A CTP-based transfer printing system and method

Abstract

The invention discloses a CTP-based transfer printing system and method. The transfer printing system includes: a plate reprinting unit, a plate dropping unit, a plate taking unit, a plate storage unit, a plate transport unit, a recycling unit and a control center unit. The transfer printing method includes: S1, inputting CTP plate information; S2, plate making; S3, plate collection and reprinting; S4, plate storage; S5, transporting CTP plate; S6, removing waste plates; S7, replacing new plates; S8, controlling the center unit to control S1-S5 and S7 in sequence, S5 and S6 are carried out simultaneously, and S1-S7 constitute a work cycle. The transfer printing system and method are systematized and streamlined, greatly saving labor input, reducing human errors, improving work efficiency and preparation, reducing damage to CTP plates, and filling the gap of transfer CTP plates in industrial large-scale production of offset printing. In addition, the transfer printing system and method are controllable and integrated, which can meet large-scale industrial production in the offset printing industry.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of offset printing, in particular to a CTP plate-based transfer printing system and method. Background Art

[0002] Offset printing technology is a commonly used and relatively mature printing technology at home and abroad. Its printing process is: file preparation-plate imposition-plate making-printing. Each link is relatively independent, especially the plate making and printing environments are quite different. They are often two separate workshops. After the plate making is completed, the plates to be printed need to be transported to the workshop manually. In order to achieve multi-color printing of printed products, a four-color printing machine needs 4 CTP plates to work on the machine at the same time when printing a single-sided printed product. When printing is completed, the 4 CTP plates need to be replaced at the same time before the next printing. In this process, at least 4 CTP plates, that is, 4 new plates, are left next to the same printing machine. When operating the equipment, the employees on the equipment need to stop the equipment first, then take out the 4 CTP waste plates (that is, the plates used for printing) one by one and put them aside, then place the 4 new plates one by one in the equipment, and then operate the printing equipment to start, and finally place the 4 CTP waste plates in the waste plate area for special personnel to transport away.

[0003] It is difficult to integrate the two links of plate making and printing in the existing technology. The circulation of CTP plates in the workshop (plate making, transporting, changing and recycling) is all done manually. Since the plate making and printing workshops have strict requirements on temperature and humidity, the flow of personnel and the entry and exit cause the difference in temperature and humidity in the workshop, which is not conducive to workshop production. At the same time, the labor cost is high and the labor intensity is high. The scattered work content of personnel in the peak production season is not conducive to improving production efficiency, delaying the production cycle, and easily causing defective products to increase the loss rate. Therefore, improving the overall intelligence level of the workshop, reducing labor and production costs, improving work efficiency, and promoting the integration of individual production processes have become urgent problems to be solved in the offset printing process. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a CTP plate-based circulation printing system and method to solve the problem that the plate making and printing workshops are independent, resulting in high labor costs for CTP plate transportation, high labor intensity, and is not conducive to improving production efficiency, delaying the production cycle, and easily causing defective products to increase the loss rate.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] A CTP plate-based transfer printing system includes a printing unit and a plate-making unit, wherein the plate-making unit and the printing unit are connected through the transfer printing system, and the transfer printing system includes:

[0007] The plate-turning unit is used to receive the CTP plates from the plate-making unit and turn over a set of CTP plates to the plate-dropping unit. A set of plates consists of four CTP plates.

[0008] The plate-dropping unit is used to temporarily store and transport the CTP plates on the printing unit and plate-making unit, and cooperate with the plate-taking unit to take the plates;

[0009] The plate taking unit includes a plate making and taking unit and a printing plate taking unit. The plate making and taking unit is used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate placing unit and the plate storing unit. The printing plate taking unit is used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate placing unit and the printing unit.

[0010] The plate storage unit is used to store the CTP plates made in advance by the plate making unit for backup;

[0011] The plate transport unit is used to connect the plate placement unit at the printing unit, the plate placement unit at the plate making unit and the recovery unit, and is used to transport the CTP plate between the two plate placement units and one recovery unit;

[0012] The recovery unit is used to receive and collect the waste plates on the plate transport unit;

[0013] The control center unit is used to control the coordination between the printing unit, plate making unit, plate remaking unit, plate dropping unit, plate taking unit, plate storage unit, plate transport unit and recovery unit.

