It takes extensive consideration into the equipment, process, and medium to select the best graphical printing technology for you. Pad printing and screen printing are two main printing methods used today.When you transfer designs to different kinds of surfaces, it’s crucial to understand the disadvantages and advantages of pad printing and screen printing.
PAD PRINTING OVERVIEW
Pad printing also named tampo printing or tampography, is a kind of gravure printing in which a silicon pad transfers a 2-D image on laser etched printing plate to a 3-D object. The first instance of pad printing in industry can be traced back to Swiss watchmakers who imprinted watch faces with the process. Now, pad printing has become a modern process, with specialized machine named a pad printing machine stamping an image or design onto a 3-D object. Pad printing machine consists of following key pad printing supplies: image plate, printing ink, silicone printing pad and rubber. Decided by the project, pad printing systems vary in size and shape but all utilize the same concept. Like using rubber stamp on paper, pad printing transfers printing ink from the pad onto a 3-D object.
6 Steps for Pad Printing
1단계:패드 인쇄판의 에칭된 아트웍 영역에 닫힌 잉크 컵을 올려 이미지를 덮고 잉크를 채웁니다. 이를 홈 위치라고 합니다.
Step 2: Move the closed ink cup away from the etched artwork area and take all excessive pad printer ink and expose the etched image filled with ink. As soon as the top layer of pad printer ink is exposed to air, it becomes tacky. By this way, the pad printer ink adheres to the pad and then to the printed product.
Step 3:Press the pad down onto the plate immediately. The compressed pad pushed the air outward and lift the ink from the etched artwork area on the pad.
Step 4:Pick up the tacky film in the etched artwork area on the pad when the pad lifts away. A little ink stays in the pad print plate.
Step 5:The ink cup moves covering the etched artwork area of the plate when the pad moves forward. Preparing for the next cycle, the ink cup refill in the etched artwork image of the transfer plate.
Step 6: The pad compresses the product to transfer the ink layer from the print pad plate to the surface of products. Later, the pad lifts the substrate and goes back to the normal position.
APPLICATIONS FOR PAD PRINTING
패드 인쇄기는 다양한 산업 분야에서 까다로운 제품을 인쇄하는 데 사용됩니다. Printing International은 특히 다음과 같은 특정 제품 그룹에 집중하고 있습니다:
- 약국의 젤 캡슐 및 코팅 정제용 수동 패드 프린터
- 화장품에 립스틱 홀더, 향수병 장식하기
- 스포츠웨어 인쇄용 수동 패드 프린터
- 음료 포장
- 껌과 코팅 과자를 인쇄하는 수동 패드 인쇄기
- 의료 산업에서 의료 기기의 인쇄 부품
또한 수동 패드 인쇄기와 자동 패드 인쇄기는 접착제, 윤활제, 향료, 전도성 잉크, 영양 첨가제 및 천연 염료와 같은 전이 기능의 재료에도 사용할 수 있습니다.
01. Adhesive
많은 제조업체는 접착제를 도포하는 작업을 노동 집약적이고 시간 낭비적인 공정이라고 생각합니다. 반투명하거나 작은 부품은 정밀한 도포가 필요하기 때문에 수익성이 떨어지는 경우가 많습니다. 청소와 폐기물을 고려할 때 사람들은 접착제 도포에 대한 대안을 찾기 시작했습니다. 한 가지 방법인 접착 필름 역시 폐기물을 발생시킵니다. 이상적인 솔루션은 점성이 있는 액체를 정밀하게 증착할 수 있는 패드 인쇄기입니다. 닫힌 잉크 컵은 접착제가 마르는 것을 막아주고, 판을 정확한 선의 두께와 원하는 깊이로 에칭할 수 있습니다.
Auromatik이 조정한 패드는 매번 같은 위치에 정확히 같은 양의 접착제를 증착합니다. 휴대폰 렌즈와 같은 완성된 부품은 자동화 공정의 일부로, 가장자리에 접착제가 도포된 상태에서 맞춤형 기계 셔틀 고정 장치에 부품을 제 위치에 고정할 수 있습니다. 그런 다음 렌즈는 로봇 팔로 옮겨져 접착된 부분에 휴대폰을 세팅합니다. 추가 자동화를 통해 접합된 부품을 다른 컨베이어로 운반하여 건조 터널을 통과하거나 조립 라인으로 내보낼 수 있습니다. 이 공정에서는 열 경화 또는 자외선 접착제를 사용할 수 있으므로 친수성이나 수성이 아닌 용제 기반 접착제도 많이 사용할 수 있습니다.
