CA2088400A1 - Method and apparatus for generating an image on a print screen - Google Patents

Method and apparatus for generating an image on a print screen

Info

Publication number
CA2088400A1
CA2088400A1 CA002088400A CA2088400A CA2088400A1 CA 2088400 A1 CA2088400 A1 CA 2088400A1 CA 002088400 A CA002088400 A CA 002088400A CA 2088400 A CA2088400 A CA 2088400A CA 2088400 A1 CA2088400 A1 CA 2088400A1
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
screen
drop
screen mesh
stencil
producing
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
CA002088400A
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Thomas A. Gordon
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Gerber Scientific Products Inc
Original Assignee
Gerber Scientific Products Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Gerber Scientific Products Inc filed Critical Gerber Scientific Products Inc
Publication of CA2088400A1 publication Critical patent/CA2088400A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41CPROCESSES FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR REPRODUCTION OF PRINTING SURFACES
    • B41C1/00Forme preparation
    • B41C1/14Forme preparation for stencil-printing or silk-screen printing
    • B41C1/147Forme preparation for stencil-printing or silk-screen printing by imagewise deposition of a liquid, e.g. from an ink jet; Chemical perforation by the hardening or solubilizing of the ink impervious coating or sheet

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Manufacture Or Reproduction Of Printing Formes (AREA)

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A graphic or image positive print screen stencil is produced directly on a screen mesh material (18) using a drop ejection head (44) which is directed by a controller (66) to deposit or not deposit a blocking composition to selectively occlude apertures of the screen mesh whereby the non-occluded screen areas define the desired image.
The drop ejection head (44) deposits smaller drops along the marginal edges of the image to provide higher reso-lution and definition of the image. Larger drops are de-posited in non-marginal areas at higher scan rates to speed production of the print screen stencil.

Description

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MEq!~OD ~ND APPARATU8 FO~R GBNERAl!IN~: AN IMAG~5 ON A PRI~IT 8C:nE:EN

INV13NrI017 The present invention relates generally to khe preparation of print screen stencils and deals more particu-larly with a method and apparatus for generating directly on the screen the mask of the image to be printed. The invention more specifically relates to a method and apparatus for eject-ing variable size or volume drops of a blocking composition directly onto the screen to occlude apertures in the screen mesh to produce the desired image positive.
The preparation of print screen stencils is gener-ally well know to those skilled in the art. One method often referred to as the ~Idirect method" of preparing print screen stencils involves the coating of a liquid light-sensitize emulsion directly onto the screen in order to sensitize the screen fabric. When exposed to actinic light through a film positive, the black portions of the positive will not allow light to penetrate to the screen and the emulsion will remain soft in those areas. In the areas which are exposed to light, the emulsion will harden and become insoluble in the selected ink system.

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1 One problem generally associated with the prior art is that many steps are necessary to prepare the screen thus making screen preparation somewhat time consuming and labor intensive. One prior art method o~E preparing a print screen typically requires coating the sur~Eace with a resist composi-tion of some type, exposure to light using an image film posi-tive and then, curing of the emulsion to occlude the desired areas and washing or purging of the unoccluded area~ to permit the printiny co~position ink to pass through to a substrate positioned beneath the screen fabric when the screen is held in contact with the substrate surface.
It is a general aim of the present invention to reduce the time and labor required to generate a print screen stencil by producing an image positive directly on the screen mesh.
It is a further aim of the present invention to eject drops of a blocking composition on to the screen mesh surface in accordance with pre programmed data representative of the desired image to directly occlude apertures in the screen mesh to produce the image positive.

