WO2017154579A1 - Printing device, printing method, and method for producing recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a printing device which makes it possible to reuse a substrate (102), and is capable of suppressing the waste of the material in an ink-receiving layer (104). A printing device (1000) is characterized by having: a formation unit (200) for forming an ink-receiving layer (104) on a substrate (102) on the basis of printing information; and an inkjet printing unit (300) for printing on the ink-receiving layer (104) on the basis of the printing information.

Description

Printing apparatus, printing method, and method of manufacturing recording medium

The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a printing method, and a method of manufacturing a recording medium.

In the commercial printing market, the proportion of on-demand printing by digital methods such as electrophotographic method and inkjet method is increasing. Among them, ink jet printing can be used in various applications because it can use many types of ink and can print on various materials without contact, and is attracting attention.

For example, in Patent Document 1, in the recording sheet in which the ink receiving layer is provided on the surface of the support, the ink receiving layer has one or more layer constitution, and at least one of fine particle cellulose and fibrillar cellulose in the uppermost layer. It is stated that it contains.

JP-A-9-164760

On the other hand, in recent years, awareness of the environment has been heightened, and not only the reduction of the amount of paper used in the office, but also the reuse type printing and the paper regeneration in the office are required.

For example, when an ink receiving layer as described in Patent Document 1 is formed on the entire surface of the substrate, the ink receiving layer is also formed on the portion which is not actually printed, and a material for forming the ink receiving layer (Material of the ink receiving layer) may be wasted.

One of the objects according to some aspects of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus capable of reusing a substrate and suppressing waste of the material of the ink receiving layer. is there. In addition, one of the objects according to some aspects of the present invention is to provide a printing method capable of reusing a substrate and suppressing waste of the material of the ink receiving layer. It is. In addition, one of the objects according to some aspects of the present invention is a method of manufacturing a recording medium that can reuse the base material and can suppress waste of the material of the ink receiving layer. To provide.

The present invention has been made to solve at least a part of the above-mentioned problems, and can be realized as the following aspects or application examples.

One aspect of the printing apparatus according to the present invention is
A forming unit that forms an ink receiving layer on a substrate based on printing information;
And an inkjet printing unit that performs printing on the ink receiving layer based on the printing information.

In such a printing apparatus, the ink receiving layer can be selectively formed on the substrate based on the printing information, and the ink receiving layer can be not formed in a portion not printed by the inkjet printing unit. Thus, such a printing apparatus can suppress the material of the ink receiving layer from being wasted. Furthermore, such a printing apparatus can reuse the substrate by peeling off the ink receiving layer printed by the inkjet printing unit.

In the printing apparatus according to the present invention,
The forming unit may determine the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the print information.

In such a printing apparatus, the consumption of the material of the ink receiving layer can be suppressed while suppressing the penetration of the ink to the substrate, and the ink receiving layer can be formed efficiently.

In the printing apparatus according to the present invention,
The formation unit may have a derivation unit that derives a printing rate from the print information, and may determine the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the printing rate.

Such a printing apparatus can form an ink receiving layer having a thickness corresponding to the printing rate.

In the printing apparatus according to the present invention,
The formation unit may have a print attribute determination unit that determines a print attribute from the print information, and may determine the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the print attribute.

In such a printing apparatus, it is possible to form an ink receiving layer having a thickness corresponding to printing attributes (for example, characters and photographs).

In the printing apparatus according to the present invention,
It may have a judgment part which judges whether the ink receptive layer is formed on the substrate according to the state of the substrate.

In such printing devices, the ink receptive layer can be formed on a well-conditioned (e.g., poorly soiled) substrate.

In the printing apparatus according to the present invention,
The formation portion forms a symbol ink receiving layer for printing a symbol including information on the position of the ink receiving layer,
The inkjet printing unit may print the symbol on the symbol ink receiving layer.

In such a printing apparatus, for example, when peeling off the ink receiving layer printed by the inkjet printing unit, the symbol can be read to obtain information on the position of the formed ink receiving layer. Then, on the basis of the acquired information on the position of the ink receiving layer, a peeling process for peeling the ink receiving layer is performed on a selective portion of the recorded matter (the portion on which the ink receiving layer is formed). Can. Therefore, such a printing apparatus can form a recorded matter capable of performing the peeling process on selective portions, and peeling is always performed as compared to the case where the peeling process is always performed on the entire surface of the recorded matter. The processing time can be shortened and the cost can be reduced.

One aspect of the printing method according to the present invention is
Forming an ink receiving layer on the substrate based on the printing information;
Printing on the ink receiving layer based on the printing information.

In such a printing method, it is possible to reuse the substrate and to suppress the material of the ink receiving layer from being wasted.

One aspect of the method of manufacturing a recording medium according to the present invention is
And forming an ink receiving layer on the substrate based on the printing information.

In such a recording medium manufacturing method, it is possible to reuse the substrate and to suppress the material of the ink receiving layer from being wasted.

FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing a printed matter formed by the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Sectional drawing which shows typically the printed matter formed by the printing apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. A table showing printing attributes, printing rates, and coordinates of rectangular blocks. FIG. 3 schematically shows a receiving layer forming unit of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a printing method according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of a printing apparatus according to a second embodiment. The figure which shows typically the sheet manufacturing apparatus of the printing apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a printing method according to a second embodiment.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiments described below do not unduly limit the contents of the present invention described in the claims. Further, not all of the configurations described below are necessarily essential configuration requirements of the present invention.

1. First Embodiment 1.1. Printing Device First, the printing device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of the printing apparatus 1000 according to the first embodiment. For the sake of convenience, the recording medium 106 and the recording material 108 are illustrated in a simplified manner in FIG.

The printing apparatus 1000 includes a forming unit 100 and an inkjet printing unit 300 as shown in FIG. The forming unit 100 forms the ink receiving layer 104 on the substrate 102 based on the printing information to form the recording medium 106. The inkjet printing unit 300 performs printing on the ink receiving layer 104 of the recording medium 106 based on the printing information, and forms a recorded matter 108. The recorded matter 108 is a printed recording medium 106. The forming unit 100 includes a processing unit 120 and a receiving layer forming unit 200. The forming unit 100 alone functions as an ink receiving layer forming apparatus.

1.1.1. Recorded Matter FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the recorded matter 108. As shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III of FIG. Note that FIG. 2 illustrates X and Y axes orthogonal to each other. For example, the X axis indicates the short side direction of the recording medium 106, and the Y axis indicates the long side direction of the recording medium 106. The recorded matter 108 is obtained by printing the recording medium 106 by the inkjet printing unit 300. The recorded matter 108 has a substrate 102 and an ink receiving layer 104 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

The substrate 102 is, for example, PPC (Plain Paper Copier) paper. In addition, the base material 102 may be recycled paper manufactured by disintegrating waste paper, may be Yupo Paper (registered trademark) of synthetic paper, or is an OHP sheet used for OHP (Overhead Projector). It may be (Trent Spareiness). Moreover, the base material 102 may be formed of glass, cloth, wood or the like. In the illustrated example, the planar shape of the substrate 102 (the shape viewed from the thickness direction of the substrate 102) is rectangular.

