The TH5241, Ricoh’s first SiMEMs thin film piezo printhead, is said to enable high resolution and productivity “in an extremely compact, cost-effective package”.

Aimed primarily at entry-level scanning applications including sign graphics, textiles and labels, the head features 1,280 nozzles in four separate channels so that a single head can jet up to four colours.

Shipping now, Cambridge-headquartered Meteor said its HDC-R10 printhead drive electronics for the TH5241 are easily scalable to systems of any size “and, coupled with Meteor’s comprehensive software, OEMs can significantly reduce the effort and risk associated with the design and delivery of industrial inkjet printers”.

Also available for the TH5241 are Meteor’s DropWatching System and printhead waveform development services, which help to accelerate time to market for new inkjet applications.

Meteor sales director Jonathan Wilson said: “Meteor electronics and software have been driving Ricoh printheads since 2011 and we are proud to add the TH5241 to our line-up. Meteor’s solutions provide the fastest and easiest way for OEMs to unlock the potential of these printheads.”

Ricoh strategic business development manager Richard Darling added: “With Meteor electronics and software, the TH5241 can be integrated into any production environment whether a CMYK desktop machine for t-shirts or countless other industrial applications.

“Ricoh is delighted that Meteor is supporting this new printhead and we continue to prepare for further new developments, including the next SiMEMs product on our roadmap, the TH6310F.”