THERMAL TRANSFER PRINTER, AND METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ERASING INK RIBBON PRINT INFORMATION

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermal transfer printer that is extremely few in risk of information leakage, causes no trouble, and does not make print information readable from a used thermal transfer ink ribbon, and to provide a method and apparatus for erasing ink ribbon print information.SOLUTION: A thermal head is provided with a contact part where an ink coating surface of transferred ink ribbons following in the conveyance of transferred ink ribbon used in transfer is brought into contact with an ink coating surface of transferred ink ribbons preceding in the conveyance. The print information that remains in an ink ribbon is erased by transfer of ink to the ink coating surface of the transferred ink ribbon preceding from the ink coating surface of the transferred ink ribbon following, by using a thermal head for erasure different from that for printing in the contact part.