JP2569031B2 - Ink paper cassette - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a cassette containing a band-shaped medium such as ink paper.

[Conventional technology]

2. Description of the Related Art A method of mounting an ink sheet on a printer apparatus that performs printing or printing using ink-coated paper has been put to practical use in many printers and typewriters. In particular, as a method of easily mounting a wide ink sheet on a printer device, as shown in JP-A-56-67278, a winding shaft for supplying the ink sheet and a shaft for winding the ink sheet are mounted on the same cassette, and printing is performed. A method has been disclosed in which a pressure roller that sometimes overlaps photographic paper and ink paper, a supply shaft and a take-up shaft in a cassette are connected by rotation transmission means, and the ink paper is fed in accordance with a printing operation.

Also, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 57-168891 discloses a method of pressing a shaft to prevent the tape of a VTR magnetic tape cassette from sagging, and a pair of reels having teeth on the outer periphery of a flange are placed in a case. The reels are stored side by side, and a brake claw is fitted to each of the teeth to limit the rotation of the reel and hold the reel.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

However, there are some points where the above-mentioned conventional technique is not sufficient. For example, when the thickness of the ink paper is very thin, several microns, the ratio of the width to the thickness of the ink paper is very large, and the base material of the ink paper is made of a stretchable material such as plastic, and tension for driving is applied. , If heat is applied for printing and the elongation is partially different,
Sufficient consideration has not been given to the fact that wrinkles occur in the ink paper, the pressing force of the ink paper on the photographic paper becomes unstable, the adhesion of the ink to the photographic paper becomes uneven, and the image quality deteriorates. In addition, sufficient consideration has not been given to a state in which the cassette is not mounted on the printer, for example, during transportation, the winding axis of the ink is loosened and the ink paper sags, causing the aforementioned wrinkles and the like. In addition,
When fixing wide ink paper to the shaft, no method has been considered for simply fixing the ink paper to the shaft without wrinkling. Also, in the VTR magnetic tape cassette, the shaft pressing mechanism requires a pair of brake claws, an elastic member for urging the brake claws to rotate, and a brake claw release member when mounted at a predetermined position on the main unit side. Therefore, the structure is complicated and the number of parts is increased, and the cost of the main body and the cassette is likely to be increased. When a wide ink sheet used in a thermal transfer printer or the like is used as a cassette, the distance between the reels is relatively long, and an ink sheet loading member for loading the ink sheet at a predetermined position between the reels is provided. Since a space for operation is required, the brake pawl has to be arranged outside between the reel shafts, and the cassette becomes large, which may make it difficult to miniaturize the apparatus. Also, for example, when thermal transfer ink paper is used, the ink paper is partially expanded and contracted by heating by the thermal head at the time of printing, and the wrinkled ink paper is directly wound around the take-up shaft. The take-up shaft becomes thicker than the supply shaft and comes into contact with the inner wall of the shaft housing of the cassette case, and the rotation of the take-up shaft stops, so that used ink paper such as prints is not taken up in the cassette. In addition, there is a risk that the printer will be caught in the printer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a highly reliable and easy-to-use ink paper cassette which solves the above-mentioned problems, in particular, the rotation stop of the winding shaft, enables the stable winding of the ink paper, and provides a reliable and easy-to-use ink paper cassette. .

[Means for solving the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, an ink paper cassette in which a thin belt-shaped ink medium for thermal transfer is accommodated, and a recording medium is not bundled, and a supply shaft around which the ink medium before use is wound; It has a winding shaft on which the ink medium is wound, a supply shaft housing portion in which the supply shaft side is rotatably housed, and a winding shaft housing portion in which the winding shaft side is rotatably housed. A cassette case, wherein the supply shaft and the take-up shaft are formed so that the outer diameters of the respective portions around which the ink medium is wound are substantially equal to each other, and the winding shaft is wound with respect to the inner diameter of the supply shaft accommodating portion. It is configured such that the inner diameter of the spindle storage portion is increased.

[Action]

With the above configuration, it is possible to prevent the ink paper take-up shaft from coming into contact with the inner wall of the take-up accommodating portion due to an increase in the take-up shaft diameter due to the take-up of used ink paper, thereby enabling stable take-up of the ink paper.

