JP2000198180A - Screen printing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] To provide a screen printing apparatus capable of performing simple and quick printing by selectively using a plurality of types of screen printing plates. A mounting table for a printing medium is provided on an upper surface of a frame.
There is. On top of that, a horizontally movable plate mounting part 5
There is. The plate mounting part 5 has two screen printing plates 100 arranged in the moving direction. The plate mounting section 5 can position any plate at a printing position on the printing medium. A squeegee device 25 is located on the plate at the printing position. The printing substrate is placed on the mounting table. The plate mounting part 5 is slid horizontally to select a plate. Activate the squeegee device. Printing is performed on the printing substrate.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a screen printing apparatus capable of selectively printing a plurality of types of images on a printing material using a plurality of screen plates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A screen printing apparatus for performing printing by moving a squeegee on a screen plate has been conventionally known. The screen printing apparatus has a body on which printing paper and a screen plate are installed, a squeegee blade in contact with the upper surface of the screen plate, and a drive mechanism provided on the body to move the squeegee blade. The printing ink is provided on the screen plate, the printing paper is provided at a predetermined position on the machine body, and the screen plate is placed over the printing paper. Then, the drive mechanism drives the squeegee blade to move on the screen plate.
Screen printing is performed on the printing paper. Only one screen plate is attached to a predetermined position with respect to the body. If a different screen version is to be used, the screen version needs to be replaced each time. An example of such a screen printing apparatus is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-25753.

[0003]

According to the above-described conventional screen printing apparatus, one screen plate is mounted at a fixed mounting position of the body.
For this reason, when it is desired to use two or more types of screen plates at irregular intervals, every time it is necessary to use a different type of screen plate, the screen plate must be replaced, and printing must be performed. It took a complicated procedure and a long time to execute.

An object of the present invention is to provide a screen printing apparatus which can perform simple and quick printing by selectively using a plurality of types of screen printing plates while having a simple configuration.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a screen printing apparatus comprising: a main body (frame); and a mounting portion provided on the main body for mounting a printing material. A plate mounting part (5) to which a table 3) and a plurality of screen printing plates (100) are mounted side by side in a predetermined direction
Guide means (guide shafts 12 and guide portions 13) for guiding the plate mounting portion so as to be reciprocally movable in the predetermined direction above the placing portion, and each screen printing plate of the plate mounting portion is moved forward. Positioning means (first and second engaging portions 17, 1) for positioning at a predetermined printing position above the writing section.
8), and a squeegee (32) reciprocally provided above the screen printing plate at the printing position.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a screen printing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the positioning means comprises a plurality of first printing means provided near each screen printing plate of the plate mounting portion. Engagement part (1
7) and a second engaging portion (1) provided on the main body near the printing position and selectively engaged with the first engaging portion.
8), the plate mounting portion is moved to engage the first engagement portion near the desired screen printing plate with the second engagement portion at the printing position, thereby achieving the desired screen printing plate. The printing plate is positioned with respect to the printing position.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the screen printing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the guide means guides the plate mounting portion so as to be reciprocally movable along the predetermined direction and the plate printing device. A horizontal guide shaft (1) that supports the mounting portion so as to be swingable within a predetermined angle range.
2) and a guide portion (13) slidable on the guide shaft.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the screen printing apparatus according to the third aspect, the plate mounting portion is provided on the main body to set a range in which the plate mounting portion can swing with respect to the guide shaft, It is characterized in that it has a rotating member (roller 23) that is in rolling contact with the plate mounting portion.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a screen printing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the screen printing apparatus is provided for each of the screen printing plates, and each of the screen printing plates is positioned when the screen printing plate is set at the printing position. It is characterized by having a plurality of sensors (21, 22) for outputting signals.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the screen printing apparatus of the first aspect, the plate mounting portion is provided in parallel with the predetermined direction so that a first side of the screen printing plate is aligned with the first direction. A longitudinal substrate (6) for guiding, a guide plate (7) attached to the substrate and guiding a second side adjacent to the first side, attached to the substrate, attached to the substrate; Holding portions (8, 9, 10) for holding three corners of the first and second sides of the screen printing plate. Further, there is provided fixing means (clamping means 11) for detachably fixing at least two of the three corners of the screen printing plate.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the screen printing apparatus according to the sixth aspect, wherein the fixing means is provided at both ends of a first side of the screen printing plate located on the side of the substrate. It is characterized by holding down the part.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. A screen printing plate 100 as a screen printing plate is installed in the screen printing device 1 of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows an example of the structure of the screen printing plate 100. A screen 102 is attached to the lower surface of the rectangular frame 101. The screen 102 is made of silk, polyester, nylon or the like. On the lower surface of the screen 102, a copy base paper 103 on which a print image is perforated is in close contact. Transcript base paper 103
And the screen 102 outside the transcript base paper 103
Is sealed by a sealing material 104 such as a tape. On the upper surface of the screen 102, the printing ink 1
05 is placed. This screen printing plate 100
Is an example of a printing plate applicable to the screen printing apparatus 1 of the present invention. Various screen printing plates produced by a cutting method, a blocking method, a photoengraving method, or the like can be applied to the invention.

