阅读说明：本技术 具有自适应卡片传送延迟的卡片处理系统
(Card processing system with adaptive card transport delay
) 是由 科里·D·伍德里奇
蒂莫西·J·弗利奇
乔恩·威尔雅 于 2018-05-08 设计创作，主要内容包括：提供了可以改变第一卡片处理机构(例如使用UV可固化油墨打印的按需喷墨打印机)与第二卡片处理机构(例如UV固化装备)之间的延迟时间以调整卡片从第一卡片处理机构到第二卡片处理机构的行进时间的系统和方法。可以在第一卡片处理机构与第二卡片处理机构之间设置第一卡片缓冲器和第二卡片缓冲器。第一卡片缓冲器和第二卡片缓冲器中的每一个卡片缓冲器均在逻辑上被独立地控制,以使得通过每个卡片缓冲器来独立地控制卡片的传送时间。或者,可以在第一卡片处理机构与第二卡片处理机构之间设置单个卡片缓冲器或两个以上的卡片缓冲器。(Systems and methods are provided that can vary a delay time between a first card processing mechanism (e.g., a drop-on-demand ink-jet printer that prints using UV curable ink) and a second card processing mechanism (e.g., UV curing equipment) to adjust a travel time of a card from the first card processing mechanism to the second card processing mechanism. A first card buffer and a second card buffer may be disposed between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism. Each of the first card buffer and the second card buffer is logically independently controlled such that a conveyance time of the card is independently controlled by each card buffer. Alternatively, a single card buffer or more than two card buffers may be provided between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism.)
1. A card processing system, the card processing system comprising:
a first card processing mechanism configured to perform processing operations on a plastic card, the first card processing mechanism including a first robotic card transport mechanism configured to transport a plastic card along a first card travel path through the first card processing mechanism;
a second card processing mechanism configured to perform processing operations on plastic cards, the second card processing mechanism being located downstream of the first card processing mechanism and comprising a second mechanical card transport mechanism configured to transport plastic cards along a second card travel path through the second card processing mechanism; and
at least one card buffer disposed between the first and second card processing mechanisms, the at least one card buffer including a mechanical card transport mechanism that transports plastic cards along a card travel path that is collinear with the first card travel path through the first card processing mechanism and collinear with the second card travel path through the second card processing mechanism, wherein the at least one card buffer is logically independently controlled from the first and second mechanical card transport mechanisms.
2. The card processing system of claim 1, wherein the at least one card buffer is configured to receive a single plastic card at any time during operation.
3. The card processing system of claim 1, comprising at least two card buffers disposed between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism, each card buffer comprising a mechanical card transport mechanism configured to transport plastic cards along a card travel path, the mechanical card transport mechanism of a first card buffer of the at least two card buffers being logically independently controlled from the mechanical card transport mechanism of a second card buffer of the at least two card buffers.
4. The card processing system of claim 1, wherein the first card processing mechanism is an inkjet on demand printer that prints using Ultraviolet (UV) curable ink and the second card processing mechanism is UV curing equipment including UV lamps.
5. The card processing system of claim 3, wherein card travel paths of both the first and second card buffers are collinear with each other and with the first and second card travel paths.
6. The card processing system of claim 3, wherein the first card buffer and the second card buffer are each configured to receive a single plastic card at any time during operation.
7. The card processing system of claim 4, wherein the drop on demand printer includes at least one printhead and a transport portion between the at least one printhead and a card outlet of the first card processing mechanism, and the transport portion is controlled to act as a card buffer.
8. The card processing system of claim 3, wherein said first card buffer is part of said first card processing mechanism.
9. The card processing system of claim 3, wherein the first and second card processing mechanisms each have a card processing rate, and a time of plastic card passage in the first and second card buffers is adjustable.
10. The card processing system of claim 3, wherein said first card buffer and said second card buffer are controlled logically independently and separately from each other, whereby a first plastic card passing through said first card buffer and said second card buffer has a first buffer time, a second plastic card sequentially following said first plastic card and passing through said first card buffer and said second card buffer has a second buffer time, and said second buffer time is longer or shorter than said first buffer time.
