Oce VarioPrint i Series, Operation Manual

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A B
[11] Nozzle receives an electric signal (A) and ejects an ink drop (B)
Drop size modulation
The VarioPrint i-series printhead nozzles can produce drops of five different sizes. This
mechanism is called
drop size modulation
. The largest drop size is only used to compensate for a
failure of an adjacent nozzle. (
Learn about quality control sheets on page 251
)
[12] Five different drop sizes
Media characteristics such as surface roughness and the type of coating determine how a ink
drop behaves when it touches the media. The media definition has parameters that determine
which drop sizes the print engine must apply while printing these media.
A B C
[13] Drop size modulation: the printer adjusts the drop size depending on the media characteristics. Media with
coating (top) allow for a larger drop size than media without coating (bottom)
Background spitting
Background spitting is the production of small ink drops during printing. These ink dots on the
media sheets are not a part of the source image but are jetted the background of the image. They
are not visible to the human eye. Background spitting keeps the nozzles open and clean.
Print process
28 Chapter 2 - Explore the printer