Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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A PRINTING HEAD CASSETTE
Background of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cassette for a
printing head, and in particular a cassette for a printing
head in which ink is deposited in a plurality of holes or
recesses in a film member and projected or jetted by bubble
pressure due to heat from a thermal head.
In the conventional ink jet type printer, a plural-
fly of ink jet nozzles are used, and ink is jetted to a
printing paper by a pus electric driving means. Such
pus electric ink jet printers are not entirely satisfac-
tory. For example, it is very difficult to eliminate a
nozzle stoppage, whereby a skip occurs in the desired
printing. On the other hand, in the case of an inked ribbon
type printer, ink gradually decreases in the ribbon, with
use, and print density correspondingly decreases, resulting
in pale printing. Further, in the case of thermal transfer
or hammer type printers, a coated tape must be discarded
after one printing operation. Therefore, a printer, type-
writer or word processor, which must be able to print by
supplying ink continuously, has not been developed until
now.
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Summary of the Invention
The present invention aims to eliminate the above
noted difficulties and insufficiencies. The object of the
present invention is to provide a new cassette for a print-
in head which contains at least one pulley which is rota-
tally mounted in a casing, a film member which is movably
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mounted and guided by the pulley in the casing and is in
contact with a heating surface of a thermal head. A plural-
fly of small holes or recesses in the film member are filled
with recording ink from ink stored in the casing.
grief Description of the Drawings
Fig. l to 9 show a first embodiment of the present
invention:
Fig. l shows a cross sectional view of a cassette
for a printing head;
Fig. 2 shows one part of a film;
lo Fig. 3 shows a cross sectional view of the
cassette of Fig. l;
Fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a cassette
printing head of a serial color printer;
Fig. 5 shows a cross sectional view of an endless
film type of printing head cassette;
Fig. 6 shows a cross sectional view of a line
printer cassette as another embodiment of the present
invention;
Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of Fig. 6;
Fig. 8 shows a front view of a line color
printer;
Fig. 9 shows an enlarged cross sectional view of a
principal construction;
Figs. lo to 13 show a further embodiment of the
present invention:
Fig. lo is a perspective view of a complete
printing head;
Fig. if shows a front cross sectional view of the
ink cassette for use in the printer of Fig. lo
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Fig. 12 shows a side cross sectional view of the
ink cassette of Fig. 11; and
Figs. 13~ and 13B show a side cross sectional view
and flat plan view illustrating the printing principal of
the present invention.
Description of the Preferred Embodiments
Referring now to a first embodiment of the present
invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1
shows a cross sectional view of a printing head cassette. A
casing 1 of box shape is detachably mounted on the main body
of a printing machine (not shown), an open recess portion 2
is formed in the top portion of the casing member 1, a
thermal head 3 shown in dotted lines is guided into the open
recess portion 2 when the casing 1 is mounted on the main
body. A pair of pulleys or reels 4 and 5 are rotatable
mounted in the casing 1.
A flexible film member 7 which has a plurality of
holes (diameter is about 10 I- 200 em) as shown in Fig 2 is
made of a metal or organic material, for example flexible
polyamide film, is rotatable mounted between pulleys 4 and
5. The film 7 passes through a pair of guiding members 8
which are positioned adjacent the open recess portion 2.
The guiding members 8 are composed of a pair of guide eye-
mints pa and 8b which are made of a felt material which
removes excess liquid ink 9 on the film 7, except for ink in
the holes 6. A plurality of groups pa of small holes 6 are
positioned along the film 7 and are spaced apart by blank
portions 6b with small hole groups pa alternating with blank
portions 6b~ The film 7 is in contact with the heating
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surface of the thermal head 3 and is moved by rotation of
pulleys 4 and 5. The small hole group pa is immersed period-
icily in liquid ink in said casing member 1 to avoid drying
of the ink 9 in holes 6. Further, as another embodiment of
the present invention not shown in the drawings, the small
holes are wholly shaped to said film member 7, it is able to
use this type film member 7 by always rotating it by the
pulleys 4 and 5.
The axle portions pa and pa of the pulleys 4 and
5, as shown in Fig. 3, protrude through a bearing portion lb
of a mounting portion lo on one face of the casing member 1,
a pair of driving disks 4b and 5b which are connected to a
driving means (not shown) are mounted to the outer portion
of said axle portions pa and pa. Further, an O-ring member
10 is positioned between the mounting portion lo and the
axle portions pa and pa to prevent ink 9 from escaping and
to provide a braking effect to prevent over-running of the
axle portions pa and pa.
Fig. 4 shows a color printing head block 11 which
is composed of four cassette casing members 1 for Y color
(yellow), M color (magenta), C color (cyan) and BULK color
(black). As shown in Fig. 4, the casing members 1 are
shaped as one body in a length direction of the film member
movement direction. A pair of guide bars 13 are slid ably
passed through a pair of guide holes 12 which are shaped to
the bearing portions lb of the casing members 1. The color
printing head block 11 is reciprocally moved along said
guide bars 13 J whereby a cassette type serial color print-
in head for a serial color printing system is attained.
The color printing head block 11 may be changed by pulsing
the casing members 1 toward front direction whereby the
casing members 1 are freed from a lock mechanism (not
shown).
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Fig. 5 shows another embodiment of the present
invention, only one pulley 4 is rotatable mounted in the
casing member 1, an axle portion pa is rotatable driven by a
driving means snot shown), an endless type film member 7 is
slid ably connected with the heating surface pa thermal dot
elements) of the thermal head 3. A part of the film member
7 is spread by a tension roller 15 which is mounted to an
inner wall of the casing member 1 via a spring member 14.
In the embodiment of Fig. 5, the small holes of the film
member 7 are repeatedly used for printing.
Fig. 6 shows another embodiment of the present
invention, particularly a cassette for a printing head for a
line printing system. The casing member 1 is composed of a
pair of cylinder members to and id of a length almost the
same as the width of the printing paper and a pair of plate
members to and if. Side portions of the plate members to
and if seal the ends of the cylinder members to and id.
Liquid ink 9 is housed in the cavity of the cylinder members
to and id, pulleys 4 and 5 are rotatable mounted therein,
the film member 7 which has a plurality of small holes and
is rotatable mounted on the pulleys 4 and 5 is guided from a
gap portion of a guide member 8 toward the outer portions of
cylinder members to and id. One surface of said film member
7 is in contact with the heating surface pa of the thermal
head 3 which is positioned in the open recess portion bet-
wren the cylinder members to and id. Further, the pulleys 4
and 5 have axle portions pa and pa and driving disks 4b and
5b respectively integral therewith as shown in Fig. 7.
Therefore, the embodiments of Figs. 6 and 7 show line print-
in cassette head for one color.
The embodiment of Fig. 8 shows a line color print-
in head which has four cassette printing heads of Y, M, C
and BULK colors. The cassette printing heads are aligned
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in the direction of motion of the film member 7 whereby a
line cassette head block 16 is constructed. Therefore, a
recording paper 17 is slid ably moved on said line cassette
head block 16 by a belt having a plurality of holes which is
moved by a pair of pulleys 18 and 19, the recording paper 17
is tightly held to the belt 20 by a vacuum means 21.
The above noted cassette printing head is easily
detachably mounted on a printing machine (not shown). The
thermal head 3 is guided in the open recess portion 2 of the
casing member 1 whereby the casing member 1 and thermal head
3 are constructed as one body. The ink 9 in the small holes
6 of the film member 7 is jetted on the recording paper 17
by bubble pressure when the heating surface pa of the then-
met head 3 is actuated.
Referring now to a second embodiment of the
present invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings,
Figs. 10 to 13, numeral 1 shows a box-shaped casing member
in which ink 2 is housed, and a pair of pulleys 4 and 5 are
rotatable disposed in the casing member 1.
The end portions of a film 7 which is composed of
a thin metal or resin material such as polyamide are con-
netted to the pulleys 4 and 5. A plurality of small holes
or recesses 6 as shown in Figs. 12 and 13 are shaped in the
film 7, each small hole or recess 6 is about 10 200 em
diameter and composes one picture element.
A driving axle 25 is rotatable disposed on the
upper portion of the pulleys 4 and 5 in the casing member 1.
One end of the driving axis 7 protrudes outside of the gas-
in member 1 and has a gear portion aye, Fig. 12. A pair of
idlers 26 are rotatable disposed between the pulleys 4 and 5
Jo and between the pulley 5 and driving axis 7 and are geared
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with pulleys 4 and 5 and driving axle 7. Pulleys 4 and 5
and film 7 are rotated in the same direction by the idlers
8. Further, it is possible to rotate pulleys 5 and film 7
by friction there between instead of by gear drive.
One end portion of film 7 protrudes from an opened
portion 27 (Fig. 11) which is shaped to the upper portion of
the casing member 1. Film 7 is placed between a sealing
member 30 and protrusions 29 of a plug 28 whereby ink is not
emerged from said casing member 1. An ink filling plug 31
(Fig. 12) is provided in a side portion of the casing member
1, to enable ink to be replenished when required.
Fig. 10 shows a printer head 33 in which an ink
cassette 32 is detachably attached thereto. A supporting
recess portion lo of the casing member 1 is mounted on a
supporting arm 16 of said printer head 33, thus making it
possible to separate the ink cassette 32 from the printer
head 33 by opening the supporting arm 32 and pulling a knob
aye by hand A thermal head 3 is mounted on the printer
head 33, four ink cassettes 32 for four colors Y, M, C and
BULK are disposed, an exposed portion pa of the film 7 is
contacted with an outside surface of said thermal head 3.
Each of gear members aye of the ink cassette 14 are con-
netted with a timing belt 37 of a printer body 18 and are
pressed by a supplemental pulley 20 which is mounted on the
printer head 33.
The printer head 33 is reciprocally disposed on a
pair of guiding bars 39, the driving axis 25 of the ink
cassette 32 is rotated by the timing belt 37, then it is
able to print on paper 41 on a platen 40.
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Ink material in the holes or recesses 6 is jetted
to the paper 41 by bubble pressure from heating of the
thermal head.
According to the present invention, when the ink
is exhausted, it is possible to only change a cassette, not
the thermal head, whereby printing in one or more colors
can continue.
Further, it is able to constantly print by moving
the film during printing operation, thereby a stoppage of
said holes or recesses is completely prevented.
Furthermore, it is able to constantly print at a
constant density.
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