Inkjet Printing Gloss Uniformity via Clear Liquid Timing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Ink jet printing using pigment ink faces issues with gloss unevenness due to poor permeation into print media, especially on glossy surfaces, and existing solutions like film lamination or additive use compromise apparatus size or print head stability.
Innovation Solution
An image processing apparatus that uses colored ink and a clear liquid, where the timing of printing is determined based on binary data to ensure uniform glossiness and image clarity across different gradations, with the clear liquid applied before or after the colored ink to adjust surface properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If pigment ink is used to print on glossy print medium, then image fastness is improved, but gloss unevenness occurs between print and non-print parts
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies different treatments to different regions of the print medium. A clear liquid is selectively applied to non-print parts to enhance their gloss, while print parts maintain the pigment ink characteristics. This local differentiation resolves the gloss unevenness between print and non-print areas while preserving the image fastness of the pigment ink.
Solution Approach 2:
The clear liquid acts as an intermediary substance between the pigment ink and the glossy print medium. By applying this intermediate layer to non-print parts, the invention mediates the gloss difference caused by the interaction between pigment ink and the glossy surface, achieving uniform overall gloss while maintaining the benefits of pigment ink.
2Manufacturing precision
If a transparent film is laminated on the print surface to reduce gloss unevenness, then gloss uniformity is improved, but apparatus size increases and lamination time is required
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the gloss enhancement function from a separate lamination process and integrates it directly into the printing process. By applying the clear liquid through the printing apparatus itself, the gloss uniformity function is separated from the mechanical lamination system, eliminating the need for additional lamination equipment and reducing apparatus size.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention merges the gloss enhancement function with the printing process by applying the clear liquid during the same operational cycle. This combination eliminates the need for separate lamination equipment and steps, reducing apparatus complexity while achieving uniform gloss across the print medium.
3Manufacturing precision
If additives such as titanium dioxide are added to colored ink to improve gloss uniformity, then gloss uniformity is improved, but ejection stability in the print head deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention segments the gloss enhancement function from the colored ink formulation. Instead of adding additives to the colored ink, the clear liquid is applied separately to non-print parts. This segmentation maintains the ejection stability of the colored ink while achieving gloss uniformity through the separate clear liquid application process.
Solution Approach 2:
The clear liquid serves as an intermediary that provides gloss enhancement without being mixed into the colored ink. This intermediary approach allows gloss uniformity to be achieved while keeping the colored ink composition unchanged, thereby maintaining print head ejection stability.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is an ink jet printing apparatus that, without causing an increase in apparatus size, can print an image having high evenness in both of image clarity and glossiness regardless a gradation or gamut of the image. For this purpose, on the basis of input image data, pieces of multivalued color data respectively corresponding to colored inks, and first multivalued data and second multivalued data that correspond to image enhancing liquid are generated. On a print medium, the colored inks and the image enhancing liquid according to the first multivalued data are printed at nearly the same timing, and after the printing of them has been completed, the image enhancing liquid according to the second multivalued data is printed. In doing so, gloss properties appearing on the print medium can be made to fall within certain ranges, respectively, independently of input image data.