Printing device, printing method, and optical fiber ribbon manufacturing method

An optical fiber ribbon manufacturing device comprising:

• fiber-supplying units that respectively supply optical fibers;
• a printing device that prints a mark on each of the optical fibers;
• and
• a ribbon-forming device that manufactures an optical fiber ribbon by connecting the optical fibers on each of which the mark has been printed, wherein
• the printing device comprises:
• a supplying roller that supplies an ink;
• and
• a printing roller that comprises a printing pattern on a surface thereof and that prints the mark on each of the optical fibers that are lined up in a width direction of the optical fibers by causing the ink supplied from the supplying roller to adhere to the printing pattern and transferring the ink onto the optical fibers,
• projections and depressions are disposed on a surface of the supplying roller, and
• the surface of the supplying roller opposes the printing pattern of the printing roller.

An optical fiber ribbon manufacturing method comprising:

• supplying optical fibers;
• supplying an ink from a supplying roller to a printing roller that comprises a printing pattern on a surface thereof;
• printing a mark on each of the optical fibers that are lined up in a width direction of the optical fibers by causing the ink supplied from the supplying roller to adhere to the printing pattern and transferring the ink onto the optical fibers;
• and
• manufacturing an optical fiber ribbon by connecting the optical fibers on each of which the mark has been printed, wherein
• projections and depressions are disposed on a surface of the supplying roller, and
• the surface of the supplying roller opposes the printing pattern.