Method for creating a printed image on a rotating, three-dimensional body

Abstract

A method for creating a printed image on a rotating, three-dimensional body or bottle eccentrically on a turntable, includes providing an inkjet printing unit having inkjet nozzles along a straight line for printing at a clock rate, rotating the body about a rotation axis parallel to the line using a motor, prescribing a fundamental frequency f(t) for activating the motor, for example based on a constant angular velocity, activating the motor with the fundamental frequency f(t), prescribing an average or constant body radius R, determining a radius change ΔR(t) of the body during rotation, calculating a correction value k(t) for the printing unit clock rate, where k(t)=1+ΔR(t)/R, and activating the printing unit with a frequency f(t) for the clock rate, where f(t)=f(t)·k(t), for example permitting printing on eccentrically rotating bottles with a constant print resolution while avoiding image imperfections.