The ink receiving layer 104 is a portion printed by the inkjet printing unit 300. The ink receiving layer 104 receives the ink ejected from the ink jet printing unit 300. The ink receiving layer 104 includes, for example, a thermoplastic resin such as cellulose fiber and polyester, and a white pigment such as calcium carbonate.

The ink receiving layer 104 is provided on the substrate 102. The ink receiving layer 104 is provided on the substrate 102 in a plurality of parts. In the illustrated example, the ink receiving layer 104 is not provided on the entire surface of the substrate 102. The ink receiving layer 104 has, for example, a first portion 104a, a second portion 104b, and a third portion 104c.

The portions 104a, 104b, and 104c of the ink receiving layer 104 are provided in an island shape apart from each other. The thicknesses of the portions 104a, 104b, 104c are, for example, different from one another. The thickness of the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c is, for example, not less than 20 μm and not more than 100 μm. In the illustrated example, the planar shape of the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c is rectangular.

The portions 104 a, 104 b and 104 c of the ink receiving layer 104 are printed by the inkjet printing unit 300. That is, the ink IN ejected from the inkjet printing unit 300 adheres (penetrates) to the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c. In the illustrated example, a graphic (specifically, a triangle) is printed on the first portion 104a. Characters are printed on the second portion 104b. A photograph is printed on the third portion 104c.

The ink receiving layer 104 has a symbol ink receiving layer 105. In the illustrated example, the symbol ink receiving layer 105 is provided in the vicinity of a corner (corner) of the base 102 in plan view (as viewed in the thickness direction of the base 102). The symbol SI is printed on the symbol ink receiving layer 105 by the inkjet printing unit 300. The symbol SI contains information about the ink receiving layer 104. A detailed description of the symbol SI will be given later. In FIG. 2, the symbol SI is illustrated in a simplified manner.

1.1.2. Processor As shown in FIG. 1, the processor 120 analyzes the print information received by the print information receiver 110. Then, the processing unit 120 outputs the information on the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 and the information on the position where the ink receiving layer 104 is formed to the receiving layer forming unit 200. Furthermore, the processing unit 120 performs various controls of the receiving layer forming unit 200 and the inkjet printing unit 300.

The print information receiving unit 110 communicates with the terminal device via the communication network. Communication networks include Universal Serial Bus (USB) and Local Area Network (LAN). The print information receiving unit 110 is connected to a network such as Ethernet (registered trademark) or a wireless LAN, for example, and is connected to another terminal device connected to the network. Moreover, it can also connect to the internet via a local area network, and can connect to other terminal devices via the internet. Here, the terminal device refers to various devices that can be connected to the Internet or a local area network, such as a personal computer, a portable information terminal such as a smartphone or a tablet.

The print information receiving unit 110 receives print information transmitted from a terminal device connected via a network. The “printing information” is information (for example, information such as a position and a color of an image) on an image (characters, a drawing, a photo, etc.) printed on the ink receiving layer 104.

The processing unit 120 is realized by hardware such as various processors (CPU, DSP, etc.) or a program. The processing unit 120 may perform processing for storing the print information received by the print information receiving unit 110 in the storage unit 130. The storage unit 130 may store programs for causing the respective units of the processing unit 120 to function and various data, and may function as a work area of the processing unit 120. The storage unit 130 is realized by, for example, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), or the like.

The processing unit 120 includes a print attribute determination unit 122, a print ratio derivation unit 124, and a receptive layer thickness determination unit 126.

1.1.2.1. Print Attribute Determination Unit The print attribute determination unit 122 performs processing of determining the print attribute from the print information. Specifically, when the print information is input, the print attribute determination unit 122 starts the following process. The following describes the case where the file format of the input print information is a bitmap. The file format of the print information to be input is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a page description language (for example, Postscript).

The print attribute determination unit 122 first generates a rectangular block based on the print information. Specifically, the print attribute determination unit 122 binarizes the pixels included in the print information into black and white, detects connected pixels, and extracts a pixel block surrounded by black pixel outlines. Furthermore, the print attribute determination unit 122 evaluates the size of the extracted black pixel block, and performs contour tracking on the white pixel block inside the black pixel block having a size equal to or larger than a predetermined value. Then, as long as the internal pixel block is equal to or larger than a predetermined value, the print attribute determination unit 122 recursively extracts the internal pixel block, and performs outline tracking, as in the size evaluation for the white pixel block and the tracking of the internal black pixel block. I do. The print attribute determination unit 122 generates a rectangular block circumscribing the pixel block obtained as described above. The size of the pixel block is evaluated, for example, by the area of the pixel block.

Next, the print attribute determination unit 122 determines the print attribute from the print information. Specifically, the print attribute determination unit 122 determines the print attribute for each rectangular block from the shape, size, and the like of the generated rectangular block. There are five types of printing attributes, for example, “TEXT”, “LINE”, “PICTURE”, “TABLE”, and “PHOTO”.

For example, when the aspect ratio of the rectangular block is close to 1 and the rectangular block of a predetermined size range is a character equivalent block, the printing attribute determination unit 122 determines that adjacent character equivalent blocks are regularly aligned. Character equivalent blocks are put together to generate a "character area rectangular block". For example, the print attribute determination unit 122 sets a rectangular block including a flat pixel block as a “line drawing area rectangular block”. The print attribute determination unit 122 sets, for example, a rectangular block including a black pixel block having a predetermined size or more and including a square white pixel block in a well-aligned manner as a “table area rectangular block”. For example, the printing attribute determination unit 122 sets a rectangular block in which irregular pixel blocks are scattered as a “drawing area rectangular block”. For example, the print attribute determination unit 122 does not correspond to any of the above-described print attributes, and sets a rectangular block including an irregular pixel block as a “photograph area rectangular block”.

For example, when the input print information is information for printing an image as shown in FIG. 2, the print attribute determination unit 122 sets Block 1 to “drawing area rectangular block” (print attribute as shown in FIG. 4). Drawing: 3 blocks are generated with Block 2 as "character area rectangular block" (printing attribute: character) and Block 3 as "photo area rectangular block" (printing attribute: photo). Block 1 corresponds to the first portion 104 a of the ink receiving layer 104, Block 2 corresponds to the second portion 104 b, and Block 3 corresponds to the third portion 104 c.

