Thermally transferable image protective sheet, method for protective layer formation, and record produced by said method

• US 7,169,546 B2
• Filed: 10/04/2005
• Issued: 01/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Dai Nippon Printing Company Limited
• Inventors: Fukui, Daisuke, Suzuki, Taro, Fujita, Masahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Schilling; Richard L.
• Application Number:
  US11/241,958
• Publication Number:
  US 20060025305A1
• Time in Patent Office: 483 Days
• Field of Search: 430/259, 430/403, 430/200, 430/961, 430/11, 430/14, 156/230, 428/32.63, 428/32.81, 428/32.87, 428/337, 428/220, 428/914
• US Class Current: 430/403
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 7/0027 using protective coatings or layers by lamination or by fusion of the coatings or layers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 428/914 Transfer or decalcomania
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 430/162 Protective or antiabrasion layer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24025 Superposed movable attached layers or components
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24364 with transparent or protective coating
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24405 Polymer or resin [e.g., natural or synthetic rubber, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/266 of base or substrate
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31 Surface property or characteristic of web, sheet or block
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31504 Composite [nonstructural laminate]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31551 Of polyamidoester [polyurethane, polyisocyanate, polycarbamate, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31565 Next to polyester [polyethylene terephthalate, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31786 Of polyester [e.g., alkyd, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31797 Next to addition polymer from unsaturated monomers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31855 Of addition polymer from unsaturated monomers

Abstract

Disclosed are a thermally transferable image protective sheet and a method for protective layer formation that can provide a protective layer which can protect an image of a record produced by a nonsilver photographic color hard copy recording method, can impart lightfastness and other properties to the record, and can realize a record having a glossy impression comparable to silver salt photographs. The thermally transferable image protective sheet comprises a support and a thermally transferable resin layer having a single-layer or multilayer structure stacked on the support so as to be separable from the support. The thermally transferable image protective sheet has been constructed so that, when the thermally transferable image protective sheet is put on top of a print so as for the thermally transferable resin layer to be brought into contact with an image portion in the print and the thermally transferable resin layer is thermally transferred to cover at least the image portion of the print followed by the separation of the support from the thermally transferable image protective sheet to form a thermally transferred resin layer on the surface of the print, the surface of the thermally transferred resin layer on the print has a specular glossiness of not less than 60% as measured at an angle of incidence of 20 degrees according to JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards) Z 8741.

Claims

1. A method for forming a protective layer, comprising:

placing a thermally transferable image protective sheet comprising a support and a thermally transferable resin layer on to a print so that the thermally transferable resin layer contacts an image face of the print;

thermally transferring the thermally transferable resin layer onto the print so that at least a printed portion of the image face of the print is covered with the thermally transferred resin layer; and

separating the support from the thermally transferable image protective sheet after thermal transfer to form the protective layer on the printed portion of the image face of the print, the protective layer being formed of the thermally transferred resin layer;

wherein;

the support comprises a biaxially laminated polyester film having a first surface and a second surface opposite from the first surface;

the thermally transferable resin layer has a single-layer or multi-layer structure;

the thermally transferable resin layer is stacked on the support so as to be separable from the support;

the first surface of the biaxially oriented laminated polyester film contacts the thermally transferable resin layer and has a first surface roughness Ra of not more than 18 nm;

the second surface of the biaxially oriented laminated polyester film has a second surface roughness Ra larger than the first surface roughness;

the biaxially oriented laminated polyester film has a thickness of from 3 to 100 μ

m; and

the protective layer has a specular glossiness of not less than 60% as measured at an angle of incidence of 20 degrees according to JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards) Z 8741.