JP4508720B2 - Ribbon printable thermal card - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermal card that can achieve both direct thermal printing and ribbon printing and has high anti-counterfeiting properties.

  Currently, commuter passes are gradually becoming non-contact IC cards in urban areas, mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Because there are many passengers in the Tokyo metropolitan area and urban areas, if there are not many ticket gates, it will not be possible to reach within a certain time, and as a result, a large labor cost will be required. The machine has a non-contact IC card reading mechanism and a conventional magnetic commuter pass reading mechanism. However, passengers are sparse when they leave the city, and even if it is crowded, it is only a certain time in the morning and evening, and even if a non-contact IC card and a new gate machine are introduced, there are many places that do not get on the profit base.

  In such non-urban areas, it can be assumed that conventional visual and legible types and magnetic commuter passes will be used. Various types of magnetic commuter pass that can be read visually have been proposed and adopted in the past. Recently, the function of the ticket issuing machine has been improved, and red and black ribbon printing is available. Has been made. For women, the name field is printed in red, the type of commuting and attending school is highlighted in red, and the waypoints are printed in red. From these viewpoints of storage stability and stability, resin-based ribbons have been used.

  This is because the conventional wax ribbon, as the name suggests, is a low-melting-point component mainly used as a wax, so that the storage stability (particularly at high temperatures) is poor. However, commuter passes having a thermal layer called direct thermal are now in the spotlight. Since direct thermal has been using dyes (mostly leucos), storage stability is poor, and problems such as discoloration and fading due to heat and humidity are inevitable, but storage stability This is because it has become possible to provide a material having a certain heat resistance and water resistance, such as development of a color developer that excels in quality.

  Further, in the case of a commuter pass printed with a ribbon, since the ribbon is exposed on the outermost surface, the compatibility with the gate machine is not good. This is because the ribbon printing portion is gradually faded or dropped off due to the mechanism that feeds at a high speed by the conveyor belt of the gate machine, and eventually becomes invisible. On the other hand, in the case of direct thermal, for example, an OP agent can be applied to the outermost surface on the heat-sensitive color developing layer, so that it takes a considerable number of conveyances until the heat-sensitive color developing layer is scraped by the gate machine. Thus, if it is the expiration date of use of a commuter pass for a maximum of 6 months, it is not easy to see the visibly, so the compatibility with the gate machine is relatively good.

As described in Patent Document 1, this OP agent contains a small amount of a peelable component such as silicone, PE wax, or fluorine. This is because the thermal head instantaneously becomes a high temperature of around 200 ° C., so if the surface slipperiness is poor, the contact time with the thermal head becomes longer as a result, and the time of exposure to high temperature becomes longer. This is because a phenomenon referred to as “occurrence” occurs and may result in uneven printing. In addition to the leuco dyes mentioned above, the thermosensitive coloring layer contains a developer and a binder component (a thermoplastic resin such as acrylic), so if it is exposed to high temperatures for a long time, it will melt or decompose. End up. In other words, in order to prevent sticking, it is essential that the OP agent has high heat resistance (→ therefore, UV curable resin or thermosetting resin is selected), but further, a peelable component is also essential. I can say that.
Japanese Patent No. 2757905

  When two-color printing is performed by direct thermal, a method is known in which a red coloring layer and a black coloring layer are sequentially laminated. A general method is to set the printing energy low for red printing, and set the printing energy high for black printing (when black color is developed after red coloring, it looks black). This generally indicates that the red color developing layer has lower heat resistance. Of course, the red coloring layer also has a certain level of heat resistance, but it must still develop from red. In other words, in everyday life, “If you place it near a heater, the entire surface would appear red.” In this case, you will go to the station to explain the circumstances and have it reissued.

