JPH02209975A - Composition for optical reading - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain the subject composition, containing a near infrared ray absorber, having a specific integrated value of absorbance, reading optical information from OCR, OMR, bar code reader, etc., and preparing information recording media capable of reading information. CONSTITUTION:The objective composition which is a composition for optical reading, containing at least a near infrared ray absorber and having an integrated value of absorbance at 380-700nm of a film obtained from the composition of <=35% based on the integrated value of absorbance at 380-1100nm. Furthermore, a colorant is preferably added to the above-mentioned composition.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is an OCR (Optical Recognition System) that reads characters and line marks.
tical Character Reader),
OMR to read timing marks and pre-marks (
The present invention relates to an optical reading composition for creating an information recording medium from which information can be read by an optical information reading device such as an optical mark reader (optical mark reader) and a barcode reading device that reads barcode symbols.

[Prior art] In recent years, electronic data
The development and spread of technology, computers, facsimiles, etc. has been remarkable, and the amount of data that must be input continues to increase. Therefore, there is a growing need for distributed processing of data input, removal of key bunches, and direct input of handwritten data.
Information reading systems using optical technology such as CR, OMR, and barcode reading devices have been developed, and their use is increasing. Scanners, which are devices that utilize these optical technologies, consist of a light source that emits light and a light receiving element that detects the reflected light.
The light emitted from the light source is irradiated onto the information recording medium, and then
A light receiving element, which is a photoelectric converter, captures the reflected light, converts its strength into an electrical signal, and then the signal is recognized as information by a recognition device.

Various combinations of the light source and the light receiving element are currently being developed, and the combination exhibits spectral characteristics unique to the device,
Therefore, the information recording medium must be suitable for the spectral characteristics unique to the device, and is subject to many limitations.

For example, black is generally used for the recording part of information recording media in OCR and OMH, and POS (Poi
nt of 5ale) system, POP (Pain
With the spread of t of product) system,
In systems using barcode symbols and barcode readers, which have begun to be widely used due to their advantages in reading speed, accuracy, running cost, etc., Ne-He laser tubes or red L are generally used as the light source for the scanner of the reader. E D (Light E@it Diod)
e), the standard (JIS, B 9550-1985) specifies that the barcode symbol consists of a base (referred to as a white bar in barcode symbols) and a recording part (referred to as a black bar in barcode symbols). PC8 (Print Contras) and PC8 (Print Contras)
Although the use of any color is permitted as long as the tSignal) value is specified, in practice white, yellow, orange, red, etc., which have high reflectance against red light color, are used as white bars. The colors that can be used for the white bar and black bar are relatively limited. Met.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] By the way, barcode symbols used for product management in POS systems and POP systems are printed on the product case or the product itself. Since the colors that can be used for the bars and black bars are limited as mentioned above, the aesthetic appearance of the product may be impaired.
This often resulted in problems such as lowering the product value or limiting the product design. Therefore, there has been a strong demand for a composition for creating optically readable information that does not impair the aesthetic appearance of products.

[! ! I! Means for Solving the Problem] The present inventors have finally completed the present invention as a result of intensive research to solve the above problem. That is,
The present invention relates to an optical reading composition containing at least a near-infrared absorber, wherein a coating film formed by the optical reading composition has a
The absorbance integral value at ~700 nm is 380 ~ 1100 nm
The gist of the present invention is to provide an optical reading composition characterized in that the absorbance integral value is 35% or less of the absorbance integral value.

The present invention will be explained in detail below.

