Abstract: A scanning laser beam heats selected regions of a dye donor ribbon to transfer dye to a receiver sheet to form an image therein. The beam scan rate and delay time between the start of successive pulses is set so that adjacent heated pixel regions overlap and so that a significant amount of residual heat from a first printed pixel is still present when heat is applied to the next adjacent pixel. The use of this residual heat improves the printing efficiency. An elliptical beam may have its major axis in the scan direction to facilitate overlap. Printing may be effected to a non-square grid with more information, or a repetition of information, a set number of times in the scan direction. The power applied to a pixel may be adjusted depending on the darkness of previous adjacent printed pixels.

Abstract: A focused laser beam is provided using a multimode laser of a type that generates a diverging beam with an asymmetric cross section. A collimation lens receives and substantially collimates the diverging asymmetric beam. An anamorphic beam expander enlarges a width of the substantially collimated beam in a first, multimode axis without substantially affecting the width of the beam in a second, single mode axis orthogonal to the first axis. Demagnification optics are arranged to receive and demagnify the enlarged width beam to produce a focused spot. The demagnification optics can include a cylindrical lens ("rod lens") having a longitudinal axis and arranged to receive the enlarged width beam in a direction substantially perpendicular to the axis. The demagnification optics are merged with scanning optics to produce a scanned spot imaging system. The apparatus is particularly useful for exposing images, e.g., in a dye sublimation printer.

Abstract: A fibre laser (2) is used in data-recordal, such as dye diffusion thermal transfer printing. The fibre laser output (3) is modulated and scanned across a recording medium (4) of adjacent dye donor and receiver ribbons by a modulator (20) and galvanometer (16), so that an image is produced line-by-line in the medium (4) as it passes between spools (19). The fibre laser (2) may comprise a single-mode, neodymium-doped lasing core (5), a multimode pump core (6), an outer cladding (7), and a dichroic mirror (8) at each end, and may be pumped by beams (10) from laser diodes (9) coupled to the pump core (6) by optical fibres (11) and a lens (14). Instead of using a galvanometer (16), the output end of the fibre laser (2) may be moved itself across the recording medium (4), and/or a plurality of the fibre lasers (2) may be bundled together in a one or two dimensional array.

Abstract: Printing methods and apparatus for thermal transferring dye from a dye donor to a dye receiver wherein electromagnetic radiation such as a laser beam is applied through the dye receiver to effect dye transfer. Either or both of the dye donor and the dye receiver used with such printing methods and apparatus can be in the form of individual sheets or continuous ribbons and may be either stationary or moving. In various embodiments, the dye receiver is held between a convex surface of a rigid support plate and the dye donor during thermal transfer of dye. A variety of methods and devices for providing electromagnetic radiation and for transporting dye donors and dye receivers during printing are also disclosed.

Abstract: A 35 mm format transparency comprising a dye diffusion thermal printing receiver sheet consisting of a transparent substrate having on one surface thereof an image layer on which the image is formed by thermal dye transfer using a laser as the source of heat to effect the thermal transfer, the transparent substrate and the image layer consisting of materials having, in combination, a moisture absorption of less than 1.5% and being positioned removably between two transparent glass sheets.