Patent ID: 8328442

Claim:
A drive train for a printer, comprising: a drive motor for selectively driving a drive roller and a take-up spool to unwind a ribbon from a supply spool and wind the ribbon about the take-up spool, and for selectively driving the drive roller and the supply spool to unwind the ribbon from the take-up spool and wind the ribbon about the supply spool; a take-up slip-overdrive assembly operationally engaged with the drive motor and the take-up spool to maintain a take-up tension in the ribbon downstream of the drive roller by overdriving the take-up spool relative to the drive roller to wind the ribbon about the take-up spool; a supply drag-overrun assembly operationally engaged with the supply spool to maintain a supply tension in the ribbon upstream of the drive roller by resisting unwinding of the ribbon from the supply spool; a supply slip-overdrive assembly operationally engaged with the drive motor and the supply spool to maintain the supply tension downstream of the drive roller by overdriving the supply spool relative to the drive roller to wind the ribbon about the supply spool; a take-up drag-overrun assembly operationally engaged with the take-up spool to maintain the take-up tension in the ribbon upstream of the drive roller by resisting unwinding of the ribbon from the take-up spool; and a drive direction assembly operationally coupled to the drive motor and the drive roller, the drive direction assembly is pivotable between a downstream direction at which the drive motor drives the take-up spool and an upstream direction at which the drive motor drives the supply spool; wherein when the drive direction assembly pivots between the downstream direction and the upstream direction the drive direction assembly drives the drive roller before the take-up spool and the supply spool.