The print attribute determination unit 122 further obtains coordinates of the generated rectangular block. Specifically, the print attribute determination unit 122 obtains coordinates of vertices located on the diagonal of the rectangular block. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the print attribute determination unit 122 sets the upper left vertex of the rectangular block (the vertex in the example shown in FIG. 2 that is on the −X axis direction side and + Y axis direction side) and the lower right vertex In the example shown in 2, the coordinates of + vertex in the + X axis direction and the vertex in the −Y axis direction) are determined. XL1 to XL3, YL1 to YL3, XR1 to XR3, and YR1 to YR3 shown in FIG. 4 are arbitrary numerical values obtained by the print attribute determination unit 122.

Although the example in which the print attribute determination unit 122 generates a rectangular block has been described above, the shape of the block generated by the print attribute determination unit 122 is not particularly limited. For example, the shape corresponding to the shape of the image (image The shape may be one size larger than

1.1.2.2. Print Rate Derivation Unit The print ratio derivation unit 124 performs processing for deriving (calculating) the print ratio from the print information for each rectangular block generated by the print attribute determination unit 122. The printing rate is a numerical value used in printers and copiers, and is the ratio of the integrated area of an image such as characters to be printed to the area of printing paper. That is, it is a numerical value indicating how much ink or toner is deposited on the printing paper. The details of the method of calculating the printing rate will be omitted.

The processing unit 120 may perform processing for generating a table as shown in FIG. 4 and displaying the table on the display unit 140 by the processing of the printing attribute determination unit 122 and the printing ratio deriving unit 124. CR 1 to CR 3 shown in FIG. 4 are arbitrary numbers calculated by the printing rate deriving unit 124. The display unit 140 has a function of displaying the analysis result of the processing unit 120. The display unit 140 is realized by, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a cathode ray tube (CRT), or the like.

1.1.2.3. Receiving Layer Thickness Determination Unit The receiving layer thickness determination unit 126 performs processing of determining the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 formed on the substrate 102 based on the print information. Specifically, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 determines the ink for each rectangular block based on at least one of the print attribute determined by the print attribute determination unit 122 and the print ratio calculated by the print ratio derivation unit 124. The thickness of the receptive layer 104 is determined. Preferably, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 determines the thickness of the ink receptive layer 104 for each rectangular block based on both the printing attribute and the printing rate.

The receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 determines, for example, the number of layers forming the ink receptive layer 104 based on the print attribute determined by the print attribute determination unit 122. Specifically, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 determines the number of layers as “1” when the attribute of the rectangular block is “character”, and “2” when the attribute is “line drawing”. If the attribute is “drawing”, the number of layers is determined to be “3”. If the attribute is “table”, the number of layers is determined to be “2”. If the attribute is “photo” Determine the number of layers as "3".

The receptive layer thickness determining unit 126 determines, for example, the number of layers forming the ink receiving layer 104 based on the printing rate calculated by the printing rate deriving unit 124. Specifically, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 determines that the number of layers is “1” when the printing ratio of the rectangular block is less than 5%, and the printing layer ratio of the layers when the printing ratio is 5% or more and less than 10%. The number is determined to be “2”, and when the printing rate is 10% or more, the number of layers is determined to be “3”.

In each rectangular block, when the number of layers determined based on the printing attribute and the number of layers determined based on the printing rate are different in each rectangular block, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 adopts the value with the larger number. . For example, in “Block 1” shown in FIG. 4, when the number of layers determined based on the printing attribute is “3” and the number of layers determined based on the printing rate is “2”, the receiving layer is The thickness determination unit 126 adopts “3” and outputs (transmits) information to the effect that the number of layers in “Block 1” is “3” to the receiving layer forming unit 200.

If the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 can be determined for each rectangular block, the receiving layer thickness determining unit 126 correlates with the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104, not the number of layers forming the ink receiving layer 104. The thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 may be determined by determining other matters. For example, the receiving layer thickness determining unit 126 may determine the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 by determining the potential of the receiving layer forming unit 200.

1.1.3. Receptive Layer Forming Unit In the receiving layer forming unit 200, the processing unit 120 generates information on coordinates of each rectangular block (rectangular block coordinate information) and information on the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 for each rectangular block (ink acceptance Layer thickness information is input. FIG. 5 is a view schematically showing the receiving layer forming unit 200. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, the receptive layer forming unit 200 includes a base material supply unit 210, a transport unit 220, a photosensitive member 230, a charging unit 240, an exposure unit 250, a developing unit 260, and a transfer unit 270. , And a fixing unit 280. The conveyance unit 220, the photosensitive member 230, the charging unit 240, the exposure unit 250, the developing unit 260, the transfer unit 270, and the fixing unit 280 are housed in a housing 290, for example. The receptive layer forming portion 200 adheres a material (composite) for forming the ink receptive layer 104 to the substrate 102 to form the ink receptive layer 104.

The base material supply unit 210 supplies the base material 102 to the transport unit 220. The substrate supply unit 210 is an automatic loading unit for continuously loading the substrate 102 into the transport unit 220. The substrate supply unit 210 may supply the substrates 102 one by one (for each leaf).

The transport unit 220 transports the substrate 102 toward the photosensitive member 230. The transport unit 220 has a transport belt 222 and a transport roller 224. The transport belt 222 is movable as the transport roller 224 rotates. The substrate 102 is placed on the transport belt 222 and transported. In addition, the conveyance part 220 may pinch and convey the base material 102 not by the conveyance belt 222 but by the conveyance roller pair.

The photoreceptor 230 transfers the composite for forming the ink receiving layer 104 to the substrate 102. The photosensitive member 230 has a cylindrical (drum-like) shape. The surface (outer peripheral surface) of the photosensitive member 230 is formed of, for example, an organic photosensitive member. The photosensitive member 230 is rotationally driven. Around the photosensitive member 230, the charging unit 240, the exposure unit 250, the developing unit 260, and the transfer unit 270 are arranged in order along the rotational direction of the photosensitive member 230.

The charging unit 240 uniformly charges the surface of the photosensitive member 230. The charging unit 240 charges, for example, the surface of the photosensitive member 230 to a negative potential. The charging unit 240 is, for example, a corona charger, a charging brush, or a charging film that irradiates ozone, and in the illustrated example, has a shape of a roller.

The exposure unit 250 exposes the surface of the photosensitive member 230 and adjusts the potential of the surface of the photosensitive member 230. The exposure unit 250 irradiates the surface of the photosensitive member 230 with, for example, a laser beam, and adjusts the potential to move and deposit the composite on the surface of the photosensitive member 230. The exposure unit 250 adjusts the potential of the surface of the photosensitive member 230, for example, by discharging a part of the surface of the photosensitive member 230.