[0014] A further technical solution is: the reprinting unit includes a plate making unit, a ramp is provided at the publishing end of the plate making unit, a reprinting device for flipping the CTP plate is installed on the ramp, and a plate dropping unit for receiving and transporting the CTP plate is provided on one side of the reprinting device; wherein,

[0015] The plate flipping device includes a plate flipping rod, a first motor, a first frame, a flip plate, a second cylinder, a plate pushing rod and a third cylinder. The bottom end of the plate flipping rod is rotatably connected to the bottom end of the ramp platform, and the plate flipping rod is located in the accommodating groove of the ramp platform. The motor drives the plate flipping rod to rotate toward the outside of the ramp platform. The first frame is installed at the tail end of the ramp platform, the middle part of the flip plate is rotatably connected to the first frame, the two ends of the second cylinder are respectively hinged to the ends of the first frame and the flip plate, and the rotation trajectories of the two ends of the flip plate are close to the tail end of the ramp platform and the plate dropping unit respectively. The end of the plate pushing rod is rotatably connected to the end of the flip plate, the third cylinder is rotatably installed on the flip plate, and one end of the third cylinder is hinged to one end of the connecting rod, and the other end of the connecting rod is hinged to the flip plate, and the output end of the third cylinder is hinged to the middle part of the plate pushing rod.

[0016] A further technical solution is: the plate dropping unit includes a first chain conveyor, a second chain conveyor and a ramp plate, the first chain conveyor is transversely arranged on the slope of the ramp plate, and the second chain conveyor is inclined upward and installed on the slope of the ramp plate.

[0017] A further technical solution is: the recovery unit includes a plate-dropping rack, a plate-taking mechanism and a plate-stacking mechanism; the control center unit controls the plate-taking mechanism to place the CTP plate on the plate-dropping rack on the plate-stacking mechanism; the plate-taking mechanism includes a mechanical arm, a plate-grabbing arm and a plate-taker; the plate-grabbing arm is installed at the movable end of the mechanical arm; and at least one plate-taker is installed on the plate-grabbing arm.

[0018] A further technical solution is that the plate-dropping frame is a V-shaped frame, a slit matching the CTP plate is arranged at the bottom of the V-shaped frame, and the depth of the slit is smaller than the height of the CTP plate.

[0019] A further technical solution is: the plate-building mechanism includes a second frame, a plate-building table, a second motor, a rotating shaft, a chain and a counterweight block, at least two rotating shafts are symmetrically arranged and rotatably installed on the top of the second frame, four chains are meshed with gears on the rotating shafts, one end of the four chains is respectively connected to the four corners of the plate-building table, the other ends of the four chains are located on the same side of the second frame and are all equipped with counterweight blocks, and the output end of the second motor is connected to one of the rotating shafts through a gear chain structure.

[0020] A further technical solution is that the plate taking unit is a manipulator installed on a track.

[0021] A further technical solution is: the plate storage unit is a cabinet body, and a plurality of upward and inclined plate bins are arranged on the cabinet body.

[0022] A CTP-based transfer printing method, using a transfer printing system, comprises the following steps:

[0023] S1. Enter plate making information: input the CTP plate information required for plate making work into the plate making unit;

[0024] S2, plate making: The printing unit sends a plate-using signal to the control console unit in advance, and the plate making unit starts plate making work, making CTP plates in the order of black, blue, red and yellow;

[0025] S3, plate collection and plate reprinting: the barcode reader on the plate-making unit reads the publishing information of the CTP plate, and the CTP plates on the plate-making unit are flipped one by one and continuously to the plate reprinting unit. When the barcode reader reads the yellow CTP plate, the control station unit controls the plate reprinting unit to flip the set of CTP plates collected on it to the plate placement unit at the plate-making unit;

[0026] S4, plate storage: the plate making and plate taking unit at the plate making unit temporarily stores each set of CTP plates on the plate placement unit into the plate bin of the plate storage unit, and combines them according to the plate bin serial number of the plate storage unit and the printing unit serial number and displays the number on the control console unit;

[0027] S5, transporting CTP plates: after the current printing work is completed, the printing unit sends a plate change signal to the control center unit, and the control center unit controls the plate making and taking unit at the plate making unit according to the number, and takes out a set of CTP plates in the plate storage unit and places them on the plate dropping unit at the plate making unit;

[0028] S6, replace with new plate: the plate placement unit in S5 sends a set of CTP plates to the plate transport unit, the plate transport unit transports the set of CTP plates to the plate placement unit at the printing unit, and the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit places the set of CTP plates at the plate inlet of the printing unit;

[0029] S7, removing waste plates: at the same time or after S6, the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit takes out the waste plates discharged by the printing unit, and places the waste plates on the plate dropping unit at the printing unit and sends them to the recovery unit through the plate transport unit;

[0030] S8, control the main station unit to control S1~S6 in sequence, S6 and S7 are carried out simultaneously, and S1~S7 constitute a working cycle.

[0031] A further technical solution is that the advance plate-using time of the plate-making unit in S2 is at least greater than the current printing time of the printing unit.

