Industrial Continuous Inkjet Printers & CIJ Printing Systems

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:

1. Continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers are one of today’s most used industrial marking options. Designed for use in industrial operations, CIJ 

printers can place barcodes, lot codes, expiration dates, and other essential markings directly onto products. 

2. CIJ printers accomplish this with a contact-free printing method that enables continuous printing on both porous and non-porous substrates, regardless of whether the surfaces are flat or curved.

3. CIJ printers are designed for continuous 24/7 operation on industrial assembly lines, including those moving at speeds of over 1,000 feet per minute. The high-speed coding of CIJ printers is enabled by a continuous ink flow within the machine. 

4. Continuous inkjet printers are versatile workhorse machines that can deliver uninterrupted coding day after day. Whether you’re working with glass bottles, flexible food packaging, or metal pipes, the high-speed printing capabilities of a CIJ printer can maximize your operation’s uptime and coding accuracy.

PRODUCT BENEFITS:

The continuous circulation process used by CIJ printers offers several benefits that are particularly suited to industrial applications. Most notably, CIJ printers offer:

High-Speed Printing

Reliable Coding

Simple Maintenance

Environmental Resistance

PRODUCT APPLICATIONS:

The versatile and reliable nature of continuous inkjet printing systems makes them popular across a number of industries. Most prominently, CIJ printers are used to apply codes in the following fields:

Food Packaging

Beverage Canning and Bottling

Personal Care, Cosmetics & Pharma

Wire and Cable

Plastic and Metal Extrusions

PLENTY OF INK CHOICES and VERSATILE APPLICATIONS:

CIJ printers are compatible with a wide range of ink choices, making them suitable for a large number of substrates, both porous and non-porous. The contact-free printing method used by CIJ printers also enables printing on flat and curved surfaces. As a result, CIJ printers can print on a variety of substrates, including:

Aluminum cans 

Glass bottles

Rigid plastic jars

Paperboard cartons and boxes

Flexible packaging

Wires and cabling

Plastic PVC pipes

For more specialty applications, CIJ printers can also utilize the following inks:

High-temperature ink

Non-transfer ink 

Soft-pigmented ink

Hard-pigmented ink

Alcohol-resistant ink

Thermochromic ink

UV-readable ink

CIJ INNER CONSTRUCTION and The CIRCULATION PRINCIPLE:

While the inner construction of CIJ printers will all slightly vary based on the model, the basic structural elements are constant and can be broken down into two categories: the core (sometimes referred to as the ink module) and the printhead. A graphic representation of these two structures is posted above. Below, we will examine how these two components work together to facilitate the continuous inkjet circulation principle.

THE PRINTING PROCESS:

The core is where circulation begins. Within the core is a series of valves and pumps that pressurize the ink, moving it towards the printhead by way of a tube or umbilical. The core area consists of:

1. Two Chipped Bottles: These two bottles (the white containers shown in the DuraCode to the right) supply the ink that will be used to print on the substrates. One cartridge contains the ink itself, while the other contains solvent or make-up. The “chip” portion refers to a small printed circuit board used to make sure the correct ink replacement is supplied to the printer. 

2. Main Reservoir: Here, the two chipped bottles combine with one another to form a printable ink mixture.

3. Pressurizing Pump: Positioned adjacent to the main reservoir, the pump pressurizes the ink mixture to feed it toward the printhead.

4. Decompression Valve: This is the final element in the controller. The decompression valve adjusts ink pressure before the mixture arrives at the printhead.

Once the ink stream travels past the decompression valve, it arrives at the printhead. At the printhead, the ink stream is oscillated, electrically charged, and precisely propelled toward the substrate. These functions are enabled by the following printhead parts:

5. Piezoelectric Element: The piezoelectric element oscillates the ink stream with vibration, causing the stream to form droplets.

6. Nozzle: The droplets arrive at the nozzle where they are propelled toward the substrate.

7. Charging Electrode Plate: On the way to the substrate from the nozzle, the ink droplets are given an electric charge by the electrode. The charge enables the droplets to be directed by the next item.

8. Deflecting Electrode Plate: This second electrode plate creates a magnetic field that differentiates between which droplets should be propelled toward the substrate and which droplets should be rerouted back toward the main tank.

9. Gutter: The gutter collects the unneeded ink particles and reroutes them back to the tank, ensuring that the ink flow is continuous.

WHY IS CONTINUOUS INKJET PRINTER A GOOD CHOICE?

1. Speed, ease of integration, and reliability are the main reasons manufacturers choose continuous inkjet printers.
2. CIJ is versatile ink-based coding technology ideal for printing on flat and curved surfaces on high-speed production lines. Optimal code formation is dependent on the substrate or material type, production speed, and product-use environment. Durable ink codes can withstand rub-off and wear over time. Choosing the right ink is imperative to ensuring that a product has a lasting code.