JPH0970948A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To accurately and synchronously move a printing drum and a truck by respectively driving the printing drum and the truck by exclusive drive devices and detecting the positions of the printing drum and the truck and detecting the rotary movement of them and separately controlling the respective drive devices. SOLUTION: A truck 3 is reciprocally driven along guide rails 2, 2 in such a state that a base surface plate 7 and a plate surface plate 9 are placed on the truck 3 by driving a truck motor 4. A position detector 10 detecting the positions of both of the base surface plate 7 and a plate surface plate 9 is provided to the region not disturbing the up and down movement of both surface plates 7, 9. A printing drum 12 is connected to a uniaxial servo motor 14 to be rotationally driven. A position detector 11 detecting the rotary position of the printing drum is provided to the position not disturbing the rotation of the printing drum 12 and a blanket 15. The drive devices 10, 11 and the detectors 10, 11 are separately controlled by a main control device 19.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing apparatus for performing so-called offset printing on a glass substrate which is an object to be printed, for manufacturing a color filter for liquid crystal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, there is a printing apparatus for printing a filter material (ink) on a glass substrate in a predetermined pattern in order to manufacture a liquid crystal color filter. This type of printing apparatus generally includes a cylindrical printing drum, and a blanket is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the printing drum.
A substrate surface plate and a plate surface plate are mounted at a predetermined distance from each other on a carriage that is reciprocally driven in the horizontal direction.

A table up-and-down mechanism is provided between the board surface plate and the plate surface plate and the carriage, respectively, and in the horizontal direction of the carriage in timing with the printing drum connected to the rotary drive source. Is set, the vertical position of the substrate surface plate and the plate surface plate, and the rotational position of the printing drum are set.

A glass substrate, which is an object to be printed, is placed on the substrate surface plate, and a plate is placed on the plate surface plate.
Ink is supplied to this plate from an ink supply unit. Ink is transferred from the plate to the blanket by the plate surface plate rising to the printing drum and rolling contact with the printing drum. Then, the dolly moves, the substrate surface plate is raised at the same timing, and the ink is transferred to the glass substrate.
That is, the printing pattern of the plate is transferred to the glass substrate.

Of particular importance in such printing devices is the positioning of the plate and glass substrate relative to the printing drum. That is, even if the printing drum transfers the printing pattern from the plate, if there is any positional deviation when transferring this pattern to the glass substrate, highly accurate printing cannot be performed.

As an element for such positioning,
The relative relationship between the rotational speed of the printing drum and the moving speed of the carriage that supports the substrate surface plate and the plate surface plate must always be set accurately. That is, the printing drum and the carriage must be rotated and moved in perfect synchronization, and if there is a deviation in synchronization, the printing pattern is distorted and accurate printing cannot be performed.

[0007]

Conventionally, as a means for synchronizing the rotation of a printing drum and the movement of a carriage, a pinion gear is provided on the drum side and a rack is provided on the carriage side so as to mesh with each other. By connecting either one of the pinion gear and the rack to the drive source, they can be synchronized with each other.

However, the meshing state of the above-mentioned pinion gear and the rack is largely governed by the processing accuracy of these parts. Even if only one of them is inaccurate, a periodic error will occur during operation.

On the other hand, even if a high processing accuracy is obtained, the meshing portion of each component is worn over a long period of use, and wear debris (dust) is generated. Since it is a site that is difficult to maintain, wear debris is likely to accumulate as it is, smooth movement may be hindered, and reliable synchronization may not be obtained.

Further, there is a problem in that, once the driving state is entered, it is impossible to correct the processing error of the printing drum, the substrate surface plate and the plate surface plate. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to drive the printing drum and the carriage by dedicated drive devices, and to position and rotate the printing drum and the carriage. By detecting movement and separately controlling each drive device, the printing drum and carriage can be moved accurately in synchronization, and a printing device that can achieve high synchronization and improve printing accuracy is provided. To do.

[0011]

In order to satisfy such an object, a printing apparatus according to the present invention comprises, as claimed in claim 1, an apparatus main body and a carriage supported by the apparatus main body so as to be horizontally reciprocally movable. , A platen plate which is placed on the carriage at a predetermined interval from each other and supports a platen for supporting an object to be printed and a plate on which a printing pattern is provided, and ink is supplied to the plate on the platen plate. And a blanket is wound around the peripheral surface of the ink supply unit that supplies the print pattern evenly.
A printing drum which is rotatably supported on a platen and a plate which are reciprocally driven in the horizontal direction, and which is brought into contact with the plate to transfer the ink supplied thereto and to transfer it to a material to be printed on the substrate. A carriage driving device for reciprocating the carriage, a drum driving device for rotating the printing drum, a position and a moving state of the carriage and the printing drum, and the carriage driving device and the drum driving. It is characterized in that it comprises drive means for controlling the apparatus, and a control means for monitoring and correcting the synchronization deviation between the carriage and the printing drum.

