Thermal Transfer Labels Guide

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When you operate a small business, or even a home based business, you will probably want to consider purchasing a specialized label printer. Today these devices are small and inexpensively priced, and are perfect for printing postage stamps, are ideal for shipping labels as well as your other labeling requirements.

For businesses that print an occasional label, they do not require a separate label printer. However, if that send out mailers, fliers, and print multitude of various size labels an inkjet or laser printer would best meet your needs.

The type of labels most frequently used will fit most word processing applications, which come with templates for labels. There are also several programs for other print options, such as labels for CDs and DVDs, which also can be printed with the use of an inkjet or laser printer.

However, for printing large volumes of labels, the purchase of a dedicated label printer can be helpful. Dedicated label printers can vary in price from under $100 for small consumer printers, which can print rolls of labels to labelers that cost over $300, which can print labels for large mailings quicker and with better print quality.

These label printers are thermal transfer printers, which are also used in countless industries for the printing of bar code labels as well as postage labels. These printers use a heated print head to melt the ink contained on a wax ribbon, which transfers the ink to the paper producing the desired graphic. These labelers do not produce the quality of graphics as the industrial labelers produce, but it will be satisfactory for label text and simple graphics.

The majority of the labelers on the market receive data directly from your computer, however there are a few, which have recently appeared on the marker that have a keyboard enabling you to enter data directly into the device, freeing up your computer.

Types of Label Printers

Desktop labelers-are designed for light to medium duty and can accept a roll of stock up to 4″. They are perfect for home office use, are quiet and inexpensive.

Commercial label printers-These can accept a roll of stock up to 8″ and are suited for medium volume printing. These are used for small business and office use.

Industrial label printers-designed for industrial use, and continuous operation in warehouses, distribution centers, and factories.

Automatic thermally applied graphics are applied with a heated rubber die, with the combination of heat and pressure a graphic design is permanently printed onto such items as plastic jars, ceramic cups, golf clubs, etc. This method is an alternative to silk-screening and hot stamping as it reduces the chance of registration error.

When applying thermal graphics, only one pass is needed to adhere the graphic to the item. This is a cost effective technique when compared to silk-screening and hot stamping printing techniques. Other advantages with this process is that the graphics can be added to packages, contain up to 14 colors or four-color process. In addition several finishes such as matte, shiny, semitransparent, and opaque are available.

The use of thermally applied graphics allows manufactures to decorate various products of various surface textures and materials. This process also has the ability to use multiple colors and reproduce complex design with accuracy, consistency and sharp detail.

Direct thermal and thermal transfer printers provide better label printing solution for on demand printing. In addition, laser printers require the use of standard 8 1/2 x 11 or A4 size sheets, when you only require one label or a label, which is smaller than the A4 sheet size, you still must use the entire sheet. This is booth inefficient and costly.

1.Direct and Thermal transfer printers are roll fed. This means they only print the number of labels or tags that are required for that particular print job without the waste of unused portions.

2.Both Direct and Thermal transfer prints are built to withstand any industrial environment, which can prove difficult for a laser, and inkjet printers to function.

3.Direct thermal printing does not require a ribbon, or ink, has a very low operational cost, as well as upkeep. It is an excellent print option for documents and labels that do not require to be kept for long periods of time. In addition, it has proven to be a successful print method for restaurant, store receipts, bar code labels, etc. However, the life span of the direct thermal printed tag or label is short and will fade over time or will turn black when exposed to heat or strong sunlight.

4.Thermal transfer printers do require the use of a printer ribbon. However, thermal transfer printer’s offer a flexible format, graphic capability, high quality printing, required very little maintenance, and high density bar code capability including the ability for infrared scanning.

Thermal printer began in the 1960′s and has been used in the printing industry for production ever since. As the technology advanced, the users and printers also improved, enhancing the printing process, speed, accuracy, and refinement for mass production printing.

To print, thermo-sensitive paper was feed between the thermal print head and the platen. The printer then transmits an electrical current to the heating resistor of the print head. The heat activates the thermo-sensitive coloring layer of the paper, which changes color, producing the desired pattern. This method reduced the cost of printing, was much faster and quieter than dot matrix printers, and it portable. Thermal printing became the common printing technique for bar codes, receipts, medical print outs, faxes, and several other applications.

