Tape drive and printing apparatus
AssigneeZipher Limited
InventorsMartin McNestry, Keith Buxton, Phillip Hart
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tape drive for use in for example a transfer printing apparatus to drive a printer ribbon. The printer ribbon is mounted on two spools each of which is driven by a respective stepper motor. A controller controls the energization of the motor such that the ribbon is transported in at least one direction between spools mounted on the spool support. The controller is operative to energize both motors to drive the spools of ribbon in the direction of ribbon transport to achieve push-pull operations. Ribbon tension is monitored to enable accurate control of ribbon supply and ribbon take-up, the ribbon tension being monitored, for example, by monitoring power supply to the two stepper motors.
Claims27
A transfer printing apparatus in which tape is selectively transported past a print head for transferring material on the tape onto a substrate intended to receive printing, the apparatus having a tape drive comprising:
- two motors, at least one of which is a stepper motor, with the stepper motor having a rotor shaft and being operable to rotate its rotor shaft in discrete angular steps upon command;
- two spools of tape, one for each of the motors, with each spool having a respective outer diameter dependent on an amount of tape on the spool, and with one of the spools of tape being rotatable by the rotor shaft of the stepper motor;
- and
- a controller operative to energize the two motors to selectively rotate one of the motors to rotate its respective spool of tape to supply tape in a tape transport direction, and to selectively rotate the other motor to rotate its respective spool of tape for taking up tape for tape transport, thereby moving the tape in a tape transport direction, and
- with the controller selectively energizing the stepper motor based at least in part on a parameter indicative of the diameter of one of the spools to advance the stepper motor a number of steps to transport a predetermined amount of tape between the spools.
A method of transfer printing using printing apparatus in which tape is selectively transported past a print head for transferring material on the tape onto a substrate intended to receive printing, the apparatus having a tape drive having two motors at least one of which is a stepper motor, with the stepper motor having a rotor shaft and being operable to rotate its rotor shaft in discrete angular steps upon command, two spools of tape, one for each of the motors with one of the spools of tape being rotatable by the rotor shaft of the stepper motor, and a controller operative to energize the two motors to transport tape from one spool to the other spool, the method comprising:
- determining a parameter indicative of a spool diameter of at least one of the spools, wherein the spool diameter is dependent on an amount of tape on the spool;
- controlling the two motors to selectively rotate one of the motors to rotate its respective spool of tape to supply tape in a tape transport direction, and to selectively rotate the other motor to rotate its respective spool of tape for taking up tape for tape transport, thereby moving the tape in a tape transport direction, and
- controlling the stepper motor in least in part on the determined parameter to advance a number of steps to transport a predetermined amount of tape between the spools.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.