METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PRINTING METALLIC BEVERAGE CONTAINER BODIES

• US 20160129687A1
• Filed: 11/10/2014
• Published: 05/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ball Beverage Can South America SA (Ball Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Rexam Beverage Can South America S.A.
• Inventors: Vilas Boas, Joao Andre, Pires, Carlos Eduardo
• Granted Patent: US 10,086,602 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B41F 17/006 for printing on curved surfaces not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: B41F 17/22 by rolling contact
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 1/06 Lithographic printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 1/08 Dry printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 1/20 by applying differently-coloured inks simultaneously to different parts of the printing surface
• CPC Class Codes: B41M 1/40 Printing on bodies of particular shapes, e.g. golf balls, candles, wine corks sublimation or volatilisation of pre-printed design B41M5/035

Abstract

A pair of metallic beverage container bodies is sequentially decorated in a direct single file queue by a dry offset rotary metallic beverage container decorator. A container body has a common design element, a first unique design element in a first color, and a second unique design element in a second color on its outer surface. The first unique design element is located within a boundary of the second unique design element. A second container body has the common design element, a third unique design element in the first color, and a fourth unique design element in the second color on the outer surface. The third unique design element is unique relative to the first and second design elements. The third unique design element is located within a boundary of the fourth unique design element.

Claims

1-28. -28. (canceled)

29. A method of consecutively decorating a plurality of substantially identical metallic beverage container bodies using a dry offset decorating apparatus without manufacturing interruption wherein each of the metallic beverage container bodies has an open end separated from a closed end by a circumferential side wall, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a first image transfer blanket comprising;

a first ink receiving surface having a first unique design element in high relief relative to directly adjacent portions of the first ink receiving surface bordering the first unique design element and a second unique design element in low relief within the first ink receiving surface;

providing a second image transfer blanket comprising;

a second ink receiving surface having a third unique design element in high relief relative to directly adjacent portions of the second ink receiving surface bordering the third unique design element and a fourth unique design element in low relief within the second ink receiving surface, wherein the third unique design element is unique relative to the first design element on the first image transfer blanket;

sequentially indexing each of the plurality of substantially identical metallic beverage container bodies to a printing site on the dry offset decorating apparatus;

engaging a circumferential side wall of a first metallic beverage container body with the first ink receiving surface of the first image transfer blanket and rotating the first metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall at least 6.6 radians while engaged with the first ink receiving surface and along a length of the first ink receiving surface greater than a circumferential length of the first metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall; and

engaging a circumferential side wall of a second metallic beverage container body with the second ink receiving surface of the second image transfer blanket and rotating the second metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall at least 6.6 radians while engaged with the second ink receiving surface and along a length of the second ink receiving surface greater than a circumferential length of the second metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein the first metallic beverage container body has a resultant decoration that is unique relative to a resultant decoration exhibited by the second metallic beverage container body subsequent to the two engaging and rotating steps.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein the rotating of the first and second metallic beverage container bodies for at least 6.6 rad is carried out while the first and second metallic beverage container bodies are engaged with ink-bearing portions of the first and second ink receiving surfaces, respectively.

32. The method of claim 31 wherein the first unique design element is spaced from the second design element on the first ink receiving surface such that rotation of the first metallic beverage container circumferential side wall by at least 6.2 radians against and along a length of the first ink receiving surface causes a first ink pattern associated with the first unique design element to be deposited on the first metallic beverage container side wall and causes a second ink pattern associated with the second unique design element to be deposited on the first metallic beverage container side wall and wherein the first ink pattern and the second ink pattern overlap.

33. The method of claim 32 wherein the third unique design element is spaced from the fourth design element on the second ink receiving surface such that rotation of the second metallic beverage container circumferential side wall by at least 6.2 radians against and along a length of the second ink receiving surface causes a third ink pattern associated with the third unique design element to be deposited on the second metallic beverage container side wall and causes a fourth ink pattern associated with the fourth unique design element deposited on the second metallic beverage container side wall and the third ink pattern and the fourth ink pattern overlap.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein the second and fourth ink patterns are defined by a surface area of the having an absence of ink bounded by the common design element.

35. The method of claim 33 wherein the first and second image transfer blankets have an identical common design element on the first and second ink receiving surfaces, respectively, and which forms a boundary around the second and fourth unique design elements in low relief, respectively.

36. The method of claim 35 further comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of ink applicators each supplied with a different color of ink;

providing a plurality of printing plates wherein each printing plate has a print surface in high relief;

engaging each of the plurality of ink applicators with a corresponding printing plate and transferring a quantity of ink thereto;

engaging each of the plurality of printing plates with the first ink receiving surface of the first image transfer blanket to provide a common ink pattern associated with the identical common design element and to provide ink to the first unique design element in high relief prior to the engaging a circumferential side wall of a first metallic beverage container body with the first ink receiving surface of the first image transfer blanket step;

repeating the engaging each of the plurality of ink applicators to each of the plurality of printing plates step; and

engaging each of the plurality of printing plates with the second ink receiving surface of the second image transfer blanket to provide a common ink pattern associated with the identical common design element and to provide ink to the third unique design element in high relief prior to the engaging a circumferential side wall of a second metallic beverage container body with the second ink receiving surface of the second image transfer blanket step.

37. The method of claim 36 wherein the first and third ink patterns are defined by first and third ink pattern surface areas, respectively, and the second and fourth ink patterns are defined by second and fourth ink pattern areas, respectively, wherein the first and third ink pattern surface areas are located completely within boundaries of the second and fourth ink pattern surface areas, respectively.

