JP7005961B2 - Protective layer transfer method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a protective layer transfer method and a thermal transfer printing device for transferring a protective layer onto an image formed on photographic paper.

A thermal transfer printer that sandwiches an ink ribbon and printing paper between a thermal head and a platen roll, applies heat to the ink ribbon from the thermal head, and transfers the ink of the ink ribbon to the printing paper in a pattern corresponding to the image. Has been done.

After ink transfer, a protective layer made of a transparent film is transferred onto the image in order to protect the image. Patent Document 1 discloses a method of laminating (transferring) an image protection layer onto a printing paper with a uniform adhesive force by changing the laminating energy of the image protection layer according to the printing energy at the time of image formation.

In the protective layer transferred onto the printing paper, the protective layer surface becomes matte with low gloss by increasing the transfer energy at the time of forming the protective layer, and the protective layer surface becomes highly glossy by lowering the transfer energy. It is known to be glossy. Conventionally, when the user selects matte or glossy, a protective layer having a uniform surface condition is formed on the image.

Japanese Patent No. 37699797

An object of the present invention is to provide a protective layer transfer method and a thermal transfer printing device for transferring a protective layer having a different surface state for each region on an image.

The protective layer transfer method according to the present invention is a protective layer transfer method for transferring the protective layer onto an image imprinted on an image to be transferred by thermal transfer using a protective layer transfer sheet having a base material and a protective layer. The image so that the surface state of the protective layer differs between the step of extracting the object to be extracted from the image and the object region including the extracted object and the background region other than the object region in the image. It is provided with a step of transferring the protective layer on the top.

In the protective layer transfer method according to one aspect of the present invention, the transfer pattern when the protective layer is transferred to the object region and the transfer pattern when the protective layer is transferred to the background region are different.

In the protective layer transfer method according to one aspect of the present invention, the transfer layer is placed so that the object region is a person region, the person region is in a glossy state, and the background region is in a matte state having a lower gloss than the gloss state. Transcribe.

In the protective layer transfer method according to one aspect of the present invention, the background region is divided into a plurality of regions, and the protective layer is transferred onto the image so that the surface state is different for each region.

In the protective layer transfer method according to one aspect of the present invention, the object region is a person region, the person region has the highest glossiness, and the plurality of regions obtained by dividing the background region are separated from the person region. The protective layer is transferred so that the glossiness is low.

The protective layer transfer method according to the present invention is a protective layer transfer method in which the protective layer is transferred onto an image printed on a transfer target by thermal transfer using a protective layer transfer sheet having a base material and a protective layer. A step of converting the image into a grayscale image, a step of grouping a plurality of adjacent pixels based on the pixel value of each pixel of the grayscale image, and a step of dividing the image into a plurality of regions, and a step of dividing each region. It includes a step of transferring the protective layer onto the image so that the surface state corresponds to the pixel value.

The thermal transfer printing apparatus according to the present invention has a thermal head and a platen roll, and a thermal transfer sheet provided with an ink layer and a protective layer and a photographic paper are superposed and conveyed between the thermal head and the platen roll. A thermal transfer printing apparatus in which the thermal head heats the thermal transfer sheet to transfer ink, forms an image on the photographic paper, and transfers the protective layer onto the image, and is an object to be extracted from the image. An object is extracted, and the protective layer is transferred onto the image so that the surface state of the protective layer differs between the object region containing the extracted object and the background region other than the object region in the image. It is a thing.

According to the present invention, it is possible to transfer a protective layer having a different surface state to each region on an image to produce a high-value-added printed matter.

It is a schematic block diagram of the thermal transfer printing apparatus by embodiment of this invention. It is a top view of the ink ribbon. It is a flowchart explaining the protection layer transfer method by the same embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the area division. It is a figure which shows an example of the photographic paper on which the protective layer was transferred. It is a flowchart explaining the protection layer transfer method by another embodiment. (A) and (b) are graphs showing the relationship between the grayscale gradation and the matte ratio.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a thermal transfer printing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of an ink ribbon used in the thermal transfer printing device. The thermal transfer printing device sublimates and transfers yellow, magenta, and cyan to a printing sheet (printing paper, image receiving paper) to print an image.

