Claims
- 1. A thermal transfer recording apparatus comprising:
- a recording medium sheet formed of a plastic film material, said recording medium sheet having an ink accepter surface and insulation/flexibility increasing means or insulating against heat conduction and for increasing flexibility of said ink accepter surface, said insulation/flexibility increasing means comprising numerous minute voids formed in said plastic film material;
- a thermal transfer recording sheet formed of a heat resistive base sheet with opposing surfaces, and a thermal transfer layer coated onto one of said opposing surfaces of said base sheet, said thermal transfer layer comprising an ink material containing a binder material and being transferable to said ink accepter surface of said recording medium sheet, and particles which are solid at room temperature and are mixed into said thermal transfer layer in order to form minute protrusions on a surface of said thermal transfer layer;
- means for raising the temperature of said thermal transfer layer in a controlled manner so as to decrease the viscosity of said thermal transfer layer; and
- means for transporting said recording medium sheet placed between said thermal transfer recording sheet and said temperature raising means.
- 2. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- said minute voids in said recording medium sheet occupy between 30 and 100 cubic centimeters per 100 grams of said plastic film material.
- 3. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- said plastic film material is polyolefin.
- 4. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- said plastic film material comprises a biaxially stretched ethylene or propylene copolymer film containing inorganic particles.
- 5. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- the apparent specific weight of said plastic film material is within a range of 0.58 to 0.70; and
- said plastic film material has a film thickness within a range of 50 to 250 microns.
- 6. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- a coated layer is arranged on a surface of said plastic film material of said recording medium sheet, said coated layer being compatible with a constituent component of either said ink material, said particles which are solid at room temperature, or both said ink material and said particles which are solid at room temperature.
- 7. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 6, wherein
- said coated layer contains a component compatible with a constituent of said thermal transfer layer at raised temperatures; and
- said coated layer comprises a coated layer material and particles which are solid at room temperature and have a diameter greater than the thickness of said coated layer material, so as to provide a roughened surface to said coated layer.
- 8. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 6, wherein
- a constituent of said coated layer exhibits a rubber-like elasticity at room temperature.
- 9. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 6, wherein
- said particles of said coated layer comprise either thermo-softening resin material or wax which is compatible with a constituent of said coated layer material at raised temperatures.
- 10. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein
- said numerous minute voids are enclosed by said plastic film material.
- 11. A thermal transfer recording apparatus comprising:
- a recording medium sheet formed of a plastic film material, said recording medium sheet having an ink accepter surface and insulation/flexibility increasing means for insulating against heat conduction and for increasing flexibility of said ink accepter surface of said recording medium sheet, said insulation/flexibility increasing means comprising numerous minute voids formed in said plastic material, said recording medium sheet further having a coated layer coated onto a surface of said plastic material, said coated layer comprising a coated layer material, and particles which are solid at room temperature and have a diameter greater than the thickness of said coated layer material, so as to provide a roughened surface to said coated layer;
- a thermal transfer recording sheet formed of a heat resistive base sheet with opposing surfaces, and as thermal transfer layer coated onto one of said opposing surfaces of said base sheet, said thermal transfer layer comprising an ink material containing a binder material and being transferable to said recording medium sheet;
- means for raising the temperature of said thermal transfer layer in a controlled manner so as to decrease the viscosity of said thermal transfer layer;
- means for transporting said recording medium sheet placed between said thermal transfer recording sheet and said temperature raising means; and
- wherein said coated layer of said recording medium sheet includes a component compatible with a constituent of said thermal transfer layer at raised temperatures.
- 12. A thermal transfer recording apparatus as recited in claim 11, wherein
- said numerous minute voids are enclosed by said plastic film material.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
62-54548 |
Mar 1987 |
JPX |
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Parent Case Info
This application is a division of now abandoned application Ser. No. 165,983, filed on Mar. 9, 1988.
US Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
Name |
Date |
Kind |
4819010 |
Kohashi et al. |
Apr 1989 |
|
4985399 |
Matsuda et al. |
Jan 1991 |
|
5001106 |
Egashira et al. |
Mar 1991 |
|
Divisions (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
165983 |
Mar 1988 |
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