Method and device for ink-jet printing

The present invention relates to nanoparticle-based compositions and printing methods applicable to jet printing.

(Cross-reference of related applications) This application is a US provisional application No. 60 / 965,361 (filed on August 20, 2007), No. 60 / 965,634 (filed on August 21, 2007), and No. 60 / 965,753 (filed on August 22, 2007). ), Nos. 60 / 965,861 (filed August 23, 2007), Nos. 60 / 965,744 (filed August 22, 2007) and Nos. 60 / 965,743 (filed August 22, 2007) All of the applications listed above are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

The lithographic printing technology and the gravure printing technology have been continuously improved and improved for many years. The basic principle of lithographic printing involves transferring ink from a surface that has both an ink receiving area and an ink repelling area. In offset printing, intermediate transfer of ink is performed. For example, in an offset lithographic printing press, ink is transferred from a plate cylinder to a rubber blanket cylinder, and an image is transferred from the blanket cylinder to a surface (for example, a paper web). In gravure printing, a plate cylinder with a concave recess for ink comes into contact with the paper web, and charging promotes the transfer of ink to paper.

Early lithographic printing techniques used reliefs of images to be printed that were formed on the plate so that the ink adhered only to the raised areas. The current printing process for lithographic printing utilizes the principles of materials science. For example, the printed image is etched onto a hydrophilic plate so that the printed portion is hydrophobic. If the plate is moistened with water prior to ink application, the oil-based ink will adhere only to the hydrophobic portion of the plate (ie, the portion that was not wet in the dampening water process).

<p> Traditionally, all of these printing techniques have similar problems in that the same image is printed over and over again. This is because the plates used in conventional lithographic printing each have a fixed (ie, invariant) image, such as a relief image or an etched hydrophobic image. Also, in gravure printing, a fixed image is used by the concave ink dents engraved on the plate cylinder. It is quite expensive to make a plate used in a lithographic printing press or a plate cylinder or plate cylinder sleeve used in a gravure printing machine. Therefore, it is not cost-effective to perform a job of printing a small number of copies (that is, a short-term job) on a lithographic printing machine or a gravure printing machine. Also, with the exception of high-cost, low-speed but improved printing presses with inkjet heads, conventional lithographic and gravure presses have variable data (eg, invoices, financial statements, targeted advertisements, etc.). Not used for printing. Usually, short-term jobs and / or jobs that require variability are often performed by laser printers (electrostatic toner, etc.) and / or inkjet printers.</p><p> Conventionally, publications such as books and magazines are printed through a printing process including many post-pressing processes (post-processing processes). For example, in a magazine, a page or group of pages is printed 5,000 times. After this, the next page or group of pages is printed 5,000 times. The above process is repeated for each page or group of pages until all pages of the magazine are printed. Then, the printed page or group of pages is sent to a post-process, plate-collected and cut, and becomes a final product.</p><p> Such a conventional work flow is time- and work-intensive. If variable images (ie, images that change page by page or page group) can be printed with the image quality and speed of lithographic printing, the magazines are printed in consecutive page (or page group) order, and the completed magazine is printed as is. It will come out of the plane. This will dramatically increase the speed of magazine printing and significantly reduce the cost of magazine printing.</p><p> Inkjet printing technology includes a printer with variable functions. There are mainly two types of inkjet technology: the thermal method (that is, the bubble jet (registered trademark) method), the piezoelectric method, and the continuous type. In either method, tiny ink droplets are ejected (ie, sprayed) onto the page. In a thermal jet printer, ink is vaporized by a heat source to generate bubbles. A droplet is formed by the expansion of the bubble, and the droplet is ejected (discharged) from the print head. In the piezoelectric method, a piezo crystal element located behind the ink tank is used. The AC potential is used to vibrate the crystal element. A drop of ink is drawn in by the reciprocating motion of the crystal element, and this ink is sprayed onto the paper. In the case of the continuous jet method, when the nozzles do not print, the nozzles continue to inject continuously, and the electrodes associated with each nozzle deflect the droplets toward the tagger and collect them. When the nozzle prints, the electrodes become inactive, so that the droplets are sent to the substrate.</p><p> The quality of high-speed color inkjet printing is usually orders of magnitude lower than the quality of offset lithographic and gravure printing. Moreover, even the fastest inkjet printers are usually much slower than lithographic or gravure printing. In conventional inkjet printing, the effect of applying water-based ink to paper is also a problem. Water-based inks can cause the paper to absorb excessive moisture, causing wrinkles and wrinkles on the printed web, and inadvertent exposure to moisture can easily damage the web. is there. In order to suppress this phenomenon, special papers and coatings are used in inkjet printers. Such papers are often much more expensive than the web papers used in traditional industrial printing.</p><p> Further, when the inkjet technique is used for color printing, the coating area of the ink and the amount of water absorbed are increased. This is because four color processes are used to generate the color image. The four color treatments include coloring the page by adjusting the amount of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (ie, CMYK) inks applied. Therefore, depending on the page portion, the ink layers of all four colors may overlap in order to obtain a desired color. In addition, the dots formed by the inkjet printer may spread, resulting in a blurred image. Moreover, the inks used in inkjet printers are much more expensive than the inks used in conventional lithographic and gravure printing. Due to this economic factor alone, inkjet technology is rarely used for commercial printing applications, especially for long-term applications.</p><p> At present, there is a limit to high-speed variable printing of laser printing. This is because its production rate is still very low compared to offset printing and gravure printing, and its material cost (eg toner, etc.) is very high compared to the price of commercially available offset ink or gravure ink. It is due to its high price. Laser color printing is also difficult to use for magazines and other bookbinding publications, as cracks often occur when the printed page is folded.</p><p> Printing techniques are known to be useful in the manufacture of other products (eg, electrical components including transistors and other devices). Furthermore, markings or other markings are printed on a substrate other than paper (such as a plastic film or metal substrate). Although it is possible to use the above-mentioned technique for printing a paper substrate as this printing technique, this technique still has the same drawbacks. In other cases, flexographic printing, which requires pre-printing of the plate, such as lithographic printing, is used.</p>

<p> In one aspect of the present disclosure, the nanoparticle-based gating agent composition comprises from about 5% to about 20% water-dispersible components, from about 5% to about 15% amines, and from about 75% to. Contains about 95% water.</p><p> In another embodiment, the device used for high speed variable printing operation is a housing having at least one surface, a series of injection nozzles provided on the one surface, each of which ejects droplets on demand. Includes an injection nozzle capable of injecting, and a gate agent supply source that communicates with the nozzle. The gate agent is composed of about 8% to about 10% of surfactant, and the rest of the gate agent composition is composed of water.</p><p> In another aspect, the method of high speed variable printing involves injecting the gate agent composition onto the substrate to form a pattern. The gate agent is a blocking agent of about 0.05 to about 10% by weight, a surface tension adjusting compound of up to about 3% by weight, and a maximum of about 8 so that the composition has a viscosity in the range of about 1 to 14 mPa · s. It contains a weight% viscosity modifier and the rest of the gate composition is composed of a solvent. The gate agent has a dynamic surface tension of less than 60 dyn / cm (0.06 N / m). The high-speed variable printing method further includes the step of applying a printing material to the substrate to form a print image in an area not covered by the gate agent pattern.</p><p> In yet another embodiment, the apparatus used in the high speed variable printing operation is a housing having at least one surface, a series of injection nozzles provided on the one surface, each of which ejects droplets on demand. Includes an injection nozzle capable of injecting, and a gate agent supply source communicating with the nozzle. The gate agent is a blocking agent of about 0.05 to about 10% by weight, a surface adjusting compound of up to about 3% by weight, and a maximum of about 8% by weight so that the composition has a viscosity in the range of about 1 to 14 mPa · s. The rest of the gate agent composition is composed of a solvent. The gate agent has a dynamic surface tension of less than 60 dyn / cm (0.06 N / m).</p><p> Further features of the devices and methods for controlling the application of substances to the substrate, their essence, and various effects will be clarified by the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.</p>