  On the other hand, the collection commuter pass that has expired is processed at the station. In order to prevent the waste ticket processing from being reused by mistake, ribbon printing is generally performed on the surface of a collection commuter pass that has expired. Regardless of how much direct thermal is used, it is difficult to read even if the "Invalid Process" is printed after the necessary information has already been printed. This is because it cannot be distinguished from a home accident. In other words, when used in a commuter pass, there is a demand for direct thermal printing at the time of ticketing without sticking and capable of ribbon printing at the time of waste. At this time, it has been found that a general release agent containing a release component cannot be used. If the release agent is contained in the OP agent, the fixability of the ribbon printing on the OP agent is poor, and the ribbon printing at the time of waste ticket cannot be performed normally.

  Therefore, in order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a thermal card that can achieve both direct thermal printing and ribbon printing, has no sticking during direct thermal printing, and has high anti-counterfeiting properties. The purpose is to do.

In view of the above situation, we have made extensive research and development and have found a structure that enables both direct thermal printing and ribbon printing. That is, the invention according to claim 1 is a thermal card in which a heat-sensitive color-developing layer containing a heat-sensitive color-developing material is provided on at least a part of a flat substrate, and the UV does not contain a peelable component on the heat-sensitive color-developing layer. curing or by using an EB curable ink or coating agent to form an overprint layer, further by using a UV-curable or EB curable ink includes a release component to the surface of the overprint layer in contact with the thermal head A thermal card capable of ribbon printing, characterized in that it has a tint block pattern printing layer consisting of lines and dots having a thickness of 0.1 mm or less, and the interval between the lines and dots being 0.2 mm or more. .
A second aspect of the present invention, of claim 1, wherein the background pattern picture is a chromatic color, a ribbon printable thermal card.

A third aspect of the present invention is a thermal card capable of ribbon printing, wherein the overprint layer according to the first aspect is formed of a substantially colorless and transparent ink or a coating agent. A fourth aspect of the present invention, of claim 1, peelable component is a silicone-based component, the content of the silicone-based component definitive the peelable component in trees including UV curable or EB curable type It is a thermal card capable of ribbon printing, characterized by being 0.1 to 5% by mass or less. The invention according to claim 5 is a ribbon printing, wherein the thermal card according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is any one of a commuter pass, a boarding ticket, a playing card, and an admission ticket. It is a possible thermal card.

  The present invention comprises a thermal card having a thermochromic material at least in part, comprising a part having a peelable component on the outermost surface side in contact with the thermal head and a part having no peelable component, It is a thermal card capable of ribbon printing, characterized in that it is formed of another kind of UV curable or EB curable ink or coating agent. As a result, the printed part of the ink transferred by heat melting with the ribbon is fixed to the part having no peelable component and the part having the peelable component, and regardless of the presence or absence of the peelable component, Direct thermal printing is possible at any location, making it possible to achieve both direct thermal printing and ribbon printing. In addition, there is a part with a peelable component on the outermost surface during direct thermal printing, so sticking can be prevented. A thermal card with high anti-counterfeiting properties was obtained.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing an embodiment of a thermal card 1 capable of ribbon printing according to the present invention. A thermal coloring layer 3 and a OP (overprint) layer 4 containing a thermal coloring material on a substrate 2. Are sequentially provided, and a tint block printing layer 5 containing a peelable component is provided on the OP layer 4. The illustrated thermal card 1 has a tint block printing layer 5 as a part having a peelable component on the outermost surface side in contact with the thermal head, and an OP layer 4 as a part having no peelable component. The tint block printing layer 5 and the OP layer 4 are formed of different types of UV (ultraviolet) curable to EB (electron beam) curable ink or coating agent.

  Each layer constituting the thermal card capable of ribbon printing according to the present invention will be described in detail below.

(Base material)
The thermal card capable of ribbon printing of the present invention has a thermosensitive color-developing material at least in part, a part having a peelable component on the outermost surface side in contact with the thermal head, and a part having no peelable component; These are conditions that are formed with another type of UV curable ink or UV curable coating agent, but are preferably used together with the base material 2 that supports the above-mentioned part. This substrate is made of a sheet-like, film-like or plate-like material, and the material is not particularly limited. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), nylon, cellulose diacetate, polystyrene, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, polyimide, Plastics such as polyvinyl chloride and polycarbonate, metals such as copper and aluminum, paper, impregnated paper and the like can be used alone or in combination and laminated. An appropriate thickness of the substrate is about 0.005 to 5 mm.