02.Lubricant
윤활유는 패드 인쇄기의 또 다른 손이 많이 가고 까다로운 활용 분야입니다. 또한 이 분야에서는 정밀도가 까다롭고 폐기물이 지저분하고 비용이 많이 듭니다. 패드 인쇄기는 건식 또는 전동식 필름 윤활제와 같은 다른 새로운 재료를 통합하여 제조 공정을 다시 발명하지 않고도 안정적이고 간단한 기계 솔루션을 제공합니다.
그리스, 오일 또는 기타 마찰력을 감소시키는 물질이 있더라도 실리콘 패드에 달라붙어 다른 기판으로 변경할 수만 있다면 패드 프린팅 장비로 인쇄할 수 있습니다. 수동 패드 프린팅 기계는 베어링, 힌지, 하우징 및 나사산 부품과 같은 3D 품목에 적합하기 때문에 유사한 부품을 생산하는 모든 생산 라인에서 이 기술을 공정에 통합할 수 있습니다. 특히 잘못된 도포로 인해 인접 메커니즘에 치명적인 고장이 발생한 경우 수동 패드 인쇄기 또는 자동 패드 인쇄기는 미세한 선, 구불구불한 선, 미세한 점 또는 각도 제한과 같은 정밀한 윤활제 도포를 실현할 수 있습니다.
03.Flavor, natural dye, and nutritional additive
수동 패드 인쇄기 또는 자동 패드 인쇄기를 사용하여 맛을 내는 것도 이제 막 그 잠재력을 탐구하기 시작한 또 다른 분야입니다. 패드 인쇄기는 천연 염료로 장식하는 첨단 기술 이상의 방법으로, 수용 식품의 표면에 영양 첨가물이나 향을 적용 할 수도 있습니다. 수동 또는 자동 패드 인쇄기의 패드는 경도가 다르므로 최종 사용자는 기판 강도에 따라 패드 "경도계"를 선택할 수 있습니다. 예를 들어 제산제에 향료를 인쇄하려면 정제를 부수려면 부드러운 패드가 필요하고, 껌은 180° 감쌀 수 있는 단단한 패드가 필요합니다.
04. Conductive ink
전도성 잉크 기술의 발전으로 터치 키 애플리케이션, 회로 기판 등에 사용되는 패드 인쇄기가 가능해졌습니다. 납땜 와이어, 금도금, 구리 음각 등을 생략하는 등 재료와 공정 비용을 절감할 수 있습니다. 예를 들어, 금도금을 고가의 재료보다 견고하고 구리보다 전기 저항이 낮은 탄소 잉크로 대체할 수 있습니다. 점점 더 많은 경제 부문에서 전 세계 시장에서 배송 및 재고를 빠르게 간소화하는 전도성 잉크를 REFID에 활용하고 있습니다.
트랜지스터, 전극, 센서, 안테나 등과 같은 전도성 잉크의 다른 응용 분야도 있습니다. 또한 패드 인쇄기는 오목하거나 곡면 또는 고르지 않은 표면에도 인쇄할 수 있어 기존의 평판 방식에 비해 소재를 배치하는 데 유리합니다. 하지만 인쇄용 접착제와 마찬가지로 전도성 잉크는 용매 기반이어야 합니다. 너무 친수성이거나 너무 수성인 재료는 패드 인쇄로 효과적으로 전사할 수 없습니다.
ADVANTAGES OF PAD PRINTING
01.Versatile
Tempo Printing provides incredible image resolution and clarity, able to vary edges, tones and details of a printed image. Pad Printing is applied for objects with flatter surface and simpler geometry, while tempography is versatile for 3-D objects with unusual shapes, larger production volume, irregular surface, and automated consistency.
02. Customized Pad and Plate
Pad Printing is able to customize image plate and the rubber pad according to customers’ design requirements. Although pad printing is more expensive, it produces extremely
reliable and accurate image results. More modernized screen printer includes precise robotic printing and accuracy measurement guided by laser, able to accommodate products of a wider range. Pad Printer also can cooperate with products of different heights to print images on higher and lower areas at the same time.
03.Ink Composition
Ink composition is an advantage for pad printing. Selecting the proper ink is ultimately decided by the printed surfaces. There are two categories of surfaces: ink of one component and two components. One
component ink is suitable for thermoplastic surfaces like Polyethylene, Polystyrene, PVC, and Polypropylene. Two component ink with features of hardening chemical and ink is commonly used for objects subject to high mechanical stress or chemical exposure.
DISADVANTAGES OF PAD PRINTING
01.Motive Size
The size of motive is limited by pad, plate, and efficiency of the pad printer. The diameter of the biggest efficiently printed motive is 30 cm currently.
02. Layer Thickness For Ink Film
The pad process uses plate with depth up to 20-25µm. Therefore traditional inks result in ink film of approx. 7µm. The layer thickness can be increased with multi-layer printing, but rough particle is difficult to print efficiently.
03. Printing Speed
The printing speed is relatively slower for limited pretreatment of pad printing machine.