<figref num="1">It is a side view of the printing system in the prior art.</figref><figref num="2">It is a side view of an example embodiment of the apparatus which controls the application | coating of a substance to a base material.</figref><figref num="3">It is a side view of an example embodiment of the apparatus which controls the application | coating of a substance to a base material.</figref><figref num="4">It is a figure which illustrates the output possible by the apparatus shown in FIG.</figref><figref num="5">It is the schematic of one Embodiment of the apparatus of this invention.</figref><figref num="6">It is a partially enlarged view of the device of FIG.</figref>

FIG. 1 shows a conventional offset lithographic printing apparatus 100. In the conventional lithographic printing process, the image to be printed is etched on the hydrophilic plate 102 to form a hydrophobic portion to which the ink adheres. The hydrophilic plate 102 is attached to the plate cylinder 104 and rotates to pass through the wetting system 106 and the ink system 108. The wetting system 106 includes a water supply device 107, and the ink system 108 includes an ink supply device 109. The hydrophilic portion of the hydrophilic plate 102 is moistened by the wetting system 106. By using an oil-based ink, the ink adheres only to the hydrophobic portion of the plate 102.

When the blanket cylinder 110 is used, the ink image is transferred from the plate cylinder 104 to the blanket cylinder 110. This ink image is then transferred to the web 112 (eg, paper) between the blanket cylinder 110 and the impression cylinder 114. Image transfer to the web 112 using the impression cylinder 114 is performed by pressing the printed image and the web 112 with substantially equal pressure or force. When a rubber blanket is used as an intermediary between the plate cylinder 104 and the web 112, this process is commonly referred to as "offset printing". Since the plate 102 is etched and attached to the plate cylinder 104, lithographic printing is used when printing the same image many times. Planographic printing is desirable in that it provides high quality output. By arranging four printing devices in succession, magazine-quality four-color image printing becomes possible.

According to one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the apparatus and method for controlling the application of the substance to the substrate are nanoparticles that block (block) the substance from the substrate or adsorb the substance to the substrate. With the use of a base gate agent.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a method of high speed variable printing using a nanoparticle-based gate agent that is temporarily applied to a substrate. The method includes providing a substrate and applying a jettable gate composition onto the substrate to allow image formation on the substrate.

The devices and methods disclosed herein utilize injection techniques for applying the gate agent directly to the surface of the substrate or intermediate. Any agent that blocks the application of ink as desired is available. The embodiments disclosed herein include the use of one or more compositions having the properties of either (or both) or both of the blocking composition and the transfer assisting composition. So, below, the principal substance (principal) A gate agent having either or both of these functions with respect to substance) will be described. In particular, the gate agent blocks the transcription of all, substantially all, or part of the main substance. The gate agent can, in turn or additionally, assist in the transcription of all, substantially all, or a portion of the main substance, or block a portion of the main substance and transfer another portion. It is possible to assist. Examples of main substances include, for example, plate inks, dyes, proteins (eg, antibodies, enzymes, prions), nucleic acids (eg, DNA and / or RNA oligonucleotides), small molecules (eg, inorganic molecules and / or organic). Molecules), biological samples (eg, cell and / or viral lysates, and distillates thereof), formulations (including antibiotics and / or other agents, and salts, precursors, and prodrugs thereof). , Cells (eg, prokaryotic cells, eubacteria, and / or eukaryotic cells), and metals (eg, silicon oxide, conductive metals and oxides thereof). In FIG. 2, the main material is ink, the substrate is a paper web, and the selected part of the main material is the image area.

FIG. 2 shows a printing apparatus 200 having an ink system 202, a plate 204, a plate cylinder 206, a blanket cylinder 208, and an impression cylinder 210, as is known in the lithographic printing industry. The plate 204 is entirely hydrophilic (eg, a standard aluminum lithographic plate). However, the wetting system 106 of FIG. 1 has been replaced by the cleaning system 212 and the aqueous jet system 214 in FIG.

The aqueous jet system 214 has a series of jet cartridges (eg, bubble jet® cartridges, thermal cartridges, piezoelectric cartridges, continuous inkjet systems, etc.). Bubble Jet (registered trademark) ejects droplets by operating a heater. The piezoelectric system ejects droplets by operating a piezoelectric actuator. The droplets are ejected through a small hole provided in the jet cartridge. The cartridge has a large number of holes. As a general example, jet cartridges have 600 holes and are often arranged in two rows of 300 each. Aqueous solution jet units are known print cartridge units manufactured by, for example, HP, Lexmark, Spectra, Canon, and others. Examples of jet cartridges and jet heads are disclosed in US Pat. No. 7,240,998, such as Murakami, which are incorporated herein by reference. The continuous system is available from Kodak under the trade name Versamark.

Aqueous jet system 214, or any jet system disclosed herein, is used to inject the gate agent or main material from the inkjet cartridge. In one embodiment, the gate agent and / or the main substance includes an aqueous solution or a non-aqueous solution. Aqueous solutions include water, water-soluble organic compounds, or combinations thereof. In one particular embodiment, water and a solubilizing agent are used. Dissolving synergizers are usually water-soluble or miscible compounds, forming homogeneous compositions. One reason for adding a solubilizer to the gate agent is that it acts as a surface tension regulator. Due to the short time scale of the process, significant changes in surface tension are desirable, but not with the use of surfactants alone. It is desirable that the composition have certain surface tension properties when it is applied and different surface tension properties when the image is formed on the final printed surface or medium. For example, it is desirable that a small amount is dispersed immediately after the composition is attached to fill the minimum gap between the jet heads. However, when the image is formed so that the edges of the formed image are sharp and clear, the surface tension needs to change rapidly. The solubilizing agent can adjust the surface tension of the gate agent to a specific level. Due to the time scale issues of the block process, relying solely on the transfer of surfactant to the contact surface is not sufficient to adjust the surface tension to the required level.

