Apparatus for making a graphic product

A printer for printing on a strip of sheet material comprising:

• a printing head;
• a roller platen having a cylindrical support surface on which a strip of sheet material is supported for printing by the printing head and for movement relative to the printing head during a printing operation, the roller platen having a width between axial ends of the roller platen less than the width of the strip of sheet material between longitudinally extending marginal edges of the strip whereby a marginal edge portion of the strip overlaps and extends beyond each axial end of the roller platen;
• and
• drive means having curved segments engaging respective marginal edge portions of the strip of sheet material at each axial end of the roller platen for feeding the strip over the roller platen relative to the printing head, the curved segments engaging each of the marginal edge portions of the strip being respectively tangent to axial extensions of the cylindrical support surface at the ends of the roller platen and having radii of curvature at each point along the segments larger than that of the cylindrical support surface of the roller platen, whereby the relatively small radius of the cylindrical support surface establishes a narrow zone of contact between the strip and the printing head for high pressure contact during printing, and the relatively large radius of curvature of the segments establishes greater engagement areas between the strip and the drive means for driving the strip.