Brother Kogyo Kabushiki-Kaisha

Brother Industries, Ltd.

Tsuneo Yasui

Akira Sago

Masashi Suzuki

Hakudai Kondo

Kazuhiko Matsuda

Takemi Yamamoto

Takashi Okumura

Takashi Miki

Tetsuji Fuwa

Yuzo Fukunaga

Shigeo Ishikawa

Tomoyoshi Watanabe

Kiyomichi Okada

Yoshiharu Hirai

An image forming device provided with a main cover,that is capable of freely opening and closing and that covers an internally provided recording medium feed mechanism and the area scanned by the recording head during recording operations; and a maintenance cover,that is provided separately from the main cover in order to cover the maintenance mechanism and that is capable of freely opening and closing. Being provided separately from the main cover, the maintenance cover can be constructed relatively small and is, therefore, easy to open and close when replacing the maintenance paper. In addition, by only opening the maintenance cover while the recording head is positioned in the scanning area, the temperature of the recording head is not lowered.

Image forming device

A printer is provided with: a heating device for heating a solid ink to dissolve the solid ink into a liquefied ink while an alternative current is supplied thereto; a recording device, on which the heating device is provided, for recording record information onto a record sheet by use of the liquefied ink; and a moving device for moving the recording device. An information recording method is provided with the processes of: moving the recording device by the moving device to an ink dissolving position where a moving terminal, which is fixed on the recording device and is electrically connected to the heating device, and a fixed terminal, which is fixed on a frame member of the printer and is electrically connected to an alternative current source, are contacted with each other, only when the solid ink is to be dissolved in the recording device; supplying the alternative current from the alternative current source to the heating device through the fixed terminal and the moving terminal contacted with each other; moving the recording device in a main scan direction of the record sheet by the moving device after the solid ink is dissolved by the heating device; and recording the record information by use of the dissolved ink onto the record sheet by the recording device while the recording device is moved in the main scan direction by the moving device.

Information recording method and printer

In the position detection device, a timing fence is formed with a plurality of slits which are arranged in its elongated direction. An elongated metal member is provided for supporting the timing fence so that the timing fences will extend in the scanning direction of the image recording head. An encoder is provided for counting the slits on the timing fence while the carriage moves. A gap between the encoder and the elongated metal member can be adjusted properly and uniformly through rotating eccentric collars of the adjustment members inserted into the elongated through-holes in the elongated metal member.

Recording head position detecting device

An ink cartridge retains a plurality of solid inks, each of which is to be heated and dissolved so that the dissolved ink is used for recording record information. The ink cartridge is provided with: a cartridge main body in which the solid inks are aligned and retained; and a plurality of gap members disposed in the cartridge main body for prescribing a gap between each pair of the aligned solid inks adjacent to each other in the cartridge main body.

Ink cartridge, ink supplying apparatus and printer

Disclosed is an image forming apparatus for forming an image on roll paper. The image forming apparatus is provided with a printing head to form an image in accordance with an image data, a sheet feed mechanism to feed the roll paper, and a cutter which cuts out the printed portion of the roll paper. The image forming apparatus is further provided with an information recording system which records information related to the roll paper on downstream side of the portion at which the cutter cuts the roll paper.

Image forming apparatus

In the charging device, when the secondary battery is charged, charging electrodes are electrically connected to the battery electrodes. When charging of the battery is completed, charging operation of the charging device is completed, and the charging electrodes are moved away from the battery electrodes so that the charging electrodes are disconnected from the battery electrodes.

Charging device

A checkwriter has a tray for containing check forms having a transparent cover with a scaled region provided with scale lines. The tray is detachably loaded into the check printing unit thereof. When the cover is closed, the surface of the top check form among check forms stacked in the tray can be observed through the transparent cover, and print starting positions where the printing operation for printing desired words for items is started can be measured using the scale lines. The measured print starting positions are registered to correctly print the desired words for the items at predetermined positions on the check form. Since the cover is combined with the tray, it is prevented from being lost.