Suitable water-soluble or miscible organic compounds are alcohols such as, for example, methyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, n-propyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, n-butyl alcohol, sec-butyl alcohol, or tert-butyl alcohol, such as dimethylformamide. Or amides such as dimethylacetamide, carboxylic acids such as ethyl acetate, methyl lactate, ethyl lactate, propyl lactate, and esters such as ethylene carbonate, eg ethers such as 2-butoxyethanol, tetrahydrofuran or dioxane, glycerin. Glycols such as polypropylene glycol and diethylene glycol, glycol esters such as propylene glycol methyl ether, glycol ethers such as dipropylene glycol methyl ether, and ketones such as acetone, diacetone alcohol, or methyl ethyl ketone, such as N. -Lactam such as isopropylcaprolactam or N-ethylvalerolactam, 2-pyrrolidinone, N-methylpyrrolidinone and the like, lactones such as butyrolactone, organic sulfides such as dimethylsulfone and the like, eg dimethylsulfoxide or tetra Includes organic sulfoxides such as methylene sulfoxide, derivatives thereof and mixtures thereof.

As disclosed herein, in other embodiments, the gate agent may comprise a water-dispersible component, such as nanoparticles, which is conditioned and applied to the surface. Nanoparticle-based gate agents can be applied to any surface, such as substrates, plates and / or rollers detailed herein.

In certain embodiments, the nanoparticle-based gate agent may be quartz-based. In other embodiments, the nanoparticle-based gate agent may be formed from alumina, zirconia, zinc oxide, colloidal ceria, antimony oxide or other homologous material. Although specific nanoparticles are described herein, other nanoparticles that give the surface the desired properties are also useful.

Useful and suitable quartz nanoparticles are provided by Nissan Chemical Industries, Ltd. (Houston, Texas), including Snowtex®, and / or by Nyacol Nanotechnologies, including Nycol Nexil 20A. Things are included. Quartz-based nanoparticles are provided as spherical particles, elliptical particles, or may be provided in any other shape.

The nanoparticles useful in the present disclosure are characterized by external dimensions of about 1 to about 10 nm, or about 5 to about 15 nm, or about 3 to about 30 nm, or less than about 50 nm, or less than about 100 nm.

Illustratively, quartz nanoparticles have a size characteristic in which the weight percentage of quartz is about 1% to about 50% by weight, or about 5% to about 20% by weight of the quartz particles. The size of the spherical particles is about 3 to about 100 nm or about 5 to about 20 nm. The dimensions of the elliptical particles are about 3 to about 50 nm wide and about 50 to about 150 nm long, or about 9 to about 15 nm wide and about 80 to about 100 nm long.

Other constituents may be added to the nanoparticles before or after delivery of the nanoparticles from the supplier. For example, the nanoparticles may contain less than about 3% by weight or less than about 1% by weight or less than about 0.05% by weight or less than about 0.05% by weight of sodium ions or other alkaline ions. Also, the additive constituents giving the desired properties may be added in any other useful weight ratio before or after delivery from the supplier.

In certain embodiments, the nanoparticles may be functionalized with an ethoxylate / propoxylate (EO / PO) moiety containing ethoxylate (EO), propoxylate (PO), and / or amine. Any amine is used, including primary amines, secondary amines, and / or tertiary amines. For example, amine ethoxylates marketed by Huntsman International LLC, including the Surfonamine® series of amines, in particular B-60, B-30, B-200, are useful in the present disclosure. A common example of the EO / PO moiety is an amine ethoxylate containing a single ethoxy group and nine propoxy groups. The large variation in the number of ethoxy and propoxy groups makes it easy to adjust the gate agent to the desired HLB (hydrophilic-lipophilic balance) and resistance properties. The HLB may be in the range of about 2 to about 18, but the nanoparticles will be functionalized and the HLB will be out of this range to give the desired properties.

In other embodiments, the nanoparticles may be functionalized with moieties containing other functional groups. For example, fatty acid ethoxylates or polyether amines are used. Polyetheramines marketed by Huntsman International LLC, including the Jeffamine® series, are useful in this disclosure. For example, fatty acid ethoxylates such as the products Teric and Ecoteric handled by Huntsman International LLC are useful in the present disclosure.

Without being bound by theory, EO / PO amines are electrostatically adsorbed on the surface of quartz particles or other suitable nanoparticles-based particles through protonation that positively charges the functional group-containing moieties. it is conceivable that. The surface of nanoparticles is considered to carry a net negative charge due to the chemical nature of the particle surface. In addition, the functionalized nanoparticles have self-surfactant properties by EO / PO and have adjustable paper hold-out properties. Through the improvement of quartz cores or nanoparticle cores with amine ethoxylates, EO / PO is believed to form a layer or shell structure around the core. By adjusting the size of the EO / PO amine, the desired chemical and steric properties can be imparted.

As an example, nanoparticles useful in the present disclosure may be functionalized using the following treatments. First, 50 g (0.05 kg) of Surfonamine® B-60 was added to a 1 liter glass beaker and 150 g (0.15 kg) of pure water was added to the beaker. The beaker included a magnetic stirrer, which was activated after pure water was added to the beaker. The pH of the mixture was measured using a standard experimental pH meter and was found to be about 11. The pH of the mixture is 1.5 specified hydrochloric acid (JT) in the mixture. Adjusted to about 4 by slow addition of Baker® (available from Registered Trademark). Using a separatory funnel (available from VWR), 20% Nissan Chemical Industries Snowtex-O® 50g (0.05kg) was added to the beaker along with 350g (0.35kg) of pure water. .. The pH was monitored as Snowtex-O® nanoparticles were added to the mixture. When the addition of quartz nanoparticles was completed, the pH was about 4. The mixture was stirred at room temperature until the next day. About 100 g (0.1 kg) of acid-washed diatomaceous earth was added to the mixture and stirred for about 5 minutes. The resulting mixture was filtered through a Büchner funnel using Whatman® Grade 3 (150 mm) filter paper. The filtered liquid is collected and 1 μm (1 × 10) with a nominal 0.22 Versapor® membrane predisc filter.^-6It was filtered through an absolute polyester filter of m). The resulting filtrate was collected in a 1 liter Nalgene® bottle.

In another embodiment, the nanoparticles may be functionalized with larger functional groups. For example, polyethers are useful in the present disclosure. The nonoxyphenol ethoxylates commercially available by Dow® and included in the Triton® series, such as the Triton® X-100, are typical examples of the polyethers useful in the present disclosure. The nanoparticles of this embodiment may be functionalized in the same manner as described above. It is believed that unique chemical properties may be imparted to the gate agent by functionalizing the nanoparticles with larger functional groups. As a result of functionalization, the gate agent obtains chemical properties such as "self-surfactant" and "self-smoothing".

In another embodiment, the gate agent may comprise a surfactant present in an amount of up to about 15%, or about 8% to about 10%, or about 3% to about 5%. Surfactants or surface conditioners include nonionic surfactants such as, for example, poloxamers, ethoxylated acetylene diols or other ethoxylated surfactants. It is useful to include any type of surfactant, including anionic, nonionic, cationic or other types of surfactants, in the gate agent to impart the desired properties. Furthermore, the smoothing agent can also act as a surface conditioner. Other types of surface conditioners include polyfunctional compounds having at least one hydrophilic moiety and at least one hydrophobic / oleophobic moiety (eg, fluorosurfactants such as 3M Novec). This type of compound makes it possible to spray a water-soluble blocking medium having a hydrophilic portion that tends to repel lithographic ink onto the substrate.