(Thermosensitive coloring layer)
The thermal card capable of ribbon printing according to the present invention is provided with a heat-sensitive color developing layer 3 as a portion having a heat-sensitive color developing material. This thermochromic layer contains a thermochromic material, and specifically includes an electron-donating dye precursor and an electron-accepting compound that develop color by a thermal melting reaction, and further, if necessary, a sensitizer and a color fading. Inhibitors, fillers such as pigments and lubricants, dispersants, binders and the like are included. The thermosensitive coloring layer is formed as a layer by coating or printing on the substrate. Examples of the method for forming the thermosensitive coloring layer include gravure, roll coating, spray coating, dipping, and others. As the electron donating dye precursor, one that is applied to this kind of heat-sensitive material as a leuco dye, or one that develops yellow, cyan, or magenta in the case of full color is selected. Specific examples of the electron-donating dye precursor include triphenylmethane, fluorane, phenothiazine, auramine, spiropyran, and indinophthalide, and are appropriately selected according to the color to be colored.

  Examples of the electron accepting compound include those used as a developer in combination with an electron donating dye precursor, such as phenolic substances such as bisphenol A, octylphosphonic acid, nonylphosphonic acid, decylphosphonic acid, and dodecylphosphonic acid. And organic acids such as tetradecylphosphonic acid, octadecylphosphonic acid, and epoxytetradecanoic acid, metal complex compounds, thiodiphenylurea, and quinones.

  Examples of the sensitizer include stearic acid amide, behenic acid amide, methylene bis stearic acid amide, dibenzyl oxalate, tolylbiphenyl ether, and fatty acid amides. Examples of the anti-fading agent include analogs of color developers blocked with hydroxyl groups, organometallic salts such as zinc salts, and hindered phenols. When the pigment is used in combination, the white pigment has an effect of scattering visible light and near infrared light to the surroundings, promotes near infrared light absorption into the light absorbent and increases heat generation efficiency. Examples of the pigment include calcium carbonate, aluminum hydroxide, silicate, zeolite, silica, kaolin clay, and urea formalin resin.

  For the formation of the thermosensitive coloring layer, an ink or a paint is prepared in order to form a layer made of the above materials. As a binder for ink or paint, a water-soluble resin is the main component, and examples thereof include polyvinyl alcohol, starch, methyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, gelatin, casein, urea resin, melanin resin, amide resin, and polyurethane resin. Moreover, various adjuvants can be added as needed.

In the present invention, when the two thermosensitive coloring layers are formed, the upper layer and the lower layer are formed such that the coloring temperatures are different from each other. Preferably, a color former having a relatively low color development temperature (such as a red color developer) is used in the upper layer, and a color developer having a relatively high color development temperature (such as a black color former) is used in the lower layer. Those skilled in the art can easily determine the color formers having different color development temperatures by selecting the color former and the color developer. The thickness of the thermosensitive coloring layer is usually about 3 to 10 μm for each layer, and about 3 to 10 g / m ^{2 in} terms of coating amount when dried.

(OP layer)
The thermal card capable of ribbon printing according to the present invention has a configuration in which an OP (overprint) layer 4 is provided as a portion having no peelable component on the outermost surface side in contact with the thermal head. The OP layer of the present invention is formed using a UV curable or EB curable ink or coating agent, and serves as the outermost layer of a thermal card capable of ribbon printing to protect the lower layer. In addition, the OP layer is practically formed of a substantially colorless and transparent OP agent in order to make it easy to read the color-recorded portion of the heat-sensitive color developing layer positioned below and protected. desirable. As a material constituting the OP layer, a resin having transparency, scratch resistance, abrasion resistance, heat resistance, chemical resistance, stain resistance, and the like is suitable. Examples of such a resin include UV curable resins and EB curable resins. The thickness of the OP layer is about 3 μm or more, preferably 3 to 20 μm. Also in this case, the coating amount at the time of drying is about 3 to 20 g / m ² . If the thickness is too small, the durability such as hardness, scratch resistance and wear resistance is insufficient. On the other hand, if it is too thick, the thermal sensitivity of the thermal card is lowered, the adhesiveness with the thermosensitive coloring layer is lowered, and this is disadvantageous in terms of cost.

