JPH04294197A - Card and manufacture thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To manufacture with high productive efficiency cards having photographic information recorded thereon by recording variable information including photographic information with a variable information record means including a sublimation thermal transfer device using thermal transfer sheet having a dye layer with mold releasing property, and layering a center core and over sheets so as to integrate them. CONSTITUTION:Variable information such as photographs of faces and information on attributes are recorded on a surface of a center core 2 by a variable information record means. As for a sublimation type thermal transfer printer for recording images on the center core 2, a flat type equipped with a center core support stand 16 holding the center core 2 for a thermal head 15 and reciprocating is desirable. Over sheets 3 delivered from a rewinder of a vinyl chloride sheet are temporarily stuck to both faces of the recorded center core 2, cut, and separated. At the same time, a magnetic stripe 19 is transferred to other over sheet 3. A temporary sticking body 1A is pressed by heating so as to fast adhere the center core 2 to the over sheet 3.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to cards such as ID cards, credit cards, and cash cards, and to a card manufacturing method for manufacturing such cards.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Magnetic cards, IC cards, optical cards, and the like have been known which have a structure in which an oversheet made of a transparent resin sheet is laminated on the surface of a center core made of resin such as vinyl chloride. These cards are usually manufactured by the following method. First, the thickness is 0.5mm
A center core made of a solid white resin plate is prepared, and general information, patterns, etc. necessary for the card are printed on the front and back sides of the core by offset printing, screen printing, etc. Next, an oversheet made of a thin transparent resin sheet is temporarily pasted on both sides of the center core, and the whole is laminated together by hot pressing, and then punched out on a predetermined card side. Next, necessary characters, symbols, etc. are embossed on the card using an emboss encoder and written on a magnetic stripe to form a product card.

[0003]Recently, it has become common to paste photographs such as facial photographs on cards of this type. In that case,
After printing, a worker manually pastes a photo to the size of a facial photo in a predetermined position on the center core, and then stacks an oversheet (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-1
No. 20696). In addition, cards with a face photograph, etc., are those in which a transparent sheet with information such as a face photograph recorded in advance on the surface is pasted onto the card (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-29338
No. 3), an image-receiving layer is formed on the surface of the card, and information such as a facial photograph is thermally transferred and recorded on this image-receiving layer (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1986-
No. 220395), an image-receiving layer is formed on the surface of the card, information such as a face photograph is recorded on the image-receiving layer by sublimation transfer, and then an oversheet is pasted (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-226).
No. 93) etc.

0004

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the manufacturing method disclosed in JP-A-63-120696,
Since manual photo pasting work is required, there is a problem in that production efficiency is poor and photos may be pasted incorrectly. Also, JP-A No. 1-293383 and JP-A No. 6
The card disclosed in No. 2-220395 had a problem with the durability of information such as a facial photograph recorded on the surface of the transparent sheet or the surface of the card.

Furthermore, the card disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-22693 has the problem that the process of forming an image-receiving layer on the surface of the card is increased, which increases the manufacturing cost. The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and provides a card manufacturing method and a card manufacturing method that can manufacture cards with photographic information etc. recorded with high production efficiency without requiring manual operations such as pasting photographs. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a card that reliably retains photographic information and has excellent durability.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides mold releasability on at least one of the surface of the center core constituting the card and the back surface of the sheet-like oversheet that is unwound from the winding. Variable information including photographic information is recorded by a variable information recording means including a sublimation type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet having an applied dye layer, and then the center core and the oversheet are laminated and integrated to form a predetermined size. It is configured so that it can be cut into pieces to produce cards.

[0007] Further, variable information including photographic information is recorded on the surface of the center core constituting the card by variable information recording means including a sublimation type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet having an image-receiving layer, and then the card is unwound from the roll. A card is manufactured by laminating and integrating a sheet-like oversheet and the center core, and cutting the card into a predetermined size.

[0008] Furthermore, a variable information transfer device including a sublimation type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet comprising a center core and an oversheet laminated on at least one surface of the center core and having a dye layer imparted with mold releasability. The card is configured to have a recording section on at least one of the front surface of the center core and the back surface of the oversheet, in which variable information including photographic information is recorded by a recording means.

