11-Aug-2009
Nearly eight years ago, HP realised it needed new, breakthrough technologies to meet demand in existing markets and enter new ones. After an investment of $1.4 billion in R&D and manufacturing, HP introduced scalable printing technology (SPT), a revolutionary platform that supports innovation and performance advancements in inkjet printing and allows HP to expand into new markets.
SPT innovations extend across all elements of inkjet writing systems and include technologies from portable photo printers and desktop All-in-Ones to commercial printing technologies. HP Graphics Solutions Business technologies include:
- HP Designjet Z2100, Z3200 and Z6100 Printers
- HP Designjet L65500 Printer
- HP Designjet T610 and T1100 Printers
- HP Inkjet Web Press
Technology highlights
With SPT, HP engineers are able to meet more user needs with a single product and develop new technologies. These capabilities result from:
- Larger printheads, with wider print swaths and more columns of nozzles on a single printhead, that maintain sub-micron assembly precision for every nozzle
- Printheads with a nozzle density of 1,200 nozzles per inch for high print quality and productivity
- The option for a different colour, type and drop volume of ink on a single printhead and the ability to produce up to 48,000 drops per second from each nozzle, providing new levels of speed, print quality and versatility
- A wide range of drop volumes for different applications from ultra-small (1pl) for photo printing applications to large (15pl and more) for high-speed commercial printing
- Optimised drop-ejection performance, resulting in higher frequency operation and less variation in drop volume, speed and trajectory
- Particle- and bubble-tolerant printheads with built-in filters in the ink supply to each drop generator
- The ability to match the silicon substrate's dimensional change with temperature in order to reduce thermal stresses and extend printhead life
- 1-micron CMOS process that integrates high-density electronic circuits on the printhead for more signal processing power and functionality, fewer electrical interconnections and higher reliability
SPT in the HP Inkjet Web Press
The HP Inkjet Web Press employs a scalable printing architecture that spans the web with a modular design using HP thermal inkjet printheads installed in printhead pockets. The printheads are built with HP SPT and consist of five thermal inkjet printhead chips placed on a ceramic substrate. Each printhead prints a single ink colour using two columns of 5,280 nozzles with 1,200 nozzles per inch, each producing a 4.25-inch print swath. This gives the HP Inkjet Web Press a printing resolution of 1200x 600 dpi for high printing reliability.
HP Inkjet Web Press: printhead and printhead pocket
By leveraging SPT, HP was able to reduce the development time of the HP Inkjet Web Press and deliver it to market much faster than competitors. These attributes allow PSPs to increase responsiveness, create new revenue opportunities with variable content in full-colour, and streamline operations by reducing labour, inventory and spoilage.
For more information on how the HP Inkjet Web Press leverages HP SPT, please read on here.