Patent Publication Number: US-9849690-B2

Title: Thermal transfer printer and non-temporary storage medium

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a Continuation of application Ser. No. 14/816,209 filed on Aug. 3, 2015, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     Embodiments described herein relate generally to a thermal transfer printer that feeds an ink ribbon provided with an ink layer and a non-temporary storage medium. 
     BACKGROUND 
     A thermal transfer printer arranges a thermal head and a platen roller opposite to each other across a paper conveyance path and arranges an ink ribbon between paper conveyed on the paper conveyance path and the thermal head to carry out thermal transfer printing. The ink ribbon is wound around a ribbon feeding roller, and the ink ribbon fed from the ribbon feeding roller passes through the space between the paper and the thermal head and is then wound around a ribbon winding roller. 
     On the other hand, a ribbon winding motor for driving and rotating the ribbon winding roller in one direction and a ribbon feeding motor for driving and rotating the ribbon feeding roller in a direction opposite to the direction of the ribbon winding roller are arranged in the thermal transfer printer. The ribbon winding roller is rotated through a force stronger than the force applied to the ribbon feeding roller, and in this way, the ink ribbon is fed in a state of being applied with an appropriate tension. In such a type of thermal transfer printer, the thermal head and the platen roller are arranged opposite to each other in a width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the paper conveyed on the paper conveyance path in one direction. 
     Incidentally, the ink ribbon includes a plurality of types such as resin type ink ribbon, semi-resin type ink ribbon, wax type ink ribbon and the like, and there are thermal transfer printers coping with the plurality of types of ink ribbons. In such a printer, if an appropriate tension is not applied to each ink ribbon when the type of the ink ribbon changes, wrinkles may be caused in the ink ribbon, which leads to a decrease in the printing quality. 
     To prevent the decrease in the printing quality caused by such a reason, the voltages to be respectively applied to the ribbon winding motor and the ribbon feeding motor must be adjusted manually according to the type of the ink ribbon to be used, the type of the paper, and further the printing speed. 
     The present invention provides a thermal transfer printer always capable of carrying out high-quality printing according to the ink ribbon to be used. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram illustrating the schematic constitution of a thermal transfer printer according to one embodiment; 
         FIG. 2  is diagram illustrating an example of the circuit constitution of the main portions of the thermal transfer printer shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram illustrating the structure of a wax type ink ribbon according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram illustrating the structure in which the ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 3  is transferred to receiving paper; 
         FIG. 5  is a diagram illustrating the structure of a semi-resin-1 type ink ribbon according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 6  is a diagram illustrating the structure in which the ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 5  is transferred to the receiving paper; 
         FIG. 7  is a diagram illustrating the structure of a semi-resin-2 type ink ribbon according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 8  is a diagram illustrating the structure in which the ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 7  is transferred to the receiving paper; 
         FIG. 9  is a diagram illustrating the structure of a resin type ink ribbon according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 10  is a diagram illustrating the structure in which the ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 9  is transferred to the receiving paper; 
         FIG. 11A  is a diagram illustrating an example of a table for determining an application control (the type of the ink ribbon) according to a model name of the ink ribbon according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 11B  is a diagram illustrating an example of an ink ribbon driving table according to the embodiment; 
         FIG. 12  is a diagram illustrating the relation for obtaining an appropriate tension and the like according to the type of the ink ribbon and a printing speed; 
         FIG. 13  is a diagram illustrating an example of the relation between a winding voltage and a feeding voltage in a case in which the width of the ink ribbon is 110 mm; 
         FIG. 14  is a diagram illustrating an example of the relation between the winding voltage and the feeding voltage in a case in which the width of the ink ribbon is 90 mm; 
         FIG. 15  is a diagram illustrating an example of the relation between the winding voltage and the feeding voltage in a case in which the width of the ink ribbon is 70 mm; 
         FIG. 16  is a diagram illustrating an example of the relation between the winding voltage and the feeding voltage in a case in which the width of the ink ribbon is 50 mm; and 
         FIG. 17  is a flowchart illustrating operations for applying the appropriate tension to the ink ribbon according to the embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In accordance with one embodiment, a thermal transfer printer comprises a ribbon feeding roller configured to feed an ink ribbon including an ink layer on a base film; a ribbon winding roller configured to wind the ink ribbon fed from the ribbon feeding roller; a print head configured to heat the ink ribbon from a surface provided with no ink layer to selectively transfer the ink layer to paper; and a control section configured to control to apply an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon between the ribbon feeding roller and the ribbon winding roller according to the type of the ink ribbon. 
