One of the loudest and most advanced innovations in the printing market over the past two or three years was demonstrated to us by the company EPSON. Despite such a strong market and many competing companies in the printing field, Epson is proving its leadership and introducing new technologies and last year they demonstrated printer with built-in Continuous Ink Supply System(we mostly come across the abbreviation CISS - we’ll leave it like that from now on). According to analyzes carried out over the past 7-8 years, the majority of inkjet printing consumers, oriented towards small businesses and small home offices, preferred to choose unofficial CISS, which were produced by Chinese companies for certain printer models, thereby increasing the printing volume, significantly reducing its cost and subsequent buying refills yourself, as well as ink from alternative companies. The EPSON company talks about this as a counterfeit and that these technologies harm your printer, but what can you do when the cost of original consumables goes through the roof and printing becomes not very pleasant for the average person. Most often, it looks exactly like this - a user is also a consumer, among the masses presented on the market inkjet printers, chose the most suitable one for printing according to his parameters, printed starter cartridges on it, and when the time comes to change them, he begins to look for a “handicraft” CISS. Yes, he is looking for where to save money, while each such user understands perfectly well what he is getting into: installing, launching and servicing CISS, as a rule, requires some hassle. So excuse me, gentlemen, manufacturers, with the prices you set for your printer consumables, you can’t really get away with even printing your photo collection for an album at home.
With such obviousness of the matter, companies for which business in the field of inkjet printing plays a very important role, began to think and begin to look for a solution to this problem. For such companies, this is indeed a PROBLEM, and here it began: various kinds of advertising companies began to convince users that they should use only original products, then the myth that when using “Chinese” cartridges the manufacturer will refuse the warranty service, but this had no effect on reducing printing prices, you give the user a choice between expensive and cheap printing, and he will make the decision himself. The most correct and practical way to solve this problem was to produce a “factory” printing device without cartridges with a built-in factory CISS, which would have large ink capacities.
It is no secret to everyone that printer manufacturers receive most of their profits from consumables, and this has its own difficulties. Firstly, the use of CISS by the consumer obviously significantly reduces his printing costs. That is, if a manufacturer launches a built-in CISS in factory production, it is not clear how and where to make a profit? Secondly, when launching production of inkjet printers and MFPs with already built-in CISS, not only production must be re-equipped and new lines established, but also service centers for warranty service. After all, not one of the Chinese “handicraft” manufacturers gives a guarantee for their products, and a company that values its reputation is simply forced to invest in additional training of personnel and making improvements to the work of its service centers.
Of all the manufacturers that currently exist, only EPSON took such risks and difficulties, for which special respect goes to them! Everyone else chose a different path, they began to look for ways to protect their original cartridges from all sorts of analogues, while complicating the production process for themselves. Most often, manufacturing companies do not look at customer needs and reducing printing costs, they look at those who produce compatible (analog) cartridges.
Let's still focus our attention on the EPSON company and give them credit for their developments. Now the cost of a color print on A4 sheet format is only 20 kopecks, and printing in monochrome (black and white) is only 15 kopecks.
Many people are now asking the question, what is the most important difference between EPSON and “Chinese” CISS?
One of the first factors in the high-quality work of “handicraft” CISS is maintaining constant pressure in the ink tanks. If the pressure changes, there may be an uneven distribution of ink on the print head, and it is also possible that air may enter the ink channels (tubes) through which ink is supplied from the flask to the head. EPSON engineers have invented a special membrane, which is responsible for the pressure in ink containers, which is constant and does not change, something like a valve and the print quality does not depend on the intensity and load on the printer. If we go even further, they managed to cover the inner walls of the tubes (channels) with a special coating. Thanks to this solution, the ink does not stick to the walls and does not clog over time, unlike the Chinese brothers.
