The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 02, 1996
Filed:
Nov. 30, 1992
Si-Ty Lam, Pleasanton, CA (US);
Young-Soo You, Los Altos, CA (US);
Other;
Abstract
A color ink transfer printing device in which ink transfer is driven by a viscosity change in ink. The color ink transfer printing device includes a viscosity control unit and first through fourth ink containers for retaining colored ink held under pressure. Each of the ink containers retains a different color ink. The first through fourth ink containers are respectively associated with first through fourth perforated ink transfer surfaces. Under ambient conditions, the viscosity of the colored ink prevents flow of the colored ink through the perforations. The viscosity control unit induces a change in the viscosity of the colored ink near certain perforations, thereby enabling a controlled amount of the colored ink near each of the certain perforations to flow through these certain perforations and onto the ink transfer surface corresponding thereto. The colored ink which has flowed onto the ink transfer surface can then be transferred to an intermediate surface or a printing media. A method for viscosity-driven color ink transfer printing is also disclosed. The present invention enables a color printer, a color copier, or the like to provide high resolution printed images at low cost.