The screen printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment aims at printing on a surface of a three-dimensional printing medium. As such a printing substrate, for example, an outer housing of an electric device can be mentioned. The screen printing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment can be used to print an article name, a number, a trademark, and the like on the outer casing.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a screen printing apparatus 1 according to the present invention has a box-shaped frame 2 as a main body. A mounting table 3 is provided at the center of the upper surface of the frame 2 as a mounting portion for mounting a printing material. Although not shown in detail, the mounting table 3 has a position adjustment mechanism for adjusting the position in the horizontal plane and in the vertical direction. Thus, the printing surface of the printing medium can be set at the printing position. The outer casing has a different size and shape for different types of products. Therefore, when the outer casing is mounted on the mounting table 3, the position of the printing surface is different. By operating the position adjusting mechanism, the printing surface of the printing medium can be made to match a predetermined printing position (a predetermined position in the printing plane).

A mounting table 4 is fixed to an edge of the upper surface of the frame 2. On the mounting table 3 side of the mounting table 4, a plate mounting section 5 is movably mounted. The screen printing plate 100 described above can be mounted on the plate mounting portion 5 in two parts.
These two parts for mounting the screen printing plate 100 are hereinafter referred to as a first printing unit A and a second printing unit B.
The plate attaching portion 5 has a long and thin plate-shaped substrate 6. The substrate 6 is provided on the first side 10 of the screen printing plate 100.
Contact 0a and guide it.

The substrate 6 has two guide plates 7 (guide portions).
Are fixed at predetermined intervals so as to be orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the substrate 6. The guide plate 7 is connected to the first side 100
a second side 100 of the screen printing plate 100 adjacent to a
This is guided by touching b. As shown in FIG. 3, the right guide plate 7 is fixed to the right end of the substrate 6 to form a first printing unit A. The left guide plate 7 is fixed to the center left of the substrate 6 to form a second printing unit B.

As shown in FIG. 2, first and second holding portions 8 and 9 are provided on the lower surfaces at both ends of the guide plate 7 for each of the printing portions A and B. Also, for each of the printing units A and B,
The substrate 6 is provided with a third holding unit 10. By these three holding units 8, 9, and 10, each printing unit A, B
Holds three corners of the screen printing plate 100. As shown in FIG. 2, the thickness of the guide plate 7 is
00, which corresponds to the thickness of the frame section 101 of each printing section A,
B on the holding parts 8, 9, and 10 of the screen printing plate 100
Is placed, the upper surface of the screen printing plate 100 and the upper surface of the guide plate 7 substantially coincide with each other. Then, the second close to the substrate 6
In the vicinity of the third holding parts 9 and 10, a releasable clamping means 11 for clamping a corner of the frame 101 of the screen printing plate 100 is provided. According to this clamping means 11, the substrate 6 of the screen printing plate 100
The two corners on the side can be pressed against the holding parts 9, 10 and fixed.

