Printer makers just can’t stop pleasing their customers with new releases. Epson USA introduced three new Hi-Definition printers. Epson Stylus Photo R280 is a single-function photo printer capable of printing on wide media (up to 8.5″ x 44″) and CDs and DVDs. It features very fast speed – up to 38 ppm in black and 37 ppm in color at maximum resolution of 5760 x 1440 dpi.

Epson’s Stylus Photo RX595 and Stylus Photo RX680 are multifunctional printers that can copy and scan. Both printers have a built-in 2.5” LCD preview screen and support direct print from memory cards and PictBridge-enabled cameras. Stylus Photo RX595 perform as fast as R280, while RX680 is faster – it prints 40 ppm in black and white (color printing rate is that same). The printers also support maximum resolution of 5760 x 1440 dpi.

Printing speed put aside, the new devices seem pretty ordinary, so where “Hi-Definition” come from? The trick is in use of Advanced MicroPiezo printhead that produce ink droplets as tiny as 1.5 picoliter. Yet the printers utilize 6 individual color cartridges filled with Claria Hi-Definition Ink, a proprietary in by Epson to print smudge, scratch, water and fade resistant photos. The manufacturer promises that pictures printed with Claria inks will last as long as 200 years.

From Canon’s side, there is a trio of new printers, too – Pixma MP520, MP610, and MP970. All three all-in-one printers feature PictBridge and memory card direct print, reduced warm-up time and improved Easy Scroll-Wheel interface; they also support. Easy Scroll-Wheel now not only gives information on specific functions, but also takes the user to the specific function selected. All three models feature Auto Image Fix, a tool to adjust image quality.

Canon Pixma MP970, being the top-of the-line model, has a large, 3.5-inch LCD screen, uses seven individual cartridges and features a CCD in its scanner. Printing rate is 30 ppm for black, 22 ppm for color documents at 9600-dpi maximum resolution using 1 picoliter droplets. MP970 is network-ready device with a film adapter for both slides and negatives.

Pixma MP610 support the same speed of 30 ppm for black, 22 ppm for color documents at 9600-dpi maximum resolution with 1 picoliter droplet size. However, it uses only five individual cartridges (without photo cyan and photo magenta). The printer has a smaller, 2.5-inch LCD screen, and a CIS sensor in its scanner.

Canon Pixma M520 is low-end model with only 2-inch LCD screen. It utilizes four color cartridges to print Black text at 30 ppm and color text at 19 ppm. Supported resolution is 4800 dpi with 2 picoliter droplets.

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What do you think your inkjet printer can create? Pages of black text? OK. Documents with color graphics? All right. Photos of you having fun in backyard? Absolutely! Anything else? You surely feel puzzled, however an inkjet printer can do a lot more. And there are people who know what this ‘more’ is.

A UK start-up, Polymertronics, develops a method that combines organic semiconductor fabrication technology with ultra-violet (UV) curing techniques. Simply put, this means there is a way to print electronics on a variety on media including vinyl, plastics, glass and metal. In particular, using this method one can create embedded light emitting diodes (OLEDS) and touch sensitive panels. The crucial thing about the technique is that it implies using existing printing equipment. This automatically creates a sales market for Polymertronics products and makes them (products) more cost effective.

Printed electronics sounds exiting, but hey, what do you think of printed bones?

Researchers at the Tissue Engineering Department at the University of Tokyo Hospital have already performed several implantations of artificial bones in male and female patients, ranging in age from 10 to 54. The artificial bones were simply printed using 3-D inkjet printers. Actually, here is what that “simply” means.

Artificial bone is created in several steps. First, a 3D computer model of the bone is created using the patient’s X-ray and computed tomography scan data. Then, the 3-D model is sliced into tons of layers, and the data is sent to special 3D inkjet printer. The printer work similarly to regular inkjet printer, but it does not produce simply one layer of ink droplets on paper. Instead, it creates multiple layers by applying water-based polymer adhesive onto special powder, which then hardens. Repeatedly printing layers on top of one another, printer creates a replica of desired bone or its part, see photo (taken from www.pinktentacle.com).

Artificial bones are strong, light and porous; when implanted into body, they easily integrate with surrounding bones and get replaced by them over time as the natural bones regenerate. The researchers expect this technology to be commercially available by 2010. However, the printed bones are not yet strong enough to substitute weight-bearing bones, so don’t burst into carelessly breaking your arms and legs

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