As near-infrared absorbers, near-infrared absorbing dyes such as cyanine dyes, thiol nickel complex salt dyes, phthalocyanine dyes, diimmonium dyes, anthraquinone dyes, and aminium dyes are generally known. Specifically, cyanine dyes include CY-2, CY-4, C
Y-9, CY-20 (all Nippon Kayaku W4Il), etc., and PA-1001 as a thiol nickel complex dye.
, PA-1005, PA-1006, 5IR-503゜KIR-103 (above, Mitsui Toatsu Dye-ml), MIR
-101, MIR-102, MIR-1011゜MIR
-1021 (manufactured by Midori Kagaku ■) etc. are used as phthalocyanine dyes such as NIR-9°NIR-10, NI
R-11, NIR-13 (manufactured by Sansui Kasei), etc., and diimmonium dyes include IRQ-022, IR
Q-023 (manufactured by Nippon Kayaku), etc., and anthraquinone dyes such as HM-1076 and HM-1084
゜HM-1140, HM-1225, KIR-101 (
Mitsui Toatsu Dye (manufactured by ■), etc., and aminium dye Toshite include IRQ-002, IRQ-003 (all manufactured by Nippon Kayaku ■), etc., and these can be used alone or in combination. If necessary, one coloring agent, that is, commonly used coloring agents such as oil-soluble or water-soluble dyes, inorganic or organic pigments, and mixtures thereof, can be used in combination, but in this case, The absorbance integral value from 380 to 700 nm is 3 of the absorbance integral value from 380 to 1100 nm.
A near-infrared absorber that satisfies the condition of 0% or less is used.

The composition for optical reading according to the present invention contains at least the above-mentioned near-infrared absorber, and the coating film has a thickness of 380 to 700 nm.
It is necessary that the absorbance integral value of m is 35% or less of the absorbance integral value of 380 to 1100 nm, which means that
This is to reduce the color development of the coating film produced by the optical reading composition, and to make the characters, various marks, and barcode symbols on the information recording medium substrate difficult to see and inconspicuous.

In addition to the above, the purpose of using a colorant in combination is to make it possible to read characters, various marks, and barcode symbols on the information recording medium substrate regardless of the color of the coating film formed by the optical reading composition, thereby improving the quality of the product. This is to avoid spoiling the aesthetics or limiting the design.

Therefore, the optical reading composition of the present invention may be solid or liquid as long as it can form a coating film.As solids, conventionally known formulations such as compositions for thermal transfer recording media, solid drawing materials, etc. Furthermore, as the liquid, it is possible to apply conventionally known formulations such as writing instrument ink and printing ink.

Of the solids, in addition to the above-mentioned near-infrared absorber and a colorant used in combination as necessary, a thermal transfer recording medium composition generally requires a heat-melting binder and a soft material. , carnauba wax, wood wax, beeswax, ceresin wax, ester wax, polyethylene wax, and other waxes, and higher fatty acids such as stearic acid, palmitic acid, lauric acid, aluminum stearate, lead palmitate, and glycerol monohydroxystearate. or its derivatives such as metal salts and esters.As flexible materials, resins such as petroleum resins, polyvinyl acetate, polystyrene, styrene-butadiene copolymers, acrylic resins, and ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymers can be used. Oils such as , mineral oil, and vegetable oil can be used. In addition to the above-mentioned near-infrared absorber and the coloring agent used in combination as necessary, solid drawing materials generally require oils and fats, such as animal waxes and vegetable waxes that are solid at room temperature. , mineral waxes can be used, as well as linseed oil, soybean oil, coconut oil, mink oil, and petrolatum.

Animal oils and fats that are liquid at room temperature such as machine oil, vegetable oils,
Mineral oils and fats can be used together.

In addition to the above-mentioned near-infrared absorber and a coloring agent used in combination as necessary, liquid ink for writing instruments and printing ink generally contains solvents for writing instruments, and oils, resins, and solvents for printing inks. It is necessary, and as oil,
Linseed oil, shinakiri oil, oichika oil, hempseed oil, safflower oil, soybean oil.

