JP5103937B2 - Intermediate transfer recording medium, information recording method using the same, and method of manufacturing information recording body - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a means for effectively preventing forgery and falsification from occurring. <P>SOLUTION: An intermediate transfer recording medium comprises a releasable transfer part including an information accepting layer on a substrate. The transfer part includes a hologram forming layer, a reflecting layer and the information accepting layer in this sequence from the substrate side, and the reflecting layer includes a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmitting reflective layer. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an intermediate transfer recording medium used for recording information on a transferred material by temporarily recording information such as characters and images on the receiving layer and then transferring the received layer to the transferred material, The present invention also relates to an information recording method using the intermediate transfer recording medium and a method for manufacturing an information recording body.

  The intermediate transfer recording medium is used for temporarily recording information such as characters and images on a receiving layer, and then transferring the receiving layer to a transfer medium to form a printed material. According to the intermediate transfer recording medium, it is possible to record information on a base material in which it is difficult for the color material to shift and to form a high-quality image directly (for example, see Patent Document 1).

Further, according to the intermediate transfer recording medium, it is possible to form an image such as a character or a face photograph required for the receiving layer in advance and then form an image on the transfer target by subsequent transfer. Furthermore, necessary information such as a signature is preliminarily filled in or printed on the transfer material, and then the receiving layer on which images such as characters and photographs are formed is transferred from the intermediate transfer recording medium. It is also possible to record composite information. Therefore, in recent years, the intermediate transfer recording medium has been widely used for the production of a printed matter including identification information such as a passport and individual information such as a credit card / ID card (for example, see Patent Document 2).
Japanese Patent No. 2848394 Specification Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-263079

  A printed matter such as a passport or a credit card as described above is required to have security, that is, high reliability and safety that is difficult to forge or tamper. For this reason, for example, Patent Document 2 proposes that a hologram be provided in the transfer portion in order to prevent forgery and falsification by copying. However, in recent years, forgery / falsification means have become more sophisticated, and more effective forgery / falsification prevention means have been demanded.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide means for effectively preventing forgery / tampering.

  As a result of intensive investigations to achieve the above object, the present inventors have made counterfeiting / falsification by combining the reflective layer constituting the hologram with a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer. The present inventors have found that it becomes difficult and can improve security, and have completed the present invention.

That is, the present invention is an intermediate transfer recording medium having a transfer part including an information receiving layer releasably on a substrate, the transfer part comprising a hologram forming layer, a reflective layer and an information receiving layer from the substrate side. An intermediate transfer recording medium is provided that includes the reflective pattern layer and the visible light transmissive reflective layer, which are in this order, and the reflective layer is a vapor-deposited layer of metal or metal oxide .

  Furthermore, according to one aspect of the present invention, the intermediate transfer medium, wherein the transfer unit has a hologram forming layer, a reflective pattern layer, a visible light transmissive reflective layer, and an information receiving layer in this order from the substrate side; The intermediate transfer recording medium having a release layer on the surface adjacent to the substrate; the intermediate transfer recording medium in which a continuous pattern is formed by the pattern expressed by the hologram forming layer and the pattern expressed by the reflective layer; The intermediate transfer recording medium having an adhesive layer on the outermost surface opposite to the substrate side; and the intermediate transfer recording medium in which the information receiving layer is an adhesive layer is provided.

  Furthermore, the present invention provides an information recording method for recording information on a transfer medium by transferring the transfer part of the intermediate transfer recording medium to the transfer medium; transferring the transfer part of the intermediate transfer recording medium to the transfer medium An information recording body manufacturing method including:

  Since the intermediate transfer recording medium transfers information to the transfer target after printing information on the information receiving layer, it is difficult to tamper with the information. Furthermore, since the technology for patterning the reflective layer of the hologram is extremely advanced, and more advanced technology is required to laminate the visible light transmissive reflective layer thereon, the reflective pattern layer and the visible light transmissive property are required. A high anti-counterfeiting effect can be obtained by combining the reflective layers.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail.
The intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention has a transfer part including an information receiving layer releasably on a substrate. Further, the transfer section has a hologram forming layer, a reflective layer, and an information receiving layer in this order from the substrate side, and the reflective layer includes a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer. It is. Preferably, the transfer unit includes a hologram forming layer, a reflective pattern layer, a visible light transmissive reflective layer, and an information receiving layer in this order from the base material side.
In the present invention, the “intermediate transfer recording medium” refers to a layer on which information such as characters and images is recorded (accepted) or a layer on which information is recorded (accepted) when in use. This refers to a medium that can be used to produce an information recording medium by transferring it to a transfer medium, and the “transfer section” is finally obtained by transferring the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention to the transfer medium. The portion existing on the recorded information recording medium. “Peelable” means an adhesive property that can separate the substrate and the transfer portion when the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention is transferred to the transfer target, and the transfer portion is disposed on the substrate. That means. Further, in the present invention, “visible light transmission” means that the transmittance of visible light (wavelength 380 nm to 780 nm) is, for example, 50% or more.