More suitable nonionic surfactants include, for example, the Tergitol series marketed by Dow Chemical, a secondary alcohol ethoxylate such as 15-S, a linear alcohol ethoxylate having 11 to 15 carbon atoms, and octylphenol (. ocyylphenole) ethoxylates, ethoxylated acetylenediol, and N-octyl-2-pyrrolidone are included. By using a mixture of various nonionic surfactants as described above, it is possible to provide a complex surfactant effect having about 2 to about 18 HLBs.

Poloxamer surfactants suitable for use have the chemical formula HO (CH).₂CH₂O)_x(CH₂CHCH₃O)_y(CH₂CH₂O)_zIt can be represented by H, where x, y and z represent integers in the range 2 to 130, especially taking values from 15 to 100. Also, x and z take the same value, but they are selected independently of y. Among these, poloxamer 188 (x = 75, y = 30 and z = 75) can be used, which is traded by BASF under the trade name Lutrol® F68 (or Pluronic® F68). It is available at. Poloxamer 185 (x = 19, y = 30 and z = 19) is also available, which is available from ISP under the trade name Lubrajel® WA. Poloxamer 235 (x = 27, y = 39 and z = 27) is also available, which is available from BASF under the trade name Pluronic® F85. Also, poloxamer 238 (x = 97, = 39 and z = 97) is available, which is available from BASF under the trade name Pluronic® F88. Also, BASF's Pluronic® 123 and / or BASF's Pluronic® 127 poloxamer 407 (x = 106, y = 70, and z = 106) can be used. In addition, to give a few examples, Poloxamer 101, 108, 124, 181, 182, 184, 217, 231, 234, 237, 282, 288, 331, 333, 334, 335, 338, 401, 402, and 403 can be included in the gate agent, respectively.

Suitable ethoxylated acetylene diols include Air Products Surfynol® 400 series surfactants (Surfynol® 420, 440, 465, and 485, respectively). Surfynol® 400 series surfactants react various amounts of ethylene oxide with tetra-methyl-5-decine-4,7-diol (Air Products Surfynol® 104). Manufactured. More suitable surfactants include OSi Specialties (Danbury, Connecticut, formerly Union Carbide Organo Silicon Products, System, System, Inc. Includes SILWET 7200, a siloxane block polymer commercially available from and Services). Another suitable gate component is BASF's Sokalan® maleic acid / olefin copolymer. Other useful substances include polyethyleneimine (PEI, molecular weight about 1,200), ethoxylated PEI (molecular weight about 50,000), hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), polyoxyalkylene ether, poly (oxyethylene) cetyl ether. (For example, Brij® 56 or Brij® 58 manufactured by Atlas Chemicals) may be included.

Surfactants may be reacted with sterically large amines, including aromatic amines, to form organic salts that can be used for concentration dilution. The amines useful in the present disclosure may include dicyclohexylamines, cyclohexylamines, and / or butylamines.

In certain embodiments, if desired, the gate agent composition may include a viscosity modifier to bring the viscosity to 1-14 mPa · s. More preferably, the viscosity is set to 1-8 mPa · s, and most preferably the viscosity is set to 1-4 mPa · s. To give a few examples, this viscosity modifier can be polyethylene glycol, propylene glycol, cellulosic material (eg CMC), xanthan gum, or BASF's soluble polymer Joncryl® 60, Joncryl ( Polyvinyls such as registered trademarks) 52, Joncryl® 61, Joncryl® 678, Joncryl® 682, and PVPs K-12 to K-90 commercially available from International Specialty products in Wayne, New Jersey. It may contain pyrrolidone and polyglycol having 15 to 200 carbon atoms.

In certain embodiments, the gate agent comprises from about 0.05 to about 10% of the blocking compound. Examples of suitable blocking compounds are polyvinyl methylene / maleic acid copolymers such as Gantrez S-96-BF and Gantrez AN-119, glycerin, both commercially available from International Specialty products, Inc. (Wane, New Jersey). 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid, such as silicone polyols such as GP217 polymer compounds, cationic silicone polyols such as quaterium8, sulfonated polymer compounds such as AQ48 ultrapolymer compounds, and mixtures thereof. Is included.

In other embodiments, surface tension modifiers are used to reduce diffusion. Preferably, the dynamic surface tension is set to less than 60 dyn / cm (0.06 N / m). More preferably, a dynamic surface tension of less than 46 dyn / cm (0.046 N / m) is achieved. Surface tension modifiers include, among other things, Poloxamer (eg, BASF's Pluronic®) or Air Product's Surfynols® (eg, Surfynols® 400 Series Surfactants), Wo, Connecticut, USA. It may contain smoothing agents such as BYX-381, BYK-333 and BYK-380N polydimethylsiloxane manufactured by BYK-Chemie of Lynford.

In yet another embodiment, the gate agent component comprises a receptive surface modifier. The receiving surface (eg, paper) modifier facilitates the transfer of the blocked ink or other principal substance to the receiving surface. Receptive surface modifiers may include surface sprays such as metal powders and cork powders, to name a few. Other examples of receptive surface conditioning compounds include polyethyleneimine and ethoxylated polyethyleneimine (10-80% ethoxylated).

In addition, possible components of gate agents are solvents, preservatives, anti-curl agents, gate fixatives, moisturizers (eg propylene glycol), disinfectants, biocides (biosides), and coloring. Includes at least one of agents, fragrances, surfactants, polymers, defoamers, smoothing agents, salts, inorganic compounds, organic compounds, water, pH regulators, and combinations thereof.

Aqueous solution jet system 214 is used to "print" or inject all or part of a positive image (or negative image) of a printed image onto a plate barrel 206. For example, an image controller can receive image data from a data system. This image data represents a printed image or a printed negative image. This image data includes variable image data that changes relatively frequently (eg, varies from page to page), semi-fixed image data that changes infrequently (eg, varies from page to page), immutable fixed image data, and , Variable / semi-fixed / fixed image data combinations are included. Part or all of the image data is stored as binary data, bitmap data, page description code, or a combination thereof. For example, in some embodiments, a page description language (PDL) such as PostScript or Printer Command Language (PCL) is used to define and interpret the image data. Then, the data system electronically controls the aqueous solution jet system 214 to print an image (or a negative image thereof) represented by a part or all of various types of image data on the plate cylinder 206 with the aqueous solution. The negative image is an image of each part where ink does not adhere to the paper. Therefore, if a point on the plate barrel 206 passes through the aqueous solution jet system 214 and no aqueous solution droplets are placed at that point, only the ink from the ink system 202 will adhere to that point. .. In certain embodiments, a vacuum or heat source 215 is placed next to or near the aqueous jet system 214. After the plate cylinder 206 makes one revolution and the image is transferred to the blanket cylinder 208, the plate cylinder passes through the cleaning system 212 to remove residual ink and / or aqueous solution, which causes the plate cylinder 206 to make the next rotation. Perform a new image print with the aqueous solution jet system 214 (or after a predetermined rotation)

In one embodiment, the plate cylinder 206 has all of the fixed data for a particular printing job etched onto the plate 204 by conventional lithographic printing techniques. Then, using the aqueous solution jet system 214, only the variable portion of the job represented by the variable or semi-fixed image data can be imaged on the specific portion of the plate 204. In other embodiments, the plate 204 is not used. Instead, as is known in the art, the surface of the plate barrel 206 is processed, treated or milled to allow the aqueous solution from the aqueous solution jet system 214 to adhere. In addition, the plate cylinder 206 is processed, processed, or milled to include fixed data and to be attached with an aqueous solution so that variable data can be taken in. In these and other embodiments of the present disclosure, the blanket barrel 208 may be completely removed and the image transferred directly to the web 216, if desired.