Vegetable oils such as coconut oil, tall oil, castor oil, and dehydrated castor oil, and mineral oils such as spindle oil, dynamo oil, machine oil, and cylinder oil can be used.As resins, gum rosin, wood rosin, tall oil gin, Natural resins such as shellac and giltonite, natural resin derivatives such as lime rosin, zinc-cured rosin, ester gum, maleic acid resin, fumaric acid resin, dimerized rosin, and polymerized rosin, phenolic resin, rosin-modified phenolic resin, and xylene resin. , urea resin, melamine resin, ketone resin, coumaron/indene resin 1 petroleum resin, terpene resin, cyclized rubber, chlorinated rubber, alkyd resin, polyamide resin, acrylic resin, vinyl chloride/vinyl acetate copolymer resin, polyvinyl acetate, Synthetic resins such as polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl alcohol, chlorinated polypropylene, styrene resin, epoxy resin, polyurethane, and cellulose derivatives can be used.
As a solvent, water and n-hexane, n-heptane, n
-Aliphatic hydrocarbons such as otatan, industrial gasoline, mineral spirits, aromatic hydrocarbons such as toluene and xylene, methyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, n
-propyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, n-
Butyl alcohol, tridecyl alcohol, cyclohexyl alcohol.

Alcohols such as 2-methylcyclohexyl alcohol, glycols such as ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol, triethylene glycol, propylene glycol, glycerin, methyl cellosolve, ethyl cellosolve, butyl cellosolve, calpitol, butyl carpitol liquor ether, ethyl acetate, acetic acid Esters such as isopropyl and n-butyl acetate; ketones such as acetone, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, cyclohexanone, methyl cyclohexanone, isophorone, and diacetone alcohol;

Organic solvents such as halogenated hydrocarbons such as trichlorethylene and tetrachlorethylene can be used.

In addition to the above ingredients, auxiliary agents such as surfactants, dispersants, preservatives, antifungal agents, leveling agents, plasticizers, waxes, dryers, thixotropy imparting agents 1 and dormant pigments are appropriately selected and used. You may.

The light source of an optical information reading device that reads information from an information recording medium prepared using the optical reading composition of the present invention includes:
It is necessary for the wavelength to be 700 nm or more, but the ones currently in use are laser scanners that use a semiconductor laser diode with an emission wavelength of 780 nm as a light source, and laser scanners with a center emission wavelength of 700 nm or 820 nm.
Scanners using light emitting diodes of m, 940 nw can be used.

[Function] The optical reading composition according to the present invention uses a near-infrared absorber to prevent reflection of irradiated light on the recording part, and the absorbance integral of the coating film from 380 to 700 nm due to the composition The value is less than 35% of the absorbance integrated value from 380 to 1100 nm, and since the reading is carried out in the near-infrared region (defined as 700 rv to 1100 nm in the present invention), the color in the visible light region is Therefore, optically readable information can be printed without affecting the aesthetic appearance of the product or limiting the design.

Furthermore, when a coloring agent is used in addition to the above, a coating film of any color tone can be created as desired by the selected coloring agent, and its information can also be read.

(Example) Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to Examples. In Examples and Comparative Examples, "1 part" refers to "parts by weight."

In addition, this example shows a formulation example as an ink for screen printing, and a test was conducted by printing a barcode symbol, but as described above, the composition for optical reading of the present invention It can take various forms other than printing ink, and can also be applied to optical information reading devices other than barcode reading devices, and is not limited to the examples. For comparative examples, each component shown in Table 1, 1.2, and 3 was made into ink using a conventionally known stirrer and/or disperser.

Table 2 Book 1: Alkyd resin, manufactured by Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, (
Solid content: 80%) *2: Natural resin-modified maleic acid resin, manufactured by Dainippon Ink & Chemicals *3: Alkyd resin, manufactured by Dainippon Ink & Chemicals, (
Solid content: 50%) *4: Alumina white, manufactured by Daimei Chemical Co., Ltd. *5: Ultrafine anhydrous silica, Nippon Aerosil ■ *6: Lead naphthenate, manufactured by Dainippon Ink and Chemical Co., Ltd. (solid content: 24%) ) *7: Sorbitan Sesquioleate, Nikko Chemicals ■
Bookbinding 8: Polyoxyethylene (20 mol) Polyoxypropylene (4 mol) Cetyl ethericals Bookbinding 9: Salt of long chain polyaminoamide and polar acid ester,
Big Chemie Japan ■ Bookbinding 10: Oil-soluble dye, central synthesis ■ Bookbinding 11: Azo pigment. C1.15850 12: Oil-soluble dye, central synthesis Bookbinding 13: Anthraquinone near-infrared absorbing dye, manufactured by Nippon Kayaku ■ 14: Carbon black, manufactured by Degussa, West Germany 15: Copper phthalocyanine, Dainippon Ink & Chemicals Light absorption characteristics (1) were measured for the coating films using the inks obtained in Examples 1 to 9 and Comparative Examples 1 to 2.