11. A method of printing on a plastic card, the method comprising:
inputting the plastic card into a drop on demand printer configured to print using an Ultraviolet (UV) curable ink;
printing a UV curable ink onto a surface of the plastic card using a printhead of the drop on demand printer;
conveying the plastic card into a card buffer after printing and delaying further conveyance of the plastic card while the plastic card is in the card buffer for a first predetermined period of time;
transferring the plastic card from the card buffer into UV curing equipment after expiration of the first predetermined time period.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:
transferring the plastic card from the card buffer into another card buffer after expiration of the predetermined time period, and delaying further transfer of the plastic card while the plastic card is in the other card buffer for another predetermined time period;
transferring the plastic card from the other card buffer into the UV curing apparatus after the other predetermined period of time has expired.
13. The method of claim 11, further comprising:
inputting a second plastic card into the drop on demand printer without mechanically adjusting a physical distance between the drop on demand printer and the UV curing apparatus after printing onto a surface of the first plastic card;
printing a UV curable ink onto a surface of the second plastic card using the printhead of the drop on demand printer;
conveying the second plastic card into the card buffer after printing onto the surface of the second plastic card, and delaying further conveyance of the second plastic card while in the card buffer for a second predetermined time period, wherein the second predetermined time period is shorter or longer than the first predetermined time period; and
transferring the second plastic card from the card buffer into the UV curing apparatus after the second predetermined period of time has expired.
14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first plastic card and the second plastic card are printed in a single card production process.
Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to card processing systems that process plastic cards, including but not limited to financial (e.g., credit, debit, etc.) cards, drivers' licenses, national identification cards, business cards, gift cards, and other plastic cards, and to transporting cards in such card processing systems.
Background
It is known to print on plastic cards using Drop On Demand (DOD) printing techniques with Ultraviolet (UV) curable inks. After printing, the ink needs to be cured by exposure to UV light. The time from printing to curing (referred to as the curing delay time) will have a significant impact on the resulting print quality and ink behavior. The curing delay time (typically ranging between 0.5 seconds and 2.00 seconds) varies depending on the surface energy of the medium or substrate to which the UV curable ink is applied, the ink surface energy, and the ink type. It is common practice in the plastic card printing industry to adjust the distance between the print head and the UV curing equipment to achieve an optimal curing delay time.
Disclosure of Invention
Systems and methods are described for: the delay time between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism may be varied to adjust the travel time of the card from the first card processing mechanism to the second card processing mechanism. In one embodiment, a first card buffer and a second card buffer are disposed between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism. Each of the first and second card buffers has a card transport mechanism defining a card transport path. The transport paths are collinear with each other and with the card transport paths of the first and second card processing mechanisms. Each of the first card buffer and the second card buffer is logically independently controlled such that a conveyance time of the card is independently controlled by each card buffer. In other embodiments, a single card buffer or more than two card buffers may be provided between the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism.
The first and second card processing mechanisms described herein may be any card processing mechanism that may need to adjustably control the card transport time from the first card processing mechanism to the second card processing mechanism without mechanically adjusting the physical distance between the two card processing mechanisms each time the card transport time needs to be modified. In one embodiment, the first card processing mechanism is a DOD inkjet printer that prints using UV curable ink and the second card processing mechanism is a UV curing apparatus that contains UV lamps for curing the UV curable ink. In this embodiment, the curing delay time (i.e., the time between completion of printing using the UV curable ink and arrival of the card at the UV curing apparatus) may be controlled by appropriately controlling the transport mechanisms of both the first and second card buffers. When the curing delay time needs to be adjusted, the distance between the printer and the UV curing equipment does not need to be adjusted mechanically.
However, the first and second card processing mechanisms may be other mechanisms that can perform processing operations on the cards. For example, the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism may be any combination of at least two of: printers, embossing machines, indenters, magnetic stripe read/write heads, integrated circuit chip programmers, lasers to perform laser processing such as laser marking on cards, laminators to apply laminates to a portion or the entire surface of a card, finish equipment to apply a finish to a portion or the entire surface of a card, quality control equipment to check the quality of personalization/processing applied to a card, security equipment to apply security functions (e.g., holographic foils) to a card, and other card handling mechanisms.
The cards described herein include, but are not limited to, plastic cards having personalized data unique to the intended cardholder and/or having other card information. Examples of plastic cards may include, but are not limited to, financial (e.g., credit, debit, etc.) cards, drivers' licenses, national identification cards, business cards, gift cards, and other plastic cards.
Drawings
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a card processing system as described herein.
FIG. 2 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a card processing system described herein.
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of yet another embodiment of a card processing system described herein.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of one example of a card processing system described herein.
FIG. 5 illustrates an example card printing method described herein.
