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US 4,879,457 AGranted
Method for etching a bar code on metal
OwnerRichard Luddeninventor
Life of this patent
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OwnerRichard Luddeninventor
Estimating the term…
In one embodiment of a method for etching a bar code on a metal surface, a carrier web having elongated openings is prepared. These openings correspond in size and position to the dark bars of the bar code. The carrier web is adhesively attached to the metal surface so that fluid cannot seep between the web and the surface. The metal surface is then electrochemically etched through the openings in the web. In another embodiment, a conveyor belt moves supports for metal objects past a printer assembly which includes melted-resin printheads. These melted-resin printheads are similar to ink drop printers except molten droplets of resin are expelled rather than droplets of ink. The resin droplets harden upon contact with the metal to provide a resist pattern. A rectangular opening in a mask is positioned over the resist pattern, and etching is conducted through the opening and resist pattern. The etching employed is preferably electro-chemical etching.
A method for etching a bar code having a plurality of dark bars on a metal surface, comprising the steps of:
A method for etching a bar code having a plurality of dark bars on a metal surface, comprising the steps of:
A system for etching bar codes on metal objects, each bar code having a respective plurality of dark bars, comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.