However, the print did not have a long life. The thermal paper used was sensitive to UV rays, extreme temperatures, and chemical vapors. Researchers needed to enhance thermal printing. By the late 1970′s, they had a revolutionary breakthrough with the development of the ribbon films, and improvements in the printer head used in what is called thermal transfer printing.

By the 1990s, thermal transfer printers were considered one of the most accurate forms of printing. Today, thermal transfer printers are still considered as one of the most accurate printing techniques due to the fixed position print element, with print spaces measuring as small as 0.0001 inch. Thermal transfer printing never skips a space and always gives a smooth surface finish. The wax ink that is used coats the surface, providing a polished looked that is presentable and appealing.

Thermal transfer print heads are semiconductors, which house a row of tiny printing elements approximately 300 per inch that are housed within a ceramic coating. The thermal transfer ribbon is a thin film, which is coated with a waxy ink-resin on one side. When the print head makes contact with the non-inked side of the print ribbon, the print elements are heated and cooled in rapid succession. When heated, the elements melt the ink, transferring it to the print media. The elements cool and the media is moved so that the next line can be printed. Thermal transfer coders can print real-time information, graphics, and bar codes and can use a variety of stationary or moving print media, making it perfect for continuous packaging lines as well as intermittent applications.

Intermittent applications such as self-adhesive label applicators the print media is stationary, the print head come in contact with the ribbon that then comes in contact with the print media. The print head moves over the ribbon, completing the printing process.

Continuous applications the print head fixed. The printer head lowers and contacts the ribbon and substrate. It is then the motion of the ribbon that completes the printing process, not the print head. With this process, the ribbon and print media are calibrated to move at the same rate, producing top quality images.

Thermal transfer coders are a digital technology that can automatically updated lot codes and best-before dates, reducing the risk of operator error. Thermal transfer coders work in combination with several varieties of continuous-motion and intermittent-motion packaging machinery.

How to choose between direct thermal and thermal transfer printing.

When deciding on a type of bar code printer to purchase for your company, you may wonder if a direct thermal or a thermal transfer printer would be best for your company. Therefore, the purpose of this section is to better explain the benefits and disadvantages of each system as well as explain the differences between their technologies.

Direct thermal printers use a special chemically treated, heat-sensitive media, referred to as thermal paper. Thermal paper changes colors, usually to black when it passes under the thermal print head. Direct thermal printers do not use ink, toner, or ribbon, making them more economical to operate than inkjet, laser, impact, and thermal transfer printers. Early fax machines as well as most mobile printers use direct thermal technology.

The main disadvantage with this system is that the thermal media images will fade over time. In addition, if the thermal label is exposed to heat, light, chemical vapors, or other catalysts, the thermal paper the label is made from will darken, making the information on the paper, or label unreadable. Direct thermal printing, therefore cannot be used for documents which need to be keep for extended periods of time. Technology has extended the lifespan of many common bar code printing applications including shipping labels, patient and visitor identification, receipts, and ticket printing. However, for such items as receipts, faxes, and even some medical print offs and medical wristbands, the readability of these items greatly depends on their storage conditions.

An example of this would be direct thermal labels, which have spent several months or even up to a few years in storage where they were protected from heat were able to be scanned and read. Hospitals protect direct thermal patient wristbands from water, and chemicals by coating them with a water- and chemical-resistant plastic. Direct thermal printing applications are commonly used for bar codes, shipping labels, compliance labels, receipts, event tickets, citations and parking tickets, temporary nametags, and visitor passes, as well as many more applications.

Thermal transfer printers use a heated print head, which applies heat to a ribbon. The thermal printer ribbon has a waxy ink resin that melts onto the print medium forming the image. The melted ink resin is absorbed by the medium so that the image becomes part of the media. The images produced by this technique have quality and durability, which is unmatched by any other form of on-demand printing.

Because thermal transfer printers use a ribbon, they can accept a variety of print medium, including paper, polyester, and polypropylene, making thermal transfer printers more versatile. The only disadvantages are the operational cost are more expensive than direct thermal printing, simply because of the added cost of the print ribbon. The other disadvantage is to ensure print performance and durability the media and ribbon must be carefully matched.