FIG. 6 is a plan view of a plastic card.
Detailed Description
FIG. 1 shows an example of a card processing system 10 that may utilize the systems and methods described herein. The card processing system 10 includes a first card processing mechanism 12, a first card buffer 14, a second card buffer 16, and a second card processing mechanism 18. The direction of card transport (or card flow) through the system 10 is shown by arrow 20. The system 10 is designed to process plastic cards that are input into the system 10. The plastic cards described herein include, but are not limited to, plastic cards having personalized data unique to the intended cardholder and/or having other card information. Examples of plastic cards may include, but are not limited to, financial (e.g., credit, debit, etc.) cards, drivers' licenses, national identification cards, business cards, gift cards, and other plastic cards. Referring to FIG. 6, in one embodiment, the plastic card may be an ID-1 card 100 defined by ISO/IEC 7810, having a length LCAbout 85.60mm (about 3 and 3/8 inches) and a width WCAbout 53.98mm (about 2 and 1/8 inches) with four rounded corners having a radius of between about 2.88mm and 3.48 mm.
Returning to fig. 1, the operation of the first card processing mechanism 12 and the second card processing mechanism 18 is controlled by a suitable controller 22. Each card processing mechanism 12, 18 includes a mechanical card transport mechanism that transports plastic cards through each processing mechanism 12, 18 in a card transport direction 20. The mechanical card transport mechanism may have any suitable mechanical configuration known in the art for transporting plastic cards, such as transport rollers and/or transport belts (with and/or without tabs) and/or carriers and combinations thereof. Mechanical card transport mechanisms are well known in the art and include those disclosed in U.S. patents 6902107, 5837991, 6131817 and 4995501 and U.S. published application No. 2007/0187870, each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Accordingly, one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate the types of card transport mechanisms that may be used, as well as the configuration and operation of such card transport mechanisms.
Each of the first card buffer 14 and the second card buffer 16 also includes a mechanical card transport mechanism. The mechanical card transport mechanism of the card buffer 14, 16 may have any suitable configuration known in the art for transporting plastic cards, such as transport rollers and/or belts, preferably by engaging the edges of the card so that the transport mechanism does not contact the front or back of the card. In one embodiment, each of the card buffers 14, 16 contains only a single card at any time during operation. For example, when a card is input into the first card buffer 14, a second card exits the first card buffer 14 into the second card buffer 16, and the cards in the second card buffer 16 are output into the second card processing mechanism 18.
The first card buffer 14 and the second card buffer 16 are each configured to controllably transport cards in a card transport direction 20. The card buffers 14, 16 do not have any card processing capability and do not perform processing operations on cards. Conversely, the card buffers 14, 16 may be separately controlled to vary the transport time of cards passing therethrough, thereby controlling the transport time of cards from the first card processing mechanism 12 to the second card processing mechanism 18. Although two card buffers are shown, more than two card buffers may be used, or a single card buffer may be used.
Each card buffer 14, 16 is independently logically controlled whereby the transport mechanism of the card buffer 14 and its respective card transport time therethrough may also be controlled independently of the transport mechanism of the card buffer 16 and its respective card transport time, and independently of the transport mechanism of the card handling structures 12, 18. In particular, referring to fig. 1, the first card buffer 14 may be controlled by a first logic control 24 and the second card buffer 16 may be controlled by a second logic control 26. Both logic controls 24, 26 may be control logic stored in a suitable memory of the controller 22, or the logic controls 24, 26 may be stored in a controller separate from the controller 22. The structure of the logic controls 24, 26 may have any particular configuration and may reside anywhere as long as the transport mechanisms of the card buffers 14, 16 may be controlled independently and separately from each other and from the processing mechanisms 12, 18. In one embodiment, the cards may pass through the or each card buffer 14, 16 substantially constantly. In another embodiment, the cards may be temporarily stopped or "parked" in the or each card buffer 14, 16 for a predetermined period of time before being transported downstream.
The first card processing mechanism 12 and the second card processing mechanism 18 described herein may be any card processing mechanism that may require the use of a card buffer to adjustably control the card transport time from the first card processing mechanism 12 to the second card processing mechanism 18 without mechanically adjusting the physical distance between the two card processing mechanisms each time the card transport time needs to be modified. For example, the first card processing mechanism and the second card processing mechanism may be any combination of at least two of: printers, embossing machines, indenters, magnetic stripe read/write heads, integrated circuit chip programmers, lasers to perform laser processing such as laser marking on cards, laminators to apply laminates to portions or the entire surface of a card, finish equipment to apply a finish to portions or the entire surface of a card, quality control equipment to check the quality of personalization/processing applied to a card, security equipment to apply security functions (e.g., holographic foils) to a card, and other card handling mechanisms.
