Abstract: A stencil printer of the present invention includes a master making section for perforating a master, which includes a porous support and a thermoplastic resin film, in accordance with image data to thereby make a master and wraps the master around a print drum to thereby effect printing. The stencil printer includes a cavity sensor for sensing the condition of cavities existing in the porous support of the stencil. A controller identifies the kind of the stencil by determining the condition of the cavities in accordance with information output from the cavity sensor, so that stable print quality is insured without regard to a difference in cavity ratio between the lots of stencils.

Abstract: A removing member which rotates while being in contact with the periphery of a rotating member for conveying a sheet of paper that rotates while being in contact with a printed side of a sheet of paper is provided. When undried ink on the printed side is transferred to the periphery of the rotating member at the time of conveying the printed sheet, the undried ink is thinly spread in a part where the periphery of the rotating member and the periphery of the removing member come into contact with each other and therefore dried quicker. The removing member removes a part of the ink from the periphery of the rotating member. Consequently, the printed sheet is prevented from being smudged by the re-transfer. Since double-side printing or multicolor printing can be started before the ink on the printed side of the printed sheet of paper is completely dried, the work efficiency of the double-side printing or multicolor printing is improved.

Abstract: A printer with a duplex printing capability of the present invention includes a printing section. In a duplex print mode, the printing section prints either one of a first and a second image formed in a master side by side on the front side of a first sheet. A path selector steers the first sheet coming out of the printing section toward an auxiliary tray. The printing section prints either one of the first and second images on the front side of a second sheet while refeeding means again feeds the first sheet to the printing section to thereby form either one of the first and second images on the reverse side of the first sheet. The path selector steers the first and second sheets toward a sheet discharging section and the auxiliary tray, respectively.

Abstract: A printer capable of printing a multicolor image with a single pass of a paper or similar recording medium includes a plurality of print drums. Drum drive gears each are mounted on a particular print drum such that the print drum is replaceable. The print drums are interlocked to each other by rotatable members including relay gears meshing with the drum drive gears, timing pulleys fixed to the relay gears, a timing belt, and pulleys for adjustment. Each rotatable member has teeth the number of which is selected such that the number of rotations of the rotatable member to occur in a single period of the print drums is an integral multiple of the number of rotations of the print drums.

Abstract: A printing/verifying direction section in a control section directs a thermal head controller and a sheet conveying motor controller to do printing in accordance with a detection result by a sheet position detection sensor, so as to print image data in a printing image storage section on a sheet (label) by a thermal head. Further, based on printing position data from a printing data storage section, the printing/verifying direction section directs a verification section controller to operate a scanner controller so as to permit a scanner to read an image of a printed mark. The verification section controller compares the read image with printing data in the printing data storage section to judge whether the image is good or no good. When it is no good, the mark is returned to a printing position by the thermal head by a direction of a printing/verifying controller, so that the thermal head prints an overwriting image in an overwriting image storage section on the mark.

Abstract: A stencil printer of the present invention includes a print drum around which perforated part of a stencil or master is to be wrapped. A master making section make a master and includes a cutter for cutting the stencil paid out from a roll. A master discharging section removes the master wrapped around the print drum and then discharges it. A deciding device determines, on the turn-on of a power supply, whether or not the power supply has been turned off during an interval between the time when the stencil paid out from the roll starts being perforated and the time when the cutter cuts the stencil. When the deciding device determines that the power supply has been turned off during the above interval, the master discharging section discharges the master present on the print drum.

Abstract: A thermal master making device and a thermal printer including the same are disclosed. A thermistor senses ambient temperature around a thermal head. A correcting device corrects the amount of heat to be generated by the thermal head, i.e., the duration of energization at least two times during a single master making operation. This configuration reduces a change in the perforation conditions of a thermosensitive medium ascribable to the heat accumulation characteristic of the head. The printer achieves high resolution, high-speed master making and space saving.

Abstract: A master making device includes a thermal head with heat generating elements and a platen roller. While the head and platen roller convey a thermosensitive medium in a subscanning direction perpendicular to a main scanning direction, the heat generating elements selectively generate heat in order to perforate the medium in accordance with an image signal. The head includes a stepped portion formed at a medium outlet side in the subscanning direction. The edges of the heat generating elements adjoining the medium outside side are located at a distance of 0.018 mm to 0.5 mm from the end of the stepped portion adjoining the above edges. It is not necessary to position the head with respect to an effective nip between it and the platen roller by a troublesome procedure. Further, the distance over which the perforated medium is conveyed is reduced to obviate the reduction or contraction of an image ascribable to the sticking of the medium to the head.

Abstract: A printer capable of printing a multicolor image with a single pass of a paper or similar recording medium includes a plurality of print drums. Drum drive gears each are mounted on a particular print drum such that the print drum is replaceable. The print drums are interlocked to each other by rotatable members including relay gears meshing with the drum drive gears, timing pulleys fixed to the relay gears, a timing belt, and pulleys for adjustment. Each rotatable member has teeth the number of which is selected such that the number of rotations of the rotatable member to occur in a single period of the print drums is an integral multiple of the number of rotations of the print drums.

