JPH04338749A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus.
In particular, the present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that forms a color image by overlapping a photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat development material and an image receiving material and applying pressure.

0002

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an image forming apparatus using photosensitive and pressure sensitive microcapsules, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 62-1
There is a copying apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 50238. This image recording method using a copying apparatus uses a photosensitive pressure-sensitive microcapsule paper having microcapsules provided on a support and a color developing layer. The microcapsule has a base made of a photosensitive resin that polymerizes and hardens upon irradiation with light, and contains a colorless dye and a photopolymerization initiator before coloring. Further, the color developing layer causes the dye to develop color by reacting with the dye in a colorless state before color development.

This image recording method is carried out as follows using the above-mentioned microcapsule paper. first,
By performing imagewise exposure on this microcapsule paper and selectively photopolymerizing and curing the microcapsules,
A latent image is chemically formed on the microcapsule paper. Thereafter, pressure development is performed by applying pressure, and the uncured microcapsules are destroyed, and the dye leaked from inside reacts with the color developing layer to develop a predetermined color, thereby obtaining a color image. .

This copying device is simple and inexpensive, and is excellent in that it can obtain high-quality images through simple processing. Since the photosensitivity is significantly lower than that of the conventional method, it has the disadvantage of requiring a strong light source for exposure. JP-A-61-1999 developed an image recording material that improves these drawbacks and has high photosensitivity, requires less energy from the light source, and can obtain high-quality images through simple processing.
It is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 275742.

[0005] This image recording material is a photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material, and at least a photosensitive silver halide, a reducing agent, a polymerizable compound, and a color image forming substance are coated on a support. The polymerizable compound and the color image material consist of a photosensitive composition encapsulated within the same microcapsule. An image recording method for recording an image using this photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-278849.

This image recording method is carried out as follows. First, imagewise exposure is performed to form a latent image. after that,
By heating, the polymerizable compound in the area where the latent image is present is polymerized to generate a polymer compound and harden the microcapsule. Next, an image-receiving material having an image-receiving layer to which a color image-forming substance can be transferred is superimposed on the color image-forming substance, and the color image-forming substance is transferred to the image-receiving material to obtain an image on the image-receiving material. be.

[0007] The color image forming substance may be a colored dye or a colorless dye. In the case of colored dyes, an absorber layer is required on the surface of the image-receiving material to absorb the liquid dye and prevent bleeding due to capillary action. A color developing layer is required to develop a predetermined color. This image recording method has the advantage that the energy of the light source lamp is small, so the power consumption of the entire device can be kept low. However, especially when colored dyes are used, Bleeding becomes a big problem. Therefore, there is also the disadvantage that it is necessary to provide an absorber layer on the surface of the image-receiving material to absorb the dye and prevent bleeding.

In any of the above-mentioned image recording methods, after the color image is formed, the color image is fixed by heating. Further, the entire surface of the image-receiving material containing the color image has gloss due to the presence of the absorber and the color developer layer.

[0009]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, the former method has significantly lower photosensitivity than silver salt photography using silver halide, and also requires only light energy to perform exposure and photopolymerization. There was a problem in that a strong light source for exposure was required because the energy needed to cause the reaction had to be provided.

The latter method uses silver halide, which has the advantage of extremely high sensitivity and requires little light energy. Bleeding occurs. Therefore, there is a problem in that it is necessary to prevent bleeding, such as by providing an absorber layer on the surface of the image-receiving material to absorb the dye and prevent bleeding.

Furthermore, in either method, there is a problem in that plain paper such as PPC paper cannot be used as the image-receiving material. For example, it has an image receptor layer on its surface, such as an absorber layer that absorbs color image-forming substances to prevent bleeding, and a color developer layer that reacts with color image-forming substances to develop a predetermined color. Special paper was required. Alternatively, a complicated image receptor coating device is required to form the image receptor layer on plain paper, resulting in high costs and a lack of versatility.

[0012] Since the white portion of the image formed on the image-receiving material does not contain the color image-forming substance, there is essentially no need for the image-receiving layer to exist. However, this receptor layer is
Since the coating is applied to the entire surface of the image-receiving material, including unnecessary portions, there is a problem in that the running cost of the apparatus becomes high. Furthermore, since the image receptor layer coated on the entire surface of the image receiving material has a gloss, there is a problem in that it is impossible to write on the white portion with a pencil or the like.

