Engineering Materials

Engineering materials is a discussion led by Design News Contributing Materials Editor Doug Smock on important new developments and applications that affect mechanical design. Metals covered include all types of steel and nonferrous metals, in all shapes. Resins covered include nylons, polycarbonates, polysulfides, polyimides, and polybutylene terephthalate (PBT). Other materials covered include ceramics and rubber. Topics covered include materials enhancement, new applications, process technology, tooling, sustainability, and economic issues. Posts will include latest news from global events such as K 2007, the Alliance of Plastics Processors Annual Conference, the National Plastics Exposition, and the annual technical conference (ANTEC) of the Society of Plastics Engineers.

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Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Ceramic Boosts Hewlett-Packard Inkjet Printer

The key to a new Hewlett-Packard high speed printer is a very intricate injection molded ceramic part. As part of a $1.4 billion, five-year research project, HP design engineers approached a British ceramics company, called Morgan Advanced Ceramics, and asked if it could develop a piece that features 3,900 print nozzles. HP eyed ceramic because of its strength and hardness. Until recent years, ceramic was never a top choice for intricate, small parts because of the poor flowability of common ceramic compositions, and the expense of secondary machining. Morgan is now in full production of the component, which is part of a built-from-the-ground-up piece that rapidly distributes ink to paper, allowing full-color prints in 14 seconds.

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(Add your comments)

at 1/18/2008 6:48:00 AM, David Schwalje said:
HP is a great company, many very smart people in R&D plus good people who guide commercialization of new products. Inkjet applications and marketshare will continue to grow for the next decade.

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