INK RIBBON MECHANISM FOR PRINTERS PARTICULARLY FOR A MATRIX PRINTER

In such a mechanism with a carriage (3) which is capable of moving backwards and forwards in front of the platen-backing (2) and carries a print head, with an ink ribbon cassette (6) fixed to the printer frame (11) for a single-colour ribbon, which is led within the ribbon cassette (6) as a so-called Moebius loop, the width of the ribbon is divided into at least two parallel lines of ink of identical colour corresponding to their height level in front of the printing elements of the print head. In order not only to turn the ink ribbon (7) during its movement, i.e to travel with the Moebius loop, but also to make it wobble and thus make better use of its tinctorial power or increase its durability, it is proposed that an ink ribbon retainer (17) is provided on the print head carriage (3) in the area (14) facing away from the print head (4) so as to be able to swivel about an axis (15) parallel to the carriage guidance axes (12, 13), on which retainer (17) the ink ribbon (7) emerging from or re-entering the ink ribbon cassette (6) is deflectably guided, that the ink ribbon retainer (17) is supported on a rail (20) which also runs parallel to the carriage guidance axes (12, 13) between the side walls (lla, llb) of the printer frame (11) and that the rail (20) displays a height difference (23) between the longitudinal centre (22) of the print pass length (21) to the two sides, so that the ink ribbon retainer (17) with the longitudinally moving ink ribbon (7) can be moved upwards and downwards during a printing pass.