Types of printing devices and their main characteristics. Types of printers

To print any documents from a computer onto paper, you must have a printer. What printer should I buy, what types of printers are there? Printers can be laser, inkjet, matrix, and photo printers belong to a separate category of printers. Let's look at this in more detail, excluding from the review the increasingly popular 3D printing.

At first, dot matrix printers were used for printing. In dot matrix printers, a special print head in the form of a needle hits the tape. Due to the fact that the maintenance and operation of dot matrix printers does not cost much money, they are still in use today. These printers are mainly used by cashiers at railway ticket offices, air terminals and other organizations. However, printers cannot operate quickly and make a lot of noise. They are not able to reproduce color printing, but they can work with any type of paper. The quality of the paper doesn't matter to them.

Inkjet printers: cheap, but not profitable

To work at home, you can purchase a not very expensive inkjet printer. It is distinguished by good quality. The devices operate as follows. The print head has special holes through which small doses of ink are injected onto the paper. Inkjet printers can print in both black and white and color. Inkjet printers are as good as laser printers. But you can buy them at a lower price. But you need to know that having paid not a lot of money for this necessary thing, you will soon have to purchase cartridges. And the price of consumables is high and their service life is short.

Laser printers: office practicality

The next type of printer is laser printers, which can reproduce black and white and color printing. But color laser printers are expensive. Therefore, they are usually purchased by enterprises and organizations that require large volumes of printing. At the same time, color printing must be of high quality. Laser printers operate on the principle of photocopiers. Copiers use a beam of light, while printers already use a laser beam. Under the action of a laser beam, the toner powder falls on a paper sheet, which is passed through a special roller, the toner powder melts and an image appears on the paper medium. Laser printers print quickly and efficiently. The high cost of laser printers is offset by their long service life. The advantages of laser printers include the fact that the price of consumables in the store is quite low. At the same time, laser printer cartridges are capable of printing a large amount of information!

Photo printers: the choice of professionals

A special type of printer is photo printer. With their help, the production of photographs, posters, calendars, postcards, etc. has been established. At the same time, the color printing of the photo printer is of high quality. The operating principle of photo printers is not complicated. A special tape is applied to the paper, then the paper is heated and the paint from this special tape penetrates into the polyester layer of the paper. Photo printers are not very expensive, but cartridges and paper, on the contrary, are very expensive. Therefore, as a rule, photo printers are used for work by professionals.

Technical features of any print

To ensure that a potential buyer is satisfied with the performance of a new printer, it would be a good idea to familiarize yourself with some of their technical capabilities.

Permission

What is permission? This is the maximum number of dots per square inch. There are certain guidelines for printing. For printing text documents, 280 dpi is recommended; if you need to print various drawings and diagrams, 600 dpi is recommended. To print high-quality photos, you need to use a printer with a resolution of 1300 dpi.

Speed

How is the print speed of a printer determined? The largest number of pages printed by a printer in 1 minute is the printer’s printing speed. Regular black and white printing is faster than color printing. Printer manufacturers use a little trick; in the technical characteristics of the printer they indicate the speed at which the printer prints poorly. High-quality printer performance is possible at a lower print speed.

State educational institution

Belgorod State National Research University

Law Institute

Legal support of national security

Abstract on computer science

Types of printers and their characteristics

Completed by student gr.01001312

Logvinenko D.O.

Teacher:

Belgorod

INTRODUCTION 3

CHAPTER 1. PRINTERS: CONCEPT, TYPES 4

1.1. Printer: concept, history of creation 4

1.2. Printer classification 7

CHAPTER 2. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAIN TYPES OF PRINTERS 9

2.1. Matrix (needle) printer 9

2.2. Inkjet printer 10

2.3. Laser printer 12

CHAPTER 3. OPERATING PRINCIPLE OF PRINTERS 16

3.1. Operating principle of dot matrix printers 16

3.2. Operating principle of inkjet printers 16

3.3. Operating principle of laser printers 17

CHAPTER 4. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF THE MAIN TYPES OF PRINTERS 18

4.1. Advantages and disadvantages of dot matrix printers 18

4.2. Advantages and disadvantages of inkjet printers 19

4.3. Advantages and disadvantages of laser printers 19

CONCLUSION 20

REFERENCES 22

INTRODUCTION

Printers are classified as peripheral or external devices.

Peripheral devices are devices located outside the system unit and involved in a certain stage of information processing. First of all, these are devices for recording output results: printers, plotters, modems, scanners, etc.

Printers are designed to output information onto solid media, mostly paper. There are a large number of different printer models that differ in operating principle, interface, performance and functionality. Based on the principle of operation, they are divided into: matrix, inkjet and laser printers.

The purpose of the work is to study the types of printers, their operating principles, as well as their advantages and disadvantages.

To achieve the goal set in the work, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

1) Define the concept of “printer”, consider the history of its creation;

2) Consider the classification of printers;

3) Describe the main types of printers;

4) Study the principle of operation of printers;

5) Consider the advantages and disadvantages of the main types of printers.

Chapter 1. Printers: concept, types

1.1. Printer: concept, history of creation

Printer (from the English printer - printer) is a device for converting information stored on storage devices (text, graphics) into a hard copy, usually on paper. This process is called printing, and the resulting document is called a printout.

Charles Babbage thought about the need to print the results of calculations on paper when he was developing his Analytical Engine, a mechanical prototype of modern computers. As a result, he also came up with the first printer in human history, called the Difference Engine.

