System and method of printing on thermochromic film
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorsGerald D. Bjorkman, David H. Koizumi
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Abstract
One aspect of the invention involves a thermal image generation device comprising a casing forming an interior cavity. One surface of the casing includes a screen with thermochromic material attached to a bottom surface of the screen. The casing houses at least one thermal transfer element movable over regions of the thermochromic material to alter a temperature at the regions from a steady-state, ambient temperature. Such temperature alterations temporarily cause a color variation to the thermochromic material until the regions of the thermochromic material return to the ambient temperature.
Claims20
A thermal image generation device comprising:
- a casing forming an interior cavity, one surface of the casing including a screen;
- a thermochromic material attached to the screen;
- and
- at least one thermal transfer element movable over regions of the thermochromic material to alter a temperature at the regions from a steady-state, ambient temperature which temporarily causes a color variation of the thermochromic material until the regions of the thermochromic material return to the ambient temperature.
A thermal image generation device comprising:
- a casing forming an interior cavity, one surface of the casing including a component embedded with thermochromic material;
- and
- logic placed within the interior cavity, the logic including a thermal transfer element movable over regions of the component to alter a temperature at the regions from a steady-state, ambient temperature which temporarily causes a color variation of the thermochromic material until the regions of the thermochromic material return to the ambient temperature.
A method comprising:
- activating at least one thermal transfer element in response to a condition;
- monitoring a region of a thermochromic material in close proximity to the at least one thermal transfer element in order to (i) determine if a temperature at the region varies from an ambient temperature by a selected temperature difference, causing the thermochromic material to experience a color variation, and (ii) determine if the temperature at the region exceeds a maximum temperature;
- and
- deactivating the at least one thermal transfer element if the temperature at the region exceeds the maximum temperature.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.