Cold Pressure Fix Toner Adhesive via Xerography
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional adhesive application methods, such as screen printing, are costly, material-intensive, and require long production cycles, and involve solvents or low molecular weight monomers that need drying or curing, limiting their efficiency and versatility in bonding various substrates.
Innovation Solution
The use of cold pressure fix toners with phase change materials, applied via xerography, which form an adhesive layer upon pressure application, allowing for on-demand bonding of substrates without heat, thus reducing costs and increasing flexibility in substrate compatibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional coating or screen printing techniques are used to apply adhesives, then adhesive application is achieved, but materials usage is high, tolling and handling costs are high, and production cycle time is long
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical coating and screen printing systems with a xerographic printing system that uses electrostatic charge to deposit toner particles. This substitution eliminates the need for liquid adhesives, solvents, and complex drying/curing equipment, thereby reducing materials usage and shortening production cycle time while maintaining adhesive application capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical state of the adhesive from liquid (requiring drying/curing) to solid toner particles that are applied dry and then fused. This parameter change from liquid to solid form eliminates the need for solvent evaporation and curing steps, directly reducing production cycle time and materials waste.
2Productivity
If screen printable adhesives containing solvent media or low molecular weight monomers are used, then adhesive bonding is achieved, but drying or curing steps are required, increasing production time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal drying or chemical curing processes with a cold pressure fix system. The toner adhesive is applied via xerography and then bonded by applying pressure alone, eliminating the need for heating equipment, temperature control systems, and chemical catalysts, thereby simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing production time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the phase transition properties of the toner particles, which transition from a loose deposited state to a fused bonded state under pressure. This phase change mechanism replaces the need for thermal or chemical activation, simplifying the manufacturing process and eliminating drying/curing steps.
3Adaptability or versatility
If conventional adhesive methods are used, then bonding is achieved, but heat or solvent-based processes are required, limiting substrate compatibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal and solvent-based bonding mechanisms with a pure mechanical pressure system. By using electrostatically deposited toner particles that fuse under pressure alone, the process eliminates harmful heat and solvent exposure, thereby expanding substrate compatibility to include heat-sensitive and solvent-sensitive materials such as certain plastics, papers, and electronic components.
Solution Approach 2:
The toner particles act as an intermediary adhesive material that bridges substrates without requiring direct thermal or chemical interaction with them. This intermediary approach allows bonding of diverse substrates that would be damaged by conventional heat or solvent exposure, as the toner mediates the bonding process through pressure-induced fusion.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method enables efficient, cost-effective, and flexible bonding of substrates using xerographic printing, eliminating the need for heat and solvent-based processes, and allowing for a wider variety of substrate combinations, while reducing material usage and production time.
Implementation Method 1
a cold pressure fix toner comprising a phase change material
Implementation Method 2
disposing a cold pressure fix toner comprising a phase change material on a first substrate via xerography
Data Source
AI summary
Methods of using a toner as a printable adhesive are provided. In embodiments, a method of adhering substrates is provided which comprises disposing a cold pressure fix toner comprising a phase change material on a first substrate via xerography to form an unfused layer of the cold pressure fix toner on the first substrate; placing a second substrate on the unfused layer of the cold pressure fix toner; and subjecting the cold pressure fix toner to a pressure to form a bonded article comprising the first substrate, an adhesive layer formed from the cold pressure fix toner, and the second substrate. Methods of applying an adhesive to a substrate and bonded articles are also provided.