JPH08175034A - Thermal transfer image receiving sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain a thermal transfer image receiving sheet capable of easily imparting a desired image to the surface of an article having an arbitrary shape and an arbitrary surface shape and capable of integrating an image with an article to be decorated by providing an image receiving layer on one surface of a transparent film. CONSTITUTION: A thermal transfer image receiving sheet 10 is fundamentally constituted by providing an image receiving layer 2 on one surface of an arbitrary transparent film 1 and further providing a release layer 3 on the surface of the image receiving layer 2. The release layer 3 prevents the thermal sticking of the thermal transfer image receiving sheet 10 and the image receiving layer 2 when a sublimable dye is transferred from the thermal transfer image receiving sheet 10 to form an image on the image receiving layer 2. Further, an intermediate layer 4 is provided between the image receiving layer 2 and the transparent film 1. Herein, the intermediate layer 4 has function making the formation of an image sufficient when the sublimable dye is transferred to the image receiving layer 2 from the thermal transfer image receiving sheet 10 to form an image and, for example, is composed of a cushion layer or a heat insulating layer.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a heat-transferable sheet, and more particularly to a heat-transferable sheet, which can form an arbitrary image with a sublimable dye (heat transfer dye) and paste the formed image on an arbitrary article. Provided is a heat transferable sheet that can be attached.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a method of thermal transfer (sublimation transfer) of a cloth with a sublimable dye has been performed for a long time, and this method forms a dye pattern layer carrying a sublimable dye on a transparent film and It is a method of forming an image on a cloth by superposing it on the cloth and heating it to transfer the dye to the cloth. Utilizing this technology, in combination with the recent development of image technology such as precision thermal printers, various kinds of precise image forming methods have been proposed on a plastic film from a thermal transfer sheet having a sublimable dye so as not to be inferior to a photograph. . According to this recent method, for example, a camera, an image, a television image or a graphic image of a personal computer can be easily made into a hard copy on a transparent film such as a paper having a polyester layer. It has reached a level sufficient to compete with precision printing technology.

[0003]

The thermal transfer technique as described above has an advantage that any image can be easily formed, but the thermal transfer sheet is limited to a material such as polyester which can be dyed with a sublimable dye. There is a problem that
On the other hand, the transferred article is limited in shape to a sheet-like material such as a film-like or sheet-like material.
An image cannot be formed on glass, ceramics, and the like. Further, even if plastics such as polyester are used, their image forming surfaces are curved, uneven, or even planar. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to form an image on a three-dimensional molded article other than the sheet-shaped article.

In particular, as the types and fields of use of various cards such as cash cards have expanded in recent years, it is necessary to add images and symbols to these cards to give them various functions and decorations. These cards are flat, but have no flexibility, or have irregularities such as characters and symbols, so that it is difficult to give images to these cards by the above-described thermal transfer method. Therefore, it is possible to easily provide a desired image on the surface of an article made of an arbitrary material and having an arbitrary shape and an arbitrary surface shape, and to integrate the image with the article to be decorated. Development is required.

[0005]

That is, the present invention is a heat-transferable sheet characterized in that an image receiving layer is provided on one surface of a transparent film.

[0006]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, which schematically show embodiments. FIG.
[Fig. 3] is a diagram schematically showing a basic form of the heat-transferable sheet of the present invention, and Figs. 2 to 3 are diagrams showing preferred embodiments of the heat-transferable sheet of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the basic structure of the heat transferable sheet 10 of the present invention is characterized in that an image receiving layer 2 is provided on one surface of an arbitrary transparent film 1. By configuring the thermal transfer sheet of the present invention as described above, a desired image is formed on the image receiving layer 2 by the thermal transfer sheet having a sublimable dye, and then the thermal transfer sheet having the image is attached to any decorative article. By adhering to any of these articles by any means so as to face the attaching surface, the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art are basically solved.