The developing unit 260 moves and deposits the complex for forming the ink receiving layer 104 on the surface of the photosensitive member 230. The developing unit 260 has a cartridge 261. In the cartridge 261, a stirrer 262, a supply roller 263, a developing roller 264, and a blade 265 are accommodated. The composite is housed in a storage section in the cartridge 261. The cartridge 261 is detachably mounted to the receiving layer forming unit 200. The agitator 262 agitates and charges the complex by rotating and supplies it to the supply roller 263. The development roller 264 has a potential difference with the supply roller 263 to electrostatically attach the composite. The blade 265 thins the composite and frictionally charges it. The composite attached to the surface of the developing roller 264 is moved and attached to the surface of the photosensitive member 230 due to the potential difference between the photosensitive member 230 and the developing roller 264. The potentials of the photosensitive member 230 and the developing roller 264 are appropriately set.

The transfer unit 270 transfers the composite attached to the surface of the photosensitive member 230 to the substrate 102. In the illustrated example, the transfer unit 270 has a roller shape, and also has a function as a roller for moving the transport belt 222. The transfer unit 270 opposes the photosensitive member 230 with the conveyance belt 222 interposed therebetween, and is provided at a position where the base unit 102 can be held together with the photosensitive member 230. The transfer unit 270 has a predetermined potential. The composite attached to the surface of the photosensitive member 230 is transferred to the substrate 102 by the potential difference between the photosensitive member 230 and the transfer unit 270. That is, the composite is electrostatically applied to the substrate 102. The transport unit 220 transports the base material 102 provided with the composite toward the fixing unit 280.

The fixing unit 280 fixes the composite transferred to the base 102 to the base 102. In the illustrated example, the fixing unit 280 has a roller shape. The fixing unit 280 fixes the composite on the substrate 102, for example, by sandwiching the substrate 102 and the composite, and applying heat and pressure. The pressure applied by the fixing unit 280 is, for example, 100 kg or more and 1000 kg or less. The temperature to which the fixing unit 280 heats is, for example, 100 ° C. or more and 250 ° C. or less.

The processing unit 120 controls the photosensitive member 230 and the exposure unit 250 based on, for example, rectangular block coordinate information and ink receptive layer thickness information, and sets the composite on the surface of the photosensitive member 230 corresponding to each rectangular block. Control the number of adhesions. Thereby, the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 formed in the portion corresponding to each rectangular block is adjusted. For example, in the case of a rectangular block as shown in FIG. 4, the processing unit 120 causes three layers (three times) of the composite to be attached to the portion corresponding to “Block 1” while rotating the photosensitive member 230 three times. The exposure unit 250 is controlled so that one composite layer is attached to the portion corresponding to “Block 2” and three composite layers are attached to the portion corresponding to “Block 3”. Thus, the receiving layer forming unit 200 can form the portions 104 a, 104 b and 104 c having the thickness determined by the receiving layer thickness determining unit 126 on the substrate 102.

Furthermore, the receiving layer forming unit 200 forms the symbol ink receiving layer 105 shown in FIG. 2 together with the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c. The thickness of the symbol ink receptive layer 105 is not particularly limited, but is preferably a thickness corresponding to the symbol SI. For example, in the case where the symbol SI is a letter, one layer of the complex is attached.

As described above, the receiving layer forming unit 200 forms the recording medium 106 having the base material 102 and the ink receiving layer 104. The recording medium 106 is discharged to the outside of the receiving layer forming unit 200 by, for example, a roller (not shown), and is automatically conveyed to the inkjet printing unit 300, for example. The fixing unit 280 may double as a roller for discharging the recording medium 106 to the outside.

The processing unit 120 may control the exposure unit 250 based on the rectangular block coordinate information and the ink receptive layer thickness information to adjust the potential of the surface of the photosensitive member 230 corresponding to each rectangular block. Thereby, the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 in the portion corresponding to each rectangular block may be adjusted.

Further, although the example in which the ink receiving layer 104 is divided into a plurality of portions and formed in an island shape has been described above, depending on the printing information, the ink receiving layer 104 is substantially the entire substrate 102 or the remaining margin. It may be formed on the entire surface.

1.1.4. Inkjet Printing Unit As shown in FIG. 1, the inkjet printing unit 300 performs printing on the ink receiving layer 104 of the recording medium 106 formed by the forming unit 100 based on the print information received by the print information receiving unit 110. The ink ejected from the ink jet printing unit 300 penetrates the ink receiving layer 104, and a recorded matter 108 as shown in FIG. 2, for example, is formed. The inkjet printing unit 300 is realized by, for example, an inkjet printer. The print information may be input to the inkjet printing unit 300 via the processing unit 120, or may be directly input to the inkjet printing unit 300 from the print information receiving unit 110 without via the processing unit 120.

The inkjet printing unit 300 prints the symbol SI on the symbol ink receiving layer 105, as shown in FIG. The symbol SI includes information on the position of the ink receiving layer 104 formed in the forming unit 100. Specifically, the symbol SI includes information on the coordinates of the rectangular block corresponding to the portions 104 a, 104 b and 104 c of the ink receiving layer 104. Further, the symbol SI may include information on the printing ratio of rectangular blocks corresponding to the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c. Furthermore, the symbol SI may include information on an organization name such as a company or group name that manufactures the recording medium 106, an owner, a date printed on the recording medium 106, a period for which the recorded matter 108 is stored, and the like. .

The symbol SI is realized by, for example, a one-dimensional barcode, a two-dimensional code (QR code (registered trademark)), or the like. Alternatively, the symbol SI may be realized by a character, a symbol, a figure, or a combination thereof. However, it is desirable that the symbol SI be realized by a two-dimensional code, in consideration of the amount of information that can be recorded, the presence of an error correction function by a Reed-Solomon code, and the like.

The symbol SI may be formed not by the inkjet printing unit 300 but by the receiving layer forming unit 200. That is, the symbol SI may be configured by the ink receiving layer 104 (by the symbol ink receiving layer 105) instead of the ink ejected by the inkjet printing unit 300. More specifically, instead of the rectangular symbol ink receiving layer 105, a composite may be attached to the substrate 102 so as to represent an image of the symbol SI. Thereby, the consumption of the ink discharged by the inkjet printing part 300 can be restrained.

1.2. Printing Method Next, a printing method according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the printing method according to the first embodiment. Hereinafter, a printing method using the printing apparatus 1000 will be described.

For example, when the print information receiving unit 110 receives the print information transmitted from the terminal device of the user, the processing unit 120 starts processing.

First, the print attribute determination unit 122 of the processing unit 120 receives the print information and generates a rectangular block as described above (step S2).

Next, the print attribute determination unit 122 determines the print attribute of the generated rectangular block from the shape, size, and the like of the generated rectangular block (step S4). The print attribute determination unit 122 further obtains the coordinates of the generated rectangular block (step S6). The order of steps S4 and S6 is not particularly limited.

Next, the printing ratio deriving unit 124 of the processing unit 120 calculates the printing ratio for each rectangular block for which the printing attribute has been determined (step S8).

