JPS60224587A - Transfer-type multicolor thermal recording sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make it possible to make multicolor thermal transfer with little misregister of colors, by a method wherein ink layers with hues varying cyclically are provided for each minute area or each rectangular having a side approximately equal to a side of the minute area. CONSTITUTION:A thermal recording sheet 31 is provided with feeding sprocket holes 31b at regular intervals at both sides thereof. The ink layer 31a is provided between straight lines L, L' provided on the inside of the holes 31b. The sheet 31 wound around a reel 2a with the ink layer 31a on the inside and an ordinary paper 32 wound around a reel 2b are led out in the direction of an arrow B between guide rollers 7a, 7b so that the ink layer 31a is faced to the paper 32, then the paper 32 has sprocket holes fitted to sprockets 6a, and is drawn out in the direction of an arrow B'. The paper and the sheet are brought into contact with each other one time, and printing is conducted while moving the paper and the sheet without any staggering, so that multicolor images with little misregister of colors can be obtained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention applies a heat-fusible or sublimable ink layer applied to one side of a sheet or thin paper with a thickness of several microns to lθμ using a heating element such as a thermal printer, and This relates to transfer-type heat-sensitive sheets that are transferred onto plain paper by melting or sublimation, and in particular ink of different hues on the same sheet. The present invention relates to a transfer type multicolor heat-sensitive sheet (hereinafter abbreviated as a heat-sensitive sheet) in which a layer is formed.

Conventionally, two methods have been announced for heat-sensitive sheets in which ink layers of different hues are formed on the same sheet: uneven coating and streak coating. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the principle of dandan coating, and FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the principle of streak coating. Hereinafter, Dandan painting will first be explained with reference to the drawings.

In Figure #I1, the heat-sensitive sheet 1 is pulled out from the reel 2 and wound onto the winding reel 3, but it has a length a' slightly longer than the medium 1 of the plain paper 4 in the direction indicated by the arrow, which is the winding direction. , ink layers having hues of cyan 1C, magenta IM, and yellow IY are formed periodically. The recording method is to print an ink layer of one hue on a heat-sensitive sheet 1 on plain paper 4.
Place the heat-sensitive sheet l
P3 thermal heater rad 5 in which heat generating elements are arranged at several intervals IIm in a range of width W is moved in the direction of arrow A' which is opposite to the direction of arrow entry which is perpendicular to the direction in which the heat generating elements are arranged. Plain paper 4 medium 1
While moving the area, the ink-coated surface of the heat-sensitive sheet 1 is brought into contact with the plain paper 4 using an image signal, and the ink layer is selectively heated by the heating element group from the opposite surface. Normally, it is transferred to Ja4.

First, if the ink layer of the heat-sensitive sheet l facing the plain paper 4 is magenta IM as shown in the figure, printing in the range of surface Q a x W is completed with magenta IM ink. While slightly moving the thermal head 5 in the direction of the arrow to return it to its original starting position, move the thermal sheet l by a length a' in the direction of the arrow to remove the yellow IY of the ink layer of thermal sheet 1). Strain it so that it faces the plain paper 4 and let it stand still.

Next, while moving the thermal head 5 in the direction of arrow A' by a distance a into the plain paper 4, the group of heating elements is selectively energized and heated using the ll1i image signal, thereby producing magenta IM.
Printing with the yellow IY ink is completed in the range of the area aXW printed with the ink. Similarly, when printing with the cyan IC ink is completed, printing with inks of three different hues is completed in the range of the area mXW of the plain paper 4.

Next, the plain paper 4 is moved by a width W, which is the width of the thermal sheet 1, in the B direction perpendicular to the direction of the arrow entry, and the thermal head 5. The heat-sensitive sheet 1 is moved in the direction indicated by the arrow, and printing is performed on the adjacent area of the area aXW.

Thereafter, the above operations are repeated to print three primary colors on three original surfaces over the entire surface of the plain paper 4.

Next, the streak painting shown in FIG. 2 will be explained.

As shown in Fig. 2, the sushi coating is done by applying yellow 2Y and magenta to the width of -W', parallel to the direction of arrow A, which is the winding direction of heat-sensitive sheet) 1/width W'. 2M,
A cyan 2C ink layer was formed in a straight 2I pattern. The thermal head 5' has the width W' of the heat-sensitive sheet 1'.
In the range of 1j11, the originating #15g child groups are arranged at several intervals. In the recording method, the ink layer of the heat-sensitive sheet 1' is held stationary facing the plain paper 4, and the thermal head 5' is moved in the direction of the arrow 5A', which is orthogonal to the arrangement direction of the heating element group, to the inside a of the plain paper 4. While moving the range,
The heating element group of the boolean head 5' is selectively heated by the mis signal, and the first heating is performed by cyan 2 of the heat-sensitive sheet 1'.
Only the ink layer C is transferred onto plain paper 4.