That is, the image receiving layer 2 in the above is limited to a material which can be dyed with a sublimable dye, but the image-formed heat-transferable sheet is turned over, and the image-transferred sheet is made to correspond to the material of the article to be decorated. Depending on the bonding method, glass, metal, wood, or even plastic materials that are difficult to dye with sublimable dyes can be freely bonded.
Further, since such an image has sufficient flexibility, it is possible to sufficiently follow the surface shape of the article to be decorated even if the surface shape of the article is a curved surface or an uneven surface. Attachment is not limited by the surface shape of the article.

Further, since the surface of the image adhered in this way is covered with a transparent film, no further measures are required and sufficient abrasion resistance, water resistance, chemical resistance, etc. are obtained. Will have. FIG. 2 shows a preferred example of the thermal transfer sheet 10 of the present invention, in which a release layer 3 is provided on the surface of the image receiving layer 2. The release layer 3 is provided to transfer the sublimable dye from a thermal transfer sheet (not shown) to prevent the thermal transfer sheet and the image receiving layer 2 from sticking to each other when the image is formed on the image receiving layer 3. It is not necessary when such adhesion does not occur or when such a release layer is provided on the surface of the thermal transfer sheet.

The example shown in FIG. 3 shows another preferable example of the heat transferable sheet 10 of the present invention, in which an intermediate layer 4 is provided between the image receiving layer 2 and the transparent film 1. The intermediate layer 4 referred to here is a layer for sufficiently forming an image when an image is formed by transferring a sublimable dye from the thermal transfer sheet to the image receiving layer 2, and is, for example, a cushion layer or a heat insulating layer. . For example, by providing a layer having a cushioning property as the intermediate layer 4, the adhesiveness between the thermal transfer sheet and the image receiving layer 2 is improved, and the transfer of the sublimable dye at the time of image formation by the thermal head is made uniform, so that an image signal is obtained. A sufficiently compatible image can be formed.

Further, by forming the intermediate layer 4 from a material having a heat insulating property as a heat insulating layer, it is possible to prevent the heat from being released when transferring the sublimable dye from the thermal transfer sheet to the image receiving layer 2. Utilization efficiency is improved and formation of a sufficient image is promoted. Of course, these cushion layers or heat insulating layers may be separately provided simultaneously in any order. Such an intermediate layer is formed by the thermal transfer sheet of the present invention after image formation.
Since it is inverted and attached to the article to be decorated, it is necessary to be substantially transparent since it comes outside the image-receiving layer having an image after the attachment. The main configuration of the heat transfer sheet of the present invention has been described above, and various embodiments other than the preferable examples described above are obvious to those skilled in the art, and these obvious embodiments are naturally included in the present invention.

Next, a method of decorating an article using the above-mentioned thermal transfer sheet will be described. As a basic mode, the method illustrated in FIGS. The example shown in FIG. 4 utilizes the thermal transfer sheet shown in FIG. 1. First, a conventionally known thermal transfer sheet 2 using a sublimable dye as a recording agent is first of all used.
0 on the heat transfer sheet 10 so that the dye carrying layer 21 of the heat transfer sheet faces the image receiving layer 2 of the heat transfer sheet 10, and either side of the heat transfer sheet 20 or the heat transfer sheet 10, preferably the heat transfer sheet 20. A desired image 5 is formed on the image receiving layer 2 by applying heat energy (arrow) according to the image signal from the side in accordance with the image signal. Next, the heat-transferred sheet having the image thus formed is placed so as to face the article to be decorated 30, and is adhered to the article to be decorated 30 by an appropriate adhesive means (FIG. 5).
This completes the decoration method.

Further, since the image-receiving layer 2 is generally formed of a thermoplastic resin which can be dyed with a sublimable dye, it does not require any adhesive agent and can be directly applied to plastic moldings, cloths, metals and other materials. It is also possible to fuse them. Although the decoration method using the heat transfer sheet of the present invention has been described above with reference to a basic example, the decoration method can be similarly performed using the heat transfer sheet of the present invention illustrated in FIG.

