Look at the Big Picture

摘要

There was a time when engineers and architects. who needed wide-format printouts relied on service bureaus to perform this simple task. Now they can do it themselves using affordable wide-format printers. Wide-format printers, also known as plotters, are available for a few thousand dollars thanks to new print technology. Low-cost ink jet models have become more popular than pen, electrostatic, and thermal plotters. Most of the wide format ink jet printers currently available work by passing an electrical current through a small resistor that heats the ink in a tiny tube. When the ink boils, bubbles are created in the chamber. The bubbles displace the ink and force a drop out of the chamber and onto the media (usually film or plain or coated paper). When the tube cools, the drop in pressure draws in more ink.