In the intermediate transfer medium of the present invention, the reflective layer forming the hologram is a combination of a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer. Since a sophisticated technique is required to pattern the reflective layer and further laminate the reflective layer, combining the reflective layers as described above is extremely effective in preventing forgery and tampering. Furthermore, in the intermediate transfer medium of the present invention, a complex hologram pattern can be formed by combining the pattern of the hologram forming layer and the pattern formed of the reflective layer. In order to form such a complicated hologram pattern, advanced technology is required, and this point is also effective in preventing forgery and tampering.
Further, when the entire reflective layer is a so-called opaque reflective layer with low visible light transmittance, it is difficult to visually recognize information recorded on the information receiving layer after transfer to the transfer target, as described above. If the reflective layer is combined with the reflective pattern layer, even if the reflective pattern layer is an opaque reflective layer, the information receiving layer starts from the part where the reflective pattern layer is not laminated (the visible light transmissive reflective layer exists in the lower layer) The characters, images, etc. recorded on the can be visually recognized. Moreover, since this part also has reflectivity, the pattern of a hologram can be visually recognized clearly.
Further, the intermediate transfer recording medium records information on a transfer target (printed material) by transferring information previously formed on the receiving layer to the transfer target such as a card substrate. The printed matter formed by such an information recording method cannot be easily rewritten as compared to the printed matter formed by directly recording information on the base material by a printing press. Excellent. Furthermore, since the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention has a hologram, when it is copied by a copying machine, a hologram pattern appears on the copy. Therefore, counterfeiting by copying is difficult.
Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an intermediate transfer recording medium that is extremely effective in preventing forgery and tampering.
Next, details of each layer included in the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention will be described.

As the base material, a base film usually used for an intermediate transfer recording medium can be used. The material can be selected according to the purpose of use and is not limited. However, considering durability and the like, a plastic substrate is preferable. Preferred materials include polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate, polyvinyl alcohol, polysulfone, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyarylate, triacetyl cellulose (TAC), diacetyl cellulose, polyethylene-ethyl vinyl alcohol, and the like. Moreover, the composite film which laminated | stacked 2 or more types of these materials can also be used. The thickness of the base material can be appropriately selected depending on the material so that the strength, heat resistance, etc. thereof are appropriate, and usually a thickness of about 1 to 100 μm is preferably used. Also, when transferring the transfer part to the transfer medium using an intermediate transfer recording medium, in order to prevent the base film from being fused with a heating device such as a thermal head and to improve the slidability, the base film A known back surface layer may be provided on the surface opposite to the transfer portion side, if necessary.

The release layer transfer part preferably has a release layer on the surface adjacent to the base material so that the base material and the transfer part can be peeled off. The release layer can easily release the transfer part from the substrate, and can serve as a protective layer as the outermost surface layer of the transfer part transferred to the transfer target. However, depending on the combination of the base material and the transfer portion, the transfer portion may be peeled from the base material without forming a release layer.

  The release layer can be formed from, for example, an acrylic skeleton resin, a vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, a mixture of cellulose acetate and a thermosetting acrylic resin, a melamine resin, a nitrocellulose resin, and a polyethylene wax. It is preferable that the main component is an acrylic skeleton resin. Moreover, the adhesive force of a peeling layer and a base material can also be adjusted by using a polyester resin etc. For the release layer, for example, an acrylic skeleton resin and a polyester resin are dissolved or dispersed in an appropriate solvent to prepare a release layer coating solution, and this is applied to a base film with a gravure printing method, a screen printing method or a gravure plate. It can be formed by applying and drying by means such as the reverse coating method used.

The release layer can also be formed using a releasable material. In this case, usually, a releasable material and a binder resin are used in combination. As the binder resin, acrylic resins such as polymethyl methacrylate, polyethyl methacrylate, and polybutyl acrylate which are thermoplastic resins, polyvinyl acetate, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl butyral, etc. Vinyl-based resins, cellulose derivatives such as ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, and cellulose acetate, unsaturated polyester resins that are thermosetting resins, polyester resins, polyurethane resins, aminoalkyd resins, and the like can be used. As the releasable material, waxes, silicone waxes, silicone resins, melamine resins, fluorine resins, fine powders of talc and silica, lubricants such as surfactants and metal soaps, and the like can be used. The release layer is prepared by dissolving or dispersing the above resin in an appropriate solvent to prepare a release layer coating solution, and this is applied to the substrate film using a gravure printing method, a screen printing method or a gravure plate. It can be formed by applying and drying by means such as a coating method.
The thickness of the release layer after drying is usually 0.1 to 10 μm.

