iTi Introduces Inline Curing Printer for Development of Inkjet Materials and Processes

The XY 2.0 delivers fully integrated inline curing functionality in a scanning, inkjet printing system which offers extreme drop placement accuracy for demanding industrial applications. It is the first inkjet printing system available that provides user control over both printing and curing when developing inkjet-based processes. iTi’s XY 2.0 complements the company’s existing materials deposition system – the XY 1.0. iTi’s XY Materials Deposition Systems provide developers with a flexible and sophisticated platform for the development of jettable fluids, the analysis of the interaction between fluids and substrates and the development of pilot production processes. They are highly accurate systems with positional repeatability of ±1µm, suited for emerging inkjet applications in sectors including Flat Panel Displays, coatings, precision deposition of biomedical, conductive and resistive fluids, and full color process printing. The XY 2.0 adds user controllable curing and allows customers to specify their preferred curing device. iTi’s software controls the platen movement through the curing area to control the duration of cure exposure. The print process allows arbitrary insertion of curing passes into the deposition order enabling multilayer, multi-fluid processes to be developed within a single contained unit. The XY 2.0 currently supports Dimatix and Xaar printheads. Future support for Trident and other industrial printheads is planned.“This platform allows production curing methods to be factored directly into the development of inkjet fluids, substrates, and processes.” says iTi CEO Mr.Bruce Morgan. “Developers now have the flexibility of using several commercially available printheads and curing systems inline which opens the doors to finding the optimal inkjet solution.”

Development of industrial inkjet systems is driven by the desire to replace inefficient analog production processes with digital manufacturing. As an additive process, inkjet precisely controls the order and amount of fluids applied so expensive fluids and materials are not wasted. It offers the dual advantages of reduced materials costs and fewer processing steps over traditional analog methods such as lithography, screen printing, and etching.

iTi will demonstrate the XY 2.0 using Xaar printheads and Cima NanoTech conductive silver ink to print electronic test circuits at SID 2006, San Francisco, CA, June 6 – 8, booth 1709.