A release member-integrated image forming sheet that can form a high quality image and has good manufacturing suitability, a release member-integrated image sheet, an image sheet, a method for manufacturing an image sheet, a decorative product having a high quality image, and a method for manufacturing a decorative product that can form a high quality image and has good manufacturing suitability. An image forming sheet is integrated with a release member, the image forming sheet can be separated from the release member, the image forming sheet includes an image layer before image formation, a stable peeling force when the image forming sheet is separated from the release member under conditions of a temperature of 25° C. and an angle of 30° is 1,000 mN/cm or less, and the dynamic coefficient of friction between the front and back surfaces of the release member is 0.3 or more and 0.9 or less.

Method and system for thermal transfer printing are disclosed. The system includes a transfer member having an imaging surface on the front side, a coating station at which a monolayer of particles made of, or coated with, a thermoplastic polymer is applied to the imaging surface, an imaging station at which electromagnetic radiation (EM) is applied via the rear side of the transfer member to selected regions of the particles-coated imaging surface to render the particles thereon tacky within the selected regions, and a transfer station at which only the regions of the particles coating that have been rendered tacky are transferred to a substrate. The transfer member includes on its rear side a body transparent to EM radiation and on its front side an EM radiation absorbing layer, the imaging surface being formed on, or as part of, the absorbing layer.

A recording medium, including: an ink-receiving layer configured to receive an ink for inkjet recording; and a transparent sheet having a total luminous transmittance of 50% or more, wherein the recoding medium has a layered structure in which the transparent sheet and the ink-receiving layer are sequentially stacked, and the ink-receiving layer includes a gap-absorption-type ink-receiving layer including a composition including at least inorganic fine particles and polyvinyl alcohol having a weight-average polymerization degree of 2,000 or more and 5,000 or less and a saponification degree of 70 mol % or more and 90 mol % or less.

A surface treatment method for a composite surface of a basic casing is provided. The composite surface is cooperatively formed by an outer surface and four sidewalls surrounding the outer surface. The surface treatment method includes following steps. A heat transferring film is provided. A printing pattern film is formed on a portion of the heat transferring film via a digital inkjet printing process. The heat transferring film is formed on the composite surface via a vacuum heat transfer process, with edges of the heat transferring film being wrapped around the sidewalls and the printing pattern firm being attached to the outer surface.

A laminate that possesses dye sublimation properties, particularly for use as tagless labels and embellishments for garments, apparel, fabric items and so forth such as sportswear fabrics, clothing and accessories is provided. The laminate includes a dye sublimation ink layer that overlies a substrate in which the dye sublimation ink interacts with the substrate's chemical make-up.

To provide a coating liquid for release layer with which a release layer having a small variation in the performance difference can be stably formed, to provide a method for producing a thermal transfer sheet using this coating liquid for release layer, and to provide a thermal transfer sheet having stable releasability. A thermal transfer sheet having a substrate, a release layer provided on the substrate, and a transfer layer provided on the release layer, wherein the transfer layer is provided peelably from the release layer, and the release layer contains a silsesquioxane.

An apparatus and methods of decorating a metallic container are provided. More specifically, the present invention relates to apparatus and methods used to provide a decoration or indicia on a predetermined portion of an outer surface of a metallic container body. The decorator includes at least one digital print unit, a transfer blanket, and a support element. The digital print unit transfers a decorating material to the transfer blanket to form a decoration on the transfer blanket. The support element then moves a metallic container into contact with the transfer blanket. In this manner, the decorating material is transferred to an exterior surface portion of the metallic container to decorate the metallic container. In one embodiment, the digital print unit is an electrophotographic system which transfers a toner material to the transfer blanket. In another embodiment, the digital print unit includes an inkjet print head which transfers an ink to the transfer blanket. Optionally, the decorator may include two or more support elements.

A combination of a thermal transfer sheet and an intermediate transfer medium according to the present disclosure is characterized in that the thermal transfer sheet includes a first substrate and a melt transfer coloring layer, the intermediate transfer medium includes a second substrate and a transfer layer including a receiving layer, and the melt transfer coloring layer and the receiving layer contain a release material.

A printing assembly for thermal transfer printing is disclosed. The assembly comprises at least one first printing system comprising a transfer member having an imaging surface on the front side, a coating station at which a monolayer of thermoplastic particles is applied to the imaging surface, an imaging station at which electromagnetic radiation (EM) is applied, optionally via the rear side of the transfer member, to selected regions of the imaging surface to render the particles coating the selected regions tacky, a transfer station at which only the regions of the particles coating that have been rendered tacky are transferred to a substrate to form an adhesive image; and at least one more downstream printing system. The transfer member includes on its front side an EM radiation absorbing layer, the imaging surface being formed on, or as part of, the absorbing layer, and on its rear side a body which can optionally be transparent to EM radiation.

To provide a recording medium or a separation-member-equipped recording medium that enables manufacturing of a printed object, a decorative sheet or the like having novel design properties, to provide a method for manufacturing a decorative sheet or a decorated article that enables manufacturing of a decorated article having novel design properties, and to provide a decorated article having novel design properties. Provided is a recording medium 100 which is used for forming an image, the recording medium 100 including a support body 1, and an image forming layer 10 provided on the support body 1, wherein light transmittance in a visible light region of the whole of the recording medium is 10% or more, and glossiness of the recording medium which is measured with a condition of a measurement angle being 45° is 60 or less.