INK RIBBON SUPPLYING DEVICE FOR THERMAL TRANSFER PRINTER

PURPOSE:To simplify the construction of a cassette, by a construction wherein a back tension generating means for an ink ribbon is provided on the side of a main body of a printer. CONSTITUTION:When an ink ribbon 23 is led out from a payout core 11 to the side of a take-up core, the core 11 is rotated, and a reel head 12 and a reel base 14 are also rotated. The rotation of the base 14 is friction-transmitted to a reel rotating base 15 through a slip plate 16 under an energizing force of a coil spring 17. When the ink ribbon 23 is led out and the reel rotating base 15 is rotated, a tension spring 18 is pulled by a movable pin 15a. The pin 15a comes into contact with a stopping plate 21, resulting in that the base 15 can not be rotated. Then, slippage occurs at the slip plate 16, so that the reel rotating base 15 is not rotated even when the reel base 14 is rotated. When printing is finished, the rotation of the reel base 14 is stopped. When the ribbon 23 sags, the ribbon 23 is taken up around the payout core 11 under the function of the tension spring 18.