Unfortunately, this device was never created during the author’s lifetime. True, 150 years after the death of the author, this printer was nevertheless collected by the London Science Museum, under the leadership of its director Doron Suod (Fig. 1). The resulting device consisted of 8,000 parts and weighed about 5 tons. It should be noted that when developing this Difference Engine, Babbage came up with many ideas that are still used today.

When computers appeared, at first information was either written down manually or printed on a typewriter (special personnel were even hired for this). The first printing device that could be connected to a computer was created in 1953 by Remington-Rand. The device, whose operating principle is very similar to a typewriter, is called UNIPRINTER. The main part of the printer was a disk with many “petals”, each of which represented a letter (a raised image of letters, numbers and special characters). A special impact mechanism hit the petal, which, through the printing ribbon, hit the paper. It was then that the idea of ​​color printing was born - printing tape of various colors was used for it. UNIPRINTER printing speed was about 80,000 characters per minute! Later, printers of this type were called “petal printers”. There have also been attempts to replace the petals with special drums and ribbons. This technology also came to the USSR, where such machines were called alphanumeric printing devices - ATsPU. These printers had a number of significant disadvantages - they were unreliable, very noisy, did not allow printing graphics, and always printed in the same font.

Dot matrix printing technology was developed in 1964 by Seyko Epson. But the first dot matrix printer appeared in 1970. It was developed by Centronics Data Computer. For printing, it used a matrix of 7 needles (hence the name of the printer type). The printer was called Model 101. Thanks to dot matrix printers, it became possible to print graphics as well. The technology was rapidly developing and becoming cheaper. So, already in 1983, the first printer appeared on sale, which could easily be purchased by a home user - its cost was about $700 (for example, the Model 101 cost about $3,000). This printer was the Image Writer, the brainchild of C.ltoh Electronics. The arrival of dot matrix printers into the home gave an additional impetus to the development of technology. But dot matrix printers also have a number of disadvantages, the main ones being low print quality and noise. However, thanks to their exceptionally low cost and very high reliability, dot matrix printers have survived to this day.

The disadvantages of dot matrix printers forced researchers to look for new printing methods. The first inkjet printers appeared not much later than dot matrix printers - in 1976, IBM introduced the first working model, called Model 6640. However, many more years passed before inkjet printers appeared on the desks of home users. The main role in the development of inkjet printers was played by Canon, Epson and Hewlett-Packard, which developed their own printing technologies (BubbleJet, piezoelectric method and drop-on-demand, respectively).

The first color inkjet printer was developed by Hewlett-Packard, which introduced in the early 90s a printer capable of mixing inks with each other, thereby obtaining different colors and shades.

As for laser printers, it should be noted that the technology used in laser printing (electrography) appeared long before the appearance of the first matrix printers - back in 1938. It was developed by the American scientist Chester Carlson. Since then, it has been repeatedly improved and refined. However, only Xerox, which decided to use copier technology to create a printer, thought of using it to create a printer. As a result, in 1971, the EARS apparatus appeared, which never left the walls of the laboratory. The first commercial model of a laser printer appeared in 1977. It was called Xerox 9700 Electronic. IBM, Apple and Hewlett-Packard are involved in the development of laser printers. However, for a long time, these devices were too expensive - their price was about several thousand dollars. The first printer costing less than $1,000 was created by Hewlett-Packard, which created the LaserJet IIP model in the early 90s. A modern laser printer used at home is a relatively inexpensive (still an order of magnitude more expensive than an inkjet printer) device, with a very low printing cost.

There are several other types of printing - sublimation, thermal... But they are either not used at home at all, or are used extremely rarely.

Today, three technologies (matrix, inkjet and laser) are the most used and widespread. Constantly improving and developing, in essence they have remained unchanged since their creation. But who knows, maybe in the very near future, a technology will appear that will make a real revolution in the world of printers.

The choice of printer depends on the tasks for which it will be used. Each type has its own advantages and disadvantages, as well as the field of activity in which its use will be optimal. To save money when purchasing this device, it is not enough to focus on its price. You should also pay attention to the cost of consumables. For example, inkjet models are cheaper than laser ones, but with long-term use, a laser printer pays for itself due to cheap cartridge refills.

Comparison table of printers with different printing technologies

Use the following table to compare different types of printers. Ratings are given on a 5-point system, where 0 is the worst value of the parameter, 5 is the best.

How does a laser printer work?

Devices that use powder toner applied to a special light-sensitive drum using static electricity. As the paper is pulled, the toner from the drum sticks to the surface of the paper. The sheet is then heated to a high temperature (about 200 degrees), and the powder paint is fused into its surface. Printed documents are resistant to fading; the dye is not destroyed by high humidity. Unlike inkjet models, in which the ink is enough to print several hundred sheets, the resource of a laser printer is several thousand pages per refill.

The advantages of a laser printer are:

• High printing speed;
• Capacious cartridge;
• Low cost of consumables.

The disadvantages include the following factors:

• High cost of equipment;
• Emission of harmful ozone during operation;
• Poor color mixing in color printing.

How does an LED printer work?

A type of printer designed to eliminate the shortcomings of laser devices. In terms of their characteristics, such devices are similar to laser ones, but instead of a laser, a set of LEDs is used. The number of such light sources can reach 10,000, all of them are located in one row. Each diode illuminates a specific point of the photosensitive drum, changing its charge. Therefore, the more LEDs in the device, the higher its resolution.

