Mimaki's new complete digital fabric printing system

The International Sign Expo is being organised in Las Vegas during April 20-22.

Direct to fabric dye sublimation printing requires fixation of inks through a dry heat process, a step that is traditionally performed separately. The Mimaki USA’s 3.2-metre wide TX500P-3200DS printer utilises an inline colour fixation unit that optimises the printing and finishing process by enabling simultaneous printing and color fixation, reducing two steps to one in a single device. Additionally, the TX500P-3200DS printer delivers optimum finishing by linking the printer and the heater units. This enables synchronisation so that the printer is initiated when the heater reaches the optimum fixation temperature.

This unique feature helps to control cost by reducing production time, labour, and transfer-related waste.

The TX500P-3200DS printer includes new print heads that enable printing directly onto various types of textiles. The high gap setting gives users the ability to print on thin and thick textiles, plus woven patterns or raised fibre surfaces, while maintaining accurate ink droplet placement.

To achieve high print speeds, 12 print heads are arranged in a staggered array. With a wide range of printing modes from high-speed draft (1399 square feet per hour) to high quality (538 square feet per hour), this printer offers a mode and speed that best suits nearly any digital textile application.

An auto media feeder and a pulling roller ensure stable and consistent feeding of fabric by automatically applying the appropriate tension to the fabric during conveyance. The AMF substrate roller motors deliver power and feed accuracy for unprecedented accuracy even at high speeds.

Mimaki has come up with technologies for assured production of high quality transfer prints. To achieve precise placement of the ink droplets onto the media, Mimaki has designed an optimum waveform, enabling the printhead to jet each ink colour at the appropriate jetting angle while maintaining precise ink droplet circularity. This waveform control technology improves visible quality and dot gain even at lower resolutions and higher speeds.

Variable ink droplet sizes – small, medium and large – are precisely placed. Smaller droplets create smoother gradients and quartertones, while large droplets produce uniform solids and are useful for high-speed printing.

The company’s Mimaki Advanced Pass System 4 (MAPS4) incorporates an advanced algorithm that reduces banding, uneven ink drying and bi-directional stripes, resulting in reduced artifacts and smoother POP-quality imaging at higher speeds. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India