Selective ink cure
AssigneeElectronics for Imaging, Inc.
InventorPeter Heath
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Individually controllable ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are used to cure ink and generate different effects. The UV LEDs only expose specified areas to generate the different effect and can create multiple effects on the same substrate by exposing different areas to varying amounts of time or by performing a curing stage and post-dosage curing stages. The different effects include generating a glossy surface, a matte surface, and sharper images.
Claims20
An apparatus for selectively generating one or more print effects on one or more portions of a substrate comprising:
- a print head carriage comprising a plurality of print heads, each print head comprising at least one nozzle for dispensing inkjet ink onto the substrate;
- and
- a lamp module associated with the print head carriage, comprising:
- a plurality of individually controllable ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) for curing the one or more portions of the substrate on which inkjet ink is dispensed by each nozzle to generate an effect on the substrate, the UV LEDs being operable to selectively expose different portions of the substrate to different light intensities.
5 The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the UV LEDs are spaced to provide coverage of twenty-five UV LEDs per inch.
A method for generating print effects on one or more portions of a substrate, the method comprising the steps of:
- positioning a print head carriage above a substrate, the print head carriage comprising print heads that contain nozzles for dispensing ink;
- selectively dispensing ink onto a substrate;
- selectively curing ink dispensed onto the substrate with a lamp module comprising a plurality of individually controllable ultraviolet (UV) light-emitting diodes (LEDs) by operating each of the UV LEDs at a selected intensity for a selected time to create one or more print effects on the one or more portions of the substrate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.