[0009] Furthermore, an image receiving layer is formed on the surface of the center core by a sublimation type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet comprising a center core and an oversheet laminated on at least one surface of the center core and having an image receiving layer. The card is configured to have a recording section in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on at least the surface of the center core by variable information recording means including the sublimation type thermal transfer device using the thermal transfer sheet.

0010

[Function] At least one of the surface of the center core that makes up the card and the back surface of the sheet-like oversheet that is unwound from the winder is equipped with a variable-temperature sublimation-type thermal transfer device that uses a thermal transfer sheet that has a dye layer with release properties. Variable information including photographic information is recorded by an information recording means, and then the center core and the oversheet are laminated and integrated, and the card is manufactured by cutting into a predetermined size, and Variable information including photographic information is recorded on the surface of the center core of the card by variable information recording means including a sublimation thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet having an image-receiving layer. A card is manufactured by laminating and integrating the oversheet and the center core and cutting it into a predetermined size, which automates and simplifies the recording of variable information including photo information, improving productivity. At the same time, the manufactured cards have excellent durability because the recording surface is covered with an oversheet.

[0011]

Embodiments Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the oversheet, and (B) shows before temporarily attaching the center core and the oversheet. It shows the status of. Figure 1
, the oversheet 113 is the variable information recording means 1
02, variable information 115 including photo information is recorded. On the other hand, ink layers 116a and 116b are formed on the center core by predetermined printing. and,
The card is formed by temporarily attaching an oversheet 113 and an oversheet 114 to such a center core 112, and then thermocompression bonding and cutting to a predetermined size. That is, this card has variable information including photographic information on the back side of the oversheet 113.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing another example of the card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the center core, and (B) shows a state in which variable information including photo information is recorded on the center core, and (B) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the center core. The state before the sheet is temporarily pasted is shown. In FIG. 2, an ink layer 126 is printed in a predetermined manner.
Variable information 125 including photographic information is recorded by the variable information recording means 102 in an area of the center core 122 where the ink layer 126 is not formed. Then, an oversheet 123 and an oversheet 124 are temporarily attached to such a center core 122, and then thermocompression bonded and cut to a predetermined size to form a card. That is, this card has variable information including photographic information on the surface of the center core.

In the present invention, the center core and oversheet constituting the card are naturally required to have card suitability and adhesive properties, and those for recording and printing images are required to have good printing characteristics. Further, the oversheet is required to have an image protection system against light, heat, and the like. Therefore, the materials for the center core and oversheet should be selected from materials that are suitable for these characteristics, and may be any conventionally known materials that have a certain degree of heat resistance and strength, such as paper, various processed materials, etc. paper, polyester film, polyethylene film, polypropylene film,
Examples include polysulfone film, aramid film, polycarbonate film, polyvinyl alcohol film, vinyl chloride film, ABS film, cellophane, etc., and vinyl chloride film is particularly preferred.

When the base film as described above has poor adhesion to the dye layer formed on its surface, it is preferable to subject its surface to an adhesion-facilitating treatment such as primer treatment or corona discharge treatment. Further, antioxidants, heat stabilizers, ultraviolet absorbers, etc. may be added to the oversheet.

[0015] The thickness of the oversheet is 0.01
~0.2mm, the thickness of the center core is 0.1~
It is about 0.7 mm. These oversheets and center core may be a single layer or may be a stack of several sheets. When the center core is made of a laminate of a plurality of sheets, the thickness of each sheet becomes thinner, so it can be supplied in the form of a roll, and the card can be manufactured continuously as shown in the examples described later. The oversheet is preferably provided on both sides of the center core, but may be provided on only one side.

[0016] The center core or oversheet for recording variable information including photographic information may be in the form of a single sheet, or may be in the form of a long sheet that is unwound from a roll. . When the center core has a laminated structure of a plurality of sheets, variable information recording on the center core may be performed on sheets before being laminated.

As the variable information recording means for recording variable information including photographic information, a device equipped with a thermal transfer type printer or an inkjet type printer can be used, but it is particularly preferable to use a sublimation type thermal transfer type printer. This is preferable because beautiful images can be obtained at a relatively low cost. The thermal transfer type printer may be either a flat type or a platen type, and may be selected as appropriate depending on the form of the center core or oversheet to be printed. Further, either a one-head type or a multi-head type may be used.