When passing near the toner tank, ink particles adhere to the charged drum. After this, they are transferred to paper and further fixed using heat. Since LED models do not use a laser with a bulky reflector system, they are smaller than similar laser models. The comparative compactness is especially noticeable on color devices and less noticeable on black and white ones.

How thermal printers work

The main areas of application of such devices are retail outlets, payment acceptance points and other organizations issuing checks. Built-in models of thermal printers are installed in ATMs and self-service terminals. This type of printer is the most compact of all. Simplicity of design ensures the reliability of the devices.

It is important to know! Thermal printers do not require any ink for printing, since coloring is done by heating heat-sensitive paper.

The main component of a thermal printer is the print head, on which the heating element is located. The receipt tape used for printing with this type of printer darkens when heated. Thus, an image is formed on it. The disadvantages of thermal printers include the low durability of finished prints. Even with careful storage, printed receipts lose color until the image completely disappears within several years.

Very important! The ribbon used for printing contains a harmful substance that is absorbed into the blood through the skin. Constantly working with receipts for a long time can lead to negative health consequences.

To eliminate these shortcomings, sublimation thermal printers and devices operating on the principle of melting paint were created. Unlike conventional thermal printers, they print on standard paper. In this case, it becomes necessary to use a consumable material - a special printing tape. Checks made by this method are more resistant to light and high humidity. Therefore, they can be stored much longer than receipts printed on thermal paper.

The temperature of the heating head can change, affecting the intensity of interaction with the pigment ribbon. Thanks to this, it becomes possible to step-by-step adjust the saturation of the point - from white to black. In this way, not only binary images are obtained (containing only white and black), but also halftone ones, consisting of shades of gray. Recently, thermal printers for home use have also appeared on sale, connected to a smartphone via Bluetooth or WiFi.

What is an inkjet printer

One of the most common types of printing devices. Uses liquid ink of several colors, mixing which allows you to create any other color. Suitable for printing photographs (on regular or photo paper), but not very practical for printing large amounts of text. An ink cartridge does not last long, so it is better to choose a laser printer for printing documents. Printed materials are not resistant to liquids; if water gets in, the image on the paper may bleed.

The most commonly used color model is CMYK: Cyan (cyan), Magenta (magenta), Yellow, Key color (black). The ink gets onto the paper through holes in the print head, and fixation occurs when it dries. Unlike laser devices, additional heating is not required to seal the ink into the paper. The inkjet printer is suitable for installing a continuous ink supply system - special external ink containers.

Important information! Regardless of whether CISS is installed, manufacturers of inkjet printing devices recommend refilling the equipment only with original ink. Using low-quality, cheap analogues can lead to clogged nozzles on the head, and white streaks will be visible on printed photographs or text documents.

What is a sublimation printer

The operation of such devices is based on the sublimation effect that occurs when dyes are heated. This effect involves the transition of solid powder dye into a gaseous state and further deposition under the surface of the paper. Provides slower print speeds than inkjet printers, but higher image quality. The durability of the resulting image is also high because the ink penetrates into the deep layers of the paper. Disadvantages include the high cost of equipment and consumables.

Dot matrix printers

The oldest type of printer, invented more than 50 years ago. Poorly suited for home use, but still used in some institutions. This is due to the reliability of matrix technology and the low cost of printing. Disadvantages: limited graphics printing capabilities and high noise levels during device operation. There are also matrix devices for color printing, but the quality of the produced prints leaves much to be desired.

In design, this type of device is closest to a typewriter. The ink carrier is an ink ribbon located in a cartridge. To transfer ink to paper, the print head uses needles, the number of which depends on the device model and can range from 9 to 48. Each needle in a certain place presses the ink ribbon, pressing it to the paper and leaving a mark in the form of a single point. From such sets of points, symbols are formed.

Important! Older models of dot matrix printers are connected to the computer via a parallel interface (LPT port). Modern motherboards often do not have such a connector, so you can use an LPT-USB adapter for connection.

Working with information involves the use of various types of media. In the modern world, most operations with text and graphic data are performed on a computer, but this approach does not negate the possibility of converting digital materials into a form suitable for physical circulation. In other words, any information from a computer can be transferred to a hard drive. The most common tool for performing this operation is a printer. This is a high-tech device that can be considered as one of the components of the external peripherals of a PC. The main purpose of the printer is to transfer digital information onto paper or a special polymer film. But its functions are not limited to this.

Purpose and main tasks of the printer

On the modern market there are rarely models that perform only the function of a printer as a printing medium. As a rule, these are multifunctional devices that also implement the operations of a copy machine, scanner and fax. Another thing is that the main and additional functionality is optimized for computer technology and is less and less reminiscent of traditional machines in terms of execution technology. So what does a printer do? Even the user of a budget device will be able to print high-quality text information, as well as transfer images from paper to digital form. Actually, this is the basic task that this technique is aimed at.

An auxiliary option can be reduced to the possibility of applying protective layers to paper (lamination), stitching (creating binding), etc. At this stage of development, the printer with a scanner is being improved not by increasing functionality, but in the characteristics of print quality. However, the developers endow the models with new capabilities from the point of view of organizing the management process. Thus, wireless communication technologies between the printer and computer, automatic control modules and other innovative developments are being implemented.

