Radial printing system and methods

• US 6,264,295 B1
• Filed: 04/17/1998
• Issued: 07/24/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/17/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Elesys
• Original Assignee: Elesys
• Inventors: Unter, Jan Eugene, Jones, Randy Quinn, Bradshaw, George Lynn, Covert, Markus Willard, Sorensen, Michael Keith
• Primary Examiner(s): Yockey, David F.
• Application Number:
  US09/062,300
• Time in Patent Office: 1,194 Days
• Field of Search: 347/40, 347/2, 347/105, 347/102, 347/12, 346/137, 369/219, 369/221, 358/1.18, 358/1.11
• US Class Current: 347/2
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/407 for marking on special material
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 23/40 Identifying or analogous means applied to or incorporated in the record carrier and not intended for visual display simultaneously with the playing-back of the record carrier, e.g. label, leader, photograph

Abstract

Method and apparatus for receiving an image source representative of an image to be printed on an outer surface of a rotating media is described. The image source has a plurality of image points. A radial printing system is described that includes an imaging system configured to convert the plurality of image points into a polar-based representation of the image and a head assembly coupled to the imaging system for outputting the polar-based representation of the image onto the rotating media. The rotating media may represent a compact disk, wherein an inner surface of the compact disk is configured to store digital data. Printing distortion is controlled by selecting a higher proportion of the polar points corresponding to a first radius is selected than of polar the points corresponding to a second radius.

Claims

1. A radial printing system for receiving an image source representative of an image to be printed on a rotating media, the image source having a plurality of image points expressed in Cartesian coordinates, the system comprising:

a computer imaging system configured to convert the plurality of image points expressed in Cartesian coordinates into a plurality of polar image points expressed in polar coordinates, wherein each polar point corresponds to a location on the media,

wherein the computer imaging system is further configured to control printing distortion by selecting a first portion of the polar points that correspond to a first radius of the media and selecting a second portion of the polar points that correspond to a second radius of the media, a higher proportion of the polar points corresponding to the first radius being selected than of the polar points corresponding to the second radius; and

a head assembly coupled to the computer imaging system for outputting an ink object along the first radius of the rotating media for each polar point within the selected first portion and outputting an ink object along the second radius for each polar point within the selected second portion.

2. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the first portion of polar points are selected to have a higher angular resolution than the second portion.

3. A radial printing system as recited in claim 2, wherein the first radius is a higher value than the second radius.

4. A radial printing system as recited in claim 3, wherein the first portion includes substantially all of the polar points corresponding to the first radius and the second portion is a subset of the polar points corresponding to the second radius.

5. A radial printing system as recited in claim 4, wherein the second portion is selected by discarding polar points so that overlapping of ink objects is minimized.

6. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the ink objects at the first radius have a larger size than the ink objects at the second radius.

7. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the ink objects at the first radius have a stripe shape, and the ink objects at the second radius have a dot shape.

8. A radial printing systems as recited in claim 1, wherein the rotating media is a compact disc (CD).

9. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

a position sensor for sensing a plurality of angular positions at a plurality of times and outputting the angular positions to the computer imaging system,

wherein the computer imaging system is further configured to receive the angular positions and determine a first ink dispensement time for the first radius of the media and a second ink dispensement time for the second radius based on the sensed angular positions,

wherein the head assembly receives the first and second ink dispensement times and outputs the first ink objects along the first radius at the first ink dispensement time and the second ink objects along the second radius at the second ink dispensement time,

wherein the first and second ink dispensement times are determined such that the first and second ink objects hit the media at about the same angle on the media.

10. A radial printing system as recited in claim 9, wherein the media is a CD having a mark detectable by the position sensor so as to provide a reference for the determined angular positions.

11. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

a rotation motor for rotating the platter; and

a servo system for controlling the rotation motor,

wherein the media represents a CD and the rotation motor is in the form of the motor employed to rotate the CD during recording of digital data onto the CD.

12. A radial printing system as recited in claim 1, wherein the head assembly includes an ink jet print head.

13. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the head assembly includes a curing bar for curing ink that is printed onto the rotating media.

14. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the head assembly includes a drying bar for drying ink that is printed onto the rotating media.

15. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the head assembly includes an optical reader for retrieving optical information.

16. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the computer imaging system further includes a buffer for arranging the polar data points of the polar based bitmap to facilitate printing onto the media.

17. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the computer imaging system is configured to reduce printing distortion of one from a group consisting of large swatch, mismatch, twisting, and dual conversion distortion.

18. A radial printing system recited in claim 1, wherein the computer imaging system is configured to reduce large swatch, mismatch, twisting, and dual conversion distortion.

19. A method for reproducing an image on a rotating media, comprising:

receiving a plurality of Cartesian image points representing the image;

converting the image points into a plurality of polar image points;

selecting a first portion of the polar points that correspond to a first radius of the media;

selecting a second portion of the polar points that correspond to a second radius of the media, wherein a higher number of the polar points corresponding to the first radius are selected than of the polar points corresponding to the second radius;

printing an ink object along the first radius for each polar point within the selected first portion; and

printing an ink object along the second radius for each polar point within the selected second portion.