Introducing the Elephantech ELP04 and ELP04-PCB: Our Gen 4 industrial inkjet printing platform and PCB printer
Inkjet technology is ideal for use in print processing as it enables the contactless printing of droplets of ink so intricate they are measured in picoliters (a trillionth of a liter) exactly where needed—and only as much as needed—supporting a truly additive manufacturing process.
However, there have been few successful applications of inkjet printing in mass production of electronic components thus far, a reflection of the challenges the technology poses for achieving quality and precision when printing at high speeds.
With our latest industrial inkjet printing platform and PCB printer, the Elephantech ELP04 and ELP04-PCB, we're setting a new standard for the printed electronics industry. Not only is our cutting-edge modular print system equipped with the features required to achieve high precision and excellent productivity in mass production, but it is also optimized for compatibility with NeuralJet™ high-precision inkjet print processing technology—our proprietary print processing control system that works with AI to deliver unprecedented precision and productivity for mass production inkjet printing. We will be starting mass production of printed circuit boards (PCBs) using the ELP04-PCB in 2025 and also plan to use the new platform for applications beyond PCBs, including semiconductor advanced packaging and flat panel display production.
Feature 1: An industrial inkjet print system that achieves both high precision and high productivity
- Creating a print platform that excels in both precision and productivity required both robust machine configurations to ensure droplet impact position repeatability when running at high speeds and long nozzles to facilitate high-speed print processing.
- The ELP04-PCB is equipped with a high-precision machine configuration and a large granite surface plate in addition to a printhead array with wide nozzles measuring approximately 600 mm across. As a result, it can print workpieces up to 830 mm long in approximately 6.2 seconds per round with unprecedented precision.
- We expect this high-precision and high-productivity inkjet printing system will make it possible to process 500 mm x 830 mm sheets of printed circuit boards in approximately 31 seconds (assuming five rounds is required per workpiece), enabling productivity of approximately 30 m2 per hour.
- On top of this, the ELP04-PCB ensures repeatable droplet impact position accuracy with less than one micron of deviation; specifically, 0.75 μm in the main scanning direction and 0.44 μm in the secondary scanning direction.1
Illustration of droplet impact position repeatability
Feature 2: The ELP04-PCB is equipped with mass production capabilities rooted in years of experience and expertise
- Industrial inkjet printing equipment must facilitate both high precision and good production stability in order to achieve reliable results in mass production.
- The ELP04-PCB makes this possible through mass production features such as high-precision print stage control, which ensures excellent droplet impact position repeatability, and NeuralJet™ droplet impact position control, which uses AI to facilitate even more precise inkjet print processing.
- It also has a lineup of additional functions that further support stability and precision in mass production, such as ink discharge monitoring, automatic nozzle maintenance, and ink recirculation on all nozzles to ensure stable ink quality.
- These features were designed and refined based on our extensive mass production experience and have been carefully optimized for inkjet print processing in mass production settings.
ELP04-PCB mass production features
Feature 3: A highly customizable modular printing platform that can be optimized for different product specifications
- As shown in the diagram below, the ELP04-PCB is built around a modular print platform that is comprised of a selection of individual printing modules.
- This modular design makes it highly customizable—for example, it can be adapted to handle large workpieces and is compatible with automated material handling.
- On top of this, the ability to build an industrial printer with the optimum specs for your needs by combining the required printing modules means our print platform can support a wide range of electronic components beyond printed circuit boards, including semiconductor advanced packaging and flat panel display production.
Illustration of the ELP04-PCB printing modules
The result of years of experience and expertise in printed circuit board production, the ELP04-PCB is an industrial inkjet printer that enables both high precision output and excellent productivity. We will be using this next-gen printer for in-house printed circuit board production from 2025, as well as making it available for purchase by other manufacturers as a PCB production system.
Our ELP04 printing platform can also support a wide range of uses beyond PCB production, including semiconductor advanced packaging and flat panel display production and we look forward to how this high precision and high productivity industrial inkjet print system could be applied moving forward.
As a pioneer of industrial inkjet technology, Elephantech will continue to lead the way in developing innovative high-precision, high-productivity manufacturing technologies that help manufacturers cut costs, processes, and their environmental footprint.
We measured the amount of deviation from the expected droplet impact position of ten dots that were printed by the same nozzle during ten print stage scans. The result is the value obtained from carrying out this test on 100 nozzles. This calculation represents the degree of deviation that could not be compensated for using our high-precision NeuralJet™ inkjet print processing technology with AI.
There is approximately 0.4 mm between the printing nozzles and the film substrate.
| Piezo inkjet print chip | EPSON PrecisionCore |
| Nozzle length | Approx. 600 mm |
| Principal scan speed | 400 mm/s |
| Print time per pass | Approx. 6.2 s |
| Workpiece size | 500mm × 830mm |
| Unit size | 5.0 m × 5.0 m × 2.4m |
| Unit weight | 15,000 kg |