A vision system can make UV flatbed printing much easier when you work with irregular products.
Without vision positioning, the common method is to make a jig.
You place each product into the jig, align the jig on the printer bed, and use the fixed position to control where the image will be printed.
This works well for regular products, but it takes extra time to make and adjust the fixture.
Vision Positioning Reduces the Need for Jigs
With a vision system, irregular items can be placed directly on the printer bed.
The products do not always need to be arranged in a perfect row.
The camera scans the printing area and detects the shape and position of each item.
The software matches the artwork to the detected outline.
Once the positions are confirmed, the printer can start printing based on those locations.
This is useful for products such as:
- Irregular acrylic pieces
- Custom signs
- Small decorative parts
- Different-shaped promotional items
- Products placed at slightly different angles
It Can Improve Positioning Accuracy
A jig relies on physical positioning.
If the product moves inside the fixture or the jig itself is not aligned correctly, the print position may shift.
A vision system uses the actual contour of each product as the positioning reference.
This can improve consistency when printing many irregular items.
It also reduces the time spent making different jigs for different products.
A useful Printer tip is to consider a vision system if your UV flatbed printer often handles short runs, custom products, or many different shapes.
For standard rectangular products, a jig may still be simple and effective.
For irregular products, vision positioning can make setup faster, more flexible, and easier to repeat.