In one embodiment, described further below with respect to fig. 4, the first card processing mechanism 12 may be a DOD inkjet printer that prints using UV curable ink, and the second card processing mechanism 18 may be UV curing equipment containing UV lamps for curing the UV curable ink (which is applied to plastic cards in the DOD inkjet printer). In this embodiment, the curing delay time (i.e., the time between completion of printing using UV curable ink and arrival of the card at the UV curing apparatus) can be controlled by controlling the transport time of the card when the card is transported through the first card buffer 14 and the second card buffer 16. This eliminates the need to mechanically adjust the distance between the printer and the UV curing equipment when the curing delay time needs to be adjusted.
As shown in fig. 1, in certain embodiments, the system 10 may be used with one or more other card processing mechanisms (also referred to as card processing modules or card processing equipment). For example, one or more additional card processing mechanisms 30 may be located upstream of the system 10. Examples of upstream card processing mechanisms 30 may include, but are not limited to, a card input hopper containing cards to be processed, a printing system, an embossing system, an indentation system, a magnetic stripe read/write system, an integrated circuit chip programming system that can program a single card at a time, as well as multiple cards simultaneously, a laser system that performs laser processing such as laser marking on a card, a lamination system that applies a laminate to a portion or the entire surface of a card, a finish system that applies a finish to a portion or the entire surface of a card, a security system that applies security features (e.g., holographic foils) to a card, and other systems known in the art.
One or more additional card processing mechanisms 32 may also be located downstream of the system 10. Examples of downstream card processing mechanisms 32 may include, but are not limited to, a card output hopper containing processed cards, a printing system, an embossing system, a creasing system, a magnetic stripe read/write system, an integrated circuit chip programming system that can program a single card at a time, as well as multiple cards simultaneously, a laser system that performs laser processing such as laser marking on a card, a laminating system that applies a laminate to a portion or the entire surface of a card, a finish system that applies a finish to a portion or the entire surface of a card, a security system that applies security features (e.g., holographic foils) to a card, and other systems known in the art.
FIG. 2 illustrates another embodiment of a card processing system 40 that may utilize the systems and methods described herein. The card processing system 40 includes the first card processing mechanism 12, the card buffer 42, and the second card processing mechanism 18, and optionally includes the additional card processing mechanisms 30, 32. The card transport direction is shown by arrow 20. In this embodiment, only a single card buffer 42 is used, rather than at least two card buffers as shown in fig. 1. The card buffer 42 may have the same construction and function as the card buffers 14, 16 in fig. 1.
FIG. 3 illustrates another embodiment of a card processing system 50 that may utilize the systems and methods described herein. The card processing system 50 includes the first card processing mechanism 12, the card buffer 52, and the second card processing mechanism 18, and optionally includes the additional card processing mechanisms 30, 32. The card transport direction is shown by arrow 20. In this embodiment, a single card buffer 52 is used, and the card buffer 52 is incorporated into the first card processing mechanism 12. The card buffer 52 may have the same construction and function as the card buffers 14, 16 in fig. 1, with the card buffer 52 being controlled independently and separately from the first card processing mechanism 12. In another embodiment, rather than incorporating the card buffer 52 into the first card processing mechanism 12, the card buffer 52 may be incorporated into the second card processing mechanism 18.
Turning to fig. 4, a specific example of the card processing system 10 of fig. 1 is shown. For convenience, the controller 22 and logic controls 24, 26 of FIG. 1 are not shown in FIG. 4. In the example of FIG. 4, the card processing mechanism 12 is shown as including a DOD inkjet printer that prints using UV curable ink. The ink jet printer may have a single printhead printing a single color or, as shown, may include multiple printheads 60 for printing multiple colors on a card. The card enters the card processing mechanism 12 through the card input 62. In this example, each card enters the card input 12 in a vertical orientation (i.e., the plane of the card extends vertically into and out of the paper as seen in the plan view of FIG. 4), and is then rotated to a horizontal orientation by a suitable rotation mechanism 64 as is well known in the art. In the card processing mechanism 12, the card is transported in the horizontal direction by the mechanical card transport mechanism 66. The card transport mechanism 66 transports the card past the printhead 60 of the ink jet printer to print on the card and then transports the card to a card output 68. An example of a card transport mechanism 66 that may be used is described in co-pending provisional application No.62/503636 entitled "dual card transport in card processing system" (attorney docket No.: 02968.0554USP 1).
