PURPOSE: To obtain a drive IC for driving a plurality of heating elements with little effect of a surge current without a possibility that a radiating plate may be warped and a possibility that a difference in printing density may be generated even if the elements divided into blocks with a variety in number are driven per block.

CONSTITUTION: Buffers (50-1)-(50-95) are provided between input terminals of NOR circuits (30-1)-(30-96) in a NOR circuit part 30 as a delay circuit for successively delaying strobe signals inputted from an input terminal 14.