Fuji Photo Film Company, Limited

Fujifilm Corporation

Nobuo Katsuma

Hiroyuki Matsukawa

Satoshi Ueda

Hisashi Enomoto

Akihiko Machida

Yoshiki Kawaoka

Hitoshi Saito

Hiroshi Fukuda

Yoshihiro Yamaguchi

Junji Hayashi

Hidemi Sasaki

Masaaki Orimoto

Katsuo Nakadai

Tomoyoshi Nishimura

Atsushi Nagata

Kenichi Inatsuki

Souichiro Nakao

Yoshiki Takeoka

Satoru Ikeya

Shigeru Tagaya

Koichi Hirasawa

A recording head is provided with an element substrate and a circuit board fixed to a head substrate having heat radiation property. Plural heating elements are formed linearly in the element substrate, and plural driver ICs are attached to the element substrate. A temperature sensor is disposed between the driver ICs. The temperature sensor measures average temperature of the plural heating elements, and adjusts a heat quantity of each heating element in accordance with the average temperature. In the preferred embodiment, the plural temperature sensors and a heating element array are arranged on both sides of the element substrate such that the plural temperature sensors are disposed underneath the heating element array. The plural temperature sensors are accommodated in a concave portion of the head substrate.

Recording head with temperature sensor and printer with the recording head

A thermal printer in which color thermosensitive recording material is used is provided. A thermal head records an image to the recording material by applying heat thereto. One or two photo fixing xenon flash lamps apply electromagnetic rays to the recording material, to fix the image. The electromagnetic rays are emitted in the first and second wavelength ranges, and are ultraviolet or visible. A controller changes over electromagnetic rays received by the recording material from the xenon flash lamps. The controller, when in a first step, sets the electromagnetic rays in the first wavelength range by means of a UV absorbing filter, to fix a first coloring layer for yellow. In a second step next to the first, the electromagnetic rays are set in the second wavelength range, to fix a second coloring layer for magenta.

Thermal printer and electromagnetic wave source device

In a printer, recording sheets of a standard type and a 16-frame sticker type are usable. A ROM inputs type information of the recording sheet representing one of the standard type and 16-frame sticker type. A controller designates one of first and second printing modes in accordance with the type information, and prints an image to the recording sheet in accordance with the designated printing mode. The first and second printing modes are preset in association with respectively the standard type and 16-frame sticker type.

Printer and printing method

A yellow luminous-element array, which is an optical fixing unit, includes a large number of yellow LEDs emitting ultraviolet rays. The LEDs in each of lines extending in a feeding direction are connected in series. Integral illuminance of each line is adjusted by changing electrical energy to be supplied to the respective lines. The integral illuminance of each line extending in the feeding direction is measured to obtain illuminance distribution relative to a scanning direction when the yellow luminous-element array is examined at the time of manufacture thereof. The integral illuminance of each line is corrected so as to even the illuminance distribution.

Optical fixing unit, illuminance correcting method for the same, and thermal printer

A flat fluorescent lamp has a vessel or housing including first and second substrates opposed to each other at a small distance, and having discharge gas enclosed therein. A first planar electrode layer being transparent is disposed on an inner surface of the first substrate. A second planar electrode layer is disposed on an inner surface of the second substrate, for electrical discharge in cooperation with the first planar electrode layer. First and second dielectric layers are disposed on respectively the inner surfaces of the first and second substrates to cover the first and second planar electrode layers. First and second fluorescent layers are overlaid on respectively inner surfaces of the first and second dielectric layers, for emitting electromagnetic rays upon the electrical discharge between the first and second planar electrode layers. A pattern of plural projections is formed with the inner surface of the second dielectric layer.

Flat fluorescent lamp and optical fixing device

A thermal printer has a thermal head including plural heating elements. The heating elements are arranged in an array in a main scan direction, are driven according to image data, for recording an image to thermosensitive recording paper moved in a sub scan direction. The recording paper has a size smaller in the main scan direction than the thermal head. The thermal printer includes two arrays of photo receptor elements for detecting two lateral edges of the recording paper, to determine effective heating elements in contact with the recording paper among the heating elements. A data correcting unit effects a correcting process to part of the image data for heating elements of a first group included in the effective heating elements. The first group contacts each of the two lateral edges and a near portion near to the lateral edge with reference to the main scan direction in the recording paper.

