Zink (stylised as ZINK, a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsprinting Printing is a process for mass reproducing text and images using a master form or template. The earliest non-paper products involving printing include cylinder seals and objects such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the Cylinders of Nabonidus. The ea ...

technology for digital devices that does not require ink cartridges and prints in a single pass. The printing technology and its thermal paper are developed by Zink Holdings LLC, a U.S. company, with offices in Edison, New Jersey, and

Billerica, Massachusetts Billerica (, ) is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 42,119 according to the 2020 census. It takes its name from the town of Billericay in Essex, England. History In the early 1630s, a Praying Indian ...

, and a manufacturing facility in

Whitsett, North Carolina Whitsett is a town in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 590 at the 2010 census. History The Daniel P. Foust House, Foust-Carpenter and Dean Dick Farms, Holly Gate, Low House, William Rankin and Elizabeth Whart ...

. Zink Holdings makes all the paper, and makes a printer for printing labels and other designs on rolls of Zink zRoll; it licenses its technology to other companies that make

compact photo printer Inkjet printing is a type of computer printing that recreates a digital image by propelling droplets of ink onto paper and plastic substrates. Inkjet printers were the most commonly used type of printer in 2008, and range from small inexpens ...

s, and combined camera / compact photo printers. Key licensees include HP, Lifeprint, Prynt, and C&A Global. The Zink technology started as a project inside Polaroid Corporation in the 1990s, which

spun out ''Spun Out'' is a Canadian television sitcom created by Jeff Biederman, Brent Piaskoski and Brian K. Roberts for CTV. It premiered on March 6, 2014 and ended on October 3, 2015, with a total of 26 episodes over the course of 2 seasons. Premise T ...

Zink as a fully independent company in 2005.

Technology

The paper has several layers: a backing layer with optional

pressure sensitive adhesive Pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA, self-adhesive, self-stick adhesive) is a type of nonreactive adhesive which forms a bond when pressure is applied to bond the adhesive with a surface. No solvent, water, or heat is needed to activate the adhesive ...

, heat-sensitive layers with cyan, magenta and yellow dyes in colorless form, and overcoat. The color addressing is achieved by controlling the heat pulse length and intensity. The color-forming layers contain colorless crystals of amorphochromic dyes. These dyes form microcrystals of their colorless

tautomer Tautomers () are structural isomers (constitutional isomers) of chemical compounds that readily interconvert. The chemical reaction interconverting the two is called tautomerization. This conversion commonly results from the relocation of a hydr ...

s, which convert to the colored form by melting and retain color after resolidification. The yellow layer is the topmost one, sensitive to short heat pulses of high temperature. The magenta layer is in the middle, sensitive to longer pulses of moderate temperature. The cyan layer is at the bottom, sensitive to long pulses of lower temperature. The layers are separated by thin interlayers, acting as heat insulation, moderating the heat throughout.

Zink Holdings LLC

Zink Holdings LCC is a technology company headquartered in Billerica, Massachusetts (formerly Bedford, Massachusetts), founded in 2005. It develops what it calls "ZINK Zero Ink technology" and "ZINK Paper". Zink’s

Research and development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...

labs and headquarters are in Billerica, with a paper manufacturing plant in Whitsett, North Carolina (using staff and facilities previously used by Konica Minolta). Zink started as one of two major new technologies being developed inside Polaroid Corporation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the 1990s, with 100 researchers working on it. Polaroid Corporation

Zink as a fully independent company in 2005, with 50 of its staff moving to it. Zink first unveiled its technology in January 2007, at

IDG International Data Group (IDG, Inc.) is a market intelligence and demand generation company focused on the technology industry. IDG, Inc.’s mission is centered around supporting the technology industry through research, data, marketing technol ...

's DEMO 07 conference. Zink makes all the paper, along with a printer for printing labels and other designs on rolls of Zink zRoll; and licenses its technology to other companies that make

s, and combined camera / compact photo printers that print photographs onto mostly 2×3” (about 5×8 cm) sheets of Zink Paper.

Alps Electric is a Japanese multinational corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, producing electronic devices, including switches, potentiometers, sensors, encoders and touchpads. The company was established in 1948 as Kataoka Electric Co., Ltd. and ch ...

manufactures the Zink print engines, and Foxconn and

Lite-On Lite-On (also known as LiteOn and LiteON) is a Taiwanese company that primarily manufactures consumer electronics, including LEDs, semiconductors, computer chassis, monitors, motherboards, optical disc drives, and other electronic components ...

build Zink-based products for major consumer-products companies. Key licensees include HP, Lifeprint, Prynt, and C&A Global.

Products

References

External links

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Zink Holdings LLC

Behind the Scenes at Zink: Where Color Magic Happens
Computer printers Instant photography Polaroid cameras Printing materials Coated paper Photography equipment