Patent ID: 8120631

Claim:
A thermal printer comprising: a thermal print head having an array of thermal elements positioned opposite a platen at a printing nip with a donor web having thermal donor material positioned between the print head and the platen, said thermal elements being adapted to heat the donor web in a manner that is modulated in accordance with received control signals so that donor material can be transferred from the donor web to a receiver medium; a receiver medium advance system adapted to advance a leading edge of the receiver medium proximate to the printing nip; and a controller adapted to receive image data and to convert the image data into a sequence of thermal print head control signals adapted to cause the array of thermal elements to heat in a manner that causes the donor material to transfer from the donor ribbon in accordance with image data and attenuated in accordance with an attenuation pattern; said controller being operable to print the image in the image data by causing the receiver medium advance system to urge the leading edge of the receiver medium through the printing nip while transmitting the thermal print head control signals to the thermal print head to cause the donor material to transfer from the donor web in an image modulated pattern having a longitudinal length that is larger than a longitudinal length of the receiver medium; wherein said attenuation pattern provides a level of attenuation at a first portion of a printing that is higher than a level of attenuation at a second portion of the printing.