There are many kinds of product appearance designs. Texture is one of the factors that affect the exquisite appearance of the product. Different textures can bring different styles and feelings. Let’s briefly explain several surface texture realization processes.https://ycncmachining.blogspot.com/
1. Embossing
Metal embossing is embossing on the metal plate by mechanical equipment, so that the surface of the plate has a concave-convex pattern.
The embossed metal sheet is rolled with patterned work rolls. The work rolls are usually processed with corrosive liquid. The depth of the unevenness on the plate varies with the pattern, and the minimum can reach 0.02-0.03mm. After the work roll is continuously rotated and rolled, the pattern repeats periodically, and the length of the embossed plate is basically unlimited.
At present, metal embossed panels are suitable for decoration of elevator cars, subway cars, various cabins, architectural decoration, metal curtain walls and other industries. It has the advantages of being durable, durable, durable, visually beautiful, easy to clean, maintenance-free, resistant, resistant to pressure, scratching, and leaving no fingerprints.https://www.infantpulseoximeter.com/
2. Brushed metal
Metal wire drawing is the manufacturing process of repeatedly scraping aluminum plates out of lines with sandpaper.
The metal wire drawing process can clearly show every tiny wire mark, so that the metal matte shines with fine hair luster, and the product has a sense of fashion and technology. Wire drawing can be made into straight grain, random grain, thread, corrugated and spiral grain according to the needs of decoration.
Straight grain: Wire drawing refers to the machining of straight lines on the surface of the aluminum plate by mechanical friction.https://itsoug.com/
Random pattern: Wire drawing is a kind of irregular and non-obvious matte silk pattern obtained by moving and rubbing the aluminum plate back and forth under a high-speed copper wire brush.
Thread: use a small motor with a round felt on the shaft, fix it on the table, at an angle of about 60 degrees with the edge of the table, and make a carriage with a fixed aluminum plate for pressing tea. A polyester film with straight edges is attached to limit thread competition.
Ripple: generally made on brushing machine or rubbing machine. Using the axial movement of the upper group of grinding rollers, the surface of the aluminum or aluminum alloy plate is brushed to obtain wave patterns.
Swirl pattern: It is a kind of silk pattern obtained by rotating and polishing the surface of aluminum or aluminum alloy plate by using cylindrical felt or grind nylon wheel to install on the drilling machine, blending the polishing oil with kerosene, and polishing the surface of aluminum or aluminum alloy plate. It is mostly used for decorative processing of round signs and small decorative dials.https://cncturning.biz/
3. IML process:
First, it is necessary to explain conceptually: IMD includes IML, IMF, IMR
IML: IN MOLDING LABEL (no stretch, small surface, used for 2D products)
IMF: IN MOLDING FILM (suitable for high stretch products, 3D products)
IMR: IN MOLDING ROLLER (the film on the surface of the product is removed, leaving only the ink on the surface of the product)
The surface of the IML product is a hardened transparent film, the middle is a printed pattern layer, and the back is a plastic layer. Because the ink is sandwiched in the middle, the product can prevent the surface from being scratched and abrasion-resistant, and can keep the color bright and not easy to fade for a long time. .
The process flow is as follows:https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/medical-machining
Cutting material: Cut the film film into a square block with a designed size for printing and forming processes.
Plane printing: According to the required icons and texts, a film net is made, and the icons and texts are printed on the cut film square blocks.
Ink drying and fixing: Put the printed film Film square in a high-temperature oven to dry, the purpose is to fix the IML ink.
Paste protective film: Avoid fouling the surface of the printed film during the process of punching positioning holes. Sometimes a single-layer or double-layer protective film is required.
Punching positioning holes: The positioning holes for thermoforming must be punched accurately. The positioning holes in the shearing process are sometimes punched in advance.
Thermoforming (high pressure or copper mold): After heating the printed film, use a high pressure machine or copper mold to form it in a preheated state.
Cut the outer shape: cut off the waste of the formed three-dimensional film.https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/CNCMilling1684
Material injection: Put the film exactly the same as the three-dimensional shape of the front mold on the front mold, and then inject the finished IML.
Textures can be realized: CD grain, brushed, matte, leather grain, wood grain, various 3D patterns, but because the outermost layer is made of film material, the grain is not tactile.
Product features: The film production cycle is short and can express multiple colors; the pattern and color can be changed at any time during production; it has excellent scratch resistance; IML production batch quantity is very flexible, suitable for small-scale production of multiple varieties.
Product application: 3C industry, mobile phone windows, mobile phone buttons, mobile phone LOGO, decorative films, etc.
4. IMR process:https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/CNCTURNING
IMR (In-Mold Transfer) This process is to print the pattern on the film, and the film is attached to the mold cavity through the film feeder for extrusion. After extrusion, the patterned ink layer is separated from the film, and the ink layer remains On the plastic part, a plastic part with a decorative pattern on the surface is obtained. There is no transparent protective film on the surface of the final product, and the film is only a carrier in the production process.
IMR products are not easy to be deformed, the edges of the products are completely covered, and the edge adhesion is strong. It is very easy to change the roll of IMR transfer foil. The process is simple, so the defect rate can be controlled within a few points. The process is simple, so the personnel demand can be reduced. At the lowest point, the pattern alignment is perfect, the hardness can reach 2H, the automation degree in production is high, and the cost of mass production is low.