Furthermore, there is a problem in that the white portion of the image receptor layer changes color over time due to photochemical reactions, etc., and loses its whiteness. In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to prevent dye from bleeding on the surface of an image-receiving material, and to easily form a high-quality color image on the surface of the image-receiving material with ease of writing and stability over time. An object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive image forming apparatus that can form images with extremely high sensitivity and low power consumption.

[0014]

[Means for Solving the Problems] According to the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the above-mentioned object is achieved by providing a microelectronic image forming apparatus containing at least a photosensitive substance, a polymerizable substance, a thermal polymerization initiator, and a color image forming substance on a support. A photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material comprising a capsule, which forms a latent image by heating after exposure to light, and in which the color image forming substance leaks out in response to the latent image under pressure, and the photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material exposed to light. a heat developing device for heating a material and polymerizing and curing the photosensitive microcapsules to form a latent image; and a transfer body for transferring the color image forming substance leaked from the photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material. , a pressure developing device for leaking the color image forming substance corresponding to the latent image from the photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat developing material by pressure and transferring it to the transfer body; and superimposing the transfer body and the image receiving material. and a transfer device for forming a color image on the surface of the image-receiving material by transferring it from the transfer body to the image-receiving material under pressure.

[0015]

[Operation] According to the above structure, microcapsules containing at least a photosensitive substance, a polymerizable substance, a thermal polymerization initiator, and a color image forming substance are provided on the support, and a latent image is formed by heating after exposure to light. Then, the photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material from which a color image forming substance leaks out in accordance with the latent image due to pressure is imagewise exposed, and the imagewise exposed photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material is heated by a heat developing device to form the image forming material. Only the photosensitive portion of the photosensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material is polymerized and hardened by the polymerizable substance under the action of the thermal polymerization initiator to form a latent image, and the latent image is removed from the photo-sensitive pressure-sensitive heat-developable material by the pressure of the pressure developing device. The color image forming substance is transferred to the transfer body by leaking it to the transfer body, and the transfer body and the image receiving material are overlapped and pressed by a transfer device to transfer from the transfer body to the image receiving material. to form a color image on the surface of the

[0016]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, a transparent flat document support glass 3 is attached to the upper opening of the casing 2 of the image forming apparatus 1 of this embodiment. A document presser 4 for blocking external light is superimposed on the document support glass 3, and these are moved back and forth in the direction of arrow D by a drive device (not shown) such as a motor. . That is, a document to be copied is held between the document support glass 3 and the document presser 4, and is held with the document surface facing downward.

A light source lamp 5 for illuminating the original is provided inside the casing 2 below the original supporting glass 3. Below the light source lamp 5, a paper feed roller 6 for supplying microcapsule paper C made of a photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material and an exposure table 7 are positioned at a predetermined interval. On the exposure table 7, the microcapsule paper C is pressed and supported by exposure guide rollers 8a, 8b, and 8c positioned at appropriate intervals. On the side of the light source lamp 5, there is an optical system 9 for forming an image of the reflected light from the original onto the surface of a microcapsule paper C made of a photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material supported on an exposure table 7. It is provided.

Further, on the sides and below the exposure table 7,
Donor guide rollers 10a, 10b, and 10c are provided at predetermined intervals for pulling out the microcapsule paper C held on the paper feed roll 6 and transporting it in a folded manner. These donor guide rollers 10a, 10b, 10c are driven by a drive device such as a motor (
(not shown).

Further, between the donor guide rollers 10b and 10c, there is provided a heating developing device 11 for heating the image-exposed microcapsule paper C to form a chemical latent image.
is located. This heat developing device 11 includes a heat insulating case 12 for keeping the inside warm, a developing heater 13 for heating provided in the heat insulating case 12, and a heat developing device 11 that heats the inside of the heat developing device 11 by heating the microcapsule paper C. A temperature control device (not shown) is provided for appropriately operating the developing heater 13 to maintain a constant temperature suitable for development.

