Usage of Cookies

Cookies are important to the proper functioning of a site. To improve your experience, we use cookies to remember log-in details and
provide secure log-in, collect statistics to optimize site functionality and deliver content tailored to your interest.
By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this. For more information you can read our Privacy Policy.

The thickness of the printbar cannot be overlooked.
Design tips for a thin printbar

SHARE

S-1_EN_title1-1_img

Three factors to consider in making a thin printbar

In order to minimize the thickness of the printbar, the following three factors should be considered.

❶ Size of the printhead
The size and shape of the printhead and the arrangement of the printhead greatly affect the thickness of the printbar.

❷ Design of ink circulation system
The ink circulation system design requires several units as shown below, and the thickness of the printbar varies greatly depending on which units are built into the printbar.

  • Liquid delivery unit for circulating ink to the printheads, including pumps and piping.
  • Filtering unit to remove foreign objects from the ink
  • Pressure control unit to maintain a constant pressure in the printhead
  • Temperature control unit to maintain constant ink temperature

Drive frequency of printhead driver board
The drive frequency of the printhead driver board, which is used to generate the printhead waveform, increases with the resolution of the printed image and the speed of feeding print media, resulting in a higher heat generation. Having to add a heat dissipation system into the printbar to address this issue can increase printbar thickness.

Key points to design a thin printbar

For each factor, the following points should be considered in the design of the printbar.

Size of the printhead
For single-pass printer development, positioning 1,200 dpi rectangular printheads in line would require the nozzles along the edge of each printhead to be approximately 20 um from the nozzles on the edge of the adjacent printhead in order to avoid a gap in the final image output. In this arrangement, each nozzle would need to be 10 um from the edge of each printhead. Manufacturing printheads with nozzles this close to the edge is very difficult and normally something printhead producers are not able to supply. To address this problem, a common practice is to stagger, or “brick”, printheads so the edges of the printheads can overlap somewhat as shown below (Fig. 3). However, the result of this staggered arrangement is a thicker print bar. On the other hand, diamond-shaped printheads (Ex.: the FUJIFILM SAMBA® printhead) can be arranged in a straight line, helping to reduce printbar thickness. For example, with a five-color printer, the overall length of the printbar can be reduced by tens of centimeters in the feed direction.

print_bar_head_2_img

Ink circulation system
Through careful selection and design, only those parts that need to be near the printhead are included in the printbar; other parts are included in a separate fluid station. With fewer parts in the printbar, the size of the printbar is reduced.

Drive frequency of printhead driver board
An optimal cooling system must be selected based on the type of printhead and the conditions of usage. An air-cooled system often requires less space than a water-cooled system. On the other hand, a water-cooled system has a higher heat transfer coefficient and can disperse heat more efficiently than an air-cooled system.

The printbar of the FUJIFILM SAMBA® JET PRESS Components (JPC), places an ink circulation pump and an ink temperature control unit outside of the printbar. Use of smaller, high efficiency parts in the printhead driver board further reduces printbar thickness.

By applying knowledge and techniques obtained from Fujifilm’s development efforts relating to the FUJIFILM JET PRESS inkjet printer and the SAMBA® JPC, and by increasing the efficiency of its development efforts for future products, Fujifilm hopes to lead the digitalization of printing and contribute to the expansion and growth of the inkjet printer market.


FUJIFILM SAMBA® JPC: A set of inkjet components revolutionizing the speed of 1,200 dpi, high-resolution digital printer development.

SAMBA® JPC_img

pages: 1 2

SHARE