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1 ~UMM~RY OF THE INVEN~ION

In accordance with the present invention, a method and associated apparatus are presented for generating an image positive directly on a print screen mesh. A blocking composi~
tion which may be a polymerized material is selectively ejected as drops ~rom a drop ejection head which scans the surface of the screen mesh in an X-Y coordinate movement and which drop ejection and movement is directed by a controller.
Data representative of the desired image to be generated is input to the controller as pre-recorded digital words which are used by the instruction set in the controller to cause the drop ejection head to deposit or not deposit a drop of block ing composition in an aperture of the screen mesh as the head ;~ 15 scans the surface. The result is an image positive as defined by those apertures left unoccluded.
In another aspect of the invention, the volume of a drop ejected by the drop ejection head is variable to control the size of the drop deposited in the aperture with smaller volume drops being deposited at the marginal edge areas of the graphic resulting in the production of a well defined outline so that a graphic printed with the stencil has a smooth and sharply deLined outline.

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1 In a further aspect of the invention, the drop ejec-tion head deposits larger volume drops in non-marginal edge areas of the graphic where lass accuracy is required to speed generation of the image positive on the screen mesh.
! In a yet further aspect of the invention, the drop ejection head scans the surface at variable speeds moving at a faster rate over larger occluded areas and at slower rates at the marginal edge areas of the graphic outline to additionally speed yeneration of the image positive on the screen mesh.

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BRIEF DE~CRIPT:i:ON OP' THE DRAWING~

Additional advantages and features of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following written description and drawings wherein-Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of imagegenarating apparatus emhodying the present invention for directly producing an image positive stencil for use in screen printing;
Fig. 2 illustrates an enlarged view of a portion of a screen mesh material;
Fig. 3 is an enlarged schematic view of a portion of the screen mesh material showing certain of the apertures occluded using smaller drops along a marginal edge area and largex drops in non-marginal edge areas of a portion of an image positive stencil produced with the invention;
Fig. 4 is an enlarged schematic view of a portion of the screen mesh material showing a backer in contact with the surface of the screen mesh material side oppo~ite the drop ejection head to prevent drops from passing through the aper- -tures when shot by the drop ejection head;
Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic perspective view o~ an alternate embodiment of the present invention wherein the screen mesh material is held on a drum which is rotated rela-tive to the ejection drop head as the head moves along a .

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1 linear path to provide coordinate movement between the surface and the drop ejection head;
Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic plan view of an alternate embodiment of the present inventio;n wherein drop ejecting heads are disposed opposite one another at opposite sides of the screen mesh material so that a]pertures are occluded ~rom both sides of the screen mesh.

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- . - --l DETAILED DESC~IPTIO~ OF ~NE PREFER~ED æMBODIMEN~

Turning now to the drawings and considering the invention in further detail, Fig. 1 shows a diagrammatic representation of exemplary apparatus for purposes o~ explana-tion and understanding o~ the invention. The apparatus desig-nated generally 10 has a platform 12 which includes a work surface 14 upon which surface rests a frame 16 Eor holding the screen mesh material 18. The desi;red graphic or image posi-tive to be generated on the screen mesh materials is shown and designated generally 20. Axially extending guide rods 22,24 are supported in a parallel spaced apart relationship with one another along the marginal edge regions 26,28 respectively of the work surface 14 of the platform 12 so that the frame 16 holding the screen mesh material 18 fits therebetween. The guide rods 22,24 carry a gantry designated g~nerally 30 which extends transversely between the guide rods and above the work surface 14 of the platform 12 and the frame 16 holding the screen mesh material 18. The gantry 30 may be slideably coupled to the guide rods 22,24 by means of bushings 32,34, respectively or other means well known in the art. The gantry 30 is also arranged for bi-directional movement along a recti-linear path on the guides 22,24 in the Y-axis direction using an appropriate drive means well known to those skilled in the art. For purposes of explanation only and in no way as a limitation, one such drive means uses an axially elongated 2 ~