The content recorded by the variable information recording means includes at least photographic information such as a face photograph, but may also include variable character information such as a name, address, number, etc., and may further include descriptions, designs, etc. may include information common to all cards. When recording these various types of information, it is not necessary to record all the information using a common printer, and printers of different formats can be used as necessary. For example, photograph information is recorded using a dye sublimation thermal transfer printer,
The character information may be recorded using a printer using a melting type thermal transfer method.

The thermal transfer sheet used in a sublimation type thermal transfer printer is preferably provided with a dye layer having release properties. In order to impart release properties to the dye layer, a release agent made of a graft copolymer containing a release segment is added to the dye layer, or a release segment is added as a dye binder resin. It is possible to use a graft copolymer containing Here, the graft copolymer containing a releasable segment is a graft copolymer having at least one releasable segment selected from polysiloxane segments, reinforced carbon segments, and long-chain alkyl segments grafted to the main chain. It is.

As the polymer as the main chain, any conventionally known polymer having a reactive functional group can be used.
Preferred examples include ethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, ethyl hydroxy cellulose,
Cellulose resins such as hydroxypropyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, cellulose diacetate, cellulose triacetate, cellulose acetate butyrate, acrylic resins, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl butyral, polyvinyl acetal, polyvinylacetoacetal, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyacrylamide Examples include vinyl resins such as polyamide resins, polyurethane resins, polyester resins, etc. Among these, acrylic resins, vinyl resins, polyester resins, polyurethane resins, and polyamide resins are preferred from the viewpoint of compatibility with the binder. Or cellulose resin is particularly preferred.

[0021] The above-mentioned mold-releasing copolymer can be synthesized by various methods, and one preferred method is to react with the functional groups present in the main chain after forming the main chain. Examples include a method of reacting a releasable compound having a functional group. For example, it is a silicone graft copolymer in which a siloxane chain having a reactive group at one end is reacted with dimethyl isocyanate, and the reaction product is reacted with an OH group in a polyvinyl acetoacetal resin.

[0022] The dye used in the above-mentioned thermal transfer sheet is not particularly limited, as any treatment used for conventionally known thermal transfer sheets can be effectively used in the present invention. For example, some preferred dyes include:
As a red dye, MS Red G, Macrolex
Red Violet R, Ceres Red 7
B, Samaron Red HBSL, and Re
Examples of yellow dye include solin RedF3BS, and examples of yellow dye include Holon Priliant Yellow 6GL and P
TY-52, Microlex Yellow 6G, etc., and blue dyes include Kayaset Blue 714,
Examples include Vaxolin Blue AP-FW, Holon Priliant Blue SR, MS Blue 100, and the like. Furthermore, various waxes such as polyethylene wax, and organic or inorganic fillers may be added in order to improve printability and prevent thermal fusion with the image-receiving sheet.

Note that information common to cards such as explanations and designs does not necessarily need to be recorded by variable information recording means, but may be printed in advance on the center core or oversheet by offset printing or screen printing. Good too. Further, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another example of the card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the center core, and (B) shows a state in which the center core and the oversheet are recorded. This shows the state before temporary pasting. In FIG. 3, the variable information recording means 10 is placed on the ink layer 136a of the center core 132 on which ink layers 136a and 136b are formed by predetermined printing.
2 forms an image receiving layer 135. Next, variable information 137 including photographic information is recorded on this image receiving layer 135 by the same variable information recording means 102. Then, an oversheet 133 and an oversheet 134 are temporarily attached to such a center core 132, and then thermocompression bonded and cut to a predetermined size to form a card. That is, this card has variable information including photographic information on the surface of the center core. In this card, since the image-receiving layer is formed prior to recording variable information including photographic information, recording is performed on the ink layer formed on the center core. Printing on the image-receiving layer like this is possible by using a thermal transfer sheet having an image-receiving layer and a dye layer as shown in FIG. 4(A) and printing with a sublimation-type thermal transfer printer.

