Do You Want to Learn Types of Impact and Non-Impact Printers- Let's Study
Impact Printers
These create text or image by physically
making the print head press the ink ribbon and cause the ink deposition
on the paper in desired form. They are quite louder in nature when
compared to other types of printers. They are famous for their unique
features, commonly used in businesses where multi-part forms are
printed. The following are different types of printers in impact
printing:
- Dot Matrix
- Daisy Wheel
- Line
- Line Matrix
Dot-Matrix Printers
A dot matrix printer or impact matrix printer
is a type of printer with a print head that runs back and forth, or in
an up and down motion, on the page and prints by impact- striking an
ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper. Letters are drawn out of a
dot matrix, and thus, varied fonts and arbitrary graphics can be
produced. The printing involves mechanical pressure and as a result
these printers can create carbon and carbonless copies.Each dot is
produced by a tiny metal rod, also called a "wire" or"pin", which is
driven forward by the power of a tiny electromagnet or solenoid, either
directly or through small levers (pawls). Facing the ribbon and the
paper is a small guide plate pierced with holes to serve as guides for
the pins.
Advantages
One advantage of dot matrix printers over
most other printer types is that the paper is completely connected.
This allows you to print long banners that span across several sheets of
paper.
Disadvantages
The primary disadvantage of dot matrix
printers is the speed it takes for them to print. Each dot is
individually printed so a significant amount of time is required to
print even one page of paper.Unless they are huge commercial models, dot
matrix printers generally produce low-quality print, particularly for
pictures.Any type of printer can jam, but dot matrix printers are more
prone to jamming, and their jams are more difficult to clear. This is
because paper is fed in using two wheels and holes set into the paper. A
small tear on the side of a sheet can create a jam and the bits of
paper between the wheels make it tedious to fix.

Daisy Wheel Printers
A daisy wheel printer
is a printer that uses a wheel with all the characters on it to produce
output. This earlier print mechanism used a plastic or metal hub with
spokes like an old-fashioned wagon wheel minus the outer rim. At the end
of each spoke is the carved image of a type character. The shape of
printer wheel resembles the petals of a daisy flower and hence, it is
named daisy wheel printer. To print a character, the daisy wheel rotates
so that the required character is positioned just in front of the
printer ribbon. The spoke containing the required character is hit by a
hammer and strikes the ribbon leaving an impression on the paper placed
behind the ribbon. Movement of all these parts is controlled by
microprocessor in the printer.
Advantages
The main advantage of using a daisy wheel
printer is that the print quality is high because the exact shape of
the character hits the ribbon to leave and impression on the paper.
Disadvantages
Daisy Wheel printers are very noisy, slow and the ribbon must be changed frequently.

Line Printers
The line printer
is a form of high speed impact printer in which one line of type is
printed at a time instead of printing each character individually. The
line printer is typically enclosed in a cabinet that completely seals
the unit from the outside world. This used to be essential when line
printers were extremely noisy. The two surviving line printer
technologies are band printers and line matrix printers. Line printers
are still widely used in data centers and in industrial environments and
can print multi-part forms at a very rapid rate. High speed line
printers print 1000-2000 lines per minute and are therefore useful to
print large amounts of address labels, payroll checks, statements or
bills.
Advantages
Line printers can print multi-part forms
at a very rapid rate. Line printers do not print each character
individually. The line printer is typically enclosed in a cabinet to
minimize noise level.
Disadvantages
The standard line printer can only use pin feed paper and they can only print black ink.

Line Matrix Printers
A line matrix printer
is a computer printer that is a compromise between a line printer and a
dot matrix printer. Basically, it prints a page-wide line of dots. It
builds up a line of text by printing lines of dots. Line matrix printers
are used for high-speed printing applications in industries such as
manufacturing, banking, supply chain and back office environments. In
these high-volume printing industries, line matrix printers are used to
produce invoices, bank statements, product shipment and transportation
documentation. Line matrix printers can print text, bar codes and
graphics.
Advantages
When implemented as impact printers, they
can be the least expensive to operate per page. Line matrix printers
can print text, bar codes and graphics. Line Matrix Printers are the
preferred solutions for high-reliability, lowest total cost of ownership
and environmental benefits.
Disadvantages
Line Matrix printers have similar disadvantages as Dot Matrix Printers and Line Printers.

