JPH0696338B2 - Thermal recording device - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a heat-sensitive recording device, and more particularly to a heat-sensitive recording material recording device that develops multiple colors. More specifically, between thermal printing, by selectively photodecomposing at least one color-forming component in a specific unit color-forming group in a substantial sense, recorded images (color images) of different hues are formed. The present invention relates to a recording device for a heat-sensitive recording material that can be reliably obtained.

(Technical background of the invention and its problems) With the rapid development of the information industry, there is an increasing demand for easily obtaining a color hard copy from a terminal of an information device such as a computer or a facsimile. . As this method, an inkjet method and a thermal transfer method have been studied. However, since the inkjet method is a method of ejecting ink containing color material from fine nozzles,
The color material and other contents are likely to be clogged in the nozzle, which has a great drawback that the reliability of recording is poor. Further, the heat-sensitive transfer method is a method in which a sheet on an ink sheet is heated and melted in an image-like manner and transferred to paper, so that it is necessary to use four ink sheets to obtain a color image of four colors, for example. Yes, it is uneconomical to use a large amount of ink sheets. Further, in the case of the inkjet method, the user needs to keep in mind not to run out of ink liquid, and in the case of the thermal transfer method, it is necessary to keep in mind that the ink sheet will not run out. That is, both types require the user to perform complicated management.

On the other hand, a heat-sensitive color forming method is known as a method with high recording reliability that does not require such complicated management, and has been rapidly popularized in recent years in the fields of monochrome facsimiles and printers. This system is characterized by a recording material in which a layer having a color-developing mechanism is coated on a support, and is a convenient system for users. Therefore, development of a multicolor thermosensitive color development system has been desired.

However, in order to realize multiple colors, it is necessary to incorporate a number of color-developing mechanisms according to the number of color-developing colors on the same support and control each color-developing mechanism to operate, and many efforts have been made in the past. However, none of them were sufficiently controlled in color development. For example, as described in JP-B-49-69, a recording material in which two kinds of color-forming components which form different colors at different color-forming temperatures are mixed and used in the same thermosensitive color-forming layer, or JP-B-51-11989. JP-A-52-133991, JP-A-54-88
As described in JP-A-135, etc., there is a recording material in which a high temperature thermosensitive coloring layer and a low temperature thermosensitive coloring layer are separately used depending on the coloring temperature of a coloring component, and these two layers are sequentially laminated on a support. Furthermore, Japanese Patent Publication No. 50-17866 and 51.
-5791 gazette, etc., in addition to the above-mentioned high-temperature and low-temperature color-developing layer, when forming an image of the high-temperature thermosensitive color-developing layer, with respect to the color-developing component in the low-temperature thermosensitive color-developing layer corresponding to the image forming part. Recording materials incorporating a decolorizing agent exhibiting a decoloring effect. However, none of these conventional multicolor heat-sensitive recording materials has some drawbacks and is satisfactory.

For example, when a recording material having one or two thermosensitive coloring layers provided on a support is used to form low-temperature and high-temperature colored images having different color tones by low-temperature and high-temperature recording, respectively, the color tone of the high-temperature colored image is low-temperature developed. Produces color tones and color mixing in the image,
When the recording conditions (temperature and humidity, printing model) change, the degree of color mixing changes, and it is difficult to obtain a stable and stable image. Further, at the time of high temperature recording, a region having the same temperature as that at the time of printing temperature recording is generated in the peripheral portion thereof, so that a low temperature generation region is generated around the high temperature recording image. This phenomenon is generally referred to as cornering or blurring, and has been a cause of impairing the sharpness of the image. Further, in a recording material having an erasing mechanism, color mixing can be prevented, but the problem of color blurring has not been solved.

(Object of the Invention) An object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus for a color-forming multicolor heat-sensitive recording material which has a color forming mechanism for forming a hue as intended, and which is free from color blurring. An object of the present invention is to provide a recording apparatus for a color-developing multicolor heat-sensitive recording material capable of obtaining various images.

