The Pad Printing Ink Cup

The Pad Printing Ink Cup

As the core component of a pad printing machine, the ink cup has an impact on ink adhesion and pattern transfer. There is a lot of consideration that goes into choosing the right one for your application and business needs. This includes factors like the ink type, substrate composition and other environmental conditions. Whether you are selecting an open or sealed ink cup, magnetic or non-magnetic, it is important to find a cup that meets your specific requirements.

The Pad Printing Ink Cup

A pad printer’s ink cup serves the important function of distributing ink evenly across a print plate to create a uniform image on the item being decorated. This even distribution is critical for the success of the printing process and a quality product. In addition to distributing the ink evenly, the ink cup must also be durable and easily repositionable to accommodate a variety of different products.

Pad printing ink cups are typically designed and manufactured to suit the product or items they will be decorating. For example, if the company is producing medical or food safety equipment, it may be necessary to have ink cups that meet FDA standards. This could require a special chemical resistant material such as ceramic. On the other hand, if the products are being decorated for outdoor use or sports applications, the ink cup must be able to resist abrasion.

In the past, open ink well systems were the standard method of supplying ink to pad printing machines. This involved an ink trough which fed a flood bar that pushed a pool of ink over the etched artwork area on the printing plate (also known as a cliche). A doctor blade would then remove the excess ink from the etching, leaving ink only in the image area for the pad to pick up. Sealed ink cup systems replaced the trough with a container that acts as the ink supply, flood bar and doctor blade all at once. The ink cup is sealed within a ring which can be made of plastic, metal or ceramic.

The most common problem with a pad printing ink cup is a poor seal between the cup and the etching on the image plate. This can be caused by dirt or residue on the etched surface of the plate, insufficient cleaning before pad printing, or a soft image photopolymer plate. In order to avoid this problem, the etching on the image plate should be baked for 20-45 minutes at 215 degrees Fahrenheit.

It is also important to start cycling the press with low downward pressure on the ink cup. Too much pressure can damage the plate and cause ink to be left on the etched surface after doctoring, rather than being transferred onto the substrate.

The best way to prevent ink leakage and dripping is to make sure the ink cup ring on the image plate is not worn out. The ring should be made of toughened zirconia. This is a wear-resistant material that can stand up to scraping with a blade and has a hardness greater than ten times that of normal steel.

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