Next, the receptive layer thickness determination unit 126 of the processing unit 120 determines the ink receptive layer for each rectangular block based on the printing attribute determined by the printing attribute determination unit 122 and the printing rate calculated by the printing rate deriving unit 124. The thickness of 104 is determined (step S10).

Next, the ink receiving layer 104 is formed (step S12). Specifically, the processing unit 120 forms the receiving layer based on, for example, the rectangular block coordinate information obtained in the print attribute determining unit 122 and the ink receiving layer thickness information determined in the receiving layer thickness determining unit 126. Control unit 200; More specifically, the processing unit 120 controls the photosensitive member 230 and the exposure unit 250 based on the rectangular block coordinate information and the receptive layer thickness information, and controls the surface of the photosensitive member 230 corresponding to each rectangular block, Control the number of adhesions of the complex. Thereby, the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 formed in the portion corresponding to each rectangular block is adjusted, and the receiving layer forming portion 200 has the portions 104a and 104b having the thickness determined in the receiving layer thickness determining portion 126. , 104c can be formed on the substrate 102. Thus, based on the printing information, the ink receiving layer 104 can be formed on the substrate 102, and the recording medium 106 can be manufactured.

Next, printing is performed on the ink receiving layer 104 (step S14). Specifically, the processing unit 120 controls the inkjet printing unit 300 based on the printing information. Thus, the inkjet printing unit 300 can eject the ink to the ink receiving layer 104 and obtain the recorded matter 108 printed by the inkjet printing unit 300. Then, the processing unit 120 ends the processing.

1.3. Features of Printing Device The printing device 1000 has, for example, the following features.

The printing apparatus 1000 includes a forming unit 100 that forms the ink receiving layer 104 on the substrate 102 based on the printing information, and an inkjet printing unit 300 that performs printing on the ink receiving layer 104 based on the printing information. . Therefore, the printing apparatus 1000 can selectively form the ink receiving layer 104 on the substrate 102 based on the printing information, and does not form the ink receiving layer 104 in a portion not printed by the inkjet printing unit 300. be able to. As a result, the printing apparatus 1000 can prevent the material of the ink receiving layer 104 (the composite for forming the ink receiving layer 104) from being wasted. Therefore, in the printing apparatus 1000, cost reduction can be achieved. Furthermore, in the printing apparatus 1000, compared with the case where the ink receiving layer 104 is always formed on the entire surface of the substrate 102, for example, the processing time for forming the ink receiving layer 104 can be shortened. Furthermore, in the printing apparatus 1000, the substrate 102 can be reused by peeling off the ink receiving layer 104 printed by the inkjet printing unit 300.

In the printing apparatus 1000, the forming unit 100 determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 based on the print information. Therefore, in the printing apparatus 1000, the thickness of the portions 104a, 104b, and 104c of the ink receiving layer 104 can be adjusted based on the print information. Thus, in the printing apparatus 1000, the consumption of the material of the ink receiving layer 104 can be suppressed while the penetration of the ink to the substrate 102 can be suppressed, and the ink receiving layer 104 can be formed efficiently. .

In the printing apparatus 1000, the forming unit 100 includes a print ratio deriving unit 124 that derives a print ratio from print information, and determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 based on the print ratio. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1000 can form the ink receiving layer 104 having a thickness corresponding to the printing rate.

In the printing apparatus 1000, the forming unit 100 includes a print attribute determination unit 122 that determines a print attribute from print information, and determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer 104 based on the print attribute. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1000 can form the ink receiving layer 104 having a thickness corresponding to the printing attribute.

In the printing apparatus 1000, the forming unit 100 forms a symbol ink receiving layer 105 for printing a symbol SI including information on the position of the ink receiving layer 104, and the inkjet printing unit 300 forms the symbol ink receiving layer 105. Print the symbol SI. Therefore, for example, when peeling off the ink receiving layer 104 printed by the inkjet printing unit 300, the symbol SI can be read to obtain information on the position of the formed ink receiving layer 104. Then, based on the acquired information on the position of the ink receiving layer 104, the peeling process for peeling the ink receiving layer 104 is performed on a selective portion (the portion on which the ink receiving layer 104 is formed) of the recorded matter 108. It can be done against. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1000 can form the recorded matter 108 capable of performing the peeling process on selective portions, and peeling is always performed as compared with the case where the peeling process is always performed on the entire surface of the recorded matter 108. The processing time can be shortened and the cost can be reduced.

2. Second Embodiment 2.1. Printing Device Next, a printing device according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram of the printing apparatus 2000 according to the second embodiment. Hereinafter, in the printing apparatus 2000 according to the second embodiment, members having the same functions as the constituent members of the printing apparatus 1000 according to the first embodiment described above are given the same reference numerals, and the detailed description thereof is omitted. .

The printing apparatus 2000 is different from the above-described printing apparatus 1000 in that the printing apparatus 2000 includes a base material state determination unit 128, a reading unit 400, and a sheet manufacturing apparatus 500, as shown in FIG.

2.1.1. Substrate state determination unit The processing unit 120 includes a substrate state determination unit 128. The substrate state determination unit 128 determines whether to form the ink receiving layer 104 on the substrate 102 in accordance with the state of the substrate 102. Specifically, when the print information from the print information receiving unit 110 is input, the substrate state determination unit 128 controls the reading unit 400 to scan the surface of the substrate 102 and acquire scan information. . Then, the base material state determination unit 128 determines the state of the base material 102 based on the acquired scan information, and determines whether to form the ink receiving layer 104 or not. If the substrate state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is to be formed,” the substrate 102 is, for example, automatically transported to the receiving layer forming unit 200. On the other hand, when the substrate state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is not formed”, the substrate 102 is, for example, automatically conveyed to the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500.

Here, the "state of the base material 102" refers to the degree of contamination of the base material 102 due to "folding", "wrinkling" or the like. The substrate state determination unit 128 uses the density of each pixel of the scan information to emphasize the density that changes due to “folding” and “wrinkling” by the horizontal space filtering process and the vertical space filtering process, and provides a binary value. Extract the "folded" and "wrinkled" pixels in the image processing. Then, the base material state determination unit 128 estimates the contamination condition by calculating the extracted number of pixels, the average value of the density values of the pixels, and the like, and stores the estimated contamination condition, for example, in the storage unit 130. The reference value is compared by feature amount analysis. The substrate state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is to be formed” when the estimated contamination degree is less than the reference value. On the other hand, the base material state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is not formed” when the estimated contamination degree is equal to or more than the reference value.

Note that “bending” and “wrinkle” are an example of the staining condition, and other indicators that can be specified from image information such as area, thickness, direction, and brightness are the staining condition measured by the substrate state determination unit 128 You may use it.

Further, the method of analyzing the degree of contamination in the base material state determination unit 128 is not limited to the method by the pixel density analysis as described above. For example, an average luminance measurement method, a pixel count measurement method, or the like may be used.

