Screen plate-making device

Abstract

To reuse a gauzy medium while shortening a printing adjustment preparing time.SOLUTION: A screen plate-making device comprises: a thermoplastic resin film S1 that is wound up in a roll shape and is rotated to be fed out as a thermoplastic resin sheet that can be perforated by heat; a gauzy medium S2 arranged above the thermoplastic resin film S1 to overlap with the film in a film width direction; an angle adjusting part 4 that supports the gauzy medium S2 and changes an arrangement angle of the gauzy medium S2 with respect to a direction with a feeding direction of the film as a reference; and a thermal head 5 that perforates the film by heat to perform plate-making, at a side closer to an upstream side than the gauzy medium S2, which when one plate includes a plurality of manuscripts, can perform plate-making without caring for a plate-making angle, can shorten a printing adjustment preparing time by freely adjusting a bias angle of the gauzy medium S2, and also can reuse the gauzy medium by winding up only the thermoplastic resin film after printing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a screen plate making apparatus that reuses a gauze medium while simplifying the preparation time for printing adjustment. [Background technology]

[0002] In conventional thermal screen platemaking systems, a screen master used in a screen-printing platemaking device is wound up in a roll and is composed of a thermoplastic resin film and a gauze medium. The screen master is stretched on a frame with a predetermined tension, and thermal perforations are made in the printing area of ​​the thermoplastic resin film using, for example, a thermal head.

[0003] From the viewpoint of cost reduction, it has been desired to be able to reuse the gauze medium after use by peeling off the thermoplastic resin film from the gauze medium and attaching a new thermoplastic resin film again.

[0004] Patent document 1 discloses a technique for manufacturing a screen printing original plate, in which a plate-made thermal film sheet is placed on a support table, a separating liquid is applied to the top surface of a backing sheet to dissolve the adhesive, the backing sheet is separated from the top surface of the thermal film (thermoplastic resin film), a gauze adhered to a gauze frame under a predetermined tension is placed in this state, adhesive is applied to the top surface of the gauze, and the thermal film is adhered to the gauze. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-11541 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, in the method for manufacturing a screen printing plate disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the film is formed into a single layer and then bonded, there are problems such as the tendency for the heat-sensitive film to wrinkle and the adhesive to obstruct perforation and ink passage, which can easily cause image degradation.

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to provide a screen plate making apparatus that reuses a gauze medium while simplifying the preparation time for print adjustment. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, a first feature of the screen plate making apparatus according to the present invention is: a film wound into a roll and delivered as a thermally perforable thermoplastic sheet by rotation; a gauze medium disposed above the film so as to overlap the film in the width direction; an angle adjustment unit that supports the gauze medium and changes the angle of the gauze medium relative to a direction based on the film feed direction; a perforation section, located upstream of the gauze medium, for perforating the film with heat to make a plate; a film delivery mechanism that delivers the film; a film winding mechanism that winds up the film, After printing is completed, the film is taken up by the film take-up mechanism, and new plate-made film that has been perforated in the perforation section is supplied, thereby allowing printing to continue. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the screen plate making device of the present invention, the time required for preparation for printing adjustment can be reduced and the gauze medium can be reused. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic view of a screen plate making apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] 5A to 5C are explanatory diagrams illustrating the operation of angle adjustment by the angle adjustment unit included in the screen plate making apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] 1 is a side view showing an example of a thermoplastic resin film and a gauze medium used in a screen plate making apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a screen plate making apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The same or equivalent parts and components are designated by the same or equivalent reference numerals throughout the drawings. However, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic and may differ from the actual product. Furthermore, the drawings may include parts with different dimensional relationships and ratios. Furthermore, the embodiments shown below are merely examples of devices and the like that embody the technical concept of this invention, and the technical concept of this invention does not limit the arrangement of each component to that shown below. Various modifications can be made to the technical concept of this invention within the scope of the claims.

[0012] First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a screen plate making apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0013] As shown in Figure 1, the screen plate making device 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention has a printing table 1, a thermoplastic resin film conveying section 2, a gauze medium holding section 3, an angle adjustment section 4, a thermal head 5, and a printing section 6.