Next, the present invention will be described in more detail in terms of the materials and the method of constituting the heat transferable sheet of the present invention as described above. The transparent film, which is transparent to the extent that it does not hide the image formed in the image receiving layer, and has excellent surface properties such as abrasion resistance, for example, polyolefin, polyvinyl chloride, polyethylene terephthalate, polystyrene, Films of various plastics such as polymethacrylate and polycarbonate, or those whose surface is variously treated can be used. If such a transparent film is too thick, the image will be raised when it is attached to an article and the feeling of unity with the article will be lost. Therefore, for example, a film having a thickness of about 0.5 to 50 μm is preferable.

The material constituting the image-receiving layer is for receiving a sublimable dye, for example, a sublimable disperse dye, which migrates from the thermal transfer sheet, and maintaining the image formed by the reception. For example, the synthetic resins (a) to (e) are used alone or in combination of two or more. (A) Those having an ester bond. Polyester resin, polyacrylic ester resin, polycarbonate resin, polyvinyl acetate resin, styrene acrylate resin, vinyl toluene acrylate resin, etc. (B) Those having a urethane bond. Polyurethane resin and the like. (C) Those having an amide bond. Polyamide resin (nylon). (D) Those having a urea bond. Urea resin etc. (E) Others having a highly polar bond. Polycaprolactone resin, polystyrene resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, polyacrylonitrile resin, etc.

The image receiving layer is composed of a mixed resin of saturated polyester and vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer. As the saturated polyester, for example, Byron 20
0, Byron 290, Byron 600, etc. (all manufactured by Toyobo), KA-1038C (Arakawa Chemical), TP220,
TP235 (above, manufactured by Nippon Gosei) or the like is used. The vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer has a vinyl chloride content of 8
Those having 5 to 97% by weight and a degree of polymerization of about 200 to 800 are preferred. The vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer is not limited to the case where it is a copolymer of only a vinyl chloride component and a vinyl acetate component, and contains a vinyl alcohol component, a maleic acid component, etc. within a range not hindering the object of the present invention. May be

The image-receiving layer may also be composed of a polystyrene resin, for example, a polystyrene resin composed of a styrene monomer such as styrene, α-methylstyrene or vinyltoluene homopolymer or copolymer,
Alternatively, a styrene copolymer resin which is a copolymer of the styrene monomer and another monomer, for example, an acrylic or methacrylic monomer such as an acrylic ester, a methacrylic ester, acrylonitrile, methacrylonitrile, or maleic anhydride is used. Can be mentioned. Among the above synthetic resins, polyester resins are particularly preferred.

In any of the above embodiments, the whiteness of the image receiving layer is improved to further improve the sharpness of the transferred image, at the same time the writing property is imparted to the surface of the heat transfer sheet, and the retransfer of the transferred image is prevented. A white pigment can be added to the image-receiving layer for the purpose. As the white pigment, titanium oxide, zinc oxide, kaolin clay, calcium carbonate, fine powder silica and the like are used, and as described above, two or more kinds thereof can be mixed and used. Further, in order to further enhance the light resistance of the transferred image, an ultraviolet absorber and / or a light stabilizer can be added to the image receiving layer. The amounts of these ultraviolet absorbers and light stabilizers are preferably 0.05 to 10 parts by weight and 0.5 to 3 parts by weight, respectively, based on 100 parts by weight of the resin constituting the image receiving layer.

In order to improve the releasability of the heat transfer sheet and the releasability of the image receiving layer and the transparent film, the heat transferable sheet of the present invention has a release layer on one side or both sides of the image receiving layer. A release agent can be formed in the image-receiving layer instead of the formation. Solid waxes such as polyethylene wax, amide wax, and Teflon powder as release agents; fluorine-based and phosphoric acid ester-based surfactants;
Although silicone oil and the like can be mentioned, silicone oil is preferable. As the silicone oil, an oily one can be used, but a curable type is preferred. Examples of the curable silicone oil include a reaction curable type, a photocurable type, and a catalyst curable type, and a reaction curable type silicone oil is particularly preferable.