SCREEN PRINTING OVERVIEW
Screen Printing can be traced back to 960 AD of Chinese Song Dynasty. Otherwise called as serigraphy or silk screening, it has a woven mesh screen made by steel, polyester, or nylon.
5 Steps for Screen Printing
Step 1:Usually, the mesh is coated by a special emulsion blocking specific area on the screen to form the image to be transferred. It can also produce various screen depending on the shape and size of the object which your design transfers onto.
Step 2:The screen mesh is tensioned and stretched with metal frame or wood. It enables the operator to press ink into the selected area named substrate, where the design is transferred onto the object’s surface.
Step 3:After the screen is placed properly and secured on the substrate, the handler pours the ink over the screen.
Step 4:A sharp-edged roller, blade,or squeegee presses the ink through the stencil. Print Ink travels through the open mesh area to transfer the image or design onto the surface of object. Excess ink remains above the screen.
Step 5:A separate screen of each color repeats the process until a design or image is completed. Auromatik finished, the object is heated on aoven to make the ink cured and adhere to the object’s surface
APPLICATIONS FOR SCREEN PRINTING
Typical applications for screen printing include balloon, clothing design, artwork,sign, sticker, fabric, label, and numerous and labeling and visual graphic for consumer product. Generally, screen printing is most widely used in textile industry for fabric applied in linen, upholstery, bedcover, and other household items.Organizations and companies around the world appply screen printing for brand awareness, promotional products, and marketing. Screen printing is also used for printed semiconductor,electronic, control panel and machinery to offer warning, information, or direction for using mechanical or electrical instruments.
ADVANTAGES OF SCREEN PRINTING
01.Cost-effective for Large Quantity
Because screen printing is a method requiring the fabrication of screen printing screen for all colors utilized in an artwork, it is better reserved for orders of large volume. The more garments in order, the lower the price of tempography is.
02.Durable
For the thickness and composition of ink utilized in screen printing, product designed by the method is able to withstand much more stress than others without losing the print quality.
03.Various Inks
Screen printing is available for any desired ink deposit and any ink system. Allowing for greater ink thickness than others, screen printing can accommodate various fabrics and designs when finishing the pieces.
04.Flexible Print Material
Convenient to print on special garment, screen printing is the most versatile printing method. Silk screen printing can be done on nearly all kinds of flat surfaces including fabric, plastic, wood, metal, etc. Flatbed screen printing can develop all kinds of design measurements for all screen sizes used in the printing technology.
05.Simple Design
Screen printing is ideal for printing a simple text or design.Best for artwork with solid color and not photography based, it’s suitable to print graphic, logo and company name. Screen printing can realize gradient and a crisp and sharp design.
DISADVANTAGES OF SCREEN PRINTING
01.More 비용 for multiple colors
For the technique used, screen printing can only apply one color at a time. Thus there is limited number for colors on T-shirt, and every layer needs more time. Ultimately, silk screen printing costs mor .
02.Not suitable for small order
Screen printing requires more prep than others before production. So it isn’t suitable for on-demand printing that creates garments as soon as they are ordered. Screen printer isn’t economical with merely a few items to print. Setting up time is complex and time-wasting. Some screen printers even limit the quantity for printing.
03.Relatively Complex
Screen printing is relatively complex depending on the project and design for more steps it needs than other technologies. Screen printer spends more time with slower turnaround time than others. Screen printing involves maging the design onto a fine-mesh screen then transferred with ink onto the printing material. Every shape or color within your design requires a new screen. Stocking screen printing supplies is important with the method.
04.Waste Water
Although screen printing has taken efforts to create eco-friendly screen printing screen and ink, it is still not environmentally-friendly for wasting lots of water. Water is used for cleaning the screen and mixing up ink, and the amount of water is scary when manufacturers produce hundreds of garments daily.
05.Limited Color
Screen printer can’t realizer a photography-based design or a multi-color design. Screen printer can mix spot colour with accuracy, but it is difficult to achieve specific shade or gradient with it.
패드 인쇄 대 스크린 인쇄: 어떤 것이 가장 적합할까요?
When selecting between screen printing and pad printing, it’s not a case to choose a better method but a more suitable method for your printing project. Before deciding the printing method, it’s crucial to consider the result you want to realize and study your product and.
If your item features intricate detailing and is small ( label and bar code), then pad printing is the best choice for you. Also, pad printing is excellent in printing on unusual shapes, like 3-D or uneven surfaces. Pad printing is economical, quick, and ideal for small and high-quality prints. While, if your product is quite large requiring a big print ( on a T-shirt), screen printing will be more suitable. But be aware that enamel, ink, and paint will be transferred during screen printing, it’s best to contact the expert when using.
Despite key differences exist between pad printing and screen printing, they both boast great advantages and are two most popular printing methods today.