[0032] Compared with the prior art, the present invention can achieve at least one of the following beneficial effects:

[0033] The present invention proposes a CTP plate-based transfer printing system and method, which first replaces the manual transfer of CTP plates in printing workshops and plate-making workshops, and is systematized and streamlined, greatly saving labor input, reducing human errors, improving work efficiency and preparation, and reducing damage to CTP plates, thus filling the gap in the transfer of CTP plates in offset printing in large-scale industrial production. In addition, the transfer printing system and method are controllable and integrated, and can meet large-scale industrial production in the offset printing industry. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] Figure 1 The present invention is a schematic structural diagram of a CTP-based transfer printing system.

[0035] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the workflow of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 3 For the present invention Figure 1Schematic diagram of the structure of the middle copy unit.

[0037] Figure 4 For the present invention Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the structure from a normal perspective.

[0038] Figure 5 For the present invention Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the structure of the middle copying device

[0039] Figure 6 For the present invention Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the structure of the recovery unit.

[0040] Figure 7 For the present invention Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the structure in use.

[0041] Figure 8 For the present invention Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the structure from another perspective.

[0042] Fig. 9 For the present invention Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the structure of the middle drop plate rack.

[0043] 1. Plate stacking device; 2. Plate stacking device; 3. Plate stacking device; 4. Connecting rod; 5. Plate stacking rod; 6. First motor; 7. First frame; 8. Turning plate; 9. Second cylinder; 10. Plate pushing rod; 11. Third cylinder; 12. First chain conveyor; 13. Second chain conveyor; 14. Inclined plate; 15. Plate dropping frame; 16. Plate taking mechanism; 17. Plate stacking mechanism; 18. Mechanical arm; 19. Plate grabbing arm; 20. Plate taker; 21. Slit; 22. Second frame; 23. Plate stacking platform; 24. Second motor; 25. Rotating shaft; 26. Chain; 27. Counterweight; 100. Printing unit; 110. Plate making unit; 120. Plate stacking unit; 130. Plate dropping unit; 140. Plate taking unit; 150. Plate storing unit; 160. Plate transport unit; 170. Recycling unit; 180. Control center unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0044] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Generally, the components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the drawings here can be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0045] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the invention claimed for protection, but merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0046] It should be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the embodiments of the present invention and the features of the embodiments may be combined with each other.

[0047] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters denote similar items in the following drawings, and therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, further definition and explanation thereof is not required in subsequent drawings.

[0048] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inside", "outside", etc. indicate positions or positional relationships based on the positions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, or the positions or positional relationships in which the product of the invention is usually placed when in use, or the positions or positional relationships commonly understood by those skilled in the art, which are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used to distinguish the description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0049] In the description of the present invention, it is also necessary to explain that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "set", "install", "connect", and "connect" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal communication of two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0050] Embodiment 1:

[0051] In this embodiment, Figure 1 As shown, a CTP plate-based transfer printing system includes a printing unit 100 and a plate-making unit 110. The plate-making unit 110 and the printing unit 100 are connected through the transfer printing system. The transfer printing system includes:

[0052] The plate-turning unit 120 is used to receive the CTP plates from the plate-making unit 110 and turn over a set of CTP plates to the plate-dropping unit 130, where a set of plates consists of four CTP plates.

[0053] The plate placement unit 130 is used for temporarily storing and transporting the CTP plates on the printing unit 100 and the plate making unit 110, and cooperating with the plate taking work of the plate taking unit 140;

[0054] The plate taking unit 140 includes a plate making and taking unit and a printing plate taking unit. The plate making and taking unit is used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate placing unit 130 and the plate storing unit 150. The printing plate taking unit is used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate placing unit 130 and the printing unit 100.

[0055] The plate storage unit 150 is used to store the CTP plate made in advance by the plate making unit 110 for standby use;

[0056] The plate transport unit 160 is used to connect the plate placement unit 130 at the printing unit 100, the plate placement unit 130 at the plate making unit 110, and the recovery unit 170, and is used to transport the CTP plate between the two plate placement units 130 and the one recovery unit 170;

[0057] The recycling unit 170 is used to receive and collect the waste plates on the plate transporting unit 160;

[0058] The control center unit 180 is used to control the coordination between the printing unit 100 , the plate making unit 110 , the plate remaking unit 120 , the plate dropping unit 130 , the plate taking unit 140 , the plate storing unit 150 , the plate transporting unit 160 and the recycling unit 170 .

