Printers

By: Kyle Miller

What is a Printer?

Printers are an output device for computer users. The devices print documents, images and spreadsheets. Printers come in different styles and capabilities. Some have color printing capabilities while others contain only black ink. Of the two main

types of printers, laser and inkjet.

History of the PrinterIn 1938, Chester Carlson invented Xerox, a dry printing process called electro photography.

In 1953, the first high-speed printer was developed by Remington-Rand for use on the Univac computer

EARS was developed at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in 1969 and completed in November, 1971

According to IBM, The first IBM 3800 was installed in the central accounting office at F. W. Woolworth’s North American data center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1976. The IBM 3800 Printing System was the industry’s first high-speed, laser printer. It operated at 100 impressions-per-minute. This printer was combined laser technology and electro photography.

In 1976, the inkjet printer was invented, but it took until 1988 for the inkjet to become a home consumer item with Hewlett-Packard's release of the DeskJet inkjet printer, priced at a whopping $1000. 

In 1992, Hewlett-Packard released the LaserJet 4, the first 600 by 600 dots per inch resolution laser printer. 

Components of a printer

Control Panel

The control panel has all your options for the printer. Your ON/OFF switch is located there, and you can configure your paper feed choices, tone settings and network settings

Components of a printer

Paper Trays

The paper tray holds the paper. There are different size holders for the different paper sizes.

Components of a printer

Cartridge Door

The cartridge door is in front of where the ink lies.

Components of a printer

Output Tray

The output tray receives the paper once it has finished the printing process.

Components of a printer

Ink

Inkjet printers use cartridges that spray ink onto the paper. The ink dries quickly. Laser printers have large toner cartridges. The toner is heated and delivered to the paper. The heated toner quickly dries, but it may seem hot to the touch after the print job. Inkjet printers do not have the quality of a laser printer.

Components of a printer

toner image is to be formed on the peripheral surface thereof, a transfer drum onto which is

removably fitted an image-forming sheet member onto which said toner image will be transferred,

and a cleaning device that removes the toner remaining on the peripheral surface of the

photosensitive drum after the transfer of image has been finished.

Photosensitive Drum

How a Printer Works

Laser PrinterThe first step to the printing

process is the transmission of the data from the computer or

the storage device to the image processor of the

printer. The image processor rasterizes the data and turns the given information into a graphic image. this image is

then sent to the printer's memory in preparation for

'transmission'.

How a Printer works While that is going on the photosensitive drum is rotating a brushing against the charged roller or the charged corona wire. The wire or the roller imparts its negative charge to the drum and as a result gains a negative static charge. This static charge remains on the drum's surface as long as it's dark.At this point, the laser emits a light beam onto the revolving photocell. The laser beam passes through a series of focusing mirrors so that it would accurately come into contact with the drum. This laser beam is activated and triggered by the data that is stored in the image processor memory.

How a Printer works

where the drum is hit by the laser beam, the charge switches from negative to positive (since these areas have been exposed to light, they can no longer keep their negative charges). the image is then outlined and drawn on the drum by the laser beam.

How a Printer worksThe drum or the photocell touches the negatively charged toner (fine colored or black, dry powder). Then in connects to all the positively charged portions of the photocell and leaves all the negatively charged portions alone. This is when, the photocell bears the actual image.Next, the photocell or the drum rolls over the paper and the toner is transferred. The paper with toner then passes through the fuser assembly which connects the toner particles to the paper. Through a combination of heat,and pressure, the toner powder melts on and gets bonded with the paper. The paper then comes out printed.

Types of Printersthere are 2 main types of printers

• Ink-Jet(bubble jet)printer- spray ionized tiny drops of ink onto a

page to create an image.  This is achieved by using magnetized plates which direct the ink's path onto the paper in the desired pattern. Almost all ink-jets offer a color option as standard, in varying degrees of resolution. Ink-jet printers are capable of producing high quality print which almost matches the quality of a laser printer. A standard ink-jet printer has a resolution of 300 dots per inch, although newer models have improved on that.  As a rule color link-jet printers can also be used as a regular black and white printer.

• Laser printers -operate by shining a laser beam to produce an image on a

drum. The drum is then rolled through a pool, or reservoir, or toner, and the electrically charged portions of the drum pick up ink. Finally, using a combination of heat and pressure, the ink on the drum is transferred onto the page. Laser printers print  very fast, and the supply cartridges work a long time. Color laser printers use the same toner-based printing process as black and white ( B/W) laser printers, except that they combine four different toner colors.  Color laser printers can also be used as a regular black and white laser printer

Laser PrinterInk-Jet Printer

Manufacturers & Prices

• Brother • Canon • Dell • Epson HP• Lexmark • Panasonic • Samsung • Sharp • Toshiba• Xerox

• Prices range depending on the quality of the printer.

• $30-$10,000 for a Ink-Jet

• $100 – $28,000 for a Laser

http://www.tech-faq.com/how-a-laser-printer-works.html

 

http://www.inkguides.com/list-of-all-printer-manufacturers.asp

http://www.staples.com/Laser-Printers-Printers-All-in-Ones/cat_DP1606?cm_mmc=online_google-_-adwords-_-Printers%20-%20Priority-_-laser%20printers&cid=PS:SBD:GS:B:N:T:Printers_-_Priority:Laser_Printers-Broad

http://www.officedepot.com/a/browse/printers-scanners-copiers-and-faxes/N=5+10566/?cm_mmc=360i-_-Google-_-Printers-Printers_-_General-_-printer

http://www.ehow.com/about_5443884_parts-printer.html

Resources

PC NETWORKING

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