Checkwriter and method

In a label adhesion device for automatically adhering a plurality of labels on one side of a plurality of adhered to members, a cassette storing an ink ribbon, a first roll type support member on which a plurality of print labels are temporarily adhered and a second roll type support member on which a plurality of cover labels are temporarily adhered is detachably mounted on a movable carriage for movement along one side or end portion of an adhered to member inserted in a sheet inlet provided on a main body case of the label adhesion device. The carriage includes a print head for printing desired character image on a projected portion of the label, a drive unit for feeding the first roll type support member and the second roll type support member in a predetermined direction, and a pressing unit for pressing the print label and the cover label holding the adhered member therebetween. The carriage is moved a predetermined distance according to data for number of labels, label size and interval of labels for printing the label and adhering it to the successive adhered to members at each position.

Label adhesion device and printer for index labels

To eliminate wasteful use of thermal stencil paper and thereby provide an inexpensive stamp device, a single thermal head is employed for both the thermal recording on a reversible thermal recording sheet for confirmation of a stamp image and the thermal perforation through the thermal stencil paper for creation of a stamp original. The stamp image is first thermally recorded on the reversible thermal recording sheet; the stamp image thus recorded is then confirmed; and the thermal stencil paper is thermally perforated in accordance with the stamp image to create the stamp original. The stamp device of the present invention includes a thermal head 19, a thermal stencil paper 24 adapted to be thermally perforated by the thermal head 19 to form a dot image as a stamp image, a reversible thermal recording sheet 101 adapted to be heated by the thermal head 19 to thermally record an image corresponding to the stamp image, so as to confirm the stamp image, and a heating roller pair 90 for erasing the image thermally recorded on the reversible thermal recording sheet 101.

Stamp device capable of perforating thermal stencil paper

A battery powered serial printer having a print head for printing data on a printing sheet in a normal direction from the beginning of a line or in the reverse direction from the end of a line includes a drive unit for moving the print head in reciprocatory movement in the normal and reverse directions, and a device for judging whether the print head is printing characters in the normal direction or in the reverse direction. The serial printer further includes a correcting device responsive to voltage changes for delaying the initiation of the operation of printing characters by the print head at the least in either the normal direction and/or the reverse direction judged by the judging device, so as to bring the positions of characters printed in the normal direction into alignment with the positions of characters printed in the reverse direction.

Bidirectional printer with voltage compensator

A thermal printer is provided with a detecting member adapted to detect the presence of a thermal ribbon cassette on the printer. When the thermal ribbon cassette is mounted on the printer, the thermal print head is held at a release position until a cycle of ribbon feeding action has been completed. The thermal head is moved from the release position to a print position to print data on the next line, after the used part of the thermal ribbon has been taken up and an unused part of the thermal ribbon is positioned opposite a sheet of ordinary paper.

Thermal printer

A printer having a thermal print head capable of printing directly on heat-sensitive paper, and printing on non-heat-sensitive paper through a thermal ribbon. The printer comprises a carriage drive circuit for moving the thermal print head along a platen for printing each line of characters, and a detector for sensing the thermal ribbon to check if the thermal ribbon is usable or not. The printer further comprises a control device responsive to a signal from the detector, for selecting, while the thermal ribbon is sensed, a unidirectional printing mode in which the printing movements of the thermal print head take place in a predetermined one of the opposite longitudinal directions of the platen, and selecting, while the thermal ribbon is not sensed, a bidirectional printing mode in which the printing movements take place in either one of the opposite longitudinal directions.

Thermal print head for heat or non-heat-sensitive paper

In a ribbon changing mechanism, a ribbon retaining portion of the ribbon vibrator lifts a printing ribbon from a lowered non-printing position to an elevated printing position, in response to the printing operation. When a push button is depressed for retaining an actuating lever in a first position where said ribbon vibrator is shifted to a ribbon changing position, the ribbon vibrator connected to the actuating lever is moved upward from the lowered non-printing position to the ribbon changing position, independently of the printing operation and retained in the ribbon changing position. The ribbon retaining portion is comprised of a rear ribbon retaining member and a front ribbon retaining member, which defines a pair of ribbon passages having closed top and bottom portions in combination with both ribbon retaining members. The actuating lever is operatively connected to an opener shaft, so that when the push button is depressed, the opener shaft may be brought into engagement with the front ribbon retaining member, and then the top portions of the ribbon passages are opened. By depressing the push button, a top cover of the typewriter is moved to an open position. If the top cover is brought into a closed position, the actuating lever is returned to the second position, whereas the top portions of the ribbon passages are closed.

Growing community of inventors

Nagoya, Japan

Tsuneo Yasui