The invention relates to a water-based ink composition for drop-on-demand (DoD) printing technology, which is intended for glazing and decorating ceramic products and provides colour or ceramic effects on ceramic supports once it has been fired at temperatures between 850° C. and 1280° C.

The invention relates to a water-based ink composition for drop-on-demand (DoD) printing technology, which is intended for glazing and decorating ceramic products and provides colour or ceramic effects on ceramic supports once it has been fired at temperatures between 850° C. and 1280° C.

In a droplet ejection apparatus and a droplet ejection method using the droplet ejection apparatus, the droplet ejection apparatus includes a liquid supply unit, a nozzle and a standing wave generating unit. The liquid supply unit is configured to provide a pressure to a liquid. The nozzle is connected to the liquid supply unit through a connecting conduit, to eject the liquid with a droplet. The standing wave generating unit is configured to generate a standing wave around the nozzle at which the droplet is formed, to detach the droplet from the nozzle.

A pressure head is for dispensing a water-binder mixture in a controlled manner, the mixture including water and at least one hydraulic binder, in particular a cementitious binder. The pressure head includes at least one supply channel for supplying the water-binder mixture, at least one outlet opening fluidically connected to the at least one supply channel, and at least one valve by which the at least one outlet opening can be opened and closed in a controlled manner. A specified dose of the water-binder mixture can be dispensed through the at least one outlet opening.

A bioprinter comprises one or more dispensing units. Each dispensing unit may include (i) a syringe including a hollow body and a plunger dimensioned to translate in the body wherein the body has an exit orifice; (ii) an actuator in contact with a proximal end of the plunger; (iii) a controller for moving the actuator; and (iv) a nozzle having a wall defining a fluid path extending from an inlet of the nozzle to an outlet of the nozzle. The inlet of the nozzle is in fluid communication with the exit orifice of the syringe body. The nozzle includes a fluid passageway in fluid communication with a source of fluid and the fluid path. The bioprinter can be used in a method of preparing microtissue comprising dispensing a bioink from one or more dispensing units of the bioprinter on a plate. The microtissue may comprise cartilage cells or tumor cells or liver cells.

A bioprinter comprises one or more dispensing units. Each dispensing unit may include (i) a syringe including a hollow body and a plunger dimensioned to translate in the body wherein the body has an exit orifice; (ii) an actuator in contact with a proximal end of the plunger; (iii) a controller for moving the actuator; and (iv) a nozzle having a wall defining a fluid path extending from an inlet of the nozzle to an outlet of the nozzle. The inlet of the nozzle is in fluid communication with the exit orifice of the syringe body. The nozzle includes a fluid passageway in fluid communication with a source of fluid and the fluid path. The bioprinter can be used in a method of preparing microtissue comprising dispensing a bioink from one or more dispensing units of the bioprinter on a plate. The microtissue may comprise cartilage cells or tumor cells or liver cells.

A print component includes an array of fluidic actuation structures including a first column of fluidic actuating structures addressable by a set of actuation addresses, each fluidic actuating structure having a different one of the actuation addresses and having a fluidic architecture type, and a second column of fluidic actuating structures addressable by the set of actuation addresses. Each fluidic actuating structure of the second column has a different one of the actuation addresses and has a same fluidic architecture type as the fluidic actuating structure of the first column having the same address. An address bus communicates the set of addresses to the array of fluidic actuating structures, and a fire signal line communicates a plurality of fire pulse signal types to the array of fluidic actuating structures, the fire pulse signal type depending on the actuation address on the address bus.

A method for inspecting an ink discharge status based on a temperature change of an energy generating element includes calculating a difference value between a value obtained by statistics of information indicating ink discharge statuses obtained for a plurality of nozzles close to a target nozzle and the information obtained for the target nozzle; comparing the calculated difference value with a predetermined threshold; and judging the ink discharge status for the target nozzle based on a result of the comparison. This enables to appropriately detect a nozzle which is in a discharge failure status due to an ink droplet adhered to a discharge surface of a printhead or the like.

A three-dimensional (3D) metal object manufacturing apparatus is equipped with a removable vessel to reduce the time required for start-up procedures after the printer is serviced. The removable vessel is filled with solid metal that is heated to its melting temperature before the bulk wire is inserted into the vessel to commence printing operations. The melting of the solid metal in the removable vessel requires less time that the melting of an length of bulk wire adequate to produce a volume of melted metal suitable for printer operation. The solid metal in the removable vessel can be metal pellets, metal powder, or a solid metal insert.

An image recording apparatus includes a liquid chamber, a first electrode pin and a second electrode pin which are inserted into the liquid chamber, application unit for applying a voltage between the first electrode pin and the second electrode pin, and detection unit for detecting a current which flows between the first electrode pin and the second electrode pin, the image recording apparatus has: a first period in which the application unit applies the voltage between the first electrode pin and the second electrode pin, with the first electrode pin as an anode side and the second electrode pin as a cathode side, and the detection unit detects the current; and a second period in which the application unit applies the voltage between the first electrode pin and the second electrode pin, with the first electrode pin as the cathode side and the second electrode pin as the anode side.