A second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that the printed material according to the first aspect is a glass substrate. According to the first and second aspects of the invention, the control means monitors the positions and movement states of the carriage and the printing drum, and controls the carriage drive device and the drum drive device to drive the carriage. Since the synchronization deviation between the printing drum and the printing drum is monitored and corrected, the printing drum and the carriage can be constantly synchronized.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, this printing apparatus has a base 1 which is an apparatus main body having a U-shaped cross section that opens upward.
Is provided. On the upper surface of the bottom wall of the base 1, the base 1
Guide rails 2 and 2 are provided along the longitudinal direction.

Then, on the guide rails 2 and 2,
Similarly, a dolly 3 having a U-shaped cross section that opens upward is provided slidably. The dolly 3 has a single-axis servo motor (hereinafter, referred to as a dolly motor) which is a dolly driving device.
4 are connected.

On one end of the carriage 3 in the longitudinal direction, a substrate surface plate 7 for holding a glass substrate 6 which is an object to be printed is provided on the upper surface. On the other end of the carriage 3, a plate surface plate 9 for holding a plate 8 on which a predetermined printing pattern is engraved is held.

Therefore, by driving the trolley motor 4, the trolley 3 can be reciprocally driven along the guide rails 2 and 2 with the board surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 mounted thereon. ing.

The board surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 are provided on the carriage 3 via a table up-and-down mechanism not shown here, and can be moved up and down separately.

On one side of the base 1, the carriage 3, the substrate surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 are moved, and the substrate surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 are moved.
A position detecting device 10 for detecting the positions of the substrate surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 is provided at a position that does not interfere with the vertical movement of the plate surface plate 7.

On the other hand, drum supporting columns 13, 13 for rotatably supporting a printing drum 12 to be described later are provided upright on the outer sides of both side surfaces of the longitudinal portion of the base 1. The printing drum 12 is provided on the upper end portion of the drum support column 13.
Is installed with its axis horizontal.

This printing drum 12 has one support column 1
A single-axis servomotor (hereinafter, referred to as a drum motor) 14 which is a drum driving device provided in No. 3 is connected to be rotationally driven. The printing drum 12 comes into contact with and separates from the glass substrate 6 and the plate 8 depending on the vertical positions of the substrate surface plate 7 and the plate surface plate 9 driven by a table up-and-down mechanism (not shown).

A sheet-like blanket 15 is wound around the outer peripheral surface of the printing drum 12 over about half in the circumferential direction. Both ends of the blanket 15 in the winding direction are held by a tensioning mechanism 16 provided on the printing drum 12, and the blanket 15 is tensioned to be in close contact with the outer peripheral surface of the printing drum.

A position detection device 11 for detecting the rotational position of the printing drum 12 is provided on the inner surface of one of the support columns 13 at a position where the rotation of the printing drum 12 and the blanket 15 is not hindered. .

An ink supply unit 17 is provided at the other end of the base 1 in the longitudinal direction. This ink supply unit 17
Is the ink supply cylinder 17a and the doctor blade 1.
7b and squeegee 17c.

The ink supply cylinder 17a is filled with ink required for printing and is supplied to the plate 8 on the platen 9. The doctor blade 17b has a lower end edge that can be brought into and out of contact with the plate 8, and at least a contact portion is made of a sharp metal piece. The squeegee 17c is made of a synthetic resin material plate whose lower end has a narrow gap with the plate 8.

The driving devices 4, 14 and the like for all the components described above, the detection devices 10, 11 and the like are electrically connected to and housed in the operation panel 18 provided on the front side surface of the base 1. The main controller 19 performs the control as described later.

Note that FIG. 2 schematically shows only the structure substantially required for offset printing, and FIGS. 3A to 3D show operation charts of offset printing. Offset printing will be described below with reference to FIG.

First, the plate 8 placed on the platen 9 is opposed to the ink supply unit 17, the carriage 3 is stopped, and ink is supplied to the plate from the ink supply cylinder 17a. Next, the lower edge of the doctor blade 17b is brought into contact with the plate 8 and the carriage motor 4 is driven to move the carriage 3.

The ink supplied onto the plate 8 forms a so-called doctor link shown in FIG. 3A, which is filled in the printing pattern of the plate. The ink scraped by the doctor blade 17b is concentrated on one side of the plate 8.