(Summary of the Invention) The present invention is to provide a thermochromic element for thermally coloring a diazo compound and a coupling component on a support, and the thermochromic element is colored by a plurality of heats having different temperatures or the same temperature. A recording device for a heat-sensitive recording material in which the diazo compound is decomposed by a plurality of electromagnetic rays (including light) having different wavelengths, and a plurality of heat-sensitive heads for operating the thermochromic element, In order to carry out the above, a plurality of light sources provided downstream of the thermal head are provided, and each color is developed by the thermal recording material to obtain a color image.

Further, the present invention provides a diazo compound and a coupling component on a support with a thermochromic element for thermochromic coloring, wherein the thermochromic element develops color by a plurality of heats having different temperatures or the same temperature. Is contained in a microcapsule, and the diazo compound is decomposed by a plurality of electromagnetic rays (including light) having different wavelengths, and the thermochromic element is operated. A plurality of heat sensitive heads and a plurality of light sources provided on the respective downstream sides of the heat sensitive heads for performing the above decomposition are provided, and each color is developed by the heat sensitive recording material to obtain a color image. .

(Embodiment of the Invention) First, the thermosensitive recording material used in the present invention comprises a plurality of unit color-forming groups (thermocolor-forming elements) G ₁ , G ₂ ... Which develop different hues.
... Gn (n is an integer of 2 or more) on the support, and each unit coloring group Gi (i is an integer) a) has a function of developing a color when heated to a specific temperature Ti ° C which is equal to or higher than room temperature. It consists of two or more compounds to achieve.

b) Each color development temperature Ti of the above a) is different and T ₁ <T ₂ <T ₃ ... Tl (2 ≦ l ≦ n), and c) at least one of the two or more compounds of a) above. Seed is
Wavelength λi (nm) given from outside the recording material (200 nm <λ
Light containing a component of i <700 nm) is selectively photodecomposed in a substantial sense.

d) The compound other than the photodegradable compound may be common to the compounds belonging to other unit color forming groups, if necessary.

First, the thermosensitive recording material characterized in that only the unit coloring group G ₁ is colored at a temperature higher than T _{1 and} lower than T ₂ . Next, a unit coloring group is generated by irradiating light containing a wavelength λ ₁ component.
Photolyzed photodegradable compound in G _1, G ₁ is prevented from coloring. Then, only the unit coloring group G ₂ is colored at a temperature higher than T ₂ and lower than T ₃ , and thereafter, the photodecomposition and the temperature-controlled recording are repeated in the same manner, so that each unit coloring group is independently recorded and colored. For example, it is possible to obtain a multicolored image having the intended hue.

According to the above-described method, only the intended unit color group can be sequentially and independently colored, and by utilizing this characteristic, a multicolor image free from color mixture and color blurring can be obtained.

When selectively photodecomposing the photodecomposable compound in the unit color forming group Gi, it is not always necessary to use only the light having the wavelength λi, and other photodecomposable compounds may not be photodecomposed at the same time. However, if necessary, other photodegradable compounds may be photolyzed at the same time. In addition, the unit coloring group that is finally colored may not be photolyzed. Also, above b)
Have substantially the same coloring temperature Ti, and T ₁ = T ₂ = ...
= Tl (2 ≦ l ≦ n) may be satisfied.

The above-mentioned multicolor heat-sensitive recording material will be described in more detail.

Each unit color group is basically a diazo compound,
It consists of a coupler and, if necessary, a basic substance or an acidic substance. Further, the hue when each unit color group develops a color is mainly determined by the diazo dye formed by the reaction between the diazo compound and the coupler. Therefore, as is well known, the coloring hue can be easily changed by changing the chemical structure of the diazo compound or the chemical structure of the coupler, and almost any coloring hue can be obtained depending on the combination. it can. Therefore, various diazo compounds may be dispersed in one layer, and one type of coupler and other additives may be incorporated in the same layer. At this time, each unit coloring group has a different diazo compound. And other common couplers and other additives. In some cases, different couplers are dispersed in several layers and the same diazo compound and additive are incorporated in each layer. in this case,
Each unit color forming group is composed of a different coupler and other common diazo compound and additive. In any case, each unit color-forming group is composed of one or more diazo compounds combined so as to have different color hues, one or more couplers and other additives.

