Epson Corporation

Yasuhito Hirashima

Yoshifumi Gomi

Yoshito Ikeda

Yoshinori Miyazawa

Masanao Matsuzawa

Hitoshi Fujiwara

A wire dot printer having a plurality of ink applicators for separately applying inks of different colors to the ends of printing wires disposed in separate groups in the ink applicators. The ink applicators are supplied respectively with inks of different colors for effecting multicolor printing on a recording paper. The wire groups are separately housed in a plurality of compartments extending longitudinally of the wires and are separated by partitions. The ends of the wires in each group are arranged in an array. The printer may include a cleaning mechanism for removing deposited paper dust and ink from the distal end of the print head while preventing mixing of ink colors.

Wire dot printer utilizing multicolor inks

A wire dot printer comprises a plurality of wires for carrying ink respectively on the ends thereof, and ink applicator mechanism applying the ink to the wire, and an ink heater unit disposed adjacent to the wire ends for heating the ink to a controlled temperature level. The ink is applied to the side surfaces of the wires and is drawn to the wire ends by capillary attraction.

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Shiojiri, Japan

Yasuhito Hirashima