〔Example〕

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a cassette according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a printer equipped with an embodiment of a cassette according to the present invention. The cassette case 1 has a supply shaft storage 1-6 and a take-up shaft storage 1-7, in which a supply shaft 2-1 on which new ink paper 3 is wound and a used ink paper 3 are stored. The take-up shaft 2-2 is mounted, and the ink paper 3 is taken up from the supply shaft 2-1 to the take-up shaft 2-2 according to the movement of a mechanism described later. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), a thermal ink 3-1 for printing by the heat generated by a thermal head 17 described later is applied to the ink paper base 3-2.
It is applied to. The application of the ink 3-1 to the ink paper 3 may be performed by applying one color or three colors of Ye, Mg, and Cy to the size of each screen of the print one by one, or adding the three colors of the ink and adding four colors of the black ink. It is performed in a sequential manner. Printing is performed by the following method. When the cassette 1 is mounted on the printer, the ink paper 3 is stacked on the platen 18 and
Press with thermal head 17 from above. The cut photographic paper 24 is inserted from the paper feed port 21, wrapped around the platen 18 with the rotation of the platen 18, and sent under the thermal head 17 while being sandwiched between the platen 18 and the ink paper 3. At the lower part of the thermal head 17, heating elements 17-1 are arranged in a line direction, that is, in an axial direction of the platen 18, and in a direction perpendicular to the ink paper 3 traveling direction, 512 dots are arranged, and each dot generates heat according to an external signal. Vary the amount. In particular,
Each heating element 17-1 is constituted by a resistor of 250 μm × 140 μm, and the amount of heat generated is controlled by controlling the energization time when applying a current to each heating element. The heat generated by the thermal head 17 heats the thermal ink 3-1 on the ink paper 3,
The heated ink 3-1 is transferred to the printing paper 24. By controlling the energizing time to the thermal head 17, the transfer amount of the ink 3-1 to the photographic paper 24 is controlled, and as a result, gradation control printing with shading on the photographic paper becomes possible.
After the above operation is performed for 512 dots and one line, the platen 18 is rotated, and after one line is fed, the above operation is performed. By repeating this 512 lines, gradation printing having shading for each of 512 × 512 dots is performed on the printing paper 24. When recording a color image, first
Print one screen with Ye ink, and then print M on the same photographic paper.
g. Finally, print using Cy ink. The movement of the printer A is as follows.
The platen 18 rotates three times with the photographic paper 24 superimposed, and performs printing of three colors. After that, the paper discharge frame 23 is opened, the photographic paper 24 is sent to the paper discharge port 22, and one printing is completed. In the case of one-color printing, the printing paper 24 is discharged at the same time as printing, and in the case of performing printing with four-color ink, the platen 18 rotates four times and discharges after printing of four colors. Next, referring to FIG.
And the function of the cassette 1 according to the present invention will be described. The ink paper 3 supplied from the supply shaft 2-1 is cleaned by the cleaning means 15 according to the present invention to remove the adhered dirt. Thereafter, the ink paper pressing means 6 applies a strong tension to the center and a weak tension to the end to remove the ink. It prevents slack in the direction perpendicular to the ink paper feed, which causes wrinkling of the paper 3. Next, the ink paper 3 is superimposed on the printing paper 24 wound on the platen 18 and heated from above by the heating element 17-1 on the thermal head 17. The ink 3-1 on the ink paper 3 is transferred to the photographic paper 24 by heating, and recording is performed. The printed ink paper is peeled off from the photographic paper 24 by the peeling roller 19. Then, it is wound up on the winding shaft 2-2 as used ink paper. After printing, the ink paper 3 generates wrinkles due to the shrinkage of the ink paper 3 due to the heating of the thermal head 17. Therefore, even with the same length of ink paper, the winding shaft 2-2 is compared with the supply shaft 2-1. The diameter of becomes larger. Correspondingly, in the embodiment of the present invention, the inner diameter of the winding shaft housing is made larger than the inner diameter of the supply shaft housing.

FIG. 2 shows a shape diagram of the ink paper cassette according to the present invention. On both sides of the cassette 1, there are a supply shaft storage 1-6 and a take-up shaft storage 1-7.
And a take-up shaft 2-2 for winding the used ink paper, and the ink paper 3 is stretched between them. The above-described cleaning means 15 for the ink paper 3 and the ink paper pressing means 5 are attached to the supply shaft housing 1-6. The ink shaft 2 is provided with ink paper locking means 4 for locking the end of the ink paper 3 to the ink shaft 2 when winding the ink paper 3 around the ink shaft 2. A specific embodiment of the ink paper locking means will be described later. Further, a shaft holding member 11 for fixing the ink shaft 2 in the cassette 1 and a rotation stopping member 9 for preventing unnecessary rotation of the ink shaft 2 are provided. These specific examples will also be described later. The supply shaft housing 1-6 and the winding shaft housing 1-7 are connected by two columns 1-8,
It is integrated. The ink paper 3 is stretched between the two ink shafts 2 as described above, and as shown in FIG. Heat and print.

