Low energy heat activated transfer printing process

A method of printing a design by means of a computer driven printer using heat activated dye solids, comprising the steps of:

• a. preparing an ink formulation comprising a heat activated dye, a liquid carrier, and at least one agent which disperses said heat activated dye in said liquid carrier and forms an emulsion from said heat activated dye and said liquid carrier, wherein said heat activated dye activates at an activation energy of not greater than 450.degree. F. applied for not more than 210 seconds, and wherein said at least one agent does not substantially increase the activation energy required to activate said heat activated dye after said heat activated dye is printed on to a medium, and wherein said heat activated dye is a solid and is substantially insoluble in said liquid carrier;
• b. supplying a printer with said liquid ink formulation;
• c. printing said liquid ink formulation by means of said printer to form an image on a medium without materially activating the heat activated dye;
• and
• d. transferring said image by thermal means from said medium to a substrate on which the image is to appear at a temperature of not greater than 450.degree. F. applied with pressure for not more than 210 seconds, so as to cause the heat activated dye to transfer onto said substrate.

A method of printing a design by means of a computer driven printer using heat activated dye solids, comprising the steps of:

• a. preparing an ink formulation comprising a heat activated dye, a liquid carrier, and at least one agent which disperses said heat activated dye in said liquid carrier and forms an emulsion from said heat activated dye and said liquid carrier, wherein said heat activated dye activates at an activation energy of not greater than 450.degree. F. applied for not more than 210 seconds, and wherein said at least one agent does not substantially increase the activation energy required to activate said heat activated dye after said heat activated dye is printed onto a medium, and wherein said heat activated dye is a solid and is substantially insoluble in said liquid carrier;
• b. supplying a printer with said ink formulation;
• c. printing said liquid ink formulation by means of said printer to form an image on a medium without materially activating the heat activated dye;
• and
• d. transferring said image by thermal means from said medium to a substrate on which the image is to appear at a temperature which is not greater than 450.degree. F. applied with pressure for not more than 210 seconds, so as to cause the heat activated dye to transfer onto said substrate in the form of said image, wherein said image as transferred on to the substrate has an optical density of 1.0 or greater, as measured by an X-Rite 418 densitometer in the density operation mode with background corrections.