As mentioned above, the gate agent is applied to the plate cylinder or directly to the blanket cylinder using one or more jet heads. The ink is then applied to the plate cylinder or blanket cylinder in a non-selective manner. After this, the ink is transferred from the image area on the plate cylinder or blanket cylinder to the paper web. When the gate agent and ink are applied directly to the blanket cylinder, it is not necessary to use the plate cylinder. Fixed print jobs (especially short-term, but not limited to), or variable or customizable print jobs of any size (eg, target mailing, customer statement, wallpaper, customized packaging). Can be beneficial for specific printing applications, including paper).

The gate agent is selectively sprayed onto the substrate, selectively sprayed onto the surface of the mediator (intermediate), using, for example, an injection device or other precision controllable spraying or coating technique. Or, it is applied in the form of a hydrous liquid by selective direct spraying on the main substance. Hydrous liquids are usually of low viscosity and tend to suppress the formation of obstacles, which is advantageous for use in jet heads. However, the gate agent may be applied in a form other than the water-containing liquid by using the injection technique. Examples include UV curable and non-aqueous siloxanes. Further, the gate agent is not limited to a liquid, and may be used in a solid state (for example, a thin film, a paste, a gel, a foam, or a matrix). The gate agent can be configured to include a powdered solid, which is charged to suppress or assist the application of the main substance, or is held in place by electrostatic charges of opposite polarity.

Any of the systems of the present disclosure can be modified to form different sized gate agent droplets. Generally, higher resolution grids, ie grids above 300 dpi, improve blockage or transfer / recovery of subject matter, such as ink, along with adapted droplet sizes. Also, as the grid dpi increases, the most effective droplet size generally decreases. Droplets of relatively large size are relatively susceptible to forced wetting (forced wetting) in the image area. This forced wetting is due to the binding of adjacent ejected droplets as the image is transferred between surfaces (eg, the pressing (nip) region between the plate and blanket) and prints. This causes a decrease in image quality due to a decrease in density. This forced wetting can be minimized by adding or removing one or more components and / or changing or adjusting one or more physical properties of the gate agent. For example, while slightly reducing the amount of surfactant can suppress the occurrence of ghosts, the use, addition and / or substitution of other surfactants can also improve image quality. .. Alternatively, it is also possible to apply an electrostatic charge to the cylinder having a polarity opposite to that of the gate agent applied to the cylinder. The electrostatic attraction obtained thereby suppresses or eliminates forced wetting.

The gate agent is used to block or assist the application of the main substance, and specifically, removes or blocks the main substance in the image region or the non-image region, or in the image region or the non-image region. Applying the main substance to, removing the auxiliary agent in the non-image area, preventing the application of the main substance in a specific area or all areas, gates to affect the application of the gate agent or the main substance. Application of the main material by varying the physical or chemical properties of the agent or main material (eg, the viscosity or surface tension of the gate agent or main material), by any combination described above, or by any other suitable method. Block or assist.

In still other embodiments, the amount of the main substance applied to the substrate varies with the use of the gate agent in the form of a barrier or blocking agent having barrier properties. In this embodiment, the application of the base material to the substrate is completely or partially blocked, so that the subject material is the substrate at an intermediate level within the range of the barrier or blocking agent having barrier properties. The result is a density gradient of the main material on the substrate according to the main material application at the desired intermediate level.

Further embodiments include a blocking agent that is selectively added to the main material on the surface or other substrate before or after the main material is applied to the surface. For example, the blocking agent includes substances dispersed therein that have an antiaffinity with the main substance used in a particular embodiment. Then, the blocking agent is applied to the surface in the non-image region, and the substance dispersed in the blocking agent is absorbed by the surface or adhered and retained on the surface. The surface then moves and approaches another surface coated with the main substance. Since the substance dispersed in the blocking agent prevents the main substance from adhering to the non-image region, the main substance is transferred to the former surface only in the region not containing the blocking agent.

Protective negative images printed using an aqueous jet system and printing by changing the properties of the gate and printing medium (eg, using bond paper, glossy paper, or using various coating techniques). It is possible to create the desired interaction with the medium. For example, when sharpness of an image is required, it is advisable to select a gate agent that is not absorbed by the print medium at all. On the other hand, even in the portion covered with the aqueous solution from the aqueous solution jet system, when a certain degree of ink transfer is required, it is preferable to use a printing medium that rapidly absorbs the aqueous solution, whereby the covered portion is used. It is also possible to transfer a certain amount of ink. It also increases the viscosity of the gate agent and / or the surface tension of the gate agent so that the boundary between the non-image region and the image region is maintained, and supports each of the non-image region and the image region. Diffusion can be suppressed by using agent) and / or a system, which can improve quality. In particular, by controlling the viscosity of the gate agent to 1 to 14 mPa · s, flooding, which is forced wetting that loses the image such as jagged edges and lines, is prevented and the occurrence of ghosts is minimized. .. Ghosts occur when the ink moves to the non-image area of the cylinder, or when the ink or gate agent remains on the cylinder from the previous print. It is important that the viscosity of the gate agent is maintained at a value of less than 14 mPa · s, which allows the gate agent to be injected from the thermal jet head. At least one of the other chemical and material scientific properties can be used to suppress or eliminate this effect. The gate agent also includes a thixotropy solution whose viscosity changes with pressure or stirring. Diffusion can also be suppressed by controlling the surface tension of the gate agent.

By using a block copolymer surfactant having various properties in an imaging cylinder having various physical characteristics, it is possible to selectively form a lipophilic surface and a hydrophilic surface on the imaging cylinder. The physical bond between the surfactant and the surface of the imaging barrel allows the imaging barrel to be used over and over again with the same image, or selectively changing the image at any rotation of the imaging barrel. You can also. By utilizing the physical characteristics of the imaging cylinder and block copolymer surfactants, it is possible to realize an image system that is durable, variable, and has the quality of known lithographic printing technology.

Another variable treatment is the treatment of the base material itself. In the case of a paper base material, a conventional coated paper having an appropriate size, weight, brightness (whiteness) and the like is used. It is coated with one or more coating agents (eg, clay), which delays or suppresses the absorption of the main substance and / or the gate agent. In the case of other substrates (eg, printing blankets, printing plates, printing cylinders, circuit boards, plastic sheets, films, fabrics or other sheets, flat or curved walls, or other members, etc.), this base. The surface of the part of the material to which the main material is applied is appropriately pre-prepared, physically or chemically treated, machined, roughened, or as required or requested. , It may be modified in another way, thereby assisting or blocking the transfer of a portion of the main substance as desired.