Next, selective photolysis will be described.

The photolytic compound mainly refers to an aromatic diazo compound, and more specifically, a compound such as an aromatic diazonium salt, a diazosulfonate compound, or a diazoamino compound. Hereinafter, a diazonium salt will be mainly described as a representative example. As the selective photolysis method that can be used here, there are mainly the following two methods and methods. That is,
It is a method of changing the chemical structure of the diazonium salt used to change its photolytic wavelength, and a method of subdividing the light reaching the photolytic compound in the unit color forming group Gi using a filter layer or the like. The method is generally well known. usually,
The photolysis wavelength of diazonium salt is said to be its absorption maximum wavelength. It is known that the maximum absorption wavelength of the diazonium salt changes from about 200 nm to about 700 nm depending on its chemical structure. That is, when a diazonium salt is used as a photodecomposable compound, it is decomposed with light having a specific wavelength according to its chemical structure, and if the chemical structure of the diazonium salt is changed, the dye of the dye when subjected to the coupling reaction with the same coupler is changed. The hue also changes and can be preferably used. Next, the method will be described. For example, 400 to 430 in the upper layer
Dispersion of a diazonium salt that photolyzes at nm and a dispersion of a coupler and a dispersion of an alkali are contained, and a filter layer in which a light absorbing compound that blocks light of 415 nm or less is dispersed is provided under the dispersion. Below the coupler, only the coupler is different from the upper layer, and a layer having a coloring hue different from that of the upper layer is provided. First, this recording material is subjected to recording color development, and the upper and lower layers are colored. Next, the recording material is irradiated with light having only a light component of 415 nm or more to photolyze the diazonium salt in the upper layer. Next, heat recording is performed to develop color only in the lower layer, and then light is irradiated with a light source having a light component of 415 nm or less. As described above, selective photolysis can be performed and can be usefully used by providing an optical filter layer inside the recording material or covering the diazonium salt particles with a substance having an optical filter property.

On the other hand, there are roughly two methods for controlling the coloring temperature. One is a method that can be advantageously used mainly when a capsule wall is used, and is a method in which the material transmission characteristics of the capsule wall are changed by changing the material of the capsule wall to remarkably change the coloring temperature. Examples of this method include a method of forming the capsule wall from polyurethane, a method of forming polyurea, and a method of changing the chemical structure between urea or urethane formed by mixing polyurethane / polyurea. Another method is to use a multi-layer structure. The color forming aid is used for the purpose of lowering the color forming temperature, but the color forming temperature can be easily controlled by changing the addition amount of the color forming aid for each layer.

Each component in the unit color forming group of the heat-sensitive recording material may be applied in the form of a dispersion of some components, may be applied as a solution of some components, or all components may be applied as dispersions. May be. When applied as a dispersion, each component may be used as a so-called "solid dispersion" using a sand mill, a ball mill, a Dynomill, or the like, but may be microencapsulated with a water-insoluble organic solvent, or The components are used in the form of "solid dispersion", and some components may be used in the form of being encapsulated in microcapsules. When this microcapsule is used, the reactive substance existing in the core and outside of the microcapsule passes through the microcapsule wall and reacts when heated. In this case, the presence of the organic solvent greatly reduces the color fog during storage, greatly increases the color development speed and the color density, and thus can be preferably used. It is considered that the reason why the coloring speed and the concentration increase is that the solvent expands the microcapsule wall at the time of heating and promotes the permeation of the reactive substance. Further, the rate-determining step of the color forming reaction is mutual dissolution of the reactants, and in this case, the presence of an organic solvent is considered to increase the speed of mutual dissolution of the reactants during heating, and thus increase the color forming speed and the concentration. In particular, when the diazo compound among the unit color-forming components is contained in the microcapsules, the effect of reducing the color fog during storage can be increased.

