JPH03213395A - Thermal transfer recording media for clothing labels - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To form a transfer image excellent in hot pressing resistance, washing resistance and dry cleaning resistance by combining an ink layer based on a colorant and a surfactant and/or a water-soluble polymer with a receiving layer based on a specific resin. CONSTITUTION:An ink sheet obtained by forming an ink layer based on a colorant and a surfactant and/or a water-soluble polymer on a support is combined with a material to be transferred obtained by forming a receiving layer based on a resin having deformation temp. (JIS E6745) of 50-200 deg.C selected from polyvinyl chloride, polyvinyl butyral, polyester, a nylon resin, polyacrylonitrile and polyurethane on other support. The support is composed of a plastic film and, as the colorant, carbon black is pref. used. As the surfactant, an anionic, cationic or nonionic one is pref. used and, as the water-soluble polymer, polyvinyl alcohol or polyvinyl pyrrolidone is pref. used. The receiving layer of the material to be transferred desirably has Bekk smoothness of 100sec or more.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels.

Specifically, the present invention relates to a thermal transfer recording medium useful for clothing handling and display labels, clothing cleaning labels, and the like.

[Conventional technology]

Many thermal transfer recording media have been proposed so far.

For example, the ink layer of a thermal transfer recording medium includes an ink layer containing an emulsified resin with a minimum film forming temperature of 40° C. or higher (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-57679);
One having a heat-sensitive transfer layer consisting of fine wax particles, a colorant, and a water-soluble resin (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-61290);
An ink layer formed by coating an ink consisting of a heat-melting binder and a colorant dispersed in an aqueous solution of a water-soluble polymer (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-212388); styrene/methyl methacrylate/butyl An ink layer containing an acrylate copolymer as the main binder component (JP-A-62-23779); laminated on a transparent protective layer made of a mixture of styrene/ethyl methacrylate copolymer and polyvinyl chloride resin. An ink layer made of a mixture of styrene/methacrylic acid ester copolymer/polymethacrylate/polyvinyl chloride resin and a colorant (Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 179992/1983); a transparent ink layer made of a chlorinated polyolefin resin There is one having an ink layer made of a mixture of a (meth)acrylic acid ester polymer and a colorant laminated on a protective layer (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-42891).

It is also known that a thermal transfer recording medium is composed of a combination of an ink sheet and an object to be transferred. For example, a combination of an ink sheet on which an ink layer containing a dye is formed and a transfer object on which a receiving layer is formed containing a resin that heat-dissolves the dye and photopolymerizes it (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-56591). There is.

However, when these conventional ink layers are used for clothing care labels, etc., the images tend to fall off when washed, and the images bleed or become smeared due to the heat of a hot press or iron. That is, among the conventional technologies mentioned above, those containing styrene or acrylate as a copolymerization component tend to cause images to come off during dry cleaning, and methacrylic acid ester alone has low thermal sensitivity, and furthermore, the use of chlorinated polyolefin in the protective layer It is also unsuitable for dry cleaning. Furthermore, those that are polymerized by light or the like after printing have problems such as complicated equipment and poor ribbon storage stability.

However, at present, there is a method of using thermosetting ink described in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-56591 and curing it by applying heat at the same time as printing, and a method of printing wet ink with a rubber stamp. Although this is a commonly used method, there are new problems in that the cost of clothing is high and it is difficult to handle a wide variety of products in small quantities.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

The present invention was made in view of these circumstances, and provides a thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels that can form transferred images that do not cause image bleeding or staining due to the heat of a hot press or iron, and that are resistant to washing. This is what we provide.

[Means to solve the problem]

The thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels of the present invention comprises an ink sheet formed by forming an ink layer containing a colorant, a surfactant and/or a water-soluble polymer as main components on a support, and an ink sheet formed on a support by forming an ink layer containing a colorant, a surfactant and/or a water-soluble polymer as main components. Deformation temperature selected from polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, fluorine resin, polyvinyl butyral, polyester, nylon resin, polyacrylonitrile, and polyurethane (JIS K6745) 50°C or more 200°C
It is characterized in that it consists of a combination with a transfer target formed by forming a receptor layer containing the following resin as a main component.

Incidentally, the present inventors have conducted a lot of research in order to achieve the above-mentioned problem. 1) An ink layer containing a colorant, a surfactant, and/or a water-soluble polymer as the main components, and a specific resin. The present invention was made based on the discovery that it is effective to use a thermal transfer recording medium in combination with a receptor layer as a main component.

The present invention will be explained in more detail below.

As described above, the thermal transfer recording medium for clothing according to the present invention (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a "thermal transfer recording medium") is composed of a combination of a specific ink sheet (A) and a transfer target (B). .

