Multicolour Pad Printing Layout for Accurate Stationary-Platform Printing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional pad printing machines are limited to monocolour printing and require multiple stations and precise travel, leading to errors and complexity, especially when printing intricate and complex designs in different colours.
Innovation Solution
A pad printing machine with a stationary platform and independently movable pad printing units, each equipped with a cliché plate, ink cup, and silicon pad assembly, allowing simultaneous multi-colour printing without the need for multiple platforms, reducing space and improving printing speed and accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple printing stations are employed with platform travel, then multi-colour printing capability is achieved, but positioning accuracy deteriorates due to travel errors
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of moving the platform to different printing stations, the invention inverts the approach by keeping the platform stationary and moving the printing units to the platform. This eliminates positioning errors associated with platform travel while maintaining multi-colour printing capability through multiple independently movable printing units.
Solution Approach 2:
The printing system is segmented into multiple independent printing units, each capable of performing printing operations. These units can be independently positioned and operated, allowing multi-colour printing without requiring the entire platform to travel to different stations, thus maintaining positioning accuracy.
2Manufacturing precision
If high-precision equipment and sensor suite are used, then positioning accuracy is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the need for complex high-precision equipment and sensor suites by fundamentally changing the printing mechanism. By using independently movable printing units that can be easily positioned and adjusted, the system achieves positioning accuracy without requiring bulky and complex precision equipment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple platforms are used for multi-colour printing, then printing capability is improved, but space requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges multiple printing units into a single stationary platform system. Instead of requiring multiple separate platforms, multiple printing units are combined and can be independently positioned around or on the single platform, achieving multi-colour printing capability while reducing the overall space requirement.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a pad printing machine including a base, a platform, and a plurality of pad printing units. The platform is disposed on the base and is adapted to hold an article for printing. Further, the plurality of pad printing units is disposed on the base at a predetermined orientation with respect to each other. Each of the pad printing units includes a cliché plate, an ink cup, a sliding carriage and a silicon pad assembly. The cliché plate includes a pattern to print on the article. Further, the ink cup is adapted to provide ink to the cliché plate during a sliding operation thereof. Moreover, the sliding carriage is positioned above the cliché plate. Furthermore, the silicon pad assembly is slidably mounted on the sliding carriage and is adapted to slide between a home position and the platform.