Method and apparatus for ink jet printing on textiles
First Claim
1. A method of printing on fabric comprising the steps of:
- jetting an ink composition containing a UV curable ink component and a dye component onto a fabric;
then substantially curing at least the UV curable jetted ink component on the fabric by exposing the UV curable ink component to UV light, the curing resulting in a substantially cured UV ink component on the fabric containing uncured monomers of the UV curable ink and the dye component;
then heating the fabric having the substantially cured UV cured ink component thereon and thereby reducing the level of the uncured monomers of the UV curable ink component on the fabric and affecting the dying of the fabric with the dye component.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Ink jet printing is provided onto fabric using ultraviolet (UV) light curable ink. The ink is first partially cured with UV light and then is subjected to heating to more completely cure the ink and to remove by evaporation or otherwise, the uncured monomers and producing a printed image of ink having an amount of unpolymerized monomers and polymerization reactants and byproducts that is less than a food industry packaging standard of 100 PPM, and as low as 10 PPM. The printing is provided in a quilting machine having a quilting station and a printing station located upstream of the quilting station. Preferably, at the printing station, only a top layer of fabric is printed with a multi-colored design under the control of a programmed controller. UV curable ink is jetted onto the fabric with a dot volume of about 75 picoliters. A conveyor moves the printed fabric from the printing station through a UV curing station where a UV curing light head moves either with the print head or independent of the print head to expose the deposited drops of UV ink with a beam of about 300 watts per linear inch of energy, at a rate that applies about 1 joule per square centimeter. The conveyor then conveys the fabric through a heated drying station or oven where the fabric is heated to about 300° F. for from about 30 seconds up to about three minutes. Forced hot air is preferably used to apply the heat in the oven, but other heating methods such as infrared or other radiant heaters may be used. Before, or preferably after, the heat curing, the fabric is combined with other material layers and a quilted pattern is applied in program controlled coordination with the printed pattern.
-
Citations
22 Claims
-
1. A method of printing on fabric comprising the steps of:
-
jetting an ink composition containing a UV curable ink component and a dye component onto a fabric;
thensubstantially curing at least the UV curable jetted ink component on the fabric by exposing the UV curable ink component to UV light, the curing resulting in a substantially cured UV ink component on the fabric containing uncured monomers of the UV curable ink and the dye component;
thenheating the fabric having the substantially cured UV cured ink component thereon and thereby reducing the level of the uncured monomers of the UV curable ink component on the fabric and affecting the dying of the fabric with the dye component.
-
-
2. A method of printing on textile comprising the steps of:
-
jetting onto a textile substrate a substance containing a UV curable component and a dye component;
thensubstantially curing at least the UV curable jetted component on the substrate by exposing the UV curable component on the substrate to UV radiation;
thenheating the substance containing the substantially cured exposed UV component and the dye component on the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5)
the substance is a UV curable ink having a pigment contained and the dye component therein.
-
-
4. The method of claim 2 wherein:
the substantially cured UV curable component includes at least some uncured monomers and the heating of the substance includes reducing the amount of uncured monomers on the substrate.
-
5. The method of claim 2 wherein:
the heating includes contacting the substrate with a heated plate.
-
6. A printing method useful for printing on large area substrates comprising:
-
printing onto a substrate a dye contained in a substance that is stable until contacted with a curing medium;
at least partially curing of the substance on the substrate by applying the curing medium thereto;
thenheating the dye contained in the at least partially cured substance on the substrate to dye the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
printing includes jetting the substance having the dye contained therein onto the substrate.
-
-
8. The method of claim 6 wherein:
the substance is a UV curable ink having a pigment and the dye suspended therein.
-
9. The method of claim 6 wherein:
the at least partially cured substance includes at least some uncured monomers and the heating includes reducing the amount of uncured monomers on the substrate.
-
10. The method of claim 6 wherein:
the at least partial curing of the substance on the substrate includes freezing the substance on the substrate by applying the curing medium to the substance immediately upon the printing thereof to reduce the spread of the substance on the substrate.
-
11. The method of claim 6 wherein:
the at least partial curing of the substance on the substrate includes freezing the substance on the substrate by exposing the substance to UV light immediately upon the printing thereof onto the substrate to reduce the spread of the substance on the substrate.
-
12. The method of claim 6 wherein:
the heating includes contacting the substrate with a heated plate.
-
13. A method of printing onto a substrate comprising:
-
depositing a polymerizable substance containing a dye onto a substrate;
polymerizing the substance by initiating a polymerizing reaction in the substance and maintaining the reaction until the substance is substantially polymerized;
thenheating the substantially polymerized substance and the dye contained therein while on the substrate to affect the dying of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17)
the depositing includes the jetting of the substance onto the substrate.
-
-
15. The method of claim 13 wherein:
the substance is a UV curable ink having a pigment contained therein.
-
16. The method of claim 13 wherein:
the substantially polymerized substance includes at least some unpolymerized monomers and the heating includes reducing the amount of unpolymerized monomers on the substrate.
-
17. The method of claim 13 wherein:
the heating includes contacting the substrate with a heated plate.
-
18. An ink jet printing method comprising:
-
jetting onto a substrate a curable liquid having a dye component contained therein;
thensubstantially curing the liquid on the substrate;
thenheating the substantially cured liquid on the substrate so as to affect the dying of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (19)
the curable liquid is a UV curable polymer; and
the curing of the liquid on the substrate includes exposing the UV curable component on the substrate to UV radiation.
-
-
20. An ink jet printing method comprising:
-
jetting onto a substrate a curable liquid polymer having dye suspended therein;
thensubstantially curing the liquid polymer on the substrate to fix the position of the suspended dye on the substrate;
thenheating the substantially cured liquid polymer on the substrate to activate the dye and thereby affect the dying of the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22)
the dye is a sublimation dye; and
the heating includes heating the dye to sublime the dye to dye the substrate.
-
-
22. The method of claim 20 wherein:
-
the curable liquid polymer is a UV curable substance;
the dye is a sublimation dye;
the curing includes exposing the substance to UV light a sufficiently short time after jetting the substance onto the substrate to at least partially prevent a spreading of the polymer on the substrate; and
the heating includes heating the dye to sublime the dye.
-
Specification