Patent ID: 7290874
Filing Date: 2007-11-06
Classification: B41J,B41M,D06P

Abstract:
1. A method of ink jet printing UV curable ink on a substrate that may be formed of a heat sensitive rigid or other material, the method comprising: moving a printhead carriage having an ink jet printhead thereon approximately parallel to a substrate; jetting ink from the printhead across a predetermined distance onto the surface of a substrate; providing at least one cold UV lamp on the carriage oriented to direct UV energy onto the surface of the substrate sufficiently close to where ink is being jetted onto the surface so as to substantially cure dots of the jetted ink on the surface; and the cold UV lamp being effective to impinge sufficient UV energy on the jetted ink to substantially cure the jetted ink without impinging sufficient radiation of other wavelengths that would heat the substrate so as to deform it to materially alter the predetermined distance between the substrate and the printhead while the substrate is under the printhead; and applying a vacuum to the substrate to help maintain the predetermined distance between the substrate and the printhead.