Intermediate transfer member

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11628674-B2
Application number	US-202217712198-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 4, 2022
Priority date	May 30, 2016
Publication date	Apr 18, 2023
Grant date	Apr 18, 2023

Abstract

An intermediate transfer member (ITM) for use with a printing system, the ITM having (a) a support layer; and (b) a release layer having an ink reception surface and a second surface opposing the ink reception surface, the second surface attached to the support layer, the release layer formed of an addition-cured, hydrophobic silicone material, wherein the release surface of the release layer has relatively hydrophilic properties with respect to the addition-cured, hydrophobic silicone material.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of manufacturing an intermediate transfer member (ITM) for use with a printing system, the method comprising:
a. providing a fluid curable material;
b. providing a carrier having a carrier contact surface, said carrier contact surface being wettable by said fluid curable material;
c. applying said fluid curable material onto said carrier, said fluid curable material wetting said carrier contact surface to form a layer of said fluid curable material on said carrier contact surface;
d. producing a release layer of the ITM from said layer of said fluid curable material by subjecting said layer of curable material to a curing process such that:
i. said release layer is produced to have an ink reception surface facing to the carrier contact surface and a second surface opposing said ink reception surface;
ii. said release layer is formed of an addition-cured silicone material;
iii. said ink reception surface is adapted to satisfy at least one of the following structural properties:
A. a receding contact angle of a droplet of distilled water on said ink reception surface is at most 60°;
B. for a droplet of distilled water deposited on said ink reception surface, a 10 second dynamic contact angle (DCA) is at most 108°;

e. attaching said second surface of the release layer of the ITM to a support layer thereof.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said carrier is a flexible foil.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising peeling away said carrier from said release layer.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein said peeling is performed upon installation of the ITM into the printing system.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said addition-cured silicone material of said release layer consists essentially of an addition-cured silicone, or containing, by weight, at least 95% of said addition-cured silicone.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein functional groups make up at most 5%, by weight, of said addition-cured silicone material of said release layer.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein functional groups make up at most 3%, by weight, of said addition-cured silicone material of said release layer.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein functional groups make up at most 5%, by weight, of said addition-cured silicone material of said release layer.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein functional groups make up at most 3%, by weight, of said addition-cured silicone material of said release layer.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the fluid first curable material includes a vinyl-functional silicone polymer.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein said vinyl-silicone polymer including at least one lateral vinyl group in addition to the terminal vinyl groups, for example, a vinyl-functional polydimethyl siloxane.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said fluid first curable material includes a vinyl-terminated polydimethylsiloxane.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein said vinyl-functional polydimethylsiloxane includes at least one lateral vinyl group on the polysiloxane chain in addition to the terminal vinyl groups, a crosslinker, and an addition-cure catalyst, and optionally further includes a cure retardant.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein said curable material includes an addition cure catalyst.

Assignees

• Landa Corp Ltd

Inventors

• Landa Benzion
• Abramovich Sagi
• Levanon Moshe
• Chechik Helena
• Kurtser Tatiana

Classifications

• B32B25/08

  of synthetic resin · CPC title

• B32B27/08

  of synthetic resin · CPC title

• B32B2255/28

  Multiple coating on one surface · CPC title

• B32B2255/10

  on synthetic resin layer or on natural or synthetic rubber layer · CPC title

• B32B27/281

  comprising polyimides · CPC title