l screw 36 which is substantially perpendicular to the direction of motion of the gantry 30. The screw 36 is threaded throuyh a ball nut assembly 38 attached to the gantry to move the gantry in one direction when the screw rotates in one direc-tion and in the opposite direction when the screw rotat~s inits opposite direction. One end 40 of the screw 36 is coupled to a Y-drive motor 42 which is controlled to rotate in the required direction and for a predetermined time to move the gantry to the desired position along the work suxface.
A drop ejection head designate~ generally 44 iB
mounted on and carried by a carriage 46 transversely across the surface of the platform and of the screen mesh in the X-axis direction. The drop ejection head 44 moves bi-- directionally along a rectilinear path substantially perpen-dicular to the gantry 30. The carxiage 46 is coupled to a drive belt 48 which is driven by an X-drive motor 50 located at one end 52 of the gantry. The X-drive motor 50 is carried with the gantry and when activated causes the drive belt 48 to move in one or the other direction around a pulley 54 located at the opposite end 56 of the gantry 30. The carriage 46 moves along guide rods 58,60 which extend in a parallel spaced relationship with one another and between the ends 52,56 of the gantry 3~. The rods pass through bushings 62,64 extending transversely through the carriage. The movement of the gantry in the Y-axis direction and the movement of the carriage and drop ejection head in the X-axis direction produce relative coordinate movement over the surface of the work surface to - ,:

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l locate the drop ejection head at any location along the surface of the screen mesh material held in the frame 16 on the work surface. Although the above discloses an illustra-tive apparatus for purposes of explanation, it will be recog-nized by those in the art that relative coordinate movementbetween the drop ejection head and the screen mesh material may be obtained using other methods, for example, by moving the work surface and frame relative to the drop ejection head which is held stationary relativs to the work surface.
Still considering Fig. 1, a controller 66 includes a keyboard 68 for entry of the appropriate command data to actu-ate the apparatus and to execute an instruction set in accor-dance with data representative of the graphic or image to be generated on the screen mesh. The graphic information is represented as binary coded words or data and may be pre-programmed on a magnetic or other storage media which operates in conjunction with the controller. As illustrated, khe stored information is recorded on a magnetic diskette 70 for retrieval by the controller 66 in accordance with the instruc-tion set to cause the X and Y-drive motors to move the gantry and the carriage carrying the drop ejection head to the speci-fied X,Y coordinate position along the surface of the screen mesh. Although a magnetic diskette 70 is illustrated, the ~ stored information may be recorded in semiconductor memories such as PROMS, EPROMS, and other devices well known to those in the art.

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1 A reservoir 72 located generally above the drop ejection haad 44 and the work surface 14 o~ the platform 12 is provided to receive and hold a blocking composition for occluding the screen mesh apertures. The reservoir 72 is coupled to the drop ejection head via a flexible conduit 74 to permit movement of the head in the X-Y coordinate direction as the head scans the sur~ace. Alternately, the reservoir may be carried by the gantry or may be part o~ the drop ejection head.
An optical scanner 76 or other suitable detector may be mounted on the carrier 46 adjacent the drop ejection head 44 to detect and sense the approximate center of an aperture in the screen mesh material 18 to align the drop ejection head with the aperture. The sensing of the center of an aperture is particularly useful to provide higher definition of the marginal outline edge area of the graphic image since the deposited drop is more likely to be in the opening of the aperture rather than hitting the weave of the screen mesh material and splattering to adjacent apertures resulting in a roughness or fuzziness along the marginal outline edge areas of the finished stencil.
The controller 66 is connected to the drop ejection head 44 via an electrical conduit 78 which carries electrical excitation signals to the head to cause the drop ejection head to deposit or not deposit the blocking composition at a given location in accordance with the instruction set to produce the desired graphic or image positive stencil. The conduit 78 may ~ ~ :