Protective layer The intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention can also have a protective layer between the substrate or the release layer and the hologram forming layer. The protective layer enhances the protective function after the transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium is transferred to the transfer target, and the protective function is insufficient when the protective layer is insufficient with only the outermost release layer of the transfer portion. It can be provided for the purpose of improving the adhesion to the transfer portion. Further, when the release layer is not provided, it can function as the outermost surface protective layer of the transfer portion after being transferred to the transfer target.

  The protective layer can be composed of at least a binder resin, and it is preferable to select a resin composition that can exhibit a desired protective function. In general, cellulose derivatives such as ethyl cellulose, nitrocellulose, and cellulose acetate, acrylic resins such as polymethyl methacrylate, polyethyl methacrylate, and polybutyl acrylate, polyvinyl chloride, vinyl chloride vinyl acetate copolymer, polyvinyl Thermoplastic resins such as vinyl polymer thermoplastic resins such as butyral, unsaturated polyester resins, polyurethane resins, and amino alkyd resins can be used. An ionizing radiation curable resin can also be used in the case where friction resistance, chemical resistance, and contamination resistance are particularly required for the image formed product onto which the transfer portion has been transferred.

In addition, the protective layer uses a water-soluble resin emulsion such as polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, acrylic emulsion, urethane emulsion and the like, and further, crosslinked acrylic fine particles, crosslinked polystyrene fine particles, crosslinked polystyrene acrylic fine particles, and functional groups on the surface of these fine particles. Solvent resistance and plasticizer resistance can be improved by adding substantially transparent fine particles such as derivatives. The protective layer can be formed by the same method as that of the release layer, and it is preferable that the coating amount is 0.1 to 10 g / m ^{2 in} a dry state and the thickness is about 1 to 10 μm.

Hologram-forming layer As the hologram-forming layer, a known hologram-forming layer can be used. In order to make it possible to visually identify information recorded in the information receiving layer, a material having visible light permeability is preferable. For example, the hologram forming layer can be produced by forming fine irregularities of a relief hologram on one side of a layer made of a transparent resin material. Various resin materials such as various thermosetting resins, thermoplastic resins, and ionizing radiation curable resins can be selected as the transparent resin material for constituting the hologram forming layer. Examples of the thermosetting resin include unsaturated polyester resins, acrylic urethane resins, epoxy-modified acrylic resins, epoxy-modified unsaturated polyester resins, alkyd resins, and phenol resins. Examples of the thermoplastic resin include acrylate resin, acrylamide resin, nitrocellulose resin, and polystyrene resin. These resins can be used alone or as two or more types of copolymers. In addition, these resins may be used alone or in combination of two or more types of isocyanate resins, metal soaps such as cobalt naphthenate and zinc naphthenate, benzoyl peroxide, peroxides such as methyl ethyl ketone peroxide, benzophenone, acetophenone, anthraquinone, naphthoquinone, A heat or ultraviolet curing agent such as azobisisobutyronitrile or diphenyl sulfide may be blended. Examples of the ionizing radiation curable resin include epoxy acrylate, urethane acrylate, and acrylic-modified polyester. Other monofunctional or polyfunctional monomers, oligomers and the like can be conjugated to such ionizing radiation curable resins for the purpose of adjusting the cross-linking structure and viscosity.

  The hologram forming layer can be directly formed by developing the photosensitive resin material by performing interference exposure of the hologram. However, a relief hologram prepared in advance or a duplicate thereof, or a plating mold thereof is used for replication. Molding can also be performed by using it as a mold and pressing the mold surface against the resin material. When a thermosetting resin or ionizing radiation curable resin is used, it is cured by heating or irradiation with ionizing radiation while the uncured resin is kept in close contact with the mold surface, and the cured transparent film is peeled off after curing. The fine irregularities of the relief hologram can be formed on one side of the layer made of the resin material. In the present invention, a diffraction grating forming layer having a diffraction grating formed into a pattern by a similar method is included in the hologram forming layer. A combination of the hologram forming layer and the diffraction grating forming layer may be called an optical diffraction structure layer. The thickness of the hologram forming layer is not particularly limited, but is, for example, about 0.1 to 20 μm.