In the heat-sensitive recording material used in the present invention, at least one reactive substance such as a diazo compound as a core substance, a coupling component or a color-forming aid is dissolved or dispersed in an organic solvent, and then interfacial polymerization, external polymerization or internal polymerization is performed. It is preferable to microencapsulate a core substance containing a reactive substance and an organic solvent with a wall substance generated by a polymerization method such as. The wall material is preferably polyurethane, polyurea, polyamide, or polyester. The organic solvent used for the core substance is a water-insoluble high boiling point solvent. The boiling point is preferably 180 ° C. or higher, and specific examples thereof include phosphoric acid esters, phthalic acid esters and other carboxylic acid esters, fatty acid amides, alkylated biphenyls and the like. Further, at the time of encapsulation, as a co-solvent for the substance to be encapsulated in the capsule, a halogenated alkyl compound such as methylene chloride or dichloroethane, or various ester compounds such as ethyl acetate or propyl acetate may be used in combination with the high boiling point organic solvent. Good.

Diazo compounds usable in the heat-sensitive recording material has the general formula A _r N ₂ ⁺ X ^- diazonium salt represented by the diazo sulfonate performs a coupling component and a coupling reaction typified by diazoamino compounds, and can be light separation It is a compound. The diazonium salt is a compound represented by the general formula _Ar N ₂ ⁺ X ⁻ .

In the heat-sensitive recording material used in the present invention, it is one of the desirable modes to use diazonium salts having different photolytic wavelengths. As a compound having a photolytic wavelength near 400 nm, 4-diazo-1-dimethylaminobenzene is used. , 4-diazo-1-diethylaminobenzene, 4-diazo-1-dipropylaminobenzene and the like, 300-370
The compound having a photolytic wavelength in nm is 1-diazo-
4- (N, N-dioctylcarbamoyl) benzene, 1-diazo-2-octadecyloxybenzene and the like can be mentioned. The aromatic diazonium compounds represented by the above-mentioned examples can widely change their photolytic wavelengths by arbitrarily changing their substituents.

Specific examples of the ^{_{anion, C n F 2n + 1 COO}} - (n is 3
Represent ^{_{~9), C m F 2m +}} 1 SO 3 - (m is mentioned), etc. represent 2-8.

The coupling component used in the heat-sensitive recording material of the present invention is, for example, one that is coupled with a diazo compound (diazonium salt) in a basic atmosphere to form a dye, and specific examples thereof include resorcin, phloroglucin, and 2,3.
-Sodium dihydroxynaphthalene-6-sulfonate and the like can be mentioned. Further, by using two or more of these coupling components in combination, an image with any color tone can be obtained. As the basic substance used in the heat-sensitive recording material, a hardly water-soluble or water-insoluble basic substance or a substance which generates an alkali upon heating is used. Examples thereof include inorganic and organic ammonium salts, organic amines, amides, urea and thiourea and its derivatives, and nitrogen-containing compounds such as thiazoles and pyrroles. A color former that can be used in a heat-sensitive recording material is a substance that increases the coloring density or lowers the minimum coloring temperature during heating recording, lowers the melting point of couplers, alkali or diazo compounds, and softens the capsule wall. Due to the effect of lowering the point, the diazo, alkali, and coupler are easily reacted. Phenol compounds, alcoholic compounds, and the like are used as the color-forming aid, and specific examples thereof include compounds such as Pt-octylphenol, P-benzyloxyphenol, and phenyl P-oxybenzoate.

The microcapsules used for the heat-sensitive recording material are produced by emulsifying the core substance and then forming a wall of the polymer substance around the oil droplets by a polymerization reaction. The reactant forming the polymer substance is added inside the oil droplet and / or outside the oil droplet. Specific examples of the polymer substance include polyurethane, polyurea, polyamide and polyester. As a physical property of the polymer substance, a polymer substance having a melting point of 50 ° C. or higher which does not melt at the temperature at the time of thermal recording is desirable. Any of the diazo compound, the coupler, and the basic substance, which are the components of the unit coloring group, may be contained in the microcapsule independently or in combination. When two or more diazo compound couplers and basic substances are used, they may be included in the same microcapsule or different microcapsules.