2.1.2. Reading Unit The reading unit 400 scans the surface of the substrate 102. The reading unit 400 is realized by, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Devices) scanner and a CIS (Contact Image Sensor) scanner. The type of the scanner is not limited to the above as long as the reading unit 400 can scan the surface of the base material 102.

2.1.3. Sheet manufacturing apparatus The sheet manufacturing apparatus 500 manufactures a sheet by disentangling the base material 102 determined as the base material state determination unit 128 "does not form the ink receiving layer 104". The detailed description of the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500 will be described later. The base material 102 determined to “do not form the ink receiving layer 104” may be discarded without being transported to the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500. FIG. 8 schematically shows the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 8, the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500 includes the feeding unit 10, the crushing unit 12, the defibrating unit 20, the sorting unit 40, the first web forming unit 45, the rotating body 49, and the mixing unit. 50, a deposition unit 60, a second web forming unit 70, a sheet forming unit 80, and a cutting unit 90.

The supply unit 10 supplies the raw material (the base material 102 determined as “do not form the ink receiving layer 104” in the base material state determination unit 128) to the crushing part 12. The feeding unit 10 is, for example, an automatic feeding unit for continuously feeding the raw material into the crushing unit 12.

The crushing unit 12 cuts (crushes) the raw material supplied by the supply unit 10 in air (in the air) or the like in the atmosphere (in the air) or the like to form crushed pieces. The shape and size of the coarse fragments are, for example, several cm square pieces. The crushing unit 12 includes, for example, a crushing blade 14 and a shooter (hopper) 16. The crushing unit 12 can cut the input raw material by the crushing blade 14. As the crushing part 12, a shredder is used, for example. The raw material cut by the crushing blade 14 is received by the shooter 16 and then transferred (conveyed) to the defibrating unit 20 through the pipe 2.

The defibration unit 20 disintegrates the raw material (crushed pieces) cut by the crusher 12 into disintegrated materials. Here, "disintegrate" refers to disentangling a raw material (broken material) in which a plurality of fibers are bound into one fiber. The defibrating unit 20 also has a function of separating substances such as resin particles, ink, toner, and anti-smearing agents attached to the raw material from fibers.

What passed through the defibrating unit 20 is referred to as "defibrated material". “Diswoven materials” include, in addition to disentangled fibrillated fibers, resin particles (resin for binding a plurality of fibers) particles separated from the fibers when disentangling fibers, ink, toner, etc. And additives such as anti-smearing agents and paper strength agents. The shape of the defibrated material is in the form of a string or a ribbon. The disentangled disaggregated material may exist in a non-entangled state (independent state) with other disentangled fibers, or as entangled with other disentangled disintegrated objects It may exist in a state (in a state of forming a so-called "dummy").

The defibrating unit 20 fibrillates in a dry manner. Here, performing processing such as disentanglement in air, such as in the air (in air), not in liquid, is referred to as dry. In the present embodiment, an impeller mill is used as the defibrating unit 20. The defibrating unit 20 has a function of generating a gas flow that sucks in the raw material and discharges the defibrated material. Thereby, the defibrating unit 20 can suck the raw material from the introduction port 22 together with the air flow by the air flow generated by itself, carry out the disintegration processing, and transport the defibrated material to the discharge port 24. The defibrated material that has passed through the defibrating unit 20 is transferred to the sorting unit 40 via the pipe 3. Note that the air flow for conveying the defibrated material from the defibrating unit 20 to the sorting unit 40 may use the air flow generated by the defibrating unit 20, and as shown in FIG. 26 may be provided and the air flow may be used.

The sorting unit 40 introduces the defibrated material defibrated by the defibrating unit 20 from the introduction port 42, and sorts according to the length of the fiber. The sorting unit 40 includes a drum unit (sieve unit) 41 and a housing unit (cover unit) 43 that accommodates the drum unit 41. For example, a sieve is used as the drum unit 41. The drum unit 41 has a net (filter, screen), and fibers or particles (those that pass through the net, the first sort) smaller than the size of the net opening (opening), and the size of the net opening It can be divided into large fibers, unbroken pieces and lumps (those not passing through the net, second sorted matter). That is, the sorting unit 40 can sort the defibrated matter into the first sorted matter and the second sorted matter. For example, the first sorted matter is transferred to the mixing unit 50 via the pipe 7. The second sorted matter is returned from the discharge port 44 to the defibrating unit 20 via the pipe 8. Specifically, the drum unit 41 is a sieve of a cylinder rotationally driven by a motor. As the mesh of the drum unit 41, for example, a wire mesh, an expanded metal obtained by extending a metal plate with cuts, and a punching metal in which holes are formed in a metal plate by a press machine or the like are used.

The first web forming unit 45 conveys the first sorted matter that has passed through the sorting unit 40 to the mixing unit 50. The first web forming unit 45 includes a mesh belt 46, a tension roller 47, and a suction unit (suction mechanism) 48.

The suction unit 48 can suction the first sorted matter dispersed in the air through the opening (the opening of the net) of the sorting unit 40 onto the mesh belt 46. The first sort is deposited on the moving mesh belt 46 to form the web V. The basic configuration of the mesh belt 46, the tension roller 47, and the suction unit 48 is the same as the mesh belt 72, the tension roller 74, and the suction mechanism 76 of the second web forming unit 70 described later.

The web V passes through the sorting unit 40 and the first web forming unit 45, and is formed in a soft and flexible state including a large amount of air. The web V deposited on the mesh belt 46 is introduced into the pipe 7 and conveyed to the mixing unit 50.

The rotating body 49 can cut (divide) the web V before the web V is transported to the mixing unit 50. In the example of illustration, the rotary body 49 has the base 49a and the protrusion 49b which protrudes from the base 49a. The protrusion 49 b has, for example, a plate-like shape. In the illustrated example, four protrusions 49 b are provided, and four protrusions 49 b are provided at equal intervals. By rotating the base 49 a in the direction R, the projection 49 b can rotate around the base 49 a. By cutting the web V by the rotating body 49, for example, it is possible to reduce the fluctuation of the amount of defibrated material supplied to the deposition unit 60 per unit time.

The rotating body 49 is provided in the vicinity of the first web forming unit 45. In the example of illustration, the rotary body 49 is provided in the vicinity of the tension roller 47a located in the downstream in the path | route of the web V (besides the tension roller 47a). The rotating body 49 is provided at a position where the projections 49 b can contact the web V and does not contact the mesh belt 46 on which the web V is deposited. As a result, the mesh belt 46 can be prevented from being worn out (broken) by the projections 49 b. The shortest distance between the protrusion 49 b and the mesh belt 46 is, for example, 0.05 mm or more and 0.5 mm or less. If the shortest distance between the projection 49 b and the mesh belt 46 is in the above range, the rotating body 49 can cut the web V without damaging the mesh belt 46.

