Filed under: Blogroll, Industry News, Metawatch News Release | Tagged: firmware upgrade, Lexmark, Remanufactured Cartridges | 2 Comments »
Kodak to quit making its desktop inkjet printers
Posted on October 14, 2012 by kflack
The iconic company on Friday said it would quit making desktop inkjet printers and focus on churning out ink for the millions of printers it already has sold.
That abrupt about-face comes after Kodak has spent nearly a decade and many hundreds of millions of dollars to create the printers, which it started selling in 2007. Now the printers will join other Kodak operations, such as retail store photo kiosks and document scanners, that within the past few weeks quickly went from being part of the company’s future to a once-was.
In place of desktop printers, Kodak has said “functional printing” — using printing technology as a way of manufacturing everything from circuit boards to flat batteries — will be key to its post-bankruptcy plans.
The shuttering of the printer business comes as no surprise given that Kodak’s so-far failed attempt to sell the 1,100 digital imaging patents “is killing them,” said Charles LeCompte, a senior analyst with imaging industry research firm Photizo Group. “They can’t afford to hold on to this business.”
Filed under: Blogroll, Industry News | Tagged: exits inkjet printer, kodak | 5 Comments »
Static Control Wins Appeal
Posted on September 7, 2012 by kflack
- September 07, 2012
SANFORD, N.C. – On August 29, 2012, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals again ruled in Static Control’s favour in the long-running dispute with Lexmark. The Court of Appeals reinstated Static Control’s claims against Lexmark under the Lanham Act and North Carolina state antitrust laws. The Lanham Act claims are for false advertising arising out of Lexmark’s claims that the remanufacturing of Prebate-program cartridges infringed Lexmark’s patents. The antitrust claims arose out of various Lexmark actions to reduce the number of cartridges remanufactured by third parties. The Court of Appeals also rejected Lexmark’s attempts to overturn the jury’s verdict rendered in Static Control’s favor and upheld the trial court’s finding that two of Lexmark’s design patents were invalid.
“When we were sued in 2002, I stated that we were in the first round of a prize fight,” said Ed Swartz, founder and CEO of Static Control. “We have won each round since, and we will win the fight at the end. The jury found for us because what Lexmark did to us was wrong. The Court of Appeals found for us because they agreed.”
This is the second time that the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Static Control’s favour in the 10-year-old fight. In 2004, Static Control appealed a finding that its chips violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, commonly known as the DMCA. The trial court had found that Static Control’s sales of chips, which could communicate with Lexmark’s printers, violated the DMCA. The 6th Circuit reversed the trial court verdict and held that the DMCA could not be used to prevent the use of chips to communicate with printers.
The case now goes to a trial on Static Control’s claims against Lexmark. “We have waited a long time to present our case on why Lexmark’s actions are unfair and illegal,” Swartz said. “Lexmark had their turn at bat, and now it is our inning. We are confident the jury will agree with us and award us the damages we are entitled.”
Filed under: Blogroll, Industry News | Tagged: appeal, DMCA, Lexmark, Static Control | Leave a comment »
Lexmark to dump inkjet printers
Posted on August 28, 2012 by kflack
Lexmark to dump inkjet printers and cut 1,700 jobs.
To close Philippines plant by end 2015
To eliminate inkjet development globally
Aug 28 (Reuters) – Printer maker Lexmark International Inc said it will stop making inkjet printers, cutting about 1,700 jobs, and focus on its more profitable imaging and software businesses.
Lexmark has been phasing out inkjet printers, used by consumers, and focusing on selling more sophisticated laser printers. It has also been beefing up its print services through several acquisitions over the last couple of years.
Revenue from the company’s legacy inkjet hardware business declined 66 percent in the first half of 2012, forcing the company to cut its full-year forecast.
Most printer makers are struggling with falling sales as printing, considered one of the most dispensable parts of a company’s budget, is always the first target of cost cutting.
Rival Xerox Corp cut its full-year profit outlook in July, while Canon Inc trimmed its operating profit fo recast, as the companies braced for tough economic conditions in Europe.
Lexmark laid off 625 employees related to manufacturing of consumer supplies in January.
The company said on Tuesday that it will take a pre-tax charge of $160 million related to the restructuring, with $110 million incurred in 2012, and the remaining in the next three years.