As a method of forming a microcapsule wall, the effect is particularly large when it is used in a microencapsulation method by polymerizing a reactant from the inside of an oil droplet. That is, it is possible to obtain capsules having a uniform particle size within a short period of time, which is preferable as a recording material having excellent normal storability. For example, when polyurethane is used as a capsule wall material, a polyisocyanate and a second substance (for example, a polyol) that reacts with the polyisocyanate to form a capsule wall are mixed in an oily liquid to be encapsulated, emulsified and dispersed in water, and then When the temperature is raised to 0, a polymer forming reaction occurs at the oil droplet interface to form a microcapsule wall. At this time, an auxiliary agent having a low boiling point and a strong melting power can be used in the oily liquid. When making a microcapsule, a water-soluble polymer can be used for the purpose of emulsification and prevention of aggregation of the emulsion, and the water-soluble polymer is a water-soluble anionic polymer, nonionic polymer,
The amphoteric polymer is included, and the anionic polymer may be natural or synthetic, and examples thereof include those having a —COO ⁻ , —SO ₃ ^— group and the like. In addition, as synthetic products, maleic anhydride type (including hydrolyzed) type copolymers, acrylic acid type (including methacrylic acid type)
Examples thereof include polymers and copolymers, vinylbenzenesulfonic acid-based polymers and copolymers, and carboxy-modified polyvinyl alcohol. These water-soluble polymers are used as 0.01-10 wt% aqueous solutions. Microcapsule particle size is 20μ
Adjusted to: Generally, if the particle size exceeds 20 μ, the recording image quality tends to deteriorate. In particular, when heating with a thermal head is performed from the coating layer side, it is preferably 8 μm or less in order to avoid pressure fog. When making a microcapsule, it can be made from an emulsion containing 0.2 wt% or more of the component to be microencapsulated. 0.1 to 10 parts by weight of coupling component and 1 to 10 parts by weight of diazo compound and basic substance
It is preferably used in a proportion of 0.1 to 20 parts by weight. The organic solvent is used in an amount of 2 to 50 parts by weight, preferably 5 to 25 parts by weight. The diazo compound is preferably applied in an amount of 0.05 to 20 g / m ² . When the diazo compound, the coupling component and the basic substance are not microencapsulated, it is preferable to use them by solid-dispersing them with a sand mill or the like. In this case, they are separately dispersed in the water-soluble polymer solution. Preferred water-soluble polymers include water-soluble polymers used when making microcapsules. At this time, the concentration of the water-soluble polymer is 20 to 30 wt%, and the diazo compound, the coupling component, and the basic substance are added to the water-soluble polymer solution so as to be 5 to 40 wt%, respectively. The dispersed particle size is preferably 10 μm or less.

As the optical filter layer, various compounds having spectral absorption in the wavelength range of interest can be used. Further, when using these compounds in the optical filter layer, it is desired that the compound be present as uniformly as possible in the optical filter layer, and it is present in the form of being incorporated in various polymers such as polyvinyl alcohol and polyvinylpyrrolidone. Alternatively, a light-absorbing compound having an anion group may be fixed to a polymer having a cation group by ionic interaction, and a light-absorbing compound having a cation group may be fixed to a polymer having an anion group. You may. Further, a polymer having a light absorption site as a main chain in the molecule or as a pendant group may be used. Further, the light-absorbing compound may be dissolved and emulsified in a water-insoluble oil and used in the form of an emulsified dispersion, or the emulsified dispersion may be absorbed in a polymer latex to be finely used. You may use the dispersion liquid which melt | dissolved an absorptive compound in a water miscible organic solvent, mixes it with a polymer latex liquid, impregnates it with a polymer particle, and removes an organic solvent later. Examples of light absorbing compounds that can be used include salicylic acid compounds such as phenyl salicylate, benzophenone compounds such as aqueous polyester, and 2
-(2'-Hydroxy-5'-methylphenyl) benzotriazole and other benzotriazole compounds, 9-aminoacridine and other acridine compounds, etc. are selected from a wide range of compounds that have absorption at the desired wavelength. Can be used. In the case of a multi-layer structure, the upper layer itself may be used as a filter layer by utilizing the spectral absorption characteristics of the upper layer in some cases.

