THERMAL TRANSFER TYPE THERMAL RECORDER

PURPOSE:To enable favorable recording to be performed even when using ink films differing in sensitivity, by preliminarily providing an ink film with a mark for discrimination of sensitivity at an end part outside the effective recording width of the film, reading the sensitivity mark in a feeding passage of the ink film, and using the resultant signal as a control condition for recording. CONSTITUTION:An ink film 4 is provided with sensitivity marks 12 indicative of the sensitivity thereof at an end part of a transparent base 10 outside the effective recording width thereof. The marks 12 are provided at an interval shorter than the feeding distance by which the ink film 4 is fed for recording on one sheet by a thermal head 1. A transmission-type photosensor 13a, 13b is provided in a feeding passage for the ink film 4, and reads the mark 12 during feeding of the film 4. Based on a recording condition thus obtained, pulses according to image information are applied to a recording head 1 when the ink film 4 and a transfer recording paper 3 are passed through a recording part of the head 1. The length of the pulses is set according to the sensitivity, whereby optimum recording can be achieved.