Non-Impact Printers
These produce text or images on paper
without striking the paper physically. These are not loud compared to
other types of printers. The technologies commonly used in modern and
personal home-based are non-impact type. These technologies can print in
both mono chrome and colour. The following can be classified under
non-impact printing.
- Toner based (Laser)
- Liquid ink(Inkjet)
- Solid ink
- Dye-sublimation
- Thermal
- Bubble jet
Laser Printers
Originally,toner-based printers are only able to print text and images in black and white. It was only recently that coloured toners have been manufactured
allowing these printers to print text and images in black and white and
coloured. Toners are a kind of powder that is made out of either carbon or synthetic polymers. There are two kinds of toner-based printers that are available in the market today: Laser Printer and
LED Printer. The most common is the laser printer. These use laser
beams that preciely lights the drum surface during the printing process.
Because of this, it is able to produce high quality text and images.
An
electrostatic charge is distributed evenly around a light-sensitive
device in the printer called a drum. The image or text that is to be
printed on the paper is then projected on the drum through some form of
light source. This light source keeps the static charge on the drum to
stay on the drum. Any portion of the drum that is not lighted will loose
the electrostatic charge that was distributed when the printer was
started. The paper is then fed. The toner,being in powder form, is
immediately caught on the drum and then transferred onto the paper. The
toner is then fused on the paper through heat brought about by the light
source and the pressure of the roller as it passes out of the printer.
Advantages
One
of the advantages of using laser printers is their ability to print on
both pages of the paper, allowing many users to cut their paper usage by
half. This ability has also lessened the bulkiness of the end printing
materials like reports and manuals. Another advantage of laser printers
is that they are not prone to water damage that is normally experienced
by users of liquid inkjet printers.
Disadvantages
Many
health experts have stated that using laser printers, or toner based
printers in general, can cause a number of health problems which is not
experienced by those that use other kinds of printers. Studies have
released that long-term exposure to toners, because of using the
printers or replacing the toner cartridges, can cause respiration
problems. Laser printers are bulky and
heavy, making them difficult to transport. This is due to the additional
components the printer needs to carry, which includes an imaging drum
and laser beam technology. It is also more costly to replace cartridges
for a laser printer.

Inkjet Printers
An inkjet
printer is a peripheral device that places extremely small droplets of
ink onto paper to create animage. The dots are extremely small (usually
between 50 and 60 microns indiameter). The dots are positioned very
precisely, with resolutions of up to1440x720 dots per inch.
In the inkjet printing mechanism, the
print head has several tiny nozzles, also called jets. As the paper
moves past the print head, the nozzles spray ink onto it,forming the
characters and images. An inkjet printer can produce from 100 to several
hundred pages, depending on the nature of the hard copy, before the ink
cartridges must be replaced.
Advantages
The principal advantage of inkjet
printers is the fact that most of them are inexpensive. Even the
cheapest inkjet printers are satisfactory for most of the needs of
personal computer users. High-end inkjet printers can render digital
images on special paper with great quality. The copy from an inkjet
printer needs a little time to dry. Another advantage of inkjet printers
is their lightweight and modest desktop footprint. Many models are easy
to transport.
Disadvantages
Paper designed especially for inkjet printers is heavier than the paper used with laser printers
or photocopiers and is somewhat more expensive. Another disadvantage is
the fact that most inkjet printers are slow and they are not designed
for high-volume print jobs. Inkjet printers are expensive to operate
over time compared with a laser printer. It is wiser to use a laser
printer to make hundreds of copies per day or thousands of copies per
week, than to use an inkjet printer.

Solid Ink Printers
A solid ink printer
is a laser-class printer that uses solid wax inks that are melted into a
liquid before it enters the plumbing of the print head.
The maintenance kit prepares the drum
before each print job. It clears off any ink left on the drum and then
applies a thick layer of silicone oil onto the drum. The print head then
begins spraying ink drops on to the rotating drum. All the colors are
applied to the drum at the same time. Once the ink is exposed to the
drum, it becomes a soft semi-solid. To transfer the ink to paper, the
printer sends it through the pre-heater and then the paper passes
between the drum and the pressure roller. The ink cools and sets on
contact. Because the ink returns to its solid form, there is no drying
time. So each print that comes out of the printer is ready to use.
Advantages
The major advantage of solid ink printers
is that they produced less waste which is better for the environment.
Another advantage is the ability to print
on several paper varieties. The shape of the cartridges make them simple
to install and replace, the print quality is consistently superior to
that of a laser printer, and there are many affordable third-party
alternatives to brand-name inks. Solid ink printers also tend to be less
expensive to purchase and are smaller in size, which makes them easier
to transport.
Disadvantages
Despite many advantages
to solid ink printers, there are also anumber of disadvantages. Since
the ink needs to be heated, a considerable amount of energy
(approximately 50 watts) is required to run the printer.Additionally,
the printed ink isn't very durable. It can be scraped off of the paper
simply with a sharp edge, like a fingernail, and exposure to direct
sunlight for prolonged periods of time can cause fading. Another
disadvantage is that the print heads clog frequently. In order to get
the heads unclogged a significant amount of ink is wasted. These
printers are also notorious for being noisy and pages printed on an ink
printer require time to dry otherwise the ink may smear.