Printer device

In its standard version, the printer is a small plastic block containing equipment for printing. Physically, the work process is ensured by an ink pump, a drive mechanism and fixing elements. The device has its own characteristics and also includes an LED strip. Such models work on the principle of photocopy printing. The photodrum occupies a special place in the design of laser devices. This is an aluminum cylinder, the surfaces of which are highly sensitive to light. Depending on the lighting, this block can change the electrical resistance - this is the basis for the ability to transfer an image in one form or another due to laser exposure.

A separate place is also occupied by the transfer tape and the development unit. In the first case, the ribbon element serves to apply intermediate images from different drums associated with ink cartridges. Bypassing this technological stage, toner transfer mechanisms efficiently transfer information to paper. In addition, the laser printer device is characterized by a more technologically advanced implementation of the print head, equipped with hundreds of active nozzles. These are no longer linear elements for dispensing ink, but highly precise means of dispersing ink droplets.

Types of printer

There are more than a dozen types of printers, differing both in design and operating principle. However, the most widespread are inkjet, matrix and the aforementioned laser models. These types of printers and their purposes are largely related and similar. Developers of different devices pursue the same goals - obtaining high quality printing at minimal cost and at optimal speed. The basic one in the classification can be called a matrix printer. It is almost never used at home, but it was the platform of such models that gave impetus to the further development of the segment. The result of technological advancement was the emergence of the inkjet printer. This device is characterized by high speed, ink capability and an affordable price. But such a device does not cope well with large volumes - in any case, its operation for such needs will be more expensive in terms of costs for consumables.

A laser printer can be the optimal solution in various aspects of application. The advantages of such a device include high speed of operation, economical consumption of consumables and stable maintenance of print quality. However, which is determined by the impact action of the needle elements, it is even more economical. By the way, it is 24-pin matrix printers, rather than laser printers, that are more often used when working with official documents. But, again, for home use it is more advisable to choose laser models.

Operating principle of the equipment

Now it’s worth learning more about the operating principles of printers. Most modern devices operate using image transfer technologies using photosensitive elements. These can be either direct laser models or LED models. They have a lot in common, but the working part is formed in one case by a laser, and in the other by LEDs. Both devices may use different approaches to transfer toner. For example, a common printer with a scanner has a two-component development system. In this case, the ink particles intended to be transferred to the photodrum are not held on the magnetic shaft of the developing unit on their own, but stick to the magnetic powder of the developer carrier. Another operating principle involves the initial mixing of developer and paint particles. In non-magnetic models, application is carried out without the use of active additives at all - these are toners that work on the principles of electrostatics.

They are gradually becoming a thing of history, but, as already noted, in some areas models that work with sets of needles are still used. These are classic matrix devices driven by electromagnets. The mechanical principle of operation of a dot matrix printer is based on the function of the head, which moves on a special carriage and controls the operation of the needles. The latter form an image on the working surface through the ink ribbon due to impacts.

Features of 3D printers

Just a few years ago, the printer segment was supplemented with a fundamentally new development - a 3D device. Its task is to create full-fledged three-dimensional products, the parameters of which are also set on a computer. Accordingly, the purpose of a printer of this type is significantly different. If traditional models and laser devices are focused on transferring text and graphic information, as a rule, onto paper, then in this case we can talk about transferring a computer model into a real form.

In size, such models most often correspond to conventional printers, but their design is much more complex. The main working component is also a special head from which material is layered. This is an extruder, which, unlike the same matrix with printing needles, works not with ink, but with plastics. Typically, polymers applied to the working area with a nozzle form the target object. By the way, the construction industry is gradually mastering the industrial use of the printer, which can build small houses. The mortar is loaded into the feeding equipment, after which the device applies it in a special sequence to the building site.

What paper is used for the printer?

One of the main characteristics of paper printer consumables is size. The most common format is the A series. In the international standard, this line of standard sizes is recommended as a medium for routine documentation. If paper is required for a printer used in the printing industry, then it is advisable to use B series material. For envelopes, C formats are more often used. The most common for home and office use are A4 sheets.

Paper is also characterized by such qualities as density and brightness. As for density, it is determined by the mass of one unit of sheet area. For example, an indicator of 80 g/m2 can be called optimal. The device may simply jam paper with a lower density, while sheets with a heavier weight may not pass through. If the printer is used for printing important official documents, then the brightness of the paper should also be taken into account. It is determined by percentages - snow-white paper with a brightness coefficient of 100% is considered the highest quality. But it also costs more, so ordinary users often turn to sheets that have 80-90% brightness.

Operating the Printer

The printer can only be used if it is securely installed. The device must be placed on a flat surface and remain stable. It should be taken into account that during operation some models may vibrate strongly, so the stability of the base is very important. Direct control of the device’s functions is carried out using the panel on which the buttons are located. These can be traditional mechanical or touch keys. As a rule, manufacturers designate each button with a symbol corresponding to a particular operation. The equipment can be used both as a stand-alone device and as a network component. In the second case, you need to know the address of the network printer that is entered into the system. To do this, use the equipment configuration parameters to set the task of printing characteristics. The sheet of paper will reflect both the network address and other important information about the specific device.

Equipment service

Checking the operating condition of the printer is important to ensure that the printer performs optimally. Regardless of what the main purpose of the printer will be, it is advisable not to leave it unused for a long time. At least once a week, a regular inkjet machine should print 1-2 pages. Otherwise, there is a risk of the ink drying out, which will lead to serious mechanical problems. In addition, it is important to prevent all possible risks of contamination of the housing - especially dust that can penetrate into critical functional parts of the printer.

