JP2610847B2 - Image forming material - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial application field) The present invention relates to a material for an image forming method by superimposing a single color or a multicolor, and in particular, to an image formed by an internal cohesion of an image forming layer. For forming material.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, an overlay method and a surprint method have been known as categories of an image forming method using a photosensitive material. Also, photopolymers, diazos, and the like are known as photosensitive agents and the like to be used.

An example of the overlay method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,136,637. In this overlay method, in a proofing system of printing, colored sheets exposed with appropriate color separation negatives are each developed and then overlaid one on top of the other to obtain a color proof image.

This overlay method is very simple, and has the advantage that it can be used for inspection of multicolor printed matter by superimposing two or three colors as necessary. Image becomes slightly darker, and the incident light gives gloss by reflection from some synthetic resin sheets, and the resulting image is compared with the impression given by the printed matter printed by the target printing machine. It has very different texture disadvantages.

The surprint method is to superimpose several colored layers on a single support, by laminating various toners according to the image to be formed on a common opaque base, or A photosensitive layer having a color corresponding to an image to be formed is sequentially laminated on an opaque support.

Such a method is described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,671,236 and 3,136,637. This overprinting (surprint) has the advantage that the color density of the formed image is not affected by the synthetic resin sheet.
In addition, this method is more similar to the original printing method, and has the advantage of avoiding color distortion that occurs when laminating synthetic resin sheets. However, since the formed image is thicker than the printed matter, It has the disadvantage of making the texture significantly black.

An image forming method using techniques of photopolymerization and heat transfer is also known. For example, U.S. Pat.
No. 0024, No. 3060025, No. 3481736 and No. 3607
No. 264 publication. In these methods, a photopolymerizable layer on a suitable support is exposed using a color separation negative.

The surface of the exposed layer is then rubbed onto the image receptor and subsequently heated to a temperature above the transfer temperature of the unexposed portions of the layer, and the heat transferable unexposed portions are transferred onto the image receptor. When the unexposed portion is not colored in advance, an appropriate toner can be applied to the unexposed portion having adhesiveness to visualize the image.

Lamination, exposure and application of toner (development process) are performed for various colors, which requires a great amount of work time. In these methods, since the thickness of the formed image is thicker than that of the printed matter, there is a disadvantage that the finish texture of any method is different from that of the printed matter.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,721,557 describes a method of transferring a colored image, in which a release layer is provided between a photosensitive layer and a support. If the photosensitive layer is exposed to ultraviolet light or the like and then developed, the easily soluble portion is selectively removed according to an image of a mask or the like used at the time of exposure, and a visible image is generated.
The transferred image is formed by pressing the formed visible image on a support onto a suitable receiver provided with an adhesive layer and subsequently peeling off the first support. A new adhesive layer is provided on the receiver for each transfer operation.
Of these work steps, (1) providing a release layer between the photosensitive layer and the support, and (2) providing a new adhesive layer for each image transfer are costly and time consuming. Further, as a color blue material for printing, the difference in texture between a thick image and a printed material used alone is remarkable, and the formed image is unclear and inaccurate. In addition, this method requires complicated equipment for transfer work, and presupposes that laminating work, exposure work, and transfer work are sequentially performed for each color and the like by applying pressure and heat. Therefore, the process time is very long as a whole.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-97140 discloses a method for producing a color proofing sheet in which the disadvantageous features of the surprint method and the overlay method are corrected.

In this method, (1) the color separation image used for color proofing can be simultaneously exposed, (2) the separation image is embedded in the photopolymerizable adhesive layer at the time of transfer, and (3) The feature is that the photopolymerizable adhesive layer can be transferred to white paper, etc., which is very convenient in that color proofing that is more similar to printed matter can be obtained than the simple method using the overlay method or surprint method. However, there is a disadvantage that the orientation of the finally obtained image is opposite to that of the printed matter.

In addition, an alkali substance must be used for the development work during the image forming process, and when combined with the equipment for achieving the above (2) and (3), at least two or more processing equipments are required. One of them also has a disadvantage that the operation of keeping the developing solution under appropriate conditions is indispensable.

(Problems to be Solved) The object of the present invention is to solve such a conventional disadvantage, and the object of the present invention is to use it for both the overlay method and the Sarunlit method.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple image forming material in which a final image obtained by a surprint method has the same orientation as a printed image or the like.

As a result of the study, the present inventors have found that a photosensitive layer formed between a support and a cover sheet can be formed into a monochromatic or multicolor image by selecting a material and / or a method having an appropriate cohesive force inside the photosensitive layer. In the image exposure for the purpose of producing a film, an unexposed portion has an appropriate adhesive strength, and an image is obtained by cohesive failure. For this reason, it has been found that a specially processed image receptor or an intermediate image receptor is unnecessary and simpler than the prior art, and the present invention has been reached.