The company also said it is working with its strategic advisors to explore the sale of its inkjet-related technology, adding that it will close its Cebu, Philippines-based plant by 2015.
The company, which expects annual savings of $95 million once the restructuring is complete, also said it would buy back an additional $100 million shares in the second half of 2012.
Lexmark, which had about 13,300 employees worldwide, as of Dec. 31, 2011, said it will continue to provide service, support and aftermarket supplies for its inkjet installed base.
The Perceptive Software business, which Lexmark bought in 2010, provides software and services used to manage documents, workflows, imaging, and other content.
The company also bought Brainware Inc, ISYS Search Software and Nolij Corp earlier this year and added them to its Perceptive Software unit.
The business accounted for nearly 5 percent of second-quarter revenue, up from about 2 percent in the year-ago period
Filed under: Blogroll, Industry News | Tagged: brainware, Canon, laid off, Lexmark | Leave a comment »
Inkjet Printer Graphene Electronics
Posted on November 30, 2011 by kflack
Arxiv – Ink-Jet Printed Graphene Electronics (12 pages)
We demonstrate ink-jet printing as a viable method for large area fabrication of graphene devices. We produce a graphene-based ink by liquid phase exfoliation of graphite in N-Methylpyrrolidone. We use it to print thin-film transistors, with mobilities up to about 95cm^2/V-s, as well as transparent and conductive patterns, with about 80 % transmittance and about 30kOhm/sq sheet resistance. This paves the way to all-printed, flexible and transparent graphene devices on arbitrary substrates
Technology Review – These guys have found a way to replace or augment the conducting polymers in these inks with graphene, the wonder-material of the moment. They’ve found a way to readily produced graphene by chemically chipping flakes off a block of graphite and filtering them to remove any that might clog the printer heads. They then add the flakes to a solvent called N-Methylpyrrolidone, or NMP, which minimises problems such as the coffee ring effect that can occur when some solvents evaporate. Finally they’ve put this stuff in their printers and printed out a few circuits and thin film transisters.
The results are promising. The graphene-based inks match or beat the performance of most other inks available today. That’s pretty good for a first attempt since improvements will certainly follow.
We demonstrated ink-jet printing of graphene. Liquid phase exfoliated graphene is an ideal and low cost material for the fabrication of transparent conductive inks. Our graphene-ink was used to print TFTs with mobility of up to about 95cm^2/V-s. It was also combined with PQT-12 to fabricate devices with mobility of about 0.2cm^2/V-s and ON/OFF ratios ∼4×10^5. This demonstrates the viability of graphene-inks for flexible and transparent electronics.
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Solar Power Cells Produced Via Inkjet Tech
Posted on July 10, 2011 by kflack
Inkjet technology has allowed millions of people have the ability to print documents at home and even set up home offices. This technology may now even be used to create inexpensive solar energy cells.
Engineers at the Oregon State University (OSU) have found a way to create successful CIGS – chalcopyrite – solar devices with inkjet technology which may reduce raw material by 90 percent by creating precise patterning on the substrates and subsequently lower cost of solar cell production. The cells could eventually be high performing, ultra-low cost, rapidly produced and extremely thin.
According to the study, CIGS has extraordinary solar efficiency – a layer of chalcopyrite one or two microns thick has the ability to capture the energy from photons about as efficiently as a 50-micron-thick layer made with silicon. Current power conversion of a CIGS panel is about five percent, with potential to increase to 12 percent in the future. There’s also potential for future solar cells to be built directly into roofing materials with the inkjet technology.
While this technology is still in testing phase, it is a positive step in creating affordable renewable energy for home owners. Not only will the cells be less expensive, but because it uses less materials and hazardous materials, will also be much more environmentally friendly than traditional panels.
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LG LAUNCHES WORLD’S FASTEST A4 COLOR DESKTOP PRINTER POWERED BY MEMJET
Posted on June 23, 2011 by kflack
SEOUL — June 21, 2011 — LG Electronics (LG) and Memjet, a global provider of high-speed color printing technologies, today jointly introduced Memjet’s breakthrough office printing technology into the Korean market. The Machjet LPP6010N, the world’s fastest A4 color desktop printer, will be available this month through authorized LG resellers and channel partners.
