Plant and process for pre-coating and printing on metallic strips
AssigneeDanieli & C. Officine Meccaniche SpA
InventorsLuciano Vignolo, Michele Chiappa
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The invention relates to a plant and a process for pre-coating and subsequent digital sol-gel inkjet printing on metallic strips, wherein on the dried ink a protective clear coat will then be applied. The core of the invention lies in the fact that printing is of the sol-gel ink type and pre-coating is no longer carried out by the separate application of two coats, a primer and a base coat, with relative drying and cooling phases of the coats, but by the application of a single coat that combines the functions of primer and base coat. In addition, printing with a special sol-gel type ink that does not require UV treatment, but only a simple drying of the ink after application, simplifies the process even further.
Claims12
A plant for pre-coating and digital inkjet printing of a metallic strip comprising, in the following order:
- (a) a first coating device for applying a combined coat that serves as both a primer and a base coat;
- (b) a first oven for drying the coat;
- (c) a first cooling system, such as an air and water cooling system;
- (d) a digital sol-gel type inkjet printing unit, with an ink drying device;
- (e) a second coating device, in particular a roller applicator, for applying a clear coat;
- (g) a second cooling system, such as an air and water cooling system.
A process for the pre-coating and printing, in particular digital inkjet printing, of a metallic strip, comprising the following steps, in the order indicated:
- (I) application of a combined coat, that serves as both a primer and a base coat, onto a metallic strip;
- (II) heat drying of the combined coat;
- (III) cooling of the combined coat;
- (IV) digital sol-gel type inkjet printing of the pre-coated strip and preferably drying of the ink;
- (V) application of a clear coat onto the pre-coated and printed strip;
- (VI) heat drying of the clear coat;
- and
- (VII) cooling of the clear coat.
A plant for pre-coating and digital inkjet printing of a metallic strip comprising, in the following order:
- (a) a first coating device for applying a combined coat that serves as both a primer and a base coat;
- (b) a first oven for drying the coat;
- (c) a first cooling system, such as an air and water cooling system;
- (d) a digital sol-gel type inkjet printing unit, preferably with an ink drying device;
- (e) a second coating device, in particular a roller applicator, for applying a clear coat;
- (g) a second cooling system, such as an air and water cooling system,
- wherein said combined coat is polyester-melamine based,
- and wherein said sol-gel type ink is a silane-based thermal polymerization product.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.