In FIG. 4(A), a thermal transfer sheet 140
consists of a base material 141, a heat-resistant slip layer 142 provided on one side of this base material 141, dye layers 143Y, 143M, and 143C formed on the other side of the base material 141, and an image-receiving layer 14.
It is composed of 4. The base film for the thermal transfer sheet may be any conventionally known film having a certain degree of heat resistance and strength, such as paper with a thickness of about 3 to 10 μm, polyester film, polystyrene film, polypropylene film, polysulfone film. , aramid film, polycarbonate film, cellophane, etc., and polyester film is particularly preferred. The surface of this film may be subjected to adhesion treatment in advance.

The image-receiving layer 144 is made of a resin having dyeability, such as vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyester resin, epoxy resin, vinyl chloride resin, vinyl acetate resin, and styrene resin. In order to impart thermal release properties (abnormal transfer properties) to the image-receiving layer 144, it is preferable to mix a release agent with the resin. Examples of the mold release agent include silicone oil, phosphate surfactants, fluorine surfactants, and the like, with silicone oil being preferred. As the silicone oil, modified silicone oils such as epoxy-modified, alkyl-modified, amino-modified, carboxyl-modified, alcohol-modified, fluorine-modified, alkylalkyl polyether-modified, epoxy-polyether-modified, and polyether-modified silicone oils are desirable.

[0026] One or more types of mold release agents may be used. The amount of the release agent added is preferably 0.5 to 30 parts by weight per 100 parts by weight of the dye-receiving layer forming resin. If the addition amount does not fall within this range, problems such as fusion between the transfer sheet and the dye-receiving layer or a decrease in printing sensitivity may occur. By adding such a release agent to the dye-receiving layer, the release agent bleeds out to the surface of the dye-receiving layer after transfer, forming a release layer.

In addition, in order to obtain adhesion, hiding properties, cushioning properties, etc. between the image receiving layer 144 and the transfer material such as the center core or the ink layer, the image receiving layer 144 is coated as shown in FIG. 4(B). An adhesive layer 145 may be formed thereon. Such an adhesive layer can be formed of acrylic resin, nylon resin, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, polyether resin, urethane resin, or the like. The image-receiving layer 144 and the adhesive layer contain a fluorescent brightener, an antistatic agent, a filler, a pigment, and a foaming agent in order to impart detection performance, concealment performance, ability to absorb unevenness of the center core, cushioning property, etc. It may also contain agents.

Furthermore, a release layer 146 may be provided between the image receiving layer 144 and the base material 141. The release layer 146 can be formed of vinyl acetate resin, polyamide resin, polyester resin, polyurethane resin, cellulose, or the like. For example, a release layer/receiving layer/adhesive layer of polyamide resin/vinyl chloride/vinyl acetate copolymer/polyamide resin/vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer/
Acrylic resin is printed in layers, and dye layers Y,
Print M and C. At this time, amino-modified silicone and epoxy-modified silicone are added to the image-receiving layer 144 in an amount of 5% by weight based on the resin.

Note that the dye layers 143Y, 143M, 143
C can be formed using the above-mentioned dye, resin binder, and the like. In addition, the dye layers 143Y, 143M, 1
43C does not need to be provided with the above-mentioned releasability. This is because since printing is performed on the center core through the image receiving layer 144, good printing is possible even if the dye layers 143Y, 143M, and 143C are not provided with releasability. Further, dye layers 143Y and 143M are provided on the base material 141.
, 143C and the image receiving layer 144, a black layer may be provided.

When printing using an integrated thermal transfer sheet having an image-receiving layer as described above, a one-head type printer is used, but in order to be compatible with a multi-head type printer, the image-receiving layer and red dye Separate thermal transfer sheets each having a yellow dye layer and a blue dye layer may be used. The printer may have one row or multiple rows in the horizontal direction. In this case, the head has a length corresponding to the number of rows. Furthermore, when there are multiple rows, individual information is sent to the thermal head, and the thermal head outputs separate data.

The above-mentioned image receiving layer 135 is attached to the center core 132.
It may be transfer-formed on the entire surface or may be formed partially. The center core and oversheet are laminated and integrated after recording variable information, and the integration is performed by laminating the center core and oversheet, temporary pasting, and then hot pressing. When using long sheets pulled out from the roll as the center core and oversheet, these sheets are laminated and temporarily pasted, then cut to an appropriate size, and the cut The material may be hot-pressed, or it may be heat-pressed in a long length without cutting by a hot roll method. In this case, it may be in one row or in multiple rows in both the lateral and flow directions.

