Infiniti UV1612S, Infiniti Xterius 16UVs and Infiniti UV-1606
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Infiniti Xterius 16UVs |
The folks at Infinity USA (Aerometrix) and the equally helpful people at Infiniti Europe have been patient in my many questions every year at major trade shows as I work to gather information about their Infiniti 6150P and Infiniti Xterius 16Uvs printers.
It is a challenge to gather information on Chinese UV-cured flatbed inkjet printers. Searches to corporate websites result in spec sheets (if they exist at all) that conflict with spec sheets at trade shows. The European distributor often showcases a printer, Infiniti Xterius 16Uvs, that is never shown by the American distributor of the same brand.
In part this is because "Infiniti" is not a factory but a distributor network that puts its name on machines from various factories. And the factory that makes a model for several years may not be the same factory that makes the printer with the same model designation today. So it is not worth trying to evaluate such a printer because the model you are offered may be made by a different factory than the machine that we have inspected.
But since I have worked as a historian on the Spanish conquest of Guatemala, I have experience tracking down documentation on just about anything. So at trade shows throughout Europe and across the USA, as well as through a network of helpful industry colleagues, I gather facts on each UV-curable flatbed printer, and package this documentation in the FLAAR Reports, easily accessible from our growing library on UV-cured ink printers.
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A single webpage is too short, so we prefer to gather eveything we know in a full-color PDF as a FLAAR Report,complete with our own photos as we inspect the UV-cured ink flatbed printers.
The first Infiniti UV printer was the UV-1606. The Infiniti UV printer shown at ISA 2006 trade show was the Infiniti UV1612S.
The FLAAR Fast Facts offers everything we have found out so far about the two Infiniti UV-flatbed printers, along with a few comments on the solvent flatbed. Actually today there are three FLAAR Reports on Infiniti UV printers.
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| A site-visit case study is the best way to find out how a UV-curable flatbed inkjet printer actually works. At ISA 2006 trade show, two Infiniti printers were marked as being sold to Perfect Art print shop in Guatemala. So, we went to Guatemala to undertake a site-visit case study. We thank the General Manager, Roberto Cabrera and staff for hospitality. They have a professional sign shop and lots of new equipment, including a Roland 100-inch solvent printer. The site-visit FLAAR Reports on the Infiniti UV is available. The site-visit on the Roland AJ-1000 is also available. We work hard to bring our readers the kind of information they can look forward to. |
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Here is Dr.Nicholas Hellmuth with the Infiniti 1612S at GoA trade show 2007. |
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Sample printed by the Infiniti 1612S at ISA trade show 2006. |
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Circa 2007 there was turmoil among different distributors around the world with respect to rights to use the brand name Infiniti. Another possible cause of this confusion in brand name was that the factories that manufacture the printers that are labeled as Infiniti also wish to sell these printers under their own and/or different brands, such as “Fina.”
One casualty of the confusion during 2007 about using the brand name Infiniti was that Infiniti Europe changed names to Augend Technologies. Under this name they continued to distribute the identical Infiniti as Xterius 16Vs, though they were not as keen on this as on the solvent printers. Infiniti solvent printers tend to be better than most other brands of Chinese solvent printers: this statement is based on interviewing many owners of Infiniti and Challenger printers (both brands are made by Honghua, makers also of Fina and Atex textile printers).
From 2003 especially, though 2005, Infiniti Europe was present with a nice booth at all major European trade shows. By 2008 they had pretty much disappeared and now in 2009 I can't even find their original web site for Augend Technologies.
Although Infiniti Europe seems to have not survived in its past or recent form as Augend Technologies, Infiniti itself as a worldwide brand name continues. Fina and other brand names continue also. The factory in China is doing acceptably also. Aeromatrix, the US distributor for Infiniti and Fina, was present at ISA and had a booth of respectable size.
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| Infiniti UV1612S at ISA 2009. It is now the year 2009 and too much on this aging chassis still dates back to pre-2006 and to the original solvent printer that was retrofitted to try to handle UV-cured ink. |
Regretably, the Infiniti UV1612S hybrid printer lacks significant improvements. Too many features are the same as they always were, though I estimate that the ink lines are better and thus hopefully don't dissolve and split like the ink lines did on all early models that I inspected in 2006.
It is ironic that the Honghua factory (which made the first generation Infiniti UV printer), that their solvent printers (sold under brand names of Challenger and Infiniti, are acceptable (considering all factors, for Chinese solvent printers they are usually considered okay). Thus it is sad that the UV printer is still failing when it gets to printshops in the US (based on still another case that has come to my attention during summer 2010).
Yes, workplace conditions, printer operator experience (or lack of experience) also factor into the situation of whether a printer is okay or not. I know of two printshops that had endless problems with the Toshiba Tec printheads of the Oce Arizona 250GT. Yet I know two other printshops that were pleased with their Oce Arizona 250GT and even ordered another one. So perhaps somewhere there are owners of the Infiniti UV1612S that like it and do not have constant breakdowns. Also I would like to know what factory the year 2010 Infiniti UV printers are coming from, whether it is still Honghua, or another factory elsewhere in China.
FLAAR is also a good source for helpful Reports on Chinese UV-cured inkjet printers from RTZ, Flora, Shanghai Electric / Human Digital, Yishan, Teckwin, Yaselan, SkyAir Ship (SkyJet) and others.
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Most recently updated August 6, 2010 after learning of another lawsuit claiming this UV printer did not function adequately.
First posted November 28, 2005. Updated May 4, 2009 after ISA '09 sign expo.
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We are adding new pages and new features every month so it is not always realistic to update old pages from past years. All the old equipment is still available on eBay, so we keep even our old pages. If you wish only the more up to date product reviews, these are in PDFs (not in the web pages, but in PDFs which are linked in the columns at the right of every page). Please realize that we tend to update a page (or a PDF) primarily when it is clear that our readers ask about this brand or model frequently. With over 45 brands of UV printers and over 200 models in the past ten years, it is not realistic to update pages on obsolete brands or unpopular models. If you prefer to speak with Nicholas Hellmuth in person about a printer, you can bring him to your company anywhere in the world as consultant. By later in 2011 each of our web sites will be in 36 different languages with instant translation (and better than old fashioned web page translators of several years ago). So far all the languages are available on www.FLAAR.org and www.3d-scanners-3d-software-reviews.org. Next will be our fine art photography, giclee, decor web site. |
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