Most modern models are equipped with automatic monitoring and diagnostic systems for working equipment. Through the settings, the user can assess the condition of the nozzles, their cleanliness and readiness for use. If you use high-quality printer paper that is suitable for the format, the service life will also be extended. A common mistake that owners of inkjet models make is using paper designed for laser devices. In such cases, there is also a risk of clogging of the working heads, which inevitably entails the need for repairs.

Popular printer models

In the inkjet segment, one of the best solutions today is the PIXMA G1400 modification from Canon. The device is not the cheapest by budget standards, but this nuance is compensated by the quality of the device. For 9 thousand rubles. You can count on a balanced, continuous ink supply system, as well as decent photo printing performance. Among the inexpensive laser models, the SP 150w from Ricoh stands out. The device is distinguished by its compactness, optimized design and ergonomic additions - for example, shelves for storing sheets. If you need a printer printout in a professional production environment, then you can consider the Kyocera line. The company offers high-tech models specifically for productive work in the office. In particular, the FS-9530DN provides high-quality printing, allowing you to significantly save on ink. True, this model costs about 100 thousand.

Conclusion

Simplification of physical operations with printers is one of the main directions of development of printing equipment. Thus, the means of interaction with the device for both the user and the computer are being improved. In terms of technical components, there is also an improvement in performance indicators - this applies to both the working resource and its efficiency. But the fundamentally modern printing printer does not change. We can say that the introduction of laser and LED printing components has become the latest and most successful stage in the development of such technology in recent years. Manufacturers are also mastering other ways to implement functional equipment, but the result is, rather, experimental or highly specialized products that cannot compete with the same laser equipment in a wide market.

Classification

Based on the ability to print graphic information, printers are divided into alphanumeric (with the ability to print a limited set of characters) and graphic.

Based on the principle of transferring an image to a medium, printers are divided into:

According to the number of printing colors - black and white (monochrome) and color.

By connection to the data source (from where the printer can receive data for printing), or interface:

• via wired channels:
  • via SCSI cable
  • via serial port
  • via parallel port (IEEE 1284)
  • via Universal Serial Bus (USB)
  • via local network (LAN, NET)
  • using two ports, one of the ports controls the CNC drive, the other port sends data to the print heads
• via wireless connection:
  • via infrared (IRDA)

Infrared connection is only possible with a device in direct line of sight, while Bluetooth and Wi-Fi interfaces using radio waves operate at a distance of up to 10-100 meters.

Network printer - a printer that allows you to receive print jobs (see. Print queue) from several computers connected to a local network. Network printer software supports one or more special communication protocols, such as IPP. This solution is the most universal, as it allows printing from various operating systems, which cannot be said about Bluetooth and USB printers.

Dot matrix printers

Amstrad DMP 3000 dot matrix printer

Epson FX-85 dot matrix printer

The principle of image formation in a dot matrix printer

Dot matrix printers are the oldest types of printers currently in use; their mechanism was invented in 1964 by the Japanese corporation Seiko Epson.

The image is formed by the print head, which consists of a series of needles (a needle array) driven by electromagnets. The head moves line by line along the sheet, while the needles strike the paper through the ink ribbon, forming a dotted image.

The main disadvantages of dot matrix printers are monochrome (although there were also color dot matrix printers, at a very high price), very low operating speed and high noise level, which reaches 65 dB.

Interfaces - One standard bidirectional 8-bit parallel interface with IEEE 1284 nibble mode support, one EIA-232D serial interface.

High-speed line-matrix printers are also produced, in which a large number of needles are evenly located on a shuttle mechanism (fret) across the entire width of the sheet.

Matrix printers, despite their complete displacement from the household and office sphere, are still quite widely used in some areas (printing sales receipts, banking - printing documents as carbon copies, etc.)

Comparison with other types

• Print quality. Very low, comparable to typewriter quality. However, graphics are possible.
• Color rendition. There were color matrix printers with several ribbons; they did not have plausible color rendition at all. However, in the 1980s it was the only way to print desktop in color.
• Print speed. For conventional 9- and 24-needle printers in text mode - tens of seconds per page, in graphic mode - several minutes. High-speed printers are several times faster. Carbon printing is possible.
• Cost per print. Extremely low (consumable material - ink ribbon). They print excellently on extremely poor quality paper, which further reduces the cost. Non-standard paper formats are possible, this is important for strict reporting forms that are made from high-quality paper (for example, an ACS Express train ticket, 2011).
• Resistance of the print to external influences. Very good; prints are resistant to water and friction. Needle marks make it even more difficult to forge documents. Over time, prints fade (although even after 20 years a document hanging on the wall remains readable).
• Possible print length. Not limited. There may be restrictions on the print spooler (as, for example, in Windows - printing only occurs in pages). Paper feeding can be manual (piece by piece) or roll.
• Environmental friendliness. Loud noise. Low power consumption.
• Easy to maintain. Works in the most spartan conditions. Before it runs out, the cartridge warns about this with non-contrast prints. Unable to buy ribbon, users found ways to color the existing one, inserted typewriter ribbon into the cartridge, etc. When printing from a roll, the paper practically does not jam.
• Main use today. Printing documents. A matrix printer can be found in banks, ticket offices, various bureaus, and as part of cash registers.