A take-up roll 14 for winding up the microcapsule paper C fed out from the paper feed roller 6 is provided below the donor guide roller 10c. That is, the above microcapsule paper C is
After the sheet is fed out from the feed roller 6, it is conveyed by the donor guide rollers 10a and 10b so as to be folded back, and is guided downward by passing through the donor guide roller 10c, and then wound onto the winding roll 14. It has become.

A pair of pressure developing rollers 15 are positioned between the donor guide roller 10c and the take-up roll 14. The microcapsule paper C is guided between the pair of pressure developing rollers 15. A belt driving roller 16 is located on the side of the pressure developing roller 15, and a pair of transfer rollers 17 is located below between these rollers.
is located. Then, one pressure developing roller 15
, the belt drive roller 16, and one transfer roller 1.
A transfer belt T is stretched over 7, and the transfer belt T
is moved in an annular manner by the belt drive roller 16. The transfer belt T and the microcapsule paper C are arranged to overlap between the pair of pressure developing rollers 15. That is, the pressure developing roller 15 pressure-develops the microcapsule paper C having the chemical latent image, causes the dye to leak from the image-bearing portion of the microcapsule paper C, and transfers the dye to the transfer belt T. It has become. This transfer belt T carries the liquid dye leaked from the image-bearing part of the microcapsule paper C for a certain period of time, and during that time, the carried dye is air-dried to form a solid or gel, and the viscosity of the dye increases. Plain paper P
This is to prevent blurring even if the image is transferred to plain paper P, and then transferred to plain paper P.

Further, a paper feed cassette 18 for storing plain paper P is attached to the casing 2 near the winding roll 14. A paper feeding unit 19 for conveying plain paper P from the paper feeding cassette 18 to the position of the transfer roller 17 is provided inside the casing 2 on the side of the paper feeding cassette 18 . The paper feed unit 19 includes a paper feed roller 21 for feeding plain paper P from the paper feed cassette 18 and guiding it to a paper feed guide 20, and a transfer roller 17 for feeding the plain paper P fed from the paper feed guide 20 to a transfer roller 17. Paper feed roller 22 and paper feed guide 2 for feeding the paper to the position
3. The transfer roller 17 is used to transfer the dye onto the plain paper P by overlapping the transfer belt T carrying the dye on its surface with the plain paper P.

Furthermore, on the opposite side of the casing 2 from the paper feed cassette 18, there is plain paper P on which a color image has been formed and fixed.
An outlet tray 24 is attached for placing the. Between the transfer roller 17 and the exit tray 24, there is a discharge guide 25, and a fixing heater 26 for fixing the color image formed on the plain paper P by heat while moving on the discharge guide 25. A paper ejection roller 27 and a paper ejection guide 28 are provided for ejecting the plain paper P on which a color image has been fixed to the exit tray 24.

The document supporting glass 3, the pressure developing roller 15, the belt driving roller 16, the transfer roller 17, the take-up roll 14, the paper feed roller 21, the paper feed roller 22, and the paper ejection roller 27 are each operated by a motor or the like. It is connected to a drive device (not shown). Further, the developing heater 13 and the fixing heater 26 in the heat developing device 11 are provided with a temperature control device (not shown) for appropriately operating each to maintain them at a constant temperature. These motors and temperature control devices are equipped with a control unit A for appropriately controlling them.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be described. All operations of each device described below are controlled by the control unit A from each device in order to monitor their operating status.
This is done in accordance with a control signal transmitted from the control unit A in response to a signal transmitted to the control unit A. The light reflected from the document illuminated by the light source lamp 5 is
The light is focused by the optical system 9, and the microcapsule paper C, which is a photosensitive pressure-sensitive thermal development material, is exposed on the exposure table 7 and supported by exposure guide rollers 8a, 8b, and 8c.

The exposed microcapsule paper C has the following properties:
Thermal development is performed in a heat developing device 11. The microcapsule paper C after heat development is overlapped with the transfer belt T and pressurized between the pair of pressure developing rollers 15, and liquid dye leaks from the portion of the microcapsule paper C corresponding to the image of the original document. is transferred to the transfer belt T. The microcapsule paper C, on which the dye has been transferred, is then wound onto a winding roll 14 driven by a motor.