Let's look at the printing characteristics models of printers and MFPs of the “L” series, this includes compact printers and MFPs, which, despite their size, print at a speed of 27 pages per minute in A4 sheet format - the price for the printer at the time of writing and at the dollar exchange rate of 64.50 rubles. ranges from 8,000 to 10,000 rubles. There are also more productive devices whose print speed reaches 33 pages per minute, such as the Epson L350, but they also cost a little more - 10,000 to 12,000 rubles. The manufacturer has widely opened up the line of these printers to us and made a device with the ability wireless connection By Wi-Fi networks, which allows you to print from any device within the network coverage area, this is a huge plus for them. Well, the flagship model in terms of speed and print quality in this line is a photo printer, it has a six-color CISS, a printing speed of 38 pages per minute - its price ranges from 16,000 to 18,000 rubles.
CISS is a continuous ink supply system. It allows you to forget about small-volume disposable cartridges, which are traditionally used in printing devices and which have to be changed frequently, spending quite a lot of money. In contrast, CISS consists of large ink containers (usually 100 ml of ink of each color), which are economical in consumption and can be refilled multiple times.
Installation of CISS: instructions and useful tips
Owners of inkjet printers who do a lot of printing at home or at work have probably heard a lot about CISS. True, not everyone fully understands what it is and how it works, so in this article we will try not only to clearly talk about the new device, but also to explain how to install it.
Basic operating rules can be seen in this video
Types of CFC systems and their characteristics
When you decide to buy a continuous ink supply system and are looking for suitable options, you will see that it comes in two types:
- Standalone is a stand-alone device that is suitable for most models of MFPs and printers famous brands. You can purchase it separately and install it yourself or contact a specialist.
- Built-in - a system that is sold complete with printing devices that are designed for full-color printing for commercial purposes. The leader in the world of built CISS on this moment is the Epson company with the “Print Factory” line. In addition to all the advantages of the “factory” CISS, there is one very important drawback- price. The cost of printers and multifunctional devices with this system can be 2 or 3 times higher compared to similar models with an autonomous CISS.
Noting the advantages of CISS, it is worth saying that it is not connected, like cartridges, to the print head of printers, therefore it is always accessible and you can add ink of the desired color when the need arises - even during printing, which will guarantee its uninterrupted operation . It is also important to say that this modern system it is ergonomic, which means it does not take up much space and is convenient to place - some models are a block that can be installed even remotely from the printer so that it does not take up space on the desktop. However, with such an installation, it is important that the system is on the same level as the MFP, since otherwise the ink may simply leak into the printing device and stain your favorite table/carpet/sofa.
Trusted manufacturers
Having bought a cheap CISS made in China, you may be faced with the fact that you will receive a box with many containers, tubes and incomprehensible parts that will take a long time to deal with. We recommend spending money only on systems from trusted manufacturers, because in this case you will be confident in the quality of the product and in the fact that it comes with instructions, which will make it easier to assemble and install. Of course, you can try to install it yourself by downloading the manual on the Internet. Only in this case, there is a fear that during connection the air exchange system of the bypass valve will be disrupted, and the CISS will not be able to work.
Ideal if you order printing device, which comes with a CISS system, for example, MFPs such as Epson XP-330 or Epson XP-342, then you do not risk anything and will be confident in its normal functioning. The second option is to buy the printer from one company and the system from another place. This way you save 3-5% of the total cost, but you completely lose the warranty on the printing device, since no one will want to service third-party CISS. Therefore, we do not recommend this option to you and recommend that you buy everything as a whole.
Self-installation
If you are used to doing everything yourself and set about installing the CISS yourself, then just take the instructions and follow everything that is written there:
- Use tubes to connect the containers to the cartridges.
- Fill the cartridges with ink.
- Open the bypass valve to remove air from the containers.
The main thing to remember is to control the ink level and under no circumstances allow air to get into the print head. If this happens, contact service center can't be avoided.
Problems you may encounter
When purchasing CISS from unverified suppliers and manufacturers, you may encounter the fact that it will not work correctly. Most often, users note that the principle of communicating vessels is violated and in order to pump ink into the cartridge, the container with a continuous ink supply system must be raised high. In addition, the CISS may not be suitable for your printer model at all, so carefully study the list of devices with which it is compatible. Do not forget that the device must include instructions, this will guarantee that you have purchased a quality product.
CISS is, of course, very profitable and will reduce your printing costs, so there is no need to doubt the advisability of purchasing it, just approach this issue responsibly.
