ã€Chinese Packaging Network News】 Printing in China is one of the special printing methods, and screen printing is one of the four major printing methods in China. It is called four printing methods together with lithography, letterpress printing, and gravure printing. Screen printing belongs to stencil printing. In China, it is also one of the special printing methods. What is the difference between these two printing methods? Now screen printing and pad printing are mainly distinguished from the following seven aspects:
definition
Pad printing is one of the special printing methods. Using steel (or copper, thermoplastic) gravure plate, use a curved surface printing head made of silicone rubber material, the ink on the gravure plate can be dragged to the surface of the printing head, and then pressed to the surface of the desired object can be printed out. Text, patterns, etc.
Pad printing can print text, graphics, and images on the surface of irregularly shaped objects and is now becoming an important special type of printing. For example, the characters and patterns on the surface of the mobile phone use this type of printing method, and the surface printing of many electronic products such as computer keyboards, instruments, meters, etc., is completed by pad printing.
Screen printing belongs to stencil printing. The printing plate is meshed, and the layout forms through holes and non-through holes. During the printing, the ink is printed on the substrate from the stencil through holes under the pressure of the squeegee.
In screen printing, a silk fabric, a synthetic fabric, or a metal mesh is stretched over a wire frame, and a screen printing plate is produced by manually lacquering a film or photochemically making a plate. In modern screen printing technology, screen printing plates are produced by photolithography using photosensitive materials (such that the screen holes in the graphic portion of the screen plate are through holes, and the screen holes in the graphic portion are not blocked. Live) oil paintings, prints, posters, business cards, binding covers, commodity packaging, product labels, textile printing and dyeing, glass and metal and other flat carriers.
Principle The principle of pad printing is to use the method of photographic plate making the desired printing pattern first, and then make the steel plate into a gravure and then transfer it onto the object to be printed through a special silicone printing head, and can be used for different purposes depending on the material of the product. The ink is so that the quality is guaranteed.
The principles of shift printing are generally stated as follows: The pattern engraved on the steel plate is transferred to the workpiece by the action of the plastic head, similar to the stamp in daily work.
The principle of screen printing is to make ink-permeable holes on the printing plate (print plate or other plate). During printing, the ink is transferred to the substrate through the holes of the plate through pressure (paper, ceramics). Etc.) Form images or text.
The principle of screen printing is plainly stated: the ink is penetrated into the product through the mesh of the screen through the pressure of the squeegee to form a pattern.
Features
Pad printing: printing ink layer is thin, can be printed on any surface color, showing a very good color performance and printability, commonly known as universal printing, in addition to water and air can not be printed, any object can be used pad printing print.
Silk screen printing: The thickness of the silk screen printing ink is strong. The printed pattern has a strong three-dimensional effect. You can touch the concave and convex feeling by hand. It is suitable for surface printing of high-end products. The color expression is very good. Multi-color printing is more troublesome. The surface requirements for the product are The regular plane or surface has a certain print range limitations.
In terms of substrate suitability, screen printing has great advantages, especially in the amorphous plastic hardware and direct consumer goods industries. Screen printing has been widely praised. However, there is no universal printing method in the world, and screen printing is no exception. In the area of ​​industrial printing on the surface of small areas and irregular substrates, silk screen printing encountered real troubles, and this trouble caused the birth of pad printing technology. It can be said that although there are great differences between pad printing technology and screen printing, the industries they involve are extremely similar.
Printing area printing: There is a certain limit to the printing area for printing.
Screen printing: The printing area is basically unlimited, the cost of consumables (screen) is low, and can be reused.
Product appearance
Pad printing: no restrictions on the shape, plane, curved surface, wavy surface, as long as the plastic head deformation can reach the place can be printed.
Silk screen: The printed surface of the product requires a flat, purely flat or regular surface.
Color pad printing: The pad printing machine can make up to 12 color registrations on a single machine, print the product one time, and the cost is lower, which is suitable for the investment of universal factories.
Silk screen printing: screen printing machines can also be used for multi-color printing, but multi-color printing screen printing machines are very expensive, not suitable for general factory investment, manual walking, one-time multi-color printing covers a large area, artificial and more.
Printing process Pad printing process and screen printing technology have many similarities, for example, the wide adaptability of the substrate; a wide range of inks, printing inks and screen printing inks can be basically common; can be very convenient by replacing the fixture and printing plate To complete the printing of different products. Therefore, in many cases, pad printing technology and screen printing technology are inextricably linked and play an important role in special printing. Because pad printing technology and screen printing technology are so close, most printing experts classify it as the field of screen printing. There are still no special institutions for research on the printing technology, and there are no institutions that specifically investigate the distribution of the printing technology on the market. Many data concerning printing companies cannot independently reflect the actual situation of the printing technology.
However, there are many differences between pad printing and screen printing, such as: the ink transfer process is obviously different; the structure of the printing press is different; the types of substrates are also very different, in fact, the difference between them is far greater than the similarities. . We used to bundle them together because they faced a common market. In this common market, printing is inseparable from screen printing, screen printing is also inseparable from printing. It is difficult and unnecessary to peel off printing from the screen printing industry. However, if we want to understand the current status of the printing process technology, we cannot look at it from the perspective of the screen printing industry.
We all attributed the printing of paper to mainstream printing, and mainstream printing has always been highly valued by the theoretical community. In recent years, screen printing has received attention. The primary reason is that its printing advantages in paper are discovered rather than people's attention to printing. The range of advantages, such as: the use of screen printing to complete the UV part of the paper, special UV inks such as coral ink, ice ink, wrinkle ink printing to print, flexographic printing has a better effect.
Pad printing technology has not been so fortunate. While all printing processes are exploring their respective advantages and becoming integrated, pad printing technology still maintains its independent identity. The link between paper and pad printing technology is still blank, but pad printing. Technology does not stop its rapid growth, because the areas that printing technology is good at cannot be accomplished by any other printing process. The prosperity of the Pearl River Delta industry supports the high growth rate of the printing industry at an annual rate of 18%. Every year, the employment opportunities created by the printing of technology-related industries have also been of concern to government agencies.
In general, the technical level of the pad printing process is not high, and it is very difficult to continue to develop in the case of high production costs in developed countries. Therefore, the pad printing industry has shifted to low-cost developing countries such as China. It is an inevitable trend. At present, in addition to the few foreign companies that also manufacture highly automated printing lines, most companies have moved their production bases to China. This is a historic opportunity for China.