What are the advantages of continuous inkjet printers?

What is a continuous inkjet printer?

The continuous inkjet printing process works by ejecting charged ink droplets from printhead nozzles and passing them through an electric field to deflect individual ink droplets to form text or code.

How do continuous inkjet printers work?

As the title Continuous Ink Jet suggests, CIJ printers operate on the basic premise of creating a continuous stream of ink. The process begins when the two notched ink cartridges inside the printer feed into a main container. When the two liquids combine in the reservoir, a pump pressurizes the mixture, sending it into the printhead.

After reaching the print head, piezoelectric elements vibrate the ink, which forms droplets. These droplets are then charged through electrode plates that push them toward the substrate in a precise manner. Any non-propelled ink is returned to the container for future use.

Continuous inkjet printers eliminate the need for manual marking or pre-printed packaging, saving waste, time and money, and providing instant traceability or compliance with increasingly stringent regulations in industries such as food, beverage and pharmaceuticals.

Advantages of Continuous Inkjet Printers

Derived from these basic operating principles, the CIJ model offers many benefits for industrial printing operations. If you integrate one of these machines into your production line, you can expect:

1. Reliable operation

When properly maintained, a well-made CIJ printer will be able to successfully print at high speeds for years. This is thanks to an automatic monitoring system that enables quality control, as well as the durable construction that some inkjet printers are known for.

2. High-speed printing

Due to the high pressure nature of continuous inkjet systems, CIJ equipment can encode substrates at higher rates than other printer types. For example, while the average TIJ printer can run at a maximum speed of 100 meters per minute, the average CIJ printer runs at three times that speed, averaging 300 meters per minute. This makes CIJ machines ideal for high-volume operations such as industrial bottling and canning facilities.

However, keep in mind that these are approximate speeds and will be affected by how many codes need to be printed per meter of the line. For example, one line might have only 1 single case per meter, while another line might have 10 bottles per meter, each requiring a separate code.

3. A variety of inks are available

CIJ printers can reliably use a range of inks with different applications, colors and drying characteristics. Unlike other inkjet models, CIJ machines can use MEK (methyl ethyl ketone) based inks that dry in under a second. Another unique ink option includes HyperCook thermochromic ink, the most advanced cook-resistant ink on the market.

The wide range of available inks makes the machine versatile enough to encode a wide range of porous and non-porous substrates including: plastic, metal, glass, cardboard, vinyl, synthetic paper, wood.

Docod Precision Group Limited has been focusing on the design, R & D, production, sales and service of inkjet marking machine and parts products, and is committed to realizing various marking solutions for users worldwide with its excellent technology. To learn more please contact us