[0014] A medium P is placed on the printing table 1.

[0015] The thermoplastic resin film transport section 2 has a feed roller 21 and a take-up roller 22. The feed roller (film feed mechanism) 21 rotates in the A2 direction to feed out the thermoplastic resin film S1 that has been wound in a roll, and the fed thermoplastic resin film S1 is taken up by the take-up roller (film take-up mechanism) 22 that rotates in the A3 direction. The thermoplastic resin film S1 is formed into a sheet shape from thermoplastic resin, and is perforated by heating with a thermal head 5, which will be described later.

[0016] The gauze medium holding section 3 is provided above the thermoplastic resin film conveying section 2, and has a feed roller 31 and a take-up roller 32. The feed roller 31 rotates to feed out the gauze medium S2 that has been wound in a roll, and the fed gauze medium S2 is taken up by the take-up roller 32. The gauze medium S2 is formed by weaving warp and weft threads together to have multiple meshes.

[0017] The angle adjusting unit 4 supports the gauze medium S2 and changes the angle at which the gauze medium S2 is disposed relative to a direction based on the feed direction of the feed roller 21 of the thermoplastic resin film S1.

[0018] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the operation of angle adjustment by the angle adjustment unit 4 provided in the screen plate making apparatus 10A according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] 2, the angle adjustment unit 4 supports the gauze medium S2. The angle θ, which is the angle between the A4 direction based on the feed direction of the feed roller 21 of the thermoplastic resin film S1 and the A5 direction, which is the feed direction of the gauze medium S2, is changed.

[0020] 1, the thermal head 5 has a plurality of heating elements (not shown) on the top, and performs thermal perforation by heating the heating elements while in contact with the thermoplastic resin film S1 based on image data. Note that, although the thermoplastic resin film S1 is thermally perforated using the thermal head 5 here, this is not limiting, and laser irradiation or xenon flash may also be used, or a thermoplastic resin film S1 with pre-formed perforations may also be used.

[0021] FIG. 3 is a side view showing an example of a thermoplastic resin film S1 and a gauze medium S2 used in the screen plate making apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] As shown in Fig. 3, a thermoplastic resin film S1 is placed below a gauze medium S2. The thermoplastic resin film S1 is formed by superposing a release agent layer S12 below a thermoplastic resin portion S11. In other words, the gauze medium S2 and the thermoplastic resin film S1 are not laminated with an adhesive or the like.

[0023] Then, as described above, the thermoplastic resin film S1 is thermally perforated using the thermal head 5, whereby the thermoplastic resin portion S11 and the release agent layer S12 are perforated, and the gauze medium S2 is not heated.

[0024] When the thermoplastic resin film S1 that has been thermally perforated by the thermal head 5 is placed on the medium P, the printing unit 6 slides in the direction of arrow A1 in Figure 1 while discharging ink, causing the ink to seep out of the perforations onto the medium P, thereby printing a predetermined image on the medium P.

[0025] In screen printing, multiple manuscripts may be printed on a single plate, and only the necessary portions may be printed using the squeegee of the printing unit 6, thereby making efficient use of the plate surface. In this case, a single plate may contain a variety of image patterns, such as graphics and solid logos, as well as platemaking units with different image processing conditions, such as line frequency and screen angle. There is a concern that moiré may occur depending on the combination of these image patterns or image processing with the bias angle of the gauze.

[0026] In such cases, a normal thermal screen would need to be remade. The screen angle for halftone dot processing and the bias angle of the gauze must be taken into consideration when making the screen, but the quality of the moire pattern cannot be confirmed until printing, and in some cases the screen may need to be remade, resulting in a loss of screen master and time. In the first embodiment of the present invention, the gauze and the thermo-perforated thermoplastic resin film S1 are not bonded, so the bias of the gauze can be adjusted using the angle adjustment unit 4, making it easy to adjust the optimal printing conditions for each image pattern.