As the reaction-curable silicone oil,
Those obtained by reacting and curing an amino-modified silicone oil and an epoxy-modified silicone oil are preferable, and examples of the amino-modified silicone oil include KF-393 and KF-85.
7, KF-858, X-22-3680, X-22-3
810C (above, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.), and KF-1 as an epoxy-modified silicone oil.
00T, KF-101, KF-60-164, KF-1
03 (above, manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) and the like.

The catalyst-curable or photocurable silicone oil is KS-705F, KS-770 (catalyst-curable silicone oil: Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.).
), KS-720, KS-774 (above, photocurable silicone oil: manufactured by Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) and the like. The addition amount of these curable silicone oils is preferably 0.5 to 30% by weight of the resin constituting the image receiving layer. or,
The release layer may be provided on a part of the surface of the image receiving layer by dissolving or dispersing the above release agent in an appropriate solvent and applying the resultant, followed by drying. As the release agent constituting the release layer, a reaction curing type of the above-mentioned amino-modified silicone oil and epoxy-modified silicone oil is particularly preferable. The thickness of the release layer is 0.01 to 5 μm, especially 0.05 to
2 μm is preferable.

If silicone oil is added to form the image-receiving layer, the silicone oil bleeds to the surface after application, so that the release layer may be formed by bleeding and curing. I can. The image receiving layer is formed by using a composition for forming an image receiving layer obtained by dissolving or dispersing a material for forming an image receiving layer on a transparent film,
In addition to the known coating or printing method, the image receiving layer may be once formed on a temporary carrier different from the transparent film and then transferred onto the transparent film again. A sheet whose surface is releasable is used as the temporary carrier. For example, (1) an undercoat layer on a surface of cellulose fiber paper or synthetic paper followed by a release silicone layer, and (2) a polyolefin resin or polyester resin on the surface of the cellulose fiber paper by extrusion. It is coated or (3) a plastic film such as a polyester film having a release silicone layer on the surface.

An image-receiving layer is formed on the temporary carrier in the same manner as on the transparent film, and then an adhesive layer is formed if necessary. This adhesive layer is for ensuring the adhesive force between the transparent film and the image receiving layer when the image receiving layer is transferred onto the transparent film. In this method, another layer, for example, an intermediate layer for imparting cushioning properties or the like may be formed on the temporary carrier, and the intermediate layer and the image receiving layer may be transferred at one time on the transparent film. . When the intermediate layer also serves as the adhesive layer, the adhesive layer may not be formed on the temporary carrier. In any case, since the adhesive layer may be interposed between the transparent film and the uppermost layer on the temporary carrier, the adhesive layer is formed on the transparent film and the temporary carrier is not formed on the temporary carrier. The image receiving layer alone or the image receiving layer and the intermediate layer may be sequentially formed and transferred.

When the method of once forming the image receiving layer on the temporary carrier and forming it on the transparent film by the transfer method is adopted, the surface of the image receiving layer formed on the transparent film is
Since the surface condition of the temporary carrier is transferred, the smoothness is very excellent, and the image-receiving layer formed directly on the transparent film is inferior in smoothness to that obtained by the transfer method. If you want to obtain clear and precise images, the transfer method is recommended. Any adhesive can be used as long as it can bond the image-receiving layer and the transparent film, and is polyester-based, polyacrylic ester-based, polyurethane-based, polyvinyl chloride-based, polyolefin-based, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer, synthetic rubber-based Organic solvent solutions or emulsions such as The adhesive may be a heat bonding type or a room temperature adhesive type. In the case of the heat-bonding type, heat-bonding with a hot-melt type adhesive such as wax, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer resin, polyolefin, or petroleum resin, or sandwich lamination using an extrusion film such as a polyolefin film may be used.