The ink ribbon 5 is provided with a Y layer 51 containing a yellow dye, an M layer 52 containing a magenta dye, a C layer 53 containing a cyan dye, and a protective (OP) layer 54 in a surface-sequential manner. The ink ribbon 5 may be further provided with a black (Bk) molten layer. The thermal transfer printing device includes a thermal head 1 that sublimates and transfers Y, M, and C onto the printing sheet 7 to print an image using an ink ribbon 5 (heat transfer sheet), and forms a protective layer on the image. There is.

An ink ribbon supply unit 3 formed by winding an ink ribbon 5 is provided on the downstream side of the thermal head 1, and an ink ribbon recovery unit 4 is provided on the upstream side of the thermal head 1. The ink ribbon 5 drawn out from the ink ribbon supply unit 3 passes through the thermal head 1 and is collected by the ink ribbon collection unit 4.

A rotatable platen roll 2 is provided on the lower side of the thermal head 1. The printing unit 40 including the thermal head 1 and the platen roll 2 sandwiches the printing sheet 7 and the ink ribbon 5, heats the ink ribbon 5, and thermally transfers the ink onto the printing sheet 7 to form an image.

Further, the printing unit 40 heats the OP layer 54 to transfer the protective layer onto the image. By increasing the transfer energy (printing energy by the printing unit 40) at the time of forming the protective layer, the surface of the protective layer becomes matte with low glossiness, and by lowering the transfer energy, the surface of the protective layer becomes glossy with high glossiness. become.

For example, when the surface of the protective layer after transfer is made matte, the energy applied to the thermal head 1 is adjusted to a high energy corresponding to the case where the surface of the protective layer after transfer has a glossiness of 40% or less. To. On the other hand, when the surface of the protective layer after transfer is glossy (glossy state), the energy applied to the thermal head 1 is low corresponding to the case where the surface of the protective layer after transfer has a glossiness of 70% or more. Adjusted to energy.

On the upstream side of the thermal head 1, a rotationally driveable capstan roller 9a for transporting the printing sheet 7 and a pinch roller 9b for crimping the printing sheet 7 to the capstan roller 9a are provided.

In the ink ribbon 5, the Y layer 51, the M layer 52, the C layer 53, and the OP layer 54 are sequentially formed on one surface of the base material from the ink ribbon collecting portion 4 side. In other words, one set (for one screen) of the ink layers 50 including the Y layer 51, the M layer 52, the C layer 53, and the OP layer 54 is continuously provided in a plurality of sets. For the Y layer 51, the M layer 52, and the C layer 53, it is preferable to use a material in which a sublimation dye is melted or dispersed in a binder resin. It is preferable to use a transparent material having adhesiveness, light resistance and the like for the OP layer 54.

The base material is a layer for supporting the ink layer 50, and a conventionally known base material having a certain degree of heat resistance and strength can be used. For example, polyethylene terephthalate film, polyethylene naphthalate film, polystyrene film, polypropylene film, polycarbonate film and the like can be mentioned.

A back surface layer is provided on the other surface of the base material, that is, the surface opposite to the surface on which the ink layer 50 is provided. The thermal head 1 heats the ink ribbon 5 from the back layer side. The back layer has a function of improving heat resistance so that the ink ribbon 5 is not deformed by heat during thermal transfer, and improving the running performance of the thermal head 1 during thermal transfer to suppress sticking and the like. The back layer can be generally formed by applying a binder resin to which a slipper, a surfactant, an inorganic particle, an organic particle, a pigment or the like is added, and drying the binder resin.

The photographic sheet 7 is wound around the photographic paper roll 6 and is unwound from the photographic paper roll 6. A known printing sheet 7 can be used. The drive unit 30 including the photographic paper roll 6, the capstan roller 9a, and the pinch roller 9b is used to unwind (transport to the front side) and wind (transport to the rear side) the photographic sheet 7.

The printing sheet 7 on which the image is formed and the protective layer is transferred by the printing unit 40 is cut out as a printed sheet leaf 7a by the cutter 8 on the downstream side. The printed sheet sheet 7a is discharged from an discharge port (not shown).

The control device 10 controls the driving of each part of the thermal transfer printing device, and performs an image forming process and a protective layer transfer process. The control device 10 is a computer having a storage unit including a CPU (central processing unit), a flash memory, a ROM (Read-only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and the like, and the CPU executes a transfer processing program. By doing so, the image identification unit 11, the area division unit 12, and the area ratio determination unit 13 are realized. The processing in the image identification unit 11, the area division unit 12, and the area ratio determination unit 13 will be described later.