The mixing unit 50 mixes the first sorted matter (the first sorted matter conveyed by the first web forming unit 45) which has passed through the sorting unit 40 and the additive containing the resin. The mixing unit 50 includes an additive supply unit 52 for supplying an additive, a pipe 54 for transporting the first sorted matter and the additive, and a blower 56. In the illustrated example, the additive is supplied from the additive supply unit 52 to the pipe 54 via the shooter 9. The tube 54 is continuous with the tube 7.

In the mixing section 50, an air flow can be generated by the blower 56, and can be conveyed while mixing the first sorted matter and the additive in the pipe 54. The mechanism for mixing the first sorted matter and the additive is not particularly limited, and may be stirring with a blade rotating at a high speed, or using rotation of the container like a V-type mixer. It may be.

As the additive supply unit 52, a screw feeder as shown in FIG. 8, a disc feeder (not shown) or the like is used. The additive supplied from the additive supply unit 52 includes a resin for binding a plurality of fibers. When the resin is supplied, the plurality of fibers are not bound. The resin is melted when passing through the sheet forming unit 80 to bind a plurality of fibers.

The resin supplied from the additive supply unit 52 is a thermoplastic resin or a thermosetting resin, and, for example, AS resin, ABS resin, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene, acrylic resin, polyester resin, polyethylene terephthalate, Polyphenylene ether, polybutylene terephthalate, nylon, polyamide, polycarbonate, polyacetal, polyphenylene sulfide, polyether ether ketone, and the like. These resins may be used alone or in combination as appropriate. The additive supplied from the additive supply unit 52 may be fibrous or powdery.

The additive supplied from the additive supply unit 52 includes, in addition to the resin for binding the fiber, a coloring agent for coloring the fiber, aggregation of the fiber, and resin depending on the type of sheet to be produced. A cohesion inhibitor for suppressing cohesion, and a flame retardant for making it difficult to burn fibers and the like may be contained. The mixture (mixture of the first sort and the additive) which has passed through the mixing section 50 is transferred to the deposition section 60 via the pipe 54.

The deposition unit 60 introduces the mixture having passed through the mixing unit 50 from the inlet 62, loosens the entangled disintegrated material (fiber), and causes the mixture to fall in the air while falling. Furthermore, if the resin of the additive supplied from the additive supply unit 52 is fibrous, the deposition unit 60 loosens the entangled resin. As a result, the deposition unit 60 can deposit the mixture uniformly on the second web forming unit 70.

The deposition unit 60 includes a drum unit (sieve unit) 61 and a housing unit (cover unit) 63 that accommodates the drum unit 61. As the drum unit 61, a sieve of a rotating cylinder is used. The drum unit 61 has a net, and lowers fibers or particles (that pass through the net) smaller than the size of the mesh opening (opening) contained in the mixture that has passed through the mixing unit 50. The configuration of the drum unit 61 is, for example, the same as the configuration of the drum unit 41.

In addition, the "sieve" of the drum part 61 does not need to have a function which screens a specific target object. That is, the “sieve” used as the drum unit 61 means that the mesh unit is equipped with a net, and the drum unit 61 may lower all of the mixture introduced to the drum unit 61.

The second web forming unit 70 deposits the passing material that has passed through the depositing unit 60 to form the web W. The second web forming unit 70 includes, for example, a mesh belt 72, a tension roller 74, and a suction mechanism 76.

While moving, the mesh belt 72 deposits the passing material that has passed through the opening (opening of the net) of the deposition unit 60. The mesh belt 72 is stretched by a stretching roller 74 so as to make it difficult for the passing material to pass through and air to pass through. The mesh belt 72 moves as the tension roller 74 rotates. The web W is formed on the mesh belt 72 as the material passing through the stacking unit 60 is continuously deposited while the mesh belt 72 moves continuously. The mesh belt 72 is, for example, metal, resin, cloth, non-woven fabric, or the like.

The suction mechanism 76 is provided below the mesh belt 72 (opposite to the side of the deposition unit 60). The suction mechanism 76 can generate an air flow (air flow from the deposition unit 60 to the mesh belt 72) directed downward. The suction mechanism 76 can suction the mixture dispersed in the air by the deposition unit 60 onto the mesh belt 72. Thereby, the discharge speed from the deposition unit 60 can be increased. Furthermore, the suction mechanism 76 can form a downflow in the dropping path of the mixture, and can prevent entanglement of defibrated substances and additives during dropping.

As described above, by passing through the deposition section 60 and the second web formation section 70 (web formation process), the web W containing a large amount of air and in a soft and bloated state is formed. The web W deposited on the mesh belt 72 is conveyed to the sheet forming unit 80.

In the illustrated example, a humidity control unit (humidifying unit humidifying the web W) 78 that humidity-controls the web W is provided. The humidifying unit 78 can add water or steam to the web W to adjust the amount ratio of the web W to water. In the illustrated example, the humidifying unit 78 is provided above the mesh belt 72 (at the side of the deposition unit 60). A suction mechanism 78 a is provided below the mesh belt 72 (opposite to the side of the humidifying unit 78). The suction mechanism 78a can generate an air flow directed downward (directed from the humidifying unit 78 to the mesh belt 72). Thereby, the web W can be humidified with sufficient uniformity in the thickness direction.

Further, in the illustrated example, a transport unit 79 that transports the web W on the mesh belt 72 to the sheet forming unit 80 is provided. The transport unit 79 includes, for example, a mesh belt 79a, a tension roller 79b, and a suction mechanism 79c. The suction mechanism 79c generates an air flow to suction the web W, and causes the mesh belt 79a to adsorb the web W. The mesh belt 79 a is moved by rotation of the tension roller 79 b and conveys the web W to the sheet forming unit 80. The moving speed of the mesh belt 72 and the moving speed of the mesh belt 79a are, for example, the same.

The sheet forming unit 80 forms the sheet S by pressurizing and heating the web W deposited on the mesh belt 72 (the deposit deposited by the depositing unit 60). In the sheet forming unit 80, heat is applied to the mixture of the defibrated material and the additive mixed in the web W to bind a plurality of fibers in the mixture to each other via the additive (resin). Can.

The sheet forming unit 80 includes a pressing unit 82 that presses the web W, and a heating unit 84 that heats the web W pressed by the pressing unit 82. The pressure unit 82 includes a pair of calendar rollers 85 and applies pressure to the web W. The pressure of the web W reduces its thickness, and the density of the web W is increased. As the heating unit 84, for example, a heating roller (heater roller), a heat press molding machine, a hot plate, a hot air blower, an infrared heater, and a flash fixing device are used. In the illustrated example, the heating unit 84 includes a pair of heating rollers 86. Forming the sheet S while conveying the web W continuously by configuring the heating unit 84 as the heating roller 86 as compared to the case where the heating unit 84 is configured as a plate-like pressing device (flat plate pressing device) Can. Here, the calendar roller 85 (pressure unit 82) can apply a pressure higher than the pressure applied to the web W by the heating roller 86 (heating unit 84) to the web W. The number of calender rollers 85 and heating rollers 86 is not particularly limited.

