TBC
360° Seamless Tapered Object & Cylinder Printing

The TBC UV-LED inkjet printer is specially engineered for direct printing on cylinders and tapered objects, such as cups, bottles, tins and cans, and supports a wide range of materials, including metal, glass, paper, wood and plastic.

The TBC printer also offers an option, which is a robotic arm control system for automatic loading and unloading.

Compared with traditional printing techniques, such as pad printing, screen printing, and label printing, the TBC has prominent advantages in being free from plates, fast warm-up, as well as short turnaround time. The TBC is an ideal choice for short-run printing, customized printing, and package proofing.

Case Stories

AMICA’s TBC Direct-to-Bottle Inkjet Printer Applied by Our European OEM Customer

One of our European OEM customers applied AMICA’s 100% proprietary TBC Direct-to-Bottle Inkjet Printer for printing on steel bottles and plastic bottles.

Features

Complete Digital Printing System

Supports cylinders & tapered objects of various shapes and sizes

With standard connector available, operators can install corresponding fixtures according to specific shapes, dimensions or structures of their printed objects to achieve accurate positioning and tightly fastening, ensuring stable high-speed rotation, quick loading, and quick unloading.
Equipped with the angle adjustment device, the TBC will lead you to high quality final color prints, including tapered cups and neat cylindrical thermos bottles.

Segmented UV curing control for maximum printing productivity

(Only available in the upgraded version)

The irradiation area of the UV lamp is divided into several segments, each of which can be individually controlled for activation. This function achieves simultaneous printing of white, color, and varnish while presenting a perfect glossy effect. When printing with varnish is required, the printing productivity is increased by more than 50% on average compared to the previous technology.

Perfect 360° Seamless Rotary Printing on Tapered Objects & Cylinders

Thanks to the Rotational Print Pass Method (RPPM) and Special Print Head Arrangement Method, TBC is endowed with amazing print productivity and print quality for tapered objects and cylinders.
The Ink Droplet Conversion Algorithm realizes consistent resolutions and stable visual effects for bottle or cup sets in different sizes.
TBC also uses the Ink Droplet Compensation Algorithm to avoid image deformation on different sections of the tapered object, and ensure excellent visual effect.

360° Seamless Printing

without Gaps and Overlaps
Double-Sided Decoration

on transparent materials
Embossed Printing

on glass candle holder
High-Drop Printing

on irregular or uneven surfaces
Packaging Application

for short-run printing,
customized printing,
and proofing

Robotic Arm Automation System (Optional)

Includes a robotic arm and a conveyor, which seamlessly cooperate with the TBC to achieve automatic loading and unloading.

Conveyor for up to 12 bottles, also customizable
Built-in motion trajectory parameters for commonly used bottles, but also configurable parameters for special bottles
Equipped with a 6-axis robotic arm with a position repeatability of up to ±0.05 mm
Two sets of grippers that act as an end effector, working alternately

Robotic Arm Automation System
(Optional, CE Version)

Includes a robotic arm and a conveyor, which seamlessly cooperate with the TBC to achieve automatic loading and unloading.

Conveyor for up to 12 bottles, also customizable
Built-in motion trajectory parameters for commonly used bottles, but also configurable parameters for special bottles
Equipped with a 6-axis robotic arm with a position repeatability of up to ±0.02 mm
Two sets of grippers that act as an end effector, working alternately

Based on an all-in-one design concept, the small and compact Print Head Maintenance Module allows automatic purging, wiping and capping for convenient unattended operation.

Automatic Print Head Protection System monitors whether the print heads will be scratched or exposed to UV lights, and immediately stops the movement of the carriage in case of the emergency situations, effectively ensuring the safety of print heads.

Positioning Sensors indicate the position of the print object and enable to quickly set the printing area, achieving efficient and precise printing.

Specifications

Print System	DOD piezo electric grayscale print heads, automatic voltage and temperature control UV-LED curing system with multiple UV lamp control

Media Type	White/ black/ colored tapered objects and cylinders Metal, paper, plastic, wood, glass, etc.

