Method and apparatus for ink jet printing

• US 20050174412A1
• Filed: 09/30/2003
• Published: 08/11/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: L&P Property Management Company (Leggett & Platt Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: L&P Property Management Company (Leggett & Platt Incorporated)
• Inventors: Comerford, Robert B., Collan, William W., Codos, Richard N., Quattrociocchi, Angelo, Badovinac, Milan
• Granted Patent: US 7,073,902 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 347/102
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0015 for treating before, during or after printing or for uniform coating or laminating the copy material before or after printing selective coating B41J2/2114
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/00214 using UV radiation
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0022 using convection means, e.g. by using a fan for blowing or sucking air
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0024 using conduction means, e.g. by using a heated platen
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/02 Platens
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 19/202 Drive control means for carriage movement
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/01 Ink jet
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/1652 by driving a fluid through the nozzles to the outside thereof, e.g. by applying pressure to the inside or vacuum at the outside of the print head
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/2107 characterised by the ink properties supplying ink in a solid state B41J2/17593
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/4078 Printing on textile
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0047 by ink-jet printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 5/0064 on plastics, horn, rubber, or other organic polymers
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 7/0072 using mechanical wave energy, e.g. ultrasonics; using magnetic or electric fields, e.g. electric discharge, plasma
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 7/0081 using electromagnetic radiation or waves, e.g. ultraviolet radiation, electron beams
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 7/009 using thermal means, e.g. infrared radiation, heat
• CPC Class Codes: D05B 11/00 Machines for sewing quilts or mattresses control of workpiece-holding frames, or of sewing machines, in order to obtain particular seam configuration D05B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 5/2005 Treatments with alpha, beta, gamma or other rays, e.g. stimulated rays
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 5/2011 Application of vibrations, pulses or waves for non-thermic purposes
• CPC Class Codes: D06P 5/30 Ink jet printing

Abstract

Ink jet printing is provided on large area substrates such as wide width textile webs. The printheads are driven by linear servo motors (633) across a bridge (630) that extends across the substrate. The timing of the jetting of the ink is coordinated with the motion of the printheads (640,641), so that the heads can be rapidly moved and the ink can be jetted while the printheads are accelerating or decelerating as they move on the bridge. Preferably, ultraviolet (UV) light curable ink is jetted and first partially cured with UV light (645,646) and then subjected to heating to more completely reduce uncured monomers of the ink on the substrate. Preferably, the heat is applied by contacting the substrate with a heated plate (661,662). Ink jet printing is provided using ultraviolet (UV) light curable or other curable composition or stable or other printable substance. In certain embodiments the UV ink has a dye-component therein. The ink is jetted onto a substrate, the composition is cured, then heated to set the dye. Sublimation dye-based UV ink printing onto polyester is preferred. A release layer of protective material (702,704), such as a TEFLON film or sheet, covers a substrate support (705,706). A porous substrate to be printed, such as a textile material (711), is supported on or above the support. Ink is jetted onto the substrate, with some of the ink passing through pores in the substrate and landing on the protective material. UV curable ink is preferably used and is exposed by UV light from a UV light curing head, which solidifies the ink on the substrate. The UV curing light has a long enough focal length to focus on the surface of the substrate and also, where it passes through pores in the substrate, on ink on the protective material, thereby solidifying the ink on the protective material. When the substrate is removed from the support, the solidified ink on the protective material may be wiped from the protective material. The protective material may be a coating on the support over which the substrate slides or a belt that moves with the substrate. A textile substrate may be preconditioned by singeing or shaving to remove fuzz from the fabric that could clog the printheads. A printhead cleaning station is also provided.

Claims

1-47. -47. (canceled)

48. A method of printing onto porous textiles comprising:

providing a substrate having a non-stick material surface;

supporting a textile having pores therein above the non-stick material surface of the substrate;

jetting UV curable ink onto the substrate with some of the ink passing through the pores of the substrate onto the non-stick material surface of the substrate;

exposing the jetted UV curable ink on the non-stick material surface of the substrate to UV light;

removing the textile from above the substrate;

wiping exposed UV curable ink from the material on the substrate.

