JPH07112584A - Washing device of reversible thermal recording material - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To wash off the contaminant having strong bonding force such as oils and fats bonded to a reversible thermal recording material by providing a hot water immersion part and a dry wipe-off part to the feed path of an object to be washed. CONSTITUTION:A reversible thermal recording card 1 is introduced into a washing device by a supply roll 7 and, at first, hot water is supplied to the surface of the card l in a hot water immersion part. The hot water immersion part is constituted of a hot water tank 3 and a roll 5 whose surface is composed of a water absorbable material and the roll 5 is provided at the position partially immersed in the hot water of the hot water tank 3. Next, the card 1 passed through the hot water immersion part is supplied to a scraping roll 9 and the contaminant whose bonding strength to the surface of the card 1 is weaked by the immersion of the card in hot water is removed by the scraping roll 9 and, further, the contaminant not removed by the scraping roll 9 is removed by a next blade 10. Subsequently, the card 1 is fed to a dry wipe-off part revolved in the feed direction by a belt 2 composed of a fiber fabric by a feed roll 6 and the contaminant not removed by the scraping roll 9 and the blade 10 is wiped off by the fiber fabric.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a reversible heat-sensitive recording material cleaning apparatus capable of repeatedly recording and erasing by reversibly changing transparency with temperature.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A reversible thermosensitive recording material formed by dispersing an organic low molecular weight substance such as a higher fatty acid in a resin matrix such as a vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer makes it easy to form and erase images. Since it can be carried out in recent years, it has come to be noticed in recent years, and it is becoming popular as a prepaid card or the like.

When the reversible heat-sensitive recording material is repeatedly used as, for example, a card for passengers, the surface of the reversible heat-sensitive recording material is damaged by heat and pressure of the thermal head, stains in the apparatus, sebum, etc. Dirt, accurate recording and erasing will not be performed.

As a countermeasure against such stains, for example, a cleaning box detachably connected to the main body of the apparatus is provided at a specific position and the card surface is cleaned with a brush (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-296981 etc.), or a direct cleaning method is used. Although the effect is not expected, there is a method of erasing an image by immersing a reversible thermosensitive recording material in a hot water bath and heating it (JP-A-57-89992).

[0005]

However, these devices and methods have a strong adhesive property such as oil, grease, and sebum, and those that are detached and suspended in hot water even if hot water is used. It is difficult to clean it by causing secondary stains, and even by wiping with a brush or the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to obtain a cleaning apparatus for removing stains of reversible thermosensitive recording materials caused by repeated use and cleaning them without causing the above problems. To do.

[0007]

According to the present invention, firstly, a reversible thermosensitive recording material cleaning method is characterized in that at least a hot and cold water immersion portion and a dry wiping portion are provided in a conveyance path of an object to be cleaned. A device is provided. Secondly, the hot and cold water immersion portion comprises a hot and cold water tank and a roll whose surface is made of a water absorbing material, and the roll is provided at a position where it is partially dipped below the liquid surface of the hot and cold water tank. An apparatus for cleaning a thermal recording material is provided. Thirdly, there is provided a cleaning device for reversible thermosensitive recording material, characterized in that the dry wiping part is composed of a roll around a belt made of a fiber cloth or a roll around which a fiber cloth is wound.

[0008]

In the first cleaning device, since the dry wiping part is provided after the hot and cold water immersion part in the conveyance path of the object to be cleaned, dirt such as fats and oils which is removed by the hot and cold water and causes secondary dirt It can be cleaned with a dry wipe.
Further, in the second cleaning device, since the hot and cold water immersion portion is composed of a hot and cold water tank and a roll whose surface is made of a water absorbent material such as sponge, it is necessary to supply sufficient hot and cold water from the roll surface to the surface of the reversible thermosensitive recording material. You can Further, in the third cleaning device, the reversible heat-sensitive recording material surface is wiped by a roll having a belt made of a fiber cloth or a roll wound with a fiber cloth at the dry wiping part. Sufficient dirt removal effect is obtained. In this case, the wiping effect can be further improved by selectively using the ultrafine fiber cloth.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of an example of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 is a reversible thermosensitive recording card produced by the following prescription and repeatedly recorded and erased. The card 1 is introduced into the apparatus by a paper feed roll 7, and hot water is first supplied to the surface of the card in a hot and cold water immersion portion. 3 is a hot and cold water tank, in which hot water controlled at 60 to 80 ° C. is circulated from the outside of the tank to the inside of the tank by a circulation device provided outside the tank. 4 is a heater and 8 is a pump. Reference numeral 5 denotes a sponge roll provided at a position where it is immersed in hot water in the tank. Due to the water absorption of the sponge roll 5, sufficient hot water is given to the surface of the card. Next, the card 1 that has passed through the hot water dipping portion is weakly adhered to the surface by dipping hot water, and the dirt attached to it is scraped off and removed by the roll 9, and then the next blade (made of polyurethane).
By 10, the dirt that cannot be removed by the scraping roll 9 is removed. The card 1 is then conveyed to the dry wiping section by the conveyance roll 6. Reference numeral 2 is a belt made of fiber cloth, which is suspended between rolls and rotates in the card transport direction. Scraping roll 9
Dirt that cannot be removed by the blade 10 is wiped dry by the fiber cloth 2 and effectively cleaned.