I don’t know about you, but my close acquaintance with a photo printer began with disappointment. No, my Epson 890 fully provided the declared quality, it printed well on roll paper, color rendition was often better than when printing in a photo lab... But I was taken aback by the fact that when I looked at the ink consumption monitor after printing several A4 sheets, I was stunned ink more than half used up. Then I reassured myself that I would print at home only some urgent work, for which I wouldn’t mind spending more money for the sake of necessity. But, of course, the joy of the purchase has decreased significantly.
The second disappointment awaited me when, about a month later, the red light on the printer came on the next time I turned it on, requiring me to change the cartridge! This is despite the fact that since then (i.e. since the moment of the first shock) I have not printed anything on it at all! This is how I learned that every time the printer is turned on, it cleans the head and consumes a certain amount of ink. And if you don’t turn on the printer, the head will dry out, and washing it will also cost a pretty penny.
Yes, photo printer manufacturers do their best to support the illusion in us that you can just buy an inkjet printer and then print well and a lot at home. Yes, you can do it well and a lot. It just turns out to be very expensive. Manufacturers of photo printers, of course, are interested in selling as much of their equipment as possible, and then as many consumables for it as possible (as a result, the printers themselves can even be sold at cost; with a more or less significant load, the cost of consumables will quickly pay for any discounts). Therefore, buyers - that is, you and me - are still caught up in various advertising tricks of printer manufacturers. For example, in the “ink consumption” characteristics, where you can read that the cartridge is enough for 200 pages, the parameters are indicated not for photo printing, but for printing with the so-called 5% coverage. In reality, this is double-spaced text. How often do you print multi-colored text?
So the number of users who are not at all satisfied with the product for which they paid their hard-earned money is growing. User attempts to reduce costs (for example, refill cartridges themselves) are blocked by Epson using the so-called smart cartridge. That is, every replaceable ink tank from Epson, in any printer produced over the last 3-4 years, is equipped with a memory chip. This chip remembers the amount of ink used, and the consumption is not determined exactly, but approximately according to reports from the printer driver. As a result, the chip reports that the ink has run out, as a rule, in advance - approximately when 20-30% of the ink remains in the cartridge. Such a cartridge cannot be refilled, since the mentioned microcircuit will provide the printer with information not about the amount of ink that is actually in the cartridge, but about the amount that was there before refilling.
Epson cartridges equipped with intelligent chips.
Users, however, were still looking for various ways to reduce the cost of printing. As a result, two fundamentally different solutions were found.
- Refilling cartridges, and for Epson with mandatory reset of the smart chip.
- The solution that will be discussed in this article is the creation of a continuous ink supply system (hereinafter CISS).
The idea of how to attach a barrel of ink to a print head has been in the air for a long time. There were many problems on the way to solving it, and they are listed here good topic for a separate article.
I would like to note right away that it makes sense to make a CISS for printers whose print head is not combined with a cartridge; it has a longer lifespan than a replaceable one, so the print quality will not deteriorate over time. Epson and Canon printers meet this requirement. I'll talk about CISS for Epson; they are more complex in design and more common in our country.
The currently widespread CISS have some absolutely similar elements, but at the same time their designs differ in some ways. Mandatory CISS design elements for Epson printers:
Photo of a CISS on an Epson 890 printer. Elements of a CISS
First smart chip deception system
It can be implemented programmatically, using various service utilities that can reset the value of Epson cartridges, or “freeze” the ink level in them so that it is not consumed. When I started working on cartridge refilling issues, I tried many of these service utilities. In principle, they work, but not always. Some of them only support a parallel interface, and do not want to function via USB. Yes and after Windows installations XP to my computer, I could not find a working utility for freezing or resetting smart chips for my printer.
The system can also be implemented on so-called “self-zeroing autochips.” What it is? Microcircuits have been developed that imitate the behavior of “native” ones from Epson. They show that the ink level is decreasing, but as soon as it reaches a minimum, the chip is reset to its original state. Autochip operation, as opposed to operation service program, does not depend on operating system computer and printer interface. Therefore, for me, autochips turned out to be the preferable solution, despite the fact that they are the most expensive element of the CISS.
