An apparatus and methods for using coatings for metal applications are disclosed. According to one embodiment, an article comprises a cured polymeric film having a first reaction product of a cationic photoinitiator and a compound suitable for cationic polymerization. The article has a second reaction product of a free-radical photoinitiator and a compound suitable for free-radical polymerization. The article has a metal substrate, wherein the cured polymeric film coats the metal substrate.

In one embodiment, a method of forming an extruded board includes mixing a resin and a foaming agent, melting the mixed resin and foaming agent to form a uniformly colored extrudate, differentially expanding voids formed from the foaming agent within the uniformly colored extrudate by passing the uniformly colored extrudate through a breaker plate, forming a board with the differentially expanded voids and uniformly colored extrudate, and forming lightened portions on an outermost surface of the formed board.

The decorative decal assembly (20) is configured to be secured within a recessed surface (26) of a weight plate (18) and includes an adhesive layer (36), a printable surface (44) of an adjacent ink protective printing layer (42), and one or more print decals (48) secured to the printable surface (44) and between an upper support surface (40) of the adhesive layer (36) and the ink protective layer (42). The recessed surface (26) defines a display area (56) surrounded on all sides by an expansion zone (58) extending between the display area (56) and the shoulders (30, 32) of the weight plate (18) that define the recessed surface (26) to permit limited expansion of perimeter edges (62A, 62B) of the decal assembly (20) into the expansion zone (58) without contacting the shoulders (30, 32) whenever the weight plate (18) experiences a bounce shock.

A method of forming a digital print on a surface by applying powder of dry ink including colourants on the surface, bonding a part of the dry ink powder to the surface by a digital heating print head such that the digital print is formed by the bonded dry ink colourants and removing non-bonded dry ink from the surface.

A method of forming a digital print on a surface by applying powder of dry ink including colourants on the surface, bonding a part of the dry ink powder to the surface by a digital heating print head such that the digital print is formed by the bonded dry ink colourants and removing non-bonded dry ink from the surface.

A fabrication process and apparatus for producing three-dimensional objects by depositing a first polymer layer, printing a first ink layer on to the first polymer layer, depositing a second polymer layer on to the first ink layer, and printing a second ink layer on to the second polymer layer. The deposition and printing steps may be repeated until a three-dimensional object is formed. The inks used to form at least one of the first and second ink layers may include dyes or pigments so that the three-dimensional object may be a colored three-dimensional object.

A method and equipment to form a digital print by applying dry colourants on a surface of a panel, bonding a part of the colourants with a binder and removing the non-bonded colourants from the surface. The method of forming a digital print on a surface of a panel includes displacing the panel under a digital drop application head, applying a liquid binder with the digital drop application head on the surface; applying colourants on the liquid binder and the surface; bonding a part of the colourants to the surface with the liquid binder; removing non-bonded colourants from the surface such that a digital print is formed by the bonded colourants; and applying heat and pressure on the panel, the surface and the bonded colorants such that the colourants are permanently bonded to the surface.

Provided is a multilayer coating film including a metallic base coating film and a transparent colored coating film that contains a blue pigment and that is disposed on the metallic base coating film, wherein the value of hue angle h in an L*C*h color space diagram of the multilayer coating film is within the range of 225° to 300°, and when X=C*45/L*45 and Y=[(L*15).sup.2+(C*15).sup.2)].sup.1/2+[(L*25).sup.2+(C*25).sup.2)].sup.1/2, X is 2 to 20 and Y is 50 to 250, provided that C*15, C*25, and C*45 each represent a chroma of the multilayer coating film calculated from a spectral reflectance of light illuminated at an incident angle of 45° with respect to the multilayer coating film and received at angles of 15°, 25°, and 45° deviated from specular reflection light, and that L*15, L*25, and L*45 each represent a lightness of the multilayer coating film calculated from a spectral reflectance of light illuminated at an incident angle of 45° with respect to the multilayer coating film and received at angles of 15°, 25° and 45° deviated from specular reflection light.

Here is described a method of printing on a plastic substrate, the method comprising: providing an electrostatic ink composition comprising a carrier liquid, and particles comprising a resin, and a slip agent dispersed in the carrier liquid; forming a latent electrostatic image on a surface; contacting the surface with the electrostatic ink composition, such that at least some of the particles and the slip agent are transferred to the surface to form a developed toner image on the surface; and transferring the toner image to the plastic substrate. Electrostatic ink compositions and plastic substrates are also disclosed.

A method of forming a digital embossing on a surface by bonding hard press particles to a carrier. A liquid binder pattern is applied on the carrier by a digital drop application head. Hard press particles are applied on the carrier and the binder pattern such that some hard press particles are bonded to the carrier by the liquid pattern and non-bonded press particles are removed. The carrier with the bonded hard press particles is pressed to the surface and an embossing is formed when the carrier with the hard press particles is removed.