Ink drying system for high speed printing
OwnerRobert W. Aukermaninventor
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An ink drying system for high speed printing. A plurality of plenums are in fluid communication with a source of pressurized gas, mediated by respective fast acting valves. In a first embodiment of the invention, each plenum contains a plurality of small orifices grouped to define a localized drying area. The localized drying areas of the plenums form a substantially continuous drying region that, preferably, spans the entire lateral extent of the largest printed image. In a second embodiment of the invention, the plenums are spaced apart along the direction of travel of the sheet, and orifices of each plenum are distributed over the entire drying region.
Claims8
An ink drying system for high speed printing on a traveling sheet of material, the system being coupled to a source of pressurized gas and comprising:
- a plurality of plenums disposed so as to extend over the sheet, said plenums each including an associated plurality of orifices spaced apart from one another so as to define respective drying portions thereof;
- a corresponding plurality of fluid flow valves for controlling fluid communication between said plenums and the source of pressurized gas;
- and
- a controller for controlling said valves, said controller being adapted to operate said valves independently of one another in response to information about said printing.
A method for drying ink in a high speed printing system, the ink being deposited on a traveling sheet of material, the system being coupled to a source of pressurized gas and comprising the steps of:
- providing a first plenum disposed so as to extend over the sheet;
- providing a second plenum disposed so as to extend over the sheet, wherein said plenums each include an associated plurality of orifices spaced apart from one another so as to define respective drying portions thereof;
- identifying a spatially varying distribution of the ink;
- identifying one of said plenums for which said orifices most closely matches said distribution;
- and
- selecting said one plenum to receive more of the pressurized gas than the other of said plenums.
A method for drying ink in a high speed printing system, the ink being deposited on a sheet of material traveling in a predetermined direction, the system being coupled to a source of pressurized gas and comprising the steps of:
- providing a first plenum disposed so as to extend over the sheet;
- providing a second plenum disposed so as to extend over the sheet, wherein said plenums each include an associated plurality of orifices spaced apart from one another so as to define respective drying portions thereof, wherein said plenums are spaced substantially apart from one another in the direction of travel of the sheet a predetermined distance, and wherein the drying portions of said plenums are each substantially laterally co-extensive;
- selecting one of said two plenums to receive a first predetermined amount of the pressurized gas at a first time;
- and
- selecting the other of said two plenums to receive a second predetermined amount of the pressurized gas at a second time, wherein said second amount of the pressurized gas is predetermined based on said first amount, and wherein the difference between said first time and said second time is substantially equal to said distance divided by the speed of travel of the sheet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.