[0032] In order to join and integrate the center core and the oversheet, it is preferable to use a suitable bonding agent or adhesive sheet. This makes it possible to shorten the hot press time and lower the hot press temperature. The laminating agent or adhesive sheet used here must have strong adhesive strength, do not affect the image, and be suitable for embossing. , nylon-based, polyester-based, etc. are preferred.

Before the oversheet and center core are laminated and integrated, magnetic stripes, IC modules, optical stripes, etc. are provided at predetermined positions on the center core or oversheet. Further, before and after laminating and integrating the oversheet and the center core, hologram transfer, concealing layer transfer, etc. are performed as necessary. After the center core and oversheet are joined and integrated, a card of a predetermined size is punched out, and an embossing encoder performs embossing and necessary writing.

[0034] The card is manufactured by an abnormal process. Cards that can be manufactured by the present invention include magnetic cards, IC
Examples include cards, optical cards, and the like. Next, the card manufacturing method of the present invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 5 is a process diagram schematically showing a card manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention for manufacturing the magnetic cards shown in FIGS. 8 and 9.

The magnetic card 1 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 is used as an ID card, and is hereinafter referred to as an ID card. This ID card 1 is of the type shown in FIG. 2, and includes a center core 2 made of vinyl chloride (hereinafter abbreviated as PVC) and an oversheet 3 made of thin PVC sheets laminated on both sides of the center core 2. It is a laminate of. The center core 2 may be composed of a single layer of PVC sheet, but here it is shown as consisting of a PVC substrate 2a and thin PVC sheets 2b on both sides thereof. The thickness of the center core 2 is set to about 0.1 to 0.7 mm, and the thickness of the oversheet 3 is set to about 0.01 to 0.2 mm. In this ID card 1, variable information such as a facial photograph 4 and attribute information (barcode, address, name, etc.) 5 is recorded on the front surface of the center core 2 or the back surface of the oversheet 3.
Further, on the surface of the substrate 2a of the center core 2, images common to each card, such as explanations and designs, are recorded. Furthermore, the ID card 1 is provided with a magnetic stripe 6, and embossed characters 7 for names, numbers, etc. are formed thereon.

Next, the process of manufacturing the ID card 1 having the above structure by the method of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. (a) Printed board 2a production process (Fig. 5a) First, prepare a PVC sheet of a predetermined thickness, print images such as explanations and designs on its surface by offset printing, screen printing, etc., and then cut into a predetermined size. do. As a result, a printed board 2a is created. (b) PVC sheet temporary pasting process (FIG. 5b) Next, the vinyl chloride sheet 2b is unrolled from the roll, temporarily pasted on both sides of the substrate 2a, and then cut and separated. (c) Hot pressing step (FIG. 5c) PVC sheets 2b are temporarily pasted on both sides of the substrate a and then hot pressed to adhere the vinyl chloride sheets 2b to the substrate 2a to form a center core 2 in the form of a single sheet. (d) Variable information recording step (FIG. 5d) Variable information such as a facial photograph and attribute information is recorded on the surface of the center core 2 using variable information recording means. The variable information recording means used here is as shown in FIG.
0, a print output device 11, an image/character editing device 12, an input device 13 for inputting card layout information and character/code information, and a photo information input device (CCD camera, CCD
When the operator inputs variable information such as card layout information and character/code information using the input device 13 and inputs variable information such as a face photo using the photo information input device 14, the Character editing machine 1
2 lays out the variable information at a predetermined position, and the print output device 11 controls the printer 10 to output the variable information to the center core 2.
variable information can be recorded on the surface of the As the printer 10, a thermal transfer type printer, an inkjet type printer, or the like can be used, but it is preferable to use a sublimation type thermal transfer printer, which can easily obtain good color images as described above.

