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SubliJet is a patented sublimation ink transfer process that uses heat sensitive sublimation inks to permanently dye substrates with polymer coated surfaces.

Sublimation inks are specially formulated for Epson desktop printers for photographic quality images that surpass high-end silk-screening and rival offset press results. SubliJet can personalize graphic images for transfer on ceramic, metal, polyester fabric, Digital L’ink apparel, Mylar, glass, Unisub plastic and wood, and more!

With SubliJet, users can digitally print colorful, high-resolution transfers for ceramic, metal, glass, wood, polyester fabric, plastic, and more. Simply print from most design software to an EPSON desktop printer using high-quality ink jet paper and SubliJet ink cartridges. The resulting ink transfer sheet can be used to personalize a variety of products, such as mugs, mousepads, plaques, T-shirts, flags, banners, and more.

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What are sublimation transfer inks?
To understand SubliJet sublimation inks, let’s first discuss the meaning of sublimation. Sublimation describes the process of a solid substance changing directly into a gas or vapor, without first passing through the intermediary liquid state. An example of this process which most recognize is "dry ice."In the printing world, the term sublimation is used to describe heat-activated inks that change into a gas when heated and have the ability to bond with polyester or acrylic surfaces. Sublimated images are extremely washable, scratch resistant and dishwasher safe because the image is protected within the surface.Printing with sublimation ink is not new; sublimation transfers have played an important role in the printing world for decades. What is new to the printing world, is the ability to digitally print sublimation inks rather that screen-printing them. The recent introduction of inkjet sublimation printing is a true revolution in digital transfer printing and is patented by The Sawgrass Company as SubliJet.

How SubliJet works...
A sublimation transfer, printed with an inkjet printer and SubliJet ink cartridges, is placed on a sublimation-ready product. Using heat and pressure from a standard heat press, the inks are activated and begin to change into a gas. At the same time, the molecular chain of the polymer surface expands and forms openings, which receive the individual dye molecules. Pressure of approximately 40lbs. per sq. inch ensures that the vapor is forced inside the surface. At the exact moment that the substrate is removed from heat the material cools and the polymer surface regains its original form. Sublimation gases within the surface will revert back to a solid state and remain trapped within the surface of the product indefinitely. Much like a tattoo, the image is below the surface, protected from the elements that could cause a decal to scratch, fade or peel.

How is SubliJet different than other transfer technologies?
Ink jet sublimation does not require the use of special transfer papers because the sublimation dyes bind directly to the fabric or the substrate.Heat transfers created with color laser, ink jet, or wax thermal printers use a polymer coated transfer paper to fuse ordinary toner or ink particles onto the surface of a substrate. The result is a "decal-like" transfer that can peel, crack, fade, and discolor over time. SubliJet transfers instead rely on sublimation transfer inks to transfer its ink below the surface of a substrate. The result is a "tattoo-like" transfer that will not peel, crack, or fade and lasts for many years.SubliJet Heat-Transfer Technology
SubliJet differs from other transfer technologies in other ways as well. Below is an overview of these technologies, followed by an definition of industry terms that may by helpful.

INDEX TO TRANSFER TECHNOLOGIES

* Dye Sublimation
* Wax Thermal Transfers
* Hybrid Thermal Sublimation
* Color Laser Copier Transfers
* Inkjet Transfer
* Dry Resin Sublimation
* Definition of Industry Terms

