Eastman-kodak Company

John M Higgins

Andrew Clarke

Andrew M Howe

Danuta Gibson

Stephanie V Desrousseaux

John R Fyson

Julie Baker

Charles Chester Anderson

Janglin Chen

Trevor J Wear

Ian M Newington

John D Mee

Jacques Roussilhe

Harjit Singh Bhambra

John H Hone

Julia Pich

Malcom D Purbrick

Christian V Nicholas

A method for creating composite droplets for use in an ink jet system includes a first fluid () brought into contact with a second fluid within a set of channels (). The interface between the fluids is characterized by an interfacial tension. The first fluid forms spaced droplets () within the second fluid, the composite of the first and second fluids passing through an orifice () to form a jet ().

Continuous ink jet printing of encapsulated droplets

An inkjet printing system comprising a plurality of static inkjet printing units each comprising at least one inkjet printing head; an ink-receiving element comprising a poorly-absorbing or impermeable substrate; an aqueous inkjet composition which comprises a polymeric compound comprising discrete particles responsive to an external stimulus, and a functional material, which may be incorporated as part of the polymeric particles, the composition having a first rheological state and a different second rheological state in response to a stimulated change in conditions, the first state being associated with a first lower viscosity of the composition, wherein the particles have a first lower volume, and the second state being associated with a second higher viscosity of the composition, wherein the particles have a second higher volume, and of drying the aqueous ink composition only positioned downstream of the plurality of the printing units.

Inkjet printing system

The invention provides an aqueous inkjet ink composition comprises a polymeric compound comprising discrete particles responsive to an external stimulus, and a functional material, wherein the functional material may be incorporated as part of the polymeric particles, the particles causing the composition to have a first rheological state and a different second rheological state in response to a stimulated change in conditions, the first rheological state being associated with a first lower viscosity of the composition, wherein the particles have a first lower volume, enabling the composition to pass through an inkjet printhead orifice and the second rheological state being associated with a second higher viscosity of the composition, wherein the particles have a second higher volume, enabling immobilisation of droplets of the composition on a substrate. The inkjet composition is particularly useful in a continuous inkjet printing system for printing onto a wide range of surfaces including impermeable surfaces.

Ink for printing on low energy substrates

The invention relates to a method of making a planographic printing plate comprising a substrate having thereon one or more layers of a radiation-sensitive metal oxide, sulfide or nitride and excluding an organic hydrophobic material or a binder within or above a radiation-sensitive layer, the method comprising depositing the one or more layers of the radiation-sensitive metal oxide, sulfide or nitride by vapor deposition and exposing the one or more layers without that exposure causing ablative effect. Preferably the compound, and in particular a metal oxide, such as titanium dioxide, is deposited by atomic layer deposition at atmospheric pressure and at a temperature of from 20&#xb0; C. to 300&#xb0; C. at a layer thickness of less than 100 nm. The substrate can be any planar material, preferably with the potential to be flexible and with a surface that can be roughened or textured. No binder is required to adhere the metal compound to the printing plate and no processing or chemicals are required in the preparation of the plate.

Method of making a planographic printing plate

The application, according to a desired image, of an absorbance controlling composition to a receiver having an imaging layer comprising a radiation absorbing component, such as a dye or pigment, with spectral absorbance properties susceptible to change on treatment with the absorbance controlling composition provides a method of imaging by which a desired image may be formed on the receiver, for example by jetting a solution of the absorbance controlling composition onto the receiver.

Method of imaging

The present invention provides a planographic printing element suitable to receive and bond with a subsequently applied hydrophilic layer comprises a substrate layer, such as polyester film or paper, having coated thereon an adhesion layer, said adhesion layer comprising a polymer having a glass transition temperature of less than 15C and containing functional groups such as hydroxyl, epoxy or glycidyl groups capable of reacting with the hydrophilic layer. The polymer may be a terpolymer of a hydroxyalkyl methacrylate, an alkyl acrylate and an aminoalkyl methacrylate. The polymer may be mixed with gelatin and the mixture applied to the substrate as a coating. The hydrophilic layer, which may comprise metal oxide particles, such as aluminium oxide and/or titanium dioxide particles in a sodium silicate binder, is subsequently applied as a coating to the adhesion layer.

Adhesion promoting polymeric materials and planographic printing elements containing them

An image-recording element for inkjet ink images comprises a support, an ink-receptive layer and a top layer, wherein the top layer comprises a polymer that contains both a hydrophilic component and a hydrophobic component, or a mixture of two or more such polymers, the said polymer or polymer mixture being present in the top layer in an amount of from 0.003 to 0.5 g/m . The top layer preferably comprises a polymer that contains both hydrophilic substituents and hydrophobic substituents, for example a polymer selected from the polymers and copolymers of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, acrylic acid esters or methacrylic acid esters, or a salt of such a polymer or copolymer. The base layer, which may comprise gelatin, preferably has a thickness of from 3 to 20 &mgr;m. The support may be a conventional support, for example a paper sheet. The invention can provide improved drying times for the inkjet images, even under conditions of high humidity.

Ink-jet media

A photographic material comprises a support bearing at least one silver halide emulsion layer. The material contains in the emulsion layer or an adjacent hydrophilic colloid layer, a nucleating agent. One or more of the layers further comprises a polymeric material capable of partitioning the nucleating agent in order to control nucleation and thereby allow the level of pepper fog and raw stock keeping to be controlled.

Photographic silver halide material

The invention concerns a color negative process wherein a photographic material comprising silver chloride or silver bromide and a DIR or DIAR coupler is processed in the presence of a polyester comprising intralinear thioether atoms.

Silver halide color photographic material

A photographic element comprising a light sensitive silver halide emulsion sensitized with a dye of formula (I) and a nucleating agent or amine booster associated with the silver halide emulsion: ##STR1## wherein: R.sub.3 is an alkyl group, alkenyl group, or aryl group

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Cambridge, United Kingdom

John M Higgins