For inks or other major substances, the type, physical properties, and / or chemical composition can be selected or modified to achieve the desired effect. For example, by controlling the surface tension of the ink, it is possible to suppress bleeding between colors and see-through of the back of the paper. In yet another example, one or more inks used for waterless printing are used with the gate agent to be ejected (the latter is water-soluble or water-insoluble), which allows ink transfer from the plate to the paper. Can be blocked or promoted. When a waterless printing ink is used together with a water-soluble gate agent, the composition of the gate agent is adjusted in consideration of the lipophilicity of the ink. As a result, the gate agent has a molecular structure that attracts and / or repels the ink as needed or as desired. Alternatively, the gate agent that is jetted and first applied to the hydrophilic plate includes one or more hydrophilic compositions that bind to the plate and one or more other compositions that bind or repel ink molecules. And are included.

Further, in a further example, at least one phase change of the gate agent and the main substance is used to suppress or promote the blocking, or transcription or recovery of the substance. For example, when the gate agent is selectively sprayed onto the surface of a plate or the like and the main substance is applied to the surface having the coated gate agent, the portion of the main substance that comes into contact with the sprayed gate agent becomes Turns into a gel or solid. Alternatively, the main substance is applied to the plate indiscriminately (in other words, non-selectively), after which the gate agent is selectively applied to the non-imaged portion of the plate (in other words, the non-image area). When (injected), the main substance in the injection region changes to a gel or solid. Furthermore, it is possible to use a gate agent composed of two (or more) components. In this case, these components are individually and selectively applied continuously (injected individually), and when these components are applied in the same position, epoxy bonds and, for example, covalent bonds, ions. Beneficial gate properties can be improved by reacting with other chemical bonds such as bonds and with physical interactions such as hydrogen bonds, van der Waals forces and the like. The main substance (ink, etc.) may be applied before or after the application of one or more components of the gate agent. In any of the above examples, the substrate (paper web, etc.) is imaged by the plate.

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment. FIG. 3 shows a lithographic printing apparatus 1000 known in the art (eg, ink system 1002, plate cylinder 1006, blanket cylinder 1008, and impression cylinder 1010). However, a coating system 1016 and an aqueous solution jet system 1014 are provided on the upstream side of the lithographic printing apparatus 1000. In an embodiment as shown in FIG. 3, a standard lithographic plate is etched with fixed information for a given job, or the ink is completely adhered. In one embodiment, a portion of the plate is reserved for variable information (eg, as shown in FIG. 4, plate 1100 includes one or more variable image boxes, such as variable image boxes 1102 and 1104. ). The portion of the lithographic plate corresponding to the variable image box is formed so that the ink adheres to the entire surface of the variable image box (that is, when the variable image box portion of the lithographic plate passes through the ink system, it covers the entire square portion. Ink adheres). In other embodiments, the ink can adhere to the entire plate and the aqueous jet system can supply the blocking fluid over the entire web 1012.

To generate a variable image, a negative image of the variable image is printed directly on the web 1012 by the aqueous jet system 1014. In certain embodiments, the web 1012 is coated to prevent absorption of the gate agent prior to the web 1012 reaching the aqueous jet system 1014. In other embodiments, the web 1012 remains uncoated so that the gate agent applied by the aqueous jet system 1014 can give an image to the entire web 1012. Therefore, when the part where the variable image of the web 1012 is printed comes into contact with the part of the blanket cylinder 1008 that transfers the ink for the variable image, the web 1012 inks only the part that is not printed by the aqueous jet system 1014. Will be selectively attached. On a standard lithographic printer, the same image (for example, a solid square) Rectangle)) is printed repeatedly. However, a negative image is first printed on the web 1012 by the aqueous jet system 1014, and then a variable image is generated on the web 1012 by selectively adhering the square solid ink of the blanket body 1008. The coating system 1016 can be placed anywhere in the printing apparatus to apply the coating. The coating system 1016 can also be a suitable alternative for coating the web 1012 to reduce the absorption capacity of the gate agent. For example, the coating system 1016 includes a sprayer that sprays the appropriate solution onto the web 1012. This solution prevents the web 1012 from absorbing all or part of the gate agent.

In any of the above embodiments, the combination of blanket cylinder and plate cylinder can be replaced with a single imaging cylinder, and vice versa. In addition, one or more of the aqueous jet systems, cleaning systems, stripping systems, and vacuum or heating systems of the embodiments may be electronically controlled by a data system.

Furthermore, the image quality is controlled in the same manner as the compression characteristics of the nip roller by changing the nip pressure of the roller and the compression characteristics of the roller at the position where the main substance is applied to the base material. Further, the application of the main substance to the base material is controlled as desired by using a roll or a body having a rough surface. Further or additionally, the droplet volume of the gate agent is adjusted to control the amount of ink transferred to each cell, which makes it possible to affect the grayscale.

A further addition is to regulate or control the temperature of one or more process parameters. For example, when the gate agent is applied to the surface, the adhesiveness can be improved and the application can be facilitated by raising the temperature of the gate agent. Alternatively, or additionally, the stickiness, droplet shape or size, etc. may be controlled by first heating the surface during gate application. Alternatively, at some point during the process after coating the gate agent, the surface may be cooled to increase the viscosity of the gate agent and prevent the gate agent from diffusing into the non-wet region.

It is possible to further use a plurality of different liquids, each of which is individually applied by a separate injection device. When these liquids are applied together, the inkjet device produces a gate agent with improved stickiness, viscosity, or at least one of the other desired properties. This liquid can be applied at different or the same temperature, pressure, flow rate, etc.

In yet another embodiment, the gate agent alone is selectively applied using two or more arrays or inkjet heads, or the gate solution is selectively applied to one or more regions on the surface. Applying, and additionally, applying ink to one or more remaining areas on the surface. In this case, one or more arrays, respectively, are removable or switchable during operation of the printer, or of subsequent jobs (eg, if local customization is required). It is reconfigurable (in terms of positioning).

Since the ink tack changes for each printing unit, the gate agent characteristics can be continuously changed for each unit to effectively optimize the ink transfer by each unit. Another change includes the enhancement of the printed surface by using the phase change of the material.

In yet another embodiment, the gate agent used to control the application of the main substance to the substrate is a combination of a blocking agent and an auxiliary agent. In one example, the main material is placed on the surface and, in the non-image area, is covered with a blocking agent that prevents the main material from being applied to the substrate. In the image area, the main substance is covered with an adjunct. This auxiliary agent tends to bind to the main substance, which assists application on the substrate. Alternatively, the gate agent may be placed on the surface and covered with the main substance. In one example, a lipophilic blocking agent is selectively placed in the non-image area of the surface and a hydrophilic auxiliary agent is selectively placed in the image area of the surface. The main material is then placed on the upper surface of the layer formed by both gate agents. Both layers of gate agent formed at uniform height on the initial surface impede movement between the main material and the auxiliary agent. As the surface moves closer to the substrate, the blocking agent prevents the main substance from being applied to the substrate, while the auxiliary agent allows the main substance to be applied to the substrate.

