Print carrier and transportable cartridge for the same

Claim 1

A transportable cartridge assembly adaptable for use with a chain printer apparatus including a hammer assembly having a print line with a plurality of selectively operable hammers and at least one drive shaft operably connectable to said cartridge assembly for rotating a print carrier belt past the print line, said cartridge assembly comprising: a. an elongated housing assembly; b. first and second spools including means for rotatably mounting the same at opposite ends of said housing and wherein at least one of said spools additionally includes means for engaging the drive shaft of the chain printer apparatus; and c. an endless print carrier belt having an edge from which a plurality of printing fingers project, each printing finger having a distal end with a print character secured thereto, each finger being at least in part comprised of a ferromagnetic material; said carrier belt being mounted about said first and second spools for rotation in an oblong manner around said spools; wherein said housing assembly encases a substantial portion of the print carrier belt and includes an inner guiding sidewall arranged longitudinally between the spools on the print line, said sidewall having an outwardly facing guide surface against which the endless belt and printing fingers are conveyed and having an edge across which hammers from the hammer assembly selectively strike the distal ends of said printing fingers, which ends project beyond the edge of the sidewall; said sidewall including a magnetic guidance means mounted in the outwardly facing guide surface adjacent the edge for restraining movement of the printing fingers in a general direction radially to that of the rotating print carrier belt.