For the purpose of preventing sticking to the thermal head and improving the writability, the above-mentioned thermal recording material contains silica, barium sulfate, titanium oxide, aluminum hydroxide, zinc oxide,
Pigments such as calcium carbonate and fine powders such as styrene beads and urea-melamine resins can be used. Similarly, metal soaps can be used to prevent sticking. The usage amount of these is 0.2 to 7 g / m ²
Is.

Further, a heat-melting substance can be used in the heat-sensitive recording material in order to increase the heat-recording density. The heat-fusible substance is a substance that is solid at room temperature and has a melting point of 50 to 150 ° C. that melts when heated by a thermal head, and that dissolves a diazo compound, a coupling component or a color-forming aid. The heat-meltable substance is dispersed in the form of particles of 0.1-10μ, and the solid content is 0.2-7g.
Used in an amount of / m ² . Specific examples of the heat-fusible substance include fatty acid amide and N-substituted fatty acid amide.

The heat-sensitive recording material can be coated using a suitable binder, and various binders such as polyvinyl alcohol and methyl cellulose can be used as the binder. The amount used is solid content of 0.5 to 59 / m ² .

In the above-mentioned recording material, at least one of the diazo compound, the coupling component, the basic substance, and the color-forming aid is dissolved or dispersed in an organic solvent and then microencapsulated. The remaining reactive substances are dispersed as a solid or as an aqueous solution and mixed with the above-mentioned microcapsule dispersion to form a coating solution, which is bar-coated, blade-coated, air-knife coated, etc. on a support such as paper or synthetic resin film. The coating is dried by the coating method described above to form a heat-sensitive layer having a solid content of 2.5 to 15 g / m ² .
As another method, a layered structure in which a microcapsule layer containing a reactive substance and an organic solvent and a layer containing the remaining reactive substance are laminated is provided. Further, paper can be used particularly advantageously as a support for the heat-sensitive recording material, but applications such as kaolin, talc, and alumina may be used with polyvinyl alcohol, gelatin, carboxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hydroxypyropyrcellulose synthetic resin latex. You may use the paper which apply | coated and dried the liquid disperse | distributed in it.

The heat-sensitive recording material described above can be used as printer paper for facsimiles and electronic computers that require high-speed recording. In this case, unlike ordinary facsimiles and printers, it is necessary to have an exposure zone for photolysis, but various light sources that emit light of a desired wavelength can be used as the light source for photolysis. , Eg fluorescent lamps, fluorescent lamps used in wet diazo copy, fluorescent lamps used in electrostatography, xenon lamps, xenon flash lamps, low or medium or high or ultra high pressure mercury lamps,
Various light sources such as photographic flash and strobe can be used. Further, in order to make the optical fixing zone compact, the light source section and the exposure section may be separated by using an optical fiber.