As a sublimation type thermal transfer printer for recording an image on the center core 2, a flat type is preferably provided with a center core support stand 16 that holds the center core 2 against the thermal head 15 and moves back and forth as shown in the figure. . The thermal head 15 for recording on the center core 2 is not limited to the case where only one is provided as shown in the figure (one-head type), but may be a multi-head type in which thermal heads corresponding to each color are provided. (e) Temporary oversheet pasting and magnetic stripe transfer process (Fig. 5e) In Fig. 5, PVC sheets are wrapped on both sides of the center core 2 on which variable information such as a facial photograph and attribute information has been recorded in the previous process. The oversheet 3 fed out from the tray is temporarily attached, and then cut and separated. At this time, the magnetic stripes 19 are simultaneously transferred to one of the oversheets 3. (f) Heat pressing step (FIG. 5f) In the previous step, the temporary bonded body 1A, which is formed by temporarily bonding the oversheet 3 to the center core 2, is hot pressed to firmly bond the center core 2 and the oversheet 3. This heat pressing can be performed in any of the following ways. (B) Multi-stage system Temporary bonding body 1A of center core 2 and oversheet 3 discharged from the previous process is automatically interposed with a backing plate such as a metal plate as shown in FIG. 7(A). Pile up,
After stacking a predetermined number of sheets, the whole is heat-pressed (heating-holding-cooling). (b) Parallel method A plurality of temporary pasting bodies 1A discharged from the previous process, Figure 7
They are automatically placed in parallel as shown in (B) and the whole is heat pressed. (C) Single method As shown in FIG. 7(C), a turret 22 equipped with a large number of pressing parts 21 each consisting of a pair of press plates 20, 20 is used. This turret 22 rotates intermittently in the direction shown by the arrow, and while the pressing part 21 passes through positions P1 to P4, it receives the temporary pasting body 1A discharged from the previous process, and the pair of press plates 20 , 20 perform heating/pressing and cooling/pressing to form a laminate 1B in which the center core 2 and oversheet 3 are firmly adhered, and the laminated body 1B is discharged to the next process. (g) Punching process (FIG. 5g) In FIG. 5, the laminate 1B formed by hot pressing is punched into a card of a predetermined size, and unnecessary margin portions are removed. (h) Emboss/encoder processing step (FIG. 5h) The card completed in the previous step is subjected to an emboss/encoder to form embossed characters 7 (see FIG. 8) such as names and numbers.

Through the above steps, the ID card 1 shown in FIG. 8 is manufactured. In order to carry out the above card manufacturing method, equipment is used to carry out each process, but in this case, an automatic transport device is installed between each equipment to automatically transport the semi-finished product created in the previous process to the next process. Alternatively, it may be transported manually.

If it is necessary to perform hologram transfer and hiding layer transfer to the card, the hologram transfer and hiding layer transfer steps may be performed before and after the center core and oversheet are bonded together. Further, in the above embodiment, variable information such as a facial photograph is recorded on the surface of the center core 2, but this variable information may be recorded on the back surface of the center core, or on both the front and back surfaces of the oversheet. It may also be possible to record it in

Furthermore, by using a thermal transfer sheet as shown in FIG. 4, it is possible to print on printing ink, so the printed substrate 2a can be used as a center core without bonding the PVC sheet 2b. . In this case, in Figure 5, the PVC sheet temporary pasting process (Figure 5b)
, the hot pressing step (Fig. 5c) can be omitted. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, after recording variable information on the printed center core 162 in the order of receiving layer transfer and dye transfer (Y, M, C) using the above-mentioned image receiving layer/dye layer integrated film 140, After temporary pasting and cutting of the oversheet 164, hot pressing is performed by the method described above. Thereafter, it can be removed, embossed and encoded to obtain an ID card.

Although the above embodiment is a method for manufacturing a card 1 from a sheet-like base material 2a and a sheet-like center core 2 formed from the base material 2a, the present invention is not limited to this case. It is also possible to use a long sheet unwound from a roll as the material constituting the. FIG. 11 shows an example in this case, and schematically shows a line for continuously manufacturing cards from winding a plurality of PVC sheets. However, in this case, the center core has a laminated structure of a plurality of thin sheets.