Inkjet printers

Epson CX3200 Inkjet Printer

The operating principle of inkjet printers is similar to dot matrix printers in that the image on the media is formed from dots. But instead of heads with needles, inkjet printers use a nozzle matrix (i.e., a head) that prints with liquid dyes. The print head can be built into dye cartridges (this approach is mainly used on office printers by Hewlett-Packard and Lexmark). Other models of office printers use replaceable cartridges; the print head cannot be removed when replacing the cartridge. On most industrial printers, ink is supplied to heads mounted in a carriage through an automatic ink supply system.

There are two ways to technically implement the dye spraying method:

• Piezoelectric (Piezoelectric Ink Jet) - a piezoelectric crystal is located above the nozzle. When an electric current is applied to the piezoelectric element, it (depending on the type of print head) bends, lengthens or pulls the diaphragm, resulting in a local area of ​​increased pressure near the nozzle - a drop is formed, which is subsequently pushed onto the material. In some heads, the technology allows you to change the droplet size.
• Thermal (Thermal Ink Jet) (also called BubbleJet, developer - Canon, the principle was developed in the late 1970s) - a microscopic heating element is located in the nozzle, which, when an electric current passes, instantly heats up to a temperature of several hundred degrees, when heated Gas bubbles form in the ink. bubbles- hence the name of the technology), which push drops of liquid from the nozzle onto the media.

Inkjet printer printheads are created using the following types of ink supply:

Classification

By type of printed material:

• Roll - equipped with systems for rewinding and rewinding roll material, designed for printing on self-adhesive paper, canvas, banner fabric

• Solid sheet - for printing on PVC, polystyrene, foam cardboard. The sheet of material is fixed to the frame using a vacuum clamp or clamps. The carriage (equipped with a drive for movement along the X axis) is mounted on a portal, which, together with the carriage, moves over the material (along the Y axis).

• Souvenir - movement of the workpiece relative to the head, along the Y axis, is ensured by a servo drive of the movable table; in addition, the table is equipped with a mechanism for adjusting the distance between the workpiece and the carriage (for printing on workpieces of different heights). They are used for printing on disks, phones, and for marking parts.

• Sheet flexible - for printing on paper and film of standard formats (A3, A4, etc.). Equipped with a mechanism for capturing and rewinding sheet material.

In addition, there are inkjet printers for 3D printing of three-dimensional forms.

By type of ink used:

• Water-based based on water-soluble dye. They are used in the vast majority of household and office inkjet printers and in some interior wide-format printers. The main disadvantage is poor light fastness, that is, rapid fading in the sun.
• Solvent ink. Solvent inks are used in large format and interior printing. They are characterized by very high resistance to water and precipitation. They are characterized by the viscosity of the solvent, grain size and the pigment dye fraction used.
• Alcohol inks are not widely used, since heads that print with alcohol ink dry out very quickly.
• Oil-based - used in industrial marking systems and for testing print heads.
• Pigment - used to obtain high-quality images in interior and photo printing.
• UV-curable ink - used as an environmentally friendly replacement for solvent ink and for printing on rigid materials.
• Thermal transfer ink - a distinctive feature of thermal transfer ink is the ability, using a heat press, to transfer the printed image from the substrate to the product. Used to apply logos to clothing.

By purpose:

• Large format - the main purpose of large format printing is outdoor advertising. Large-format printers are characterized by a large print width (most often 3200 mm), high print speed (from 20 m² per hour), and not the highest optical resolution.
• Interior - scope of interior printing - printing of interior design elements, printing of posters, information stands, drawings. The main format is 1600 mm. Main manufacturers of interior printers: Roland, Mimaki.
• Photo printers - designed for printing photographs; they print on small format materials (usually on rolls 1000 mm wide). The color model is no worse than CMYK+Lc+Lm (six-color printing), sometimes the color model is supplemented with orange, white paint, silver (to obtain metallic effects), etc.
• Souvenir - used for printing on small parts, for printing on disks, and blanks of complex shapes. Manufactured by many companies: TechnoJet, Epson, Canon, HP, etc.
• Office printers differ from photo printers in the absence of light and sheet-fed material. Major manufacturers of office printers: Epson, HP, Canon, Lexmark.
• Marking - included in production lines. The print head, fixedly mounted above the conveyor belt, applies markings to moving products.
• Manicure - used for applying complex designs to nails in nail art salons.

By ink supply system:

• Continuous, with the location of subtanks and heads at the same level (the pressure at the inlet of the heads is regulated by the height of the subtanks).

Structure: ink canisters → pump → filter → flexible path → carriage → check valve → subtank equipped with ink level sensors → head.

• Continuous, with subtanks, located above the heads. The pressure of the high column of ink on the heads is balanced by a vacuum system consisting of a vacuum pump and vacuum adjustment devices.

Structure: ink canisters → pump → filter → flexible path → carriage → check valve → subtank equipped with ink level sensors and connected to a vacuum system → heads.

• By gravity. The heads and ink canisters are connected by tubes passing through a flexible path. The only intermediate element is a damper that filters ink and dampens pressure fluctuations that occur when the flexible path moves.

• Ink supply from cartridges moving with the carriage. The main advantage of this system is its low cost. Disadvantages: small supply of ink in the cartridges, weight of the carriage with cartridges, slow drop in pressure at the inlet of the heads caused by a decrease in the level of ink in the cartridges.