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ll 1 also include additional electrical wires to couple signals from the optical scanner 76 to the controller 66 when such a scanner is utilized.
In operation, the carriage 46 carrying the drop ejection head 44 and the gantry 30 will be located at an ini-tial home or start position from which home position absolute incremental movement of the drop ejection head is calculated to move the head to the desired positions along the screen mesh surface. The home position can be mechanically or elec-trically sensed and detected as is known to those in the art.
A typical print screen mesh weave generally desig-nated 80 is shown in an enlarged sectional portion in Fig. 2 and illustrates one type of weave typically associated with a fabric material. As known in the art, the fabric as weaved has a number of high points or spots which become abraded after repeated usage of the stencil due to contact between the squeegee edge as it spreads the printing composition over the mesh surface. In order to minimize the abrading action on the fabric material, it is desirable to encapsulate the threads forming the screen mesh to protect them from the abrading action normally encountered by repeated wiping of the printing composition by the squeegee over the screen mesh surface.
In accordance with the present invention, the size or volume of a drop of blocking composition ejected by the drop ejection head is controllable to insure that the aperture is fully filled and to vary the thickness of a layer of block-ing composition deposited to ensure complete coverage of the "
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l threads of the screen mesh. The surface of the occluded area can be made smooth as a result of clepositing a heavier layer of blocking agent so that as the printing composition ink is squeegeed along the surface, excess ink is wiped from the sur~
face and not left to accumulate in minute pockets or cavities on the surface which is a common occurrence in the prior art.
The ability ko deposit a variable thickness layer of blocking composition is also important to accommodate dif~erent screen mesh materials and characteristics. For example a wider mesh screen requires a heavier layer o~ blocking composition to be deposited to cover the knuckles o~ the screen mesh weave whereas a finer mesh screen requires a thinner layer o~ block-ing composition to cover the screen mesh weave.
The blocking composition deposited by the drop ejec-tion head is preferably a viscous composltion which has char-acteristic properties that cause it to adhere to the screen mesh material in intimate contact with the screen mesh.
Preferably the blocking composition formulation has a low vis-cosity during storage and delivery to the drop ejection head and at the instant a drop is ejected from the head and then hardening upon contact with the screen mesh material. It is ; ~ desirable that the blocking composition be a viscous liquid composition to facilitate drop position control. The harden-ing process will be dependent upon the formulation of the blocking composition used and may include hardening by 5001-ing, ultraviolet light, polymerization, moisture addition, and other methods known in the art.

- - . , .. , . ~ ,, 2 ~ 3 ii 1 It may also be pre~erable to match the characteris tics o~ the screen mesh material and the blocking composition used to ensure compatibility and optimal adherence of the blocking composltion to the screen mesh mater:ial. In addi tion, the screen mesh material may be heat and pressure treated to fuse the threads of the screen mesh material to enhance adhering of the blocking composition could improve resistance to abrading without necessarily encapsulating the screen mesh material.
Turning now to Fiy. 3, a portion of the screen mesh material is shown in diagrammatic form and illustrates several features of the present invention. Recalling ~rom above that it is possible to regulate or adjust the size or volume of a drop ejected from the drop ejection head and further that the trajectory of a drop may be accurately aligned by means of an optical scanner or other detector sensing and determining the center of an aperture, drops represented by Dl, D2, D3, D4 and D5 are illustrated wherein the drop of blocking composition is sufficiently large to completely fill and occlude the respec-tive aperture in the screen mesh material. The resultant out-line marginal edge is seen to be fuzzy so that an image printed using the image positive stencil will have a fuzzy or rough outline marginal edge also. In contrast, ejecting a smaller size or volume drop o~ blocking composition as repre-sented by dl, d2 and d3 in the corresponding apertures o~ thescreen mesh material permits bridging in the aperture between adjacent threads of the screen mesh and collectively pro~ides 2 ~
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1 a well defined and sharp outline marginal edge. The ability to vary the size or volume o-f a drop facilitates control of edge acuity. Thus an image or graphic produced ~rom the sten-cil will also tend to have a sharp and well defined outline marginal edge.
Another ~eature of the present invention which increases the speed at which a print screen stencil can be produced involves varying the rate of scanning of the drop ejection head across the surface of the screen mesh material.
Recalling that the graphic or image to be produced is repre-sented by data information contained on a storage media, the instructinn set in the controller calculates the location of the peripheral marginal edges defining the graphic or image outline and causPs a smaller size or volum~ drop to be deposited in the corresponding apertures along the outline marginal edge and larger size or volume dots in areas to be occluded away from the marginal edge areas of the graphic outline. Accordingly, since less accuracy is required in the depositing of the blocking composition ~o occlude apertures in the screen mesh material in those areas away from the graphic outline marginal edge, the drop eje~tion head may be scanned across those areas at a higher rate and thus speed the produc-tion of the print screen stencil. For purposes of explana-tion, area 1, represented by A1, is to be completely occluded and therefore the drop ejection head will deposit a larger size or volume drop in the apertures in this area at a faster scanning speed than in areas al and a2 representative of 2 ~

