Patent ID: 11922559
Assignee: nan
Field: Other special machines (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC G  B | IPC B  G

Claim 1:
2. A method for deforming an initial graphics file of an image to compensate and correct for ink and coating density problems that occur when a substrate upon which the image is printed is formed into a three-dimensional part, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a flat polymer web having a grid pattern printed thereon, the grid pattern comprising a uniform spacing of grid markers, each grid marker separated from each other by a space, the polymer web being formed of a thermally transformable polymer;
thermally transforming the polymer web into the three-dimension part to form a target grid;
digitizing the three-dimensional shape of the target grid to form a geometric model as a series of data points that are digital representatives of the grid markers of the target grid;
measuring and recording a transformed spacing for each grid marker in the target grid by comparing the transformed spacing of each grid marker in the target grid to the size of said grid marker in the uniform spacing of the original printed and unformed web used to form the target grid;
representing the transformed spacing for each grid marker as a percentage of colour and applying the resulting percentage of colors to the digitized model as a mapped texture graphic;
creating a two-dimensional distorted mask that visually represents the differences in spacing of the grid markers between the target grid and the uniform spacing from the mapped texture graphic;
applying the mapped texture graphic to the initial graphics file for print so that in the final formed substrate more dark ink is printed where ink thinning is occurring and more light ink is printed where ink compression is occurring, thus compensating for ink-density irregularities.