After the first printing of shear y2C is completed, the thermal head 5' is moved in the direction of arrow A and returned to its original position, and the heat-sensitive sheet 1' is moved in the direction of the arrow A into the middle of the plain paper 4. At the same time, the plain paper 4 is moved in the direction of arrow B, which is the paper feeding direction, by a distance of - of the width W' of the heat-sensitive sheet l', and the printed area of cyan 2C is -aXW'.
The thermosensitive sheet 1' is made to stand still so that the portion thereof faces the magenta 2M ink layer of the heat-sensitive sheet 1'.

Next 1ζ For the second time, move the thermal head 5' to arrow A'
The two ink layers of magenta 2M and cyan 2C are simultaneously transferred onto the plain paper 4 while moving in the direction of.

Next, for the third time, as before, move the heat-sensitive sheet 11° thermal head and plain paper 4, and this time use the thermal head 5' to print three ink layers: maze/li 2M, cyan 2C, i6 erotic-2Y. At the same time, it is transferred onto plain paper 4.

At this stage, the first, cyan, and magenta 2M inks are transferred to the plain paper 4 in the second ink, and then the yellow 2Y ink is transferred in the third ink to complete three primary color printing.

Next, for the fourth time, use the heat-sensitive sheet t/ like last time.

The thermal head 5' moves the plain paper 4, and this time the thermal head 5' prints magenta 2M and cyan 2C.

Three ink layers of yellow 2Y are transferred onto plain paper 4 at the same time.

In the conventional method described above, a certain area of plain paper 4 is
After printing in one color, the second color is layered on top of it, and then the third color is layered on top of it, and the adjacent portions of the three-color printed area are printed, making alignment easy. However, there was a drawback that color shift may occur.

In view of the above-mentioned points, the present invention provides a transfer type multicolor thermal sheet P7 which enables multicolor thermal transfer with less color shift.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a portion of a heat-sensitive sheet according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the thickness of the heat sensitive sheet 31 is 5.7
Tin rocket holes 31b for moving the heat-sensitive sheet 31 are formed at both ends of the heat-sensitive sheet 31, which is made of a polyethylene terephthalate film of .mu., and spaced apart from each other in the direction of arrow B, which is the sheet movement direction. An ink layer 31a is formed between the straight lines L and L' inside the sprocket holes 31b at both ends. 311 indicates the center line of the tin rocket holes 31b at both ends thereof.

Next, a printing apparatus using a thermosensitive sheet according to an embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 is a side view of a printing apparatus using the thermosensitive sheet of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is a partial front view thereof. In the figure, a heat-sensitive sheet 31 is wound on a reel 2m so that the inner side becomes the ink layer 31a.
The plain paper 32 wound on the reel 2b has an ink layer 31
Guide o-27a so that m and plain paper 32 face each other,
tb and is pulled out in the direction of arrow B, and the plain paper 32
The holes for tin marking formed on both ends of the roller 6 are fitted into the tin holes 8) of the roller 6, and the guide loaf 8 is in contact with the row 26.
m, 8b, and is pulled out in the direction of arrow B'.

On the other hand, the heat sensitive seam) 31 is the sprocket hole 31b.
-55 sprocket 6a and guide roller 9a.
, 9b and is wound onto the winding reel 3a. A thermosensitive pad 5'' is placed in a portion where the plain paper 32 and the thermal paper 31 overlap and are in contact with the row 26.

The thermal sheet 31 according to the present invention has a % fine of the ink layer 31m.
It is in the pattern of That is, as mentioned earlier, the pattern of the ink layer of the conventional thermal sheet has a length far larger than the size of one heating element of the thermal head 5.5' for both the dump 2 coating and the streak coating, respectively. In contrast, the pattern of heat-sensitive sheet) 31 according to the present invention is a rectangle whose side length is the size of one heating element, or the length of one side of the heating element. The reason is that they are painted separately.

Three examples will be described below. The first to ninth embodiments have the shapes shown in FIG. 3, and differ only in the coating pattern of the ink layer 31M, so they will be explained using enlarged partial views of the patterns.

(Example of Ml) Figure @6 is a diagram showing the coating pattern of the heat-sensitive sheet of the first example. In the figure, IO is the ink layer forming part of the sheet, 101 , 104 , 203 , 206 , 302
, 305 is an ink layer of cyan hue, 102 , 105
, 201 , 204 .

303 and 306 are ink layers of magenta hue, 10
3,106 degrees 202, 205, 301, and 304 are ink layers of yellow hue. Each of the above ink layers has a square shape with a side of 0.08 inch, and in both the arrow direction and arrow B direction, cyan, magenta, yellow, cyan...
..., and the spacing between the centers of adjacent ink layers is approximately 0.091111, which is the same as the spacing between the heat generating elements of the thermal head 5''.Furthermore, when arranged as shown in FIG. Ink layers 101, 102, 103, 104, etc. are placed on the heating element of the thermal head 5''.
- are formed so that they match. Also, the center 111 of every sprocket hole 31b! ! 31s coincides with the center of the ink layer, and the hue arrangement of the ink layer IO is the same.