Reflective Pattern Layer In the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention, the reflective layer forming the hologram includes a reflective pattern layer. Since the technology for patterning the reflective layer is very advanced, and more advanced technology is required for laminating the reflective layer on the reflective pattern layer, the intermediate transfer recording medium having the reflective layer and the intermediate transfer recording It is difficult to forge / tamper an information recording body manufactured using a medium. Furthermore, the pattern formed by the hologram forming layer and the pattern formed by the reflective layer including the reflective pattern layer are combined to have a complicated appearance and excellent design.

  When the reflective pattern layer is formed from a material such as a metal that reflects light, an opaque type hologram can be obtained, and when it is formed from a material having visible light transparency, a transparent type hologram can be obtained. When an opaque reflective pattern layer is formed, it is possible to confirm information recorded in the information receiving layer from a portion where the reflective layer is not laminated. In the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention, a visible light transmissive reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer may be combined. In this case, it is possible to visually recognize the pattern of the reflective pattern layer by changing the combination of the reflective pattern layer and the visible light transmissive reflective layer.

  An example of the pattern of the reflective pattern layer is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 1 (a), the pattern has a reflection layer in which squares that are narrow in the left-right direction and long in the vertical direction are arranged at equal intervals, for example, the length (ie, width) of the quadrangle in the left-right direction. It may be a striped pattern that is arranged with an equal interval, or, as shown in FIG. 1B, the reflective layer 5 has a geometric shape (rectangular shape and star shape in the drawing). There may be. Moreover, when a specific pattern as described above is used as a positive pattern, the pattern may be a negative pattern thereof. Note that these patterns are merely examples, and the patterns can be freely determined mainly from the viewpoint of design, and may be characters or symbols other than geometric shapes, or arbitrary shapes. Further, the pattern may be synchronized with the hologram of the hologram forming layer. Here, the tuning means that, as shown in FIG. 5A, for example, a continuous picture is formed by a picture shown by the hologram forming layer and a picture shown by the pattern of the reflective pattern layer. It means that both pictures form one continuous picture. Since a sophisticated technique is required to synchronize the pattern of the reflective pattern layer with the pattern of the hologram forming layer, the anti-counterfeiting effect of the authenticity determination medium formed using this technique is extremely high. On the other hand, non-synchronization means that the pattern represented by the hologram forming layer and the pattern represented by the pattern of the reflective pattern layer do not match. As an out-of-tune mode, for example, as shown in FIG. 5B, the pattern pattern of the reflective pattern layer is a continuous pattern, or, for example, as shown in FIG. Some of the patterns to be formed are continuous patterns. In FIG. 5, information such as characters and images recorded in the information receiving layer located in the lower layer is omitted.

  The size of the pattern may be anything that can be resolved with the naked eye. For example, when the shape is a quadrangle, the length and width can be 1 mm × 1 mm or more, preferably 3 mm × 3 mm or more, and more preferably 5 mm × 5 mm or more. In the case of a geometric shape, if it is circular, the diameter can be 1 mm or more, preferably 3 mm or more, more preferably 5 mm or more, and in the case of other shapes, an inscribed circle The diameter can be, for example, 1 mm or more, preferably 3 mm or more, more preferably 5 mm or more.

As shown in FIGS. 1C and 1D, the reflective pattern layer may be laminated in a fine pattern. In this case, as shown in FIG. 1 (c), the pattern (fine pattern) is a reflection layer made of a line having a finite width that faces from the left side toward the upper side toward the right side toward the upper side. The line pattern may be a fine pattern arranged at a pitch of about twice, or as shown in FIG. 1 (d), a circular or square reflective layer may be formed. It may be arranged at an equal pitch.
These fine patterns are merely examples, and the patterns constituting the fine patterns can be freely determined. Therefore, geometric patterns other than line patterns and halftone dots, and shapes such as letters or symbols are used. There may be. The size of the pattern constituting the fine pattern is preferably a fine one that is difficult to observe or cannot be observed by normal observation. In the case of a line pattern, the line width is set to 0.3 mm, for example. Hereinafter, it can be preferably 0.1 mm or less. The pattern can be made small as long as it can be formed, but is preferably about 0.01 mm or more in practice. When the halftone dot is circular, the diameter can be, for example, 0.3 mm or less, preferably 0.1 mm or less, and preferably about 0.01 mm or more. In addition, when the halftone dots are rectangular, the length and width can be set to, for example, 0.3 mm × 0.3 mm or less, preferably 0.1 mm × 0.1 mm or less, and about 0.01 mm × 0.01 mm or more. It is preferable that In the case of other shapes, the diameter of the inscribed circle can be, for example, 0.3 mm or less, preferably 0.1 mm or less, and preferably about 0.01 mm or more.

