Tokyo Electric Co.

Sony Corporation

Motonobu Hamada

Seiji Koike

Yukihiro Hirosaki

Takahiko Ohata

Yasuo Inoue

Hideki Hama

Haruyuki Karibe

Takahiko Ohhata

The invention provides a drive device for a thermal transfer printer of the type which includes a thermal head for printing data on a label on a mount by way of an ink ribbon. A platen roller contacts the mount having a label thereon. The mount is also contacted by the thermal head so that the mount may be fed by a rotational frictional force of the platen roller. Sprockets are mounted for free rotation and for engagement in sprocket holes formed in the mount. Thus, a mount having a label thereon is fed by a rotational frictional force of the platen roller which is contacted under pressure by the thermal head. As the mount is fed, the movement thereof is guided and hence corrected by the freely rotating sprockets. As a result, the mount can be transported assuredly without causing meandering or slipping thereof, thereby allowing high quality printing to be attained without dislocation of printed symbols.

Drive device for a thermal transfer printer

A wide-type thermal-transfer printer comprises a fixed mechanism section including a record medium holder mounted on one end portion of a fixed frame so as to rotatably hold a record medium rolled, and a platen mounted on the other end portion of the frame so as to carry thereon the medium from the holder, and a printer unit including a moving frame coupled to the fixed frame so as to be movable between a first position adjacent to the fixed frame and a second position remote from the fixed frame, the moving frame being fixed with a thermal head so that the head, in cooperation with the platen, holds the medium when the moving frame is located in the first position, and so that the head separates from the medium on the platen when the moving frame is moved to the second position, wherein the moving frame is detachably fitted with an ink ribbon supply shaft and an ink ribbon take-up shaft, so that the ribbon is held between the platen and the head in a manner such that the longitudinal direction of the ribbon is substantially in line with the transporting direction of the medium when the moving frame is located in the first position, and wherein the head starts printing with the medium and ribbon being moved in the same direction when the moving frame is located in the first position.

Wide-type thermal-transfer printer

A labeling apparatus holds an article to which a label is to be stuck, on a holder and then moves the holder carrying the article from a home position via a waiting position and a labeling position back to the home position. In a label peeling and issuing section, the article is moved up toward a label being issued in the label peeling and issuing section and is brought into contact with the label so that the label is peeled from the supporting strip and stuck to the article as the holder holding the article is moved toward the home position along guide paths. Reverse movement preventing plates prevent the reverse movement of the holder as the holder is moved along the guide paths. With the labeling apparatus the label can applied to the article simply and automatically without requiring a manual labeling operation.

Labeling apparatus

In a label printer of the invention, a guide member to guide an ink ribbon is positioned in reverse direction of separating direction of the ink ribbon with respect to the line connecting a platen to a point on the outside of a separating plane, and thereby the ink ribbon is separated in bent state from the ground paper and therefore the separation between the ground paper and the ink ribbon is performed well. In this constitution, vibration of the ground paper is prevented and the noise is not produced, and deformation of the ground paper is prevented and the feed amount is held uniform. Further the ground paper only is bent by the separating plate, and the label is separated securely.

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Shizuoka, Japan

Motonobu Hamada