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of an embodiment of the cassette according to the present invention. The cassette according to the present invention is in the state of the ink shaft 2,
There are two modes, a position where the rotation is stopped and a position where the rotation is free. In FIG. 3 (a), the supply shaft 2-
The description will be made on the assumption that one side is a rotation stop position and the winding shaft side is a rotatable position. When the cassette 1 is not mounted on the printer, the drive shaft 7 for transmitting rotational torque from the printer is not inserted into the shaft 2 like the supply shaft 2-1 in the drawing. The rotation-stopping member 9-1 and the rotation-stopping member 9-2 provided on the cassette case 1 are engaged with each other, and the rotation of the shaft is fixed. The cassette case 1 is provided with a spring-like shaft pressing means 11 utilizing the elasticity of the material.
The ink shaft 2 is pressed in a direction in which the rotation stopping member engages. When the cassette 1 is mounted on the printer, the drive shaft 7 is pushed into the shaft 2 like the winding shaft 2-2 in the drawing.
The drive shaft 7 presses the entire shaft 2 in the direction of the shaft tip 8 against the pressing force of the shaft pressing member 11. As a result, the engagement between the rotation stop member 9-1 and the rotation stop member 9-2 is released,
The ink shaft 2 rotates freely inside the cassette 1 and follows the movement of the drive shaft 7 of the printer. FIG. 3B shows an example of a method of transmitting a rotational torque from the printer to the cassette. The drive shaft 7 has a claw that transmits torque, and the ink shaft 2 also has a claw that is combined with a claw of the drive shaft 7. When the drive shaft 7 enters the ink shaft 2, the claw engages to reduce the torque. Is transmitted. Drive shaft 7 on ink paper take-up shaft 2-2 side
Takes up the used ink paper in accordance with the feed speed of the platen 18 in FIG.
Sends out the ink paper 3 while applying tension to the ink paper 3 so as not to cause wrinkles in the ink paper 3.