First, proceeding from the ink sheet (A), the support used here is a plastic film with a thickness of about 3 to iopm, such as polyester film, polycarbonate film, polyimide film, aromatic polyamide film, polyether film, etc. Examples include ether ketone film and polysulfone film.

The ink layer mainly contains a colorant, a surfactant, and/or a water-soluble polymer.

Colorants include water and solvents used for dry cleaning (percrene, 1,1.1-trichloroethane,
A material that is not attacked by naphtha, etc.) is preferable, and carbon black, other inorganic pigments, organic pigments, dyes, etc. are used. Among these, it is particularly preferable to use carbon black.

As the surfactant, any of the usual anionic, cationic, or nonionic surfactants can be used.

Further, as the water-soluble polymer, polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinylpyrrolidone, etc. are particularly preferably used. These surfactants and water-soluble polymers play a role as a dispersant and also have a function as a binder.

The ratio of colorant/(surfactant and/or water-soluble polymer) is 50150 to 9971 by weight, preferably 70/3.
It is 0 to 90/10. If the proportion of the colorant exceeds 99% by weight, the dispersion will be insufficient, and the function as one of the binders will also be insufficient, making it easy for the ink layer to fall off from the support. Conversely, if the proportion of the colorant is less than 50% by weight, the cleaning resistance and ironing resistance will deteriorate.

In addition, resin, wax, etc. can be added to the ink layer as needed for the purpose of improving sensitivity, preventing the ink layer from falling off the support, etc., but the amount added is determined by cleaning resistance, cleaning resistance, etc. It is within a range that does not reduce ironing resistance.

To form an ink layer made of such materials on a support, colorants, surfactants, and/or water-soluble polymers, resins, waxes, etc. added as necessary are mixed with water, alcohol, toluene, MEK, etc. It may be dissolved or dispersed in a suitable solvent such as and coated on a support.

The thickness of the ink layer is 0.1 to 3. OR preferably 0.5~
It is 1.5 μs.

On the other hand, paper, cloth, film, etc. can be used as the support for the transfer object (B), but paper treated with water resistance with resin, synthetic paper, etc. are preferable. As for the cloth, chemical fibers such as acetate, nylon, and polyester, or nonwoven fabrics thereof can be used. Films include polyester film, polyolefin film, acetate film, polycarbonate film,
A polyimide film or the like can be used.

As mentioned above, the receiving layer on these supports is formed at a deformation temperature (J
IS 6745) Formed from a resin with a temperature of 50°C or more and 200°C or less. Among them, it is desirable to use nylon resin.

The reason why the receptor layer forming resin is limited to these resins is that it is necessary to select a material that is not attacked by water and solvents used in dry cleaning, and that is deformed by the heat of the head. That is, when heat is applied, the receiving layer side undergoes thermal deformation and takes in the ink from the ink sheet side, and an image is formed such that the thermoplastic material in the receiving layer and the colorant in the ink layer are integrated, resulting in a strong image. is obtained.

The receiving layer contains titanium oxide, silica, calcium carbonate,
A white pigment such as alumina or zinc oxide may be contained, and a plasticizer may be added to impart flexibility. However, these materials and plasticizers may be added to the extent that the object of the present invention is not impaired.

To form a receptor layer on a support, these materials are dissolved or dispersed in an appropriate solvent (toluene, methyl ethyl ketone, etc.), and the mixture is mixed for 1 to 30 minutes. The coating may be applied to a thickness of preferably 3 to 20 mm thick.

It is desirable that the receiving layer of the transfer material has a Bekk smoothness of 1 oO seconds or more. When a transfer material having a receiving layer with such smoothness is used, the image clarity becomes even better.

Furthermore, the applicant of the present application has previously proposed a heat-sensitive transfer recording medium in which a transfer sheet and a receiving sheet are combined (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 169285/1985). However, the heat-sensitive transfer recording medium herein is not necessarily intended for clothing labels, and therefore waxes are also used as a binder for the heat-melting ink layer. These materials are sensitive to dry cleaning, have poor heat resistance, and cause images to bleed when ironed.

〔Example〕

Next, examples and comparative examples will be shown. Both parts and percentages herein are based on weight.

Example 1 (Preparation of ink sheet A-1) Carbon black 2.7 parts I P
A composition containing 14.3 parts of A was applied onto a polyester film about 4.5 mm thick and dried to form an ink layer about 1 tone thick. Further, the following composition liquid was applied onto the polyester film surface opposite to this ink layer, and dried to form a stick prevention layer having a thickness of about 0.1 mm.

Silicone rubber (30% toluene solution) 10 parts Toluene 90 parts Hardening agent
0.1 part (Preparation of ink sheet A-2) Carbon black 3.2 parts Water
A composition of 16.2 parts was applied onto a polyester film having a thickness of about 4.5 IA and dried to form an ink layer having a thickness of about 1°C. Moreover, on the film on the opposite side of this ink layer, the above-mentioned A
The same anti-stick layer as in -1 was provided.

