Thermal colour printer with two types of print ribbon - with controller that switches according to mode signal to print with thermal melt or thermal sublimation ribbon

摘要

The printer has a print plate surface [2] that provides support for the paper. The print head [7] moves across on a carriage [4] that operates on guides [3] and is moved by a feed belt [40]. The carriage supports a pair of different types of thermal print ribbon material cassettes that offer different levels of printing quality. A selection is made of which type of cassette is to be selected. The selected ribbon is moved vertically to position the selected ribbon near to the thermal head. The movement is provided by a crank mechanism rotated by a motor to give two position control.