Print medium, print medium unit and printing device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9636926-B2
Application number	US-201514909107-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 28, 2015
Priority date	Aug 1, 2014
Publication date	May 2, 2017
Grant date	May 2, 2017

Abstract

Printing using two colors can be performed by a thermal print head. A base member, a thermosensitive color developing material layer formed by applying a thermosensitive color developing material on the entire surface of the base member, and a thermosensitive decolorizing material layer formed by applying a thermosensitive decolorizing material having a decolorizing temperature different from a color developing temperature of the thermosensitive color developing material on the entire surface of the thermosensitive color developing material layer, are provided.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A print medium comprising:
a base member;
a first thermosensitive color developing material layer formed of a first thermosensitive color developing material; and
a second thermosensitive color developing material layer formed of a second thermosensitive color developing material having a different reaction temperature from a reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material,
wherein the first thermosensitive color developing material layer and the second thermosensitive color developing material layer are each configured to develop a color in response to application of heat.

2. A print medium unit comprising:
the print medium according to claim 1 ; and
an ink ribbon for thermally transferring an ink to the print medium;
wherein the ink ribbon has a reaction temperature that is different from the reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material and different from a color developing temperature of the second thermosensitive color developing material.

3. The print medium unit according to claim 2 , wherein the reaction temperature of the ink ribbon is higher than the reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material and the reaction temperature of the second thermosensitive color developing material, and
the reaction temperature of the second thermosensitive color developing material is lower than the reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material.

4. A printing device comprising:
the print medium unit according to claim 2 ;
a setting section where the print medium unit is set; and
a printing unit which performs print processing on the print medium of the print medium unit thus set, by a thermal print head.

5. A print medium unit comprising:
a print medium having a base member, a first thermosensitive color developing material layer formed of a first thermosensitive color developing material, and a second thermosensitive color developing material layer formed of a second thermosensitive color developing material; and
an ink ribbon for thermally transferring an ink to the print medium;
wherein the ink ribbon has a different reaction temperature from at least one of a reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material layer and a reaction temperature of the second thermosensitive color developing material layer.

6. The print medium unit of claim 5 , wherein the second thermosensitive color developing material is configured
to be in a color-developed state when in an unheated state, and
to decolorize when heated to the reaction temperature of the second thermosensitive color developing material layer.

7. The print medium unit of claim 4 , wherein the first thermosensitive color developing material is configured
to be transparent when in an unheated state, and
to develop a color when heated to the reaction temperature of the first thermosensitive color developing material layer.

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Aoyagi Naohiko

Classifications

• B41M5/345

  by thermal transfer of dyes or pigments · CPC title

• B41M5/28 Primary

  using thermochromic compounds or layers containing liquid crystals, microcapsules, bleachable dyes or heat- decomposable compounds, e.g. gas- liberating {(B41M5/38271 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B41M2205/30

  Thermal donors, e.g. thermal ribbons · CPC title

• B41M5/382

  Contact thermal transfer or sublimation processes (sublistatic printing using a pre-formed image B41M5/035; ink-, dye- or pigment-receptive coatings B41M5/52) · CPC title

• B41M5/30

  using chemical colour formers (B41M5/34 takes precedence) · CPC title