FIG. 4 shows the function of stopping the rotation of the ink shaft 2. FIG. 4 (a) shows an example of a configuration for stopping rotation of the ink shaft 2. FIG. The ink shaft 2 is mounted on the cassette case 1 in a freely rotatable state. A rotation stopping member 9 is provided on the end face of the ink shaft 2.
-1 is constituted by the mounting or a part of the ink shaft. The rotation stop member 9-2 is attached to the cassette case 1 or is constituted by a part of the cassette case 1. The rotation stop member 9-1 and the rotation stop member 9-2 are engaged with each other to restrict the rotation of the ink shaft 2. . The configuration of the rotation stopping member 9 is as follows.
FIG. 4 (a) shows an example of a method in which the rotation stopping member 9-1 is formed as a concave portion and the rotation stopping member 9-1 is formed as a projection, and this is hooked. However, this combination may be reversed, and there is a means for releasing the regulation. Other schemes may be used. In this example,
The regulation is released by pushing the drive transmission unit 6 in the direction of the shaft tip 8 and disengaging the rotation stopping member 9. FIG. 4B shows the movement of the ink shaft 2 and the ink paper 3 when the rotation is not stopped. When vibration such as transportation is applied to the cassette 14, when the supply shaft 2-1 rotates clockwise and the winding shaft 2-2 rotates counterclockwise, the ink paper 3 sags between the two ink shafts 2, This causes stains and wrinkles due to contact with other parts and the like, resulting in poor image quality during printing. FIG. 4C shows a state where the rotation is stopped. Supply shaft 2-1 and winding shaft 2-
2 is fixed by the rotation stopper, so that the ink paper 3 does not come in and out of the ink shaft 2 and does not slack. FIG. 4 (d) shows a state where the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism. The rotation stop member 9 of the ink shaft 2 is detached by mounting on the mechanism, and as a result, the ink shaft 2 is freely rotated. However, by mounting on the mechanism, the movement of the drive shaft 7 of the mechanism is controlled by the ink shaft 2. Does not loosen, unless the drive shaft 7 is intentionally moved. During printing, the drive shaft 7-1 and the drive shaft 7-2 feed the ink paper 3 in one direction in accordance with the printing speed.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which the shaft holding member 11 is attached to the upper cover 1-1 of the cassette. FIG. 5A shows a state where the drive shaft 7 is not inserted into the ink shaft 2. At this time, the ink shaft 2 is pressed against the drive shaft by the shaft pressing member 11, and the rotation preventing member 9-1 and the rotation preventing member 9-2 are engaged with each other. The ink shaft 2 does not rotate. Is not loose. FIG. 1B shows a state in which the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism and the drive shaft 7 enters the ink shaft 2. The ink shaft 2 is pressed by the drive shaft 7, and is pressed toward the shaft tip 8 against the pressing force of the shaft pressing member 11. At this time, the detent member 9-1 and the detent member 9-2 are separated from each other, and the ink shaft 2 follows the movement of the drive shaft 7 while freely rotating. FIG. 5 (c) shows the cassette pig 1-
1 shows the movement of the shaft holding member 11 attached to the first embodiment. The shaft holding member 11 formed in the shape of a leaf spring extending a part of the cassette upper cover 1-1 into the cassette 14 has a spring function by utilizing the elasticity of the material of the cassette case 1. Due to the elasticity of the spring, the ink shaft 2 is pressed against the drive shaft 7 and the rotation preventing members 9-1 and 9-2 are engaged with each other, so that the ink shaft 2 is fixed without rotating. When the drive shaft 7 is pushed into the ink shaft 2 as shown in FIG. 5D, the ink shaft 2 is pressed against the shaft tip 8 against the pressing force of the shaft holding member 11 due to its elasticity. Accordingly, the detent member 9-1 and the detent member 9-2 are separated from each other, and the ink shaft 2 freely rotates and follows the movement of the drive shaft 7. FIG. 5 (e) shows the pig 1 on the cassette.
1 shows the shaft holding member 11 formed at -1. Pig 1 on cassette
-1 is cut out and bent into the inside of the cassette case 1. By forming into this shape, even when the cassette case 1 is subjected to plastic injection molding, plastic is injected between the upper and lower molds, and after curing, the mold is simply peeled off. , High productivity. Further, by using the cassette 14 having this shape, the assembling operation of the cassette 14 can be performed with the lower cassette 1-2.
Since the assembly is completed simply by mounting the ink shaft 2 on the cassette and assembling the cassette upper cover 1-1 from above by bonding or fitting, the number of parts is small and the mass productivity is excellent.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a combination of the ink shaft 2 and the shaft holding means 11. FIG. 6 (a) shows the shaft 2 with the shaft holding member 2-
3 is provided. In the case where the shaft holding means 11 using a part of the material of the cassette case 1 is provided as shown in the figure, the shaft holding member 2-3 is set so that the shaft holding means 11 does not contact the ink paper 3 wound around the shaft 2. The pressing force from the shaft pressing means 11 is transmitted to the ink shaft 2. FIG. 6B shows an example in which the shaft 2 is not provided with the shaft holding member 2-3. When the shaft holding means 11 utilizing a part of the material of the cassette case 1 is provided as shown in the figure, the shaft holding means 11 does not come into contact with the ink paper 3 wound around the shaft 2 and is pressed by the shaft holding means 11. Force ink axis 2
To communicate.

FIG. 7 shows an example in which the cassette 14 is constituted only by the cassette lower pig 1-2. The shaft holding member 11 for holding the ink shaft 2 is formed as a part of the cassette lower cover 1-2 to reduce the number of parts. The ink shaft 2 is attached to and fixed to the cassette case 1 without using the cassette upper cover 1-1 and the ink shaft locking member 12 for holding the drive transmission section 6 of the ink shaft 2 in place of the cassette lower cover 1-2. It is formed as a part. FIG. 7A shows an example of the cassette 14 having the above configuration. FIG. 7 (b) shows a method of mounting the ink shaft 2 to the cassette case 1.
The shaft tip 8 of the ink shaft 2 is inserted into the shaft tip fixing hole 13 of the cassette, and the drive transmission portion 6 on the opposite side is pushed between the ink shaft locking members 12. The ink shaft locking member 12 is opened due to the elasticity of the material, and returns to its original position when the drive transmission portion 6 of the ink shaft 2 is sandwiched, thereby fixing the ink shaft 2 to the cassette case 1.
FIG. 7 (c) shows the assembled cassette 14. The ink shaft 2 is pressed in the direction of the drive shaft 7 by the shaft holding member 11, and the rotation stopping members 9-1 and 9-2 engage with each other, so that the ink shaft 2 does not rotate and the ink paper 3 does not sag. FIG. 7D shows a state where the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism. The drive shaft 7 enters the ink shaft 2 and presses the ink shaft 2 in the direction of the shaft tip 8 against the pressing force of the shaft pressing member 11 inside the cassette case 1. At this time, the rotation stopping members 9-1 and 9-2 separate from each other, and the ink shaft 2 freely rotates and follows the movement of the drive shaft 7. The cassette 14 having the above-described configuration has a small number of parts, and can be assembled only by pushing the ink shaft 2 into the cassette case 1, so that the mass production is excellent.

