Digital decoration on non-absorbent surfaces with thermally assisted curing
AssigneeBall Corporation
InventorAdam P. S. Stowitts
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A container component decorating apparatus (10) delivers one or more art graphics to a plurality of container components in a manufacturing queue. A container component handling module (200) has one or more holders (204) which retain the container components to the apparatus (10). The apparatus (10) has a supply of one or more fluids which are to be deposited onto the container components; A source of thermal energy (240) is thermally couplable to the container component. A thermal energy is transferred from the source to the container component prior to one or more fluid droplets from the source fluid being deposited on a non-absorbent surface of the container component.
Claims22
A container component decorating apparatus, the decorating apparatus delivering one or more art graphics to a plurality of container components in a manufacturing queue, the decorating apparatus comprising:
- a container component handling module comprising one or more holders which retain the container components to the apparatus, wherein the source of thermal energy is thermally couplable to the container component via the one or more holders, wherein each of the one or more holders has at least one of a magnet or a vacuum chuck which retains the container component to the decorator;
- a supply of one or more fluids to be deposited onto the container components;
- a print site where the one or more fluids are deposited onto the container components;
- and
- a source of thermal energy thermally couplable to the container component upstream from the print site, wherein a thermal energy is transferred from the source of thermal energy to the container component prior to one or more fluid droplets from the source of one or more fluids being deposited on a non-absorbent surface of the container component.
A metallic container component decorating apparatus, the metallic container component decorating apparatus delivering one or more art graphics to a plurality of aluminum container components in a manufacturing queue, the decorating apparatus comprising:
- a container component handling module comprising one or more holders which retain each of the plurality of aluminum container components to the apparatus, wherein the source of thermal energy is thermally couplable to each of the plurality of aluminum container component via the one or more holders;
- a supply of one or more fluids to be deposited onto each of the plurality of aluminum container components;
- a print site where the one or more fluids are deposited onto each of the plurality of aluminum container components;
- and
- a source of thermal energy thermally coupled to each of the plurality of aluminum container components upstream from the print site, wherein a thermal energy is transferred from the source of thermal energy to each of the plurality of aluminum container components prior to one or more fluid droplets from the source of one or more fluids being deposited on a metallic non-absorbent surface of each of the plurality of aluminum container components,
- wherein the thermal energy from the source of thermal energy maintains a temperature of the metallic non-absorbent surface of each of the plurality metallic container components above an ambient temperature,
- wherein the temperature maintained is between 25° to 125° C., and
- wherein the temperature of the container component is sufficient to pin the one or more fluid droplets to an outer surface of the metallic non-absorbent surface of each of the plurality metallic container components.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.