GIS unitiTM Operating System
GIS unitiTM is a comprehensive inkjet Operating System and comprises:-
· GIS user interfaces, variable data RIP software and driver software, which are PC/Windows based
· GIS Print Manager Board electronics & firmware
· GIS Head Personality Boards to drive specific models of printheads
The GIS unitiTM OS is designed for all customers wanting a comprehensive solution so that they can shorten the time of new product development - it is illustrated in the schematic below.
GIS SoftwareThe GIS Print Server is core software technology for controlling all printhead types on one platform. It offers an optional TCP/IP interface. The Print Server provides a single point of entry for all user interfaces; Print Engine - multi-head, multi-resolution, high speed driver; Render Engine – full colour calibrated, high speed variable data RIP engine; Job Manager Engine – job manager controller.
GIS uniti™ software can control and configure all aspects of the printer including: transport control parameters (on fully integrated systems); physical configuration – number of inks, head alignment; and printhead parameters – waveform setting, greyscale mode, temperature settings, monitoring.
GIS Layout provides tools for image layout and design creation. Features include multi-image import, resize, rotation; full bitmap file support; step & repeat and clipping; support for variable data input such as barcodes, databases, user input data source.
GIS uniti™ software includes full ICC/ICM profile support for colour separation and colour management, per channel linearization and full grey level screening. System designers can access image pipeline at any stage.
GIS Utilities provide tools for system maintenance, calibration and optimization. These include system diagnostics and hardware maintenance; multi-pass map generator – a powerful multi-pass lay down strategy generator; and a fully featured waveform generation tool.
GIS Print Manager Boards
The Print Manager Board (PMB) is the core hardware component of the GIS Operating System. It enables a standard PC to drive up to 8 industrial inkjet printheads via USB 2.0 in single pass, XY scanning and custom systems. Each PMB will drive any mixture of supported printheads via a dedicated high speed (200Mb/s) channel along standard CAT6a STP cables (up to 15m). The PMB provides read and write access to all available OEM printhead settings including temperature control, voltage and waveform settings, binary and greyscale calibration.
GIS offers two Print Manager Boards – the PMB-C8 (to drive up to 8 printheads) and the PMB-C2 (to drive up to two printheads).
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PMBs are available cased or uncased and multiple PMBs can be stacked to drive large arrays of printheads
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A Master/Slave architecture supports sharing of encoder and print go signals via industrial VME backplane or low cost IDC connector
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The Advanced Encoder Manager System (AEMS) supports industry standard encoders and product detect/print go signals and provides per-printhead encoder divide and sub-pixel adjust, delivering complete drop placement control and repeatability
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Each printhead is driven by a dedicated high speed channel capable of delivering print data on demand in the most demanding of applications. High speed on-board RAM provides ample buffering for XY scanning and single pass systems, allowing the specialised software drivers to deliver continuous static or variable data streams to the printheads
- The PMB has the power to drive multiple printhead technologies simultaneously off the same system and to drive printheads at different resolutions
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| PMB-C2 |
PMB-C8 |
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PMB-C2 datasheet |
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PMB-C8 datasheet |
Head Personality Boards
GIS Head Personality Boards are designed to provide communications between specific printheads and the GIS Print Manager Boards (PMB-C8/PMB-C2). They enable access to all standard printhead settings and are specifically designed for use with GIS software products.
GIS supports a wide range of printheads including FUJIFILM Dimatix, Konica Minolta, Kyocera and Xaar. The capability to drive new printheads is being developed all the time, so if you do not find information on the web site about the printhead you need, please contact us to discuss.
For more information on GIS Head Personality Boards please see Printheads