[Configuration of the invention]

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention comprises laminating a photosensitive layer containing a dye and / or a pigment and a cover sheet on one surface of a support, and forming a cover sheet on the other surface of the support. Laminating the color separation mask image, exposing the photosensitive layer through the color separation mask image with actinic radiation, creating a difference in the adhesiveness between the exposed and unexposed areas of the photosensitive layer, peeling off the cover sheet, The image transferred to an image receiving layer such as paper, and if necessary, the image transferred to another image receiving layer to obtain an image. An image forming material characterized in that the internal cohesive force of the functional layer is smaller than the interfacial adhesion with the support and the interfacial adhesion with the image receiving layer.

Various supports can be used as the support,
In particular, biaxially stretched polyethylene terephthalate is suitable in terms of dimensional stability against heat and water and workability.

For the photosensitive layer, a photopolymerizable compound is used so as to be mixed with a dye and / or a pigment and can be cured by exposure.

The photosensitive layer is formed on a support, and a cover sheet is further provided on the photosensitive layer. The cover sheet is used to prevent contamination due to the adhesion of the photosensitive layer to an exposure device or the like when performing exposure for image formation from the support side, and a polyethylene film is preferable. It is not limited to this.

Since the photosensitive layer is photopolymerizable, the cured portion loses its adhesive strength to the image receiving layer by image exposure, and enables the creation of fine image reproduction by the moderate internal gathering power of the unexposed portion, and It has the advantage of facilitating transfer onto the image receptor by peeling. Here, having moderate internal gathering power means that the image formed on the image receptor is not transferred at least in all thicknesses. That is,
Delamination is performed.

The appropriate internal cohesion of the photosensitive layer according to the present invention can be variously selected depending on the type and / or the mixing ratio of the photopolymerizable compound, dye or pigment used in the photosensitive layer. Further, it varies depending on the type of the image receiving layer or the support.

In a color proofing operation of a printed material to which the present invention is applied, it is necessary to reproduce a high-precision image from a film or the like serving as an original. At the same time, it is necessary to shorten the time for the color proofing work. In order to satisfy these demands and to ensure a stable finish quality, thinning of the film thickness of a formed image is a main technical factor for accurate image reproduction. Further, a major technical factor in terms of time reduction is that the formed image does not require a developing operation or the like. In order to realize these elements and technical elements, the action of partial transfer internal suspicion force in the thickness direction of the transferred image film in image formation by giving an appropriate internal cohesive force to the formed image film. In order to form an image immediately upon exposure, the best solution is to omit the development step.

The photopolymerizable material used in the photosensitive layer suitable for the present invention includes: (1) a photopolymerizable compound of a monomer, an oligomer and / or a prepolymer; and (2) an organic polymer binder having no photopolymerizability as required. (3) Photopolymerization initiator activated by actinic rays (4) Consists of pigment and / or dye, and contains a thermal polymerization inhibitor if necessary.

Examples of the photopolymerizable compound that can be used in the present invention include (meth) acrylic acid, methyl (meth) acrylate, butyl (meth) acrylate, cyclohexyl (meth) acrylate, dimethylaminoethyl (meth) acrylate, and benzyl (meth). Acrylate, carbitol (meth) acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl (meth) acrylate, lauryl (meth) acrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl (meth) acrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl (meth) acrylate, glycidyl (meth) acrylate, (meth) Acrylamide, N-methylol (meth)
Acrylamide, styrene, acrylonitrile, N-vinylpyrrolidone, ethylene glycol diacrylate, diethylene glycol diacrylate, triethylene glycol diacrylate, polyethylene glycol di (meth) acrylate, polypropylene glycol di (meth) acrylate, butylene glycol di (meth) acrylate, Neopentyl glycol di (meth) acrylate, 1,4-butanediol diacrylate, 1,6-hexanediol di (meth) acrylate, pentaerythritol diacrylate, pentaerythritol triacrylate, trimethylolpropane triacrylate, dipentaerythritol hexa Low molecular weight photopolymerizable such as (meth) acrylate of alkylene oxide adduct of acrylate and phenol Compounds or high molecular weight photopolymerizable compounds such as epoxy acrylates, urethane acrylates, polyester acrylates, alkyd acrylates, modified acrylates of petroleum resins, and unsaturated polyesters. One or a mixture of two or more of these is used.

As the organic polymer binder, a thermoplastic polymer having excellent compatibility with a photopolymerizable compound and having no photopolymerizability can be used. For example, polyvinyl chloride, poly (meth) acrylic acid, poly (meth) acrylate, polyvinyl ether, polyvinyl acetal, urethane resin, epoxy resin, polyamide, diallyl phthalate resin, and the like.