Realizable texture: wood, bamboo, marble, leather and other textureshttps://www.cncmachiningptj.com/brass-machining
Product shortcomings: The printed pattern layer is on the surface of the product, and the thickness is only a few microns. After the product is used for a period of time, the printed pattern layer is easily worn off, and it is also easy to fade, resulting in an unsightly surface. In addition, the new product development cycle is long and the development cost is high.
Product application: IMR applies a wide range of products because it belongs to the surface treatment process of plastic parts. Such as laptop shells, home appliance shells, mobile phone shells, ABS, etc.
5. Water transfer printing process:
Water transfer technology is a kind of printing that uses water pressure to hydrolyze the transfer paper/plastic film with color patterns. As people’s requirements for product packaging and decoration increase, water transfer printing has become more and more widely used. The principle of indirect printing and perfect printing effect have solved many problems of product surface decoration.https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/copper-machining
There are two types of water transfer technology, one is water mark transfer technology, and the other is water coating transfer technology. The former mainly completes the transfer of text and pictorial patterns, while the latter tends to perform a complete transfer on the entire product surface.
Cubic Transfer uses a water-based film that is easily soluble in water to carry graphics and text. Because the water coating film has excellent tension, it is easy to wrap around the surface of the product to form a graphic layer, and the surface of the product has a completely different appearance like spray paint.
It is covered on workpieces of any shape to solve the problem of three-dimensional product printing for manufacturers. Curved drape can also add different lines to the surface of the product, and at the same time, it can also avoid the vacant position that often appears in general layout printing. And in the printing process, since the product surface does not need to be in contact with the printing film, damage to the product surface and its integrity can be avoided.https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/titanium-machining
Product application: automotive interiors such as automotive dashboards and control panels, 3C electronic products, household appliances, building materials, etc.;
6. Hot stamping
Hot stamping is commonly known as “hot stamping”. The essence of hot stamping is transfer, which is the process of transferring the pattern on the hot stamping paper to the substrate through the action of heat and pressure. The pressure of the mold produces depressions, and the printed words or patterns are not easy to be blurred, so the patterns, logos, text or pictures can be firmly adhered to the surface of the product.https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/delrin
Hot stamping die and foil are two key components of the hot stamping process. The stamping die is generally composed of magnesium, brass and steel, and some use silicone rubber on the surface of the metal stamping die for uneven surfaces. The hot stamping die foil mainly includes a carrier, a release layer, a protective layer and a decorative layer.
The hot stamping process consists of 4 steps:
(1) The hot stamping foil is in contact with the substrate;
(2) With heat and pressure, the transfer layer is transferred to the surface of the substrate;
(3) Relieve the pressure and peel off the polyester film;https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/die-casting
(4) Feed the hot stamping foil and replace it with the substrate to be hot stamped.
Technical application: Hot stamping is suitable for textiles such as polymers, wood, leather, paper, vinyl, polyester film, and metals that are not easy to color. The decoration is scratch-resistant, abrasion-resistant and peel-resistant. Used in retail and cosmetic packaging, books and magazines, car decoration, advertising, consumer goods decoration, information signs, etc.
7. Laser engraving (laser engraving)
Using numerical control technology as the basis, laser as the processing medium. The metal material melts and vaporizes physically under the laser irradiation instantaneously, so as to achieve the purpose of processing. With laser engraving machine using laser engraving technology, vectorized graphics can be easily “printed” onto the processed substrate. The advantages of this technology are:https://www.cncmachiningptj.com/laser-cutting
①Precision: The thinnest line width of the material surface can reach 0.015mm, and it is non-contact processing, which will not cause product deformation;
②High efficiency: You can get the physical products of new products in the shortest time, and you only need to change the vector file for multiple varieties and small batches;
③Special processing: to meet special processing requirements, inner surface or inclined surface can be processed;
④Environmental protection and energy saving: no pollution, no harmful substances, higher than export environmental protection requirements.
8. Metal etching
Also known as photochemical etching. After exposure, plate making and development, the protective film on the pattern area to be etched is removed, and the chemical solution is contacted during metal etching to achieve the effect of dissolving and corroding, forming a concave-convex or hollow-out molding effect. For general consumer products, the pattern or text logo on the aluminum plate is often made by etching. In addition, etching is often used to make various metal horn nets.https://www.diecastingcompany.com/magnesium-casting
9. CNC machining
CNC Machining (CNC Machining) refers to processing with CNC machining tools. The CNC numerical control machine tool is programmed by the numerical control processing language to control the feed speed of the processing tool and the spindle speed, as well as the tool changer, coolant, etc., so as to physically process the surface of the substrate. CNC machining has great advantages over manual machining. For example, the parts produced by CNC machining are very accurate and repeatable; CNC machining can produce parts with complex shapes that cannot be completed by manual machining.https://www.diecastingcompany.com/zinc-casting
10. Metal hot stamping
Refers to the use of a special metal hot stamping plate to transfer the hot stamping foil to the surface of the printing material by heating and pressing. For metal substrate hot stamping, a proprietary metal hot stamping film is required, or after spraying on the surface of the substrate, the hot stamping film is attached. https://www.diecastingcompany.com/cnc-machiningSince the hot stamping foil has diversified characteristics, the metal substrate can also be quickly and diversified, and the surface hot stamping treatment can be performed more environmentally, so as to achieve our original design intention.