FIG. 8 shows an embodiment in which the shaft holding member 11 is attached to the ink shaft 2. FIG. 8 (a) shows the configuration when the cassette 14 is not mounted on the mechanism. The ink shaft 2 in the cassette 14 is pressed against the shaft front end 8 by the shaft holding member 11, and the rotation stopping member 9-1 and the rotation stopping member 9-2 are engaged with each other so that the rotation of the ink shaft 2 is restricted. Therefore, the ink paper 3 does not sag. Fig. 8 (b) shows the cassette
This shows the 14 attached to the mechanism. Drive shaft 7 is ink shaft 2
Then, the ink shaft 2 is pushed up in the direction of the shaft tip 8 against the pressing force due to the elasticity of the shaft pressing member 11 in the cassette 14. By this operation, the rotation stopping member 9-1 and the rotation stopping member 9-2 are separated, and as a result, the ink shaft 2 freely rotates and follows the operation of the drive shaft 7. The shaft holding member 11 is formed in a spring-like shape at the tip of the ink shaft 2, and has a function of holding the shaft by the elasticity of the material. By molding the shaft holding member 11 integrally with the ink shaft 2, the total number of parts is reduced and productivity is improved without separately installing a spring in the cassette.

FIG. 9 shows an example of a method for stopping the rotation of the ink shaft 2. FIG. 9A shows a state where the rotation of the ink shaft 2 is restricted without the cassette 14 being mounted on the mechanism. The ink shaft 2 does not move back and forth in the cassette case 1 and its position is stable. A rotation stopping member 9-1 is formed as a part of the cassette case 1, and the rotation stopping member 9 of the ink shaft 2 is formed.
-2, the rotation of the ink shaft 2 is stopped. Ninth
FIG. 2B shows a state where the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism. At the same time when the drive shaft 7 is mounted on the ink shaft 2 at the time of mounting on the mechanism, the rotation stop release pin 10 pushes the rotation stop member 9-1 through a hole provided in the cassette 14. Thereby, the rotation stopping member 9-1 and the rotation stopping member 9-2 are separated, and the ink shaft 2 freely rotates and follows the movement of the drive shaft 7.

FIG. 10 shows an example of a method of stopping the rotation of the ink shaft 2. No.
FIG. 10A shows a state in which the rotation of the ink shaft 2 is restricted without the cassette 14 being mounted on the mechanism. The ink shaft 2 has a hole 16 for accommodating the rotation stop member 9-1. In the ink shaft 2, the pin-shaped rotation stop member 9-1 is inserted halfway into the hole 16 and the outer wall of the hole 16 is formed. Has stopped due to friction. Half of the length of the rotation stopping member 9-1 protrudes from the ink shaft 2 and engages with the rotation stopping member 9-2 provided on the cassette to stop the rotation of the ink shaft 2. FIG. 10 (b) shows a state where the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism. By the attachment to the mechanism, the drive shaft 7 is attached to the ink shaft 2, and at the same time, the detent release pin 10 pushes the detent member 9-1 into the hole. As a result, the rotation stopping member 9-1 and the rotation stopping member 9-2 are separated, and the ink shaft 2 freely rotates and follows the movement of the drive shaft 7. In this method, once the rotation stop member 9 is released, it does not act again. Therefore, once the cassette 14 is mounted on the mechanism, it is suitable for application without removing the cassette 14 until all of the cassette 14 is used up.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the ink cassette 14 of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the ink shaft 2 of the ink cassette 14 shown in FIG. A supply port 1 partially opened in the supply shaft storage section 1-6 of the cassette case 1.
3 and the winding shaft 1-4 partially opened in the winding shaft housing 1-7, the ink paper 3 is passed through the supply shaft 2-1 and the winding shaft 2-2.
Although not shown in the upper side of the supply port 1-3 in the cassette case 1 for winding the ink paper 3 into the
The pressing means 5 is provided so as to come into contact with the ink paper 3 even when the ink paper 3 is actually conveyed with the ink cartridge 14 attached thereto, and the contact portion 5-1 of the pressing means 5 with the ink paper 3 has a smooth curvature. And a convex shape symmetrically with respect to the center of the ink paper 3.

