Sublimation printing on hide or leather
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sublimation printing on hide or leather is not effective due to poor fixation of commercial sublimation ink pigments on natural substrates, leading to unacceptable results.
Innovation Solution
A process involving a laminar substrate with a microencapsulated polymeric adhesive, such as polyester or polyurethane, applied to hide or leather, followed by hot pressing and inkjet printing with sublimation ink, allowing for stable and permanent transfer of ink onto the leather surface without altering its texture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sublimation printing is used on hide or leather with commercial sublimation inks, then the printing process can be performed, but the pigments are not fixed well and stably on the natural substrate
Solution Approach 1:
A polymeric adhesive layer is introduced as an intermediary between the sublimation ink and the hide or leather substrate. This adhesive layer, applied to a laminar substrate, provides a bonding interface that enables stable fixation of ink pigments on the natural substrate during hot pressing
Solution Approach 2:
The application of heat and pressure during hot pressing changes the physical parameters of the system, causing the polymeric adhesive to activate and bond the sublimated ink pigments to the hide or leather surface, thereby improving fixation stability
2Manufacturing precision
If traditional sublimation printing methods are used on hide or leather, then the process is simple, but the image quality and texture preservation are poor
Solution Approach 1:
The polymeric adhesive is applied to the laminar substrate in advance, before the actual printing process. This preliminary preparation ensures that when hot pressing occurs, the adhesive is already in position to capture and fix the sublimated ink pigments, improving image definition
Solution Approach 2:
The laminar substrate with polymeric adhesive acts as a mediator that transfers the ink pattern precisely onto the hide or leather while preserving texture, achieving high manufacturing 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
The process enables high-quality, washable, and texture-preserving sublimation printing on hide or leather with well-defined images, overcoming the limitations of traditional sublimation printing methods.
Implementation Method 1
sublimation printing is a known printing process which has limited costs and which provides optimal results when carried out on synthetic material fabrics. For such process, inks are used termed 'sublimation inks' since they are made to sublimate during the printing process.
Implementation Method 2
applying a polymeric adhesive material comprising polyester, polyamide, polyurethane, polyethylene or a mixture thereof, on a side of said laminar substrate
Data Source
Figure 1a~1f
Figure 2(a)~2(d)
Figure 3(a)~3(c)
AI summary
A process of sublimation printing on hide or leather, a laminar substrate to be used in such a sublimation printing process, hide or leather treated to be printable, as well as hide or leather printed by said process of sublimation printing, are described.