The main characteristic of a printer, on which optical resolution most strongly depends, is the type, number and location of print heads on the carriage.

Photo and office printers rarely come with more than one head per color. This is due to the low requirements for printing speed; in addition, the fewer heads, the simpler and more efficient the system for calibrating and mixing them.

Wide-format and interior printers are equipped with two to four heads for each color.

To ensure effective drying and prevent material sticking, inkjet printers are equipped with bed heating systems.

In office printers, to reduce the cost of printing and improve some other printing characteristics, a continuous ink supply system (CISS) is also used, which is a kind of “gravity” ink supply system. The cartridge plays the role of a damper.

Currently, inkjet printers in A4 and A3 formats are being actively replaced by color laser printers. This trend is due to significantly lower consumption and lower cost of consumables used for laser printing, ease of maintenance of color laser printers, which comes down to replacing toner and rollers only.

The most significant advantage of inkjet printing over laser printing is the length of the continuous print, limited only by the length of the roll material. On laser printers, the length of the print is limited by the circumference of the intermediate media - the shaft or ribbon. On the largest laser printers, print lengths can reach up to a meter. On office inkjet printers, due to the extremely narrow specialization and automation of printers, low productivity Print Manager(Windows), the high cost of programs that replace the Print Manager, such as FlexiSign, Caldera, etc. and the complete lack of mechanisms necessary for printing on roll media, in most cases, it is impossible to implement continuous printing of unlimited length.

Sublimation Printers

Thermal sublimation (sublimation) is the rapid heating of the dye once the liquid phase has passed. Steam immediately forms from the solid dye. The smaller the portion, the greater the photographic latitude (dynamic range) of color reproduction. The pigment of each of the primary colors, and there can be three or four of them, is located on a separate (or on a common multilayer) thin Mylar ribbon (thermal sublimation printers from Mitsubishi Electric). The final color is printed in several passes: each tape is sequentially pulled under a tightly pressed thermal head, consisting of many thermal elements. These latter, heating up, sublimate the dye. Thanks to the short distance between the head and the carrier, the dots are positioned stably and are obtained in a very small size.

Serious problems with sublimation printing include the sensitivity of the ink used to ultraviolet radiation. If the image is not covered with a special layer that blocks ultraviolet light, the colors will soon fade. When using solid dyes and an additional laminating layer with an ultraviolet filter to protect the image, the resulting prints do not warp and withstand humidity, sunlight and even aggressive environments, but the price of photographs increases. For the full-color quality of sublimation technology, you have to pay for the long printing time of each photo (printing one 10x15 cm photo with a Sony DPP-SV77 printer takes about 90 seconds). Manufacturers write about a photographic color width of 24 bits, which is more desirable than actual. In reality, photographic color latitude is no more than 18 bits.

The most well-known manufacturers of heat-sublimation printers are Canon and Sony.

Comparison with other types (for photo printing)

• Print quality. A good image, without a raster (to produce a light color, the printer evaporates less ink). The lineature is close to that of a magazine photograph.
• Color rendition. Very good.
• Print speed. About a minute per 10x15 photo. Professional printers 6-15 seconds.
• Cost per print. On a household printer, 13-15 rubles per print. On a professional one - less than 5 rubles.
• Resistance of the print to external influences. Covered with film after printing. Water and fade resistant.
• Possible print length. Only in photo format, usually 10x15.
• Environmental friendliness. Low noise.
• Easy to maintain. More reliable than inkjet; Downtime is not a problem for sublimation printers. They are afraid of dust.
• Main use today. Photo printing.

Laser printers

HP LaserJet 4100TH Laser Printer

Technology - the progenitor of modern laser printing - appeared in 1938 - Chester Carlson invented a printing method called electrography, then renamed xerography.

The principle of the technology was as follows. On the surface of the photodrum with a corotron (scorotron) charge ( charge shaft) the static charge is evenly distributed, after which the LED laser (in LED printers - an LED line) removes this charge in the right places - thereby placing a latent image on the surface of the photodrum. Next, toner is applied to the photodrum. The toner is attracted to the discharged areas of the drum surface that retain the latent image. The image drum is then rolled over the paper and the toner is transferred to the paper by a transfer coronator ( transfer shaft). After this, the paper passes through fusing unit(stove) to fix the toner, and the photodrum is cleaned of toner residues and discharged in cleaning unit.

The first laser printer was EARS (Ethernet, Alto, Research character generator, Scanned Laser Output Terminal), invented and created in 1971 by the Xerox Corporation, and their mass production began in the second half of the 1970s. The Xerox 9700 printer could be purchased at that time for 350 thousand dollars, but it printed at a speed of 120 ppm.