In another embodiment, the surface is a lithographic plate, a plate cylinder, or the like, and a part of these is used to control the application of the main substance to the base material by applying the variable-shaped main substance to the base material. To do. In this embodiment, variable semiotics, coding, addressing, numbering, or any other tagging technique is used on a portion of the first surface reserved for control of the main material application. The main material is first placed on the first surface without distinction. The blocking agent is selectively applied to the substrate in an area before the substrate passes near the first surface for application of the main material. This coating area corresponds to the secured portion of the first surface that later moves in the vicinity of the substrate, and the blocking agent is applied so that the main substance is applied in a desired shape or image. In a more general embodiment, the substrate moves to the vicinity of one or more surfaces on which similar or different principal substances are placed, where the blocking agent and / or auxiliary agent is applied to the surface within the secured portion. Is selectively transferred to the substrate. In certain embodiments, the magnetic ink is transferred from one of these surfaces to a substrate (eg, a paper web). Also, one or more non-magnetic inks may be transferred from the same surface or may be transferred from one or more additional surfaces. When the magnetic ink is applied to the paper web in a desired shape at the secured portion, a gate agent can be used to block or assist the application, which is described above. Any technique for using blocking agents and auxiliaries can be used. As a result, a paper web with magnetic ink markings (eg, MICR markings, or other coded information) that is modified from print to print is printed. In another example, a coded RFID circuit is applied as part of a variable printing process using conductive ink. This eliminates the need for post-print programming.

In yet another embodiment, the gate agent is selectively applied to the receiving surface by one or more jet heads and attracts or attracts an intermediate solution (eg, a conventional fountation solution). , Block. This dampening solution is applied indiscriminately to the receiving surface, but is gated by a gate agent. Therefore, the wetting solution selectively adheres to the receiving surface prior to the application of the ink. In this embodiment, the gate solution is formulated to interact with the dampening solution and to control the dampening solution, in this respect as opposed to controlling the ink. There is. In another embodiment, the dampening solution is neutralized or degraded, or the dampening solution can be selectively removed from the receiving surface. More generally, these embodiments include the use of a wetting solution that is applied indiscriminately and a gate agent that is selectively applied with the ink, in which case the area where the wetting solution is retained. Is controlled by a gate agent.

As mentioned above, the gate agent can contain one or more surfactants, and the temperature is such that the droplet size and viscosity properties are favorable to produce a high quality image. Control or vacuum control is performed. However, image quality is also affected by phenomena well known to those of skill in the art, such as the occurrence of ghosts, which is a particularly serious problem when continuous images are different.

The occurrence of ghosts can be reduced by reliably cleaning the ink and / or gate agent in the image and non-image areas between successive prints. For any of the cleaning systems described above, cleaning the body after each application of ink, as described above, is one way to keep the body clean. The composition of the gate agent may be engineered to reduce the occurrence of ghosts by facilitating a more thorough cleaning of the cleaning system.

Another approach to reducing ghosting is to reduce ink transfer from the image area to the non-image area on the fuselage. By accurately applying the lipophilic solution to the image region, the ink can be attracted to the image region and the movement of the ink from the image region can be suppressed. By accurately applying the oleophobic solution to the non-image area of the body, either individually or in combination with the lipophilic solution, the movement of the ink to the non-image area can be suppressed.

When the concept of performing variable printing job processing and fixed printing job processing is used as in the present disclosure, one of its advantages is the proper velocity associated with the conventional lithographic printing apparatus. .. However, in practice, as compared to conventional lithographic printing equipment, the printing speed is limited by the speed at which the image region can be formed, that is, it depends on the method of forming the image region. This type of method is described herein and also includes gate agent application for the formation of image regions. The gate agent can be a lipophilic solution or a hydrophilic solution, or another solution to which an electrostatic charge has been applied. Further, the gate agent itself may be an electrostatic charge applied to a part of the body. The operating speed of the printing apparatus is limited by the maximum speed at which any of the aforementioned gate agents can be applied to one or more barrels of the printing apparatus.

Droplets from the cartridge are instantaneously ejected so as to correspond to the operating conditions in which the inkjet cartridge is most used, and the instantaneous ejection forms ink spots of a predetermined size on the target substrate. However, in reality, droplet ejection from an inkjet cartridge is not a momentary event, but is actually a transient event with early, middle, and telophase. When the target substrate is moving at high speed, the ink droplets collide with the substrate, and an ink spot having a tail extending in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the substrate is formed. .. This phenomenon, known as tailing, is a direct result of the transient nature of droplet formation. The tailing that occurs during high-speed printing raises concerns about print quality, which can limit the effective speed of the printing apparatus. However, when a gate agent is used with a particular jet cartridge, it is possible to suppress or mitigate the tailing of the ejected droplets, thereby eliminating this phenomenon, which is a factor limiting the maximum printing speed. Will be done.

In another embodiment, the aqueous jet system can print or inject an aqueous solution or other composition having potential polyfunctionality onto the patterned substrate. In one embodiment, for example, the composition has potential bifunctionality, but the number of functional groups herein may be any number. For example, a polyfunctional composition comprises having one or more compounds each having a potential polyfunctionality, or having a plurality of compounds each having a potential monofunctionality. Potential functionalities include, for example, hydrophilic regions, lipophilic regions, receptor or recognition sites (eg, antigen binding sites), ionic regions, and other compounds known in the art. Includes specific chemical and / or functional regions of the compound that provide adhesion and resilience. In the present embodiment, the first functional group imparts adhesive force to the pattern substrate, and the second functional group imparts adhesiveness to one or more main substances applied to the pattern substrate.

In another embodiment, the polyfunctional composition may comprise two or more polyfunctional group compounds, in which case the various polyfunctional group compounds are at least one functional group in common with other polyfunctional group compounds. , And has at least one functional group different from other polyfunctional group compounds. In this example, the first polyfunctional group compound and the second polyfunctional group compound are printed on the same pattern substrate, respectively, but of the first polyfunctional group compound and the second polyfunctional group compound. The second functional group has different properties regarding whether the main substance can adhere to the first or second polyfunctional group compound, because the main substance reacts with only one type of functional group. it is conceivable that. In another embodiment, compounds with potential monofunctionality interact to form a complex with polyfunctional groups that resembles the polyfunctional groups of a single polyfunctional group compound. In this embodiment, the monofunctional group compound may be included in a single composition applied on the pattern substrate in one go, or may be included in a separate composition that is simultaneously attached. Alternatively, it may be contained in a separated composition which is continuously adhered to the pattern substrate.

Examples of the polyfunctional group compounds intended in the present disclosure include compounds having a first functional group that is hydrophilic and a second functional group that is lipophilic. The polyfunctional composition is sprayed onto a substrate having a hydrophilic or lipophilic surface to form the desired pattern. As a result, functional groups of the same type are bound between the surface and the composition, the composition is attached to the surface, and the opposite functional group of the composition is repelled by the surface, so that the composition adhered to the surface. A pattern is formed.