Auto-zeroing chips
Isn't it possible to just make a chip that will show a constant ink level? It turns out that you can’t, because the printer will consider it faulty and refuse to work after the first printed document.
The second element which is necessary in CISS, this is a train of thin tubes, through which ink will be supplied to the print head.
Silicone cable
The cable is needed because we cannot place our “ink barrel” directly on the print head, firstly, due to its physical dimensions, and secondly, because placing excess mass on the printer head is unacceptable. Our cable must be flexible, wear-resistant, have a sufficient diameter of the tubes for ink supply, but not excessive, so as not to create additional inertial load on the moving head.
Third element, which is located between the cable and the print head, is damper capsules, or cartridges. The bottom line is that the ink tubes from the reservoirs cannot go directly to the print head. Firstly, it is designed so that to operate it requires some pressure from the liquid column, in our case, ink.
Various ink dampers: cartridges, interlocking capsules, syringe capsules, single capsules
Secondly, ink, like any liquid, is prone to evaporation. Small air bubbles may appear in the plume tubes, especially in hot weather. If you have a damper chamber, these bubbles accumulate in the upper part of the chamber and do not affect the flow of ink to the head. If there is no such damping chamber, then the bubble is sucked into the head and the corresponding color stops printing.
Thirdly, with a large consumption of ink of one color, they simply may not have time to approach the print head through the thin tubes of the cable. The result is the same - unprinted image elements.
A good damper chamber is the original cartridge from the manufacturer. It is calculated and has a relatively large volume, so gas bubbles are easily damped by it, and it also creates sufficient pressure in the liquid column. There is only one drawback: the cartridges are large and fit tightly into the print head. In some printer models, clamping covers interfere with laying the cable if we use a cartridge.
Alternative: specially manufactured smaller capsules. They can be combined into a block, or they can be placed in the print head separately. Capsule systems are more technologically advanced. We can always remove or change one of the capsules. If you need to wash the head, you can attach a capsule with washing liquid to the inlet nozzle of the head and wash the head with one specific color. Accordingly, it is much easier to lay a loop from the tanks to the damper chambers.
Capsules made from syringes do not have membranes and maintain the necessary pressure due to a liquid column of ink 2.5-3 cm high, just like in a native cartridge. At the same time, capsules from syringes are less fragile than special ones, the membrane of which can be damaged.
Bar for the capsule system of the NPC printer P300
Autochips with a capsule ink supply system are mounted on a special bar or on a block of capsules. If cartridges are used, then directly in place of the original chips.
Next, fourth element of CISS large containers with ink, from where the ink is supplied to the head. There are few requirements for them. It is important that dust does not get into them, and that they have sufficient volume, plus ease of handling. Therefore, the same vials in which the ink is supplied are often used.
Last, fifth CISS element supporting elements for the cable from tubes. They are needed so that the train does not wear out when moving and does not get jammed by the head. For systems with a vertical cable arrangement, like the R300, its use is not required.
Cable support strip in the Epson 890 CISS system.
The practical construction of CISS for me personally began with an acquaintance with the site, where I wandered in search of ink for refilling. The site is built as an online store and is dedicated to in various ways reducing the cost of printing on color inkjet printers. In addition to ink for refilling, they offer both various components for CISS and assembled CISS systems.
A distinctive feature of the site is a live, full-fledged forum. Actually, it was after talking there that I decided to buy a CISS and placed an order. The cash on delivery order came to me by mail after 13 days, and cost 15% more than the price indicated on the website due to postage costs for shipping the goods and transferring money.
The CISS for the 890, which I ordered, consisted of two cartridges with autochips installed on them and a cable made of elastic tubes glued into them. The black cartridge has one tube, the color cartridge has five. The cartridges are already filled with ink - no need to mess around. There is no need to fill the tubes of the cable with ink. The air that is in them will then accumulate in the upper part of the cartridge and will not affect printing.