l marginal edge areas of the yraphic. In other words, the drop ejection head scans the surface of the screen mesh material at a variable rate dependent on the accuracy with which it is desired to locate a drop within a given aperture.
Turning now to Fig. 4, a portion of the screen mesh material is shown in diagrammatic form wherein a planar surface or backer 82 is located beneath or behind the screen mesh material and in contact with the screen mesh material surface so that when a drop of the blocking composition is deposited from the drop ejection head, the backer forms a barrier so that the drop is not ejected through the screen mesh material. A backer 82 located behind the screen mesh material permits the use of a lower viscosity blocking compo-sition because the composition is prevented from passing through the aperture in the screen mesh material. The backer also allows the use of a slower hardening blocking composition again since the blocking zomposition is prevented from passing through the aperture.
Turning now to Fig. 5, an alternate embodiment of the present invention generally designated 84 is illustrated wherein the screen mesh material 86 is held on a drum 88 which rotates along its central axis 90 relative to a drop ejection head 92. The drop ejection head 92 moves along a rectilinear path in an axial direction shown by arrow 94 to provide coor-dinate movement between the head and the screen mesh surface as the drum rotates. The rotation of the drum 88 and movement of the drop ejection head 92 are controlled in accordance with 1 an instruction set within a controller 96 similar to the controller 66 of Fig. 1. As in thle embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1, the drop ejection head 92 deposits a variable size or volume drop at predetermined locations along the surface o~
the screen mesh material held by the drum 88. The blocking composition can be ejected as the drum 8~ rotates a complete revolution with the drop ejection head 92 being moved axially a distance of one aperture for each complete revolution of the drum until the complete surface of the screen mesh material is scanned. ~lternatively, the drop ejection head 92 may make one~complete axial scan of the drum depositing the ~locking composition at the appropriate predetermined aperture loca-tions with the drum 88 rotating one aperture distance each time the drop ejection head makes one complete scan so that the bloc~ing composition is deposited with bi-directional movement of the head.
Turning now to Fig. 6, a further alternate embodi-ment of the present invention generally designated 100 is illustrated wherein the screen mesh material is held by a frame 102 which is located such that a ~irst drop ejection head 104 is located on one side 106 of the screen mesh mate-rial and a second drop ej~ction head 108 is located on the opposite side 110 of the screen mesh material. The movament of the drop eject;ion heads as well as the depositing of block-ing composition from the heads is controlled by a controller tnot illustrated~ similar to the controllers of Fig. 1 and Fig. 5. The heads 104,108 are moved in synchronization with " : .;

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l one another and drop5 o~ a blocking composition are ejected substantially simultaneously ~rom each so that an aperture to be occluded i5 occluded from both Isides of the screen mesh material. The use of two drop ejection heads 104,108 disposed opposite one another on either sidle of the screen mesh mate-rial and operating in synchronization with one another ensures that the aperture is occluded and aids in encapsulation oP the screen mesh material. Also, drop ejected from one head acts as a backer or stop for a drop ejected from the other head to prevent one or the other of the drops ~rom passing through the screen mesh material. The movement o~ the heads 104,108 rela-tive to the surface of the screen mesh material is facilitated with a drive belt and gantry system arrangement for each side similar to the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1 and may be referred to above for its description.
Another feature of the present invention permits the repair and reusage of a damaged print screen. Because a graphic or image is stored as data in a storage device, the graphic or image is readily reproducible. Thus a print screen that has become damaged or otherwise unusable due to, for example, loss o~ an occluded area due to blocking composition becoming dislodged or some other such damage, can be re-deposited in the damaged area to provide a once again viable print screen. In such ~ircumstances the print screen is repositioned on the work surface in its frame and the drop ejection head is brought to the home position. A command is input to the controller to activate an instruction set to :: .
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l carry out the repair steps. The area to be repaired is identified by incrementing movemen1: of the drop ejection head to the beginning of the area to be repaired and this position is noted and marked by input to the controller. The drop ejection head is then incremented to the end o~ the area to be repaired and this position is noted and marked by input to the controller. Intermediate marginal positions along the area to be repaired are likewise noted so that the area to be repaired is "mapped out". The repair is carried out b.,v an input command to the controller which activates the repair sequence by moving the drop ejection head to the corresponding X-Y
coordinate positions along the mapped surface and depositing or not depositing drops at the corresponding aperture loca-tions as defined by the stored information retrieved from the storage device.

