We define a small character inkjet coder as being capable of printing at least two lines of information in a selectable font size down to at least 1/16″ height, or one line up to 12 mm height (0.47″) and has the capability of printing at least some versions of barcodes (most systems can also print 2D codes).
Continuous Ink Jet (CIJ)
Continuous Ink Jet technology uses electrically charged ink droplets to create high quality characters based on a grid formation. Using a wide range of ink jet inks that have been developed for specific industry applications, the A-Series can print text, graphics and variable data, such as product identification directly onto substrates including:
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Food
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Glass
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Plastic
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Metal
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Rubber
How it Works
The printhead contains an ink drop-generator with a vibrating drive rod. This creates ultrasonic pressure waves in the ink jet ink, breaking it up into individual droplets. When these droplets falls between a set of electrodes, individual droplets are intermittently charged. The size of the charge given to each droplet determines how far it will be deflected out of the stream when passing through the deflector plates and therefore its placement on the product.
By placing a collection of these droplets close together, a variety of characters are printed as the product passes the print head. Ink droplets not deflected out of the stream are re-circulated to repeat the process. This is a highly efficient use of ink jet ink, and the printing method is ideal for Product Identification (PI).
Key Benefits
Continuous Ink Jet printers offer a wide range of benefits for businesses. As well as the ability to print a variety of text and graphics, allowing product identification, these include:
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Automatic self-cleaning printhead. This guarantees that the print nozzle stays unobstructed, even on frequent start-stop production lines
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Superior printhead technology provides better drop placement and print quality
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High speed printing that keeps up with the fastest production environments
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Non-contact printing that enables uneven and flexible surfaces to be coded
This information was sourced from the Domino website, in the technology section http://www.domino-printing.com/Global/en/ProductsAndTechnologies/Products.aspx
