Patent ID: 6267052
Filing Date: 2001-07-31
Classification: B41M

Abstract:
A method of making a printed panel having a design printed thereon, said design comprising a durable image material design color layer, said method comprising:printing a print pattern onto a substantially imperforate substrate to form a patterned substrate, said print pattern subdividing said imperforate substrate into printed areas and non-printed areas; andpresenting a design-generating medium to said patterned substrate to form an imaged substrate without regard to whether said design-generating medium is being presented to said printed areas or to said non-printed areas of said patterned substrate;wherein said design-generating medium causes said durable image material design color layer to be formed only on the printed areas of said patterned substrate but not on the non-printed areas of said patterned substrate, said durable image material design color layer being formed by a digital printing method and not extending over the whole of the printed areas of the print pattern; andwherein said design-generating medium causes either (i) no image material to be formed on the non-printed areas of said patterned substrate or (ii) only non-durable image material to be formed on the non-printed areas of said patterned substrate, said non-durable image material being defined as material which can be substantially removed from the non-printed areas of said patterned substrate by the application of water at a pressure of 200 psi (14 kg/cm.sup.2) at a flow rate of 10 liters per minute.