In FIG. 11, numeral 30 is a winder for feeding out a transparent PVC sheet 31 for the oversheet on the front side of the card, numeral 32 is a winder for feeding out a transparent PVC sheet 33 for the oversheet on the back side of the card, and numeral 34 is a winder for feeding the card. This is a winding device for unwinding the PVC sheet 35 for the center core. The PVC sheet 35 wound around the center core winding 34 includes:
Images such as common explanations and designs are printed in advance on all cards using an offset printing machine or a screen printing machine, and a bonding agent necessary for adhesion is also applied. Although the drawing shows two PVC sheets 35 for the center core, this number may be increased as necessary.

[0043] On the conveyance path of the PVC sheet 31 for the oversheet on the front side of the card, a surfacing roll 40, a sublimation type thermal transfer printer 41, a melting type thermal transfer printer 42, a magnetic stripe transfer roll 43, etc. are arranged, and behind them A superimposing roll 44 is arranged. The sublimation type thermal transfer printer 41 is for recording color facial photographs, and has three thermal heads 46a, 46 for yellow, magenta, and cyan.
6b and 46c. Melting type thermal transfer printer 42
is for recording characters and barcodes, and is provided with thermal heads 47a and 47b for recording, respectively. These printers 41 and 42 have, similar to the one shown in FIG.
A print output device 11, an image/character editing device 12, and an input device 1 for inputting card layout information and character/code information.
3 and a photo information input device (CD camera, CCD scanner, etc.) 14 are connected. Therefore, when the operator inputs variable information such as card layout information and character/code information using the input device 13 and inputs variable information such as a face photo using the photo information input device 14, the image/character editing device 12 inputs the variable information such as a face photo. Lay out the information in place,
Characters, bar codes, etc. can be recorded using the sublimation type thermal transfer printer 42. The magnetic stripe transfer roll 43 transfers the magnetic stripes unwound from the magnetic stripe winder 48 onto the surface of the PVC sheet 31.

A surfacing roll 40 and a melt-type thermal transfer printer 49 are also provided on the conveyance path of the PVC sheet 33 for the oversheet on the back side of the card. This melting type thermal transfer printer 49 is also controlled by the print output device 11. Behind the stacking roll 44, a hot stamper 51 for temporarily pasting the stacked sheets, a cutting machine 53, a heat press device 55 for pasting, an automatic punching device 57, an embossing encoder 59, etc. are arranged. has been done. The heat press device 55 is of the type shown in FIG. 7(c), and has a turret holding a large number of pressing parts 21 made up of a pair of press plates 20, 20. As the turret rotates, the pressing parts 21 are It passes through positions P1 to P4 shown in FIG. Here, position P1 is a heating position, position P2 is a receiving, heating and pressing position for the temporary pasting body, position P3 is a cooling and pressing position, and position P4 is an open and discharge position.

Next, a card manufacturing method using the above manufacturing line will be explained. A PVC sheet 31 for the oversheet on the front side of the card is unwound from the winder 30, the front surface is smoothed by a surface leveling roll 40, and a face photograph is recorded on the back side (the side in contact with the center core) by a sublimation type thermal transfer printer 41. Ru. At this time, the horizontal direction may be one row or multiple rows. Further, the flow direction is printed continuously. Next, characters and barcodes are recorded by a melt-type thermal transfer printer 42, and then a magnetic stripe is transferred by a magnetic stripe transfer roll 43. Also, a PVC sheet 33 for the oversheet on the back side of the card is unwound from the winder 32, and the surface is smoothed by a surface leveling roll 40.
Characters are recorded on the back side (the side that connects to the center core) by a melt-type thermal transfer printer 49.

These PVC sheets 31 and 33 are overlapped by a stacking roll 44 on both the upper and lower surfaces of a PVC sheet 35 that is unwound from a winder 34 of PVC sheet for center core, and temporarily pasted by a hot stamper 51 for temporary pasting. , and is cut into an appropriate size by a cutting machine 53. At this time, it may be in one row or in multiple rows in both the lateral and flow directions. Next, the cut temporary pasted bodies 1c are sent to a heat press device 55, and are heated, pressed, cooled and pressed by press plates 20, 20, and thereby aligned in one piece. Next, it is punched out to a predetermined size by an automatic punching device 57, and then passed through an embossing encoder 59 to form embossed characters 7 (see FIG. 8) such as names and numbers, and write them on the magnetic stripe.