  When the pattern is a fine pattern, an outer shape pattern (in the case of FIG. 1 (c) or (d), an outer shape square) can be arbitrarily set. The pattern may be synchronized with the hologram pattern on the hologram forming layer.

  When the reflective pattern layer forms a fine pattern, the area ratio of the reflective pattern layer is, for example, 20% to 80%, and preferably 30% to 60%. When the reflective pattern layer is formed in a fine pattern, the pattern of the hologram can be confirmed in the area where the fine pattern exists, that is, in the external pattern, and the color of the light selective reflection layer changes depending on the viewing angle. You can also confirm that you want to.

  Examples of metal materials for forming the reflective pattern layer include Al, Cr, Ti, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Ag, Au, Ge, Mg, Sb, Pb, Cd, Bi, Sn, Se, In, A metal such as Ga or Rb, or an oxide or nitride of the metal can be used, and one or more of these can be used in combination. Among these, Al, Cr, Ni, Ag, Au, or the like is particularly preferable, and the film thickness is preferably 1 nm to 10,000 nm, more preferably 2 nm to 200 nm.

As a material for forming the reflective pattern layer having visible light transmittance, a transparent material having a refractive index different from that of the material forming the hologram forming layer can be used. The light refractive index of the transparent material may be larger or smaller than the light refractive index of the material forming the hologram layer, but the difference in the light refractive index from the hologram forming layer is 0.1 or more. It is preferable that it is preferably 0.5 or more, and particularly preferably 1.0 or more. Specific examples of the material preferably used include titanium oxide (TiO ₂ ), zinc sulfide (ZnS), Cu · Al composite metal oxide, and the like. Since a metal thin film having a thickness of 20 nm or less also has transparency, it can be used as a material constituting a transparent layer having a light refractive index different from that of the hologram layer.

  Various methods are mentioned as a method of forming a reflective pattern layer. For example, a method of forming a thin film by a vacuum deposition method, a sputtering method, an ion plating method, or the like through a pattern mask, a printing method, or the like can be used. Alternatively, a method of removing unnecessary portions after forming the reflective layer over the entire surface can be used.

Below, based on FIG. 2 and 3, an example of the method of forming a reflective pattern layer by forming a reflective layer in the whole surface, and removing an unnecessary part is demonstrated.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a method for patterning a reflective layer using a water-soluble resin pattern. In FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 quoted in the following description, layers other than the hologram forming layer, such as a light selective reflection layer and a latent image pattern layer, are omitted.

As shown in FIG. 2 (a), first, a hologram forming layer having hologram fine irregularities on its lower surface is produced.
Next, as shown in FIG.2 (b), a water-soluble resin pattern is formed in the part where the reflective metal layer of the surface in which the fine unevenness | corrugation of the hologram formation layer was formed is unnecessary. The water-soluble resin pattern can be formed by printing using a water-soluble resin composition in which a water-soluble resin or a water-swellable resin is dissolved or dispersed, so-called water-soluble ink.
Then, as shown in FIG.2 (c), a reflective layer is formed in one surface in which the water-soluble resin pattern was formed. Then, the surface on which the reflective layer is formed is contacted with water or an acidic or alkaline aqueous solution to remove the water-soluble resin pattern, and the portion of the reflective layer on which the water-soluble resin pattern is laminated is removed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2D, the portion of the reflective layer where the water-soluble resin pattern was not laminated remains, and the reflective layer is formed in a pattern.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a method for patterning a reflective layer using a resist pattern.
First, as shown in FIG. 3A, a hologram forming layer having hologram fine irregularities on its lower surface is formed.
Next, as shown in FIG. 3B, a reflective layer is formed on one surface of the hologram forming layer on which fine irregularities are formed.
Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3C, a resist pattern is formed on the lower surface of the reflective layer where the reflective layer is required. Thereafter, an etching solution is applied to the surface on which the resist pattern is formed, and the reflective layer in a portion other than the portion covered with the resist pattern is etched and removed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 3D, the portion of the reflective layer covered with the resist pattern remains, and the reflective layer is formed in a pattern. Note that the resist pattern remaining on the reflective layer formed in a pattern may be left as it is, but if it is desired to be removed, the remaining resist pattern may be dissolved.

The above method using a water-soluble resin pattern or a resist pattern is suitable for mass-producing authenticity determination media having the same pattern. In addition to the various methods described above, the reflective layer may be patterned by partially heating the reflective layer and melting the heated portion of the reflective layer by heating with a thermal head or laser light irradiation. Alternatively, there is a method of removing by evaporation. This method can be performed even after each layer is laminated, and if anything, it is suitable for patterning based on individual information.
The various methods for patterning the reflective layer described above can be used in any combination.