As the photopolymerization initiator, those having less absorption in the visible light region are more preferable. For example, benzophenone, 4,4
One of conventionally known photopolymerization initiators such as -bis (diethylamino) benzophenone, 4-methoxy-4-dimethylaminobenzophenone, 2-ethylanthraquinone, phenanthraquinone, benzoin, benzoin methyl ether, and benzoin phenyl ether. Species or two or more can be used.

As the thermal polymerization inhibitor, p-methoxyphenol, hydroquinone, t-butylcatechol, pyrogallol, pyridine, aryl phosphite and the like can be used.

The film thickness of the photosensitive layer may be any of about 0.5 [mu], a proper coating amount will vary depending dyes and or pigments are ^{contained, 0.5g / m 2 ~30g / m} 2 are suitable. In the coating of the present invention, the coating was performed using a bar coater or the like, but it goes without saying that a spin coater or a similar coater may be used, for example.

As a support for the photosensitive layer to be coated, a polyester film, particularly a biaxially stretched polyethylene terephthalate is preferable in view of dimensional stability against water and heat, but an acetate film, a polyvinyl chloride film, a polyethylene film, a polypropylene film. Can also be used. Further, these supports may be used as they are, but they may be subjected to a release treatment with an appropriate oil-repellent substance in order to improve image formation at the time of peeling due to internal convergence. Examples of these oil-repellent substances include silicone resins and fluororesins.

Examples of the cover sheet include, but are not limited to, polyethylene films, polyethylene terephthalate films, and acetate films.

Conventionally known dyes and / or pigments contained in the photosensitive layer can be used. Generally, dyes and pigments having the same hue of four colors of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black are required, and metal powder, white pigment, fluorescent pigment, and the like are also used. The following are dyes and pigments known in the art, but are just a few of the many. Organic pigments or dyes such as azo, phthalocyanine, quinacridone, anthraquinone, indigo and methine,
Alternatively, it is an inorganic pigment or the like.

These dyes and pigments can be easily mixed and contained in the photosensitive layer by appropriate means.

In addition, it is also effective to provide an appropriate matte treatment to the photosensitive layer to obtain a good texture if necessary.

Hereinafter, the steps of using the present invention as an image forming material for color proofing will be described in order.

(1) Provide holes for register pins in the color separation image mask and the image forming material. Further, when the image receiving members are paper or the like, holes for register pins are provided in these image receiving members.

(2) Image exposure and exposure sufficient for curing of the image forming material through the color separation mask image to the photosensitive layer using actinic rays such as ultraviolet rays.

(3) Next, the cover sheet is peeled off, the photosensitive layer is overlaid on an image receptor such as paper, and transfer is performed under pressure or under heating as needed.

(4) An image formed in the photosensitive layer on one end of the support and peeled off from the image receiving layer to form an image in a thickness of 1/2 or an appropriate amount in the film thickness direction by a preset internal collecting force. It is left on the receiver to form a transfer image.

(5) Post-exposure is performed for the purpose of strengthening fixation on the entire surface of the transferred image and eliminating the viscosity of the transferred image surface.

The above (1) to (5) are repeated four times (yellow, magenta, cyan, black) in, for example, color proofing to obtain a reproduced image of four colors.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to examples. In the examples, “parts” means “parts by weight” and “%” means “% by weight”.

Example 1 A photosensitive layer solution having the following composition was prepared.

Polyester (Vylon 300 Toyobo) as polymer, tetraethylene glycol diacrylate (A-4EG manufactured by Shin-Nakamura Chemical) as monomer, trimethylolpropane triacrylate (ATMPT manufactured by Shin-Nakamura Chemical) as monomer, 2-hydroxy-2 as initiator -Methyl-
Propiophenone (Darocur 1173 Merck) and benzophenone (KAYACUREBP Nippon Kayaku) were used as initiators.

In addition, Lionol Yellow FG30 for yellow is used as a pigment.
(Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co., Ltd.), Lionol Red 7BFG4412 for magenta (Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co., Ltd.), Lionol Blue FG7330 for cyan (Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co., Ltd.) or Mitsubishi Carbon MA7 for black did.

The polymer is dissolved in MEK (methyl ethyl ketone) (3 parts of polymer, 7 parts of solvent). This was left at room temperature for 72 hours or shaken for 48 hours to prepare a dissolved polymer solution.

The monomers are then mixed into the solution of the polymer. A-4 EG, 1 part of ATMPT, 3 parts of polymer, 20 parts of a polymer (excluding a solvent), and an initiator were added to 3% of a solute to prepare a photosensitive solution.