It has the same functional groups (eg, hydrophilic or lipophilic) or is selectively attracted to the second functional group of the polyfunctional composition without being attracted to the surface, and the substrate is exposed. Second compositions (eg, principal substances) that are repelled by the surface or unable to adhere to the exposed surface of the substrate are sprayed, immersed, sprayed, brushed, rolled, or known to those of skill in the art. It can be applied to the surface using any other method. The addition of the main substance forms a pattern of the main substance corresponding to the pattern of the polyfunctional composition, and as a result, only the main substance is attached to the surface by the second functional group of the polyfunctional composition. In addition, after application of the main material, one or more additional steps (eg, cleaning steps) are performed to ensure that the main material is site-specific only to the second functional group of the polyfunctional composition. Adhere to. Another step that can be considered similar to the cleaning step includes a sterilization step. After this, the main material is transferred directly to a second substrate (eg, an intermediate (mediating) roller that transfers the image to the print medium) or to the print medium, thereby resulting in a highly accurate and clean desired print image. Can be formed. In this way, with the polyfunctional composition to which the main material is attached later, the selected pattern is sprayed onto the substrate, then transferred and fixed permanently or temporarily on the print medium. Will be done.

Examples of polyfunctional compounds as intended herein include polymeric compounds having at least one hydrophilic moiety and at least one lipophilic moiety, such as the aforementioned poloxamers, ethoxylated acetylene diols, and the like. Additional examples include substances involved in the formation of self-assembled monolayers, such as alkylsiloxanes, fatty acids on oxide materials, alkanethiolates, alkylcarboxylates and the like. In the present disclosure, other polyfunctional group compounds known to those skilled in the art are intended.

The devices and methods of the present disclosure also relate to other industries and other technologies (eg, textiles, pharmaceuticals, biomedicine, and especially electronics). Variable and customizable graphics or text, or main material with enhanced sealing properties or water or fire resistant main material, is selectively applied to the textile web and used, for example, in the manufacture of clothing or rugs. Be done. In the pharmaceutical industry, the main substance can be a formulation material, a therapeutic substance, a diagnostic substance, or a marking substance other than an ink, or a carrier for any other type of substance. In biomedical applications, for example, the main substance is a biological material or biocompatible polymer. In electronics applications, the main material can be a conductive or electrically insulating material that is applied to one or more layers of the substrate. Other electronics applications include the manufacture of radio frequency identification (RFID) tags that are attached to products. Selective application of the main substance to the substrate can also be beneficial to other industries. For example, the main substance is a thermally conductive or insulating material that is selectively applied to the components of a product (eg, a heat exchanger, a cooking pot, or a highly insulating coffee mug). In addition, the main material may be a material with enhanced absorbency, reflectivity, or radioactivity, and some or all of these properties may be useful for other products. This is the case, for example, when the main substance is selectively applied to a component of an oven, lamp, or sunglasses. Furthermore, the main material can be used in customizable packaging films or holograms (subject to selective filling of bend pits prior to image generation). In addition, the technique is applicable to the manufacture of fuel cells, where the main material may include functional polymers, adhesives, and three-dimensional (3-D) interconnect structures. In the manufacture of micro-optics, the main material is an optical adhesive or UV-curing polymer. can be polymer). Further applications include display manufacturing, where the main material is a material for polymer light emitting diodes. Further, as a specific application, the apparatus and high speed variable printing method of the present disclosure can be used in many lithographic printing applications. For example, the devices and methods of the present disclosure are ideal for high quality one-to-one marketing applications such as direct mail, advertising, statements, invoices and the like. Other uses suitable for the systems and methods of the present disclosure include printing personalized books, periodicals, publications, posters, displays and the like. The high-speed variable printing system and the high-speed variable printing method in the present disclosure can also speed up post-processing (for example, bookbinding and finishing) of the above-mentioned products.

With respect to FIGS. 5 and 6, the gate agent may be injected using device 1200. The device 1200 has a housing 1202 with a surface 1204. Surface 1204 has a plurality of injection nozzles 1206 and 1208. Although two rows of nozzles 1206 and 1208 are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the device can include one or more rows of nozzles depending on the required resolution. Housing 1202 includes a chamber (not shown) that communicates with the nozzle and also with the propellant source 1210 via a tube or other communicating member 1212. Device 1200 is controlled by control device 1214, which is a suitable print controller well known to those of skill in the art.

In addition, the following examples further illustrate this disclosure, but of course are not construed to limit the scope of this disclosure.

(Example 1) Nanoparticle-based blockgate formulations useful for the present disclosure were prepared as follows. 7.11% by weight Huntsman B-60 7.11% by weight Nissan Chemical Industries, Ltd. Snowtex-O (registered trademark) 0.43% by weight Hydrochloric acid manufactured by JT Baker (registered trademark) 85.35 wt% pure water

(Example 2) A second block gate formulation useful for the present disclosure was prepared as follows. 3.8% by weight polyvinylpyrrolidone (K-12) 4.8% by weight polyoxyethylene (12) tridecyl ether 91.3% by weight pure water

(Example 3) A third block gate formulation useful for the present disclosure was prepared as follows. 10% by weight polyoxyethylene (12) tridecyl ether 90% by weight pure water

(Example 4) A fourth block gate agent useful for the present invention was prepared as follows. 72.5% by weight pure water 10% by weight GP217 (Genesee Polymer-Silicon modified polymer) 2.5% by weight BYK333 15% by weight N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone

(Example 5) A fifth block gate agent useful for the present invention was prepared as follows. 92.42% by weight pure water 4.74% by weight quaterium8 (SilSense® Q-plus) 0.94% by weight Surfynol® 485 0.2% by weight Surfynol® 440

(Example 6) A sixth nanoparticle-based blockgate formulation useful for the present disclosure was prepared as follows. 3.55% by weight Huntsman B-60 7.11% by weight Nissan Chemical Industries, Ltd. Snowtex-O (registered trademark) 0.43% by weight Hydrochloric acid manufactured by JT Baker (registered trademark) 88.91% by weight pure water

(Example 7) A seventh nanoparticle-based blockgate formulation useful for the present disclosure was prepared as follows. 7.11% by weight Huntsman B-60 14.22% by weight Nissan Chemical Industries, Ltd. Snowtex-O (registered trademark) 0.43% by weight Hydrochloric acid manufactured by JT Baker (registered trademark) 78.24 wt% pure water

All of the formulations of Examples 1-7 were useful as blocking or gate agents, minimizing ghosting, tailing, flooding, or background color to produce beneficial prints.

The above is merely for exemplifying the principles of the devices and methods of the present disclosure, and it is clear that those skilled in the art can make various modifications without departing from the scope and principles of the devices and methods of the present disclosure. There will be. For example, the order of some steps in the described procedure is not definitive and can be changed as needed. Also, different steps can be performed by different techniques. In addition, one advantage of the described compositions and methods is that they are used with standard lithographic inks to create variable images. These inks produce higher quality than the publications normally produced with inkjet inks. By the time this technology was reached, it was very difficult to achieve true variable lithographic printing.

Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein and include the best embodiments known to the inventor for carrying out the present disclosure. Modifications of those preferred embodiments may be apparent to those skilled in the art by reading the above description. The present inventor expects those skilled in the art to adopt such modifications as needed, and the present inventor particularly discloses the present disclosure in a form different from the form described in the present specification. Is intended to be implemented. Accordingly, this disclosure includes all variants and all equivalents of the subject matter listed in the claims as attached herein as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the aforementioned elements in all possible variants is shown by the present disclosure unless not shown herein or expressly denied by the context.