Thermal printer and thermal printing method

A thermal head of a thermal printer has plural heating elements arranged along a line and connected in parallel with one another. A respective one of the heating elements is connected to one of plural heat control switches, which are selectively turned on/off for driving the heating elements individually by applying electrical energy to generate heat. To measure resistance data of at least one of the heating elements, a capacitor is connected in parallel with the plural heating elements. A reference resistor is connected in parallel with the plural heating elements and the capacitor. The capacitor is charged, and then discharged via the reference resistor or the one of the heating elements. A voltage across the capacitor is detected. An amount of discharging time required to decrease of the capacitor voltage from a predetermined high voltage to a predetermined low voltage is measured while the capacitor is discharged, in association respectively with the reference resistor and the heating elements. Resistance data for the heating elements is determined in accordance with the discharging time of the heating elements, respectively, with reference to the discharging time of the reference resistor.

Thermal printer and resistance data measuring device for thermal head of the same

A thermal head of a thermal printer has plural heating elements arranged along a line and connected in parallel with one another. A respective one of the heating elements is connected to one of plural heat control switches, which are selectively turned on/off for driving the heating elements individually by applying electrical energy to generate heat. To measure resistance data of at least one of the heating elements, a capacitor is connected in parallel with the plural heating elements. A reference resistor is connected in parallel with the plural heating elements and the capacitor. The capacitor is charged, and then discharged via the reference resistor or the one of the heating elements. A capacitor voltage across the capacitor is detected. Discharging time elapsed in a decrease of the capacitor voltage is measured from a predetermined high voltage to a predetermined low voltage while the capacitor is discharged, in association respectively with the reference resistor and the heating elements. Resistance data of the heating elements is determined in accordance with the discharging time respectively of the heating elements with reference to the discharging time of the reference resistor.

A thermosensitive color recording sheet includes yellow, magenta and cyan thermosensitive coloring layers formed on a support. A thermal head heats there recording sheet for recording on the yellow coloring layer while the recording sheet is transported in a forward direction through the thermal head at a speed predetermined according to a thermal sensitivity of the yellow coloring layer. A yellow fixing lamp disposed behind the thermal head in the forward direction applies near ultraviolet rays to the recording sheet to fix the yellow coloring layer. The yellow fixing lamp is maintained at an irradiance set value while the recording sheet is transported in the forward direction. The irradiance set value is determined based on a maximum irradiance of the yellow fixing lamp that is measured prior to the thermal recording on the yellow coloring layer while driving the yellow fixing lamp by a drive pulse signal at a maximum duty factor. The recording sheet is then transported in a rearward direction under the yellow fixing lamp, to refix the yellow coloring layer. For the refixing, the yellow fixing lamp is maintained at a second irradiance set value determined based on a second maximum irradiance of the yellow fixing lamp that is measured at the end of the forward transport of the recording sheet, whereas the recording sheet is transported the rearward direction at a transport speed determined in accordance with the second irradiance set value.

Thermosensitive color printing method and thermosensitive color printer

A thermal printing method for printing an image line by line on a recording material by driving an array of heating elements of a thermal head while transporting the recording material relative to the thermal head. Heating data for recording a subject line to print is corrected in accordance with heat accumulation amounts of the heating elements. Surface temperatures of the respective heating elements are estimated on the basis of corrected heating data. A frictional force that will be generated between the thermal head and the recording sheet on recording the subject line is calculated on the basis of the estimated surface temperatures. The heating elements start being driven to record the subject line at a time shifted by a time shifting amount from a standard time. The time shifting amount is determined depending upon the frictional force so as to eliminate influence of fluctuations in transport speed of the recording sheet on the printed image.

