Fiducial Marks for Double-Sided Print Registration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Double-sided 'day and night' signs face registration issues during printing, leading to visual defects like blurred edges when the images on the front and back sides are not aligned properly, causing quality issues when viewed at night.
Innovation Solution
The use of fiducial marks printed on the first side of the print medium, which are scanned using a sensor backlit by a light source, allows for precise alignment and registration of the mirrored copy on the second side, ensuring accurate image combination during double-sided printing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If double-sided printing is performed without fiducial marks, then printing process is simpler, but image alignment between front and back sides deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Fiducial marks are printed on the first side of the print medium before the actual image content. These marks serve as reference points that are detected by a sensor system to determine the precise position and orientation of the print medium, enabling accurate registration of the mirrored image on the second side without requiring complex real-time adjustment mechanisms during the printing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The fiducial marks act as an intermediary element between the print medium and the printing system's positioning mechanism. By detecting these marks with a sensor, the system can calculate transformation parameters (translation, rotation, scaling) that mediate the alignment between the front and back sides, thereby achieving precise image registration without direct complex control of the print medium itself.
2Manufacturing precision
If fiducial marks are used for registration, then image alignment accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the print medium itself (with printed fiducial marks) as the reference for positioning, rather than requiring external fixtures or complex mechanical alignment devices. The sensor detects the fiducial marks directly on the print medium, and the system automatically calculates and applies the necessary transformation parameters, making the print medium self-referential for alignment purposes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces complex mechanical alignment mechanisms with an optical/electronic sensing system. Instead of using精密 mechanical guides, rollers, or positioning devices, the system uses a sensor to detect fiducial marks and computationally determines alignment parameters, substituting mechanical complexity with optical detection and software-based registration.
3Manufacturing precision
If multiple fiducial marks are printed ahead of the image, then registration precision is improved, but print medium width consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fiducial marking system is segmented into multiple discrete marks distributed across the print medium width, rather than using a single large reference mark. This segmentation allows the system to determine both lateral position and rotational orientation independently, achieving comprehensive registration with smaller individual marks that consume less print medium width while maintaining or improving registration precision.
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 significantly reduces misregistration errors, maintaining image quality and clarity when viewed both during the day and at night by ensuring precise alignment of images on both sides of the print medium.
Implementation Method 1
scanning, using a sensor, the fiducial marks while the fiducial marks are backlit by a light source
Data Source
AI summary
Examples herein provide a method, which includes printing an image and fiducial marks on a first side of a print medium. The fiducial marks include first marks ahead of the image, wherein two of the first marks are end marks at a first distance from respective opposite edges of the print medium, and each first mark has a first length and is located at a second distance from a beginning edge of the image. The fiducial marks also include second marks along a length of the print medium, wherein each second mark is at the first distance from the respective opposite edges, has a second length smaller than the first length, and is at a third distance from another second mark. The method includes scanning the fiducial marks and printing a registered mirrored copy of the image on the second side of the print medium using the scanned fiducial marks.