Through the above steps, ID cards 1 as shown in FIG. 8 are continuously manufactured. In the above process, a plurality of sheets are temporarily pasted using a hot stamper 51 for temporary pasting, and then cut into appropriate sizes using a cutting machine 53 and hot pressed. Then, return the temporarily pasted sheet to the endless belt type heat press device 61,
It is also possible to manufacture a card by heating and press-bonding the first part and cooling and press-bonding the second part to join them together, and then punching them out to a predetermined size using the punching device 63.

Further, if necessary, hologram transfer or concealment layer transfer may be applied to the card before and after the embossing encoder 59. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, variable information is recorded on the back surface of the oversheet, but instead, variable information is recorded on the front or back surface or both the front and back surfaces of the PVC sheet 35 that constitutes the center core. It can also be configured to record.

[0049]

As described above, the present invention eliminates the need for pasting photographs as in the past, making it possible to simplify and automate the card manufacturing process. In addition, the manufactured cards have excellent durability because the recording surface is covered with an oversheet.

[0050] Also, a plurality of sheets are unwound from the winder,
If necessary variable information is recorded during the process and then laminated, the productivity of the card can be increased and the cost of card manufacturing can be reduced.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of a card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on an oversheet, and (B) shows a state in which a center core and an oversheet are temporarily attached. It shows the state before.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another example of the card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the center core, and (B) shows a state in which the center core and the oversheet are recorded. The state before temporary pasting is shown.

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view showing another example of the card of the present invention, in which (A) shows a state in which variable information including photographic information is recorded on the center core, and (B) shows a state in which the center core and an oversheet are recorded. This shows the state before temporary pasting.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are cross-sectional views showing an example of a thermal transfer sheet used in the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a process diagram schematically showing a card manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a block diagram showing an example of variable information recording means used in the card manufacturing method shown in FIG. 5. FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing an example of a method of hot pressing the temporary bonded body in the card production shown in FIG. 5;
(A) is a side view showing the state in which the temporary pasting bodies are laminated, (B)
(C) is a perspective view showing a state in which temporary pasting bodies are arranged, and (C) is a plan view of a turret that performs heat pressing.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a magnetic card that is an example of the present invention.

9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the magnetic card shown in FIG. 8. FIG.

FIG. 10 is a process diagram schematically showing a card manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a manufacturing line for carrying out a card manufacturing method according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a modification of the embodiment shown in FIG. 10.

[Explanation of symbols]

102 Variable information recording means 2, 112, 132 Center core 113, 114, 133, 134 Oversheet 1
35 Image-receiving layer 140 Thermal transfer sheet 141 Base material 142 Heat-resistant slip layer 143 Dye layer 144 Image-receiving layer 145 Adhesive layer 146 Release layer

Claims (4)

[Claims] Claim 1: A variable image forming apparatus including a sublimation thermal transfer device that uses a thermal transfer sheet having a dye layer imparted with release properties on at least one of the surface of a center core constituting a card and the back surface of a sheet-like oversheet that is unwound from a winder. A card manufacturing method comprising recording variable information including photographic information by an information recording means, then laminating and integrating the center core and the oversheet, and cutting the card into a predetermined size to manufacture a card. 2. Variable information including photographic information is recorded on the surface of the center core constituting the card by variable information recording means including a sublimation type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet having an image-receiving layer, and then the card is unwound from the roll. A card manufacturing method comprising: laminating and integrating a sheet-like oversheet and the center core, and manufacturing a card by cutting the sheet-like oversheet into a predetermined size. 3. Variable information including a sublimation thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet comprising a center core and an oversheet laminated on at least one surface of the center core and having a dye layer imparted with release properties. A card comprising: a recording section on which variable information including photographic information is recorded by a recording means on at least one of the front surface of the center core and the back surface of the oversheet. 4. An image-receiving image formed on the surface of the center core by a sublimation-type thermal transfer device using a thermal transfer sheet comprising a center core and an oversheet laminated on at least one surface of the center core and having an image-receiving layer. layer and
A card characterized in that it has a recording section on at least the surface of the center core in which variable information including photographic information is recorded by variable information recording means including the sublimation type thermal transfer device using the thermal transfer sheet.