Visible Light Transparent Reflective Layer The intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention includes a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer in the reflective layer. Variations of the reflective layer stack are shown in FIG. In the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 4A, a visible light transmissive reflective layer may be provided in a pattern in a portion where the reflective pattern layer is not laminated. However, it is preferable to provide the entire surface as shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C in terms of ease of manufacture. As shown in FIG. 4B, the order of stacking the reflective pattern layer and the visible light transmissive reflective layer may be the order of hologram forming layer / reflective pattern layer / visible light transmissive reflective layer, as shown in FIG. ), The hologram forming layer, the visible light transmissive reflective layer / the reflective pattern layer may be arranged in this order. However, in terms of ease of layer formation, it is preferable to form a visible light transmissive reflective layer on a reflective pattern layer as shown in FIG. 4B. In FIGS. 4A to 4C, layers other than the hologram forming layer and the reflective layer are omitted for simplification. FIG. 4D shows a specific example of the layer structure of the intermediate transfer recording medium having the reflective layer in the mode of FIG.

  The visible light transmissive reflective layer is reflective by the vacuum deposition method, sputtering method, ion plating method, printing method, etc., using the various materials described above as the reflective layer material for forming a transparent type hologram. It can be produced by applying a film forming process to the surface of the laminate on which the pattern layer is formed. Although the film thickness of a visible light transmissive reflective layer is not specifically limited, As a film thickness on a reflective pattern layer, it can be 1-10000 nm, for example.

Information Receiving Layer The information receiving layer is a layer that temporarily receives information such as characters and images to be finally printed on the transfer medium. In the present invention, the “information receiving layer” of the intermediate transfer recording medium includes a layer in which information is recorded before information recording and when the intermediate transfer recording medium is used, in addition to a layer in which information has already been recorded. Shall be.

  The method of recording information on the information receiving layer is not particularly limited, but information is usually transferred from a thermal transfer sheet having a color material layer by a thermal transfer method by an inkjet method or by thermal transfer such as sublimation transfer or melt transfer. Information such as characters and images is transferred to the receiving layer. Then, by transferring the transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium onto which the information has been transferred to the transfer target, it is possible to finally record the information on the transfer target and form a printed matter.

  As a material for forming the information receiving layer, a conventionally known resin material that can easily accept a coloring material such as a sublimation dye or a hot-melt ink can be used. For example, polyolefin resin such as polypropylene, halogenated resin such as polyvinyl chloride or polyvinylidene chloride, vinyl acetate, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, or vinyl such as polyacrylate Resin, polyester resin such as polyethylene terephthalate or polybutylene terephthalate, polystyrene resin, polyamide resin, copolymer resin of olefin such as ethylene or propylene and other vinyl polymer, cellulose resin such as ionomer or cellulose diastase, Examples thereof include polycarbonate, and vinyl chloride resin, acrylic-styrene resin, or polyester resin is particularly preferable.

  When the information receiving layer is transferred to the transfer medium via the adhesive layer, the adhesive property of the receiving layer itself is not necessarily required, but the information receiving layer is located on the outermost surface opposite to the substrate side and is bonded. In the case of transferring to a transfer medium without passing through a layer, an adhesive layer is provided as an information receiving layer. In this case, the information receiving layer is preferably formed using a resin material having heat-sensitive adhesive properties such as vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer. On the other hand, when an adhesive layer is provided separately from the information receiving layer, a heat-sensitive adhesive (heat seal material), an adhesive, or the like can be used as an adhesive for forming the adhesive layer.

  For the information receiving layer, one or more materials selected from the above-mentioned materials and various additives as necessary are added and dissolved or dispersed in a suitable solvent such as water or an organic solvent. A working solution is prepared, and this can be formed by applying and drying on a reflective layer or separately prepared release paper by means of a gravure printing method, a screen printing method or a reverse coating method using a gravure plate. The thickness is, for example, 1 to 10 μm in a dry state. When an adhesive layer is provided separately from the information receiving layer, the thickness of the adhesive layer can be set to, for example, 0.5 to 20 μm.

  In the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention, for example, a release layer, a protective layer, a hologram forming layer and a reflective layer are sequentially laminated on a base film, and then the reflective layer and the information receiving layer formed on the release paper are bonded together. Alternatively, it can be produced by directly laminating the information receiving layer on the reflective layer. Moreover, arbitrary layers, such as a well-known functional layer, can also be provided other than each above-mentioned layer.