The ink layer is formed by using a sheet in which tin rocket holes 31b are formed in advance, and using the tin rocket holes 31b as a guide to form the ink layer at precise positions by printing or letterpress printing.

When printing on plain paper 32, the position of the ink layer is detected by detecting the position of the sprocket 6m, and by rotating the -1 26 in the direction of the arrow n, the thermal sheet 3)
By selectively heating the heating element of the thermal head 5'' from the image signal I while feeding the plain paper 32 and the thermal paper 32 in the direction of the arrow B, cyan, magenta, and yellow ink layers of a portion of the thermal sheet 31 are printed almost simultaneously. It is thermally transferred onto paper 32.

In this case, 3×3 ink layers are used as 1iii elements to form a multicolor layer.

(Second Example) FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a coating pattern of a heat-sensitive sheet according to a second example. In the figure, 11 is the ink layer forming part of the sheet, 41C, 42C, and 4nC are cyan-hue ink layers, 41M is a magenta-hue ink layer, and 41YFil is a yellow-hue ink layer. The width W of a certain ink layer is 0.08 sn, and m a in the direction B
tc is a rectangle whose length is equal to the length ζ between straight lines L and L' in FIG. Further, the distance between the centers of the rectangle in the direction of arrow B is α091111, and the center ll318 of the tin rocket hole 31b is the ink layer 41C, 4nC of cyan hue.
are arranged so that

When printing, a rectangular ink layer is thermally transferred onto the Iζ normal g32 almost simultaneously while detecting the position of the tin keft 6a as in the 1lXl embodiment. In this case as well, an 1iliI element is formed by 3×3 heat-sensitive elements.

(Third Example) FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the coating pattern of the heat-sensitive sheet of the third example. In FIG. , 51
M is! 51Y indicates an ink layer with a yellow hue, and the width W of the ink layer in the direction of the arrow is 0.08131, and the length is a rectangle that is the same as the length of the sheet. The spacing between the centers of the / layer in the direction of the arrow is approximately 0.0911 Im, which matches the arrangement spacing of the heat-sensitive elements of the thermal head 5''.When printing, a portion of each rectangle is generally printed at the same time using G321C thermal transfer. In this case as well, a 1iIi element is formed by 3×3 heat-sensitive elements.

In this way, in the conventional method, the same portion of plain paper was repeatedly printed as many times as the number of inks of different hues were printed, but in the present invention, printing can be completed in one time, thereby improving the printing speed.

As described above, according to the heat-sensitive sheet of the present invention, the plain paper and the heat-sensitive sheet contact each other once over the entire area of the plain paper to be printed, and the plain paper and the heat-sensitive sheet contact each other continuously without rubbing each other. Since printing is performed while moving at a constant speed, a multicolor image with less color shift can be obtained, which is highly effective.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a diagram explaining the principle of the conventional two-coat heat-sensitive sheet.
Figure 2 is a diagram explaining the principle of a conventional streak-coated thermosensitive sheet, Figure 3
Figure 4 is a side view of a printing device using the heat-sensitive sheet of Figure 3, and Figure 5 is a partial front view of a portion of Figure 13-4. , FIG. 6 is a drawing of the coating pattern of the heat-sensitive sheet according to the first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 7 is a drawing of the coating pattern of the heat-sensitive sheet of the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a drawing of a coating pattern of a heat-sensitive sheet according to an example. 1, l', 31... heat sensitive sea)s31m・
...Ink layer of heat-sensitive sheet 31, 31b...
...Hole for tin rocket, 2゜2m, 2b...
・Reel, 3.3a...Take-up reel, 4°32
... Plain paper, 5.5', 5" ... Thermal head. 6 ... Roller, 5m ... Sprocket, 7a, 7b, 8m. 8b , 9a, 9b...Guide roller, 1G, 1
1.12 Ink layer forming part of the sheet. Patent Applicant Toyo Denki Seizo Co., Ltd. Representative Atsushi Doi 1 Figure 82 Figure 82 Figure 4 Must Kuri 5 Figure 6 Figure 82 BT'' T

Claims (1)

[Claims] A heat-fusible or sublimable ink layer formed on one side of a glass sheet or thin paper is heated in small area units while being pressed against plain paper from the other side, thereby transferring the ink layer onto the plain paper by melting or sublimation. In a multicolor heat-sensitive sheet with a transfer amount for forming a multicolor image on plain paper, ink layers of different hues are periodically placed on each of the minute areas, or the sides are approximately equal to the sides of the minute area. A transfer-type multicolor heat-sensitive sheet characterized by being formed into squares.