Abstract: A printer capable of printing a multicolor image with a single pass of a paper or similar recording medium includes a plurality of print drums. Drum drive gears each are mounted on a particular print drum such that the print drum is replaceable. The print drums are interlocked to each other by rotatable members including relay gears meshing with the drum drive gears, timing pulleys fixed to the relay gears, a timing belt, and pulleys for adjustment. Each rotatable member has teeth the number of which is selected such that the number of rotations of the rotatable member to occur in a single period of the print drums is an integral multiple of the number of rotations of the print drums.

Abstract: A printer of the present invention includes a chain-delivery type of sheet conveying device arranged in an image transfer region that adjoins image transfer drums. The sheet conveying device includes a pair of drive pulleys, a pair of driven pulleys, a pair of chains each being passed over one drive pulley and one driven pulley, and a clamper affixed to the chains at opposite ends thereof. Each chain has a circumferential length that is an integral multiple of the circumference of an image transfer drum, and a number of teeth that is an integral multiple of the number of teeth of the drive pulley. A stabilizing mechanism is positioned in the image transfer region for preventing the chains from shaking.

Abstract: A multicolor printing method and system including a master making device having plurality of removable ink drums replaceable with each other and a printing device. The plurality of removable ink drums are fed with respective masters to be used for printing, by fixed master feeding devices smaller in number than the removable ink drums. The removable ink drums fed with respective masters are then used by the printing device for printing onto paper. The method and system provides multicolor printing with lower cost, reduced size and accurate registration between the respective masters, as compared to conventional methods and systems.

Abstract: A multicolor printing method and system including a master making device having plurality of removable ink drums replaceable with each other and a printing device. The plurality of removable ink drums are fed with respective masters to be used for printing, by fixed master feeding devices smaller in number than the removable ink drums. The removable ink drums fed with respective masters are then used by the printing device for printing onto paper. The method and system provides multicolor printing with lower cost, reduced size and accurate registration between the respective masters, as compared to conventional methods and systems.

Abstract: A bar code reader for reading a bar code by emitting a laser beam from a laser diode toward the bar code and receiving the subsequently reflected light on a photosensor, in which the photosensor is disposed along an irradiating direction of the laser beam emitted from the laser diode, thereby achieving the most effective arrangement of the laser diode and the photosensor occupying less area.

Abstract: An induction heating device includes a plurality of induction coils connected to a single high-frequency power source and each being able to be ON/OFF controlled by a switch. A current is selectively fed only to desired part of the induction coils or to all of the induction coils connected in parallel. The coils are driven by a current fed thereto at the same time in the same phase. The device may include inverters for controlling power to be fed coil by coil. The device is free from interference and irregular heating and can readily cope with a change in a heating range while controlling power coil by coil.

Abstract: A master making device of the present invention includes a thermal head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in an array in the main scanning direction. A platen roller forms a nip between it and the thermal head for pressing a stencil. The platen roller is rotatable for moving the stencil in the subscanning direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction. The position of the array of heating elements in the subscanning direction is deviated, within the nip, from the center of the platen roller to the downstream side in the subscanning direction to thereby reduce the length of the perforated portion of the stencil to be moved in the nip. The device is capable of providing a master with an accurate length without regard to the kind of the stencil and insuring stable conveyance of the stencil.

Abstract: A printer including drive pulleys each being mounted on a particular print drum. Each of the print drums has a pitch circle diameter and a number of teeth related to each other as: d/z<1 where d denotes the pitch circle diameter (mm) and z denotes the number of teeth.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus including an image carrier for forming a toner image thereon. A conveyor conveys a synthetic resin sheet. An image transferring device transfers the toner image from the image carrier to the synthetic resin sheet being conveyed by the conveyor. A fixing device is located downstream of the image carrier in a direction of sheet conveyance for fixing the toner image transferred to the synthetic resin sheet. The fixing device includes a heat roller capable of contacting the synthetic resin sheet. The heat roller is freely rotatable and caused to rotate by the synthetic resin sheet being conveyed by the conveyor when the sheet contacts the heat roller.

Abstract: The present invention provides a highly sensitive TMR device. Since a TMR device is normally manufactured by a thin-film formation technique, the size and weight can be reduced. The thickness of a first spin polarization layer that is stacked on a soft magnetic layer for assisting magnetic field sensing operations and has a higher coercive force and a higher spin polarization rate than the soft magnetic layer is adjusted to a value that is smaller than the thickness of a tunneling layer or smaller than 2 nm, whichever is smaller. With the first spin polarization layer having such a thickness, both a low coercive force and a desirable TMR rate can be obtained. As a result, the magnetic field sensitivity of the TMR device as a sensor can be increased.

Abstract: A printer comprising a paper storage section provided at the lower portion of a printer body, a feed roller and a pinch roller for feeding paper being brought into contact with each other under pressure and positioned over the paper storage section inside the printer body, a thermal head and a platen capable of pressing and holding the paper therebetween and positioned at the downstream side of the feed roller in the paper feed direction, and a discharge tray for receiving the printed paper and positioned over the paper storage section at the downstream side of the thermal head in the paper feed direction.