Patent ID: 6059391
Filing Date: 2000-05-09
Classification: B41J

Abstract:
An ink-jet printer for printing an image on a single piece of fabric material with a plurality of colored inks, the fabric formed from materials selected from the group consisting of cotton, linen, rayon, nylon, silk and wool, the inks comprising an amount of reactive dye between about 0.5 and 1% by weight in an aqueous liquid medium, wherein no organic pretreatment is applied to the fabric, wherein no backing paper is applied to the fabric, and wherein no organic solvent is contained in the inks, the printer comprising:a printing platform having an upper surface;a printing station mounted on the upper surface of the printing platform;a printing palette moveably supported along a pair of tracks parallel to the upper surface of the platform and below the printing station;an ink supply reservoir holding inks of different colors;wherein the printing station comprises an ink-jet printing head having printing nozzles directed toward the palette, the ink-jet printing head being mounted on a printing carriage, the carriage being moveable in a direction perpendicular to the direction of movement of the printing palette, so that when a printing signal, representative of a pattern to be printed, is provided to the printing head, ink of an appropriate color flows to the printing nozzles from the ink supply reservoir and the image to be printed is formed on the fabric material supported on the palette as the palette is moved relative to the printing station,wherein the printing head is mounted to the printing station using a threaded rod and further comprises a height adjustment means for vertically moving the printing head in response to irregular surface features within the fabric material, said height adjustment means comprising eccentric cams at opposing ends of the threaded rod mated into circular openings within a side block mounted on the printing platform and a roller in contact with the fabric and with the threaded rod; and,contact or proximity switches attached to the printing platform and a locator tab attached to palette so that as the palette is moved relative to the printing station, the locator tab activates the switches to locate and verify positioning and movement of the palette.