Dye Sublimation

Dye Sublimation printers apply varying degrees of heat to generate variable tones of color, typically 256 sizes per primary color to create photorealism or continuous tone images. These ‘multi-level’ dots actually sublimate from a dye-coated ribbon onto paper and blend together vary effectively. Due to the tight heat tolerances, which the printer must maintain, the process is much slower than other technologies.Once on paper, images from a dye sublimation printer may be transferred to other surfaces by re-heating or reactivating the sublimation dyes with a heat press. The dyes will vaporize off the paper and onto the final substrate. Because the sublimation dyes are activated twice, the final image appears as a ‘second generation sublimation transfer.’ These images may appear fuzzy, blurry, and less vibrant.Dye sublimation is somewhat limited in application. Typically a special transfer paper is needed to accomplish the transfer, and it is best applied to ceramic surfaces.Example: Seiko 4104 & Personal Color Point
Return to Index Wax Thermal TransfersWax Thermal printers utilize low temperatures to melt wax from a print ribbon onto paper. Pigments in the wax are dyes, which create colorful images. Wax thermal printers have relatively high printing speeds but generally use only 3, sometimes 4, colors. To achieve a wide spectrum of colors, or a continuous tone image, the printer uses a method called half-toning or dithering. This produces 200 to 300 equally sized dots per inch, which may look sharp, but when viewed closely the dithering or matrix of dots are evident. This is a disadvantage of wax thermal.To heat transfer a wax thermal image, you will need to use a transfer paper. Transfer paper has a polymer coating that is transferred to a fabric such as a T-shirt or hat, sealing the wax pigments on the fabric. This coating adds weight to the fabric and makes it stiff. You can only print on white or light fabrics, and you cannot print on hard surfaces, such as plaques and awards.Example: Seiko 5504 & Fargo PrimeraPro
Return to Index Wax Thermal Hybrid SublimationWax Thermal Hybrid Sublimation is a merging of wax thermal and dye sublimation technology. That, in fact, is why we call it hybrid sublimation. It is also referred to as true sublimation or deferred sublimation.Thermal printing technology is used with a print ribbon that contains sublimation dyes suspended in the wax carrier. The low temperatures of the wax thermal process transfer the sublimation dyes to the paper, but does not sublimate them, unlike dye sub printers, which sublimate onto the paper. To transfer the image, heat from a press is used to activate the sublimation dyes from the paper where they then vaporize for the first time and are pressed into the surface of your substrate. This is considered a first generation transfer. No specially treated paper is necessary. Sawgrass Systems holds patents on the hybrid sublimation process.Because wax thermal hybrid sublimation is printed using wax thermal mode, you will see some of the dither patterns. However, you will also enjoy the speed of wax thermal printing and the ability to transfer powerful, vibrant colors onto many more surfaces than are available with the other methods. Any polymer-coated surface is a candidate for a hybrid sublimation heat transfer.Using this method of sublimation printing, you can apply the transfer to any substrate. The best application is black on metal used by many trophy and engraving shops.Example: Hycolor power print
Return to Index Color Laser CopierColor copier transfers are produced using a special color copier transfer paper. After copying an image onto paper, it is simply heat-pressed to the material. This medium can be used for fabric based items. Standard color copier transfers will not act like sublimation inks, nor will it apply to the same type of items which sublimation transfer will work with.
Return to Index Inkjet Transfer PapersThe Inkjet transfer paper technology works much like the color copier transfer. Standard ink, as opposed to the sublimation ink, is printed from an inkjet printer onto a wax covered paper. The transfer paper is then placed in a heat press. The wax coating will release from the paper and fuse, like a decal, onto the fabric. Again, this technology will not act like sublimation inks, nor will it apply to the same type of items which sublimation transfers will work with.
Return to Index Thermal Dry Resin SublimationThermal Dry Resin Printers are similar to the dye sublimation printer. Both use color transfer ribbons that provide each of the primary colors (cyan, magenta and yellow—black is a composite of all three of these colors).Instead of transferring a dot of colored resin to paper, the thermal dry resin print-head heats up a spot on the ribbon and turns the solid color into a gas (that’s what sublimation means). Specially manufactured papers then absorb the gas. The result is a printed output that looks like a continuous-tone photograph from the photo lab.This image may be transferred to other surfaces by re-heating or reactivating the sublimation dyes with a heat press. The dyes will vaporize off of the paper and onto the final substrate. Again, because the sublimation dyes are activated twice, the final image will appear as a second generation sublimation transfer.Example: The Alps printer
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DEFINITION OF INDUSTRY TERMS:Color Correction-When colors are viewed on a computer screen, they are viewed as RGB colors which are illuminated. Also, not all monitors are calibrated in the same way. Images viewed on screen will differ significantly from images printed to paper with CMYK ink. To compensate for these differences, color correction software is mandatory. PowerDriver is the color correction software developed by the Sawgrass Company to use with SubliJet inks.Continuous tones- Images made of evenly graduated tones, as opposed to line or vector artwork. A photograph is representative of a continuous tone image. Return to IndexDithering- Dithering is the process of altering the color values in an image to create the illusion of continuous tones, or to create the appearance of additional colors when only a limited number can be produced.DPI- Dots Per Inch is the number of dots a printer can print, or that a monitor can display in an inch. It is a measure of the resolution; the more dots per inch, the better the resolution.Dye Sublimation Printer—Uses heat to melt wax away from a specially coated print ribbon. The dye sublimation printer is similar to wax thermal printers, except that the heating array in the dye sublimation printer is much more precise, and can heat the dyes in the transfer ribbon to one of 256 levels. Dye sublimation printers are often identified with the ability to print continuous tone images. Although image quality is an advantage of dye sub printers, they are not as adept at rendering fine such lines as fonts.
Return to IndexHybrid sublimation- is the merging of wax thermal and dye sublimation technology. That, in fact, is why we call it hybrid sublimation. It is also referred to as true sublimation or deferred sublimation.First generation print- a term used to describe the quality of sublimation print and is based on the number of time that the inks have been activated. The quality of a first generation print will be greater than a second generation print, as the inks have sublimated only once.
Return to IndexOne-pass printers- Many printers that use a print ribbon must pass the paper through the printer for each color that is used. Printers, such as inkjet, are considered one-pass printers because the paper runs through only once to receive all four colors.RGB- the red, green, and blue color system viewed by monitors and read by scanners.Second generation print- a term used to describe the quality of a sublimation print and is based on the number of times that the inks have been activated. A second-generation print will appear to be fuzzier or more blurry than a first generation print, as the inks have been sublimated twice.
Return to IndexSublimation-ready product- Many products are specially manufactured for sublimation. These products are either synthetic in origin such as a polyester fabric, or have been coated with a polymer to accept sublimation dyes. This list is growing, click here for more details on sublimation-ready products.Thermal Printer- Uses a wax-coated ribbon containing colored pigments. Heat is applied to a metal drum to melt the wax onto paper. This printer is similar to a dye sublimation printer, but is faster and less precise because it does not produce the tightly controlled temperatures as a dye sub printer.
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Copyright © 2001 Sawgrass Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of Sawgrass Systems, Inc. is prohibited.SubliJet is a registered trademark of Sawgrass Systems, Inc.