Abstract: The temperature characteristics of an ink jet recording head are detected, and the result of detection is utilized for detecting the ink discharge state. Also a statistical processing on the temperature characteristics detected on plural recording heads enables exact detection of the ink discharge state, not effected by the individual difference of the recording heads. Also there is detected the abnormality in ink discharge, that may occur prior to the exhaustion of ink in the ink tank.

Abstract: An ink-jet recording apparatus includes a characteristics detection circuit for detecting temperature characteristics of a recording head based on a temperature change when the recording head is heated, an ambient-temperature detection circuit for detecting an ambient temperature, and a control circuit for controlling an amount of ink discharge of the recording head based on the detected temperature characteristics and ambient temperature. It is thereby possible to obtain an appropriate recording density.

Abstract: A package material for accommodating a container cartridge provided with an ink supply portion integral with a recording head in use includes a package material for accommodating the container cartridge, provided with opening means for permitting opening of the package material; a sealing material for sealing an ink supply portion of the container cartridge; wherein the sealing member is at least partly mounted to the package material.

Abstract: A thermal transfer printer with an erasing function for recording data by use of heating energy. Included are a signal generator to generate a signal to instruct the erasure; a heating energy generator; a memory in which generation patterns of heating energy to be generated from the heating energy generator are stored; and a controller to control the heating energy generator in a manner such that a plurality of different generation patterns are read out of the memory on the basis of the erasing instruction from the signal generator and different heating energy is generated from the heating energy generator a plurality of times on the basis of the generation patterns, thereby erasing recorded patterns. The heating energy generator gives the heating energy to the recorded patterns through a correctable ribbon which can print and erase. With this printer, the data recorded by variable lengths in the proportional spacing mode can be certainly erased.

Abstract: A multicolor ink ribbon recording control method using a multicolor ink ribbon sequentially having inks of at least two colors includes a discrimination structure, formed in an ink ribbon cassette, for discriminating in accordance with a loading state of the cassette in a printer whether a continuous ink coated portion of each color is divisionally used, and a recognizing unit, provided in a printer, for recognizing a state of the discrimination structure of a loaded ink ribbon cassette, and a recording control unit, provided in a printer, for performing recording control in accordance with a recognition result of the recognizing unit. Whether divisional use is to be performed is determined in accordance with the discrimination structure formed in the ink ribbon cassette.

Abstract: There is a thermal transfer printer for recording dot information by use of heating energies. This printer comprises: a memory in which dot information indicative of a pattern to be recorded is stored; a thermal head to generate heating energies; and a controller to control the generation timing of the heating energies from the thermal head. When the ON-state dot information to be recorded which was stored in the memory does not exist in the first recording cycle and when the ON-state dot information to be recorded in the next second recording cycle exists, the controller controls the thermal head so as to generate the auxiliary heating energies in the first recording cycle prior to the dot information to be recorded. The auxiliary heating energies in the first recording cycle are generated at a timing near the start of the first recording cycle.