[0059] In this embodiment, the printing unit 100 and the plate-making unit 110 are respectively a printing press and a plate-making machine in the offset printing technology. Due to the requirements of uninterrupted work and huge printing volume, there are multiple printing presses and plate-making machines. Since the requirements for the environment are different and vary greatly, the printing press and the plate-making machine are usually installed in two independent and isolated workshops. The transfer printing system satisfies the circulation of CTP plates between the two workshops, replaces traditional manual labor, reduces human errors and improves efficiency. Specifically:

[0060] Under the control of the control station unit 180, the flow printing system performs the following work. When the plate making unit 110 prepares the CTP plate required for the work (hereinafter referred to as the new plate), the plate making unit 110 continuously flips the single new plate together through the plate turning unit 120 until four plates are collected as a set for standby. The plate turning unit 120 flips the set of new plates to the plate dropping unit 130. The plate dropping unit 130 at the plate making unit 110 is used to temporarily store a set of new plates produced by each plate making machine, and transport each set of new plates to the plate taking unit 140 at the plate making unit 110. On the one hand, it is to leave a blank station for the plate dropping unit 130 to facilitate the flipping of the next set of new plates; on the other hand, it is convenient for the plate taking unit 140 to take the plate. In consideration of reducing the continuity of work, multiple sets of new plates required for the work are usually made in advance before the printing press changes the plates, and the plate making and plate taking unit is required to take out the whole set of new plates from the plate dropping unit 130. , put it into the plate storage unit 150 and keep it for standby. When the printing press is about to complete or has completed the printing work, a plate use signal is sent to the control console unit 180. The plate making and plate taking unit at the plate making unit 110 takes the plate from the plate storage unit 150, and puts the new plate on the plate dropping unit 130 at the plate making unit 110. The plate dropping unit 130 sends the new plate to the plate transport unit 160. When the plate transport unit 160 has not yet sent or has sent the new plate to the printing press, the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit 100 takes out the waste plate discharged by the printing press and places it on the plate dropping unit 130 at the printing unit 100. The waste plate is sent to the recovery unit 170 for recycling through the plate transport unit 160. Finally, the plate transport unit 160 sends the new plate to the plate dropping unit 130 at the printing unit 100, and the new plate is placed at the plate inlet of the printing press through the printing plate taking unit to complete the plate changing work.

[0061] like Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5As shown, the reprinting unit 120 includes a plate making unit 110, a ramp 2 is provided at the publishing end of the plate making unit 110, a reprinting device 3 for flipping the CTP plate is installed on the ramp 2, and a plate dropping unit 130 for receiving and transporting the CTP plate is provided on one side of the reprinting device 3; the reprinting device 3 includes a reprinting rod 5, a first motor 6, a first frame 7, a flip plate 8, a second cylinder 9, a plate pushing rod 10 and a third cylinder 11, the bottom end of the reprinting rod 5 is rotatably connected to the bottom end of the ramp 2, and the reprinting rod 5 is located in the receiving groove of the ramp 2, and the motor 6 drives the reprinting rod 5 to the outside of the ramp 2. The first frame 7 is installed at the tail end of the ramp 2, the middle part of the flip plate 8 is rotatably connected to the first frame 7, the two ends of the second cylinder 9 are respectively hinged to the ends of the first frame 7 and the flip plate 8, the rotation trajectories of the two ends of the flip plate 8 are close to the tail end of the ramp 2 and the plate dropping unit 130, the end of the plate pushing rod 10 is rotatably connected to the end of the flip plate 8, the third cylinder 11 is rotatably installed on the flip plate 8, and one end of the third cylinder 11 is hinged to one end of the connecting rod 4, the other end of the connecting rod 4 is hinged to the flip plate 8, and the output end of the third cylinder 11 is hinged to the middle part of the plate pushing rod 10.

[0062] The reprinting unit 120 uses three reprinting actions to collect the single CTP plates made by the plate making unit 110 into a set and flip them onto the plate landing unit 130. In the first reprinting action, the CTP plate at the publishing end of the plate making unit 110 is flipped onto the flip plate 8 for temporary storage until a set of four plates is collected. In the second reprinting action, the flip plate 8 flips the CTP plate thereon at a certain angle and approaches the plate landing unit 130 to prepare for the third reprinting action. In the third reprinting action, the plate pushing rod 10 flips the CTP plate on the flip plate 8 and drops it onto the plate landing unit 130 to prevent the CTP plate from being crushed. The reprinting unit 120 has the function of temporarily storing CTP plates to facilitate the collection of a set of plates for use, and can connect the plate landing unit 130 and the plate making unit 110 to improve the transportation efficiency of the CTP plates.