  The type of the UV curable resin is not particularly limited as long as it is a monomer, oligomer, or prepolymer that is cured by a polymerization reaction by ultraviolet irradiation to become a resin, and various known ones can be used. The OP layer usually contains a photopolymerization initiator in an ultraviolet curable resin component.

  Examples of prepolymers include aliphatic, cycloaliphatic, araliphatic to hexavalent polyhydric alcohols and polyalkylene glycol poly (meth) acrylates, poly (meth) acryloyloxyalkyl phosphate esters, polyester poly ( Vinyl or diene having (meth) acrylate, epoxy (meth) acrylate, polyurethane poly (meth) acrylate, polyamide (meth) polyacrylate, polysiloxane poly (meth) acrylate side chain and / or meta (acryloyloxy group) at the terminal And a prepolymer such as a low polymer. Examples of the monomer include alkyl esters of ethylenically unsaturated carboxylic acids, mono (meth) acrylates of alkylene oxide addition polymers of compounds containing active hydrogen, alkylene oxide addition polymers of compounds having active hydrogen, and (meth). Bifunctional monomer consisting of diester with acrylic acid, amide group-containing monomer represented by vinyl lactams such as N-vinylpyrrolidone, alkylene oxide addition polymer of compound having active hydrogen and (meth) acrylic acid And polyfunctional monomers made of polyester. Examples of photopolymerization initiators include benzophenone, 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-propiophenone, 1-hydroxy-cyclohexyl phenyl ketone, 2,4-diethylthioxanthone, and the like. It is added and used at a ratio of 5 to 10% by mass.

  The type of EB curable resin is not particularly limited, and specific examples include polyurethane acrylate, polyester acrylate, epoxy acrylate, polyether acrylate, etc., which adjust the viscosity or crosslinking density of each prepolymer. Therefore, a polyfunctional or monofunctional monomer may be added and used, and a known photopolymerization initiator or sensitizer may be added and used as necessary. In addition, polyene / thiol-based EB curable resins are also excellent in wear resistance and can be preferably used. For curing the UV curable resin or the EB curable resin, a conventionally known ultraviolet curing method or electron beam curing method is used.

  An ink or a coating agent to which the above-described UV curable resin or EB curable resin and additives such as a photopolymerization initiator are added as necessary is prepared. In the present invention, in the term ink or coating agent, "ink" means a printing material for printing and forming various patterns such as characters and patterns by offset printing, letterpress printing, gravure printing, screen printing, etc. The “coating agent” is applied to the entire surface or stripe of the object to be coated by a known coating method such as air knife method, blade method, gravure method, roll coater method, spray method, dipping method, or bar method. It means a printing material to do.

(Background pattern printing layer)
The thermal card capable of ribbon printing of the present invention is provided with a tint block printing layer 5 that reproduces a tint block pattern as a part having a peelable component on the outermost surface side in contact with the thermal head. This tint block printing layer is formed of UV curable ink or EB curable ink which is different from the OP layer, that is, contains a peelable component. As the UV curable or EB curable resin, the photopolymerization initiator and the like constituting the tint block printing layer, the same ones as those of the OP layer can be used, but the tint block printing layer contains a peelable component. Examples of the releasable component include various waxes, silicone-based components, fluorine-based components, and the like, and a silicone-based releasable component is particularly preferable. In order to avoid the migration of the silicone-based component from the tint block printed layer to another, a silicone three-dimensional cross-linked product such as a silicone resin, silicone acrylate, or reactive silicone oil is suitable. Such a silicone-based component can be added to the resin of the tint block printing layer, printed in a sufficiently dispersed state, and dried (in some cases, crosslinked) to obtain sufficient releasability.