The cutting unit 90 cuts the sheet S formed by the sheet forming unit 80. In the illustrated example, the cutting unit 90 includes a first cutting unit 92 for cutting the sheet S in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the sheet S, and a second cutting unit 94 for cutting the sheet S in a direction parallel to the conveyance direction. ,have. The second cutting unit 94 cuts, for example, the sheet S that has passed through the first cutting unit 92.

As described above, a single-cut sheet S of a predetermined size is formed. The cut single-cut sheet S is discharged to the discharge unit 96.

In the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500, the defibrated material that has passed through the defibrating unit 20 may be transferred to the classification unit (not shown) via the pipe 3. Then, the classified material classified in the classification unit may be transported to the sorting unit 40. The classification unit classifies the defibrated material that has passed through the defibration unit 20. Specifically, the classified part separates and removes relatively small ones or low-density ones (resin particles, coloring agents, additives, etc.) among the defibrated materials. This makes it possible to increase the proportion of relatively large or dense fibers among the fibrillated materials. As a classification part, a cyclone, an elbow jet, an Eddy classifier, etc. are used, for example.

The sheet S manufactured by the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500 may be automatically transported to the reading unit 400 as the substrate 102, or may be automatically transported to the receiving layer forming unit 200.

2.2. Printing Method Next, a printing method according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the printing method according to the second embodiment. Hereinafter, a printing method using the printing apparatus 2000 will be described.

For example, when the print information receiving unit 110 receives the print information transmitted from the terminal device of the user, the processing unit 120 starts processing.

First, the base material state determination unit 128 of the processing unit 120 determines the state of the base material 102 and determines whether to form the ink receiving layer 104 (step S1). Specifically, the base material state determination unit 128 controls the reading unit 400 to scan the surface of the base material 102 and acquire scan information. Then, the base material state determination unit 128 determines the state of the base material 102 based on the acquired scan information, and determines whether to form the ink receiving layer 104 or not.

When the substrate state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is to be formed” in step S1 (step S1: Yes), the processing unit 120 performs the process of step S2. The subsequent processing is as described above in “1.2. Printing method”.

When the substrate state determination unit 128 determines that “the ink receiving layer 104 is not formed” in step S1 (step S1: No), the processing unit 120 ends the process. The processing unit 120 may end the processing after the processing for transporting the base material 102 determined to “do not form the ink receiving layer 104” to the sheet manufacturing apparatus 500.

2.3. Features of Printing Device The printing device 2000 has, for example, the following features.

The printing apparatus 2000 includes a substrate state determination unit 128 that determines whether to form the ink receiving layer 104 on the substrate 102 according to the state of the substrate 102. Therefore, in the printing apparatus 2000, the ink receiving layer 104 can be formed on the substrate 102 in a well-conditioned (not very dirty) state.

In the present invention, a part of the configuration may be omitted as long as the features and effects described in the present application are obtained, or each embodiment or modification may be combined.

The present invention includes configurations substantially the same as the configurations described in the embodiments (for example, configurations having the same function, method and result, or configurations having the same purpose and effect). Further, the present invention includes a configuration in which a nonessential part of the configuration described in the embodiment is replaced. The present invention also includes configurations that can achieve the same effects as the configurations described in the embodiments or that can achieve the same purpose. Further, the present invention includes a configuration in which a known technology is added to the configuration described in the embodiment.

2, 3, 7, 8 tubes, 9: shooters, 10: supply parts, 12: coarse parts, 14: coarse blades, 16: shooters, 20: defibration parts, 22: introduction ports, 24: discharge ports , 26: blower, 40: sorting unit, 41: drum unit, 42: inlet, 43: housing, 44: outlet, 45: first web forming unit, 46: mesh belt, 47, 47a: tension roller , 48: suction unit, 49: rotating body, 49a: base, 49b: projection, 50: mixing unit, 52: additive supply unit, 54: tube, 56: blower, 60: deposition unit, 61: drum unit, 62: introduction port, 63: housing portion, 70: second web forming portion, 72: mesh belt, 74: stretching roller, 76: suction mechanism, 78: humidity control portion, 78a: suction mechanism, 79: transport portion, 79a ... Mesh belt, 79b ... Stretched low 79c: suction mechanism 80: sheet forming portion 82: pressurizing portion 84: heating portion 85: calendar roller 86: heating roller 90: cutting portion 92: first cutting portion 94: second portion Cutting part 96: Discharge part, 100: Forming part, 102: Base material, 104: Ink receiving layer, 104a: First part, 104b: Second part, 104c: Third part, 105: Ink receiving layer for symbol, 106: recording medium, 108: recorded material, 110: printing information receiving unit, 120: processing unit, 122: printing attribute determining unit, 124: printing ratio deriving unit, 126: receiving layer thickness determining unit, 128: substrate state determination Unit 130 Memory unit 140 Display unit 200 Receiving layer formation unit 210 Base material supply unit 220 Transport unit 222 Transport belt 224 Transport roller 230 Photoconductor 240 Charging unit , 2 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 0 ... Exposure part, 260 ... Development part, 261 ... Cartridge, 262 ... Stirrer, 263 ... Supply roller, 264 ... Development roller, 265 ... Blade, 270 ... Transfer part, 280 ... Fixing part, 290 ... Housing | casing, 300 ... Ink jet Printing unit, 400 ... Reading unit, 500 ... Sheet manufacturing device, 1000, 2000 ... Printing device

Claims (8)

1. A forming unit that forms an ink receiving layer on a substrate based on printing information;
   An inkjet printing unit that performs printing on the ink receiving layer based on the printing information.
2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the forming unit determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the print information.
3. The printing according to claim 2, wherein the forming unit includes a deriving unit that derives a printing rate from the print information, and determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the printing rate. apparatus.
4. 4. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the forming unit has a print attribute determination unit that determines a print attribute from the print information, and determines the thickness of the ink receiving layer based on the print attribute. The printing device described in.
5. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: a determination unit that determines whether the ink receiving layer is to be formed on the base according to the state of the base. Printing device.
6. The formation portion forms a symbol ink receiving layer for printing a symbol including information on the position of the ink receiving layer,
   The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the inkjet printing unit prints the symbol on the symbol ink receiving layer.
7. Forming an ink receiving layer on the substrate based on the printing information;
   Printing on the ink receiving layer based on the printing information.
8. A method of producing a recording medium, comprising the step of forming an ink receiving layer on a substrate based on printing information.

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