Have you ever wondered just how that laser printer creates an image on your paper? Have you tried to imagine how printer ink and lasers can work together?  This is a world that very few know intimately.

Let’s explore the world of the laser printer starting with it’s development by Gary Starkweather at Xerox PARC in 1971.  The laser printer was the answer to the problem of slow printing speeds.  For larger institutions, like schools or corporations, time can represent money.  Not many people know just exactly how a laser jet printer works, except the engineers that create them, so here is a bit of understanding to share:

• The first step a laser printer takes when it receives a new print command, is to clean the prior image detail, along with the toner, from the drum.
• Next, a negative charge is applied evenly to the drum.
• The sources of light, such as the Liquid Crystal Shutter, the lasers or the LEDs, then write to the drum which discharges the negative potential where the light has indicated.
• Next, the toner is ionized with a negative charge which creates an attraction to the previously discharged areas on the drum.
• A transfer then occurs between the drum and the paper by way of a positive ionized field which is created by a transfer corona wire or transfer roller.
• Finally, pressure and heat are applied to the toner and paper which is similar to the process of an iron-on transfer.

Perhaps a diagram would be helpful?

We may not completely understand how laser printers work but when it comes to printer cartridges, we consider ourselves to be experts.  When your supplies are running low on printer ink, contact us to find out what convenience means when ordering your replacement cartridges.