Granted Patent B2

US 12,449,756 · App. 18/733,039 · Granted Oct 21, 2025

Inventor: Tomoya Ichikawa (Nagoya, JP)

Assignee: BROTHER KOGYO KABUSHIKI KAISHA

G03G21/16B32B37/0046B32B37/223B32B38/18B65C9/18G03G15/6582B32B2037/0061B32B2037/268B32B2307/412G03G15/65G03G15/6502G03G15/6508G03G15/6511G03G15/6517

Abstract

Claims (18)

1. A film cartridge installable into and removable from a layer transfer device for transferring a transfer layer onto an image formed on a sheet, the film cartridge comprising:

a supply reel including a supply shaft on which a multilayer film including a supported layer with the transfer layer included therein and a supporting layer supporting the supported layer is wound; and

a take-up reel including a take-up shaft on which to take up the multilayer film,

wherein the multilayer film is wound on the supply shaft in such a manner that the supported layer is in contact with the supply shaft, and the multilayer film is wound on the take-up shaft in such a manner that the supported layer is in contact with the take-up shaft, and

wherein the supply reel includes a supply gear provided at an end in an axial direction of the supply reel.

2. The film cartridge according to claim 1 , comprising a supply case accommodating the supply reel.

3. The film cartridge according to claim 2 , wherein the supply reel is rotatably supported by the supply case.

4. The film cartridge according to claim 1 , wherein the supply gear is exposed to outside through an opening formed in the supply case.

5. The film cartridge according to claim 4 , wherein the supply case includes two side walls provided at ends apart from each other in the axial direction, an outer side wall located, apart in the axial direction from one side wall of the two side walls that is closer to the supply gear, to cover at least part of the supply gear from the axial direction, and an outer peripheral wall connecting the one side wall and the outer side wall, and

wherein the supply gear, of which at least part is located between the one side wall and the outer side wall, is exposed to outside through an opening formed in the outer peripheral wall.

6. The film cartridge according to claim 5 , wherein the supply reel is rotatably supported on the side walls.

7. The film cartridge according to claim 5 , wherein the outer side wall does not cover tops of gear teeth in an angular range of the opening of an angle α 1 measured around a rotation axis of the supply reel as viewed with a line of sight aligned with the axial direction of the supply reel.

8. The film cartridge according to claim 5 , wherein the outer side wall does not cover bottoms of gear tooth spaces in an angular range of the opening of an angle α 1 measured around a rotation axis of the supply reel as viewed with a line of sight aligned with the axial direction of the supply reel.

9. The film cartridge according to claim 5 , wherein the supply case is rotated about a rotation axis of the supply reel relative to a holder to thereby get installed therein, and

wherein an angle α 1 of an angular range of the opening as measured around the rotation axis of the supply reel is greater than an angle α 2 of rotation which the supply case makes when installed in the holder.

10. The film cartridge according to claim 1 , wherein the take-up reel comprises a flange provided on each end of the take-up shaft, and a take-up gear located on an outer side of the flange in an axial direction of the take-up reel.

11. The film cartridge according to claim 10 , wherein the take-up gear is located coaxially with the take-up shaft.

12. The film cartridge according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting layer is transparent.

Assignments (2)

Priority Claims (1)

Continuity (3)

References Cited (80)