[0027] This means that when multiple manuscripts (including a mixture of graphics and text) are included on one plate, plates can be made without worrying about the plate-making angle, simplifying the preparation time for printing, and by winding up only the thermoplastic resin film S1 after printing, the gauze medium can be reused.

[0028] Furthermore, by ensuring tension on the thermoplastic resin film S1 between the feed roller 21 and the take-up roller 22, it is not necessary to frame the thermoplastic resin film S1 itself, which makes it easy to remove and reinstall the thermoplastic resin film S1.

[0029] By thermally perforating the single layer of the thermoplastic resin film S1 with the thermal head 5, it is possible to prevent the thermal head 5 from being contaminated with ink.

[0030] When ink replacement is not required, the next plate-made thermoplastic resin film S1 can be set while the gauze medium S2 is still set, eliminating the time and effort required for plate replacement. When changing plates, all that is required is to replace the thermoplastic resin film S1, making it possible to reuse the gauze medium S2. This allows users to reduce the cost of the gauze medium S2 and eliminates the need for re-stretching the gauze.

[0031] Second Embodiment FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a screen plate making apparatus 10A according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] 4, the screen plate making apparatus 10A according to the second embodiment of the present invention has a printing table 1, a thermoplastic resin film transport section 2, a gauze medium holding section 3A, an angle adjustment section 4, a thermal head 5, and a printing section 6. Of these components, except for the gauze medium holding section 3A, the components are the same as those of the screen plate making apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0033] The gauze medium holding section 3A is provided above the thermoplastic resin film transport section 2, and has a gauze frame 31A on which a gauze medium S2 is stretched.

[0034] As with the screen plate making device 10 of the first embodiment of the present invention, the angle adjustment unit 4 supports the gauze medium S2 and changes the positioning angle of the gauze medium S2 on the gauze frame 31A relative to a direction based on the feed direction of the feed roller 21 of the thermoplastic resin film S1.

[0035] As a result, similar to the screen plate making device 10 of the first embodiment of the present invention, when multiple originals (including a mixture of graphics and text) are included in one plate, plates can be made without worrying about the plate making angle, thereby simplifying the printing preparation time and, by winding up only the thermoplastic resin film S1 after printing, the gauze medium can be reused. (Addendum) The present application discloses the following inventions.

[0036] (Appendix 1) a film wound into a roll and delivered as a thermally perforable thermoplastic sheet by rotation; a gauze medium disposed above the film so as to overlap the film in the width direction; an angle adjustment unit that supports the gauze medium and changes the angle of the gauze medium relative to a direction based on the film feed direction; a perforation section, located upstream of the gauze medium, for perforating the film with heat to make a plate; a film delivery mechanism that delivers the film; a film winding mechanism that winds up the film, After printing is completed, the film is taken up by the film take-up mechanism, and new plate-made film that has been perforated by the perforation section is supplied, thereby allowing printing to continue. This clean plate making device is characterized by the above.

[0037] When multiple manuscripts (including a mixture of graphics and text) are included on one plate, plates can be made without worrying about the plate-making angle, which simplifies the preparation time for printing, and by rolling up only the thermoplastic resin film after printing, the gauze medium can be reused. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1 Printing stand 2 Thermoplastic resin film transport section 3,3A Gauze medium holding part 4 Angle adjustment section 5 Thermal head 6 Printing Department 10,10A Screen plate making device P Media S1 Thermoplastic Resin Film S2 gauze medium S11 Thermoplastic resin part S12 Release agent layer

Claims

[Claim 1] a film wound into a roll and delivered as a thermally perforable thermoplastic sheet by rotation; a gauze medium disposed above the film so as to overlap the film in the width direction; an angle adjustment unit that supports the gauze medium and changes the angle of the gauze medium relative to a direction based on the film feed direction; a perforation section, located upstream of the gauze medium, for perforating the film with heat to make a plate; a film delivery mechanism that delivers the film; a film winding mechanism that winds up the film, After printing is completed, the film is taken up by the film take-up mechanism, and new plate-made film that has been perforated by the perforation section is supplied, thereby allowing printing to continue. A screen plate making device characterized by the above.

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