In principle, you could follow the instructions: remove the clamping covers, insert the cartridges and secure them with the supplied clamp - the same one used to tighten thick wire harnesses. Now this decision seems more correct to me, but then I spent about 20 minutes using a soldering iron to melt a place in the clamping covers for the cable gasket. I decided not to hide the latter inside the printer, but to lay it outside. I made holes in the ink bottles with a thin soldering iron and inserted the ends of the tubes from the cable tightly into them so that they reached the bottom.
Air filter from a syringe needle. The ball of cotton wool should not be dense
To ensure that air enters the bottles and dust does not get in, you can not just pierce holes in the corks, but insert needles from syringes there with the tubes facing up, and plug the tubes with loose cotton tubes so that they serve as filters.
In total, the first CISS installation took me about 40 minutes.
The design of the system that came for the 950 printer was cartridge-based. It is also quite easy to install.
Cartridge system CPF for Epson 950 printer.
The first step is to remove the top cover from the print head. In general, this cover does not initially serve any function; it only covers the cartridges from above. The cartridges of the 950 printer are held on by two latches - on each cartridge they are located on the front and back. Therefore, the cover can be removed without hesitation. The lid tilts back and rocks back and forth. At the same time, it is carefully pressed out with a screwdriver at the attachment points. When the grooves in the mount and the pins on the lid hinge match, the lid will pop out of the hinge. If you are not careful, the pins will break off, but you can still put the cover back on and it will function as before. The easiest way to route the cable in the 950 model is behind the head parking area and out of the case through the ventilation slots at the back.
The system for the R300 was capsule. Its installation differs from the installation of a cartridge system.
First, we remove the top cover of the printer (this is described in detail in the instructions) and install the bar on which all six autochips are attached.
The strip with chips for the R300 system is inserted into the print head
Then we put the capsules on the receiving pipes of the print head. We lay the cable inside the printer, along the electrical cable (this is described in detail in the instructions), take it out of the body through the ventilation holes and lower it into bottles with ink as described above.
It is best to route the cable out from behind through the ventilation slots.
After this, the installation procedure begins to differ. We take a syringe and a stationery clip (they are also included in the delivery). We remove each capsule from the nozzle, put it on the syringe, and suck out the air until the ink from the bottle through the tube fills the capsule by about half.
Filling capsules
We use a stationery clip to pinch the tube anywhere, then disconnect the syringe and put the capsule on the receiving pipe of the print head. Remove the stationery clip from the tube. Repeat with each capsule.
I had no particular problems installing any type of system. However, there were a couple of points worth mentioning.
After installing the system, one of the cartridges may show a zero value. For me, this problem disappeared after I wiped the contacts of the head and chip with an “architect” eraser and then with alcohol.
In the 950 system, for some reason the cable tended to get stuck. I secured the plastic support pad holding it at a slight angle, so that it directed the cable slightly upward. That helped.
The site's forum also discusses problems that may arise when installing CISS. In any case, I advise you to look there, but I’ll tell you about several issues described there here.
One of them is a violation of the tightness of the system. Actually, the system works due to the fact that the ink that is consumed by the head is sucked into damper chambers from bottles. If the seal is broken, it is not ink that is sucked in, but air, and the corresponding color disappears. The seal is most often broken either at the junction of the cartridge and the receiving pipe of the print head (can be treated by replacing the seal), or at the place where the cable is glued into the cartridge or capsule (can be treated with a drop of glue). I have not seen any cases on the forum where the cable has worn out or broken.
The forum also describes cases where people installed CISS with water-soluble ink on printers with pigment ink. Sometimes this is acceptable, sometimes not. However, in any case, you first need to thoroughly rinse the print head with a special washing liquid to remove any remaining pigment ink.
The economic effect of installing CISS is very, very large. Research has shown that filling an A4 sheet with one color consumes approximately 0.8 ml of ink. According to the most conservative estimates, 200 ml of ink from a bottle in terms of 15 ml of cartridge capacity equals 13 cartridges (i.e. 13 sets, respectively). However, if we remember that the cartridge in printers with separate colors by cartridges is underused by 20-30%, and the cartridge with combined colors by up to 50%, then the number 13 can be safely increased to 20-25 (correspondingly, 20-25 sets of cartridges ).