     (Embodiment) 
     Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a diagram illustrating the schematic constitution of a thermal transfer printer according to one embodiment applied to a label printer. In the thermal transfer printer, a print head  1  for printing with black ink is arranged along a paper conveyance path  5 . A platen roller  6  is arranged opposite to the print head  1  across the conveyance path  5 . 
     The print head  1  is a thermal head at the end face of which is arranged a plurality of heating resistors, and a ribbon magazine  10  is detachably set nearby the print head  1 . 
     The ribbon magazine  10  is provided with a ribbon feeding roller  10   a  and a ribbon winding roller  10   b.  The ribbon magazine  10  feeds, under the driving of a motor, the unused (new) ink ribbon  10   c  wound around the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  to the print head  1 , and winds the ink ribbon  10   c  passing through the print head  1  around the ribbon winding roller  10   b.    
     A ribbon width sensor  14  for detecting the width of the ink ribbon  10   c  conveyed inside the ribbon magazine  10  is arranged nearby the print head  1 . The ribbon width sensor  14  is, for example, an optical transmission sensor. 
     One end of the conveyance path  5  is used as a paper supply port  5   a  and the other end is used as a paper discharge port  5   b . At the side of the paper supply port  5   a  are arranged a pair of paper conveyance rollers  15   a  and  15   b  arranged opposite to each other across the paper, a paper width sensor  16 , a paper rear end sensor  17  including an optical transmission sensor capable of detecting the paper rear end, and a paper holder  18 . 
     The paper width sensor  16  detects the paper front end and the paper width. The paper rear end sensor  17  detects the rear end of the paper. The paper width sensor  16  and the paper rear end sensor  17  are, for example, optical transmission sensors capable of detecting the paper ends. 
     The paper holder  18  winds the paper  19  which is continuous roll paper. The paper  19  is nipped between the paper conveyance rollers  15   a  and  15   b  to be conveyed on the conveyance path  5  towards the paper discharge port  5   b.    
     In such a constitution, the ribbon magazine  10  provided with the black ink ribbon  10   c  is generally set nearby the print head  1 . In this case, the width of the ink ribbon  10   c  is uniquely determined according to the width of the paper  19 , and user sets the ribbon magazine  10  provided with the ink ribbon  10   c  of which the width corresponds to the width of the paper  19  used. 
     Incidentally, in the present embodiment, four types of ink ribbons having a ribbon width of 110 mm, 90 mm, 70 mm and 50 mm can be used. In a case in which the paper width is in a range from 85 mm to 105 mm, the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 110 mm is used. In a case in which the paper width is in a range from 65 mm to 85 mm, the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 90 mm is used. In a case in which the paper width is in a range from 45 mm to 65 mm, the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 70 mm is used. In a case in which the paper width is in a range from 25 mm to 45 mm, the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 50 mm is used. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram illustrating the circuit constitution of the main portions of the thermal transfer printer according to the present embodiment. The thermal transfer printer includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit)  21  as a main control section. 
     The thermal transfer printer includes a ROM (Read Only Memory)  22 , a RAM (Random Access Memory)  23 , a PC interface (IF)  24  and a sensor interface (IF)  25 . 
     The ROM (Read Only Memory)  22  stores program data and the like of the processing carried out by the CPU  21  in advance. The RAM (Random Access Memory)  23  forms various memory areas such as a print buffer on which printing data is copied or decompressed. The PC interface (IF)  24  controls data communication with a personal computer in which data for printing is stored. The sensor interface (IF)  25  acquires signals from various sensors such as the ribbon width sensor  14 , paper width sensor  16  and the paper rear end sensor  17 . 
     The thermal transfer printer includes a head controller  26 , a platen controller  27 , a solenoid controller  28 , a ribbon motor controller  29  and the like. 