49. The method of claim 48 wherein:

the non-stick material is a coating of material on the substrate to which UV ink, jetted thereon and at least partially cured, has an adhesive force sufficiently high to prevent such ink from being wiped from the coating by the friction of the textile sliding over the substrate, but has an adhesive force that is, or can be made, sufficiently low to allow such ink to be cleaned from the substrate; and

the textile is supported on the substrate in contact with the non-stick material.

50. The method of claim 48 wherein:

the supporting of the textile above the substrate support includes extending the substrate in tension, spaced from the substrate adjacent the non-stick material at least in a region between the printhead and the substrate.

51-59. -59. (canceled)

60. An ink jetting printing apparatus comprising:

a substrate support;

a layer of non-stick protective material overlying the support so as to collect, and protect the substrate support from, ink jetted toward a porous substrate on the support and passing through the porous substrate;

an ink jet printhead directed toward the support;

a curable head positioned adjacent the support to facilitate the curing of ink jetted from the printhead toward a substrate on the support.

61-64. -64. (canceled)

65. A method of printing onto textiles comprising:

supporting a textile having pores therein;

jetting ink onto the substrate with some of the ink passing through the pores of the substrate;

the supporting of the textile includes extending the substrate in tension to form a space behind the textile so that the ink passing through the pores in the textile pass through the space away from the surface of the textile;

providing a surface behind the textile with the space formed between the textile and the surface, the surface having a layer of non-stick protective material thereon;

the textile being supported above the surface with the layer of non-stick protective sheet material between the surface and the space;

the jetting includes jetting UV curable ink onto the substrate with some of the ink passing through the pores of the substrate onto the layer of material;

exposing the jetted UV curable ink to UV light;

removing the substrate from above the surface; and

wiping exposed UV curable ink from the layer of protective material.

67. The method of claim 65 wherein the non-stick protective material is TEFLON.

66. (canceled)

68-83. -83. (canceled)

84. A method of guiding a substrate through a printing system comprising:

moving the substrate having pores or other openings therethrough through a printing section of the printing system while applying tension to the substrate;

as the substrate moves through the printing system, providing a gap over which the substrate moves to minimize excess ink deposited on the substrate and passing through the openings in the substrate onto a surface behind the substrate from contacting the backside of the substrate;

at the printing section, jetting UV curable ink onto a substrate, at least some of the UV curable ink passing through the openings in the substrate onto the surface behind the substrate;

exposing the UV curable ink passing through the openings in the substrate to UV light proximate to at least partially cure UV curable ink on the surface behind the substrate.

85. The method of claim 84 further comprising:

heating the substrate after jetting the ink onto the substrate.

86. A method of ink jet printing onto a porous web comprising:

providing a porous web having such pores or other openings therethrough, such that, when ink is jetted from a printhead onto the web, some of the ink jets through the openings to a side of the web opposite the printhead;

providing a surface on the opposite side of the web from the printhead;

stretching the web through a printing station by applying tension to the web;

moving the web longitudinally through the printing station;

as the web moves through the printing station maintaining a space between the web and the surface such that the web is out of contact with the surface at the printing station;

jetting UV curable ink from the printhead onto the web as the web moves through the printing station, with some of the ink jetting through the web, across the space and onto said surface;

exposing the UV curable ink jetted onto the web to UV light.

87. The method of claim 86 further comprising:

exposing at least some of the ink jetted through the openings in the web and onto the surface to UV energy to at least partially cure UV ink jetted onto the surface.

88. The method of claim 86 further comprising:

covering the surface with a layer protective material.

89. The method of claim 86 further comprising:

wiping from the surface ink jetted through the openings in the web.