Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Homebrew PCBs

----- Original Message -----
From: "Andrew" <andrewm1973@...>
To: <Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Thursday, June 08, 2006 10:56 AM
Subject: [Homebrew_PCBs] Re: What kind of ink are we really seeking for?


>> Leon wrote:
>> Printing systems which use UV cured ink use piezo
>> print heads.
>
> Leon - do you know if they use epson print heads
> or are they special printheads with no plastics
> that are attacked by serious solvents ?

They use special heads, the problem is the viscosity of the ink. A UK
company called Xaar makes the heads but they are very expensive, and the ink
is difficult to obtain. An Italian company makes PCB equipment using the
technique, but it's very expensive. I think it works best for silk screen,
they don't seem to have any info on their PCB resist machine.

I looked into these techniques a couple of years ago, but didn't get
anywhere. The ink has to be UV cured directly after it has been deposited,
not after it has been applied to the whole board.

Leon