In the present invention, the first heat-sensitive recording material as described above is used.
A color image is recorded using a recording device as shown in FIGS. That is, the thermosensitive recording material 1 cut into a predetermined size is accumulated and stored in the stocker 2, and is taken out one by one from the bottom of the stocker 2 by the conveying mechanism 3 and conveyed to the recording section. The heat-sensitive recording material 1A that has been conveyed is conveyed to the accumulation box 4 by the conveyance mechanism 10 including a belt 12 wound around a plurality of rollers 11. Then, in order to develop three colors of yellow (Y), cyan (C), and magenta (M) on the horizontal portion of the upper side of the belt 12 of the transport mechanism 10, aligned linear thermal heads 21, 22 and 23 are arranged in order, and downstream of each of these thermal heads 21 to 23,
Light source units 31, 32, and 33 for irradiating light rays having different wavelengths and performing color separation are provided so as to block external light.Each of the light source units 31 to 33 emits light at a predetermined frequency. Light sources 34, 35, and 36 are provided. Further, FIG. 2 shows the control system,
The CPU 40 that controls the entire system is connected to the R via the system bus CB.
The OM41 and RAM42 are connected, and the transport mechanisms 3 and 10
The conveyance control unit 43 for controlling the image signal PS
Via the input interface 43, the buffer memory 4 for each YCM
6Y, 46C and 46M are input and stored. These buffer memories 46Y to 46M are controlled by the memory control unit 44, and the interface 43 and the memory control unit are controlled.
44 is controlled by the CPU 40. A light source controller 45 is connected to the system bus CB, and the light sources 34 in the light source units 31 to 33 are
It is designed to control ON / OFF of each ~ 36.
The U40 further controls the thermal head control units 47Y, 47C and 47M, and sends a predetermined signal to the thermal heads 21, 22 and 23 based on the data stored in the buffer memories 46Y, 46C and 46M, respectively. There is.

In such a constitution, the thermosensitive recording material 1 is provided with the thermochromic element for thermally coloring the diazo compound and the coupling component on the support as described above, and the thermochromic element is exposed to a plurality of heats having different temperatures or the same temperature. A color is developed and the diazo compound is decomposed by a plurality of light rays having different wavelengths. Here, the image signal PS is color-separated via the input interface 43, and is stored in the YCM buffer memories 46Y to 46M corresponding to each color via the memory control unit 44. Also U
Reference numeral 40 indicates that the thermosensitive recording materials 1 are taken out one by one from the stocker 2 via the conveyance control unit 43, conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 3 to the recording unit, and the conveyance by the conveyance mechanism 10 connected thereto is controlled. And the thermal head
21 to 23 are on / off controlled as shown in FIG. then,
The light sources 34 to 36 are turned on via the control unit 45. That is, when the thermal recording material 1 is conveyed to the conveying mechanism 10.
At t0, the light sources 34 to 36 have already been turned on, the thermal head 21 is turned on at time t0, and the data in the buffer memory 46Y corresponding to the image signal PS is transferred onto the thermal recording material 1A via the thermal head controller 47Y. Recording is performed, and this recording is continued until time t2 at which the recording material finishes passing through the thermal head 21. At the same time, the thermal head 22 is turned on from the time t1 when the thermal recording material 1A reaches the thermal head 22, and similarly the data in the buffer memory 46C is recorded via the thermal head controller 47C. It continues until the time point t3 when it finishes passing the head 22. Similarly, the thermal head 23
Recording is continued from time t2 to time t4, and the recording operation for one thermal recording material 1A is completed. Since the thermosensitive recording material 1 is sequentially conveyed one by one by the conveying mechanism 3, the recording operation for the next thermosensitive recording material 1A is started at time t4.
The same three-color recording operation as described above is completed at time t8, and such a recording operation is sequentially repeated. In this case, the light source control unit 45 has already been turned on at the start of the recording operation via the CPU 40, and the light sources 34 to 36 provided therein emit light at a predetermined frequency, and the light source unit 31 to
The diazo compound is decomposed by the light sources having different wavelengths with respect to the thermosensitive recording material 1A passing below 33. That is, when passing below the light source unit 31, the color of yellow recorded by the thermal head 21 is separated, and when passing below the light source unit 32, the color of cyan recorded by the thermal head 22 is separated. When passing under the light source unit 33, the color of magenta recorded by the thermal head 23 is decomposed, and when passing through the transport mechanism 10, all three colors of YCM are decomposed, and the thermal recording material 1A A color image will be recorded on top. In this way, the thermal recording paper (color image recording paper) on which the color image corresponding to the image signal PS is copied is accumulated in the accumulating box 4.