When users select correct media-ribbon combination, the end product that is produced is able to withstand extreme temperatures, ultraviolet exposure, chemicals, sterilization, and other environmental hazards. In other words, the printed product remains readable for several generations. Thermal transfer printing is used on such products as product identification, permanent identification cards, inventory identification, certification labels, labels for laboratory specimens, cold storage, and freezers and even for the manufacturing of bumper stickers, to name a few of the infinite uses of thermal transfer printing.

The majority of all bar codes are printed on thermal transfer labels. These stickers of black bars of various widths and lengths are a langue called symbologies. The spaces and bars encode information about the product and when scanned, provide this information automatically. The scanned information can then be entered without errors, making bar codes a more accurate way of entering information.

Because different industries have uniquely different needs, several types of bar codes have been developed, each speaking different languages, are known as symbologies. The following is a brief explanation of some of the more common symbologies.

The most popular symbology used is Code 39 and is used for identification, inventory, tracking and labeling. The characters for Code 39 encoding include uppercase letters as well as numbers and Code 39 is self-checking. However, if there is additional security required, there is an option of a check character.

Bar codes used for encoding zip codes for the Postal Service, are Postnet bar. In addition, with Postnet bar codes, instead of the bar’s width varying, the bar height of the Postnet alternates, with every number represented by 5 bars.

Self-checking bar codes use a symbology that is designed to check itself, when it has been read by a scanner ensuring that one character is not interpreted for another character. When self-checking bar codes are scanned, the characters are added and a calculation is made to confirm the number. This calculation is different for the different types of bar codes and if the calculation is incorrect for that bar code, then the bar code reading is rejected and the information is not transferred.

The next type of bar codes is the Universal Product Code or UPC, which is the original bar code. The first item ever purchased using the UPC was a pack of Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit chewing gum. These are mostly used in the grocery and retail industries. EAN, JAN, and ISSN bar codes are expanded forms of the UPC. EAN bar codes are used in Europe and JAN bar codes are used in Japan. ISSN bar codes are used on books and magazines.

It is a misconception that the price of the item is actually in the bar code. The UPC code contains information that can be extracted from an inventory database when the UPC is scanned. It is for this reason that when price changes occur, the UPC label does not have to be replaced. The UPC uses only a numeric system with a check character in the lower right hand corner. In addition to the check character, optional 2 or 5 digit numbers can be placed to the right of the main symbol, providing additional encoding options.

Code 128 bar codes are primarily used in the shipping industry, because it is a very high-density linear symbology, which can encode text, numbers, several functions as well as all 128 character ASCII character set, which are all members of the standard code for representing characters by binary numbers.

Interleaved 2 of 5 bar code symbology, is used by shipping and warehouse industries as well as in the medical field. This code only varies in length and numeric and is a continuous symbology, with each character consisting of 5 bars and 5 spaces. This is also the highest density symbology for numeric data.

The newest technology in bar codes is the 2D or two-dimensional bar codes, which have the ability to store large amounts of data. Unlike one-dimensional or traditional bar codes, 2D bar codes are a very high-density non-linear symbology. 2D bar codes also have the ability to encode photos, images, fingerprints, and other such data.

However, as wonderful as 2D bar codes sound they do have several disadvantages associated with them, primarily that fact that the software is considerably more expensive and you most have a special scanner in order to read the 2D bar code symbologies.

There are several other scanned symbologies, which are used in addition to bar code symbologies. Such as OCR or Optical Character Recognition, which are used independently of the bar code. OCR-A are used to format the ISBN number for books, while the OCR-B is used for UPC, EAN, JAN, and ISSN bar codes.

Since their invention, bar codes have been improved upon making it easier for us to maintain inventory as well as have the ability to track shipments. Who knows how far bar codes will advance in the future.

Labels are a form of tag, which is attached to an object with some form of adhesives. The purpose of the label is to identify either the object itself or the contents within the object. You can purchase labels in several different shapes, sizes and made from various base materials, also known as stock. How a label is identified, is usually by the material the label is printed on, as well as the type of adhesive used, such as the sticker, which is a label created with paper, the most common type of stock, and having a permanent adhesive. Another way that labels are identified is by he function they perform, such as thermal transfer labels. Even though these have several other functions, because they are primarily used for printing bar codes, they have become known as bar code labels.

