Canon’s fast new 64-inch Océ Colorado 1640 roll-to-roll printer will make its first public debut in the U.S. at the ISA Sign Expo 2017 in Las Vegas. Designed for the efficient, cost-effective production of high quality indoor and outdoor graphics, the Océ Colorado 1640 is the first printer with Canon’s new UVgel technology. The technology combines:
- a radically new UV-curable ink that instantly gels on contact with the media;
- an advanced “self-aware” piezoelectric printhead technology;
- an LED unit that cures without adding damaging heat to the media;
- continuous on-the-fly printhead nozzle monitoring and performance compensation.
The industrial graphics production printer is built to withstand high duty cycles and output higher print volumes.
“We are very excited about this revolutionary new game changing technology” said Toyo Kuwamura, executive vice president and general manager, Business Imaging Solutions Group, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “This new technology will help large format print providers to increase their print production while lowering their operating costs, enabling them to profitably grow their businesses.”
Canon believes small, midsize and even large production shops can benefit from the printer’s speed, ability to print many different types of graphics, fast and easy media loading, quality-assured unattended printing, innovations in automation, and low operating costs .
Productivity
The Océ Colorado 1640 is engineered to efficiently produce very high print quality across a range of applications. It boasts a top speed of 1710 square feet per hour and delivers high quality POP prints at 430 square feet per hour.
Features that contribute to high-quality/high-speed printing include the UVgel ink and state-of-the-art LED-UV curing system. The UVgel ink instantly gels on contact with media for precise dot gain, position control, and perfectly repeatable images. The low-temperature LED-UV curing system moves independently from the printing carriage for uniform, instantly cured, durable prints.
Unattended printing with automated quality assurance, automated roll changing, and reduced print waste also contribute to the productivity of the system.
Innovations in Automation
The heavy-duty drawer mechanism on the Océ Colorado 1640 can hold two rolls of media, each weighing up to 110 lbs. The two rolls can be the same media type and size or different media. Once the jobs are initialized, the print engine can switch jobs between rolls without operator assistance.
If an unknown media is loaded, the printer will automatically measure its thickness and adjust the print gap accordingly. This ensures the best possible print quality and reduces the risk of printhead crashes. This information is then stored in the media library along with other media parameters so that the next time this type of media is loaded, the printer knows exactly how to handle it.
Reliability is key for a true production-oriented printer, and the machine must be able to print while unattended. So Canon has developed several innovative technologies for on-the-fly quality assurance and control.
The UVgel printheads incorporate patented continuous nozzle monitoring to detect and correct any under-performing nozzles. During every printing pass, Canon’s patented nozzle monitoring technology automatically checks all nozzles using acoustic sampling. It can even detect whether nozzles are going to misfire before they actually do. In the event of nozzle failure, corrective maintenance is automatically performed.
Broad Application Range
The Océ Colorado 1640 is excellent for both indoor and outdoor applications. It delivers a large color gamut similar to solvent inks but offers the environmental benefits and safety profile of latex and UV-cured systems. The result is nearly odorless, VCL-free, durable, colorfast, high quality prints even on the thinnest, most heat-sensitive media.
The ultra-thin ink dispersion of UVgel technology has almost no discernible physical profile on the media surface. Compared to other UV ink systems, prints feel noticeably smoother. The prints satisfy the highest environmental standards for indoor usage with a virtually odorless profile.
An important factor in print quality and application range on roll-to-roll printers is the accuracy with which the printer advances the media. The media-handling system on the Océ Colorado 1640 is supported by a heavy, rigid frame and equipped with industrial components, including an optical feedback loop that continuously monitors media advance. Using virtually invisible printed index marks at the edges of the media, the system measures media advances in real time to automatically correct the subsequent step size as needed.
Low Operating Costs
The low operating costs of the Océ Colorado 1640 can be attributed to lower ink consumption, competitively priced ink, and automation that substantially reduces the need for operator oversight and intervention.
‘Canon is looking forward to the U.S. debut of this product at the ISA Show,” said Kuwamura. “We know that there has been a lot of anticipation around this technology and we are very excited about what the future will bring.”