To mix the pigment into the prepared photosensitive layer liquid, repeat shaking 5 times with Red Devil. During this time, it is also preferable to add a solvent or the like in order to maintain appropriate fluidity.

18% for yellow and magenta for color proofing material for printing
18% for cyan, 18% for cyan, and 9% for black. After the red devil is finished, apply each photosensitive layer to a biaxially stretched polyethylene terephthalate film (25μ thickness) using a bar coater and dry it by irradiating it for 30 seconds under an infrared lamp (3kw) to color positive. A photosensitive layer was formed. The coating amount at this time was 5 μ (dry film thickness).

A polyethylene film was laminated on the dried photosensitive layer to form a cover sheet, which was used as an image forming material.

The image forming materials of each of the four colors and the color separation positive films corresponding to these are accurately aligned with a register pin, and a 1.5 kw ultra-high pressure mercury lamp (manufactured by Camo Denken) for 30 seconds (100 m
(J / cm ² equivalent), and an image was formed.

Next, peel off the polyethylene film from the cover sheet, adhere the photosensitive layer to the white paper, and apply appropriate pressure (50 kg / c
m ²⁾ is transferred to a, then peeled from the white paper polyethylene terephthalate film, faithful reproduction image of 20 lines / mm, corresponding to the image on the color separation positive film was obtained. In the image forming material of Example 1, about 3/4 of the photosensitive layer was transferred.

Further, the reproduced image transferred on the white paper was exposed again using an ultra-high pressure mercury lamp, and the reproduced seat image was further strengthened.

Hereinafter, the same process is performed on the other three colored photosensitive layers to sequentially form an image with YMCK (yellow, magenta, cyan, and black), so that the ordinary printed matter has an extremely similar texture. An image with was created.

Example 2 A photosensitive layer solution having the following composition was prepared.

Diallyl phthalate (DAPL Osaka Oxygen) as a polymer and oligoester acrylate (M
Benzophenone / ethyl ketone [benzophenone (Daiichi Kasei / EAB (Hodogaya Chemical)]) was used as an initiator.

As pigments, Lionol Yellow FG1310 for yellow (manufactured by Toyo Ink), Carmine 7BFG4412 for magenta (manufactured by Toyo Ink), Lionol Blue FG7330 for cyan (manufactured by Toyo Ink), or Mitsubishi Carbon MA-7 for black
It was used.

12 parts of polymer was dissolved in 70 parts of MEK, and 12 parts of monomer was mixed with 12 parts of polymer. The initiator is added in an amount of 2.5 to 4% based on the solute of the solution, and the pigment is further added to the solute in the solution.
~ 18% was added to make a photosensitive solution.

This photosensitive liquid was applied in the same manner as in Example 1, an image forming material was prepared, image-exposed, and transferred to a white paper. As a result, an image having a texture very similar to a printed matter was obtained.
The photosensitive layer of the image forming material of Example 2 was transferred about 1/2, and a faithful reproduction image of 50 lines / mm was obtained.

〔The invention's effect〕

 The following effects have been confirmed by the present invention.

It can be clearly understood that the performance is improved as shown in the table at the same film thickness as compared with the case of completely peeling and transferring because of the image forming method utilizing the internal gathering force in the photosensitive layer.

Furthermore, the film thickness of the image reproduced on an image receptor such as paper has the values shown in the table. When used as a color proofing material, etc., a texture very close to that of printed matter is provided. Cause no trouble.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Dai Ota 2-3-13 Kyobashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo Toyo Ink Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Referee Kikuo Ozawa Referee Tetsuo Taki Referee Toshiko Nakata (56) References JP-A-59-46639 (JP, A) JP-A-52-117133 (JP, A) JP-B-38-9661 (JP, B1) JP-B-46-15326 (JP, B1)

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A photosensitive layer containing a dye and / or a pigment and a cover sheet are laminated on one surface of a support, and a color separation mask image is laminated on the other surface of the support. Exposure of the photosensitive layer through the color separation mask image with lines creates a difference in the adhesiveness between the exposed and unexposed areas of the photosensitive layer, peels off the cover sheet, and converts the photosensitive layer into an image-receiving layer such as paper. In an image forming material for transferring an image and further transferring the transferred image to another image receiving layer as necessary to obtain an image, the internal cohesive force of the photosensitive layer transferred to the image receiving layer is supported. An image-forming material characterized by having an interfacial adhesion to a body and an interfacial adhesion to an image-receiving layer. 2. The image forming material according to claim 1, wherein the photosensitive layer contains a photopolymerizable compound and a non-photopolymerizable organic polymer binder.