[0063] First, after the plate making unit 110 (plate making machine) completes plate making, the incoming material sensor (such as a barcode reader) at the plate making machine's publishing port senses the CTP plate, controls the plate flipping device 3 to complete the reset work after completing the last plate flipping, and controls the plate landing unit 130 to clear the corresponding workstation. At this time, three plate flipping operations are performed. For the first plate flipping, driven by the first motor 6, the CTP plate is flipped onto the flip plate 8 through the plate flipping rod 5 on the ramp 2 for temporary storage until a set of four plates are collected; for the second plate flipping, driven by the second cylinder 9, the flip plate 8 flips the CTP plate thereon to a certain angle and approaches the plate landing unit 130 to prepare for the third plate flipping; for the third plate flipping, driven by the third cylinder 11, the plate pushing rod 10 flips the CTP plate on the flip plate 8 and reaches the plate landing unit 130 in a falling manner. In order to prevent the plate pushing rod 10 from crushing the CTP plate, the set of CTP plates falls on the plate landing unit 130.

[0064] like Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the plate placement unit 130 includes a first chain conveyor 12 , a second chain conveyor 13 and a ramp plate 14 . The first chain conveyor 12 is laterally arranged on the slope of the ramp plate 14 , and the second chain conveyor 13 is tilted upward and installed on the slope of the ramp plate 14 .

[0065] A set of new plates is turned over by the plate turning unit 120 onto the inclined surface of the ramp plate 14, and the first chain conveyor 12 drives the set of new plates forward in the horizontal direction. The second chain conveyor 13 between the first chain conveyors 12 does not interfere with the movement of the new plates between the first chain conveyors 12 when not working. When the plate transport unit 160 needs to transport the plates, the second chain conveyor 13 delivers the set of new plates to the plate taking port of the plate transport unit 160 in an inclined upward direction.

[0066] The plate taking unit 140 is a robot installed on a track.

[0067] The robot can move within a certain space, and the gripping method can refer to the structure of the plate taking mechanism 16 in the recovery unit 170 . The track can help the robot move back and forth along the direction of the plate storage unit 150 .

[0068] The plate storage unit 150 is a cabinet body, and a plurality of upwardly inclined plate bins are arranged on the cabinet body.

[0069] The robot of the plate taking unit 140 puts each set of new plates made in advance into the plate storage unit 150. The plate bin of the plate storage unit 150 is tilted upward, so that the CTP plate can lie tilted in the plate bin and have a certain angle, which is convenient for the robot to take and put, and prevents soft CTP plates from rubbing against each other when standing unstable and damaging the CTP plates.

[0070] The plate taking unit 140 is composed of a hanging rail, a chain and a plate taking cylinder. The motor drives the chain to move the plate taking cylinder hanging device on the hanging rail to realize the plate taking and transportation functions. Of course, you can also refer to the structure already disclosed in this application, such as the publication number CN202211328644.4, which is named a plate transport hanging device in a printing press automatic plate feeding device and method.

[0071] like Figure 6 , Figure 7 , Figure 8 and Fig. 9As shown, the recovery unit 170 includes a plate-dropping rack 15, a plate-taking mechanism 16 and a plate-stacking mechanism 17. The control center unit 180 controls the plate-taking mechanism 16 to place the CTP plate on the plate-dropping rack 15 on the plate storage position of the plate-stacking mechanism 17. The plate-taking mechanism 16 includes a mechanical arm 18, a plate-grabbing arm 19 and a plate-taker 20. The plate-grabbing arm 19 is installed at the movable end of the mechanical arm 18. At least one plate-taker 20 is installed on the plate-grabbing arm 19.

[0072] The recycling unit 170 is suitable for the picking, placing and stacking of CTP waste plates, and of course it can also be used for the picking, placing and stacking of other CTP plates (such as CTP good plates). After the CTP waste plates on the plate transport unit 160 fall on the plate drop rack 15, the photoelectric sensor on the plate drop rack 15 will sense the incoming material, and then the mechanical arm 18 of the plate picking mechanism 16 will move freely within a certain space range with the plate grabbing arm 19, and then clamp the CTP waste plates on the plate drop rack 15, and then move the CTP waste plates to the plate storage position of the plate stacking mechanism 17 for stacking.

[0073] Preferably, the plate unloading frame 15 is a V-shaped frame, and a slit 21 adapted to the CTP plate is provided at the bottom of the V-shaped frame, and the depth of the slit 21 is smaller than the height of the CTP plate.

[0074] The slit 21 can place the CTP waste plate in a vertical state with the top exposed, so that the plate removal mechanism 16 can easily remove the plate.

[0075] Preferably, a buffer plate is provided on the top of the plate dropping frame 1 .

[0076] The buffer plate can tilt the CTP waste plate vertically dropped from the hanging conveying line, and slide it against the plate drop frame 15 to reduce the falling speed and impact force.