A double-sided tape may be used as an adhesive layer which also serves as an intermediate layer. The double-sided tape is obtained by impregnating and drying an acrylic adhesive or the like in rayon paper. The dried double-sided tape has fine pores and is considered to play a role equivalent to a foamed layer. The intermediate layer may be either cushioning or porous depending on the constituent material, or may also serve as an adhesive layer in some cases. The cushioning layer is J
This is mainly a resin having a 100% modulus of 100 kg / cm ² or less defined in IS-K-6301, wherein the 100% modulus is 100 kg / cm.
^When it exceeds ² , the rigidity is too high, so that even if the intermediate layer is formed using such a resin, sufficient adhesion between the thermal transfer sheet and the image receiving layer during printing cannot be maintained. Further, the lower limit of 100 modulus is practically about 0.5 kg / cm ² .

The resins which meet the above conditions include the following: polyurethane resin, polyester resin, polybutadiene resin, polyacrylic ester resin, epoxy resin, polyamide resin, rosin-modified phenol resin, terpene phenol resin, Ethylene / vinyl acetate copolymer resin, etc.
The above resins can be used alone or as a mixture of two or more, but since the above resins have a relatively adhesive property, when there is a problem during processing, an inorganic additive such as, for example, , Silica, alumina, clay, calcium carbonate, etc.,
Alternatively, an amide-based substance such as stearic acid amide may be added.

The cushioning layer is prepared by kneading the above resin with other additives, if necessary, together with a solvent, a diluent or the like to prepare a paint or an ink, and drying it as a coating film by a known coating method or printing method. Can be formed by
Its thickness is 0.5 to 50 μm, more preferably 2 to 20.
It is about μm. If the thickness is less than 0.5 μm, the roughness of the surface of the provided transparent film cannot be completely absorbed, and thus there is no effect. On the contrary, if it exceeds 50 μm, the effect is not improved and the image receiving layer becomes too thick. It becomes a hindrance when projecting, winding up or stacking, and it is not economical. When such an intermediate layer is formed, it is considered that the adhesion between the thermal transfer sheet and the thermal transfer sheet is improved because the intermediate layer itself has low rigidity and therefore is deformed by pressure during printing. It is presumed that such resins usually have a low glass transition point and a softening point, and that the thermal energy applied at the time of printing lowers the rigidity further than at room temperature and makes it easier to deform. It

The porous layer is 1) a layer in which a synthetic resin emulsion such as polyurethane or a synthetic rubber latex such as methylmethacrylate-butadiene is foamed by mechanical stirring and applied on a transparent film and dried. The synthetic resin emulsion, a layer in which a liquid obtained by mixing a foaming agent with the synthetic rubber latex is applied on a transparent film and dried,
3) Synthetic resin such as vinyl chloride plastisol or polyurethane, or synthetic rubber such as styrene-butadiene based rubber mixed with a foaming agent, applied on a transparent film and heated to foam the layer 4) Thermoplastic resin or synthetic A solution prepared by dissolving rubber in an organic solvent is a non-solvent that is less likely to evaporate than the organic solvent, has compatibility with the organic solvent, and has no solubility with respect to the thermoplastic resin or the synthetic rubber (such as water. A microporous layer or the like formed by coating a mixed solution of the main component) on a transparent film and drying it to form a microscopically aggregated film is used.

Since the layers 1) to 3) have large air bubbles, when the solution for forming the image receiving layer is applied onto the layer and dried, the surface of the image receiving layer formed by drying is uneven. May occur. Therefore, in order to obtain the surface of the image receiving layer in which the unevenness is small and an image with high uniformity can be transferred, it is preferable to provide the microporous layer 4) as porous. Examples of the thermoplastic resin used in forming the microporous layer include saturated polyester, polyurethane, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, and cellulose acetopropionate.
Examples of the above-mentioned synthetic rubber that can be used in the same manner include styrene-butadiene type, isoprene type, and urethane type. Further, various organic solvents and non-solvents can be used for forming the microporous layer, and as the organic solvent, a hydrophilic solvent such as methyl ethyl ketone and alcohol is usually used. Is water.

