Medical device surface made by roll-to-roll digital printing, cutting, and punching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional manufacturing processes for medical device surfaces are inefficient, requiring manual or semi-digital cutting, solvent-based inks with limited pot life, and labor-intensive clean-up with hazardous chemicals, consuming significant space and energy, and involving multiple operators.
Innovation Solution
A method using an inkjet printer with ultraviolet (UV) curable ink to print and cut medical device materials, such as woven ticking fabric laminated with polyurethane, incorporating UV curing for rapid ink drying, automated cutting based on printed instructions, and optional punching, reducing the need for multiple operators and minimizing environmental impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional silk screen printing with solvent-based inks is used, then printing can be performed on medical device surfaces, but the ink requires two to three days to cure and has significantly limited pot life
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the ink system by replacing solvent-based inks with UV-curable inks. This fundamental parameter change transforms the curing mechanism from air-drying (taking days) to UV-light activation (taking seconds), while also improving pot life since UV inks remain usable until exposed to curing light.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the thermal/chemical drying process with a photopolymerization process. Instead of relying on solvent evaporation and oxidation over days, the system uses UV light exposure to instantly cure the ink, substituting a slow mechanical drying process with a rapid photchemical reaction.
2Reliability
If conventional drying processes are used, then ink can be cured, but either significant space is used for drying racks or large amounts of energy are consumed for heating
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal heating systems with UV light sources for ink curing. Instead of consuming large amounts of energy to heat air to 300 degrees, the system uses targeted UV LED or lamp arrays that cure only the printed ink areas, dramatically reducing overall energy consumption while maintaining effective curing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates the curing action immediately after printing in a single-pass process. The UV curing lamps are positioned directly over the print head or immediately downstream, so the ink is cured before the material leaves the printing station. This eliminates the need for separate drying racks or post-printing curing chambers, reducing both space and energy requirements.
3Ease of manufacture
If manual or semi-digital cutting tables are used, then material can be cut into sections, but the process is labor-intensive and requires multiple operators
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-service cutting system where the printed material itself contains the cutting instructions. Barcodes or data matrices printed on the material are scanned by the cutter, which then automatically follows the printed outlines to cut the material. This eliminates the need for manual measurement and cutting by operators, making the process self-directed and highly efficient.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the printing and cutting operations into a single integrated workflow. The printing step deposits both the graphical content and the cutting path information onto the material. The cutting system then reads this printed information and executes the cuts immediately, combining what were previously separate manual operations into an automated sequence that requires minimal human intervention.
4Ease of repair
If conventional cleaning processes are used, then equipment can be maintained, but hazardous chemicals are used and clean-up is labor intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces chemical cleaning systems with mechanical or electrostatic cleaning methods. Instead of using hazardous solvents to clean printing equipment, the system employs air knives, ultrasonic cleaning, or electrostatic precipitation to remove ink residues. This substitution eliminates harmful chemical exposure while maintaining effective equipment cleaning and reducing manual labor requirements.
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 production time and labor, minimizes space and energy consumption, and enhances efficiency by allowing on-demand printing and cutting, while using safer UV-curable inks and automated processes, resulting in cost-effective and environmentally friendly manufacturing of medical device surfaces.
Implementation Method 1
printing, with an ink jet printer and using ink that may be curable with ultraviolet light, content onto a surface of material... curing the ink with the ultraviolet light
Data Source
AI summary
A method for preparing a material for use as a surface of a medical device may include printing, with an ink jet printer and using ink that is curable with ultraviolet light, content onto a surface of material that includes woven ticking fabric laminated with polyurethane. The method may also include curing the ink with the ultraviolet light. The method may also include cutting a section of the material in registration to the content printed on the surface for use in a medical device.