Single pass imaging using rapidly addressable laser lamination
AssigneePalo Alto Research Center Incorporated
InventorTimothy D. STOWE
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A system is provided for transferring a marking material from a ribbon to a substrate. The system includes a ribbon take-up device; a ribbon supply source that supplies the ribbon to the ribbon take-up device such that the ribbon is moved in a process direction; a pressure roll located between the ribbon supply source and the ribbon take-up device in the process direction, the pressure roll being configured to apply pressure to the ribbon at a pressure location when the ribbon is positioned between the pressure roll and the substrate; and a laser beam source that directs a laser beam or laser light through the pressure roll and onto the ribbon at the pressure location such that a marking portion of the ribbon is heated by the laser beams and transferred to the substrate.
Claims20
A system for transferring a marking material from a ribbon to a substrate, the system comprising:
- a ribbon take-up device;
- a ribbon supply source that supplies the ribbon to the ribbon take-up device such that the ribbon is moved in a process direction;
- a pressure roll located between the ribbon supply source and the ribbon take-up device in the process direction, the pressure roll being configured to apply pressure to the ribbon at a pressure location when the ribbon is positioned between the pressure roll and the substrate;
- and
- a laser beam source that directs a laser beam through the pressure roll and onto the ribbon at the pressure location such that a marking portion of the ribbon is heated by the laser beam and transferred to the substrate.
A system for transferring a marking material from a ribbon to a substrate, the system comprising:
- a pressure roll abutting and applying pressure to the ribbon at a pressure location when the ribbon is positioned between the pressure roll and the substrate and moving in a process direction with the substrate;
- and
- a laser beam source that directs laser light having a laser wavelength through the pressure roll and onto the ribbon at the pressure location such that a marking portion of the ribbon is heated by the laser light and transferred to the substrate,
- wherein the pressure roll is optically transparent at the laser wavelength.
A method of transferring a marking material from a ribbon to a substrate, the method comprising:
- applying pressure to the ribbon at a pressure location, the pressure being applied between a pressure roll and the substrate, the pressure roll applying pressure to the ribbon at the pressure location when the ribbon is positioned between the pressure roll and the substrate and moving in a process direction with the substrate;
- and
- heating a marking portion of the ribbon with laser light generated by a laser beam source, the laser light being directed through the pressure roll and onto the ribbon at the pressure location such that the marking portion of the ribbon is heated and transferred to the substrate,
- wherein the pressure roll is optically transparent at the laser wavelength.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.