     The head controller  26  controls the energization of the print head  1 . The platen controller  27  controls the driving of platen motors (not shown) for rotating the platen roller  6  and the paper conveyance rollers  15   a  and  15   b.    
     The solenoid controller  28  controls the driving of a solenoid mechanism (not shown) for lifting and lowering the print head  1  to contact and separate the print head  1  with/from the platen roller  6  arranged opposite to the print head  1 . The ribbon motor controller  29  controls the driving of a ribbon feeding motor  31  and a ribbon winding motor  32  serving as DC motors for respectively rotating the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  and the ribbon winding roller  10   b  of the ink ribbon  10   c.    
     The CPU  21  is connected with the ROM  22 , the RAM  23 , the PC interface  24 , the sensor interface  25  and the controller  26  through a bus line  30  such as an address bus, data bus and the like to constitute a control circuit of the thermal transfer printer. 
     The ribbon feeding motor  31  rotates the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  of the ribbon magazine  10  provided with the black (K) ink ribbon. The ribbon winding motor  32  rotates the ribbon winding roller  10   b  of the ribbon magazine  10 . 
     In the thermal transfer printer with such a constitution, it is important to apply an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon. The tension is determined by the rotation force of the ribbon winding roller  10   b  and the rotation force of the ribbon feeding roller  10   a.    
     In the ROM  22  is formed a voltage setting table  41  in which the driving voltage (the so-called “winding voltage”) of the ribbon winding motor  32  for rotating the ribbon winding roller  10   b  and the driving voltage (the so-called “feeding voltage”) of the ribbon feeding motor  31  for rotating the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  are set in advance. Generally, the winding voltage is set to be greater than the feeding voltage to apply an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon. Incidentally, in the present embodiment, the winding voltage is set to 15V and the feeding voltage is set to 10V. 
     The appropriate tension of the ink ribbon is changed according to the type of the ink ribbon as well as the width of the ink ribbon, the width and the category of the paper and the like. The type of the ink ribbon used in the present embodiment is described. The used ink ribbon includes four types, that is, wax type, semi-resin- 1  type, semi-resin- 2  type and resin type. 
       FIG. 3  is a diagram illustrating the cross-section structure of the wax type ink ribbon. Such a type of ink ribbon is formed by, for example, arranging an ink layer  36  obtained by mixing carbon with various waxes on a base film  35  having a thickness of about 3.5˜6.0 μm and a back coating layer  37  on the back side of the base film  35 . The back coating layer  37  is arranged to facilitate the sliding of the print head  1 .  FIG. 4  is a diagram illustrating a state in which the ink layer  36  is transferred to the receiving paper (paper)  41  from the wax type ink ribbon. The ink layer  36  of the wax type ink ribbon is exposed, thus, the ink can be transferred to the paper through pressure even if the heating of the print head is small. 
       FIG. 5  is a diagram illustrating the cross-section structure of the semi-resin- 1  type ink ribbon. The semi-resin type includes the semi-resin- 1  type and the semi-resin- 2  type. The semi-resin- 2  type is formed by arranging an overcoat layer on the ink layer as stated below. 
     As to the structure of the semi-resin- 1  type, an ink layer  52  is arranged on the base film  51  across a peeling layer  53 , and a back coating layer  54  is arranged at the back side of the base film  51 .  FIG. 6  is a diagram illustrating a state in which the ink is transferred to receiving paper (paper)  61  from the semi-resin- 1  type ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 5 . In a case of using such a semi-resin- 1  type ink ribbon, there is an advantage that the ink layer  52  can be transferred easily due to the existence of the peeling layer  53 . 
       FIG. 7  is a diagram illustrating the cross-section structure of the semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon. As to the structure of the semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon, an ink layer  72  is arranged on the base film  71  across a peeling layer  73 , and a back coating layer  74  is arranged at the back side of the base film  71 . Furthermore, an overcoat layer  75  is arranged on the ink layer  72 . 
