Patent ID: 7118207

Claim:
Ink for ink-jet color recording, the ink comprising one of: (i) a plurality of small microcapsules dispersed in a same solvent, and (ii) a plurality of large microcapsules dispersed in the same solvent, each large microcapsule containing a plurality of the small microcapsules; wherein each small microcapsule has an outer shell which has a characteristic that is different from characteristics of outer shells of other small microcapsules and which is destroyable with a predetermined stimulus corresponding to the characteristic thereof; wherein each small microcapsule contains, in a dispersed state within the outer shell thereof, a first one of two reactive materials that react with each other when mixed to perform a coloring reaction, wherein a second one of the two reactive materials is dispersed outside the outer shell of the small microcapsule in the same solvent, and wherein the two reactive materials are diffused and mixed to thereby perform a coloring reaction when the outer shell of the small microcapsule is destroyed with the predetermined stimulus; and wherein the outer shell of each of the plurality of small microcapsules is selectively destroyable by the predetermined stimulus corresponding thereto, such that a desired coloring reaction is performed to realize a predetermined color by selectively destroying the outer shells of small microcapsules corresponding to the desired color reaction.