Dye Sublimation Printers
A dye-sublimation printer (or dye-sub printer)
is a computer printer which employs a printing process that uses heat
to transfer dye onto medium materials such as a plastic card, paper, or
fabric. The sublimation name is applied because the dye transitions
between the solid and gas states without going through a liquid stage.
During the printing cycle, the printer
rollers will move the medium and one of the coloured panels together
under a thermal printing head, which is usually the same width as the
shorter dimension of the print medium. Tiny heating elements on the head
change temperature rapidly, laying different amounts of dye depending
on the amount of heat applied. After being heated into a gas, the dye
diffuses onto the printing medium and solidifies. After the printer
finishes covering the medium in one colour, it winds the ribbon on to
the next colour panel and partially ejects the medium from the printer
to prepare for the next cycle. The entire process is repeated four times
in total: the first three lay the colours onto the medium to form a
complete image, while the last one lays the laminate over top. This
layer protects the dye from re-sublimating when handled or exposed to
warm conditions.
Advantages
Traditionally,the advantage of
dye-sublimation printing has been the fact that it is a continuous-tone
technology, where each dot can be any colour. Consequently, a
dye-sublimation printer produces true continuous tones appearing much
like a chemical photograph. The prints are dry and ready to handle as
soon as they exit the printer. Since the thermal head doesn't have to
sweep back and forth over the print media, there are fewer moving parts
that can break down. As the dye never enters a liquid phase, the whole
printing cycle is extremely clean; there are no liquid inks to clean up.
Disadvantages
Each of the coloured panels of the
ribbons, and the thermal head itself, must match the size of the media
that is being printed on and only specially coated paper can accept the
sublimated ink. This means that dye-sublimation printers cannot print on
a wide range of media. Print heads can also get clogged. Because the
sublimated ink is a gas, it does diffuse a small amount before being
absorbed by the paper. Consequently, prints are not razor-sharp. For
photographs, this produces very natural prints, but for other uses such
as graphic design this slight blurriness is a disadvantage. The amount
of wasted dye per page is also very high; most of the dye in the four
panels may be wasted for a typical print. Once a panel has been used,
even to just print a single dot, the remaining dye on that panel cannot
be reused for another print without leaving a blank spot where the dye
was used previously.

Thermal Printers
A thermal printer
is a low-to-medium resolution printer that produces a printed image by
selectively heating coated thermal paper, when the paper passes over the
thermal print head. It comprises of these key components:
- Thermal head — generates heat; prints on paper
- Platen — a rubber roller that feeds paper
- Spring — applies pressure to the thermal head, causing it to contact the thermo-sensitive paper
- Controller boards — for controlling the mechanism
In
order to print,thermo-sensitive paper is inserted between the thermal
head and the platen. The printer sends an electrical current to the
heating elements of the thermal head, which generate heat. The heat
activates the thermo-sensitive coloring layer of the thermo-sensitive
paper, which changes colour where heated. Such a printing mechanism is
known as a thermal system or direct system. The coating turns black in
the areas where it is heated, producing an image.Two-colour direct
thermal printers can print both black and an additional colour(often
red) by applying heat at two different temperatures. The heating
elements are usually arranged as a matrix of small closely spaced
dots—thermal printers are actually dot-matrix printers, though they are
not so called.
Advantages
One
advantage is that a direct thermal printer does not make use of
ribbons.Instead of ribbons, it uses a special thermal paper. Without use
of ribbons,toners and inks, the direct thermal printer cuts down the
cost significantly,thereby making the entire process cost --effective as
opposed to other form of printing technologies. Another advantage of a
thermal printer would be the relative affordability of the machine and
its quietness when printing.The greatest advantage of a direct thermal
printer is that it can not only print labels in batches but also can
print individually. Therefore, there is no extra supply of labels and no
waste. Also, an advantage of this printer is that small number of
labels can be easily printed out in perfect quality and at high speed. A
variety of data can be processed without lowering the speed. Therefore,
in case of very large supplies, it can also be done without any
problem.
Disadvantages
One
disadvantage of direct thermal label printers is that it is more
expensive than other types of printers but considering the overall cost
reduction on ink,ribbon and toners, it is more advisable to invest a
greater amount of money on the purchases of a direct thermal printer.
They are sometimes considered to be inefficient since too much heat
would mean too much ink is used on an image. This could mean that the
image would smudge before the ink dried. Another disadvantage is that
the images produced are of poor quality (that is,generally grainy and
blotchy), since thermal printers are unable to vary the intensity and
dot sizes that make up the produced images.

Bubble Jet Printers
A bubble jet printer
is a sister technology to ink-jet technology and in many ways is very
similar, which is why the terms are often used interchangeably. However,
there are some important differences between bubble jet printers and
ink jet printers.The major difference lies in what is used to propel the
tiny droplets of ink through the nozzles. Ink jet printers use crystals
to fire the ink and bubble jet printers use heat.
In
a bubble jet printer, tiny resistors create heat, and this heat
vaporizes ink to create a bubble. The expansion that creates the bubble
causes a droplet to form and eject from the print head. A typical bubble
jet print head has 64 or 128 tiny nozzles, and all of them can fire a
droplet simultaneously.
Advantages
Like
Ink jet printers, bubble jet printers are very quiet and can produce
beautiful coloured images with photographic quality. Another advantage
is their relatively low price when compared to other printer types, such
as laser printers.
Disadvantages
The
heating elements are under much more stress in bubble jet printers than
are the crystals in ink jet printers and are prone to early failure.
Whenever any substance is heated to high temperatures, it leaves behind a
residue; that residue can eventually clog the tiny openings in nozzles
and cause build upa round them which can misdirect the ink droplets.
There is no way to clean the nozzles on ink cartridges so there will be a
build up of residue on both refurbished and refilled bubble jet
cartridges.
