Principle of Die Cutting Machine: Working Principle and Application

A die-cutting machine is a tool commonly used in the printing and packaging industry. It can cut materials such as paper, cardboard, or plastic into specific shapes and sizes. The working principle of a die-cutting machine involves using special blades and molds to cut the material under a certain level of pressure, thereby achieving efficient production. Die-cutting machines play an important role in packaging production, allowing manufacturers to quickly produce various shapes of paper boxes, labels, and visual products, thereby improving production efficiency and quality. The technology of die-cutting machines has been continuously advancing, and with automation and digital innovations, modern die-cutting machines have become more intelligent, enabling more precise and high-speed cutting processes. The widespread use of die-cutting machines allows the packaging and printing industries to better meet market demands and provide personalized and diversified products. I hope this helps you understand die-cutting machines. If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

die cutting machines are mainly used for cutting, creasing, and hot stamping of various non-metallic materials, adhesive labels, EVA, double-sided adhesive, electronics, mobile phone protective films, etc. They apply a specific pressure through the embossing plate to cut the printed material or cardboard into a specific shape. How does a die cutting machine work? What is the working principle of a die cutting machine?

Working Principle of Die Cutting Machine:

The die cutting machine works by using steel blades, hardware molds, steel wires (or steel plate engraved templates), and applying a certain pressure through the embossing plate to cut the printed material or cardboard into a specific shape. If the entire printed item is cut into individual shaped products, it is called die cutting. If steel wires are used to leave marks or grooves on the printed material, it is called creasing. If a hot mold is used to imprint a three-dimensional pattern or font on the surface of the printed material through heating, it is called hot stamping. If one material is applied to another material, it is called lamination. The waste part of the material, excluding the actual product, is called waste stripping. All of these methods fall under the category of die cutting technology.

With the development of society and the improvement of people's living standards, consumers have higher requirements for product packaging in addition to the intrinsic quality of the product. This includes the design of the packaging and the quality of post-print die cutting and creasing. Die cutting and creasing technology are important production processes for the surface decoration of various printed materials. The quality of die cutting and creasing directly affects the market image of the entire product. Therefore, only by mastering traditional die cutting and creasing technology and researching and developing new die cutting techniques, can printing companies effectively enhance their competitiveness.

Die cutting and creasing technology is a collective term for two processing techniques: embossing according to the template and cutting according to the die. The principle is to compress and deform or break and separate the carrier paper under a certain pressure within the fixed mold. The main components of the die cutting and creasing equipment (referred to as die cutting machines) are the die cutting plate and the die cutting mechanism. Translated to English: Being processed sheet metal is between these two, and the finishing technique of die cutting is completed under pressure. Die-cutting printing plates have different types and corresponding cutting mechanisms, which divide die-cutting machines into three basic types: flat-press, round-press, and round-press round-type. The flat-press die-cutting machine is further divided into vertical and horizontal types based on the difference in the direction and position of the platen and the pressure plate. 

In a vertical flat-press die-cutting machine, both the platen and the cutting mechanism have a flat shape. When the platen and the pressure plate are in a vertical position, it is called a vertical flat-press die-cutting machine. During operation, the pressure plate is driven to press against the cutting plate. Depending on the different motion trajectories of the pressure plate, there are two types: one type is when the pressure plate swings around a fixed chain, at the moment when die-cutting starts, there is a certain inclination angle between the working surface of the pressure plate and the template surface, which allows the die-cutting plate to cut into the lower part of the cardboard earlier, which can easily cause excessive pressure on the lower part of the die-cutting plate and incomplete cutting on the upper part. In addition, the distribution of die-cutting pressure can also cause lateral displacement of the cardboard. The other type of pressure plate movement mechanism is that the pressure plate, driven by the connecting rod, swings on the horizontal guide rail of the machine bed with the cylindrical roller as the fulcrum. When the working surface of the pressure plate tilts from an inclined position to a parallel position with the die-cutting plate, it moves parallel to press against the die-cutting plate.

The vertical flat-press die-cutting machine has the advantages of simple structure, easy maintenance, easy operation and replacement of die-cutting printing plates, but it has a higher labor intensity and lower production efficiency. The working speed is usually 20-30 times per minute, making it suitable for small batch production. 

The horizontal flat-press die-cutting machine has the platen and pressure plate in a horizontal position. The lower pressure plate is driven to press against the platen for die-cutting and creasing. Due to the small stroke of the horizontal die-cutting machine, it is difficult to manually feed in or take out the cardboard, so it usually comes with an automatic feeding system. Its overall structure is similar to a single-sheet offset press. The machine consists of an automatic paper input system, a die-cutting section, a paper output section, and electrical control and mechanical transmission parts. Some machines also have automatic cleaning devices.

The horizontal flat-press die-cutting machine is safe and reliable in operation, highly automated, and has high production efficiency. It is an advanced type among the flat-press die-cutting machines. 