Until now, printing technology has been limited to laser and traditional inkjet systems. The Machjet represents an entirely new category of printing technology that makes possible high-quality color printing at never-before seen speeds and quality. Memjet’s ground-breaking, high-density page-wide printheads and components enable printers to operate twice as fast but at only half the cost to run versus traditional color office printers, on average.
“LG prides itself on launching truly innovative products and is pleased to bring the world’s fastest A4 color desktop printers powered by Memjet’s game-changing printing technology to the Korean market,” said Si-hwan Park, vice president of LG Electronics’ monitors and printers business unit. “The Machjet delivers completely new levels of color performance and affordability and uses significantly less energy versus laser printers.”
The Machjet leapfrogs over current printers with high-quality color outputs in 1600×800 dpi resolution at 60 pages per minute.Memjet’s proprietary Page Straight Array (PSA) Technology packs more than 70,000 ink nozzles on a single printhead—17 times the nozzle density of traditional printheads—allowing the Machjet to deliver more than 700 million drops of ink per second on a page.
Len Lauer, president and CEO of Memjet, said: “Combining Memjet’s core technology benefits with LG’s brand, corporate capabilities and vast distribution network, LG is creating exciting new value for Korean customers looking to be more efficient and cost effective in their office printing.”
Printers that are “powered by Memjet" are also energy efficient and less expensive to operate. While competitive color laser printers use on average approximately 600W of electricity during normal operations, the Machjet consumes just 32W. Costs are further reduced via the Machjet’s Hyper Small Drop Technology. The Machjet takes advantage of smaller droplets to minimize the amount of ink required to render clean, crisp text and images at high speed. This technology results in faster-drying ink and reduces the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) by up to 70 percent when compared to competitive color laser printers.
Such innovation has given Memjet a significant intellectual property position in the industrywithmore than 3,000 approved global patents and another 2,000 pending.
ABOUT MEMJET
Memjet is the global leader in color printing technologies that provide remarkable speeds and affordability. The company supplies technologies and components to OEM partners across the printing industry. Memjet maintains its corporate office in San Diego, and has offices in Dublin, Sydney, Taipei, Singapore and Boise, Idaho. The company is privately held. For more information, please visit www.memjet.com.
ABOUT LG ELECTRONICS
LG Electronics, Inc. (KSE: 066570.KS) is a global leader and technology innovator in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, employing more than 93,000 people working in over 120 operations around the world. With 2010 global sales of KRW 55.8 trillion (USD 48.2 billion), LG comprises four business units – Home Entertainment, Mobile Communications, Home Appliance, and Air Conditioning & Energy Solutions. LG is one of the world’s leading producers of flat panel TVs, mobile devices, air conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators. LG has signed a long-term agreement to become both a Global Partner and a Technology Partner of Formula 1™. As part of this top-level association, LG acquires exclusive designations and marketing rights as the official consumer electronics, mobile phone and data processor of this global sporting event. For more information, please visit http://www.lg.com.
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ITC supports HP inkjet patent complaint
Posted on June 13, 2011 by kflack
SAN FRANCISCO — A US federal agency has backed its claim that rival MicroJet Technology Co. was infringing on patents for lucrative inkjet printer cartridges.
The (ITC) International Trade Commission issued a favourable "initial determination" regarding the validity of HP’s patents in the case, according to the California-based computer and printer maker.
HP on Friday said the ITC ruled that MicroJet infringed on HP patents while Asia Pacific Microsystems was a "contributory infringer."
Filed under: Blogroll, Industry News, Inkjet Info | Tagged: HP, inkjet, ITC, Micro Jet | Leave a comment »
Print Brush
Posted on June 7, 2011 by kflack
Handheld Inkjet Printer…..
Just WOW….
PrintBrush™ 4X6
Ink jet Printer. Digital camera. One device.
Compact, easy and fun the PrintBrush™ 4X6 is the first of its kind. A pocket-sized printer with a built-in camera.
Featuring PrintDreams de RMPT™ Fulltechnology, it will print in color directly onto virtually any surface
Hold it in your hand and sweep back and forth -just like a brush!. It is magic!
Click to shoot. Sweep to Print.
Soon coming to a store near you! 
Key features:
RMPT Full technology
5M pixel digital camera
Lexmark color cartridge 600 dpi
Philips Laser Doppler sensors
µSD Memory Card and USB 2.0
Download product specifications here
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Inkjet News 