       FIG. 8  is a diagram illustrating a state in which the ink is transferred to receiving paper (paper)  81  from the semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 7 . In a case of using such a semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon, there is an advantage that the ink layer  72  can be transferred easily due to the existence of the peeling layer  73 . The semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon further includes the overcoat layer  75 , thus, the ink layer  72  is not contacted with the receiving paper  81  directly, which prevents the receiving paper  81  from being contaminated due to the transfer pressure. There is another advantage that the adhesion between the ink layer and the receiving paper  81  can be improved through the overcoat layer  75 . 
       FIG. 9  is a diagram illustrating the cross-section structure of the resin type ink ribbon. As to the structure of the resin type ink ribbon, an ink layer  92  is arranged on the base film  91  across a peeling layer  93 , and a back coating layer  94  is arranged at the back side of the base film  91 . Furthermore, an overcoat layer  95  is arranged on the ink layer  92 . 
       FIG. 10  is a diagram illustrating a state in which the ink is transferred to receiving paper (paper)  101  from the resin type ink ribbon shown in  FIG. 9 . In a case of using such a resin type ink ribbon, there is an advantage that the ink layer  92  can be transferred easily due to the existence of the peeling layer  93 . 
     The resin type ink ribbon further includes the overcoat layer  95 , thus, the ink layer  92  is not contacted with the receiving paper  101  directly, which prevents the receiving paper  101  from being contaminated due to the transfer pressure. There is another advantage that the adhesion between the ink layer and the receiving paper  101  can be improved through the overcoat layer  95 . 
     Next, the relation between the ink ribbon model name, the printing speed, the application control and the tension is described.  FIG. 11  is an example of ribbon model name tension tables illustrating the relation. The tables include each column  111 ,  112 ,  113  and  114  of the ink ribbon model name, the printing speed (i/s), the application control and the tension (g/cm 2 ). It is assumed that the paper used in the thermal transfer printer is the same normal paper. The printing speed of the thermal transfer printer includes four types:  3 ,  5 ,  8  and  10  i/s (inch/second). The ink ribbon model name is input by the user of the printer. If the printing speed for the ink ribbon model name is determined, the application control and the tension are determined. 
     The application control is the heating control in the print head  1 . Only the type of the ink ribbon to be used is shown in the application control column of the table. However, the heating control may be controlled more finely according to various factors in practice, such as the width of the paper, the width of the ink ribbon, the continuity of the printing and the like, in addition to the type of the ink ribbon. The continuity of the printing refers to that it is necessary to suppress the heating in a case of carrying out printing continuously, that is, in a case in which a pre-determined voltage is applied to the corresponding element just before. However, basically, the heating control is carried out by specifying the winding voltage and the feeding voltage according to the type of the ink ribbon. 
     Next, the appropriate tension in a case of a wax type ink ribbon, a semi-resin type ink ribbon and a resin type ink ribbon is described. Generally, it is preferred to increase the tension by 10% in a case of a resin type ink ribbon, compared with a case of a semi-resin type ink ribbon. Further, it is preferred to decrease the tension by 5% in a case of a wax type ink ribbon, compared with a case of a semi-resin type ink ribbon. 
       FIG. 11A  is a diagram illustrating an example of a ribbon model name/application control table. In this table, if the ribbon model name is designated, the application control corresponding to the model name is shown. The application control mainly refers to the type of the ink ribbon. That is, the ribbon model name/application control table indicates the type of the ink ribbon supposed to be used for the model name of the ribbon. The type of the ink ribbon refers to, for example, any of the wax type, semi-resin- 1  type, semi-resin- 2  type and the resin type described above. An ink ribbon driving table S 122  is stored in the RAM  23  shown in  FIG. 2 . For example, in a case in which the model name of the ink ribbon is BR-0001A, the appropriate ink ribbon is a wax type ink ribbon. 
       FIG. 11B  is a diagram illustrating an example of the ink ribbon driving table. In the table, an appropriate tension is determined according to the application control (that is, the type of the ink ribbon) and the printing speed. For example, in a case in which the ink ribbon is a semi-resin- 1  type ink ribbon and the printing speed is 8 (i/Sec), the appropriate tension is 185 g/cm 2 . 
       FIG. 12  is a diagram illustrating the relation for applying an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon and meanwhile carrying out an appropriate application control in the embodiment. 