The ink paper 3 unwound from the supply shaft 2-1 when the ink paper 3 is conveyed is pressed down by the pressing means 5 at the central portion and weaker toward the outer end, and has a width parallel to the winding shaft 2-2. It is wound with a uniform force in the direction. Therefore, when wrinkles occur in the ink paper 3 wound around the supply shaft 2-1, the ink paper 3 always moves outward from the center of the ink paper 3 in the width direction on the way to the take-up shaft 2-2 from the holding means 5. There is an effect of eliminating wrinkles because the force acting to disperse wrinkles works toward it.

Also, while the ink paper 3 comes into contact with the pressing means 5 during the transfer, the load of the transfer is increased. The load is reduced by particularly smoothing the contact portion 5-1 or using a low friction material such as a fluororesin tape. Is also effective.

FIG. 13 shows another embodiment of the cassette case 1 of the present invention. In the embodiment of the cassette 14 shown in FIG. 11, the ink paper 3 has a convex and smooth curvature with respect to the center. Alternatively, cleaning means 15 such as a felt or an electrostatic brush is provided in the width direction of the ink paper on the contact portion 5-1 which is linear. Since the surface of the ink paper 3 is brought into contact with the cleaning means 15 during transportation, dust and dirt which cause deterioration of image quality when printing adhered to the surface can be removed, and good printing can be performed. it can.

Although not shown, when performing thermal recording, heat is applied by a thermal head from the side of the base paper layer of the ink paper 3 including the base paper layer and the ink layer. When the surface is the base paper surface 3-1, it is possible to remove dust and dirt, which have adhered to the thermal head via the ink paper 3 and become a cause of shortening the life of the thermal head due to being heated. There is an effect that can be done, cleaning means
If the surface of the ink paper 3 that contacts the ink surface 15 is the ink surface 3-2, the dust adheres to the ink surface 3-2 and is directly attached to the photographic paper, causing scratches on the print and deteriorating the image quality;
This has the effect of removing dirt, and in any case, it is effective to ensure good print quality.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view of an embodiment of the cassette 14 in which the cleaning means 15-1 and 15-2 contact the ink surface 3-2 and the base paper surface 3-1 respectively. Has the same effect as the embodiment shown in FIG. Cleaning means 15-1, 15-2
Since the ink paper 3 is sandwiched from both sides, the cleaning means 15-a and 15-b close the supply port 1-3, and there is an effect that dust entering from outside into the supply shaft storage portion 1-6 is cut off.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the ink locking means 4 of the ink cassette according to the present invention, and FIG. 16 is a sectional view of the ink locking means 4 shown in FIG.

A locking groove 4-2 which constitute the further notch 4-2-1 downwardly provided longer than the width W _I of the ink sheet 3 to be locked in the axial direction of the ink-axis 2, the outer peripheral portion of the ink shaft 2 2- 3 and the outer peripheral 4-1-4 and the pressing portion 4 provided longer than the width W _I of the ink sheet 3 to be locked in the axial direction of the ink axis 2 downwards having substantially the same curvature
-1-3 and a protruding portion 4-1 having a recess at the center protruding wider than the width of the locking groove 4-2 on both outer sides in the width direction of the holding portion.
And a locking member 4-1 provided with 1,4-1-2.

The ink paper 3 is placed so as to be perpendicular to the axial direction of the ink shaft 2 and within the axial width of the locking groove 4-2, and the locking member 4-1 is inserted into the locking groove 4-2 from above. Then, the holding section 4-1
-3 comes into contact with the ink paper 3 and is further pushed into the locking groove 4-2. The protruding portions 4-1-1 and 4-1-2 enter the locking groove 4-2 bent to the center by the central concave portion, and the notch 4
It spreads and engages again at the position of -2-1. With the above operation, the locking member 4-1 and the locking groove 4-2 sandwich the ink paper 3 therebetween and lock it.

According to the present embodiment, the ink paper 3 can be locked to the ink shaft 2 by a simple operation, so that there is an effect that the efficiency at the time of assembly is improved.

Further, if the end of the ink paper 3 is inserted into the inside of the ink shaft 2 and locked, the processing of the end of the ink paper is not performed, so that the winding of the ink paper 3 around the ink shaft 2 is further facilitated.

