Abstract: A multiple color painting apparatus has dedicated passages for carrying paints from a plurality of paint tanks each filled with paint of a different color. A single pump is disposed at the outlets of the dedicated passages. The delivery passage of the pump is used as a single common passage. A paint gun is connected to this common passage. As a result, when the paint color being used is changed it is not necessary for the dedicated passages to be washed with washing liquid and only the common passage from the pump to the paint gun need be washed.

Abstract: A workpiece is electrostatically coated by an internal-voltage-application-type rotary atomizing electrostatic coating apparatus. An electrically conductive paint is supplied to the internal-voltage-application-type rotary atomizing electrostatic coating apparatus, and a voltage applied to the internal-voltage-application-type rotary atomizing electrostatic coating apparatus is controlled depending on an area of the workpiece which is to be coated, for thereby varying a coated pattern width on the workpiece.

Abstract: The disclosed present invention relates to a method of applying a metallic coating, such as a finish paint coating to an automobile. This method comprises two processes or stages using a bell-shaped rotary atomizer and a metallic paint. The amount of paint ejected from the rotary atomizer, shaping air pressure, and coating speed are maintained at approximately the same values during both the first and second processes. In the first process, the peripheral speed of the bell-shaped atomizing head is set within a range of 39 to 65 m/s. In the subsequent second process, the peripheral speed of the bell-shaped atomizing head is set to a lower value than in the first process, that is, within the range of 21 to 39 m/s, and the reduction rate of the nonvolatile (NV) value is set to 3% or more. This method improves the orientation of a bright pigment, enabling the automobile to appear high-grade, and providing a quality metallic coating.