A guide shaft 12 is fixed to the lower surface of the substrate 6 as guide means. The guide shaft 12 is a round bar. On the other hand, the mounting table 4 has two guide portions 13 as guide means for guiding the guide shaft 12 so as to be slidable in the horizontal direction.
Has been fixed. The guide portion 13 in this example is a linear bearing for guiding a round bar. The guide shaft 12 has two guide portions 13
And can reciprocate with the substrate 6 in a predetermined direction in a horizontal plane. Therefore, the plate mounting portion 5 to which the screen printing plate 100 is mounted can reciprocate horizontally above the mounting table 3 with respect to the frame 2 (or the mounting table 3). Also,
The plate mounting part 5 can also rotate about a guide shaft 12 in a vertical plane.

The mounting table 4 is provided with a support table 14 for horizontally supporting the plate mounting section 5.
As shown in FIG. 1, the support base 14 has an oblique stay 15 protruding upward from the mounting base 3 of the frame 2, and a horizontal support plate 16 fixed to an upper end of the stay 15. ing.

Although the plate mounting portion 5 is rotatable about the guide shaft 12, the plate mounting portion 5 is supported by the support 14 so that
It does not rotate below the horizontal state. When moving the plate mounting portion 5 in the horizontal direction, the plate mounting portion 5 is slightly lifted from the support base 14 and moved so as not to be caught on the support plate portion 16.

The positioning means for positioning each screen printing plate 100 of the plate mounting section 5 at a predetermined printing position will be described. This printing position is set on the mounting table 3 described above.
Is set above. A predetermined printing medium is placed on the mounting table 3 appropriately positioned, and the screen printing plate 100 is set at the printing position.
Is almost in contact with the printing surface of the printing medium.

The positioning means is constituted by two types of engaging portions provided and engaged with the plate mounting portion 5 and the support base 14, respectively. First, first engagement portions 17 are provided in the vicinity of the screen printing plates 100 of the plate mounting portion 5, respectively. The first engagement portion 17 is a projection formed on the lower surface of the holding plate 8 of each of the printing portions A and B. The shape of the projection is arbitrary, but in this example, it is a hemispherical shape.

The second engaging portion 18 is formed on the upper surface of the support plate 16 of the support 14 fixed to the main body. That is,
The second engaging portion 18 is near the printing position. 1st engagement part 1
7 is provided for each printing unit, but the second engagement unit 18
Is only one location near the printing position. The plate mounting part 5 is lifted upward about the guide shaft 12 and slid horizontally without contacting the support table 14. Then, a desired screen printing plate 100 is set at a printing position, and is placed on the support base 14. Selected screen printing plate 100
The first engaging portion 17 is engaged with the second engaging portion 18 of the support base 14. Therefore, the selected screen printing plate 100 is set at the printing position, and cannot move in the horizontal direction due to the engagement of the two engagement portions 17 and 18. When it is desired to set another screen printing plate 100 at the printing position, the plate mounting portion 5 is lifted again and moved in the horizontal direction.

The plate mounting section 5 is provided with detection plates 19 and 20 for the first and second printing sections A and B, respectively. The mounting base 4 is provided with two sensors 21 and 22 for respectively detecting the detection objects. When the plate mounting portion 5 is moved horizontally, the sensors 21 and 22 are operated by the detection plates 19 and 20 to output detection signals. When the first printing unit A is set at the printing position, one sensor 21 outputs a detection signal. When the second printing section B is set at the printing position, the other sensor 22 outputs a detection signal. Using this detection signal, it is possible to confirm which printing section has been set to the printing position. For example, by using this signal, the name of the printing section at the printing position can be displayed on the display means, or can be displayed on a signal lamp.