     Even if the type of the ink ribbon is determined, the correction of the heating applied to the ink ribbon is carried out as shown in S 123  according to the printing continuity, that is, according to whether or not printing is continued before the time point. In general cases, the heating of the print head is controlled with other factors taken into consideration, however, for the sake of simplicity, only the printing continuity is taken into consideration herein. The heating is corrected according to the printing continuity and the like as stated above, and the appropriate heating is carried out as shown in S 124 . 
     On the other hand, in the ink ribbon driving table S 122 , if the type of the ink ribbon and the printing speed are determined, an appropriate tension is output. As to the appropriate tension, the type of the ink ribbon input to the ink ribbon driving table S 122  is also taken into account. To apply the appropriate tension, as shown in S 125 , the feeding voltage applied to the ribbon feeding motor  31  of the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  and the winding voltage applied to the ribbon winding motor  32  of the ribbon winding roller  10   b  are determined. 
     The feeding voltage and the winding voltage are corrected according to the ribbon width in S 126 . The feeding voltage and the winding voltage for making the tension appropriate may be corrected with other factors taken into consideration, however, only the voltage correction based on the difference of the ink ribbon width is shown herein. 
     The winding voltage and the feeding voltage are corrected based on the difference of ink ribbon width and the like as stated above, and the appropriate winding voltage is applied to the ribbon winding motor  32  in S 127 . On the other hand, the corrected feeding voltage is applied to the ribbon feeding motor, and an appropriate tension is applied to the ink ribbon  10   c.    
     It is preferred to correct the winding voltage and the feeding voltage according to the width of the ink ribbon. The winding voltage and the feeding voltage obtained with the width taken into consideration are carried out by relatively adjusting the voltage value determined according to the application control as stated above. 
     Examples of corresponding paper width upper limit, corresponding paper width lower limit and the correction voltage amounts of the winding voltage and the feeding voltage for different ink ribbon widths are shown in  FIG. 13 ,  FIG. 14 ,  FIG. 15  and  FIG. 16 .  FIG. 13  shows a case in which the ink ribbon width is 110 mm.  FIG. 14  shows a case in which the ink ribbon width is 90 mm.  FIG. 15  shows a case in which the ink ribbon width is 70 mm.  FIG. 16  shows a case in which the ink ribbon width is 50 mm. such a ribbon width correction value table for the ribbon width is formed in the ROM  22 . 
     Incidentally, in the embodiment, as shown in the ribbon width correction value table in  FIG. 13 , for the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 110 mm, both the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are set to ±0V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 105 mm˜95 mm; and the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −1V and −0.5V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 94 mm˜85 mm. 
     That is, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 105mm˜95mm, the winding voltage is set to 15V and the feeding voltage is set to 10V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. Further, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 94 mm˜85 mm, the winding voltage is set to 14V and the feeding voltage is set to 9.5V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. 
     Further, for the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 90 mm, the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount shown in  FIG. 14  are respectively set to −2V and −1V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 84 mm˜75 mm; and the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −3V and −1.5V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 74 mm˜65 mm. 
     That is, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 84 mm˜75 mm, the winding voltage is set to 13V and the feeding voltage is set to 9V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. Further, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 74 mm˜65 mm, the winding voltage is set to 12V and the feeding voltage is set to 8.5V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. 
     Further, for the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 70 mm, as shown in  FIG. 15 , the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −4V and −2V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 64 mm˜55 mm; and the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −5V and −2.5V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 54 mm˜45 mm. 
     That is, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 64 mm˜55 mm, the winding voltage is set to 11V and the feeding voltage is set to 8V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. Further, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 54 mm˜45 mm, the winding voltage is set to 10V and the feeding voltage is set to 7.5V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. 
     Further, for the ink ribbon having a ribbon width of 50 mm, as shown in  FIG. 16 , the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −6V and −3V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 44 mm˜35 mm; and the winding voltage correction amount and the feeding voltage correction amount are respectively set to −7V and −3.5V in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 34 mm˜25 mm. 
