridge according to any one of claims 1 to 4 can be mounted on the ink sheet cartridge, when the user exchanges (replaces) a new ink sheet,
If the replacement ink sheet set is used, errors in the mounting direction and position of the spool with respect to both ends of each core tube are reduced, and the effect is achieved that the ink sheet can be replaced quickly and easily.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a facsimile machine.

FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating a path of a recording paper and an ink sheet near a printing unit.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the ink sheet cartridge.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge as viewed from the front left side.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge as viewed from the front right side.

FIG. 6 is a right side view of the ink sheet cartridge.

FIG. 7 is a left side view of the ink sheet cartridge.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the ink sheet cartridge in a state where components are turned upside down.

FIG. 9 shows a first rotating member 46, a flanged shaft portion 48,
It is an exploded perspective view of an intermediate connector etc.

FIG. 10A is a front view of a first rotating member 46, and FIG.
10A is a sectional view taken along line Xb-Xb in FIG. 10A, and FIG.
FIG. 10A is a left side view, and FIG. 10D is a right side view of FIG.

11A is a front view of a flanged shaft portion 48, FIG.
11B is a sectional view taken along line XIb-XIb in FIG.
FIG. 12C is a right side view of FIG.

12A is a sectional view of the intermediate connector 56, FIG. 12B is a front view of the intermediate connector 56 and an end of the core tube 41, and FIG. 12C is a bottom view of the intermediate connector 56.

13A is a perspective view of an intermediate connector 56, and FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIIIb-XIIIb in FIG. 13A.

14A is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a connection state between a first rotating member 46 and a shaft section with a flange 48, and FIG. 14B is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a connection state with an intermediate connection body 56.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along line XV-XV of FIG. 14 (b).

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 20 ink sheet cartridge 21 ink sheet 24 partition plate 25 supply-side sheet spool 26 take-up-side sheet spool 30 cartridge body 31a, 31b side plate 32 upper cover piece 36-39 spool 40, 41 core tube 42 inner cylinder 43, 48a flange 45 Gear part 46 First rotating member 47 Transmission gear 48 Shaft part 48b Base 50 Shaft hole 51 Elastic body 51a Locking claw 52 Engaging body 52a Tip claw part 53 Fitting hole 53a Step 54 Positioning protrusion 55 Positioning hole 56 Intermediate connector

Claims (5)

[Claims] An ink sheet supply side spool and a take-up side spool are rotatably mounted on left and right side plates of a cartridge body via flanged shaft portions which are removably mounted on left and right ends of each of the ink sheets. The ink sheet cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the at least one flanged shaft portion is irremovably attached to the side plate. 2. A shaft formed in the side plate, the shaft having a flange, which is removably fitted to one end of the left and right sides of the take-up spool, and a first rotating member with a transmission gear. 2. The ink sheet cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the ink sheet cartridge is engaged so as not to be able to be pulled out from inside and outside via a hole. 3. The flanged shaft portion is arranged on the inner surface side of the side plate, while the first rotating member with a transmission gear is arranged on the outer surface side of the side plate, and the shaft portion is formed through a shaft hole formed in the side plate. The engaging body protruding from the flanged shaft portion is
The ink sheet cartridge according to claim 2, wherein the ink sheet cartridge is irremovably engaged with the rotating member. 4. The ink sheet cartridge according to claim 3, wherein a mating portion between the shaft portion with the flange and the first rotating member serves as a positioning portion for a center axis of rotation. 5. A replacement ink sheet set comprising an ink sheet, a supply-side core tube of the ink sheet, and a take-up side core tube, wherein the ink according to claim 1 is a replacement ink sheet set. Replaceable ink sheet set that can be attached to a sheet cartridge.