Ink System	UV curable C, M, Y, K, White, Varnish, and Primer inks 1 L main ink tank for each color Automatic ink supply system Active negative pressure system

Operational Environment	Temperature: 16-28°C (61-82°F) Humidity: 40-70% (Recommended) Altitude: up to 1000 m (3281 ft) Compressed Air: 0.5-0.8 MPa Electrical - TBC: single phase 220 V±10% (50/60 Hz, AC); 3 A, 660 W Electrical - Robotic Arm Automation System: single phase 220 V±10% (50/60 Hz, AC); 16 A, 3520 W

RIP and User Interface	ColorPRINT Bottle RIP software Color LCD Display Panel Printer Control Software (PCS)

Formats	Popular desktop file formats, including JPEG, TIFF, PDF, EPS and DCS

Connectivity	Gigabit Ethernet interface

Printer Model		TBC with Robotic Arm Automation System
Printed Object	Shape	Tapered Objects & Cylinders
	Size	Length: 0 - 270mm (0" - 10.63") Top diameter: 40 - 120mm (1.57" - 4.72") Bottom diameter: 40 - 120mm (1.57" - 4.72")
Rotary Degree of Object		360°
Printable Size		Feeding direction (R-axis): entire surface of the objects Printing length (Y-axis): within 220 mm (8.66”) (Standard) within 240 mm (9.45”) (Upgraded)
Printer Dimensions (W × D × H)		TBC Printer：1373 × 670 × 1658 mm (54.1” × 26.4” × 65.3”) Robotic Arm Automation System：2405 × 1245 × 1690 mm (94.7” × 49.0” × 66.5”) TBC + Robotic Arm Automation System：2567 × 1674 × 1690 mm (101.1 ” × 65.9” × 66.5”)

PRINT PRODUCTIVITY

Bottle Diameter	Image Size	Print Resolution	Color	Printing Productivity Unit: bottles/ hr.
Bottle Diameter	Image Size	Print Resolution	Color	Production Mode ( Standard )	Quality Mode ( Standard )	Production Mode ( Upgraded )	Quality Mode ( Upgraded )
70 mm (2.76")	60 × 220 mm (2.36" × 8.66")	600 × 900 dpi	CMYK	225	157	230	188
			W + CMYK	180	129	206	159
			W + CMYK + V	138	92	169	131
	100 × 220 mm (3.94" × 8.66")	600 × 900 dpi	CMYK	164	106	196	166
			W + CMYK	129	87	189	141
			W + CMYK + V	97	62	164	121

* Print Productivity includes manual loading, printing, curing and manual unloading time.

* It will vary depending on print resolution, color modes, image size, etc.

Software

ColorPRINT Bottle RIP Software

Intuitive main interface with 2D/ 3D preview
Basic parameters can be set in one view
ICC color management
Object template to define print locations
Automatic white ink background choke
Variable data printing

Printer Control Software (PCS)

Sends job control commands to print, abort, pause, resume and reset
Displays real-time status information of the printer and job
Z-axis height control
Check nozzle circular; Horizontal calibration
White ink circulation control
Multiple UV lamp control

Inks

NuviINK^® Graphics series

If you are looking for an ink that is vibrant and able to print photo-realistic images on a wide variety of media, NuviINK^® will satisfy your needs! NuviINK^® Graphics series includes from UV ink to water-based ink, from solvent ink to mild-solvent ink.

NuviINK^®UV ink includes:

- Used for Ricoh print heads:

GUSAC

For more information, please download the GUSAC TDS.
The GUSAC ink has passed the US California Proposition 65 test. Please download and view the PROP 65 Test Report.
GUV VARNISH

The GUV VARNISH ink has passed the US California Proposition 65 test. Please download and view the PROP 65 Test Report.
GUV-SR VARNISH
GUM PRIMER, GUM-LT PRIMER

PRINT PRODUCTIVITY

ColorPRINT Bottle RIP Software

Printer Control Software (PCS)

NuviINK® Graphics series

NuviINK® UV ink includes:

- Used for Ricoh print heads:

- Used for Ricoh print heads:

NuviINK^® Graphics series

NuviINK^®UV ink includes: