Video jet printer process with radiation cured ink
AssigneeBell Telephone Laboratories, Incorporated
InventorHargovind N. Vazirani
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Abstract
A jet electrostatic printing process is described which uses a unique ink formulation suitable for use on certain dark colored surfaces. This process provides rapid, automatic, non-contact printing with high contrast on dark-colored surfaces. It is particularly suitable for marking cable with dark sheathing such as carbon-doped polyethylene.
Claims30
A process for jet video printing on a surface with diluted ink using a jet video printer in which printing takes place by forming a stream of ink droplets, some of which are charged electrically and electrostatically deflected onto the surface being printed, and the diluted ink is cured with radiation after printing CHARACTERIZED IN THAT the diluted ink comprises:
- a. polar organic solvent in sufficient quantity so that the viscosity of the diluted ink is less than 20 cps in which said polar organic solvent accepts electric charge when ionizing agent is dissolved in said polar organic solvent, said polar organic solvent comprising at least one substance selected from the group consisting of methanol and ethanol,
- b. radiation-curable prepolymer which on curing yields a polymer with elastic modulus between 2000 and 500,000 psi and elongation at least 10 percent, said prepolymer having a solubility in said polar organic solvent of at least 10 weight percent,
- c. pigment in which 90 percent by weight of said pigment has agglomerate size less than 40 microns, said pigment present in amounts between 5 and 50 weight percent of the prepolymer,
- d. ionizing agent which permits the diluted ink to accept electric charge present in amounts up to the weight of prepolymer.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.