QY6-0082 - How many nozzles have PGBK?

[Łukasz]

Hi,

I'm wondering if QY6-0082 printhead really has 1024 PGBK nozzles (MG5420 specifications).
'Nozzle check pattern' looks like it has only 512 - same as QY6-0080 and some older printheads.

It is very similar to QY6-0067/QY6-0075 and QY6-0080 in terms of nozzles layout (per color nozzle number, droplets sizes etc.).

Any (conspiracy) theories?
Ł.


Some other info:

QY6-0082 printers:

• iP7200 series
• MG5400 series
• MG5500 series (1pl droplets not used)
• MG6400 series (1pl droplets not used)

QY6-0080 printers:

• iP4800 series
• iP4900 series
• MG5200 series
• MG5300 series
• MX710 series (CD printing incapable)
• MX880 series
• MX890 series
• iX6500 series

QY6-0067/QY6-0075 printers:

• iP4500
• iP5300
• MP610
• MP810
• MX850

 

[PeterBJ]

Could you upload or link to a nozzle check for one of the QY6-0082 printers? It would then be easy to count the number of nozzles for the PGBK, as each small horizontal line in the grid represents one nozzle.

An example: The MP970 has 512 PGBK nozzles. The nozzle check pattern shows 32 columns with 16 horizontal lines in each. This confirms the number of PGBK nozzles for that printer.

 

[Łukasz]

I think it is same as QY6-0080 (except for font).
Overall brightness is due to scanning options.

 

[PeterBJ]

According to my count the uploaded nozzle check shows 16 x 32 = 512 PGBK nozzles. I checked the European Canon sites for printer specs, but found no info about number of nozzles in the print heads. I wonder if the Canon US site is wrong?

It often takes some tweaking of the scanner settings to get a good scan of a nozzle check, else the light magenta and cyan stripes tend to disappear.

 

[Łukasz]

Here is something more suspicious - please look at the claimed (native) resolution:

Color:Up to 9600 x 2400 dpi
Black:Up to 600 x 600 dpi

PGBK nozzles row is no longer than an inch (it is about ~0,85").
Native resolution of 600 dpi suggests 512 nozzles rather than 1024.

 

[PeterBJ]

I don't know but resolution obtainable might not only depend on the print head and number of nozzles per inch but also on the smallest steps the print head can travel sideways and the smallest steps the paper can be advanced with?

But 600 x 0,85 = 510 which is very close to 512.

 

[turbguy]

Bear in mind you can print 600 DPI with only 1 nozzle...


...it just takes a long time!

 

[PeterBJ]

So it looks like number of nozzles more determines printing speed than resolution?

 

[turbguy]

The nozzle count means very little to resolution. The ink dot size and spacing has much more impact. The smaller the dots laid down, and the closer together they can be separated determines dots per inch.

The more nozzles you fire simultaneously, the more ink you can lay down one pass. The faster you can then print (without over stressing the print head).

During high resolution photo printing, the head makes multiple passes over the same area with small increments of paper advance, to achieve the "advertised" resolution and appropriate density. And this takes longer...

Wayne

 

[turbguy]

I suspect the number of nozzles available for any particular color has more to do with fabrication and economy issues with the thermal print head "chips" than any other factor. The closer you space the nozzles, the more dense thermal heating issues arise, but the smaller the "chip" becomes. The wider you space the nozzles, the less accumulated heating becomes an issue, but the bigger the chip. It must be a very fine balancing act to design and manufacture a print head!

Certainly, I can understand the requirement for the nozzle count to be some power of two, for purely digital reasons...