What do you call the type of printer that prints the characters by striking them on the ribbon then pressed at the paper?

Until the 1990s, impact printers far outnumbered their inkjet and laser cousins. An impact printer strikes a molded letter, made of plastic or metal, against paper through an inked ribbon, producing a printed character. Impact printing saw wide use in commercial data processing, personal desktop printing and early forms of word processing. The method was ideally suited to multipart forms used in business and government, as the force of the impressions was strong enough to penetrate several layers of paper.

Dot Matrix

  1. A dot matrix printer has a print head through which the tips of nine wires project, forming a vertical column of dots. As the print head scans a page, an electronic mechanism pushes the wires out with precision timing. The wire tips strike a ribbon which touches the paper, producing horizontal patterns of dots that form letters, numerals, lines and other characters. Because the printer can control the placement of individual dots, the mechanism can produce simple graphics such as line drawings and bar codes. Dot matrix printers produce a shrill buzzing noise; unless the printer has a sound-deadening case, it is not suitable for quiet environments.

Chain

  1. A chain printer has a set of metal characters and numbers arranged in a continuous loop, resembling the blade of a chainsaw. Behind the paper, a row of hammers strike the characters as they come around on the chain. The chain mechanism has print speeds up to several hundred lines per minute, faster than a dot matrix. The chain printer is also more expensive than a dot matrix, as it is more complicated mechanically. Its character set is limited to whatever the chain contains; graphics made with a chain printer are primitive at best. Like a dot matrix printer, a chain printer is somewhat noisy.

Daisy Wheel

  1. Daisy wheel printers are roughly the size of a typewriter, and were early substitutes for typewriters. The print mechanism uses a set of molded characters arranged around the circumference of a circle; each letter sits at the end of a thin metal or plastic stalk, so the whole set resembles the petals of a daisy. A mechanism moves the daisy wheel back and forth across a page; as it does, the wheel rotates, moving the appropriate letters into place as a electric hammer strikes the character. The printer manufacturers designed the daisy wheels to be replaceable; you could print using characters of different fonts by changing the wheel. Daisy wheel printers are quieter than other types of impact printers, though they still produce some clatter.

Drum

  1. Drum printers share features with chain printers; both print at high speeds. Here, a metal drum roughly the size of a baker's rolling pin has raised characters formed into its surface. As the drum rotates, electric hammers strike the paper, forcing it against a ribbon that sits between the paper and the drum. The print drum is quieter than a chain, as the drum makes no noise as it rotates, unlike the clatter a chain makes as it spins. As with the chain printer, it prints only the characters on the drum.

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    Prerequisite – Impact and Non-Impact Printers

    1. Laser Printer :
    Laser Printer is a type of Non-Impact Printer which prints characters or images without striking paper. It is Introduced by Digital Equipment Corporation in1970. It provides a high speed and high quality printing than Dot Matrix printer.

    2. Dot Matrix Printer :
    Dot Matrix Printer is a type of Impact Printer which prints characters or images by striking print hammer or wheel against an inked ribbon. It is invented by Gary Starkweather in 1969. It provides a slow speed and low quality printing than Laser printer.



    Difference between Dot matrix printer and Laser printer :

    S.No.DOT MATRIX PRINTERLASER PRINTER
    01. Dot matrix printer is Introduced by Digital Equipment Corporation in1970.  Laser printer is Introduced by Digital Equipment Corporation in1970.
    02. Dot Matrix Printer is a type of Impact Printer which prints characters or images by striking print hammer or wheel against an inked ribbon. It is a type of Non-Impact Printer which prints characters or images without striking paper.
    03. Printing speed of Dot matrix printer is slower than that of Laser Printer. Printing speed of Laser printer faster than that of Dot Matrix Printer.
    04. Printing quality of Dot matrix printer is lower than that of Laser Printer. Printing quality of Laser printer is higher than that of Dot Matrix Printer.
    05. Normally it uses continuous paper sheet for printing process. Normally it uses individual paper sheet for printing process.
    06. It works having pins pushed against an ink soaked ribbon to paper for printing. It uses fine ink powder and heat the powder on the paper for printing.
    07. It includes Serial Dot Matrix printers and Line Dot Matrix. It includes Black and White or color printers.
    08. Little noise is generated during printing process. No noise is generated during printing process.
    09. Inked ribbon is used for printing process. Cartridge is used for printing process.
    10. Provides a printing speed of 30-550 characters per second. Provides a printing speed of 20 pages per minute.
    11. It is less expensive. It is more expensive.

    Which of the following printers print characters by strike them on the ribbon?

    An impact printer is a type of printer that works by direct contact of an ink ribbon with paper. A metal or plastic head strikes the ink ribbon, whereby the ribbon is pressed against the paper and the desired character (letter, digit, dot, line) impression is printed on the sheet.

    Which type of printer presses against an inked ribbon that prints character on a paper?

    Dot matrix printing uses a print head that moves back-and-forth, or in an up-and-down motion, on the page and prints by impact, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper, much like the print mechanism on a typewriter.

    What are printers that print by striking mechanism?

    An impact printer refers to all those printers whose printing heads touch the paper. His mechanism uses hammers or pins to strike against a ribbon and paper to print the text or image.

    Which printer is used to print characters and symbols?

    Daisy Wheel Printers Daisy wheel printers print only characters and symbols and cannot print graphics. They are generally slow with a printing speed of about 10 to 75 characters per second.