     That is, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 44 mm˜35 mm, the winding voltage is set to 9V and the feeding voltage is set to 7V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. Further, in a case of using the paper having a paper width of 34 mm˜25 mm, the winding voltage is set to 8V and the feeding voltage is set to 6.5V; in this way, the force applied to the ink ribbon is balanced and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon. 
     Next, the operations in the embodiment are described with reference to the flowchart shown in  FIG. 17 . Before the thermal transfer printer starts the printer operation, that is, when the power is turned on, the CPU  21  executes the ink ribbon driving control processing shown in the flowchart in  FIG. 17  to apply an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon for carrying out printing. 
     In a case in which the printing preparation of the thermal transfer printer is started, the CPU  21  starts the ink ribbon driving control processing, and checks whether or not the type of the ink ribbon and the printing speed are input in ACT A 171  first. The application control refers to the type of the ink ribbon to be used, that is, any of the wax type ink ribbon, the semi-resin- 1  type ink ribbon, the semi-resin- 2  type ink ribbon and the resin type ink ribbon in the present embodiment. 
     In ACT A 172 , it is detected whether or not the printing data is received. If the printing data is not received, the CPU  21  waits in the state. If the printing data is received, the processing in ACT A 173  is carried out. 
     In ACT A 173 , the appropriate tension in this case is detected with the selected ink ribbon from the ink ribbon driving table S 122 . 
     In ACT A 174 , the winding voltage applied to the ribbon winding motor  32  and the feeding voltage applied to the ribbon feeding motor  31  corresponding to the detected tension are calculated by reference to the tension voltage table stored in the RAM  23 . 
     The winding voltage and the feeding voltage obtained in ACT A 174  are corrected in ACT A 175 . 
     First, the signal of the ribbon width sensor  14  is acquired through the sensor interface  25  shown in  FIG. 2 , and the ribbon width of the ink ribbon  10   c  in the ribbon magazine  10  is detected. Further, the signal of the paper width sensor  16  is acquired through the sensor interface  25 , and the paper width of the paper  19  wound around the paper holder  18  is detected. 
     Next, the correction value table shown in  FIG. 13 - FIG. 16  for the detected ribbon width is read from the ROM  22 , and it is determined whether or not the detected paper width is in the range of the corresponding paper width set in the correction value table. 
     If the paper width of the paper  19  to be used is in the range of the corresponding paper width, the winding voltage correction amount of the corresponding paper width to which the paper width belongs is acquired. Then it is determined whether or not the winding voltage correction amount is ±0V. If the winding voltage correction amount is not ±0V, the winding voltage setting value is read from the voltage setting table  41  of the ROM  22  and corrected with the winding voltage correction amount, and then applied to the ribbon motor controller  29 . If the winding voltage correction amount is ±0V, the winding voltage setting value read from the voltage setting table  41  of the ROM  22  is applied to the ribbon motor controller  29  without executing correction. 
     Next, the feeding voltage correction amount of the corresponding paper width to which the paper width belongs is acquired. Then it is determined whether or not the feeding voltage correction amount is ±0V. If the feeding voltage correction amount is not ±0V, the feeding voltage setting value is read from the voltage setting table of the ROM  22  and corrected with the feeding voltage correction amount, and then applied to the ribbon motor controller  29 . If the feeding voltage correction amount is ±0V, the original feeding voltage setting value read from the voltage setting table  41  of the ROM  22  is applied to the ribbon motor controller  29  without executing correction. 
     In this way, the winding voltage and the feeding voltage calculated in ACT A 174  are corrected according to the ink ribbon width and the paper width in ACT A 175 . 
     Sequentially, in ACT A 176 , the CPU  21  executes preparation control of a general printing processing. In the printing processing, the ribbon motor controller  29  drives the ribbon winding motor  32  forward through the winding voltage applied from the CPU  21 . 
     On the other hand, the ribbon feeding motor  31  is driven reversely through the feeding voltage applied from the CPU  21 , and the ribbon winding roller  10   b  is rotated through a force stronger than the force applied to the ribbon feeding roller  10   a ; in this way, the ink ribbon  10   c  is fed in a state of being applied with an appropriate tension. 