Still referring to fig. 4, the first card buffer 14 is proximate the card processing mechanism 12 at a card output 68. The card ejected through the card output 68 enters the first card buffer 14 where the card is received by the card transport mechanism 70 of the card buffer 14 and the card is held in a horizontal orientation. In the example shown in fig. 4, the card transport mechanism 70 includes a series of transport rollers 72a, 72b, the series of transport rollers 72a, 72b being disposed on opposite sides of the card transport path and engaging side edges of the card to transport the card in the card transport direction. The length L of the first card buffer 14B1Slightly greater than the length L of the cardC(see fig. 6) whereby only one card at a time can be received in the card buffer 14.
Still referring to fig. 4, the second card buffer 16 is immediately adjacent the first card buffer 14 at the output of the first card buffer 14. The card ejected through the card output of the first card buffer 14 enters the second card buffer 16 where the card is received by the card transport mechanism 74 of the card buffer 16 and the card is held in a horizontal orientation. The second card buffer 16 may be similar in construction to the first card buffer 14, in that the card transport mechanism 74 of the second card buffer 16 includes a series of transport rollers 76a, 76b,the series of transport rollers 76a, 76b are disposed on opposite sides of the card transport path and engage side edges of the card to transport the card in the card transport direction. The length LB2 of the second card buffer 16 may be equal to the length L of the first card buffer 14B1Same and slightly larger than the length L of the cardC(see fig. 6) whereby only one card at a time can be received in the card buffer 16.
Still referring to fig. 4, the second card handling mechanism 18 is shown to include a UV curing apparatus 78, the UV curing apparatus 78 curing UV ink applied to the cards. The UV curing equipment 78 includes a UV lamp (not shown) that applies UV radiation to the card to cure the UV ink. The second card handling mechanism 18 is immediately adjacent the second card buffer 16 at the output of the second card buffer 16. The card ejected through the card output of the second card buffer 16 is received by the card transport mechanism 80 of the second card processing mechanism 18 and the card is held in a horizontal orientation. The DOD inkjet printer used in the card processing mechanism 12 and the UV curing apparatus 78 in the card processing mechanism 18 may be conventional mechanisms known in the art. An example of a DOD inkjet printer and UV curing equipment in a card printing system is the Persomaster card personalization system available from Atlantic Zeiser GmbH of Emmingen, germany.
After curing, the card is transferred to a rotation mechanism 82, which rotation mechanism 82 rotates the card back to a vertical orientation for further processing downstream of the second card processing mechanism 18, or the card may be directed into an output hopper. The rotation mechanism 82 may be similar in construction and operation to the rotation mechanism 64 described above.
Example embodiments
In this example, it is assumed that each of the first card processing mechanism 12, the first card buffer 14, the second card buffer 16, and the second card processing mechanism 18 is considered as a logical sub-section that is respectively controlled logically, each logical sub-section having its own card transport mechanism. Further, assume that the first card processing mechanism 12 includes a DOD inkjet printer that prints UV curable ink, and the second card processing mechanism 18 includes UV curing equipment. For this example, assume that each sub-portion is capable of processing cards at a processing rate of 4000 cards/hour (0.90 seconds/card), and that the overall processing rate of the system is 4000 cards/hour.
After the card has been printed by the DOD inkjet printer, the transport mechanism of the processing mechanism 12 passes the card to the first card buffer 14 while the card remains in the card buffer 14 for a predetermined amount of time. At the end of the predetermined amount of time, the card is then transferred to the second card buffer 16 and the card remains in the second card buffer 16 for another predetermined amount of time. At the end of the predetermined amount of time, the card is then transferred to the second card processing mechanism 18 and the UV curing apparatus 78. The predetermined amounts of time that the cards wait in the card buffers 14, 16 may be the same as each other or different from each other. In addition, the logic control 24, 26 may be used to vary the predetermined amount of time to adjust the delay time to a desired amount. The system determines the time each card will spend in each card buffer 14, 16 based on factors such as the desired curing delay time and system card throughput.
For example:
assume that the desired card throughput is 4000 cards/hour 0.90 seconds/card.
