Heat pen for use with electronic cutting and/or drawing systems
AssigneeAmerican Crafts, L.C.
InventorNicolas Stephans Fourie
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A heat pen may be used with an electronic cutting and/or drawing system to enable the electronic cutting and/or drawing system to use heat to define text and/or designs on a substrate. The heat pen may be coupled with a cradle of an electronic cutting and/or drawing system directly or by assembling an adapter with the heat pen. Power may be supplied to the heat pen by electrically coupling the heat pen to an external power supply, such as a power and/or communications port of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system. Electronic heated design systems and methods for modifying substrates using heat are also disclosed.
Claims21
1-18. (canceled)
A method for laminating foil onto a sheet of media, comprising:
- securing the sheet of media and a sheet of reactive foil in superimposed relation on a support mat of an electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- placing the support mat, the sheet of media, and the sheet of reactive foil beneath a carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- securing a heat pen to a cradle carried by the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- heating a tip of a heating element of the heat pen;
- and
- operating the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system, including:
- bringing the tip of the heating element into contact with the sheet of reactive foil;
- and
- moving the cradle and the heat pen over the sheet of reactive foil to transfer reactive foil from the sheet of reactive foil to the sheet of media in a desired manner;
- removing the support mat from beneath the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- removing the sheet of reactive foil from the sheet of media;
- and
- removing the sheet of media from the support mat.
A method for using heat to define a design on a sheet of media, comprising:
- securing the sheet of media to a support mat of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- introducing the sheet of media to a location adjacent to a carriage of an electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- securing a heat pen to a cradle carried by the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- heating a tip of a heating element of the heat pen;
- and
- operating the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system, including:
- positioning the tip of the heating element at a desired location over the sheet of media;
- moving the tip of the heating element toward the sheet of media;
- and
- moving the tip of the heating element over the sheet of media to form a design on the sheet of media in a desired manner.
(canceled)
A method for using heat to define a design on a sheet of media, comprising:
- positioning the sheet of media adjacent to a carriage of an electronic output device that provides a physical output under control of a vector graphics file to modify a sheet of media;
- selecting an adapter from a set of adapters useful with a plurality of different electronic cutting and/or drawing systems, the adapter capable of adapting a heat pen for use with a cradle carried by the carriage of the electronic cutting and/or drawing system;
- securing the adapter around at least a portion of the heat pen;
- assembling the adapter and the heat pen to the cradle;
- heating a tip of a heating element of the heat pen;
- and
- operating the carriage of the electronic output device, including:
- positioning the tip of the heating element at a desired location over the sheet of media;
- moving the tip of the heating element toward the sheet of media;
- and
- moving the tip of the heating element over the sheet of media to form a design on the sheet of media in a desired manner.
(canceled)
(canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.