The State of On-demand Printing

Ink-jet’s Role Today

Ink-jet printing can be divided into two categories: continuous and drop-on-demand (DOD). Drop-on-demand systems emit single droplets of ink upon electrical stimulation. The main advantages of drop-on-demand ink-jet are its simplicity, compactness and low cost.

Continuous ink-jet (CIJ) printing involves shooting a very fine stream of ink that breaks into predictable size droplets, which can be individually deflected by an electrical current directly onto a substrate. The primary advantages of CIJ are extremely high speeds—systems run at 1,000 feet per minute (fpm), producing more than 4,000 81⁄2x11˝ pages per minute (ppm)—and the ability to print in a wide range of physical environments and on many substrates.