Sony Corporation

Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd.

Katsuhisa Ono

Hideki Ando

Nobuyuki Kamitani

Yoshinori Yamane

Hiroshi Katsuno

Atsushi Oda

Shigeyoshi Hirashima

Yasuhito Eguchi

Hiromitsu Takeda

Hitoshi Kamoda

Koichi Sawada

Toshiki Kagami

Yoshiaki Haba

Mitsuyoshi Shindo

Satoru Gozu

[Object] To provide a printer system that can be easily produced by easily assembling a plurality of modules. [Solution] A printer systemincludes a plurality of modules, andthat are coupled to each other. Each of the modules, andhas a housing, orand a coupling body, or. One of the housing, orand the coupling body, orhas an insertion hole, or, and the other one of the housing, orand the coupling body, orhas an insertion pin, or

Printer system

[Object] To reduce the time required to transport a cut sheet and perform printing at a high speed. [Solution] A duplex printerincludes a printing unitA, a cut sheet feeder, and a guide transport path. A reversing mechanismthat reverses a cut sheetreturned from the printing unitA is connected to the guide transport pathvia a switcher. A stopperthat stops the cut sheetis provided in a part of the guide transport pathon the upstream side of the switcher. A discharge pathbranches off from the stopperof the guide transport path

Duplex printer

There is provided a compact simplex and duplex printer which can be produced easily at a low cost. The simplex and duplex printer includes: a thermal head for performing printing on a substrate; a rolled substrate supply section for supplying a continuous substrate, which is to be printed on one side, to the thermal head; and a sheet-like substrate supply section, provided below the rolled substrate supply section, for sequentially supplying sheet-like substrates, which are to be printed on both sides, to the thermal head. A reversing mechanism for reversing a sheet-like substrate which has been returned from the thermal head is disposed between the thermal head and the sheet-like substrate supply section. The reversing mechanism is disposed just below the rolled substrate supply section.

Simplex and duplex printer

A compact simplex and duplex printer which can be produced easily at a low cost. The simplex and duplex printer includes: a thermal head for performing printing on a substrate; a rolled substrate supply section for supplying a continuous substrate, which is to be printed on one side, to the thermal head; and a sheet-like substrate supply section, provided below the rolled substrate supply section, for sequentially supplying sheet-like substrates, which are to be printed on both sides, to the thermal head. A guide transport path for guiding a sheet-like substrate from the sheet-like substrate supply section to the thermal head is provided between the thermal head and the sheet-like substrate supply section. To the guide transport path is connected a reversing mechanism for reversing the sheet-like substrate which has been returned from the thermal head to the guide transport path. The reversing mechanism includes a rotatable housing shell.

There is provided an image forming apparatus including a print head adapted to form an image on a recording medium, a transport path for the recording medium, the transport path being provided on at least one of a feed side and a discharge side of the recording medium with respect to the print head, an image reading device provided on the transport path, the image reading device being adapted to read an image formed by the print head, a correction chart provided opposite the image reading device with the transport path interposed in between, the correction chart being read by the image reading device in order to correct a reading result of the image reading device, based on information obtained from reading the correction chart, and a distance adjustment device adapted to increase or decrease the distance between the correction chart and the image reading device.

Image forming apparatus including an image calibration system

A paper roll feed mechanism rotates a paper roll including recording paper wound in a cylindrical shape to unwind the paper. The paper roll feed mechanism includes the following components. A supporting mechanism rotatably supports the paper roll. At least one paper feed roller unwinds the paper, serving as the outer surface of the paper roll supported by the supporting mechanism, in the lengthwise direction of the paper. A skew correcting member presses a side surface of the paper roll, supported by the supporting mechanism, in the widthwise direction of the paper. The skew correcting member presses outer part of the side surface of the paper roll in a paper unwinding region.

Paper roll feed mechanism, paper roll feed cassette, and image forming apparatus

A printing positioning mechanism includes a support shaft, a platen supported by the support shaft, and a printing head disposed in an opposing relationship to the platen for movement toward and away from the platen, and adjusts the positional relationship between the printing head and the platen when the printing head is moved toward the plate. The support shaft is movable in a plane perpendicular to an axial direction thereof, and the print head includes an aligning member interlinked with the print head for contacting with an outer periphery of the support shaft when the print head is moved toward the platen. The support shaft is moved to a predetermined position by contacting the aligning member with the outer periphery of the support shaft.

