Norio Ohkuma

Thermal microcapsule transfer technology for full-color printing controlled by photo and thermal energies

We propose a new image- recording system employing light and heat energies. This transfer recording medium comprises a substrate and a recording layer on which plural kinds of colored microcapsules are arranged to form an image. Each microcapsule contains a colorant, a monomer and a photo-initiator. Only when the light with a proper wavelength and the heat energy are simultaneously applied to the microcapsules, the monomer is polymerized and hardens the microcapsules, so that the hardened microcapsules can not be transferred to paper any longer. This photo thermal microcapsule transfer technology through a single transferring step will realize to make high-quality full-color image by a compact apparatus, and can be applicable for digital color printers or copying machines.