[0077] A further technical solution is: the plate-building mechanism 17 includes a second frame 22, a plate-building platform 23, a second motor 24, a rotating shaft 25, a chain 26 and a counterweight 27, at least two rotating shafts 25 are symmetrically arranged and rotatably installed on the top of the second frame 22, four chains 26 are meshed with gears on the rotating shafts 25, one end of the four chains 26 is respectively connected to the four corners of the plate-building platform 23, the other ends of the four chains 26 are located on the same side of the second frame 22 and are all installed with counterweights 27, and the output end of the second motor 24 is connected to one of the rotating shafts 25 through a gear chain structure.

[0078] The stacking mechanism 17 is used to carry CTP waste plates, and according to the stacking height of the CTP waste plates, driven by the second motor 24, the height of the stacking platform 23 is adjusted through the chain 26 to adapt to the stacking height of the CTP waste plates. The counterweight block 27 is used to tighten the chain 26 to prevent looseness and ensure the stability of the stacking platform 23.

[0079] Embodiment 2:

[0080] In this embodiment, Figure 2 As shown, a CTP-based transfer printing method, using a transfer printing system, includes the following steps:

[0081] S1. Enter plate making information: input the CTP plate information required for plate making work into the plate making unit;

[0082] S2, plate making: The printing unit sends a plate-using signal to the control console unit in advance, and the plate making unit starts plate making work, making CTP plates in the order of black, blue, red and yellow;

[0083] S3, plate collection and plate reprinting: the barcode reader on the plate-making unit reads the publishing information of the CTP plate, and the CTP plates on the plate-making unit are flipped one by one and continuously to the plate reprinting unit. When the barcode reader reads the yellow CTP plate, the control station unit controls the plate reprinting unit to flip the set of CTP plates collected on it to the plate placement unit at the plate-making unit;

[0084] S4, plate storage: the plate taking unit at the plate making unit temporarily stores each set of CTP plates on the plate placing unit into the plate bin of the plate storage unit, and combines them according to the plate bin serial number of the plate storage unit and the printing unit serial number and displays the number on the control console unit;

[0085] S5, transporting CTP plates: after the current printing work of the printing unit is completed, a plate-changing signal is sent to the control center unit. The control center unit controls the plate-taking unit at the plate-making unit according to the number, and takes out a set of CTP plates in the plate storage unit and places them on the plate-dropping unit at the plate-making unit;

[0086] S6, replace with new plate: the plate placement unit in S5 sends a set of CTP plates to the plate transport unit, the plate transport unit transports the set of CTP plates to the plate placement unit at the printing unit, and the plate removal unit at the printing unit places the set of CTP plates at the plate inlet of the printing unit;

[0087] S7, removing waste plates: at the same time or after S6, the plate taking unit at the printing unit takes out the waste plates discharged by the printing unit, and places the waste plates on the plate dropping unit at the printing unit and sends them to the recovery unit through the plate transport unit;

[0088] S8, control the main station unit to control S1~S6 in sequence, S6 and S7 are carried out simultaneously, and S1~S7 constitute a working cycle.

[0089] Preferably, the advance plate usage time of the plate making unit in S2 is at least greater than the current printing time of the printing unit.

[0090] The working process of the present invention is as follows:

[0091] The first step is to transfer the plate-making information (CTP plate information) required for the current or daily work schedule to the plate-making unit (plate-making machine) through wired or wireless transmission or storage media, and the plate-making machine is ready to make plates;

[0092] In the second step, the printing machine sends a plate-making or plate-using signal to the control console unit, and the plate-making machine starts plate-making work and transports the prepared CTP plate to the reprinting unit 120 in the order of black, blue, red and yellow.

[0093] In the third step, the two-dimensional code reader in the rear part (publishing port) of the plate-making machine reads the information and transmits it to the control station unit. When the yellow plate is read, the plate-turning unit 120 is triggered to work through an electrical signal. The plate-turning device 3 completes the reset work after completing the last plate-turning, and controls the plate-dropping unit 130 to clear the corresponding station. At this time, three plate-turning operations are performed. For the first plate-turning, driven by the first motor 6, the CTP plate is turned onto the flip plate 8 through the plate-turning rod 5 on the ramp 2 for temporary storage until a set of four plates is collected; for the second plate-turning, driven by the second cylinder 9, the flip plate 8 turns the CTP plate thereon at a certain angle and approaches the plate-dropping unit 130 to prepare for the third plate-turning; for the third plate-turning, driven by the third cylinder 11, the plate-pushing rod 10 turns the CTP plate on the flip plate 8 and reaches the plate-dropping unit 130 in a falling manner. In order to prevent the plate-pushing rod 10 from crushing the CTP plate, the set of CTP plates falls on the plate-dropping unit 130;

