Durst Debuts Rho 600 Pictor

Durst has announced the latest in its Rho lineup of flatbed printers”?the Rho 600 Pictor. A compact version of the company”?s Rho 600, this 62-in. UV-curable flatbed printer can image onto a variety of media up to 1.58-in. thick at speeds up to 200 sq ft/hr.

The 4-color Pictor offers many of the same features as the Rho printer family, including Quadro Array printhead technology, producing variable drop sizes (30- to 55-pl droplets) for 600-dpi images. Users have a choice of inks, including the Rho Flexible Ink Set for use with flexible substrates such as vinyl, transparencies, and blue-back paper, and the Rho Rigid Ink Set, for use with rigid materials such as metals, acrylics, and glass.

A new feature is the Parallel Board Feeder hardware and software system. The system allows users to feed in several smaller pieces of blank media and print different signage on each.

Controlled by the same Linux workstation that”?s standard with the Rho 600, the Pictor also includes a RIP system comprising Durst printer software and an integrated Cheetah RIP. In addition, the Pictor features 10-l ink tanks and a roll feed-and-take-up accessory; the printer can also be upgraded with white ink or selective varnish.

Price: $195,000 (US price); shipping begins in August.

In addition, Durst has announced the following:

“? An automated feed-stacker system for its Rhopac, to increase speed and efficiency. The feeder-stacker brings corrugated sheets to the feeder table and aligns them while the feeder table automatically adjusts its height through the use of sensors. A vacuum arm transports the sheets, shaking the sheet to ensure only one sheet is fed to the printer. Once printed, each sheet exits the printer via a roll-and-drop mechanism that protects the print and accelerates the production process.

“? The addition of a Fotoba XL 320 superwide automatic x/y cutter to its Rho 350R printer. The XL 320 features proprietary Fotoba Cut Marks to ensure exact cuts, even when the roll is not wound straight or when images coming off the printers aren”?t parallel to the edge of the equipment. The self-squaring, auto-tracking device runs at a linear speed of up to 18 m/min and will cut though a variety of media up to 0.8 mm thick.

“? A new Durst Theta 76 HS multi-format lab system designed for the photo retailer desiring to offer higher-margin specialty photo products, such as panoramics, metallic prints, and restorations (as well as outputting professional photo prints during peak times). Touted as a “large-format minilab,”? the 30-in. Theta 76 HS outputs digital images from 2-up wallets to 2.5 x 13 ft images”?and at speeds up to 550 8 x10-in. prints/hr (300 sq ft/hr). It accommodates media from 8- to 30-in. wide, and features daylight-loading media cassette, built-in cutter/sorter, and a linked RA4 paper processor.

“? A strategic relationship with 3M to more closely align Durst Rho UV printer technology with 3M inks and print media. The two companies have signed a letter of intent to cooperate on the use of 3M Premium durable UV inks on digital platforms from Durst. The companies are in the final stages of market plan development and testing; the alliance activities will initially be rolled out in Europe, the companies report.

DURST IMAGE TECHNOLOGIES
www.durstus.com