Inkjet printer direct to PCB (printer hack/conversion)?

[HankMcSpank]

Hank,

I agree, advance it beyond those before, ditch the cardboard and bubble gum. But if you can't get the ink to dry in a consistant manner, there is no use advancing the mechanism.

You could print out some nice capacitive switches and keypads with the flexiable pcb material.
I might try this first with an unmodified printer. This way I can get a feel for the ink.


P.S. If we could determine if the same ink used in "Sharpie" pens would function in an epson print head. This ink dries fast and is etch resistant.

Now I'm no expert on printer ink, but it seems there are a two types...

1. dye ink (which is what most inkjets use) - water soluble - no use to us for etch resist.

2. pigment based ink (as used by the imkjet modders) - prints out wet, so needs to be baked to dry it. (& this is where inkjet pcbs turn into art form - the process of pre-prepping the board & drying the ink.



Solvent inks evaporate (likely to be what sharpie pens are)....ideal for pcbs, except it dissolves the glue in the epson print heads! this is why pigment based inks are the only option.