Continuous Inkjet (CIJ) vs. Piezo Inkjet (PIJ) vs. Thermal Inkjet (TIJ) Printers

Many manufacturers are using industrial inkjet printing to mark and code their products.

The primary technologies in Inkjet printing are:

Continuous Inkjet (CIJ)
Piezo Inkjet (PIJ)
Thermal Inkjet (TIJ)

Selecting the appropriate printer for your application requires an understanding of how well the functionality of each type of printing technology aligns with your requirements.

When you finalize your printer choice, you want a sense of confidence in your selection, knowing that you have adequately researched, analyzed, and evaluated your options. The table below provides a start by giving you a snapshot of each printing technology’s functionality and performance.

Feature	CIJ	Piezo	TIJ
Resolution	- Low-resolution dot matrix - 1-5 Lines, 32 pixels	300DPI	600DPI
Throw distance	Ink throw distances from .5" (12 mm) up to 2" (50 mm)	10 mm	8 mm
Print speed	Very fast. Suitable for production lines with very high output (up to 800 m/min)	76 m/min	90 m/min
Ink properties & selection	- Uses harsh solvents resulting in better adhesion and print durability. - Very good performance on oily surfaces - Fast dry time - Broad range of gamut - UV-curable inks - Invisible UV-curable security inks (only visible under UV light) - UV color inks	- Fast dry time - Broad range of gamut - UV-curable inks - Invisible UV-curable security inks (only visible under UV light) - UV color inks	- Fast dry time - Very long decap - Higher ink cost. - Limited ink types - UV curable
Print height	0.06" (1.5 mm) - 0 .95" (24 mm)	2-144 mm	25.4 mm
Maintenance & operating cost	Regular cleaning and maintenance by trained technicians, resulting in production downtime. Requires make-up fluid	Minimal maintenance required. Ink needs to be purged from time to time (a very quick process)	No maintenance required
Environmental friendliness	- High power consumption - Higher VOCs - Cleanup requires harsh solvents requiring ventilation for operator safety	- Lower power consumption - Lower levels of VOCs	- Lower power consumption - Inks are more environmentally friendly
Foot print / Size	Have a large foot print and require more space	Minimal footprint - Requires very little space	Minimal footprint - Requires very little space
Printing capabilities	- WYSIWYG Message Editing, Multi-National (Unicode) character printing, real and expiration time and date, Shift and Rollover Functions, product and batch counting, barcodes	- WYSIWYG Message Editing, Multi-National (Unicode) character printing, real and expiration time and date, Shift and Rollover Functions, product and batch counting - Barcodes - QR codes - High resolution graphics	- WYSIWYG Message Editing, Multi-National (Unicode) character printing, real and expiration time and date, Shift and Rollover Functions, product and batch counting - Barcodes - QR codes - High resolution graphics
Ease of use	Needs training	Minimal training required	Minimal training required
Ink capacity	Up to 3 liters		42 ml cartridge
Operating environment	32° - 122° F (0° - 50° C), % Relative Humidity: 10 - 90% (non condensing)	0°C to 45°C, Relative humidity: 20% – 80%	0°C to 45°C, Relative humidity: 20% – 80%
Start-up & shut down	Requires several minutes to shutdown. Lengthy start-up process.	Quick	Quick
Cost	$$$$	$$	$