Imagexpert

New Developments in Instrumentation for Ink Jet Analysis : 

New Developments in Instrumentation for Ink Jet Analysis Presented by: Yair Kipman ImageXpert, Inc. Nashua, New Hampshire www.imagexpert.com

Outline : 

Outline Company description, markets we serve Drop-in-flight measurement JetXpert- a machine vision based system for analysis of drops in flight Overview of other ink jet related products Nozzle plate inspection Print head alignment Dot position analysis Print quality and color measurement

Company Description : 

Company Description ImageXpert Inc. is a world leader in vision-based inspection systems and solutions for digital printer manufacturers, ink formulators and jetted deposition system developers. From generalized inspection systems to more specialized systems such as line-scan camera systems for high speed nozzle plate inspection or JetXpert for analysis of drops-in-flight, companies rely on ImageXpert systems in R&D and production.

Markets and Applications : 

Markets and Applications Developers of printing systems and fluids for traditional and new ink jet applications Traditional and hybrid printing systems Printed electronics, solar cells, and display technology Industrial ink jet Biomedical applications: Micro dispensing Micro deposition Microarray fabrication Coatings

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Measurement and visualization of drops-in-flight

JetXpert System Description : 

JetXpert System Description Very small footprint for R&D lab and production environments 21” wide

JetXpert System Description : 

JetXpert System Description Fully integrated system includes: LED strobe, control box, and control software (GUI) Calibrated digital camera for image capture ImageXpert software for drop analysis

JetXpert System Benefits : 

JetXpert System Benefits Single strobe event for imaging of single droplets Works with any print head 125ns minimum pulse width Second camera available for imaging face plate during firing Measure: Drop volume Velocity Trajectory

Drop Analysis Example : 

Drop Analysis Example (Single event)

Strobe User Interface : 

Strobe User Interface A GUI allows for digital control of all strobe settings such as: Number of pulses Number of strobes Pulse width Delay times Intensity Images and movies can be saved

JetXpert Movie : 

JetXpert Movie

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TTP’s Meteor print head drive electronics PLUS JetXpert = Complete solution for ink developers

Other Ink Jet Applications : 

Other Ink Jet Applications Part inspection Print head alignment Dot position General print quality Printed electronics

Part Inspection: Nozzle Plates : 

Part Inspection: Nozzle Plates A line-scan camera is used for high speed, high magnification imaging of entire nozzle array Measurements can include nozzle shape, size, concentricity, alignment... Assess defects (clogs, debris, etc.)

Print Head Alignment : 

Print Head Alignment Uses one or more 2-D cameras Measure head angle and nozzle position Measure offset and angular displacement between heads or between each head and assembly on multiple-head systems

Dot Position Analysis : 

Dot Position Analysis Using a line scan camera, large images of printed dot patterns can be captured in a single pass without step-and-repeat High accuracy High speed Small footprint Dot position analysis often compares actual dot centroid positions to an ideal grid of locations:

Dot Position Animation : 

Dot Position Animation Here is a conceptual animation showing the dot position analysis process using line scan camera technology and ImageXpert software

Print Quality Analysis : 

Print Quality Analysis Line quality Dot quality Text quality Solid area Jet health Color bleed Satellites Graininess …

Dot Quality : 

Dot Quality Common dot quality measurements include: Size, shape (roundness and axis ratio), perimeter length (raggedness), darkness and position Both statistical data and data from the individual dots can be reported Dots and satellites can be measured separately

Text Quality : 

Text Quality Common features for assessing text quality include: Character area Perimeter length Edge raggedness Detection of breaks Detection of fill-ins

Line Quality : 

Line Quality Common line quality features include: Average line width Edge raggedness Edge sharpness Line area Line darkness Since line quality is dependent on orientation, both vertical and horizontal lines are usually measured

Inter-Color Bleed : 

Inter-Color Bleed Inter-color bleed is the unintentional intermixing of adjacent colorants. Different color combinations often have different quality levels. Common measurements include comparisons of: line width edge raggedness edge sharpness

Solid Area Quality : 

Solid Area Quality Solid area mottle measurement methods include: Simple statistics (standard deviation) ISO/IEC 13660 using tiled cells or a “moving ROI” Cluster-based analysis

Printed Electronics : 

Printed Electronics 2-D inspection lead width and spacing edge raggedness extraneous material voids layer-to-layer registration dimensional analysis… 3-D inspection lead height profiles volume and other topographic measurements

Printed Electronics: Lead width : 

Printed Electronics: Lead width

Printed Electronics : 

Printed Electronics Bi-directional phase issues from ink jet printing:

Printed Electronics : 

Printed Electronics

Printed Electronics: Ink Volume Using Laser Triangulation Data : 

Printed Electronics: Ink Volume Using Laser Triangulation Data Ink volume calculated: 0.808 microliter/ 5mm length

Inspection Systems : 

Inspection Systems

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Scanner Handheld camera Full motion: camera and laser and/or line scan Your microscope Multi-angle camera system All hardware configurations use the same software JetXpert: Drop-in-flight analysis system Manual motion camera system

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Research & Development Production (QA/QC) Benchmarking/ Competitive analysis Use in R&D and Production ImageXpert systems offer: Objective, quantitative analysis necessary for competitive analysis Flexibility, interactive tools and powerful algorithms necessary for R&D Automation, reliability and repeatability necessary for production

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www.imagexpert.com info@imagexpert.com 603-598-2500