The carriage 3 continues to move, and the plate 8 comes into contact with the blanket 15 wound around the printing drum 12. As shown in FIG. 3 (B), the printing drum 12 is rotated at a timing, and the rotation of the drum and the movement of the carriage 3 are controlled in synchronization with each other as described later.

By the contact of the blanket 15 with the plate 8, the ink filled in the printing pattern of the plate is transferred to the blanket as it is. From version 8 to blanket 15,
After all the ink in the print pattern has been transferred, FIG. 3 (C)
The plate is separated from the printing drum 12 as shown in FIG. The carriage 3 continues to move, and the squeegee 17c faces the plate 8. Since the lower end edge of the squeegee 17c has a narrow gap with the plate 8, the ink concentrated on one side of the plate until then is leveled again on the plate with a uniform thickness.

As shown in FIG. 3D, the printing drum 1
Where the edge of the glass substrate 6 faces the lower part of 2,
The blanket 15 wound with the printing drum and having the ink transferred thereto comes into contact with the glass substrate.

The rotation of the printing drum 12 and the movement of the carriage 3 are controlled so as to be synchronized with each other, and the so-called ink transfer, in which the print pattern is transferred to the glass substrate 6, is completed. Then, by replacing the glass substrate 6 and repeating the same operation, printing is sequentially and continuously performed.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 4, the main control unit 19 housed in the operation panel 18 includes the printing drum 12, the carriage 3, the substrate surface plate 7, the glass substrate 6, and the plate surface plate 9. , Processing error data of components such as the plate 8 are input.

The control unit 19 sends the synchronous drive command data based on these data to the one-axis motor drive control unit 20.
Send to A, 20B. One drive control device 20A is provided for a truck and sends a control signal to the truck motor 4 that is the truck driving device. The other drive control device 20B
Is provided for the printing drum 12 and sends a control signal to the drum motor 14 which is the printing drum driving device.

At the same time, the respective position detecting devices 10 and 11 detect the position of the carriage 3 or the printing drum 12 to the respective drive control devices 20A and 20B and send a signal thereof.
Each of the drive control devices 20A and 20B sends a control signal to the truck motor 4 or the drum motor 14 using these position detection signals as a determination factor.

As a result, the synchronization deviation between the carriage 3 and the printing drum 12 can be mutually monitored, and when the deviation occurs, the correction is immediately corrected. Printing drum 12
On the other hand, the positions of the plate 8 and the glass substrate 6 are always set accurately, and the printing pattern provided on the plate is transferred to the glass substrate 6 as it is without misalignment, which enables highly accurate offset printing.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but various configurations can be adopted without departing from the scope of the invention, and similar effects can be obtained. is there.

[0038]

As described above, according to the first and second aspects of the present invention, the carriage driving device and the drum driving device are provided, and the positions and movement states of the carriage and the printing drum are monitored, Since the drive control of each drive unit is performed and the synchronization deviation between the carriage and the printing drum is monitored and corrected,
The printing drum and the carriage can be accurately driven in synchronization with each other, high synchronization can be obtained, the printing accuracy with respect to the glass substrate as the printing target can be improved, and the workability of printing is improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of an offset printing machine showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the printing mechanism unit according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3A to FIG. 3D are print operation charts of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a synchronization control block diagram of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Device main body (base), 3 ... trolley, 6 ... Printed material (glass substrate), 7 ... Plate, 8 ... Plate, 9 ... Plate plate, 17 ... Ink supply part, 12 ... Printing drum, 4 ... truck drive device (trolley motor), 14 ... drum drive device (drum motor), 19 ... main control device.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yoshinori Murakami 1-7 Nisshin-cho, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Toshiba Electronics Engineering Co., Ltd. 1 Within Toshiba Electronics Engineering Co., Ltd.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An apparatus main body, a carriage supported by the apparatus main body so as to be capable of reciprocating in a horizontal direction, and a surface plate and a printing pattern which are mounted on the carriage at predetermined intervals and support an object to be printed. , A plate surface plate that supports the plate, an ink supply unit that supplies ink to the plate on the plate surface plate and that evenly supplies a printing pattern, and a blanket is wound around the peripheral surface, For printing, which is rotatably supported with respect to the platen and the plate which are reciprocally driven in the horizontal direction, transfers the ink supplied thereto by rolling contact with the plate, and transfers the ink to a printing object on the platen. A carriage driving device that includes a drum and that reciprocally drives the carriage, a drum driving device that rotationally drives the printing drum, a position and a moving state of the carriage and the printing drum, and monitor the carriage driving device. And drum drive A printing apparatus comprising: a drive unit for controlling the drive unit, and a control unit for monitoring and correcting a synchronization deviation between the carriage and the printing drum. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the material to be printed is a glass substrate.