  The above-mentioned silicone acrylate has a molecular weight of about 500 to 10,000, a functional group equivalent (molecular weight / functional group) of about 400 to 8,000, and the functional group is a methacryl group, an acryl group, a mercapto when ultraviolet rays or electron beam curing is considered. Groups are preferred. Specific examples of silicone components include, for example, silicone oils such as dimethylpolysiloxane, methylhydrogenpolysiloxane, and methylphenylpolysiloxane, modified by alkyl, amino, epoxy, fluorine, carboxyl, alcohol, mercapto, etc. Examples thereof include silicone oil and a silicone macromonomer having a polymerizable functional group at one or both ends of a molecular chain. Preferred organopolysiloxane compounds include alcohol-modified silicone oils, alkyl-modified silicone oils, and silicone macromonomers having a (meth) acryloyl group as the one-end polymerizable functional group of the molecular chain. These known and commonly used organopolysiloxane compounds can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  The peelable component such as the silicone component is preferably contained at a ratio of 0.1 to 5% by mass with respect to the entire tint block printing layer. If the peelable component is too small, the peelability from the thermal head is poor during direct thermal printing, and sticking tends to occur. Moreover, when there are too many peelable components than the said range, the suitability of ribbon printing will worsen. The tint block printing layer is formed using the above-described UV curable or EB curable resin, an additive such as a photopolymerization initiator, a pigment or dye colorant, and an ink to which a solvent or the like is added as necessary. . Since the tint block printing layer is printed to reproduce the tint block of a predetermined pattern, UV curing type or EB curing type ink is used instead of UV curing type or EB curing type coating agent, and offset printing is performed. Various pattern patterns such as characters and patterns are formed by letterpress printing, gravure printing, screen printing, and the like.

  The tint block printing layer uses a colorant in order to reproduce various hues, but it can be used by mixing not only one type of colorant but also a plurality of colorants having different hues. As a result, a colored tint block pattern can be reproduced. In addition, it is preferable that the background pattern obtained by the background pattern printing layer is mainly provided from a line or point having a thickness of 0.1 mm or less, and the distance between the line or point is preferably 0.2 mm or more. If the thickness of the above-mentioned line or dot exceeds 0.1 mm, the occupied portion of the part having the peelable component becomes large, and the ribbon printing when the thermal card is discarded becomes impossible. Further, when the distance between the lines and points is less than 0.2 mm, the occupied portion of the portion having the peelable component is also increased, and the ribbon printing when the thermal card is discarded cannot be performed normally. The thickness of such a tint block printing layer is about 1 μm or more, preferably 3 to 20 μm. If the thickness is too small, the printed layer may become faint, making it difficult to visually distinguish the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing. If the thickness is too large, the adhesiveness of the ribbon printing is lowered.

  The thermal card of the present invention has a structure as shown in FIG. 1 and a conventionally known magnetic layer, hologram layer, etc. on the opposite side of the surface of the substrate 2 on which the thermosensitive coloring layer 3 is provided. Can be used for various purposes such as commuter pass, boarding pass, playing cards, admission ticket, etc.

A milk-white polyethylene terephthalate having a thickness of 188 μm is used as a base material, and γ-Fe ₂ O ₃ powder is dispersed on one surface of the base material in a binder solution composed of a vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer and a urethane resin. The magnetic coating agent thus formed was applied to the entire surface by a gravure reverse method to form a magnetic layer having a thickness of 15 μm. On the other surface of the substrate, a thermosensitive coloring layer coating agent having the following composition was applied over the entire surface by a gravure reverse method to form a thermosensitive coloring layer having a thickness of 5 g / m ² when dried. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, parts or% is based on mass.

