Inkjet Technology for Digital Fabrication

Chapter 1

Introduction to Inkjet Printing for Manufacturing

Ian M. Hutchings, and Graham D. Martin

Inkjet Research Centre, University of Cambridge, United Kingdom

1.1 Introduction

The basic principles of conventional printing have remained the same for hundreds of years: the various different printing processes which we take for granted all involve the repeated reproduction of the same image or text many times. Usually, this is achieved by transferring a pattern of liquid or semi-liquid ink from some master pattern to the paper or other substrate through direct contact. Changes to the printed product can be achieved only by changing the master pattern, which involves making physical changes within the printing machine.

In contrast, the inkjet printer which is now ubiquitous in the modern home and office works on a fundamentally different principle. Each small droplet of ink, typically 10–100 µm in diameter, is created and deposited under digital control, so that each pattern printed in a sequence can just as readily be different from the others as it can be the same. The principles of inkjet printing were first developed commercially during the 1970s and 1980s, with the practical applications of marking products with dates and bar codes, and addressing bulk mail. As indicated in Figure 1.1, the technology used for these purposes, which demand high operating speeds but can tolerate quite low resolution in the printed text, is now fully mature: these printers, which use continuous ...