How to use the improved technology of anilox roller

For the anilox roller, there have been many new developments. However, we can only see the good results brought about by this new change if we only make fundamental adjustments to the printing process.

Flexographic printers all want their own advantages. Printers and accessories manufacturers have also been advocating the power of their new technology improvements. But if we do not pay attention to basic work, all these new technologies will not bring us imaginary results.

Let's explain below, what is the basic work? That is, under what circumstances does the system require fine tuning?
- When using a rubber nip roll instead of a doctor blade, this technique does not accurately control the thickness of the ink layer on the anilox roller.

- When the pH value or the viscosity of the ink (the two key factors affecting the ink flowability) are not monitored, the color density shifts.

- When the gears of the gears used are worn out, it can cause unstable ink transfer.

- Loose or worn bearings can also cause unstable pressure between plates.

- Due to repeated loading and unloading, the flexible plate is stretched and deformed.

- We cannot think that an 800 lpi anilox roll with 200 billion cubic micron mesh formed at a 60-degree angle will produce the same ink transfer performance as the 120 million cubic micron anilox roll formed at a 30-degree angle.

- Damaged and blocked anilox rollers, whose ink transfer performance and clean and well-oiled anilox roller, will have different ink transfer performance even with the same engraving data.

All process variables must be correct, so that when we use new technologies, we see the advantages brought by new technologies.

Moreover, the requirements for printing quality must be related to the cost and workload, otherwise there will be situations where the staff insists on their past experience.

It is a long process for the FM network technology and hybrid screen technology (to use the traditional AM screen and the FM network) to be widely used. Therefore, when the traditional screening technology is used, it still occupies a large proportion. If you are considering the use of the FM network, some are premature. However, if printers can consciously and systematically use new technologies, they will have a great advantage in the future competition.

Anilox manufacturers are always trying their best to develop higher number of engraving rollers. When the number of screens on the user's screen reaches more than 150 lpi (even more than 200 lpi), the minimum number of anilox roller lines has been established to 800 lpi, and it is recommended that if 1000, 1100, 1200 lpi anilox rollers are used, better results may be obtained. .

For 20 years, 800 lpi is the limit of laser technology and control technology, but in recent years, the limit of the number of engraving lines has been exceeded.

The benefits of the new engraving technology are quite obvious. The higher number of engraving rollers can support smaller, brighter versions of the Internet, reducing the occurrence of dipping (this type of dipping, which means that the dots are smaller than the anilox roller When it is completely immersed in the mesh, the phenomenon of ink sticking around the periphery of the dot will occur, resulting in unclear layout and large dots.

Although anilox roller producers have been able to produce more than 2000 lpi, few people buy over 1500 lpi anilox rollers. This kind of anilox roller over 1500 lpi, the mesh slot is very small, and the net wall is very thin. Although such a gutter can produce a very high print quality, the fine gauze wall structure is difficult to support the currently used cleaning methods such as ultrasonics and soda jets.

In addition to the consideration of clean destruction issues, most printers only need to meet their user requirements without having to reach such a large number of lines.

The user who generally uses 1500 lpi mesh roller is also very small, and the trend of the most increase is between 900-1200 lpi. However, this range of orders are all from high-quality print jobs in the printing industry, mainly for narrow, medium and wide web presses.

If it is necessary to use more than 800 lpi anilox, the optimization of the components of each ink delivery system must be a key factor.

CO2 lasers have been the standard laser generator used for engraving in the industry for many years. YAG lasers are also very useful when producing fine engraving effects, because their light beams are narrower and can be focused on finer points; their energy is more concentrated, and in the case of finer mesh walls, a cleaner net can be obtained. hole. The laser's basic engraving capability is 1200 lpi; while the CO2 laser's ability is at 700 lpi. Therefore, if the required ink dot is finer, this laser product can obtain a better color tone effect.

If the engraving technology is not considered, the thickness of the net wall will decrease more and more with the increase of the reticulate lines. If the 400 lpi wall is twice as thick as 800 lpi, the service life of the 400 lpi anilox roll will be longer and the use requirement will be lower.

For printers who want to use offset printing to obtain offset quality, setting up standards and monitoring variables is an important part. The standards of the printing process include the amount of anilox ink and the prescription of the reticulation angle for each thread number.

The interchangeability and estimation of the system must be strictly controlled. Once control is established, the integrity of the system is maintained. This is to properly maintain the components of the press.

If this is done, we will notice a noticeable change in the quality of the printing, and the work done is only the basics and the control of the printing process.