38. The method of claim 36 wherein the first and third ink patterns are defined by first and third ink pattern surface areas, respectively, and the second and fourth ink patterns are defined by second and fourth ink pattern areas, respectively, and wherein the first and third ink pattern surface areas are less the second and fourth ink pattern surface areas, respectively.

39. The method of claim 36 wherein the first and third ink patterns are defined by first and third ink pattern surface areas, respectively, and the second and fourth ink patterns are defined by second and fourth ink pattern areas, respectively, and wherein the first and third ink pattern surface areas are substantially equal to the second and fourth ink pattern surface areas, respectively.

40. The method of claim 36 wherein the first and third ink patterns are defined by first and third ink pattern surface areas, respectively, and the second and fourth ink patterns are defined by second and fourth ink patterns, respectively, and wherein the first and third ink pattern surface areas are greater than the second and fourth ink pattern surface areas, respectively.

41. The method according to claim 29 wherein the first and third unique design elements are alphanumeric characters.

42. The method according to claim 29 wherein the second and fourth unique design elements are alphanumeric characters.

43. The method according to claim 29 wherein the first unique design element is a same alphanumeric character as the second unique design element.

44. The method according to claim 29 wherein the third unique design element is a same alphanumeric character as the fourth unique design element.

45. A method of consecutively decorating a plurality of substantially identical metallic beverage container bodies using a dry offset decorating apparatus without manufacturing interruption wherein each of the metallic beverage container bodies has an open end separated from a closed end by a circumferential side wall by over-rotating first and second metallic beverage container bodies more than one complete revolution against first and second ink receiving surfaces on first and second image transfer blankets, respectively, wherein a first metallic beverage container body first engages an ink-bearing leading edge of a first unique design element in high relief and wherein a trailing edge of the first unique design element is separated from a leading edge of a common design element on the first ink receiving surface by a low relief portion of the first ink receiving surface and wherein the first metallic beverage container body will then engage an ink-bearing portion of the first ink receiving surfaces comprising the common design element thereon, and wherein a length of the common design element between the leading edge of the common design element and the trailing edge of the common design element is within ±

5% of the length of the circumference of the first metallic beverage container body, and wherein a second unique design element on the first ink receiving surface is in low relief between the leading edge of the common design element and the trailing edge of the common design element.

46. A method of consecutively decorating a plurality of substantially identical metallic beverage container bodies using a dry offset decorating apparatus without manufacturing interruption wherein each of the metallic beverage container bodies has an open end separated from a closed end by a circumferential side wall, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a first image transfer blanket comprising;

a first ink receiving surface having a first unique design element in high relief relative to directly adjacent portions of the first ink receiving surface bordering the first unique design element and a common design element in high relief on the first ink receiving surface, wherein a distance between a leading edge of the first unique design element and a trailing edge of the common design element is greater than a circumferential length of a circumferential side wall of the first metallic beverage container body plus a length of an arc of the circumference of the circumferential side wall of the first metallic beverage container body subtending an angle of 15°

;

providing a second image transfer blanket comprising;

a second ink receiving surface having a third unique design element in high relief relative to directly adjacent portions of the second ink receiving surface bordering the third unique design element and the common design element in high relief on the second ink receiving surface, wherein the third unique design element is unique relative to the first design element on the first image transfer blanket, and wherein a distance between a leading edge of the third unique design element and a trailing edge of the common design element is greater than a circumferential length of a circumferential side wall of the second metallic beverage container body plus a length of an arc of the circumference of the circumferential side wall of the second metallic beverage container body subtending an angle of 15°

;

sequentially indexing each of the plurality of substantially identical metallic beverage container bodies to a printing site on the dry offset decorating apparatus;

engaging the circumferential side wall of a first metallic beverage container body with the first ink receiving surface of the first image transfer blanket and rotating the first metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall at least 6.5 radians from the leading edge of the first unique design element to the trailing edge of the common design element while engaged with the first ink receiving surface; and

engaging the circumferential side wall of a second metallic beverage container body with the second ink receiving surface of the second image transfer blanket and rotating the second metallic beverage container body circumferential side wall at least 6.5 radians from the leading edge of the second unique design element to the trailing edge of the common design element while engaged with the second ink receiving surface.

47. The method of claim 46 wherein the first metallic beverage container body has a resultant decoration that is unique relative to a resultant decoration exhibited by the second metallic beverage container body subsequent to the two engaging and rotating steps.

48. The method of claim 47 wherein the rotating of the first and second metallic beverage container bodies for at least 6.5 rad is carried out while the first and second metallic beverage container bodies are engaged with ink-bearing portions of the first and second ink receiving surfaces, respectively.

49. The method of claim 48 wherein the rotating of the first metallic beverage container body for at least 6.5 rad causes a first ink pattern associated with the first unique design element to be deposited on the first metallic beverage container side wall and causes a common design ink pattern associated with the common design element to be deposited on the first metallic beverage container side wall and wherein an ink from the first ink pattern and an ink from the common design ink pattern directly overlap.

50. The method of claim 49 wherein the rotating of the second metallic beverage container body for at least 6.5 rad causes a third ink pattern associated with the third unique design element to be deposited on the second metallic beverage container side wall and causes a common design ink pattern associated with the common design element to be deposited on the second metallic beverage container side wall and wherein an ink from the third ink pattern and an ink from the common design ink pattern directly overlap.