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Claims (14)

1. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing, said apparatus characterised by:
means (16, 88, 102) for holding a screen mesh material (18, 86);
means (44, 92, 104, 108) for depositing a blocking composition on the screen mesh at predetermined locations across the screen mesh surface to selectively occlude apertures of the screen mesh whereby the non-occluded screen areas define the desired stencil;
means (30, 32, 34, 46) for scanning said depositing means (44) over the surface of the screen mesh;
means (76) for sensing the apertures of the screen mesh, and means (66) responsive to said sensing means for aligning said depositing means to deposit or not deposit said blocking composition at the aperture location in accordance with the desired print screen stencil to be produced.
2. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 1 characterised in that said means (44, 92, 104, 108) for depositing said blocking composition is characterised by a drop ejecting head (44, 92, 104, 108), said drop ejecting head (44, 92, 104, 108) shooting a drop of blocking composition along a trajectory toward the screen mesh surface in response to a drop ejection signal, said drop size having a predetermined volume and velocity.
3. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 2 characterised in that said blocking composition is a viscous liquid having a low viscosity when shot from said drop ejection head (44, 92, 104, 108).
4. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 3 characterised in that said blocking composition is hardened upon contact with the screen material (18, 86).
5. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 1 further characterised by control means (66, 68, 70) for directing said scanning means (30, 46) over the surface of said mesh material (18).
6. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 1 characterised in that said screen mesh holding means (16) comprises a planar frame whereby the surface of the screen mesh material is substantially the same distance from the drop ejecting head at each position across the screen surface.
7. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 1 characterised in that said screen mesh holding means comprises a drum (88) whereby the surface of the screen mesh material (86) along a line scanned by said drop ejecting head (92) is substantially the same distance from the surface of the screen mesh material at each location along the scan line.
8. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 2 further characterised by means for varying the size of a drop ejected from the drop ejection head so that smaller drops are ejected along the marginal outline area of the image to control edge angularity and larger drops are ejected along non-marginal areas to be occluded.
9. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 2 further characterised by means (82) located on the side of the screen mesh opposite said drop ejection head and in substantially engaging contact with the surface to prevent the blocking composition from passing through an aperture in the screen mesh material at a location receiving the drop ejected from the drop ejecting head.
10. Method for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing, said method characterised by the steps of:
holding a screen mesh material (18) in tension to form a planar receiving surface;
scanning the surface of the screen mesh;
sensing the location of apertures along the scanned surface of the screen mesh;
depositing a blocking composition on the screen mesh at predetermined locations across the screen mesh surface to selectively occlude apertures of the screen mesh whereby the non-occluded screen areas define the desired stencil;
responding to the sensing of an aperture, and aligning a depositing means (44) to deposit or not deposit said blocking composition at the sensed aperture location in accordance with the desired stencil to be produced.
11. Method for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 10 wherein the step of depositing said blocking composition is characterised by shooting a drop of blocking composition from a drop ejection head (44) along a trajectory toward the screen mesh surface in response to a drop ejection signal, said drop size having a predetermined volume and velocity.
12. Method for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 11 wherein the step of depositing said blocking composition is characterised by shooting a viscous liquid blocking composition having a low viscosity when shot from said drop ejection head and hardening upon contact with the screen mesh material.
13. Method for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as defined in claim 11 further characterised in that the step of shooting a variable size and volume drop from the drop ejection head is further characterised by the steps of shooting a smaller size and volume drop along the marginal outline edges of the graphic or image positive to be generated and shooting larger size or volume drops in non-marginal outline edge areas.
14. Apparatus (10, 84, 100) for producing a print screen stencil for use in screen printing as described and shown in the drawings.
CA002088400A 1992-07-22 1993-01-29 Method and apparatus for generating an image on a print screen Abandoned CA2088400A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US91858492A 1992-07-22 1992-07-22
US07/918,584 1992-07-22