     After an appropriate type of the ink ribbon is selected and an appropriate tension is applied to the ink ribbon as stated above, the operation of the printer is started in ACT A 177 . 
     The CPU  21  includes a retrieval module and a driving control module. The retrieval module retrieves the setting information according to the width information of the paper  19  detected by the paper width sensor  16  and the width information of the ink ribbon  10   c  detected by the ribbon width sensor  14 . The setting information is stored in the ribbon width correction value tables shown in  FIG. 13 - FIG. 16 . The retrieval module retrieves the setting information to acquire an optimum driving force. The driving control module drives the ink ribbon  10   c  based on the optimum driving force. 
     Specifically, the angular velocity of the ribbon feeding roller  10   a  and the ribbon winding roller  10   b  is detected for the ink ribbon  10   c,  and the reel diameters of the ribbon feeding side and the ribbon winding side are determined, and then the optimum driving force corresponding to the reel diameter of the ink ribbon is further adjusted. 
     In the present embodiment with such a constitution, for example, a case of carrying out printing on the paper  19  having a width of 100 mm using the ink ribbon  10   c  having a width of 110 mm is considered. In this case, the winding voltage and the feeding voltage are corrected according to the setting information of the paper width 105 mm˜95 mm stored in the correction value table and then applied to the ribbon winding motor  32  and the ribbon feeding motor  31 , respectively. At this time, the force to be applied to the ink ribbon is balanced, and no wrinkle is caused in the ink ribbon, thus, a high printing quality can be achieved. 
     In accordance with the present embodiment, the paper width sensor  16  is arranged as a paper width detection module for detecting the width of the paper  19  conveyed on the paper conveyance path  5 , and the ribbon width sensor  14  is arranged as a ribbon width detection module for detecting the width of the ink ribbon  10   c.    
     Further, the correction value tables shown in  FIG. 13 - FIG. 16  are arranged as storage modules for setting and storing the optimum driving force for feeding the ink ribbon  10   c  on the basis of the width information of the ink ribbon and the width information of the paper. However, the CPU  21  retrieves the setting information stored in the correction value tables according to the width information of the paper  19  detected by the paper width sensor  16  and the width information of the ink ribbon  10   c  detected by the ribbon width sensor  14  and acquires the optimum driving force. Then the driving force of the ink ribbon is adjusted automatically so that the ink ribbon  10   c  is fed through the optimum driving force, thus, a high printing quality can always be achieved even if the widths of the ink ribbon and the paper to be used are changed. 
     In the embodiment, the widths of the ink ribbon and the paper are detected by sensors respectively to acquire the width information of the ink ribbon and the width information of the paper; however, it is also applicable to input the width information of the ink ribbon and the width information of the paper from, for example, a personal computer connected through the PC interface  24 , and then adjust the driving force of the ink ribbon according to the input width information of the ink ribbon and the width information of the paper. 
     It is also applicable to set and store the ribbon winding voltage and the ribbon feeding voltage serving as the optimum driving force for feeding the ink ribbon on the basis of the width information of the ink ribbon and the width information of the paper, and then extract and apply the ribbon winding voltage and the ribbon feeding voltage serving as the optimum driving force according to the width information of the paper detected by the paper width detection module and the width information of the ink ribbon detected by the ribbon width detection module. 
     In the embodiment described above, the type of the ink ribbon and the printing speed are input to determine an appropriate tension to be applied to the ink ribbon. However, if the type of the ink ribbon and the appropriate tension are not changed even if the printing speed is changed, it is applicable to input the type of the ink ribbon merely without inputting the printing speed. 
     In the embodiment described above, it is exemplified that the type of the ink ribbon includes the wax type, the semi-resin- 1  type, the semi-resin- 2  type and the resin type. However, it is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied in a case of using less than three or more than five types of ink ribbons. 
     In the embodiment described above, the present invention is applied to a label printer. However, it is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to a thermal transfer printer other than the label printer. 
     As stated above, in accordance with the present embodiment, there can be provided a thermal transfer printer that can input the type of the ink ribbon to apply an appropriate tension to the ink ribbon to achieve a high printing quality. 
     While certain embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Indeed, the novel embodiments described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the embodiments described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the invention.