(Thermosensitive coloring layer coating agent)
Black dye (3- (N-ethyl-N acylamino) -6-methyl-7anilinofluorane)
10 parts Developer (bisphenol A) 85 parts Solvent (polyvinyl alcohol 10% aqueous solution) 5 parts

By using a UV curable coating agent manufactured by Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, Inc. and an OP layer coating agent (substantially colorless and transparent OP agent) manufactured by Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, Inc. It was coated on the entire surface and irradiated with ultraviolet rays immediately after coating to form an OP layer having a thickness of 5 g / m ² at the time of drying. Next, offset printing is performed on the OP layer using the tint block printing layer ink having the following composition, and ultraviolet rays are irradiated immediately after printing to form a colored tint block pattern with a logo mark pattern at a thickness of 5 μm. Formed.

(Ink for tint block printing layer)
UV curable ink (Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, trade name Dycure RT-21, 108 red) 100 parts Silicone acrylate 2 parts

  The content of the silicone component in the UV curable tint block printing layer ink containing the peelable component is 1.96% by mass. Moreover, the thickness of the line of the above-mentioned printed pattern pattern was 0.07 mm, and the distance between the lines was 0.3 mm at the shortest part. As described above, the thermal card of Example 1 was produced. This thermal card is a commuter pass, there is no sticking with direct thermal printing at the time of ticketing, clear printing can be done, and on the surface on which the commuter pass is thermally printed as waste ticket processing, using a thermal melting transfer type ribbon, When ribbon printing was performed, ribbon printing was performed on the OP layer including the portion of the tint block pattern. As a result, a thermal card having high anti-counterfeiting properties was obtained.

A thermal card was produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the thermal coloring layer was changed as follows in the thermal card produced in Example 1 above. The black color thermosensitive coloring layer coating agent used in Example 1 was applied to the entire surface by a gravure reverse method to form a first thermochromic layer having a thickness of 5 g / m ² when dried. Next, on the first thermosensitive coloring layer, a red coloring thermosensitive coloring layer coating agent having the following composition is applied to the entire surface by the gravure reverse method, and the second thermosensitive coloring of thickness 5 g / m ² when dried. A layer was formed.

(Thermosensitive coloring layer coating agent)
Red dye (3-diethylamino-3-chlorofluorane) 10 parts Developer (3,3-dichlorophenthiourea) 85 parts Solvent (polyvinyl alcohol 10% aqueous solution) 5 parts

  The thermal card obtained above was a commuter pass with direct thermal printing at the time of ticketing without sticking, and clear red and black printing was possible. In addition, the red color printing could be performed by heating at about 80 ° C., and the black color printing could be performed by heating at about 100 ° C. Also, as a waste ticket process, ribbon printing was performed on the surface of the commuter pass on which the thermal printing was performed using a hot melt transfer ribbon, and the ribbon was printed on the OP layer, including the tint block pattern. It was. As a result, a thermal card having high anti-counterfeiting properties was obtained.

It is the schematic which shows one Embodiment of the thermal card in which the ribbon printing of this invention is possible.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Thermal card 2 Base material 3 Thermosensitive coloring layer 4 OP layer (part which does not have peelable component)
5 Background pattern printing layer (part with peelable component)

Claims (5)

In a thermal card in which a thermosensitive coloring layer containing a thermosensitive coloring material is provided on at least a part of a flat substrate, a UV or EB curable ink or coating agent which does not contain a peelable component on the thermosensitive coloring layer Using an UV curable or EB curable ink containing a peelable component on the surface of the overprint layer in contact with the thermal head, a line having a thickness of 0.1 mm or less A thermal card capable of ribbon printing, characterized in that a print layer having a tint block pattern pattern composed of dots and having a line or dot interval of 0.2 mm or more is formed . The according to claim 1, characterized in that the tint block pattern is a chromatic color, the ribbon printable thermal card. A thermal card capable of ribbon printing, wherein the overprint layer according to claim 1 is formed of a substantially colorless and transparent ink or coating agent. The according to claim 1, peelable component is a silicone-based component, the content of the silicone-based component definitive the peelable component in trees including UV curable or EB curable is 0.1 to 5 mass% A thermal card capable of ribbon printing, characterized by: A thermal card capable of ribbon printing, wherein the thermal card according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is any one of a commuter pass, a boarding ticket, a playing card, and an admission ticket.