# US 12,001,900 B2 · Inkjet printing method and inkjet printing device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,001,900 B2 - Document ID: US12001900B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/765,998 - Filed: 2020-10-08 - Published: 2022-11-24 - Granted: 2024-06-04 - Earliest claimed: 2019-10-11 - Assignees: 3M Innovative Properties Company - Applicants: 3M Innovative Properties Company - Inventors: Takeo Yamamoto; Katsuya Ono; Koji Saito - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12001900B2 ## CPC - B41J 29/38: Drives, motors, controls or automatic cut-off devices for the entire printing mechanism - G06K 15/105: {Multipass or interlaced printing} - B41M 3/008: {Sequential or multiple printing, e.g. on previously printed background; Mirror printing; Recto-verso printing; using a combination of different printing techniques; Printing of patterns visible in reflection and by transparency; by superposing printed artifacts} - B41M 7/0045: {using protective coatings or film forming compositions cured by mechanical wave energy, e.g. ultrasonics, cured by electromagnetic radiation or waves, e.g. ultraviolet radiation, electron beams, or cured by magnetic or electric fields, e.g. electric discharge, plasma} - B41M 7/0081: {using electromagnetic radiation or waves, e.g. ultraviolet radiation, electron beams} - B41J: TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS - G06K: GRAPHICAL DATA READING (image or video recognition or understanding G06V); PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS - B41M: PRINTING, DUPLICATING, MARKING, OR COPYING PROCESSES; COLOUR PRINTING, (correction of typographical errors B41J; processes for applying transfer pictures or the like B44C1/16; fluid media for correction of typographical errors by coating C09D10/00; printing textiles D06P) ## Abstract An inkjet printing method forming a decorative printed layer having a three-dimensional texture on a printing surface is described. The inkjet printing method includes: printing dots of curable ink that cure under a predetermined condition based on dot pattern data indicative of printed positions of the dots to be printed on the printing surface; and curing the printed dots. The dot pattern data indicates that: a distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another in a first region; and the distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing bond to one another in a second region different from the first region. Such a method may allow forming a decorative printed layer having a three-dimensional texture with a desired gloss level. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An inkjet printing method that forms a decorative printed layer having a three-dimensional texture on a printing surface, comprising: printing dots of curable ink that cure under a predetermined condition based on dot pattern data indicative of printed positions of the dots to be printed on the printing surface; and curing the printed dots, wherein the dot pattern data indicates that: a distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another in a first region; and the distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing bond to one another in a second region different from the first region and the inkjet printing method further comprises: repeating the printing of the dots and the curing of the printed dots by a plurality of times, wherein the decorative printing in which the cured dots of the curable ink are multi-layered on at least a part of the printing surface is formed and the repeating is performed by a multi-pass system, wherein the multi-pass system comprises: a dot printing unit, a conveying unit and a base material, wherein the dot printing unit comprising: a first nozzle group and a second nozzle group arranged from an upstream in the conveying direction of the conveying unit in order and the base material comprises: a first printed region and a second printed region disposed in a longitudinal direction of the base material, wherein the first nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the first pass on the second printed region, when the second nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the second pass on the first printed region. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, further comprising: acquiring gloss level information indicative of glossiness in a region in the printing surface; and acquiring the dot pattern data based on the gloss level information. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The inkjet printing method according to claim 2, wherein the dot pattern data indicates that: the distance between the adjacent dots becomes the distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another when the gloss level information indicates that the gloss level information is lower than a specific glossiness; and the distance between the adjacent dots becomes the distance where the adjacent dots before the curing bond to one another when the gloss level information indicates that the gloss level information is higher than the specific glossiness. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1 wherein the dot pattern data is in a raster image format. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, wherein the curable ink is colorless and transparent. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, wherein the dot pattern data further includes information indicating sizes of the dots to be printed. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, further comprising: acquiring information to designate a height of the decorative printed layer; and acquiring the dot pattern data based on the information to designate the height. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, wherein at least the dot pattern data corresponding to the printing of the last dots indicates that the distance between the adjacent dots in the first region becomes the distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The inkjet printing method according to claim 1, wherein the dot pattern data includes information on positions of the dots on the printing surface in the printing of the respective dots. ### Claim 10 An inkjet printing method that forms a decorative printed layer having a three-dimensional texture on a printing surface, comprising: acquiring dot pattern data indicative of printed positions of dots to be printed on the printing surface corresponding to gloss level information indicative of glossiness in a region in the printing surface; printing the dots of curable ink based on the dot pattern data; and curing the printed dots, wherein the dot pattern data indicates that: a distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another when the gloss level information indicates that the gloss level information is lower than a specific glossiness; and the distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing bond to one another when the gloss level information indicates that the gloss level information is higher than the specific glossiness, and the inkjet printing method further comprises: repeating the printing of the dots and the curing of the printed dots by a plurality of times, wherein the decorative printing in which the cured dots of the curable ink are multi-layered on at least a part of the printing surface is formed and the repeating is performed by a multi-pass system, wherein the multi-pass system comprising: a dot printing unit, a conveying unit and a base material, wherein the dot printing unit comprising: a first nozzle group and a second nozzle group arranged from an upstream in the conveying direction of the conveying unit in order and the base material comprising: a first printed region and a second printed region disposed in a longitudinal direction of the base material, wherein the first nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the first pass on the second printed region, when the second nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the second pass on the first printed region. ### Claim 11 An inkjet printing device that forms a decorative printed layer having a three-dimensional texture on a printing surface, comprising: a printing unit configured to eject curable ink that cures under a predetermined condition; a curing unit; a processor; and a medium that includes a series of pieces of instruction information executable by the processor and usable by a computer connected to the processor, wherein the instruction information: causes the printing unit to print dots of the curable ink based on dot pattern data indicative of printed positions of the dots to be printed on the printing surface; and controls the curing unit so as to cure the printed dots, and the dot pattern data indicates that: a distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing are allowed to be maintained independently without bonding to one another in a first region; and the distance between the adjacent dots becomes a distance where the adjacent dots before the curing bond to one another in a second region different from the first region, wherein the instruction information: causes the repeating the printing of the dots and the curing of the printed dots by a plurality of times, wherein the decorative printing in which the cured dots of the curable ink are multi-layered on at least a part of the printing surface is formed and the inkjet printing device further comprises: a dot printing unit, a conveying unit and a base material, wherein the dot printing unit comprises: a first nozzle group and a second nozzle group arranged from an upstream in the conveying direction of the conveying unit in order, and the base material comprises: a first printed region and a second printed region disposed in a longitudinal direction of the base material, wherein the instruction information: causes the first nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the first pass on the second printed region, when the second nozzle group performs the printing of the dots in the second pass on the first printed region.