The thickness of the porous layer in the present invention is preferably 3 μm or more, and particularly preferably 5 to 20 μm. When the thickness of the porous layer is less than 3 μm, the cushioning and heat insulating effects are not exhibited. It was mixed up with the explanation,
As described in the method for forming the image receiving layer, the intermediate layer may also serve as the adhesive layer. The above intermediate layer may be provided on the back surface of the heat transferable sheet or on one surface thereof. An antistatic agent may be contained in at least one of the image-receiving layers or on the surface of the image-receiving layer in order to suppress the generation of static electricity during the processing step of the heat-transferable sheet or during running in the printer. As the antistatic agent, a surfactant,
For example, a cationic surfactant (eg, quaternary ammonium salt, polyamine derivative, etc.), an anionic surfactant (eg, alkyl sulfonate, etc.), a zwitterionic surfactant or a nonionic surfactant may be used. Can be mentioned. The antistatic agent may be applied to the surface of the image receiving layer by gravure coating, bar coating, or the like, or may be kneaded into the resin of the image receiving layer and transferred to the surface of the image receiving layer during coating and drying of the image receiving layer. A cationic acrylic polymer can be used as the antistatic agent mixed with the image-receiving layer resin.

The heat-transferable sheet of the present invention may be so formed that it can be recorded on any one surface or both surfaces at least partially by another method. A typical example is to provide a writable layer with a water-based pen or pencil.The writable layer may have the image-receiving layer partially not provided so that the transparent film surface can be used as it is, but an extender pigment. It may be formed by arranging a resin layer containing a.

The above is the constitution of the heat transferable sheet of the present invention. A preferable method for forming a desired image on such a heat transferable sheet is a heat transfer sheet comprising a transparent film and a layer having a sublimable dye. Is the method to use. Both the thermal transfer sheet itself and the transfer method used in this method are known, and these known thermal transfer sheets and transfer methods are all useful in the present invention.
Further, by such a transfer method, both a monochrome image and a full-color image can be easily formed.
For example, a conventionally known thermal transfer sheet is superposed on the thermal transfer sheet of the present invention, and any conventionally known transfer device, for example, a thermal printer (for example, a thermal printer TN-5400 manufactured by Toshiba) is used to 10
By applying a thermal energy of 0 mJ / mm ² , a desired image can be formed in the image receiving layer of the heat transferable sheet of the present invention.

The decorative method using the film on which an image is formed as described above is such that the image surface is pasted to the article to be decorated, and by such a method, the transparent film which is the base material remains as it is. It can be used as a protective layer for images. In the present invention, it is preferable that the image formed for the above-mentioned reason is formed as an image having a mirror surface relationship in advance.

As described above, in the above-described decoration method, both the image forming method and the sticking method for the article to be decorated are conventional except that the specific heat-transferable sheet is used and the image is reversed before being stuck. The method may be a known method, and the article to be decorated which is the object of the above-mentioned decoration method is not particularly limited in its material, shape, etc., and examples thereof include cartons, containers, bags, cassette cases, cassette halves, floppy cases, and packaging. Packages such as paper; stock certificates, checks, bills, securities, certificates, passbooks, boarding tickets, wagon tickets, stamps, stamps, appreciation tickets, etc .; cash cards, credit cards, members' cards, greeting cards, postcards, business cards , Cards such as IC cards; other forms, envelopes, tags, Shiori, calendars, posters, pamphlets, passports, POP supplies, coursesー, display, name plate, keyboard, cosmetics, accessory (clock, lighter), stationery, building materials, radio, TV, speaker, calculator, car instrument panel, emblem, key, clothing, footwear, equipment, office automation equipment, etc. Any material or shape may be used.

[0034]

EXAMPLES Next, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples. In the text, "part" or "%" is based on weight unless otherwise specified. Example 1 A polyester film (thickness: 6 μm) was used as a substrate, a polyester resin-based primer was applied to one side of the substrate and dried, and an image-receiving layer-forming ink having the following composition was further applied thereon, and the weight after drying was 7 g / m. ^It was applied and dried so as to be ² .

