Open-system TIJ cartridges — factory direct
Open-system TIJ cartridges — factory direct
Handheld and inline thermal inkjet printers supplied jointly with specialist equipment-manufacturing partners, running the same cartridge platform so consumables are shared across the fleet. If you are deciding between a handheld unit and a fixed station, the throughput on your line usually settles it.
A battery-operated half-inch handheld coder for cartons, pallets and large parts that cannot be brought to a production line. If your product cannot go on a conveyor, that is the case it is built for.
A one-inch handheld coder for content that does not fit half an inch: multi-line blocks, QR and Data Matrix codes, and logos applied in a single sweep. If half an inch will not hold your content, this is the model to compare.
A fixed thermal inkjet station for conveyor production, with photocell triggering, encoder synchronisation and multi-head stitching up to 76.2 mm. If your line already runs a conveyor and a photocell, this is the station that bolts onto it.
| Parameter | Handheld · 12.7 mm | Handheld · 25.4 mm | Inline industrial |
|---|---|---|---|
| Print width | 12.7 mm (half-inch) | 25.4 mm (one-inch) | 12.7 – 76.2 mm with stitched heads |
| Print height range | 1.2 – 12.7 mm | 2 – 25.4 mm | 6.35 – 76.2 mm |
| Coding content | Single line, or two compact lines | Multi-line text, QR and Data Matrix in one pass | Multi-line, variable data, serialisation |
| Mobility | Battery, fully portable | Battery, fully portable | Fixed to the line, bracket or gantry mounted |
| Trigger | Manual trigger, internal encoder wheel | Manual trigger, internal encoder wheel | Photocell, encoder synchronisation or timed |
| Operator interface | Touchscreen, on-device editing | Touchscreen, on-device editing | Controller UI plus line signals |
| Best for | Cartons, pallets, awkward or large parts, low volume | QR and multi-line codes, cartons, bottles, low to medium volume | Continuous production, batch and date coding at line speed |
A single TIJ cartridge prints a fixed band: 12.7 mm or 25.4 mm tall. To print taller content you mount several heads side by side and stitch their output into one image.
Stitching is mechanical alignment plus timing. Each head must be positioned so its nozzle row continues the previous one without a visible seam, and the fire timing has to compensate for the physical offset between heads. Two heads doubled in a vertical stack give 50.8 mm; four give 76.2 mm.
The practical cost is setup and maintenance. Every added head is another alignment to hold, another nozzle plate to keep clean and another point where a dropout shows in the finished code. We recommend specifying the minimum number of heads that covers your content, and leaving speed margin rather than head count.
Tell us the material, the line speed and the text you need to print. We will recommend an ink system and put printed samples in the post so you can test them yourself.
