GB2291011A

GB2291011A - Printing device

Info

Publication number: GB2291011A
Application number: GB9413491A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Anthony Philip Magill; Gary Neil Hammans
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1994-07-05
Filing date: 1994-07-05
Publication date: 1996-01-17
Also published as: GB9413491D0

Abstract

Articles of clothing such as T-shirts may be printed by mounting the article on a support such that the article is under tension and defines a surface of predetermined geometry, for example the surface of a cylinder 1 or a surface of oval construction. A printing head 2 is mounted adjacent the surface so as to be displaceable parallel to that surface. The printing head supports an array of printing devices such as bubble jet printers, the array being transported such that the spacing between each of the printing devices and the surface to be printed is substantially constant. The movement of the printing head can be controlled by a computer so as to enable any desired pattern to be printed on, for example, a T-shirt. <IMAGE>

Description

PRINTING DEVICE The present invention relates to a device for printing a pattern on an article such as an article of clothing.

It is well known to print decorative patterns on articles of clothing such as T-shirts. The conventional approach to printing Tshirts relies upon screen printing. When a new design for a T-shirt is conceived, it is necessary for the designer to have a screen specific to that design prepared. The process involves the preparation of the original design, the transport to the screen manufacturer of that design, the return to the designer of the screen, and the preparation of sample T-shirts produced using the screen. At that stage the design has to be shown to potential buyers. All this involves delay between the time at which the design is conceived and the time at which the design is approved for mass production.Furthermore, if a designer is to be able to offer a customer a wide range of designs from which the customer can select those of immediate appeal, it is necessary for the designer to pay for the manufacture of a large number of screens and for the production of sample runs of T-shirts from each of those screens. As a result, there is a significant cost involved in the preparation of sample T-shirts in significant quantities.

It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate the problems outlined above.

According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for printing a pattern on an article, comprising means for supporting the article such that it defines a surface of predetermined geometry, a printing head supporting an array of printing devices, means for transporting the printing head across the surface, the geometry of the surface, the transporting means and the printing head being such that the spacing between the printing devices and the surface is substantially constant as the printing head is transported across the surface, and means for controlling the printing head to apply a pattern to the article as the printing head is transported across the surface.

Printing devices are now widely available that are used for printing planar surfaces such as paper. For example, bubble jet printers are now widely available which can be used to print coloured patterns on paper so as to represent information in a graphical form, for example. Furthermore, robotic devices are well known which are capable of manoeuvring articles along a predetermined path whilst maintaining a predetermined orientation. The present invention proposes the application of these known components and techniques so as to enable the production of printed patterns on the surface of, for example, a T-shirt on the basis of signals generated by, for example, a personal computer (PC).A conventional printing head such as a multi-jet colour bubble jet printer head of the type widely used in office printing equipment can be readily mounted on an appropriate support device which enables that printing head to be manoeuvred across an appropriately supported article. Thus the problem of having to produce screens before even sample quantities of designs can be produced is avoided.

The supporting means may comprise means for supporting an article of clothing under tension so as to define the surface to be printed.

The surface defined by the article when it is appropriately mounted can define a surface of revolution, the printing devices being arranged in an array which is generally parallel to the axis of the surface of revolution, and the printing head being transported along a path such that each printing device is directed towards the axis of the surface of revolution. The article may be supported so as to define a generally cylindrical surface, in which case the printing head may be mounted on a track which defines an arc of a circle centred on the axis of the cylinder.The printing head may be displaceable in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylinder such that a relatively elongate article of clothing may be printed by firstly moving the printing head around the axis cf revolution, then transporting the printing head whilst quiescent in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylinder, and then transporting the printing head across the surface of the article so as to print a further portion of that pattern.

An e:rbodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Fig. 1 is a schematic ilustration of an embodiment of the invention; and Fig. 2 is a view in the direction of arrows 2-2 of Fig. 1 after a T-shirt has been mounted on the illustrated apparatus.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the illustrated apparatus comprises a tubular support 1 the radially outer surface of which defines a cylinder. An article of clothing such as a T-shirt may be pulled over the support 1 so that the T-shirt is under tension and thus follows the cylindrical outer surface of the support. A printing head 2 is mounted on a vertical mast 3 which in turn is mounted on a base 4. The base is mounted on a circular track 5. The printing head 2 may be transported vertically relative to the mast 3 and the base 4 may be transported along the track 5.

The printing head 2 comprises a linear array of printing devices, for example a linear array of bubble jet printing heads. The linear array extends vertically and thus assuming that the printing head 2 is stationary on the mast 3, a horizontal band may be printed on a Tshirt 6 mounted on the support 1 as shown in Fig. 2. The printing head 2 may be displaced in the vertical direction so that horizontal bands of pattern may be printed at any vertical position on the body of the T-shirt.

The mechanisms for achieving appropriate positioning of the printing head 2 on the mast 3 or of the base 4 on the track 5 will not be described as appropriate devices and techniques are well known from the field of robotics. It will, however, be appreciated that the precise positioning of the printing head 2 can be determined by the output of, for example, a personal computer into which data defining a desired pattern has been introduced by a designer. Thus a designer may produce a design on his PC and then immediately print that design onto a T-shirt mounted on an appropriate support adjacent to the PC.

The delays inherent in the production of, for example, screens in accordance with conventional techniques are thereby avoided. A designer can take a fairly cavalier attitude towards the production of sample quantities of printed T-shirts without incurring either delays or significant expense. Thus the customer may be offered a wider range of choice without any cost penalty and the customer may be offered that choice without the delays inherent in the use of conventional techniques.

It will be appreciated that various printing devices could be incorporated in the printing head 2 shown in the drawings. Bubble jet printing devices which are now readily available at relatively small expense may be used but it will be appreciated that alternative printing devices may be selected in appropriate circumstances.

In the described arrangement, the T-shirt is supported on a cylindrical surface. It will be appreciated that an alternative shape of support could be provided, for example one of elliptical crosssection, or a planar support, e.g. two parallel rods between which the shirt is stretched. It will also be appreciated that the invention may be used to paint patterns on regular surfaces which are rigid, for example cylindrical surfaces of drinking vessels, providing the drinking vessel is correctly positioned relative to an arcuate track along which the printing head may be advanced.

Claims

1. An apparatus for printing a pattern on an article, comprising means for supporting the article such that it defines a surface of predetermined geometry, a printing head supporting an array of printing devices, means for transporting the printing head across the surface, the geometry of the surface, the transporting means and the printing head being such that the spacing between the printing devices and the surface is substantially constant as the printing head is transported across the surface, and means for controlling the printing head to apply a pattern to the article as the printing head is transported across the surface.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the supporting means comprises means for supporting an article of clothing under tension to define the surface to be printed.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the surface is a surface of revolution, the printing devices are arranged in an array which is generally parallel to the axis of the surface of revolution, and the printing head is transported along a path such that each printing device is directed towards the axis of the surface of revolution.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the means for supporting the article is generally cylindrical and the printing head is mounted on a track which defines an arc of a circle centred on the axis of the cylinder.

5. An apparatus according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the printing head is displaceable in a direction parallel to the axis of the surface of revolution.

6. An apparatus for printing a pattern on an article of clothing, substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.