Patents by Inventor Ken NITO

Ken NITO has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20230398801
    Abstract: An image forming method for forming an image on a cloth with a sublimation coloring material, the image forming method including: pretreatment liquid applying that is applying a pretreatment liquid to the cloth; drying that is drying the cloth after the pretreatment liquid applying; and sublimation coloring material applying that is applying the sublimation coloring material to the cloth after the drying. The pretreatment liquid contains an organic compound, and a heat source and the cloth are not in contact with each other in the drying.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 7, 2023
    Publication date: December 14, 2023
    Inventors: Ken NITO, Ayumi KAWAMURA
  • Patent number: 11692303
    Abstract: The pretreatment liquid of the present invention is applicable for a fabric to be used for inkjet textile printing, and the pretreatment liquid contains a block copolymer including a hydrophobic block derived from a hydrophobic resin having an SP value of less than 11 and a hydrophilic block derived from a hydrophilic resin having an SP value of 11 or more, with the difference between the SP values of the hydrophobic resin and the hydrophilic resin of 1.0 or more; and water.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Ken Nito, Takuya Okada, Masaki Nakamura
  • Publication number: 20230174813
    Abstract: A pretreatment liquid for a fabric used for transfer textile printing, includes a solvent having an organic/inorganic value (I/O value) of 1.0 to 3.0, and has a surface tension of less than 38 mN/m at 25° C.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2022
    Publication date: June 8, 2023
    Applicant: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Mai KATO, Ken NITO
  • Publication number: 20230045096
    Abstract: A fabric treatment agent that is used in textile printing with a sublimable color material includes a color-material scavenging compound having an Rf value of 0.7 or less according to paper chromatography performed under following conditions. In Procedure 1, cellulose filter paper is impregnated with a 10% solution of the color-material scavenging compound and then dried to prepare a carrier. In Procedure 2, a 0.1% solution of a sublimable color material in tetrahydrofuran is spotted on the carrier and then dried to prepare a development sample. In Procedure 3, the development sample is developed using acetonitrile as a solvent for 3 minutes at 25° C. In Procedure 4, the Rf value is calculated by a following formula: R ? f = ( distance ? travelled ? by ? the ? sublimable ? color ? material ) ( distance ? travelled ? by ? acetonitrile ) .
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 29, 2022
    Publication date: February 9, 2023
    Inventors: Mai KATO, Ken NITO
  • Publication number: 20220032627
    Abstract: Provided is an inkjet printing apparatus for printing an aqueous ink on a fabric containing: a printing device for ejecting the aqueous ink onto the fabric; a coating device located downstream of the printing device for applying a cleaning liquid containing no eluate from the fabric to the fabric; and a removing device located downstream of the coating device of the cleaning liquid for removing the cleaning liquid.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 26, 2021
    Publication date: February 3, 2022
    Inventors: Takuya OKADA, Ken NITO, Masaki NAKAMURA
  • Publication number: 20210402820
    Abstract: A image forming method of the present invention includes steps of forming a coloring material layer by applying an ink containing water and a dispersible coloring material dispersed in the water to the surface of a fabric by an inkjet method; and forming, on a surface of the coloring material layer, a protective layer having an average thickness smaller than that of the coloring material layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 7, 2021
    Publication date: December 30, 2021
    Inventors: Takuya OKADA, Masaki NAKAMURA, Ken NITO
  • Publication number: 20210363691
    Abstract: The pretreatment liquid of the present invention is applicable for a fabric to be used for inkjet textile printing, and the pretreatment liquid contains a block copolymer including a hydrophobic block derived from a hydrophobic resin having an SP value of less than 11 and a hydrophilic block derived from a hydrophilic resin having an SP value of 11 or more, with the difference between the SP values of the hydrophobic resin and the hydrophilic resin of 1.0 or more; and water.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 19, 2021
    Publication date: November 25, 2021
    Inventors: Ken NITO, Takuya OKADA, Masaki NAKAMURA
  • Patent number: 10619060
    Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide an actinic radiation curable inkjet ink which has less color mixing, which can obtain white ink with fewer surface irregularities and excellent smoothness, which has excellent actinic radiation transmittance and curability, and which enables sol-gel phase transition by temperature change, and to provide an inkjet image forming method, and a recording medium on which an image has been formed using the inkjet ink. This purpose is achieved by an actinic radiation curable inkjet ink that contains a photopolymerizable compound, a photo initiator, a gelling agent, and a white pigment, wherein the white pigment contains titanium oxide, the gelling agent contains at least one type of gelling agent A that contains an alkyl chain comprising a straight chain portion with 12-26 carbon atoms, wherein the content of the gelling agent A is 5-35 mass % of the content of the titanium oxide.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2020
    Assignee: KONICA MINOLTA, INC.
    Inventors: Yusuke Takaku, Ken Nito
  • Publication number: 20170342283
    Abstract: The purpose of the present invention is to provide an actinic radiation curable inkjet ink which has less color mixing, which can obtain white ink with fewer surface irregularities and excellent smoothness, which has excellent actinic radiation transmittance and curability, and which enables sol-gel phase transition by temperature change, and to provide an inkjet image forming method, and a recording medium on which an image has been formed using the inkjet ink. This purpose is achieved by an actinic radiation curable inkjet ink that contains a photopolymerizable compound, a photo initiator, a gelling agent, and a white pigment, wherein the white pigment contains titanium oxide, the gelling agent contains at least one type of gelling agent A that contains an alkyl chain comprising a straight chain portion with 12-26 carbon atoms, wherein the content of the gelling agent A is 5-35 mass % of the content of the titanium oxide.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2015
    Publication date: November 30, 2017
    Inventors: Yusuke TAKAKU, Ken NITO