Information recording method, information recording body manufacturing method Further, the present invention relates to an information recording method for recording information on a transfer medium by transferring a transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention to the transfer medium. In the information recording method of the present invention, information on the information receiving layer included in the transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium is transferred onto the transfer body together with the transfer portion, thereby recording information on the transfer body.
Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method for producing an information recording body including transferring a transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention to a transfer medium. Here, the “information recording body” includes various types of information such as characters and images, and can take various forms including those exemplified for the shape and application of the transfer target described later.

  The transfer medium to which the intermediate transfer recording medium of the present invention is applied is not particularly limited. For example, natural fiber paper, coated paper, tracing paper, plastic film, glass, metal, ceramics, wood, cloth, etc. Good. Usually, since heat is applied at the time of transfer, a transfer target made of a material that is not deformed by heat at the time of transfer is preferable.

  Regarding the shape and application of the transferred object, stock certificates, securities, certificates, passbooks, boarding tickets, car horse tickets, stamps, stamps, appreciation tickets, admission tickets, tickets, etc., cash cards, credit cards, prepaid cards, Cards such as members cards, greeting cards, postcards, business cards, driver's licenses, IC cards, optical cards, cases such as cartons, containers, bags, forms, envelopes, tags, OHP sheets, slide films, bookmarks, Calendars, posters, brochures, menus, passports, POP supplies, coasters, displays, nameplates, keyboards, cosmetics, wristwatches, lighters and other accessories, stationery, report paper and other stationery, building materials, panels, emblems, keys, cloth, clothing , Footwear, radio, TV, calculator, OA equipment, etc., various samples , Album, In addition, computer graphics output, medical image output, paper or the like narrowing plow such as thread paper, do not ask the kind. It is also possible to obtain an information recording body having composite information by printing predetermined information on the transfer body in advance and transferring the transfer portion from the intermediate transfer recording medium thereon.

  Information can be recorded on the transfer medium in the same manner as an information recording method using a normal intermediate transfer recording medium. Specifically, after the adhesive layer of the intermediate transfer recording medium is bonded to the transfer target, and then heat-pressed using a heat roll or the like, the transfer film is formed on the transfer target by peeling the base film. Information can be recorded by transcription. Although the heat pressure conditions at the time of transfer are not particularly limited, for example, the conditions may be 100 to 200 ° C., 100 to 1000 kPa, and 1 to 10 seconds. In this way, an information recording body on which desired information is recorded can be obtained.

  In addition, a threaded paper can be produced by forming a concave opening that does not serve as a through-hole in a sheet of paper, plastic, or the like so that the transfer portion transferred to the sheet can be seen from the opening. . In order to facilitate application, the intermediate transfer recording medium is cut into a very narrow width (for example, a vertically long thread shape in FIG. 6) of, for example, about 0.5 mm to 5 mm. When laminating the layers, an opening is provided in the layer constituting the surface layer, and the opening is formed by peeling the substrate after applying the thread-like intermediate transfer recording medium between the sheet-like layers. The transfer part can be transferred onto the top. Specific examples of the information recording medium in which information is recorded on a sheet-like material using an intermediate transfer recording medium in this way include gold vouchers and other printed materials having economic value.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to examples. However, this invention is not limited to the aspect shown in the Example.

[Example 1]
(1) Formation of Release Layer A PET film is prepared, and a release layer coating solution having the composition shown below is applied to the surface and applied and dried by a gravure coater at a coating amount of 1.5 g / m ² (solid content). A layer was formed.
(Release layer coating solution)
Polymethylmethacrylate resin 8 parts by mass Vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer resin 2 parts by mass Polyethylene wax 0.1 part by mass

(2) Formation of hologram forming layer and reflection layer Thereafter, a transparent ultraviolet curable resin composition is applied to the surface of the release layer, and the surface of the relief hologram replication mold is irradiated with ultraviolet rays while being in contact with the transparent layer. By curing the ultraviolet curable resin composition, a relief hologram was formed to form a hologram forming layer having a thickness of 2 μm.
Print on the entire surface of the relief hologram on the surface other than the part where the reflective pattern layer is to be formed by using a water-soluble ink for silk printing and a multicolor silk printing machine to synchronize with the pattern of the hologram forming layer. went. Then, when Al was vapor-deposited on the entire surface of the hologram forming layer including the printing surface and then washed with water, the Al vapor-deposited layer on the water-soluble ink layer was removed together with the water-soluble ink layer. As a result, a reflective pattern layer having a thickness of 400 mm patterned to synchronize with the pattern of the hologram forming layer was obtained.
Next, TiO _{2 was} deposited on the entire surface of the laminate including the reflective pattern layer surface to form a reflective layer having a thickness of 600 mm.