(Preparation of ink sheet A-3) Carbon black 3.0 parts Ethylene glycol 2.4 parts Water
A composition liquid consisting of 14.0 parts was applied onto a polyester film having a thickness of approximately 4.5 parts and dried to form an ink layer having a thickness of approximately 11 parts. Further, the same anti-stick layer as in A-1 above was provided on the film on the opposite side of this ink layer.

(Preparation of ink sheet A-4) Carbon black 0.66 parts Paraffin wax 1.32 parts Carnauba wax 0.66 parts Toluene
A composition liquid containing 17.0 parts (a composition liquid whose main component is so-called thermofusible wax) is applied onto a polyester film with a thickness of about 4.5 IJa, and dried to give a composition of about 2.0 parts. A thick ink layer was provided. Further, the same anti-stick layer as in A-1 above was provided on the film on the opposite side of this ink layer.

(Preparation of ink sheet A-5) A composition liquid (composition liquid whose main component is a so-called thermoplastic resin) consisting of 0.8 parts carbon black and 14.0 parts methyl ethyl ketone was applied onto an approximately 4.5-polyester film. , dried to provide an approximately 2.0-thick layer of ink. Further, the same anti-stick layer as in A-1 was provided on the film on the opposite side of this ink layer.

(Preparation of Ink Sheet A-6) A composition liquid consisting of the following was applied onto a polyester film of about 4.5p and dried to form an ink layer with a thickness of about 2.0mm. Moreover, on the film opposite to this ink layer, the above-mentioned A-1
The same anti-stick layer was provided.

(Preparation of transfer target B-1) Nylon 12 (20% solution of toluene) 12 parts Titanium oxide fine particles 1.6 parts Toluene
A composition consisting of 6.4 parts was dispersed in a ball mill, and then applied to the surface of a nylon base fabric using a wire bar and dried to provide a receiving layer with a thickness of about 20 mm.

(Preparation of transfer target B-2) A composition consisting of 1.6 parts of silica fine particles and 6.4 parts of methyl ethyl ketone was dispersed in a ball mill, and then applied to the surface of a polyester base fabric using a wire bar and dried to a thickness of about 20. A receptive layer was provided.

(Preparation of Transferred Material B-3) After dispersing a composition consisting of 1.6 parts of calcium carbonate fine particles and 6.4 parts of a mixed solvent of toluene/ethanol = 1/1 using a ball mill, it was applied to the surface of the acetate base fabric using a wire bar. Approximately 20mm thick after coating and drying. A receptive layer was provided.

Using the ink sheet produced as described above, a thermal transfer printer (line type head: applied energy of 10 to 25 m
The appropriate printing energy (sensitivity) was determined by printing on the transfer target at a speed of 1000 yen/am''), and a transferred image was obtained.

Subsequently, this transferred image was subjected to a water washing test (JIS L-0844A-3), a dry cleaning test (JIS L-0860), and a hot press test (JIS L-0850, 150°C). The results are summarized in Table-1.

Note) Ink sheets A-4, A-5, and A-6 are comparative examples. In addition, there is almost no change in Good: in the table.

Bad: There is image bleeding or a decrease in image density, making it difficult to read.

It means.

Example 2 (Preparation of object B'-1) The surface of the receptor layer of object B-1 was subjected to super gear rendering to produce object B'-1 with a smoothness of 200 seconds.

(Preparation of transfer object B'-2) The surface of the receptor layer of transfer object B-2 was subjected to super gear rendering to produce transfer object 8'-2 having a smoothness of 150 seconds.

When thermal transfer recording was performed using these two types of transfer objects and the ink sheet A-1, it was found that the ink sheet (A-1) of Example 1 and the transfer object (B-1) or (B- 2)
transferee (B'-1), (B'-2) than the combination with
) was found to be of better image quality.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As is clear from the examples, according to the thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels of the present invention, good transferred images can be obtained, and
This transferred image also has excellent hot press resistance, water washing resistance, and dry cleaning resistance.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels, comprising a combination of the ink sheet (A) and the transfer target (B) below. (A) An ink sheet formed by forming an ink layer mainly composed of a colorant, a surfactant, and/or a water-soluble polymer on a support. (B) Main component is a resin with a deformation temperature (JISK6745) of 50°C or more and 200°C or less selected from polyvinyl chloride, polyvinylidene chloride, fluororesin, polyvinyl butyral, polyester, nylon resin, polyacrylonitrile, and polyurethane on the support. An object to be transferred formed with a receptive layer. (2) The thermal transfer recording medium for clothing labels according to claim 1, wherein the surface of the receptor layer has a Bekk smoothness of 100 seconds or more.