The results are shown in Table 4. In addition, Examples 6 to 9 are measurements on coating films of compositions from which dyes or pigments have been removed.

0, A/3.15 SHEETS, made by Muse @), solid printing was performed using screen printing (using a 300 mesh screen), and after drying, the absorbance of the coating film was measured using an MPS-5000 (self-recording spectrophotometer). , ■Made by Shimadzu Corporation), when measured using reflected light using an integrating sphere,
The ratio of the absorbance integral value at a measurement wavelength of 380 to 700 nm and the absorbance integral value at a measurement wavelength of 380 to 1100 nm (
%) The absorption characteristics (2) of the near-infrared absorbers used in Examples 6 to 9 and Comparative Example 4 were measured.

The results are shown in Table 5.

When measured using transmitted light using a quartz cell with a UPS-5000 (self-recording spectrophotometer, m+ manufactured by Shimadzu Corporation), the measurement wavelength is 380 to 700 nm.
The ratio of the absorbance integral value at 380 to 1100 nm (% (effect)) (A 300-mesh nylon screen was used as the screen.) Print the barcode symbol pattern on yellow, red, and blue colored drawing paper (manufactured by Shikoku Paper Corporation), dry it thoroughly, and then print the barcode symbol. Reading device (scanner; HBCS-
2354, Temperature measuring Hewlett card made by ■, light source 82
A readability test was conducted using a reader using a 0.0m light emitting diode (Handy Terminal PHT-34, manufactured by Pentel ■). The results are shown in Table 5.

In addition, barcode symbols were printed on yellow paper for Example 6 and Comparative Examples 3 and 4, red paper for Example 7, blue paper for Example 8 and Comparative Example 1, and pink paper for Example 9 in the same manner as above. A pattern was printed and a readability test was conducted in the same manner as above.

The results are shown in Table 6.7.

Table 6 Table 7 Readability: It was confirmed whether the printed barcode symbol could be accurately read by the barcode reading device.

0: Accurate reading X: Unreadable Printability: The extent to which the printed barcode symbol covered the drawing paper was visually determined.

4: Concealability is low, one drawing sheet can be clearly seen, and the printed barcode symbol is not noticeable.

3: The printed barcode symbol has some coloring, but there is little concealment and the drawing paper can be clearly seen.

2: The printed barcode symbol is colored, but the concealment is low and one drawing sheet is visible.

1: Great coloring and hiding power, completely hiding the drawing paper.

Two-sight judgment of color tone 3: The color tone of the selected colorant can be reproduced.

2: The color tone is slightly different from the selected colorant, but there is no discomfort in the printed matter.

1: Significant deviation from the color tone of the selected colorant.

As explained in detail above, the optical reading composition according to the present invention has a low hiding power on the substrate to be printed, and furthermore,
Because the coating film has a low degree of coloration, the characters used to record information, various marks, and barcode symbols are hardly noticeable, making it an excellent product that allows the information to be read accurately without damaging the appearance of the printed product. It has good readability even when used in combination with colorants, so it is possible to design inks with a color tone that matches the substrate to be printed, and it is possible to design printed information recording characters, various marks, Since the barcode symbol does not look strange to the base material, it does not spoil the beauty of the product.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) An optical reading composition containing at least a near-infrared absorber, wherein the coating film formed by the optical reading composition has a 380 to 7
1. An optical reading composition characterized in that the integrated value of absorbance at 00 nm is 35% or less of the integrated value of absorbance at 380 to 1100 nm. (2) An optical reading composition obtained by adding a coloring agent to the optical reading composition according to claim 1.