Ink film unit and facsimile apparatus

A facsimile apparatus, comprising:

• a first roller capable of feeding recording paper to said facsimile apparatus;
• a recording head which records image data on said recording paper fed by said roller,
• an ink film unit detachably mounted in said facsimile apparatus, comprising:
• an ink film for use by said recording head;
• a feeding reel around which said ink film is wound;
• a winding reel capable of winding up said ink film;
• and
• a pair of tabular ink film holders that rotatably support opposing ends of said feeding reel and said winding reel and that regulate a position of each of said feeding reel and said winding reel relative to said pair of tabular ink film holders;
• a second roller capable of discharging said recording paper on which image data is recorded by said recording head;
• a scanner, detachably attached to said facsimile apparatus, capable of scanning a document;
• a groove, formed inside said facsimile apparatus, which guides said ink film unit and prevents said pair of tabular ink film holders from moving in a direction parallel to an axis of said feeding reel;
• a holder, formed inside said facsimile apparatus, said holder engaging said pair of tabular ink holders and regulating a position of said pair of tabular ink film holders relative to said facsimile machine along both a direction perpendicular to an axis of said feeding reel and a direction perpendicular to said winding reel, said holder guiding said ink film unit to a predetermined position within said facsimile apparatus.

An ink film unit, comprising:

• a feeding reel around which an ink film is wound;
• a winding reel that winds up said ink film;
• a pair of tabular ink film holders that rotatably hold opposing ends of said feeding reel and said winding reel;
• and
• a first spring positioned between one of said opposing ends of said feeding reel and one of said pair of tabular ink film holders, and a second spring positioned between the other of said opposing ends of said feeding reel and the other of said pair of tabular ink film holders, wherein said first and second springs resist axial movement of said feeding reel in opposing axial directions and stabilize the winding operation of the ink film.

An ink film unit for a facsimile apparatus having ink film holder grooves, said ink film unit comprising:

• a feeding reel around which an ink film is wound;
• a winding reel that winds up said ink film;
• a pair of tabular ink film holders that rotatably hold opposing ends of said feeding reel and said winding reel;
• and
• said feeding reel, said winding reel, and said pair of tabular ink film holders comprising a one-piece unit that is insertable and removable as a unit from the facsimile apparatus and wherein said pair of tabular ink film holders are engageable with the ink film holder grooves of the facsimile apparatus so that said feeding reel and said winding reel are supported and positively positioned relative to the facsimile apparatus by said pair of tabular ink film holders.

An ink film unit, comprising:

• a first tabular ink film holder including a screw hole and a first deformable slot;
• a second tabular ink film holder including a notched hole and a second deformable slot;
• a feeding reel around which an ink film is wound, said feeding reel being rotatable about a shaft including a tapped hole at one end thereof and protrusions on an opposite end thereof, said feeding reel being secured between said first tabular ink film holder and said second tabular ink film holder by engaging said protrusions and said shaft to said notched hole and securing a screw through said first tabular ink film holder to said tapped hole of said shaft;
• and
• a winding reel that winds up said ink film, said winding reel being secured between said first tabular ink film holder and said second tabular ink film holder by forcing and fitting reel ends of said winding reel into said first and second deformable slots.