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Probably barely on-topic, but I'm wondering if there's any way to control a 2D inkjet/laser printer similar to 3D printer. Specifically:

  • Shifting the XY axis by a certain amount
  • Controlling the paper feeder by small increments
  • Dispelling ink at defined amounts

2D printers have a very high resolution and can be useful for some things, which is why I'm asking.

K Mmmm
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    Do you imply to fit it with a controller board other than the circuit board that is in the printer already? Or do you want to control the printer through the original circuit board? – 0scar Feb 02 '22 at 17:26
  • As far as I'm aware, modern printers take in documents in some form and print from there. As a 3D printing analogy, the "slicing" is done on the printer, not the computer. – BillThePlatypus Feb 02 '22 at 17:42
  • I think that there are options for using a new controller board integrated with the 2D printer that would best answer this question. I found some YouTube videos of people selling homemade boxes with custom controllers (for too much money). But I don't know what they are or how to make them – K Mmmm Feb 02 '22 at 17:48

1 Answers1

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No

  • Most 2D printers use very different motor setups - 3D Printers use steppers, Paper printers usually use simple motors and encoders.
  • Printers take input in special data formats. These can be pretty much normal Text files of what characters to print but a print job sent from the printer driver also contains specific orders and might not even be readable to humans. This file of instructions and pattern to print then is processed into the actual movement of the printhead and paper only in the printer itself.
  • 2D Printer software is super locked down. You can only get the firmware of a paper printer in formats that are absolutely nonreadable. Compare how hard it was for Itkin and Balmas to reverse engineer just the fax protocol of modern printers. Then, amplify that by a few notches because the fax protocol has a known standard it needs to uphold but the printer itself does not.
Trish
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