Abstract: A thermoelectric printer includes a cartridge accommodating a pair of reels around which a thermoelectric ink ribbon is wound, a carriage for removably supporting the cartridge, a printing head disposed on the carriage to apply a recording voltage to the ink ribbon to carry out printing, and a return electrode disposed inside the cartridge to electrically contact the ink ribbon. A resilient member conductive to the return electrode is also arranged inside the cartridge. The carriage has a contact element. When the cartridge is installed to the carriage, the contact element protrudes inside the cartridge to forcibly-contact the resilient member to form an electric correction between them. Then, a printing current flows from a recording electrode of the printing head to the ink ribbon, return electrode, resilient member and contact element and is then discharged to the carriage.

Abstract: A thermal-transfer printer includes a carriage arranged for reciprocation along a recording paper and a thermal head movable together with the carriage. On the carriage is mounted a ribbon cassette having a pair of reels and repeatedly usable ink ribbon wound on the reels. The reels are rotated to transport the ink ribbon in a desired direction by a ribbon transport mechanism arranged in the carriage. The operation of the transport mechanism is controlled by a control device.

Abstract: A thermal transfer color printer according to the present invention thermal inkribbon having heat-fusible color materials in a plurality of colors divided in the feed direction, a thermal head which moves relative to a print paper in order to cause the selective thermal transfer of the color material on a thermal inkribbon onto the print paper, and a color sensor for detecting the types of color materials on the thermal inkribbon. The distance in the feed direction of the color material portions of the thermal inkribbon is set at one divided by an integral portion of the standard print width of the print paper, while the distance between the color sensor and the thermal head is set the same as the distance in the feed direction of the color materials portion of the thermal inkribbon.