Inkjets 101

The Inkjet technology was developed to create a affordable and reliable home printer that had the ability to print in full color. Many companies call inkjet printer by a slightly different name including bubblejet, inkjet and ink drop printing. Though each may have slightly different ink delivery systems however that doesn't really matter to you and me and all of them produce excellent results.

What is a Inkjet?

Inkjet printers produce very small dots (between 55-70) Microns in Diameter. The inkjet cartridge nozzle places these drops on the paper very close together and in a very specific sequence. Separately these are merely very tiny dots but together they produce a image.

Parts of an Inkjet Printer

Ink Cartridge

The part of the printer everyone knows. This contains the ink and often the nozzles which physically drops the ink. Many of the more modern printers have numerous different colored ink cartridges so you can replace each color individually. This can save you money as typical users go through black ink about 2 times as fast as color ink

Print Head Motor

This moves the print head and ink cartridge back and fourth across the paper to dispense the ink dots. This motor contributes to the sound you hear when the printer printing.

Stabilizer Bar or Control Arm

This is used to stabilize the print head as the motor moves it across the page. It is typically just a small metal bar to add strength or tension. Without the stabilizer the print head motor would lack the precision movement needed and would spray ink all over the paper.

Paper Tray/Feeder

This is the plastic tray that holds the paper. Sometimes it is placed vertically on the printer and sometimes it is placed horizontally. There is no advantage to either but rather it is a function of space on the printer design.

Rollers

Just below the tray is a set of rubber rollers or wheels. These rollers serve to pull or "feed" the paper from the tray into the printer.

Circuitry

Each printer has a set of Hi Tech circuitry similar to the circuits found on some of your PC components. These circuits contain transistors and connections that enable your printer to effectively communicate with not only your PC but with other components on the printer. Without the circuitry your printer would not communicate with the PC or itself.

Interface Ports/Plugs

This is what you physically connect your printer to your computer. There are two primary ports that are used to connect the two devices. A serial port is a older port and uses pins as a connection. These types of ports are usually large and rectangular shaped. The More Modern connection port is a USB Port. USB stands for Universal Serial Bus and has a faster data transfer rate than a serial port. The USB port is physically smaller than the serial port.