Different Types of Stock used to Create Labels:

While paper is the most common type of stock used for printing labels, latex is also popular giving the label the ability to be flexible and allowing it to form around certain curved objects easily. Other materials such as acetate, vinyl, and PET film, (polyethylene terephthalate polyester film most commonly known as Mylar and Melinex), also offer various valuable features to the label like durability, high tensile strength, flexibility, transparency, etc. However, many of these materials require special printing methods and equipment because they do not accept normally conventional ink well. An example of this is direct thermal label stock. This paper requires a heating element in the shape of letters or images to create the image on the paper. When the thermal paper comes in contact with the heat, the paper will change color, which is usually black. A major disadvantage with this form of printing is that if the label comes in contact with another heat source the label can be ruined.

The Many Different types of Adhesives:

Permanent adhesives are designed so that the label cannot be removed without tearing the label or using solvents, which typically will also destroy the label. In addition, the adhesion strengths and speed at which they adhere can also vary. An example of this is repositionable labels that allow the user the ability to reposition the label if it was applied incorrectly at first. However, once the label has been in place of a period of time, it becomes permanent

Removable labels have the ability to adhere fairly strongly and will not fall off under normal circumstances however the label also has the ability to be removed with relatively ease without damaging the label or leaving behind any adhesive residue. Usually the label can be reapplied elsewhere.

Freezer permanent labels have special type of removable adhesive, which under certain temperatures is permanent. This is often used for objects stored at or below freezing for any period of time.

Tamper evident labels are often used to protect chain of custody in order to ensure that evidence used in court proceedings, police, or forensics evidence is protected. These labels can use one or both of the following methods to ensure security. The first is the use of stocks, which are weak materials and break easily, or the use of adhesives that reveal any attempt of removal, replacement, or tampering.

Specially Designed Labels:

There are several different types of labels, such as piggyback, thermal transfer, blockout, and holographic, to name a few. Piggyback labels are as their name implies. They are made by combining two layers of adhesive substrate, the first or bottom layer forms a backing for the top layer. These labels can then be applied normally to any object such as an envelope. The top layer of the label can be removable and applied elsewhere. With some, piggyback labels the message or markings remain on the label underneath.

Bar Code Labels are usually made of a tamper-evident, permanent, or frangible stock and contain valuable information, which is identified or accessed by a bar code reader. These are also thermal transfer labels.

Blockout labels are specifically designed to block the ability to be seen-through. They conceal any information located underneath and are usually applied with a strong permanent adhesive.

Holographic labels can be used for decoration, but most often are used to ensure authentication and to protection against counterfeiting. Holographic labels are also used on ID cards, credit cards, and such products as computer software and CD/DVD’s, etc. It is important to know that holographic labels are placed on items to protect against counterfeiting in such a way, as they cannot be removed. An example of this is with Microsoft software, the holographic labels are actually part of the disc and cannot be removed. Many bootleggers and counterfeiters use holographic labels that very closely resemble those of Microsoft’s, however, these labels are removable.

For most of us, when we hear of thermal transfer labels, we think of bar codes and bar code printers. However, thermal printing has several other applications other than creating UPC labels. One such application is screen-printing, which is used to produce thermally applied graphics. In screen-printing, a thick ink deposit is laid down when compared to other forms of printing, giving tremendous durability to the graphic and is the only form of printing where opaque white is used as an primary part of a design. With screen-printing, clear and adhesives can also be printed, which create reactions specific to customers’ individual requirements. Many times inks are specially formulated, such as those that include ceramic colors, which after firing become part of the glass, porcelain or ceramic substrate. An example of this is used in creating the look of painted tiles. If actual paint were used, the graphic would soon wear away after the tiles were cleaned a few times. Specially formulated inks that are thermal applied create an image, which is extremely durable.

Screen-printing originally was a process the used an emulsion-coated mesh. The ink was applied with a squeegee that was pulled across the mesh pressing the ink through the tiny carried away for the next print. If several colors were needed, then multiple print stations were used. This was a very timely process.

Today, technology has advanced the process into a unique high-volume-production art form. Heat transfer labels are press onto carrier film, which are then transported to the customer, where they attach the roll to a Hot Stamp/ Heat Transfer machine that uses heat and pressure to apply the customer’s design permanently onto their product. Heat transfer or thermal printing has many distinctive advantages including increased productivity, multiple color application in on simple step, dry decorating methods, which require no mixing or formulating inks. Heat transfer decorated material is immediately ready for handling and shipping, with no drying time.