Assume that the desired cure delay time is 2.00 seconds.
Assume that there is a fixed entry/exit time of 0.20 seconds. The entry/exit time refers to the total time it takes for a card to enter (about 0.1 seconds) and exit (about 0.1 seconds) each mechanism or card buffer.
Based on these assumptions, the number of card buffers to be used is determined by: (curing delay-fixed entry/exit time)/system throughput ═ 2.00-.20)/.90 ═ 2 card buffers.
The two card buffers 14, 16 may be used independently as shown, or may be combined into a single card buffer. When the two card buffers 14, 16 are used independently, the system can achieve a cure delay time of about 2.0 seconds at a processing rate of about 4000 cards per hour. The time spent in each card buffer depends on, for example, the required card processing rate (measured in cards/hour).
Referring again to fig. 4, if it is desired to increase the curing delay time to between, for example, about 2 seconds to about 3 seconds, the exit portion 88 of the card transport mechanism of the first card processing mechanism 12 may be used as an additional card buffer similar to the configuration shown in fig. 3. This may be accomplished without any mechanical modification to the system 10, but this may reduce the card throughput of the system 10, for example, to about 3500 cards/hour. Alternatively, additional card buffers similar in construction to the card buffers 14, 16 may be added between the first card processing mechanism 12 and the second card processing mechanism 18.
Additionally, if a shorter curing delay time is desired, such as a curing delay time between about 0.20 seconds and about 0.45 seconds, the exit portion 88 of the card transport mechanism of the first card processing mechanism 12 may serve as a card buffer and the UV curing apparatus 78 (or a separate UV curing apparatus) may be moved into position with the card buffer 14 and replace the card buffer 14 as shown in fig. 4. In this embodiment, the second buffer 16 and the second card handling mechanism 18 may be removed.
Fig. 5 illustrates a method 90 involving an exemplary embodiment of the system 10, wherein, as shown in fig. 4, the first card processing mechanism 12 includes a DOD inkjet printer that prints UV curable ink and the second card processing mechanism 18 includes a UV curing apparatus 78. In method 90, in step 92, UV ink is printed onto a plastic card using a DOD inkjet printer. After printing, the printed card is then input into a first card buffer (e.g., card buffer 14) and the printed card is held in the card buffer for a predetermined period of time, step 94. At the end of the predetermined time period, the printed card may then optionally be input into a second card buffer (e.g., card buffer 16) and the printed card may be held in the second card buffer for another predetermined time period in step 96. Alternatively, if the second delay provided by the second card buffer is not required, the printed card may be immediately conveyed through the second card buffer to the UV curing apparatus. The printed card is then input into a UV curing apparatus to cure the UV ink in step 98. The cards may then be output from the UV curing apparatus for further processing or output to an output hopper.
In the described systems and methods, the buffer time of the card buffer may be changed without mechanically adjusting the physical distance between the first card processing mechanism 12 and the second card processing mechanism 18. Thus, the curing delay time (i.e. the time the card spends in the card buffer) can be adjusted without having a significant impact on the card throughput. For example, the card transport mechanism of the card buffer may be controlled so that each card may pass through the card buffer substantially without stopping. Alternatively, the card transport mechanism of the card buffer may be controlled so that each card may be temporarily stopped or "parked" in the card buffer for a predetermined period of time before being transported downstream. For example, the buffer time may be altered at a desired point in time during a single card production run, where the buffer time for a first card in the card production run may be different from the buffer time for a second card in the card production run. The second buffer time for the second card may be longer or shorter than the first buffer time for the first card in a single card production run. In the past, if the buffer time needs to be changed to obtain the optimum curing delay time during card production, the card production run will be terminated (or at least interrupted) and the distance between the print head and the UV curing equipment is mechanically adjusted. However, interrupting the operation of the system in this manner can greatly reduce the throughput of the card.
The systems and mechanisms described herein may be part of a central issuing card system, which is typically room-sized, configured with multiple personalization/processing equipment or modules, while performing different personalization/processing tasks on cards, and is typically configured to process multiple cards at a time with relatively high throughput (e.g., on the order of hundreds or thousands of cards per hour). Examples of central issuing systems are the MX and MPR lines of the card issuing system available from Entrust Datacard corporation of shakopeee, minnesota. Central distribution systems are described in U.S. patents 6902107, 5588763, 5451037 and 5266781, which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
The disclosed examples are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description; and all changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein.
