Improved Laser Printing Equipment for Ceramics ILPEC

“改进的陶瓷激光打印设备”建立在AHRC资助项目的成果之上：“扩展数字印刷陶瓷表面的潜力”（AH/M004333/1）。新项目将为陶瓷餐具和礼品制造商以及陶瓷设计工作室提供陶瓷激光打印设备的即时增量改进。该项目还将通过确定下一代机器的技术规格，直接满足英国陶瓷公司和相关创意产业的需求，从而起到长期刺激作用。激光打印陶瓷技术的价值在有限的情况下得到了证明：它现在被广泛应用于打印用于装饰餐具、礼品和艺术品的小批量陶瓷转印。最近，英国领先的陶瓷公司开始认识到该技术的真正潜力及其商业颠覆能力。这种新的欣赏部分是由于AHRC资助的皇家艺术学院进行的研究项目。这表明，这项新技术提供了一系列美学和经济机会，这是丝网印刷无法实现的，目前，丝网印刷是制造大量陶瓷转印的主要手段，用于装饰高价值陶瓷，即瓷器和骨瓷。作为一项真正的数字技术，激光印刷还具有将数字设计开发和实际印刷过程完全集成的潜力。该项目的一个意想不到的结果是，项目团队确定了当前激光陶瓷打印技术的两个关键技术障碍。虽然目前可用的激光打印机足以满足办公室打印的要求，但在大批量、多色精确陶瓷转移打印的背景下，这些激光打印机的结构有两个方面被证明是薄弱环节。首先是目前的调色剂输送系统无法处理大量陶瓷转印所需的大量不同颜色的矿物颜料。二是打印机送纸机构的配准精度差。该项目将开发改进的机器部件，以成功打印大量高质量的多色陶瓷转印。新部件和改进的碳粉输送系统和更精确的送纸系统将使用数字建模和3D打印或激光切割迭代开发。这些零件的最终设计将作为开源CAD文件发布在RCA存储库上，允许其他用户使用相同的技术自己创建零件。该项目还将组建一个行业工作组，以超越当前可用的技术，并定义下一代专用陶瓷颜料数字激光打印机的要求。利用工作组的综合专业知识，项目团队将起草一套全面的规范，以满足陶瓷制造商和可能使用这种机器的相关行业的需求。据设想，工作组的存在还将促进公司之间在互补领域的积极伙伴关系，并协助在成员自己的专业网络中传播这两个项目的成果。开放存取的CAD文件将为当前打印机提供即时的材料改进，其规格将为下一代专用数字激光打印机提供信息。这些都可以通过RCA的存储库获得，并通过专门的RCA项目网页进行传播。项目团队还将在贸易展览、会议和陶瓷节上展示项目成果，并在相关贸易和学术出版物上发表文章。

'Improved Laser Printing Equipment for Ceramics' builds on the results of the AHRC funded project: 'Extending the Potential for the Digitally Printed Ceramic Surface' (AH/M004333/1). The new project will offer immediate incremental improvements to the ceramic laser printing equipment currently available to ceramic tableware and giftware manufacturers and ceramic design studios. The project will also act as a longer term stimulus by identifying the technical specifications for the next generation of machines that will be directly dedicated to the needs of UK ceramics companies and related creative industries.The value of laser printed ceramic technology has been proven in limited contexts: it is now widely employed to print small runs of ceramic transfers used to decorate tableware, giftware and artworks. More recently leading UK ceramic companies have started to recognise the technology's true potential and its commercial disruptive capability. This new appreciation is due in part to the AHRC funded research project conducted by the Royal College of Art. This has demonstrated that the new technology offers a range of aesthetic and economic opportunities unattainable with screenprinting, currently the dominant means of creating the large runs of ceramic transfers used to decorate high-value ceramics i.e. porcelain and bone china. As a truly digital technology, laser printing also holds the potential for complete integration of digital design development and the actual print processes. One unanticipated outcome of the project was that the project team identified two key technical barriers to wider take-up of current laser ceramic printing technology. Whilst the laser print machines currently available were adequate for the requirements of office printing, two aspects of these laser printers' construction have proved to be weak links in the context of high volume, multi-colour accurate ceramic transfer printing. First is the inability of the current toner delivery system to handle the large quantities of different coloured mineral pigments needed for large runs of ceramic transfers. The second is the poor registration accuracy of the printer's paper feed mechanism.This project will develop the improved machine parts needed to successfully print high volumes of high-quality multi-colour ceramic transfers. The new parts for and improved toner delivery system and more accurate paper feed system will be iteratively developed using digital modelling and 3D printing or laser cutting. The final designs for these parts will be published as open source CAD files on the RCA Repository, allowing other users to create the parts themselves using the same techniques. The project will also assemble an industry working group to look beyond the currently available technology and define the requirements for a next generation, purpose-built, ceramic pigment digital laser printer. Drawing on the combined expertise of the working group, the project team will draft a comprehensive set of specifications that will respond to the needs of ceramics manufacturers and related industries that could use such machines. It is envisaged that the existence of the working group will also facilitate active partnerships amongst companies in complimentary areas and assist in the dissemination of both projects' outcomes across the members' own professional networks.The open access CAD files will offer immediate material improvements to current printers and the specifications will inform the next generation of specialised digital laser printers. Both these will be available through the RCA's repository and disseminated through a dedicated RCA project webpage. The project team will also present the project's results at trade shows, conferences and ceramic festivals as well as through articles in relevant trade and academic publications.