The invention relates to a process for printing a substrate (7) containing curved surface sections by using an ink printing assembly with a movable print head (8) comprising an ink carrier (1) having an ink layer, the ink layer being irradiated regionally in such a way that heat bulges are formed in the ink layer which cause the splitting of ink droplets so that the ink printing assembly is working as nozzle-less droplet ejector for ejecting droplets of ink from the ink layer, where the distance between the print head (8) and the curved sections of the substrate (7) is adjusted by moving the print head relative to the substrate by providing the print head with three degrees of freedom in translation, allowing horizontal (Tx), vertical (Tg) and in depth (Tz) translations.

An automatic desktop personalization device, for security booklet documents, includes a camera, an inkjet printing module, a laser marking module, a chip encoding module, and a transport mechanism. The inkjet printing module includes a printing head and is configured to print within a printing zone. The laser marking module is configured to mark within a marking zone. The transport mechanism is configured to automatically transport a security booklet document along a Y-axis linear direction, from an entrance to an exit, through printing positions and a marking position. The entrance and the exit are the same. The printing head is movable alongside an X-axis linear direction that is perpendicular to the Y-axis linear direction. The inkjet printing module includes the transport mechanism. The laser marking head is adjacent an inkjet printing bridge, such that the marking zone and the printing zone are at least partly combined.

A label modification unit may receive a label modification input associated with an image. The label modification unit may process, using an image filtering, the label modification input to convert the image to a bitmap for raster printing the image via a laser printhead. The label modification unit may determine, based on the bitmap, an array of power factors for a light beam that is configured to be emitted by a laser of the laser printhead and raster print the image. The label modification unit may control the laser of the laser printhead in association with raster printing the image on a rewriteable label according to the array of power factors.

According to some examples in the disclosure, a method may comprise providing a first stream of discrete volumes of material; and directing a pulsed laser beam at a first discrete volume of material in the first stream of discrete volumes of material so as to interact with the first discrete volume of material and thereby displace the first discrete volume away from the first stream. An apparatus and a system are also disclosed.

Apparatus and method for using a line laser (LL) to quickly mark a substrate or media by utilizing a laser additive on/within the substrate/media, which greatly reduces the power requirement for marking the substrate/media. The combination of the LL wide swath (>305 mm) and the improved media/surface sensitivity to laser wavelength allows the LL marking system to achieve faster marking than other systems. The LL is mounted over a transport which transports the sensitized substrate/media past the LL for marking. The desired image is projected from the LL line by line in synch with the moving media and once the media passes the beam path of the LL, marking is complete. In this case, the media has been physically-altered via the heat generated by the LL interacting with the photosensitized media and is permanent. A second method would use a photosensitizing agent coated on top of the media to be marked.

An example printing apparatus is illustrated. The printing apparatus includes a print engine assembly. The print engine assembly further includes a bottom chassis portion. The print engine assembly also includes a top chassis portion. The print engine assembly also includes a print head positioned within the top chassis portion. The print engine assembly also includes a plurality of offset pins coupled to the print head, where the plurality of offset pins abuts the bottom chassis portion, and where the plurality of offset pins enables the print head to be positioned at a predetermined distance from the bottom chassis portion.

At least one silicone layer is applied to a substrate by a method employing laser transfer printing. The method is suitable for producing sensors, actuators and other EAP layer systems. The silicone layer in these systems may serve as an electrically conducting electrode layer or as a dielectric layer. The method may be configured to be continuous and may be combined with various other coating technologies.

A device for laser-induced marking of an article having a marking surface comprising a non-flat portion to be marked, the device comprising: a first laser unit for emitting and scanning first laser light over a first transfer area; a first foil unit for providing a first laser transfer foil at the first transfer area; a carrier for providing the article at the first transfer area, the article having a marking surface comprising a non-flat surface area; a first hard adaptor that is transparent for the first laser light, the first hard adapter having a first contacting surface that is essentially a negative of the non-flat surface area of the marking surface; and a contacting unit for bringing the first laser transfer foil in contact with the marking surface by causing the first contacting surface to move one of the first laser transfer foil and the marking surface towards one another.

In a method and system for laser induced forward transfer (LIFT), energy (E1,E2) is deposited according to a non-Gaussian intensity profile (Ixy) which is spatially tuned across an interface (11xy) of the donor material (11m) to cause the donor material (11m) to be ejected from the donor substrate as an extended jet (Je) momentarily bridging the transfer distance (Zt) between the donor substrate (11) and the acceptor substrate (12) during a transfer period (Tt). A locally increased intensity spike (Is) at a center of the intensity profile (Ixy) causes a relatively thick jet (J1) of donor material to branch into a relatively thin jet (J2) at a branching position (J12) between the donor substrate (11) and acceptor substrate (12). The thick jet (J1) allows a relatively large transfer (Zt) distance while the thin jet (J2) deposits a relatively small droplet (Jd) of donor material (11m).

The invention relates to an inkless printing method. The invention also relates to an inkless printing device, in particular configured to perform at least a part of the method according to the invention. The invention furthermore relates to a substrate provided with at least one printed marking realised by applying the method according to the invention and/or the device according to the invention.