Ink for forming image-receiving layer : Polyester resin (Toyobo, Byron 200) 100 parts Amino-modified silicone (KF-393, Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 5 parts Epoxy-modified silicone (X-22-343, Shin-Etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.) 5 parts Solvent (methyl ethyl ketone / toluene / cyclohexanone = 4/2/2) 900 parts After coating and drying the above ink, let it stand for 1 day, then 10
It was heated at a temperature of 0 ° C. for 30 minutes to cause silicone to bleed on the surface to obtain an image receiving layer having a cured silicone layer on the surface.

On the obtained image-receiving layer, a sublimation transfer film having a cyan sublimation dye (molecular weight of 250 or more) supported by a binder resin was superposed, and an electric signal of a cyan component obtained by color-separating a face photograph was obtained. Thermal energy was applied with a thermal head connected to to obtain a cyan image. Next, sublimation transfer is performed in the same manner using a sublimation transfer film using a magenta sublimation dye (molecular weight is 250 or more) and a sublimation transfer film using a yellow sublimation dye (molecular weight is 250 or more), and a full-color face photograph is obtained. And a display image composed of other characters and figures.

The image-receiving layer side of the film on which the display image was formed was superposed on a card substrate made of a white opaque hard vinyl chloride resin sheet having a thickness of 100 μm and pressure-bonded with a heat roller at 200 ° C. A card with the layers laminated was obtained. The surface of this card was entirely smooth and there was no bulge in the image portion. Further, in the accelerated test in which the image of this card was kept in an atmosphere of 40 ° C. for three months, no image disturbance or delamination occurred at all. When a JIS light fastness test was performed using a carbon arc lamp, the results were JIS 4th to 5th grades, showing good performance. It also showed good durability against scratches on the surface.

Example 2 In Example 1, a polyester adhesive was applied to the image surface of the heat transfer sheet having a facial photograph image formed thereon, and the polyester adhesive was attached to the curved surface of the telephone. Following the above, it integrated with a curved surface and gave a feeling of direct image printing without giving a sticking feeling like a sticker.

Example 3 A polyamide adhesive layer having a thickness of 1 μm was formed on the image side of the image-transferred heat transfer sheet in Example 1, and the layer was attached to the outer surface of a glass cup. Without giving the impression, it gave the impression as if printed directly.

[0040]

According to the heat transfer sheet of the present invention as described above,
Conventionally, it was impossible or difficult to form and apply an image.Three-dimensional molded articles, articles having surfaces such as curved surfaces or complicated irregularities, and furthermore, regardless of the material of these articles, were formed with a sublimable dye. Images can be freely added. Further, according to the present invention, unlike the conventional so-called picture stickers, the film having the image according to the present invention is thin, so that even when the film is stuck to the article to be decorated, they are sufficiently integrated and stuck. It does not give a feeling and has excellent aesthetics, function and durability.

[0041]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing a cross section of a heat-transferable sheet of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a cross section of a heat transferable sheet of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a cross section of a heat-transferable sheet of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing formation of an image by a thermal transfer sheet.

FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically showing a decorative state of an article.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: Transparent film 2: Image receiving layer 3: Release layer 4: Intermediate layer 5: Image 6: Adhesive 10: Thermal transfer sheet 20: Thermal transfer sheet 21: Dye carrying layer 30: Decorative article

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A heat-transferable sheet comprising an image receiving layer provided on one surface of a transparent film. 2. The heat-transferable sheet according to claim 1, wherein a release layer is provided on the surface of the image receiving layer. 3. The heat transferable sheet according to claim 1, wherein an intermediate layer is provided between the image receiving layer and the transparent film. 4. The heat transferable sheet according to claim 1, wherein the image receiving layer is formed of a material dyeable with a sublimable dye. 5. The heat-transferable sheet according to claim 1, wherein the image receiving layer is formed of polyester.