In the image forming process, first, the printing sheet 7 and the Y layer 51 are aligned, and the thermal head 1 comes into contact with the platen roll 2 via the printing sheet 7 and the ink ribbon 5. Next, the capstan roller 9a and the ink ribbon collecting unit 4 are rotationally driven, and the printing sheet 7 and the ink ribbon 5 are fed to the rear side. During this time, the region of the Y layer 51 is selectively and sequentially heated by the thermal head 1 based on the image data, and Y is sublimated and transferred from the ink ribbon 5 onto the printing sheet 7.

After the sublimation transfer of Y, the thermal head 1 rises and separates from the platen roll 2. Next, the printing sheet 7 and the M layer 52 are aligned. In this case, the printing sheet 7 is sent to the front side by a distance corresponding to the print size, and the ink ribbon 5 is sent to the rear side by a distance corresponding to the margin between the Y layer 51 and the M layer 52.

Similar to the method of sublimation transfer of Y, M and C are sequentially sublimated and transferred onto the printing sheet 7 based on the image data, and an image is formed on the printing sheet 7.

After image formation, protective layer transfer processing is performed. The protective layer transfer method according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the person area of the image is made glossy, and the surface state of the protective layer is changed for each area so that the matte feeling gradually increases as the distance from the person area increases, and a gradation is added to the protective layer.

By randomly mixing a matte region (matte region) with a glossiness of 40% or less and a glossy region (gloss region) with a glossiness of 70% or more, the glossiness is 40% or more and 70% or less. Will be. The glossiness (matte feeling) can be adjusted by changing the area ratio between the matte area and the gloss area. The larger the area ratio of the mat area, the stronger the mat feeling.

In the protective layer transfer process, first, the image identification unit 11 analyzes the image data, extracts a person from the image, and discriminates between the person area and the other background area (step S1). A known method can be used for person extraction. For example, a person detection candidate area is extracted, and recognition processing is performed on the extracted area by repeating deep learning. The extraction target is not limited to a person, and may be an object other than a person.

The area division unit 12 divides the background area specified in step S1 into a plurality of areas according to the distance from the person area (step S2). For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the person area 60 is extracted from the image, and the background area is divided into the divided areas 61 to 64. The number of divisions of the background area varies depending on the size of the background area and how to add the gradation.

The area ratio determining unit 13 determines the area ratio (gloss / mat area ratio) between the gloss region and the mat region in each region (step S3).

For example, the person area is 100% gloss area and 0% mat area, and the ratio of the mat area increases as the distance from the person area increases. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 4, the person area 60 has a gloss area of 100% and a matte area of 0%, the area 61 has a gloss area of 75% and a matte area of 25%, and the area 62 has a gloss area of 50% and a matte area of 50%. 63 is a gloss region 25% and a matte region 75%, and region 64 is a gloss region 0% and a matte region 100%.

The printing unit 40 heats the OP layer 54 by changing the transfer pattern according to the gloss / mat area ratio of each region, and transfers the protective layer onto the image printed on the printing sheet 7 (step S4). For example, a transfer pattern is used in which an array that applies the energy required for the thermal head 1 to be in a matte state and an array that applies the energy required for the thermal head 1 to be in a glossy state are randomly arranged. And transfer the protective layer.

The transfer pattern is different in each region. The region where the matte feeling is strengthened, the more arrangements where high energy is applied are arranged. That is, the region where the matte feeling is strengthened, the higher the average applied energy at the time of transfer of the protective layer.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a printed sheet leaf 7a to which the protective layer has been transferred. The person area 70 is in a gross state, and the areas 71 to 74 are separated from the person area 70 to have a stronger matte feeling.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the matte-like protective layer with a gradation is transferred around the person area to which the gloss-like protective layer is transferred, thereby adding value with a sense of perspective. It is possible to make expensive prints.

In the above embodiment, the background area is divided into a plurality of parts, and the surface state (matte feeling) of the protective layer is changed for each divided area, but the background area may be made into a uniform matte state. Further, the person area may be in a matte state and the background area may be in a glossy state.

When the image contains a plurality of person areas, it may be possible to select the person area to be in a glossy state. In this case, the thermal transfer printing device has a display unit for displaying the extracted person area and an input unit for accepting selection of the person area. The display unit and the input unit may be a liquid crystal display and a mouse, or may be a touch panel. A matte protective layer with a gradation is transferred around the selected person area. Alternatively, the glossy protective layer is transferred to the selected person area, and the matte protective layer is transferred to the other person area and the background area.

