Thermal Printers
Description
Thermal printers are printers that produce characters by applying heat energy to special coated papers which are sensitive to heat. Thermal printers comprise of thermal head, platen, spring, and controller boards. Thermal head generates the heat required and prints on paper. Platen is the rubber roller which feeds the paper. Spring applies the force to the thermal head, enabling it to contact the heat-sensitive paper. Controller boards control the printing mechanism. The coating becomes black in those areas which are heated, thus producing the image. For two color printing, heating is done at two different temperatures.
Types
Thermal printers are classified as
Direct thermal printers use heat from elements for burning an image onto the paper. Thermal wax transfer printers use a wax-based ink for printing on paper. Both printers can be used for plastic card printing.
Specifications
While manufacturing thermal printers, some common specifications and thermal printer dimensions are used which are as follows:
Advantages
Quieter and faster in printing as compared to dot matrix printers
More economical
Can be quickly refilled
Do not require toners, cartridges or ribbons
Operate at high speed
Compact in size
Do not require much maintenance
Provide clear characters
Paper is the only consumable item
Applications
Thermal printers have various applications including
Filling station pumps (issuing payment receipts)
Information kiosks
Point of sale systems
Automated teller machines
Voucher printers present in slot machines
Printing of barcodes, tickets, receipts, labels etc
Printing of fetal ultrasound scan data