[0094] In the fourth step, the plate making and plate taking unit at the plate making unit 110 temporarily stores each set of CTP plates on the plate landing unit 130 into the plate bin of the plate storage unit 150, and combines the plate bin serial number of the plate storage unit and the printing unit serial number and displays the number on the control console unit 180. At the same time, there is also a sensor in the plate bin, and an indicator light is set at the corresponding position, which intuitively displays whether there is a plate inside by turning the light on and off;

[0095] Step 5: After the current printing work of the printing unit 100 is completed, a plate changing signal is sent to the control station unit 180. The control station unit 180 controls the plate making and plate taking unit at the plate making unit 110 according to the number, and takes out a set of CTP plates in the plate storage unit 150 and places them on the plate dropping unit 130 at the plate making unit 110;

[0096] In the sixth step, the plate placement unit 130 in the fifth step sends a set of CTP plates to the plate transport unit 160, and the plate transport unit 160 transports the set of CTP plates to the plate placement unit 130 at the printing unit 100. The printing plate taking unit at the printing unit 100 places the set of CTP plates at the plate inlet of the printing unit 100, waiting for the printing unit 100 to automatically load the materials.

[0097] Step 7. After or at the same time as Step 6, the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit 100 takes out the waste plate automatically discharged by the printing unit 100, and places the waste plate on the plate dropping unit 130 at the printing unit 100 and sends it to the recovery unit 170 through the plate transporting unit 160. After the CTP waste plate on the plate transporting unit 160 falls on the plate dropping rack 15, the photoelectric sensor on the plate dropping rack 15 senses the incoming material, and then the mechanical arm 18 of the plate taking mechanism 16 moves freely within a certain space with the plate grabbing arm 19, and then clamps the CTP waste plate on the plate dropping rack 15, and then moves the CTP waste plate to the plate storage position of the plate stacking mechanism 17 for stacking;

[0098] The above working steps are performed in sequence from the first step to the seventh step, and the sixth step and the seventh step are performed simultaneously. Overall, the first step to the seventh step constitute a working cycle.

[0099] Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, it is still possible for those skilled in the art to modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or to make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features therein. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A CTP plate-based flow printing system, comprising a printing unit (100) and a plate making unit (110), characterized in that: The plate-making unit (110) and the printing unit (100) are connected via a transfer printing system, and the transfer printing system comprises: The plate flipping unit (120) is used to receive the CTP plates from the plate making unit (110) and flip a set of CTP plates to the plate landing unit (130), where a set of plates consists of four CTP plates; The plate dropping unit (130) is used for temporarily storing and transporting the CTP plates on the printing unit (100) and the plate making unit (110), and cooperating with the plate taking unit (140) in the plate taking work; A plate taking unit (140), the plate taking unit (140) comprising a plate making and taking unit and a printing plate taking unit, the plate making and taking unit being used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate landing unit (130) and the plate storage unit (150), and the printing plate taking unit being used to take out and put in a set of CTP plates between the plate landing unit (130) and the printing unit (100); The plate storage unit (150) is used to store the CTP plate produced in advance by the plate making unit (110) for standby use; A plate transport unit (160) is used to connect the plate landing unit (130) at the printing unit (100), the plate landing unit (130) at the plate making unit (110), and the recovery unit (170), and is used to transport the CTP plate between the two plate landing units (130) and the one recovery unit (170); A recovery unit (170) is used to receive and collect waste plates on the plate transport unit (160); The control center unit (180) is used to control the coordinated work among the printing unit (100), the plate making unit (110), the plate reproducing unit (120), the plate dropping unit (130), the plate taking unit (140), the plate storing unit (150), the plate transporting unit (160) and the recycling unit (170).

2. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The publishing end of the plate making unit (110) is provided with a ramp platform (2), a plate flipping device (3) for flipping the CTP plate is installed on the ramp platform (2), and a plate landing unit (130) for receiving and transporting the CTP plate is provided on one side of the plate flipping device (3); wherein: The printing plate turning device (3) comprises a connecting rod (4), a printing plate turning rod (5), a first motor (6), a first frame (7), a flip plate (8), a second cylinder (9), a printing plate pushing rod (10) and a third cylinder (11); the bottom end of the printing plate turning rod (5) is rotatably connected to the bottom end of the ramp (2), and the printing plate turning rod (5) is located in a receiving groove of the ramp (2); the motor (6) drives the printing plate turning rod (5) to rotate toward the outside of the ramp (2); the first frame (7) is installed at the rear end of the ramp (2); the middle part of the flip plate (8) is rotatably connected to the first frame (7); the second cylinder (9) is rotatably connected to the bottom end of the ramp (2); The two ends of the cylinder (9) are respectively hinged to the ends of the first frame (7) and the flip plate (8); the rotational trajectories of the two ends of the flip plate (8) are respectively close to the tail end of the ramp (2) and the plate dropping unit (130); the end of the plate pushing rod (10) is rotationally connected to the end of the flip plate (8); the third cylinder (11) is rotationally mounted on the flip plate (8); one end of the third cylinder (11) is hinged to one end of the connecting rod (4); the other end of the connecting rod (4) is hinged to the flip plate (8); and the output end of the third cylinder (11) is hinged to the middle part of the plate pushing rod (10).

3. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The plate dropping unit (130) comprises a first chain conveyor (12), a second chain conveyor (13) and a ramp plate (14); the first chain conveyor (12) is arranged transversely on the inclined surface of the ramp plate (14); and the second chain conveyor (13) is arranged tilted upward and installed on the inclined surface of the ramp plate (14).

4. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The recovery unit (170) comprises a plate-dropping rack (15), a plate-taking mechanism (16) and a plate-stack mechanism (17); the control center unit (180) controls the plate-taking mechanism (16) to place the CTP plate on the plate-dropping rack (15) at a plate storage position of the plate-stack mechanism (17); the plate-taking mechanism (16) comprises a mechanical arm (18), a plate-grabbing arm (19) and a plate-taker (20); the plate-grabbing arm (19) is mounted on a movable end of the mechanical arm (18); and at least one plate-taker (20) is mounted on the plate-grabbing arm (19).

5. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The plate dropping frame (15) is a V-shaped frame, and a slit (21) adapted to the CTP plate is provided at the bottom of the V-shaped frame, and the depth of the slit (21) is smaller than the height of the CTP plate.

6. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The plate-building mechanism (17) comprises a second frame (22), a plate-building platform (23), a second motor (24), a rotating shaft (25), a chain (26) and a counterweight (27); at least two of the rotating shafts (25) are symmetrically arranged and rotatably mounted on the top of the second frame (22); four of the chains (26) are meshed with gears on the rotating shafts (25); one end of the four chains (26) is respectively connected to four corners of the plate-building platform (23); the other ends of the four chains (26) are located on the same side of the second frame (22) and are all mounted with the counterweight (27); and the output end of the second motor (24) is connected to one of the rotating shafts (25) via a gear chain structure.

7. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The plate taking unit (140) is a robot installed on a track.

8. The CTP-based transfer printing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The plate storage unit (150) is a cabinet body, and a plurality of upwardly-facing and inclined plate bins are arranged on the cabinet body.

9. A CTP-based transfer printing method, characterized in that: Using the transfer printing system as described in any one of claims 1 to 8 comprises the following steps: S1. Enter plate making information: input the CTP plate information required for plate making work into the plate making unit; S2, plate making: The printing unit sends a plate-using signal to the control console unit in advance, and the plate making unit starts plate making work, making CTP plates in the order of black, blue, red and yellow; S3, plate collection and plate reprinting: the barcode reader on the plate-making unit reads the publishing information of the CTP plate, and the CTP plates on the plate-making unit are flipped one by one and continuously to the plate reprinting unit. When the barcode reader reads the yellow CTP plate, the control station unit controls the plate reprinting unit to flip the set of CTP plates collected on it to the plate placement unit at the plate-making unit; S4, plate storage: the plate making and plate taking unit at the plate making unit temporarily stores each set of CTP plates on the plate placement unit into the plate bin of the plate storage unit, and combines them according to the plate bin serial number of the plate storage unit and the printing unit serial number and displays the number on the control console unit; S5, transporting CTP plates: after the current printing work is completed, the printing unit sends a plate change signal to the control center unit, and the control center unit controls the plate making and taking unit at the plate making unit according to the number, and takes out a set of CTP plates in the plate storage unit and places them on the plate dropping unit at the plate making unit; S6, replace with new plate: the plate placement unit in S5 sends a set of CTP plates to the plate transport unit, the plate transport unit transports the set of CTP plates to the plate placement unit at the printing unit, and the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit places the set of CTP plates at the plate inlet of the printing unit; S7, removing waste plates: at the same time or after S6, the printing plate taking unit at the printing unit takes out the waste plates discharged by the printing unit, and places the waste plates on the plate dropping unit at the printing unit and sends them to the recovery unit through the plate transport unit; S8, control the main station unit to control S1~S6 in sequence, S6 and S7 are carried out simultaneously, and S1~S7 constitute a working cycle.

10. The CTP-based transfer printing method according to claim 9, characterized in that: In said S2, the advance plate-using time of the plate-making unit is at least greater than the current printing time of the printing unit.

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