Inside innovation at Xerox: A periodic glimpse at work in progress

On a computer screen, smaller pixels produce sharper pictures. It is the same with the toner that`s used to form the images printed on a laser printer or copier. Smaller particles mean sharper images - plus lower cost per print. However, as toner particles become smaller, the cost of making them by current technology rises exponentially.

Several years ago, Xerox Corporation researchers realised that toner made using their current technology had just about reached the lower limit in size, and they started looking for new ways to manufacture it.

Toner is the dry ink for laser printers and copiers. It`s a mixture of plastic resin, colorants and other toner ingredients. Today, most toner is made by melt mixing the ingredients into strands that are pulverized into small particles, a process that`s both inexact and energy-intensive. Because the particles are smashed at random, their size cannot be precisely controlled. Some are too big and others too fine, hence they are mechanically sorted to achieve the required toner size and size distribution. It`s like sifting dust. This method produces toner with an average size greater than 7 microns in diameter - making it smaller is not economically practical.

Materials scientists at the Xerox Research Centre developed a chemical approach to economically create even smaller toner particles. They started at the molecular level and perfected a way to grow toner particles under controlled conditions to exactly the size, shape and structure needed. They could make round or potato-shaped toner particles of about 3-5 microns in diameter - so small that it takes 100 of them to make the period at the end of this sentence. These toner particles produce prints with sharper images, and the resulting prints use less toner and therefore cost less. Prints using a 5-micron toner require 40% less toner than those made by a 9-micron toner.

The new process, called emulsion aggregation (EA) turned out to have added benefits, cutting the time it takes for printers to recover from energy-saving sleep modes. The new toners and will be unveiled in the Xerox colour products later this year.

The Xerox Corporation spends about R10 billion annually on research and development. It operates six research centres that conduct work in colour science, computing, digital imaging, work practices, novel materials and other disciplines. Xerox consistently builds its innovation into business by embedding it in superior Xerox products and solutions, using it as the foundation of new spin-offs, licensing or selling it to other entities.

"Innovation and has always been the essence of our business, and Xerox has always recognised that in order to survive and continue being at the leading edge in this dynamic technology world, we forever have to reinvent ourselves and formulate new and effective ways to improve our products," says Rob Abraham, managing director of Xerox South Africa. "This latest breakthrough translates into better value for our customers - our ongoing ultimate objective."

For more information on Xerox, visit www.xerox.com/news.