On the other hand, FIGS. 4 (A) and 4 (B) show another embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the thermosensitive recording material 1 conveyed by the conveying mechanism 3 is arcuate on the rotary drum 50. The thermal heads 21 to 23 and the light source units 31 to 33 are arranged in the middle of the rotary drum 50. Conveyor belts 51 and 52 wound around the roller 2 are arranged at both ends of the rotary drum 50, and the thermosensitive recording material 1A is fed between the belts 51 and 52 and the rotary drum 50, and between them. The heat-sensitive recording material is conveyed by the holding force as the rotary drum 50 rotates. A transport mechanism 5 is provided near the rotary drum 50, which is the end portion of the belts 51 and 52, and the thermal recording material recorded and transported on the rotary drum 50 is separated by the transport mechanism 5 and accumulated. It is designed to be discharged into the box 4 and accumulated. Thermal head in this case
The control of 21 to 23 and the control of the light sources 34 to 36 are exactly the same as the above cases.

In addition, although the recording method for three colors of YCM has been described in each of the above-described embodiments, the number of colors to be recorded is not limited to three, and one color, two colors, or three or more color hard copies. It is also possible to record.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the thermosensitive recording apparatus of the present invention, a thermochromic element for thermally coloring the diazo compound and the coupling component is provided on the support, and the thermochromic element has a plurality of heats of different temperatures or A color image can be hard-copied to a heat-sensitive recording material that develops color at the same temperature and is decomposed by a plurality of electromagnetic rays having different wavelengths.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 (A) is a side structural view showing an embodiment of the present invention,
2B is a plan view of the structure, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the control system of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a timing chart showing an example of its operation, and FIG. FIG. 3B is a side structural view showing another embodiment, and FIG. 1 ... Thermal recording material, 2 ... Stocker, 3, 10, 5 ... Conveying mechanism, 4 ... Stacking box, 21-23 ... Thermal head, 31-
33 …… Light source unit, 34 to 36 …… Light source, 40 …… CPU, 41
...... ROM, 42 ...... RAM, 43 …… Transport controller, 44 …… Memory controller.

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification code Office reference number FI technical display location B41M 5/28 9305-2C B41J 3/20 109 Z 8403-2C 3/00 B

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A diazo compound and a coupling component are provided with a thermochromic element on which a thermochromic coloring is provided on a support, and the thermochromic element develops color by a plurality of heats having different temperatures or the same temperature. In a recording device for a heat-sensitive recording material which is decomposed by a plurality of electromagnetic rays having different wavelengths, a plurality of heat-sensitive heads for operating the thermochromic elements, and a plurality of heat-sensitive heads provided downstream of the heat-sensitive heads for performing the decomposition A heat-sensitive recording apparatus comprising a plurality of light sources, wherein each color is developed by the heat-sensitive recording material to obtain a color image. 2. The thermal recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the thermal recording material is transported horizontally, and the thermal heads and the light sources are provided along the transportation direction. 3. The heat-sensitive recording according to claim 1, wherein the heat-sensitive recording material is conveyed by rotation of a rotary drum, and the respective heat-sensitive heads and light sources are provided along a conveying direction of the rotary drum. apparatus. 4. A thermochromic element for thermally coloring a diazo compound and a coupling component is provided on a support, and the thermochromic element develops color by a plurality of heats having different temperatures or at the same temperature. In a recording device for a heat-sensitive recording material, which is encapsulated in microcapsules and in which the diazo compound is decomposed by a plurality of electromagnetic rays having different wavelengths, a plurality of heat-sensitive heads for operating the thermochromic elements, and the decomposition A thermal recording apparatus comprising: a plurality of light sources provided on the downstream side of the thermal head for performing the above-mentioned operation, wherein each color is developed by the thermal recording material to obtain a color image. 5. The thermal recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the thermal recording material is transported horizontally, and each thermal head and each light source are provided along the transportation direction. 6. The heat-sensitive recording according to claim 4, wherein the heat-sensitive recording material is conveyed by rotation of a rotating drum, and each of the heat-sensitive heads and each of the light sources are provided along a conveying direction of the rotating drum. apparatus.