Thermal printing method for preventing degrading of print quality due to

A color thermal recording paper and a laminate sheet are pressed by urging of a press roller toward a transporting roller so as to contact each other tightly. When the recording paper and the laminate sheet pass by a ultraviolet lamp, ultraviolet rays are applied to them. The ultraviolet rays passes through a transparent sheet layer of the laminate sheet and is absorbed into an adhesive layer disposed under the transparent sheet layer. Ultraviolet-curing adhesive agents constituting the adhesive layer are hardened by the energy of the ultraviolet rays so that the adhesive layer is integrally adhered to a protect layer of the recording paper without gap. When the recording paper and the laminate sheet are adhered, heat is not used so that a cyan heat sensitive color layer of the recording paper which is not fixed by the ultraviolet rays is prevented from coloring. Accordingly, a recorded image is not changed in quality.

Laminating method for a thermal recording paper and laminating device

A standard resistor having a known resistance value is connected to one transistor in a drive IC. The drive IC has a plurality of transistors each controlling the on/off of a heating element. The saturation voltage of each transistor is generally the same. One of a plurality of transistors is turned on, and a discharge time required for a capacitor to discharge via a standard resistor or via each heating element and lower its voltage to a predetermined voltage is measured. The resistance value of each heating element is determined from a ratio of a discharge time via each heating element to a discharge time via the standard resistor and the resistance value of the standard resistor. A difference between the standard resistance value and a resistance value of each heating element generates a bias heat energy error during bias heating and an image heat energy error during image heating. In accordance with these heat energy errors, bias data for generating a heat energy immediately before coloring is corrected. Each heating element is driven by using the corrected bias data, and the heat energy errors are corrected at the time of bias heading. At the time of image heating, each heating element is driven by using image data without considering the resistance value error.

Method of driving heating element to match its resistance, thermal

A thermal head has a heating element array with a plurality of heating elements disposed in line and a head driver. The head driver drives the heating elements at the same time in accordance with each set of heating data of 8 bits to record dots of one line on a recording sheet. In printing dots by using heating data of 9 bits, a heating data divider circuit divides the 9-bit heating data into two series of 8-bit converted heating data. By using these two series of the 8-bit converted heating data, two heating sequences are continuously executed. Each heating element is heated by the two heating sequences as many times as that corresponding to the heating data.

Thermal printing method and thermal printer

A thermal printer using a thermal head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in line, wherein the heating elements are driven for different power conduction times to record dots at different densities. According to the invention, the thermal printer is comprised of a first look-up table for converting original heating data into time data representative of a power conduction time corresponding to the original heating data; a correction circuit for correcting the time data to obtain a corrected power conduction time; a second look-up table for converting the corrected power conduction time into corrected heating data which corresponds to the corrected power conduction time; and a head driver for driving the heating elements in accordance with the corrected heating data.

A color thermosensitive recording sheet includes a support and at least yellow, magenta and cyan thermosensitive coloring layers formed thereon. A color thermal printer has conveyor rollers for moving the recording sheet relative to a thermal head. The thermal head initially heats the recording sheet for recording on the yellow coloring layer. A yellow fixing lamp applies near ultraviolet rays to the recording sheet to fix the yellow coloring layer optically. The thermal head heats the recording sheet for recording on the magenta coloring layer. A magenta fixing lamp applies ultraviolet rays to the recording sheet to fix the magenta coloring layer optically. An irradiance sensor detects irradiance of the magenta fixing lamp during the magenta fixation. A refixing check circuit obtains a minimal irradiance of the detected irradiance, compares the minimal irradiance with a limit irradiance, and outputs a refixing command if the minimal irradiance is equal to or smaller than the limit irradiance. A driver turns on the magenta fixing lamp in response to the refixing command. A conveying speed determiner determines a speed of the conveyor rollers for the refixation according to the minimal irradiance. The conveyor rollers are operated at the determined speed while the magenta fixing lamp is turned on. The magenta fixing lamp refixes the recording sheet optically. Finally the thermal head heats the recording sheet for recording on the cyan coloring layer.

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Saitama, Japan

Nobuo Katsuma