Gravure printing apparatus, gravure printing method, and printed matter manufacturing method

A gravure printing method, comprising:

• providing a gravure printing apparatus comprising a gravure plate cylinder, a doctor blade configured to scrape off a superfluous ink from a plate surface of the gravure plate cylinder, an impression cylinder configured to press a base material to be printed against the plate surface to transfer an ink remaining in a cell of the gravure plate cylinder and a transfer characteristics control mechanism configured to control ink transfer characteristics by supplying a gas comprising one of air having predetermined humidity, dry air, and an inert gas to at least a part of an ink transfer characteristics control area between an ink scraping-off point of the doctor blade on the plate surface and a pressing point of the impression cylinder on the plate surface;
• after scraping off the superfluous ink from the plate surface of the gravure plate cylinder with the doctor blade;
• supplying the gas comprising one of the air having predetermined humidity, the dry air, and the inert gas to at least the part of the ink transfer characteristics control area between the ink scraping-off point of the doctor blade on the plate surface and the pressing point of the impression cylinder on the plate surface;
• and
• pressing the base material to be printed against the plate surface with the impression cylinder to transfer an ink remaining in a cell of the gravure plate cylinder onto the base material to be printed.

A printed matter manufacturing method, comprising:

• providing a gravure printing apparatus comprising a gravure plate cylinder, a doctor blade configured to scrape off a superfluous ink from a plate surface of the gravure plate cylinder, an impression cylinder configured to press a base material to be printed against the plate surface to transfer an ink remaining in a cell of the gravure plate cylinder and a transfer characteristics control mechanism configured to control ink transfer characteristics by supplying a gas comprising one of air having predetermined humidity, dry air, and an inert gas to at least a part of an ink transfer characteristics control area between an ink scraping-off point of the doctor blade on the plate surface and a pressing point of the impression cylinder on the plate surface;
• after scraping off the superfluous ink from the plate surface of the gravure plate cylinder with the doctor blade;
• supplying the gas comprising one of the air having predetermined humidity, the dry air, and the inert gas to at least the part of the ink transfer characteristics control area between the ink scraping-off point of the doctor blade on the plate surface and the pressing point of the impression cylinder on the plate surface;
• and
• pressing the base material to be printed against the plate surface with the impression cylinder to transfer an ink remaining in a cell of the gravure plate cylinder onto the base material to be printed, to produce a printed matter.