Electrophotographic patterning of an image definition material

摘要

A method is disclosed in the context of a system comprises an electrophotographic subsystem, a transfer subsystem, an imaging member, and an inking subsystem. The electrophotographic subsystem comprises a photoreceptor, a charging subsystem, an exposure subsystem, and a development subsystem. In operation, the photoreceptor is charged areawise. An exposure pattern is formed by the exposure subsystem on the surface of the charged photoreceptor to thereby write a latent charge image onto the photoreceptor surface. The image is developed with an image definition material, such as a dampening fluid. The image definition material forms a positive pattern of the image to be printed. The image pattern is then transferred to the reimageable surface. The transferred pattern is then developed by selectively applying an ink over regions of image definition material. The inked image may be transferred to a substrate.

主权项

1. A method for variable data lithography, comprising:
charging a photoreceptor with a first electrostatic charge; selectively exposing the photoreceptor by an exposure subsystem to form an exposure pattern from regions that are exposed and unexposed by the exposure subsystem on a surface of the photoreceptor, the exposure subsystem causing altering of the first electrostatic charge such that the unexposed regions are caused to have a first electrostatic charge state and the exposed regions are caused to have a second electrostatic charge state; selectively applying, by an image definition material subsystem, an image definition material layer substantially over regions of the photoreceptor having the first electrostatic charge state and not over regions having the second electrostatic charge state, to form an image definition material image on a surface of the photoreceptor; transferring the image definition material selectively applied over the photoreceptor to a reimageable surface, via an image transfer subsystem, forming regions of image definition material separated by regions of no image definition material on the reimageable surface, to transfer the image definition material image from the photoreceptor to the reimageable surface; selectively applying ink over the reimageable surface, the ink occupying regions over the image definition material on the reimageable surface to form an inked image over the reimageable surface; and transferring the ink over the image definition material to a substrate to transfer the inked image from the reimageable surface to the substrate, wherein the regions of the photoreceptor having the first electrostatic charge state have a first charge polarity, and the image definition material subsystem is configured to apply the image definition material over the photoreceptor, the image definition material comprising a dampening fluid, the dampening fluid comprising a carrier fluid in which the electrostatically charged particles are disposed, the electrostatically charged particles having a second charge polarity, the first charge polarity being opposite to the second charge polarity.