As shown in FIG. 1, the mounting base 4 is provided with a roller 23 as a rotating member. The roller 23 is in contact with the upper surface of the substrate 6 of the plate attaching section 5. When the plate mounting part 5 moves in the horizontal direction, the rollers 2
3 rolls. Further, as shown by an imaginary line in FIG. 1, the roller 23 limits the range in which the plate mounting portion 5 rotates upward about the guide shaft 12.

Above the printing position, a squeegee device 2
5 are provided. The squeegee device 25 is mounted on the mounting base 4 on the frame 2. The structure of the squeegee device 25 will be described. The mounting base 4 is provided with a pair of side plates 26, 26. Side plate 2
A guide shaft 27 is horizontally fixed between the rollers 6 and 26.
A moving portion 28 is provided on the guide shaft 27 so as to be movable. The moving unit 28 is provided with a motor 29 for horizontal movement. The pinion 30 of the drive shaft of the motor 29 is engaged with a horizontal rack 31 fixed to the mount 4 side. Therefore, when the motor 29 is driven, the moving unit 28
Move horizontally along the guide shaft 27. The moving unit 28 is provided with a squeegee 32 and a motor 33 that moves the squeegee 32 up and down. By driving the motor 33, the squeegee 32 can be moved up and down with respect to the moving unit 28, and the squeegee 32 with respect to the screen printing plate 100 can be moved.
Can be adjusted.

A printing process using the screen printing apparatus of this embodiment will be described. The printing medium is set on the mounting table 3.
The height of the mounting table 3 and the position in the horizontal plane are adjusted in advance. Thus, the printing surface of the mounting table 3 is set at the predetermined printing position.

The screen printing plate 10 is attached to the plate mounting portion 5.
0 is attached. The ink 105 is placed on the screen printing plate 100. In this example, two types of plates are used to print two types of images. One version first
Attach it to the printing section A and attach the other plate to the second printing section B. For the first printing unit A, the screen printing plate 100
The state of attachment will be described. 3, the upper side 100a of the screen printing plate 100 is positioned in contact with the substrate 6. Similarly, the right side 100b is positioned in contact with the guide plate 7. That is, the upper right corner of the screen printing plate 100 is positioned at the corner between the substrate 6 and the guide plate 7. At this time, the lower right corner, the upper right corner, and the upper left corner of the screen printing plate 100 are held by the first, second, and third holding units 8, 9, and 10, respectively. And 2 on the substrate 6 side
The two corners are fixed by the clamping means 11.

In order to obtain the mounting state as described above, the screen printing plate 100 is provided at the corner of the substrate 6 and the guide plate 7.
And the three corners are placed on the holding parts 8, 9, 10. Then, the two corners are fixed by the clamp means 11. With such a simple operation, the screen printing plate 100 can be accurately attached to a predetermined printing portion of the plate attaching portion 5.

Next, the screen printing plate 100 to be used is set at a printing position. When the screen printing plate 100 to be used is not at the printing position, the plate mounting portion 5 is lifted and moved horizontally. The desired screen printing plate 100 (printing unit) is set at the printing position, and the plate mounting unit 5 is placed on the support 14. The first engagement part 17 of the selected screen printing plate 100 (printing part) engages with the second engagement part 18 of the support base 14. Therefore, the selected screen printing plate 100 is set at the printing position. Due to the engagement of the two engagement portions 17, 18, the plate mounting portion 5 cannot move in the horizontal direction. When it is desired to set the other screen printing plate 100 at the printing position, the plate mounting portion 5 is lifted again and moved in the horizontal direction.

During screen printing, the perforated image on the screen may be difficult to see with ink. If the same color ink is used for a plurality of plates having different images, it may be difficult to immediately identify the type of the plate during the printing operation. Therefore, the operation of selecting a desired plate from a plurality of plates and setting it to a predetermined printing position may take a considerable amount of time.

In this embodiment, however, the sensor 2 determines which screen printing plate is set at the printing position.
It can be known by using 1, 22. For example, if the type of the plate at the printing position is displayed on the display device using the detection signal of the sensor, the operator can identify the type of the plate at the printing position without error. This improves work efficiency and reduces erroneous printing.