In the above embodiment, the matte feeling may be the strongest in the person area, and the matte feeling may be weakened as the distance from the person area becomes stronger.

In the above embodiment, the surface state of the protective layer is changed between the person area (the area of the object to be extracted) and the background area, but the image is divided into a plurality of areas according to the brightness, and the surface is different for each divided area. The protective layer may be transferred to the state. The transfer method of such a protective layer will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the image identification unit 11 converts the image data (color image) into a grayscale image (step S11).

The area division unit 12 divides the image into a plurality of areas based on the pixel values (step S12). For example, an image is divided into a plurality of areas by grouping adjacent pixels having similar pixel values. For example, when one pixel is represented by 8 bits (256 gradations) and the pixel values are divided into 16 stages, pixels adjacent to each other are grouped by pixel values 0 to 15. Similarly, pixels adjacent to each other are grouped by pixel values 16 to 31, 32 to 47, ..., 240 to 255.

The area ratio determination unit 13 determines the gloss / mat area ratio in each region (step S13). The area ratio determining unit 13 increases the area ratio of the matte region as the pixel value increases. For example, the area ratio determining unit 13 determines the gloss / mat area ratio in each region with reference to the graph shown in FIG. 7 (a).

The horizontal axis of the graph shown in FIG. 7A is a division of pixel values. For example, # 0 is a pixel value 0 to 15, # 1 is a pixel value 16 to 31, ..., # 15 is a pixel value 240 to. Shows 255. The vertical axis of the graph shows the proportion of the matte area. In the region of # 0 (pixel values 0 to 15), the matte region is 0%, and in the region of # 15 (pixel values 240 to 255), the matte region is 100%.

In the graph shown in FIG. 7 (a), the ratio of the matte region changes linearly according to the division of the pixel values, but as shown in the graph of FIG. 7 (b), the ratio of the matte region becomes non-linear. It may change. When the gloss / mat area ratio is determined with reference to the graph shown in FIG. 7B, the gloss is more emphasized in the region where the pixel value is low, and the matte is emphasized more in the region where the pixel value is high.

The printing unit 40 heats the OP layer 54 by changing the transfer pattern according to the gloss / mat area ratio of each region, and transfers the protective layer onto the image printed on the printing sheet 7 (step S14).

By transferring the protective layer so that the surface state differs depending on the brightness of the image in this way, it is possible to produce a printed matter having a texture different from that when the protective layer having a uniform surface state is transferred.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the ink ribbon 5 provided with the Y layer 51, the M layer 52, the C layer 53, and the OP layer 54 serves as a thermal transfer sheet has been described, but the Y layer 51, the M layer 52, and the C layer have been described. The ink ribbon provided with 53 and the screen protection ribbon provided with the OP layer 54 may be separated from each other, and the screen protection ribbon may be used as a protective layer transfer sheet. In this case, a supply roll for supplying the screen protection ribbon, a recovery roll for collecting the screen protection ribbon, a thermal head for thermally transferring the protective layer onto the image, and the like are placed on the downstream side of the printing unit 40 (may be on the downstream side of the cutter 8). A protective layer forming portion to have is provided.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment as it is, and at the implementation stage, the components can be modified and embodied within a range that does not deviate from the gist thereof. In addition, various inventions can be formed by an appropriate combination of the plurality of components disclosed in the above-described embodiment. For example, some components may be removed from all the components shown in the embodiments. In addition, components across different embodiments may be combined as appropriate.

1 Thermal head 2 Platen roll 3 Ink ribbon supply unit 4 Ink ribbon collection unit 5 Ink ribbon (heat transfer sheet)
7 Printing sheet 10 Control device 11 Image identification unit 12 Area division unit 13 Area ratio determination unit 40 Printing unit

Claims (1)

A protective layer transfer method for transferring the protective layer onto an image printed on an image to be transferred by thermal transfer using a protective layer transfer sheet having a base material and a protective layer.
The process of converting the image into a grayscale image and
A step of grouping a plurality of adjacent pixels based on the pixel value of each pixel of the grayscale image and dividing the image into a plurality of regions.
A step of transferring the protective layer onto the image so that the surface state corresponds to the pixel value of each region, and
A protective layer transfer method comprising.

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