The round-press flat die-cutting machine is mainly composed of a reciprocating flat platen and a rotating cylindrical pressure roller. During the working stroke, the platen moves forward and performs die-cutting and creasing on the cardboard, and during the return stroke, the platen moves backward and the working surface of the pressure roller does not contact the die-cutting plate. This type of die-cutting machine can be divided into several types based on the different rotations of the pressure roller in one working cycle, such as stop rotation, one rotation, two rotations, etc. The forward and backward strokes of the positive and negative rotation round-press die-cutting machine can be working strokes. 

The round-press round die-cutting machine has cylindrical platens and cutting mechanisms. During operation, the paper feed device feeds the cardboard between the die-cutting plate roller and the pressure roller, and both rollers clamp the cardboard for die-cutting. One rotation of the die-cutting plate roller completes one working cycle. 

The die-cutting methods of the round-press round die-cutting machine generally include hard cutting and soft cutting. Hard cutting refers to when the die comes into hard contact with the surface of the pressure roller during die-cutting, making the die relatively easy to wear. Soft cutting involves covering the surface of the pressure roller with a layer of engineering plastic. During die-cutting, the cutting blade can have a certain cutting depth, which can protect the blade and ensure complete cutting. However, the plastic layer needs to be replaced regularly. 

Since the round-press round die-cutting machine continuously rotates its rollers during operation, it has the highest production efficiency among all types of die-cutting machines. However, the die-cutting plate needs to be bent into a curved surface, which makes the plate manufacturing process more complicated and costly, with technical difficulties. Therefore, the round-press round die-cutting machine is commonly used for large-scale production. Currently, advanced die-cutting equipment tends to develop towards the direction of fully automatic printing and die-cutting combination lines, which consist of four main parts: feeding, printing, die-cutting, and delivery sections. The feeding section intermittently inputs cardboard into the printing section and can be easily and accurately adjusted according to different forms, sizes, and types of materials. The printing section consists of 4-8 color printing units and can use different methods such as gravure printing, flexographic printing, etc. It has advanced printing functions and is equipped with individual automatic drying systems. The die-cutting section can be a flat-press die-cutting machine or a round-press round die-cutting machine, and both have waste removal devices that can automatically remove the waste generated after die-cutting. The delivery section collects, organizes, and delivers the finished products after die-cutting to ensure smooth and high-speed continuous operation of the feeding, printing, and die-cutting sections. With the improvement of technology in recent years, the price of round-press round die-cutting equipment has significantly decreased. It is widely used by a large user base in the domestic market. 

rotary die cutting machine

A rotary die cutting machine for toilet paper comes in two types: flat-to-flat and round-to-round. The flat-to-flat rotary die cutting machine is a machine that cuts and creases the toilet paper by feeding it from a paper roll. There are two processing methods: off-line and in-line. The off-line processing method involves printing the toilet paper board with a printing machine, and then placing the rolled toilet paper from the rewinding machine onto the feeding rack of the die cutting machine for cutting and creasing. The advantage of the off-line processing method is that the printing machine and the die cutting machine are not connected and they are not restricted by each other. Multiple die cutting machines can be used with the printing machine, or the die cutting machine can have extended operating time.

The in-line processing method involves connecting the die cutting machine and the printing machine to form a continuous production line starting from the toilet paper board. This method reduces the number of operators, but generally, the printing machine operates at a higher speed while the die cutting machine operates at a lower speed. The speeds of the two machines cannot be matched, resulting in the need to lower the speed of the printing machine, which affects the production efficiency.

Online Die Cutting Machine

The term "online die cutting" mainly refers to online flat-to-flat die cutting and online round-to-round die cutting. Online die cutting has advantages that cannot be compared to single sheet die cutting machines. Experts predict that it will become the mainstream in the die cutting equipment market in the coming years. The characteristics of online die cutting are high speed, high precision, and the ability to greatly improve production efficiency, shorten production cycles, and reduce production costs.

The maximum speed of online flat-to-flat die cutting can reach over 20,000 times per hour, far exceeding that of single sheet die cutting. Since the same die cutting plates are used as in single sheet flat-to-flat die cutting, the manufacturing process is simple and the cost is low. Currently, it is widely used in post-press processing of medium and long-run packaging products, and the market prospects are generally optimistic.

Online round-to-round die cutting is mainly used in post-press online production with a single variety and large quantities. Its main feature is to perform a series of processes such as hot stamping, embossing, die cutting, and waste removal on the printed toilet paper board to process the paper in one step into the final product. Online round-to-round die cutting avoids a series of quality issues caused by multiple post-press processing, such as dirty surfaces, inaccurate hot stamping positioning, and high waste rates. At the same time, it reduces equipment investment and floor space, saves a lot of labor, and shortens the production cycle. Although online round-to-round die cutting has some advantages that online flat-to-flat die cutting does not have, its promotion and application in the domestic market are limited due to the high cost of round die cutting tools and the complexity of die cutting plate manufacturing.

Currently, online round-to-round die cutting is being increasingly adopted in foreign countries.