Printing positioning mechanism and printer

A rotary-torque adjuster that adjusts rotary torque of a rotational member includes a rotary shaft, the rotational member secured to the rotary shaft and rotating integrally with the rotary shaft, a plurality of clutch disks rotatably attached to the rotary shaft, a driver that drives the clutch disks, a plurality of presser components attached to the rotary shaft and rotating integrally with the rotary shaft, the presser components sandwiching opposite surfaces of the clutch disks by a predetermined pressure, and a drive transmission unit that makes a selection from among the plurality of clutch disks so as to transmit a driving force from the driver to the selected one or more clutch disks. The drive transmission unit changes the selection of the clutch disks to which the driving force from the driver is to be transmitted so as to change the rotary torque of the rotational member.

Rotary-torque adjuster, ink-ribbon conveying mechanism, and printer

A print apparatus includes a print unit that records a print pattern with a thermal head and a ribbon film, the ribbon film having a base film on which transfer-material areas and margin areas including cue marks are arranged; a cue-mark detector that detects the cue marks; a ribbon-moving mechanism that moves the ribbon film on which the transfer-material areas and the cue marks are arranged such that L&#x3c;Lis satisfied, where Lis a distance between the leading edge of each transfer-material area and the corresponding cue mark and Lis a distance between a transfer position and a cue-mark detection position; and a ribbon movement controller that monitors the cue-mark detection and moves the ribbon film backward by a distance corresponding to the difference between the distances Land L, thereby positioning the ribbon film with respect to a print start position.

Print apparatus, ribbon movement control device, ribbon film, ribbon movement control method, and program

A rotational torque adjustment apparatus is used to adjust the rotational torque of a rotational member secured to a rotational shaft for integrally rotating with the rotational shaft. The rotational torque adjustment apparatus includes a friction member for contacting with the rotational member to apply a frictional load to the rotational member, a brake member for holding the frictional member thereon, a pressing member for pressing the friction member held on the brake member with a predetermined pressure against the rotational member, and a guide section for holding the brake member for movement thereon. The brake member is moved in a radial direction of the rotational member along the guide section to vary the rotational torque of the rotational member.

Rotational torque adjustment apparatus, ink ribbon transport apparatus and printer

A platen plate for supporting an ejection object for liquid droplets ejected from each nozzle on the bottom surface of a liquid ejection head can secure the flatness of the ejection object so as to appropriately eject ink as well as can prevent the contamination of the bottom surface of the ejection object. The platen plate is provided with a plurality of ribs raised from its bottom surface so as to extend in a conveying direction of a recording sheet and arranged at predetermined intervals in a width wise direction of the recording sheet, and out of a region where ink droplets ejected from the each nozzle are landed, the bottom surface of the recording sheet is supported with top faces of the ribs so as to define a distance between the recording sheet and the ink ejection surface, and within the region where ink droplets ejected from the each nozzle are landed, the rib top faces are formed to have a height, or the ribs themselves do not exist, so that the rib top faces are not brought into contact with the bottom surface of the recording sheet.

Platen plate and liquid discharging device

A simple and lightweight torque clutch apparatus capable of freely changing a torque and a printer apparatus capable of tension controlling of ink ribbon in a simplified structure are proposed. A torque clutch apparatus includes a shaft, a first gear rotatably fitted to the shaft, first and second sandwiching members fitted to the shaft so as to sandwich the first gear therebetween and to rotate integrally with the shaft, a second gear rotatably screwed on the shaft, and a spring arranged between the second gear and the first or second sandwiching member opposing the second gear. A printer apparatus includes first torque-generating means for generating a variable load torque to a feed reel of ink ribbon, second torque-generating means for generating a variable rotational torque to a winding reel, and controlling means for controlling the first and/or second torque-generating means so as to generate the load torque or rotational torque corresponding to the diameter of the roll of ink ribbon wound on the feed reel and/or winding reel.

Torque clutch apparatus and printer apparatus

A color printer is provided in which a paper sheet is wrapped about a rotatable platen and three colors are printed on the sheet, to obtain an image, by a thermal head and a color ribbon during three rotations of the platen. In a paper feeding device for the printer, a sheet of paper is fed by a feeding roller, from the bottom of a stack of paper sheets in a paper tray through, a feeding guide to the platen. The tray has an opening in its bottom plate so as to expose the lowermost paper sheet stored therein. The feeding roller is provided under the tray and lifts up toward the opening of the tray so as to come in engagement with the lowermost paper sheet, the feeding roller rotating to feed it to the platen. The width of the platen is less than that of the sheet and the circumference thereof is less than the length of the sheet. Therefore, when the sheet is wrapped about the platen, it extends laterally outward from the ends thereof, and its ends overlap. Accordingly, during printing, the sheet is securely wrapped about the platen and its position does not shift and the extension of the sheet from the edges of the platen allows a sensor to determine a print starting position by sensing a mark of the edge of the sheet. Thus, a fixed print starting position is obtained during all three rotations of the platen during the print cycle.

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Tokyo, Japan

Katsuhisa Ono