The printing is performed by operating the squeegee device 25. The position (height) of the squeegee 32 is adjusted using the motor 33 for vertical movement. Here, if the motor 29 for horizontal movement is driven, the entire moving part 28 moves horizontally along the guide shaft 27. The squeegee 32 contacts the screen printing plate 100 in an appropriate contact state to squeeze the ink 105. The ink 105 passes through the opening of the screen 102 (transfer base paper 103) and transfers to the printing medium. A desired image is printed on the printing surface of the printing medium. Adjustment of the squeegee pressure is performed by a motor 33 for vertical movement.

In the present embodiment, the plate mounting section 5 has two screen printing plates 100, but three or more screen printing plates may be mounted. In a case where three or more screen printing plates are mounted, three screen printing plates can be arranged side by side along the moving direction of the plate mounting unit.

In this embodiment, printing is performed on a three-dimensional object having a height, but printing may be performed on a sheet-like object. In that case, the height adjusting mechanism of the mounting table is unnecessary.

[0036]

According to the screen printing apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of screen printing plates are mounted on the plate mounting portion and can be moved with respect to the printing position. It is possible to immediately select a suitable plate for printing. For this reason, a simple and quick printing operation can be performed as compared with a conventional apparatus in which a single screen printing plate is attached to one printing position.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a screen printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the screen printing apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the screen printing apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of a screen printing plate used in the screen printing apparatus of the present embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Screen printing apparatus 2 Frame as a main body 3 Mounting table as a mounting part 5 Plate mounting part 6 Substrate 7 Guide plate 8, 9, 10 Holding part 11 Clamping means as fixing means 12 Guide shaft 13 as guiding means 13 Guide means Guide part 17 as a positioning means First engagement part as a positioning means 18 Second engagement part as a positioning means 21 Sensor 22 Sensor 23 Roller as a rotating member 25 Squeegee device 32 Squeegee 100 Screen printing plate 105 Ink

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A main body, a mounting portion provided on the main body for mounting an object to be printed, a plate mounting portion on which a plurality of screen printing plates are mounted side by side in a predetermined direction, and a front side of the plate mounting portion. Guide means for guiding the reciprocating movement along the predetermined direction above the placing section, positioning means for positioning each screen printing plate of the plate mounting section at a predetermined printing position above the placing section, And a squeegee reciprocally provided above the screen printing plate at the printing position. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the positioning unit includes a plurality of first engagement portions provided near each screen printing plate of the plate mounting portion, and the first engagement portion provided on the main body near the printing position. A second engaging portion selectively engaging the engaging portion, and moving the plate attaching portion to move the first engaging portion near a desired screen printing plate to the first position at the printing position. The screen printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the desired screen printing plate is positioned with respect to the printing position by engaging with the two engaging portions. 3. A horizontal guide shaft, wherein the guide means guides the plate mounting portion in a reciprocable manner along the predetermined direction and supports the plate mounting portion so as to be swingable within a predetermined angle range, The screen printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a guide portion slidable on the guide shaft. 4. The plate mounting portion is provided on the main body for setting a range in which the plate mounting portion can swing with respect to the guide shaft,
The screen printing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a rotating member rotatably contacting the plate mounting portion. 5. It is provided for each said screen printing plate,
The screen printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of sensors that output position signals when the screen printing plate is set at the printing position. 6. A long-sized substrate provided in parallel with the predetermined direction and guiding a first side of the screen printing plate, wherein the plate mounting portion is mounted on the substrate, and is provided on the first side. Adjacent second
And a holding portion that holds three corners of the first and second sides of the screen printing plate, and further includes a holding plate that holds three corners of the screen printing plate. 2. The screen printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising fixing means for detachably fixing at least two corners. 7. The screen printing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the fixing means presses corners at both ends of a first side of the screen printing plate located on the side of the substrate.