<Card prescription and cleaning test> About 100μ
Liquid consisting of behenic acid 6 parts eicosic acid 4 parts diallyl phthalate 2 parts vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate-phosphate ester copolymer (Denka vinyl # 1000MT manufactured by Denki Kagaku Kogyo KK) 20 parts tetrahydrofuran 150 parts on m thick polyester film Was applied and dried by heating to provide a reversible thermosensitive recording layer having a thickness of about 10 μm.

The reversible thermosensitive recording card thus obtained is printed by a thermal head and is repeatedly erased by a heat block so that the card is contaminated by repeating the printing and erasing a number of times. Mechanical oil was intentionally attached to the. When the card contaminated as described above was washed by applying it to the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, the dirt on the card was sufficiently cleaned.

In the above, the hot water may be supplied to the card surface not only by the sponge roll but also by a wet cloth or a wet brush. Further, for the dry wiping, rubber other than fiber cloth can be used.

The cleaning apparatus according to the present invention is preferably installed as a part of the above-described printing / erasing repeating system. In the example of FIG. 1 as well, the card outlet (after the dry wiping portion).
By providing an erasing unit such as a heat block on the card, the card can be kept clean when the erasing machine is moved after cleaning, and the system can be simplified repeatedly.

FIG. 2 shows another example of the cleaning apparatus according to the present invention. In this example, the fiber cloth belt of the dry-wiping part is provided on the upper side of the transport path, and the fiber cloth wound in a roll shape on the lower side of the transport path (Kanebo super cloth) is unrolled,
Carry it so that it can contact the card twice, and
So that the surface can be wiped once. After the fiber cloth 2 is used several times, it is reused after being shifted by several millimeters.

FIG. 3 shows a further example of the cleaning apparatus according to the present invention, in which hot and cold water controlled at 60 to 80 ° C. is supplied to the card surface by using a fiber cloth instead of a sponge roll. In this case, the device can be downsized.

FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 show an example in which the main transport roll 6 or the transport belt 6 is brought into contact with the fiber cloth 2 as shown in FIG.
In the case of FIG. 4, the diffusion of dirt on the card is small, the cleaning efficiency is good, and the cleaning speed is increased. In the case of FIG. 5, when a card having a thickness of 100 μm is used and the cleaning pressure is set to 500 to 1000 g / cm ² , it can be wiped three times or more to be washed.

[0017]

As described above, according to the cleaning apparatus provided with the hot and cold water immersion portion and the dry wiping portion of the present invention, dirt having a strong adhesive force such as oil and fat adhered to the reversible thermosensitive recording material is washed and removed by the effect of dry wiping. can do. In addition, the removal of stains facilitates printing and erasing.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an example of a cleaning device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of another example of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of still another example of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a part of a modified example of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a part of another modification of the cleaning apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Reversible Thermosensitive Recording Card 2 Fiber Cloth 3 Hot Water Tank 4 Heater 5 Sponge Roll 6 Conveyor Roll or Conveyor Belt 7 Paper Feed Roll 8 Pump 9 Scraping Roll 10 Blade

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code Internal reference number FI Technical display location B42D 15/10 551 Z // B41J 29/17 B65H 7/00 Z 9037-3F 6956-2H B41M 5 / 18 101 A B41J 29/00 J

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A cleaning device for a reversible thermosensitive recording material, characterized in that at least a hot and cold water immersion portion and a dry wiping portion are provided in a conveyance path of an object to be cleaned. 2. The hot and cold water immersion portion comprises a hot and cold water tank and a roll whose surface is made of a water-absorbent material, and the roll is provided at a position where it is partially dipped below the liquid surface of the hot and cold water tank. 1. The reversible thermosensitive recording material cleaning device according to 1. 3. The cleaning device for reversible thermosensitive recording material according to claim 1, wherein the dry-wiping part is composed of a roll on which a belt made of a fiber cloth is wound or a roll on which the fiber cloth is wound.