(3) Preparation of information receiving layer An information receiving layer coating solution made of acrylic resin was applied to the reflective layer obtained in (2) above to a thickness of 10.0 μm, and then an image was printed using an ink jet printer. did.

(4) Formation of adhesive layer On the information receiving layer obtained in (3) above, an adhesive layer coating solution made of vinyl chloride / vinyl acetate copolymer resin was applied to form an adhesive layer having a thickness of 2 μm.

[Example 2]
After forming a release layer on a PET film by the same method as in Example 1, an overprint layer (protective layer) coating solution composed of a polymethyl methacrylate primer resin was applied at a coating amount of 2.0 g / m ² with a gravure coater. Was applied and dried to form an overprint layer.
Thereafter, a hologram forming layer was formed on the overprint layer in the same manner as in Example 1. Then, Al vapor deposition was performed on the hologram forming layer surface. Printing was performed on a portion where the reflective pattern layer was to be formed so as to be in synchronization with the pattern of the hologram forming layer using an etching resist ink on the Al deposition surface. Thereafter, when the printed sheet was alkali-etched with a 1% by mass sodium hydroxide solution, Al deposition remained in the portion where the resist ink layer was present, and Al deposition in other portions was removed. As a result, a reflective pattern layer having a thickness of 400 mm patterned to synchronize with the pattern of the hologram forming layer was obtained. A TiO ₂ layer was formed on the resulting reflective pattern layer in the same manner as in Example 1. Thereafter, an information receiving layer coating solution having the following composition is applied onto the TiO ₂ layer to form a coating layer having a thickness of 2.0 μm, and then a thermal transfer sheet having a color material layer is overlaid and a thermal head is used. The image was printed.
(Information Receiving Layer Coating Solution)
Vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer 40 parts by weight Acrylic silicone 1.5 parts by weight Methyl ethyl ketone 50 parts by weight Toluene 50 parts by weight

[Example 3]
After the adhesive layer of the intermediate transfer recording medium obtained in Example 1 and the information receiving layer (also used as the adhesive layer) of the intermediate transfer recording medium obtained in Example 2 were in close contact with the card substrate, respectively, Hot pressed. Thereafter, the PET film was removed from the intermediate transfer recording medium. As a result, the transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium was transferred onto the card substrate, and information was recorded on the card substrate. When the card substrate on which information was recorded was observed, a continuous pattern in which the pattern of the hologram forming layer and the pattern of the reflective layer were synchronized was observed.

[Example 4]
Information recording was performed in the same manner as in Example 3 except that the card substrate was changed to paper.

An example of the pattern of a reflective pattern layer is shown. It is explanatory drawing of patterning of a reflective layer. It is explanatory drawing of patterning of a reflective layer. The variation of reflection layer lamination is shown. An example of a combination of a hologram pattern and a reflective layer pattern is shown. It is explanatory drawing of a thread | sled paper.

Claims (10)

An intermediate transfer recording medium having a transfer part including an information receiving layer releasably on a substrate,
The transfer unit has a hologram forming layer, a reflective layer, and an information receiving layer in this order from the base material side, and the reflective layer is a reflective pattern layer and a visible light transmissive reflective layer that are deposited layers of metal or metal oxide. An intermediate transfer recording medium comprising a layer. The intermediate transfer medium according to claim 1, wherein the transfer unit includes a hologram forming layer, a reflective pattern layer, a visible light transmissive reflective layer, and an information receiving layer in this order from the substrate side. The intermediate transfer recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the transfer portion has a release layer on a surface adjacent to the substrate. The intermediate transfer recording medium according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a continuous pattern is formed by the pattern expressed by the hologram forming layer and the pattern expressed by the reflective layer. The intermediate transfer recording medium according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the transfer portion has an adhesive layer on the outermost surface opposite to the substrate side. 6. The intermediate transfer recording medium according to claim 5, wherein the information receiving layer is an adhesive layer. The intermediate transfer recording medium according to claim 1, wherein the pattern of the reflective pattern layer is a line pattern having a line width of 0.3 mm or less. The pattern of the reflective pattern is a fine pattern composed of a circular halftone dot having a diameter of 0.3 mm or less or a rectangular halftone dot having a length and width of 0.3 mm x 0.3 mm or less. Intermediate transfer recording medium. Information recording method for recording information onto a transfer material by transferring the transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium according to the transfer member to any one of claims 1-8. A method for producing an information recording body, comprising: transferring a transfer portion of the intermediate transfer recording medium according to any one of claims 1 to 8 to a transfer body.