FIG. 17 shows another embodiment of the ink locking member 4-1 of the ink cassette according to the present invention. The retaining means 4 shown in FIG. 15 is characterized in that the holding portion 4-1-3 has a convex shape with a gentle curvature downward. Although not shown, the ink paper 3 is inserted into the locking groove 4-2 and the locking member 4-.
1, the ink paper 3 first comes into contact with a part of the holding portion 4-1-3. When the locking member 4-1 is further pushed into the locking groove 4-2, the ink paper 3 Presser part 4-1
3, the contact portion of the ink paper 3 expands outward from both sides in the width direction of the ink paper 3 and the locking member 4-1 is completely engaged with the locking groove 4-2. Lock 3

According to the present invention, when the ink paper 3 is locked,
Is slightly wavy due to humidity, temperature, etc., and even if there is a wrinkle, the ink paper 3 is scattered to the outside in the width direction of the ink paper 3 by the holding portion 4-1-3 having a gentle curvature. It can be locked without wrinkles. Further, secondary wrinkles generated by wrinkles generated at the time of locking can be suppressed.

FIG. 18 shows a configuration in which only the ink paper 3 is replaced without reusing the cassette case 1. FIG. 18 (a) shows the used cassette 14, in which the cassette case is replaced with the cassette upper cover 1-1 and the cassette lower cover 1 for replacing the ink paper 3.
Decomposed into 2. An ink paper 3 is stored in the supply shaft storage 1-6.
The empty ink shaft 2-b that has used up
7 is an ink shaft 2 around which the used ink paper 3-a is wound.
a is stored. To replace the ink paper 3, first remove the ink locking means 4 of the ink shaft 2-b, and remove the end of the used ink paper 3-a. Next, used ink paper 3
-A is discarded together with the ink axis 2-a. FIG. 18 (b) shows how new ink paper 3-b is mounted. The empty ink shaft 2-b contained in the supply shaft housing 1-6 is moved to the winding shaft housing 1-7. Next, the ink shaft 2-c around which the new ink paper 3-b is wound is put into the supply shaft storage section 1-6. Next, the leading end of the new ink paper 3-b wound around the ink shaft 2-c is pulled out, and the ink shaft 2-c on the winding shaft housing 1-7 is pulled out.
b is locked using the ink paper locking means 4. Finally, the upper lid 1-1 of the cassette is placed and fixed on the lower lid 1-2 of the cassette on which the ink shaft 2 is mounted. With the above operation, the replacement of the ink paper 2 is completed, and the cassette 14 can be reused as a new cassette. The ink shaft 2-a on which the used ink paper 3-a is wound is discarded as it is, or returned to a maker at a store or the like for reuse.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the ink locking means of the ink cassette according to the present invention.

The embodiment is characterized in that the locking groove 4-2 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 15 reaches the shaft end 2-4 of the ink shaft 2. The operation of locking the ink paper 3 to the ink shaft 2 is exactly the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 15, and has the same effect. Further, when the end of the ink paper 3 is removed from the ink shaft 2 on the supply shaft 2-1 where the ink paper 3 has been used since the locking groove 4-2 reaches the shaft end 2-4, the locking member 4- 1 is locking groove 4-
2 can be performed by a very simple operation of moving the ink shaft 2 in the axial direction. Therefore, the cassette
There is an effect that the replacement of the 14 ink papers 3 can be performed very easily.

The same effect can be obtained even if the locking groove 4-2 is provided over the entire axial direction of the ink shaft 2.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the ink locking means 4 of the ink cassette 14 according to the present invention, and FIG. 20 (a) is a sectional view for explaining the operation thereof, and FIGS. Was.

The long groove portion 2-5 formed than the width W _I of the ink sheet 3 further axially provided with a drive transmitting portion 6 to the shaft end of one hollow portion 4
3 and an inner peripheral portion of the ink shaft 2 which is in contact with an inner peripheral portion 2-6 of the ink shaft 2.
The locking means 4 is provided with a hollow cylindrical locking means 4 provided with two.

The operation will be described below. Align the groove 2-5 of the ink shaft with the locking groove 4-2, and move the leading end of the ink paper 3 to the 20th position.
As shown in FIG. 7B, the hollow portion 4-3 of the locking member is inserted through the groove 2-5 and the locking groove 4-2. Next, when the locking means 4 is rotated with respect to the ink shaft 2, as shown in FIG. 3C, the ink paper 3 is separated from the inner circumference 2-6 of the ink shaft 2 and the outer circumference 4-4 of the locking means 4. It is locked by being sandwiched between and.

According to the present embodiment, since the ink paper 3 can be reliably locked to the ink shaft with a very simple operation, there is an effect that the work of assembling the cassette and replacing the ink paper 3 can be reduced.

