Explain the development of thermal recording paper

In the 1930s, wax-type thermal recording paper using thermal recording was used in electrocardiograms. The ECG drawing that was popular in my country in the 1960s and 1970s also used a similar recording method.

In the 1940s, the United States developed a thermal copy method that uses infrared as a heat source to turn the original image into a thermal image.

In 1950, the metal compound-based thermal recording paper developed by 3M Corporation of the United States gained widespread popularity in the United States. Soon, due to the emergence of electronic photographic recording, the thermal paper fell into a period of decline.

In the early 1960s, NCR Company invented the thermal recording paper that uses leuco dyes and phenolic compounds to react, which is also the mainstream thermal recording method of information paper today.

In 1972, the thermal method invented by NCR Company began to be commercialized in Japan. Since 1972, Japan has taken the opening of public telephone circuits as an opportunity, and the application of thermal recording paper in communication and fax has been rapidly developed. In the beginning, thermal recording paper was limited to low-speed machines (G1 machine, <5 points/A4). With the advancement of machines and paper, it gradually moved to medium-speed machines (G2 machine, <3 points/A4) and then to high-speed machines. (G3 machine, <1 minute/A4) and even entered the field of high-speed machines (G4 machine, 10 seconds/A4) in recent years.

In the 1980s, thermal recording paper was mainly used in the field of telex or facsimile and accompanied by rapid development in other areas, so that its output reached an annual growth rate of 10 to 30%. The background of such a leap-forward development of the thermal method is that it has the charm that the electrostatic method does not have: one-time color development, small device, low cost and almost no maintenance. It is a non-collision printing method that makes high speed possible; in paper production On the one hand, it is a water-based one-time coating, and the cost is only 1/2 to 1/3 of that of electrostatic recording.

However, in the field of telecommunication and fax, from 1986 when ordinary paper fax machines were introduced to the early 1990s, due to the large volume and high one-time investment of ordinary paper fax machines, the thermal fax machine had not yet become a substantial part of the thermal fax machine. threaten. With the progress of the miniaturization of ordinary paper fax machines in recent years and the decline in costs, they have gradually eroded the company’s fax machine market, which has launched a strong impact on thermal fax machines, forcing the price of thermal fax paper to be reduced significantly, thus forming The current situation of coexistence.

In the 1990s, in the field of telecommunication and fax, people were worried about the prospect of thermal fax. The author believes that although the price of ordinary paper fax machines has been continuously lowered, they are still more expensive than thermal paper fax machines and require a large one-time investment; although the size has been shrinking, they are still larger than thermal paper fax machines, and household and individual user markets have not been able to get involved. The cost of toner consumed by ordinary paper fax machines is also expensive; although ordinary paper faxes have good storage properties, most companies require multiple copies and still need to use a photocopier; in 1993, the ratio of the number of two fax machines was 2000 Ten thousand to 60,000, the existing market share of thermal fax machines is dominant; the price of thermal fax paper has been lowered to 40% in 1990, greatly enhancing competitiveness. Considering multiple factors, it is estimated that in the field of fax, the coexistence of the two will continue for a long time. In recent years, the output of thermal facsimile paper has been declining worldwide. However, in the field of thermal recording paper other than telecommunication facsimile, due to the inherent advantages of thermal recording methods, it still maintains a vigorous development trend. The output of sensitive recording paper is still developing in a generally unchanged state. This means that thermal recording paper is struggling to find new rises in technology and cost in the field of fax, while in other areas, it is intensifying its development. There are many varieties of thermal recording paper, with different formulas, thermal materials, different quality standards and different production processes according to different uses.