Inkjet printer, dye printing method, and ink

• US 10,391,790 B2
• Filed: 08/21/2015
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mimaki Engineering Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Mimaki Engineering Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Ohnishi, Masaru
• Primary Examiner(s): Fidler, Shelby L
• Application Number:
  US15/505,075
• Publication Number:
  US 20170266993A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,467 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/002 Curing or drying the ink on the copy materials, e.g. by heating or irradiating
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00216 using infrared [IR] radiation or microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0022 using convection means, e.g. by using a fan for blowing or sucking air
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/4078 Printing on textile
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/03 characterised by features other than the chemical nature of the binder
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/10 based on artificial resins
• CPC Class Codes: C09D 11/328 characterised by dyes
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 1/445 Use of auxiliary substances before, during or after dyeing or printing
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 1/52 using compositions containing synthetic macromolecular substances D06P1/60 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 1/5271 Polyesters; Polycarbonates; Alkyd resins
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 1/5278 Polyamides; Polyimides; Polylactames; Polyalkyleneimines
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 5/2077 after dyeing
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 5/30 Ink jet printing

Abstract

A dye printing method and an ink capable of performing printing on more types of media than in the related art are shown. A dye printing method using ink 10 containing a solvent 11, and particles of a thermoplastic resin dispersed in the solvent 11 and containing a dye 13 is characterized by including a printing process of performing a printing on a medium 20 with the ink 10, a particle fixing process of fixing the particles 12 to the medium 20 by drying the solvent 11 of the ink 10 ejected to the medium 20 by the printing process, and a resin fixing process of fixing the thermoplastic resin to the medium 20 by heating the particles 12 fixed to the medium 20 by the particle fixing process, at least at a glass-transition temperature or higher.

Claims

1. An ink, comprising:

a solvent;

particles of a thermoplastic resin dispersed in the solvent and including a dye; and

small particles of a thermoplastic resin dispersed in the solvent and having a particle diameter smaller than that of the particles, wherein

the small particles have a glass-transition point lower than that of the particles.

2. The ink according to claim 1, wherein:

the small particles are dyed in a color identical or similar to the color of the particles including the dye uniformly dispersed therein by heating.

3. The ink according to claim 1, wherein:

the small particles are dyed in a color identical or similar to the color of the particles including the dye uniformly dispersed therein by heating.