Comparison with other types

• Print quality. High, in expensive models it approaches offset printing (resolution is limited to approximately 1200 dpi).
• Color rendition. The toner produced on the basis of paraffins has stable characteristics. Since the printing unit for each color is bulky (similar to a regular black and white cartridge), the number of inks cannot be increased indefinitely, as in inkjet printers. So they make do with the standard four, and the photographic image is obtained with a large raster (about 80 lpi), especially in light colors.
• Print speed. Even a personal printer produces 10-20 pages per minute. But first, a few tens of seconds to warm up.
• Cost per print. Low (a few US cents per page for black and white printing and tens for color). Refilling is expensive, but it lasts a long time (in personal printers - from 1.5 to 3 thousand pages).
• Resistance of the print to external influences. They hold color well and are water resistant, but do not withstand friction at all. Therefore, documents issued for a long time (for example, a passport) are printed either on other types of printers, or in a very bold and clear font.
• Possible print length. Laser printing is a continuous process and the document must be buffered and prepared in the printer's memory; This is limited to printing on black and white printers. On color ones - also the length of the transfer ribbon on which all four toners are combined. Paper feeding is automatic, piece by piece only.
• Environmental friendliness. Almost silent. They pollute the air with ozone and toner.
• Easy to maintain. Works reliably in normal home and office environments. The printer usually “warns” about the imminent replacement of the cartridge with stripes on the printout. However, toner gets dirty and is difficult to wash, so you should not refill an empty cartridge at home. The print drum (usually one for several refills; in cheap printers it is built into the cartridge) and automatic paper feeder rollers also require regular replacement. Contains an electric heating element and therefore cannot be operated from a UPS.
• Main use today. An indispensable assistant in any office. In the 2000s, the prices dropped so much that they became available to home users. Because of their high-quality single-color images, laser printers are used in printing for phototypesetting.

Thermal printers

The printing process consists of “burning” dots onto special heat-sensitive paper. They are simple and cheap, do not require a dye, but the printing quality is low.

Comparison with other types

• Print quality. Extremely low, comparable to dot matrix printers.
• Color rendition. Only black and white.
• Print speed. Very fast, faster than dot matrix and inkjet printers.
• Cost per print. Thermal printers that print in A4 format are not currently produced, so comparisons with other printers can only be made per square meter of print. 1 m² of cash register tape costs approximately twice as much as 1 m² of office paper, which, however, is cheaper than laser prints.
• Resistance of the print to external influences. Prints are not resistant to friction and pressure; fade quickly (within a few months).
• Possible print length. Limited by software only.
• Environmental friendliness. There is virtually no noise or pollution.
• Easy to maintain. Extremely reliable; The only consumable material is thermal paper.
• Main use today. They are still used in small-format and small-sized printing devices: faxes, cash registers, ATMs, service terminals.

Other printers

• Drum printers drum printer).

The first printer, called UNIPRINTER, was created in 1953 by Remington Rand for the UNIVAC computer. The main element of such a printer was a rotating drum, on the surface of which there were relief images of letters and numbers. The width of the drum corresponded to the width of the paper, and the number of alphabet rings was equal to the maximum number of characters in a line. Behind the paper was a line of hammers driven by electromagnets. At the moment the desired symbol passed on the rotating drum, the hammer hit the paper, pressing it through the ink ribbon to the drum. Thus, in one revolution of the drum the entire line could be printed. Then the paper was shifted one line and the machine continued printing. In the USSR, such machines were called alphanumeric printing devices (ADP). Their printouts can be recognized by their typeface-like font and the letters “jumping” across the line. The output speed of the drum printer was and remains the highest among all known printing devices, but it was far from the limit of the capabilities of this technology. Printing was done on roll paper, which is why system specialists called the printing result a “sheet.”

• Daisy type printers (petal printers)

According to the principle of operation, they were a hybrid of a drum drum and a typewriter. They had one set of letters, located on flexible petals of a plastic disk. The disk rotated, and a special electromagnet pressed the desired petal to the ink ribbon and paper. Since there was only one set of characters, it was necessary to move the print head along the line, and the printing speed was noticeably lower than that of drum printers. By replacing the disk with symbols, you could get a different font, and by inserting a non-black tape, you could get a “color” print. To do this, the “pause” command could be present in the printer’s command set.

In addition to the daisy, the lettering piece could be in the shape of a thimble, a (truncated) ball, or even a caterpillar chain ( chain printer).

• Teletype printers consisted of an electromechanical part, replicating an electric typewriter, and a modem. That is, an electric keyboard, an electromechanical lever character printer and a device for receiving and transmitting information via a communication channel were combined into one unit. Additionally, a device for writing and reading punched tape, usually 5-row (5-bit), was connected.

Internet printers

Printer manufacturers recommend refilling their printers with their own ink/toner, however, it is technically difficult to prevent the use of ink/toner from third-party manufacturers (just like making a car run only on gasoline from the car manufacturer). Buying so-called branded cartridges is more expensive than refilling cartridges with ink or toner from third-party manufacturers.

There is a whole industry of ink manufacturers that supply them to printer manufacturers under OEM agreements, as well as directly to users under their own brand, for example, inktec, ink-mate. Modern Canon printer models use Fine cartridges with a built-in chip that controls the supply and level of ink consumption. But this does not prevent the refilling of such cartridges, even without reprogramming the chip; if after refilling there remains information that the ink has run out, the printer does not refuse to print, it only reports a refill.

Cartridges allow repeated refilling, subject to certain requirements (either compatible ink is required, or washing the cartridge and head, for inkjet printers).

In addition to the cartridge refill system, for inkjet printers there is also a system for supplying ink from an external vessel (the so-called CISS).

Printhead

The print head is the mechanism by which the dye is actually applied to the surface of the material.

Print queue

Famous manufacturers

• Kyocera. Kyocera Corporation also owns the Mita brand (no longer used)
• Ricoh. Also known under the brands Nashuatec, Rex Rotary and Gestetner (NRG Group; since 2007 - part of the Ricoh Company corporation)
• TallyGenicom