Hello,
Just curious as to how a Dot Matrix printer moves the ink from a storage tank to the print head. I am referring to a printer such as a Epson Eco Tank Printer. It is NOT Gravity!!
Is it some sort of pump or some other technology that moves the ink to the print head??
Trying to search online only gives me how to clean print heads and tubing but no mention of how the ink is forced to the heads.
Thanks for any small hints.
Les
" Dot matrix printing is typically distinguished from non-impact methods, such as inkjet, thermal, or laser printing, which also use a bitmap to represent the printed work. "
Thanks John!!
So there is a "pump" somewhere that could be my issue.
Appreciate the link!! Very Helpful!!
Les
On Fri, 4 Aug 2023 10:27:17 -0400, ABLE1 snipped-for-privacy@nowhere.com wrote as underneath :
AFAIR in the 70s and 80s for all dot-matrix printers we used pre-inked ribbons that eventually dried out and had to be repleced, noisy things! C+
Air pressure. After the droplets are ejected (by thermal or piezo action), less volume is present in the printer head causing a low pressure. The capillary action in the print nozzle prevents ink from flowing back. The pressure in the tank is higher, hence new ink will flow from tank to head.
Arie
Hi Arie,
Thanks, now that does make better sense. Somehow I had a blockage in my printer 'Black' ink. I somehow cleaned or cleared the obstruction yesterday. Now, the printer is back in operation after running about
20 pages with a very large BLACK line thru the Epson that didn't start printing anything until the last page.After all the time spent on working on this problem I am now a more better educated technician than before!! :-)
Later,
Les
Sorptivity
In my experience with perhaps 4-5 inkjet printers (hp, epson) with printing issues, I find the print head is usually clogged. I've read online about many ways to unclog the print head. Nowhere have I seen a chemical, made by the ink mfg, that one could put in place of the ink cartridge to clean/dissolve the clog. Seems ridiculous to me. Repeated cleaning cycles with 'fresh' ink cartridges seems to waste a lot of ink and is not all that effective. If anyone knows of a cleaning solution that works, I'd like to hear about it.
Hi Three_Jeeps,
I will not say that what I did was the real answer, but it seems that I may have been successful. If you (or others) are in for a read I will type out what I did. For the most part was NOT Successful until the end.
Honestly I think it may have been the accumulation of all my attempts that got it fixed.
Again, I will type if there is a decent desire to read.
Les
There are plenty of head cleaning cartridges available. For example:
HP print cartridges have the print head as part of the cartridge. If the head clogs, you recycle the cartridge, buy a new cartridge and continue using the printer. Epson and Brother inkjet printers have the print head as part of the printer. When head clogs, replacing the cartridge does nothing useful. The head needs to be cleaned or the printer ends up as eWaste.
I used 91% isopropyl alcohol for cleaning. The hard part is removing the head from Epson printers. There are videos available for various Epson:
Sorry, but I have no experience with Epson Ecotank printers. However, these videos might help:
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