FIG. 21 shows an example in which the inner diameters of the supply shaft housing 1-6 and the winding shaft housing 1-7 of the cassette case 1 are changed. Supply axis 2
The new ink paper 3 wound around -1 is wound up on the winding shaft 2-2 on the opposite side according to printing. The ink paper 3 is wound around the supply shaft 2-1 by applying a large tension in the process of manufacturing the new ink paper 3, but the used ink paper 3 is wrinkled or partially stretched by heating. Winding shaft 2-
When the ink is wound around 2, the ink paper 3 wrinkled by printing is wound with a relatively small tension, so that the diameter of the winding shaft 2-2 is larger than the diameter of the supply shaft 2-1. To cope with this problem, the inner diameter of the winding shaft housing 1-7 is made larger than that of the supply shaft housing 1-6 of the cassette case 1. FIG. 21 (a) shows a state where all the new ink paper 3 is wound around the supply shaft 2-1. Supply shaft storage 1-
Since the inner diameter of the winding shaft housing 1-7 is larger than the inner diameter of 6, the winding shaft 2-2 seems to have a sufficient margin. FIG. 21 (b) shows a state where the use of the ink has been completed and the used ink paper 3 is all wound around the winding shaft 2-2. The diameter of the ink shaft 2 after winding is larger on the winding shaft 2-2 than on the supply shaft 2-1, and the inner diameter of the winding shaft housing 1 is larger than that on the supply shaft housing 1-6. The winding shaft 2-2 becomes thick until -7 is full. If the inside diameter of the take-up shaft housing 1-7 is designed to be as small as the inside diameter of the supply shaft housing 1-6, the take-up shaft 2-2 around which the used ink paper has been wound becomes the take-up shaft housing 1 Since there is a possibility of contact with the inner wall of -7 to cause a turning failure, it is necessary to make the inner diameter of the winding shaft housing 1-7 larger than that of the supply shaft housing 1-6 as described above.

FIG. 22 shows another embodiment of the means for preventing the ink paper 3 from contacting the inner wall of the winding shaft housing 1-7 with the diameter of the winding shaft 2-2 being larger than the supply shaft 2-1. Here is an example. Supply shaft 2-1
By reducing the diameter of the winding shaft 2-2 with respect to the diameter of, it is possible to cope with an increase in diameter due to winding. FIG. 22 (a) shows a state where all the new ink paper 3 is wound around the supply shaft 2-1. The outer diameter of the supply shaft 2-1 is almost the same as the supply shaft storage part 1.
-6 is full. FIG. 22 (b) shows a state in which all of the ink paper 3 is used and wound around the winding shaft 2-2. As described above, the used ink paper 3 is taken up by the winding shaft 2-
2 is larger than the diameter of the supply shaft 2-1.
Is smaller than the shaft diameter of the supply shaft 2-1 so that the inner diameter of the supply shaft housing 1-6 and the inner diameter of the take-up shaft 1-7 are the same. To prevent the contact with the inner wall of the cassette case 1.

〔The invention's effect〕

According to the present invention, in the cassette case, the volume in which the ink paper can be wound in the take-up shaft housing is larger than the volume in which the ink paper can be wound in the supply shaft housing. The problem of stopping the rotation on the winding shaft side is solved, and stable winding of the ink paper is made possible, and a highly reliable and easy-to-use ink paper cassette can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1, 2, and 3 are diagrams showing the configuration of a cassette according to the present invention, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of a rotation stopping mechanism for an ink shaft, and FIGS. FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 are configuration diagrams of an embodiment of a cassette case, FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 are configuration diagrams of ink paper cleaning means, FIG.
FIGS. 15 to 20 are configuration diagrams of an embodiment of the ink paper locking means, and FIGS. 21 and 22 are sectional views showing another embodiment of the cassette case of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Cassette case, 2 ... Ink shaft, 3 ... Ink paper, 4 ... Ink paper locking means, 5 ... Ink paper holding means, 9 ... Rotation stop member, 11 ... Shaft holding member, 14 ... cassette, 15 ... means for cleaning ink paper.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Kentaro Hanma 292 Yoshida-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi Inside the Home Appliance Research Laboratory, Hitachi, Ltd. (56) References JP-A-57-120456 (JP, A)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. An ink paper cassette in which a thin band-shaped ink medium for thermal transfer is accommodated and a recording medium is not bundled, and a supply shaft on which the ink medium before use is wound; A winding shaft on which the ink medium is to be wound later, a supply shaft housing portion in which the supply shaft side is rotatably housed, and a winding shaft housing portion in which the winding shaft side is rotatably housed. The supply shaft and the take-up shaft are formed so that the outer diameters of the portions around which the ink medium is wound are substantially equal to each other, and the inner diameter of the supply shaft storage portion is Wherein the inner diameter of the take-up shaft housing is increased.