The transfer belt T is driven by a belt drive roller 16 in the direction of arrow R in FIG. The liquid dye transferred onto the transfer belt T naturally dries, its viscosity decreases, and becomes gel-like or solid before being moved to the transfer roller 22. The transfer belt T carrying the gel-like or solid-state dye is placed at the position of the transfer roller 17 on the plain paper P conveyed by the paper feed unit 19.
The dye on the transfer belt T is transferred onto the surface of the plain paper P, and a color image is formed on the plain paper P.

The plain paper P on which the color image has been formed is thermally fixed by the fixing heater 26 while moving on the ejection guide 25, is carried out by the paper ejection roller 27 and the paper ejection guide 28, and is sent to the exit tray 24. It will be placed on the table. As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present invention does not require a special image receptor layer on the surface of the image receiving material in order to prevent bleeding on the surface of the image receiving material, and therefore does not require special paper. , it is possible to use plain paper P such as PPC paper, which is generally widely used, increasing versatility. Furthermore, in order to prevent this dye from bleeding, there is no need to install a complex-structured image receptor coating device for forming an image receptor layer on the surface of the plain paper P.

Further, since the white portion of the formed image remains the same as the texture of the plain paper P, it is also possible to add additional information using a pencil or the like. Furthermore, since plain paper P is used, deterioration of the image due to discoloration of the coloring agent in the white portion can be suppressed. Since it is a heat development process using silver halide, it has extremely high sensitivity and can save power for the light source lamp.

In other words, it is possible to provide an inexpensive image forming apparatus that can form high-quality color images that are easy to write on and are stable over time. Further, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a modification of the above embodiment. In Figure 2,
The same numbers as in FIG. 1 indicate the same parts or devices. As shown in the figure, the image forming apparatus 101 of the modification includes a pressure developing roller 15 near the transfer belt T.
and a drying heater 102 between the transfer roller 17 and the transfer roller 17 for accelerating drying of the dye transferred onto the transfer belt T;
The apparatus is characterized in that it includes a cooling fan 103 for cooling the transfer belt T after the dye transfer to the plain paper P is completed by the transfer roller 17.

[0031] The drying heater 102 and the cooling fan 1
03 is similarly controlled by the control unit A to operate as appropriate. The image forming apparatus 101 of this modification has basically the same functions and effects as those of the above embodiment, but in particular, the liquid dye transferred onto the transfer belt T by the pressure developing roller 15 is transferred to the drying heater 102. By drying faster than natural drying, the drying time of the dye can be shortened. This allows the transfer belt T to be driven at a higher speed than in the above embodiment, and the time from pressure development to plain paper transfer can be significantly shortened, and as a result, it is possible to achieve a significant increase in image forming speed. It is possible.

[0032]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the dye from bleeding on the surface of the image-receiving material, and to create a high-quality image that is easy to write on and is stable over time. The present invention exhibits excellent effects in that a color image can be easily formed, and an image forming apparatus with extremely high sensitivity and low power consumption can be provided at a low cost.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a modification of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

3...Original support glass 7...Exposure stand 11...Heat developing device 12...Developing heater 15...Pressure developing roller 17...Transfer roller 26...Fusing heater 102...Drying heater 103...Cooling fan P...Plain paper T...Transfer belt C...Microcapsule paper

Claims (2)

[Claims] Claim 1: Microcapsules containing at least a photosensitive substance, a polymerizable substance, a thermal polymerization initiator, and a color image forming substance are provided on a support, and a latent image is formed by heating after exposure to light, and a latent image is formed by pressure. A photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material from which the color image forming substance leaks out in response to the latent image and the exposed photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material are heated to polymerize and harden the exposed microcapsules to form a latent image. a heat developing device for transferring the color image forming substance leaked from the photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material; and a transfer body for transferring the color image forming substance leaked from the photosensitive pressure sensitive heat developing material, and a pressure developing device for leaking a color image forming substance and transferring it to the transfer member; and a pressure developing device for transferring the color image forming substance to the transfer member; An image forming apparatus comprising: a transfer device for forming an image on the surface of an image receiving material. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transfer member is provided with heating means for drying the color image forming material transferred thereon.