Portable Thermal Printers,
Defined
A thermal printer is a printer
that creates an image on paper by heating specially
coated paper. This specially coated paper turns black in the
preferred locations (spelling out text, showing
pictures/images, etc) when the paper is heated at the
time it crosses the thermal printer head. While
most thermal printers can only produce a black and
white image, some can also produce an extra
color, typically red, by using a second temperature of
heat to darken another layer of coating on the thermal
paper. However, there is currently no way to produce a
full-color image using a thermal printer.
All thermal printers
include the thermal head that generates heat, a rubber
roller to feed the paper into the machine, and a spring to
press the thermal head against the heat-sensitive paper.
Thermal transfer printing is similar to thermal printing,
except it utilizes a heat-sensitive
ribbon versus special paper. They are faster and
quieter than dot matrix printers or even inkjet and laser
printers. Plus, a thermal printer does not require the
purchasing of ink, unlike most other types of printers. When
the printer runs out of paper, it is very easy to change out
the roll, making it ideal for busy situations where the
printer will be used frequently.
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Thermal
printers also come with software to
control the printer. Once the printer
receives the signal to print, the print
head heats up to create a specified
pattern as the paper rolls across it,
producing the required image. When it
presses against the heat-sensitive paper,
the heat activates the dye by heating
acid in the paper above its melting
point, causing it to mix with the dye.
Once the paper has cooled, it will
quickly solidify, making the ink pattern
permanent.
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While this technology was used in many
1990’s-era fax machines, this technology these days allows
the production of smaller, portable thermal printers.
Printing of barcodes and receipts are examples of uses of a
portable thermal printer. Often found as part of a
Point of Sale system, a portable thermal printer is
generally used for retail applications.
Thermal printers can also be found at ATMs
and voucher printing stations, and there are even portable
thermal printers these days that fill a need to a portable
traditional computer printer. Check out the different types
of portable thermal
printers.
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