Inkjet & Digital Printing
FUJIFILM Dimatix Unveils First Head Array Based on New Q-Class Sapphire Printheads
Monday 01. June 2009 - ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array can be easily integrated by system builders to design drop-on-demand inkjet printers with unmatched imaging performance and speed them to market.
New Q-Class based head array taps the full potential of FUJIFILM Dimatix silicon-carbon hybrid construction and VersaDropTM jetting technology.
FUJIFILM Dimatix today announced a new drop-on-demand inkjet head array that delivers best-in class jetting performance in a ready-to-integrate printhead assembly. The new ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array – the first based on its high performance Q-Class Sapphire printheads – is designed to help OEM system builders develop cutting-edge printing systems with exceptional image quality and high productivity for advanced display graphics and other applications and reduce time to market.
The Q-Class is FUJIFILM Dimatix new piezoelectric drop-on-demand inkjet platform around which a new family of printheads and head arrays for high speed scanning and single pass printer architectures is being built. The low crosstalk and excellent channel-to-channel uniformity of their advanced carbon-silicon hybrid construction allows Q-Class Sapphire printheads to deliver unparalleled jetting straightness at firing frequencies up to 50,000 cycles per second (50kHz) while supporting both binary and grayscale VersaDropTM operation. Their high chemical resistance and precision also gives Sapphire printheads the ability to reliably jet UV-curable, organic solvent and aqueous ink formulations onto a broad range of substrates.
The ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array has a 2.55-inch- swath width [64.9mm] featuring four rack mounted Q-Class Sapphire printheads. Each of the four printheads has 256 individually addressable channels arranged in a single row at 100 dots-per-inch spacing – the highest nozzle density yet achieved with a single row of jets.
The head array includes all interface electronics, ink reservoirs, heaters, sensors and inlet filters for both ink and air lines needed by systems developers and integrators to integrate one or more head arrays into their product designs.
Configured as a 2-color print module, each ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array can print at multiples of 200 dpi and at scan speeds up to 1.5 meters per second.
The new ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array also unleashes the full potential of Dimatix breakthrough VersaDrop jetting technology, enabling each of the 1024 nozzles in one printhead array to deliver a desired amount of fluid in each ink droplet at unprecedented throughput rates.
Access to VersaDrop jetting technology allows developers to configure one or more ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Arrays with flexible operating modes including adjustable binary drop sizes and grayscale capabilities.
The ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array is being introduced along with a comprehensive VersaDrop electronics package, including a programmable waveform generator and a fire pulse amplifier that is scalable for the differing demands of scanning or high speed single pass systems.
“The ScanPAQ 2.5 Head Array gives OEMs and system developers Sapphire printhead versatility and performance in a modular, plug-and-play head array. Now, developers have the freedom to design a new generation of best-in-class printing systems, and the opportunity to bring those new products to market in significantly less time,” said Marc Torrey, Vice President, Marketing, FUJIFILM Dimatix.