In general, it turns out that a set of CISS plus ink, costing about $150, provides an amount of printing equivalent to approximately 20-25 sets cartridges. If you buy original cartridges, then for the same $150 you can buy only 1 set for new printers, or 2-3 sets for older models. In the future, the cost of owning a CISS is further reduced by half, since a set of 6 inks can be purchased for $67, which is the cost of 2-3 original cartridges. That is, you will purchase 20-25 sets of cartridges for the price of one set or even half a set :)
The good thing about using CISS is that you have the same ink over a long period of time. Consequently, the predictability of printing results increases; you can select the color profile for this ink - the one you need, for the desired paper. If you order a printer calibration service (in Moscow it costs about $40), then it makes sense to give your hard-earned money only if you will use the results for a long time. You can, of course, buy a calibrator and build profiles yourself every time, since calibrators now do not cost as much money as before. But, in my opinion, it’s easier to still use one type of ink and several types of paper than to recalibrate the paper-ink pair every time.
On a personal note, I can add that I usually print on Lomond paper. The profiles downloaded from the website for Epson printers and Epson inks are also perfect for WWM inks, which are supplied with CISS.
Inkjet printers are convenient and efficient printing devices. Due to their low cost, they have become publicly available. However, one should not think that equipment manufacturers set minimum prices for noble reasons. The main income is generated from the sale of consumables, which include replacement cartridges. Their price can be 30-60% of the cost of the printer. It is quite natural that users ask reasonable questions: what is needed to refill cartridges and is it possible to do without regularly purchasing them?
A printer has been created in South Korea that can do without a cartridge or ink at all. For its operation, only the Sun is needed, since the device operates using its energy, and the resulting images are not printed, but burned.
Basic savings options
There are three main options for saving on ink for inkjet printers:
- Purchasing non-original cartridges. They are indeed cheaper, but can cause printer failure.
- Use of refillable cartridges. Not a bad option, but you will have to resort to frequent manual refueling.
- Installation of CISS.
What is CISS
CISS is an abbreviation that stands for continuous ink supply system. It supplies ink to the print head from special refillable reservoirs. The CISS includes ink containers and a silicone cable with which they are connected to cartridges or capsules. Depending on this, a distinction is made between cartridge and capsule CISS.
In the first case, cartridges are used that are identical to the original ones, but are not equipped with a chip that reports the lack of ink. In the second, transparent capsules are used, installed on the input needles of the print head. The main requirement for both systems is tightness. While the printer is running, the amount of ink in the cartridges or capsules decreases. As a result, under the influence of excess pressure, paint begins to flow from the CISS containers. When installing them, you should follow the rule: the bottom of the tanks should be no more than 1-2 cm below the level of the print head nozzles.
Advantages of using CISS
The practical application of a continuous ink supply system provides a number of significant advantages to users:
- First of all, it should be noted the possibility of tangible savings in material resources. For example: when using inexpensive, popular color inkjet models Canon printers CISS allows you to reduce costs by 50 times even when purchasing the highest quality ink.
- The absence of the need to frequently change the cartridge minimizes the risk of head damage due to air getting into it.
- You can use ink of any color suitable for a particular occasion.
- Quite labor-intensive operations of replacing and especially refilling cartridges are eliminated.
- The operation of replenishing ink in containers is greatly simplified.
- It becomes possible to print large volumes of documents or images without stopping.
- The environment is not polluted by used cartridges.
Disadvantages of CISS
- The cost of CISS exceeds that of refillable cartridges.
- You must purchase the system separately from the printer.
- Installation of CISS requires care and precision.
- We can talk about a certain unaestheticness of ink containers near the printer.
- Using CISS is considered a re-equipment of equipment, therefore manufacturers refuse warranty obligations.
- Rearranging or moving the printer becomes quite a complex procedure.
- In case of prolonged inactivity, the ink may dry out in the silicone cable, which will entail the need to replace the head. This disadvantage can be called conditional. Prolonged downtime in any case entails drying out of the ink.
When choosing a refill system, it is important not only to know what a CISS for a printer is, but also to soberly weigh all its advantages and disadvantages. Only with this approach will it become a means of effective savings.