Publications (1)

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CA2088400A1 true CA2088400A1 (en) 1994-01-23

Family

ID=25440619

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
CA002088400A Abandoned CA2088400A1 (en) 1992-07-22 1993-01-29 Method and apparatus for generating an image on a print screen

Country Status (2)

Country Link
JP (1) JPH0671839A (en)
CA (1) CA2088400A1 (en)

Cited By (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6539856B2 (en) 1998-02-17 2003-04-01 Autotype International Limited Method of screen printing stencil production
US6634289B2 (en) 1998-02-06 2003-10-21 Autotype International Limited Screen printing stencil production
US6681691B2 (en) 2000-03-02 2004-01-27 Autotype International Limited Screen printing stencil production
WO2004039586A1 (en) 2002-10-30 2004-05-13 National Research Council Of Canada Method of producing an image on a printing screen
EP2239139A2 (en) 2009-04-10 2010-10-13 Plaid Enterprises, Inc. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
US9193144B2 (en) 2009-04-10 2015-11-24 Procraft Development B.V. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
WO2018127288A1 (en) * 2017-01-05 2018-07-12 Duralchrome Ag Direct to mesh screen stencil creation
WO2020007457A1 (en) * 2018-07-04 2020-01-09 Duralchrome Ag Direct to mesh screen stencil creation
US10940682B2 (en) 2010-06-02 2021-03-09 Procraft Development B.V. Photosensitive stencils and methods

Cited By (14)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6634289B2 (en) 1998-02-06 2003-10-21 Autotype International Limited Screen printing stencil production
US6539856B2 (en) 1998-02-17 2003-04-01 Autotype International Limited Method of screen printing stencil production
US6681691B2 (en) 2000-03-02 2004-01-27 Autotype International Limited Screen printing stencil production
WO2004039586A1 (en) 2002-10-30 2004-05-13 National Research Council Of Canada Method of producing an image on a printing screen
US9193144B2 (en) 2009-04-10 2015-11-24 Procraft Development B.V. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
EP2239139A3 (en) * 2009-04-10 2011-08-03 Plaid Enterprises, Inc. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
EP2239139A2 (en) 2009-04-10 2010-10-13 Plaid Enterprises, Inc. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
US10449567B2 (en) 2009-04-10 2019-10-22 Procraft Development B.V. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
US11207709B2 (en) 2009-04-10 2021-12-28 Procraft Development B.V. Composite stencils, methods of making, and methods of decorating with composite stencils
US10940682B2 (en) 2010-06-02 2021-03-09 Procraft Development B.V. Photosensitive stencils and methods
WO2018127288A1 (en) * 2017-01-05 2018-07-12 Duralchrome Ag Direct to mesh screen stencil creation
WO2020007457A1 (en) * 2018-07-04 2020-01-09 Duralchrome Ag Direct to mesh screen stencil creation
KR20210029723A (en) * 2018-07-04 2021-03-16 듀랄크로메 악티엔게젤샤프트 Direct-to-mesh screen stencil creation
KR102524451B1 (en) 2018-07-04 2023-04-20 듀랄크로메 악티엔게젤샤프트 Creation of direct-to-mesh screen stencils

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