RFID Printers

There are several different ways to break out and differentiate types of RFID printers. The most common is by the usage of the printer. Under printer usage there are three main categories: Industrial, Desktop, and Mobile. Another common way that RFID printers are categorized is according to RFID tag compatibility, usually by tag frequency or, sometimes, specialized tag types.

Types of RFID Printers

Industrial

(10,000+ tags per day)

Industrial printers are manufactured to be durable and able to be used in most application environments. Industrial printers stand out because of the sheer volume of labels they can print in a day, week, or month. For demanding applications with a large volume of labels, an industrial printer is the best-suited option.

Desktop

(500+ tags per day)

As the name implies, Desktop printers are designed to be used in office-like environments. Typically, desktop printers are used to print a low-volume of labels a day and keep up with a mid-level quantity of items to be tagged. Desktop printers are also designed to be aesthetically pleasing, so they can be used in customer-facing applications.

Mobile

(200+ tags per day)

Mobile RFID printers are not as common as Desktop and Industrial printers, but they can be very convenient, especially in large spanning applications such as warehouses or shipping yards. The availability of using a mobile printer when covering a large space is much more convenient than relying on a printer in a central location. Due to their compact size, mobile printers typically require specialized media.

Tag Type

The most common type of RFID printer is a UHF Passive RFID printer. UHF Passive RFID printers have an encoder that operates at the 860-960 MHz frequency range. However, there are also NFC and HF printers available. These printers often look visually identical to their UHF Passive counterparts, but they have an encoder that operates at the 13.56 MHz frequency range.

Specialized Printers

Another tag-based printer option is a specialized printer for tags like RFID cards and badges, foam backed tags, and all-surface labels that have a metal backing. RFID cards and badges generally aren’t on a roll, but sold individually; so, normal RFID printers will not be able to read, write, or print on these. Instead, a specialized card printer is required along with specialized ribbon to print on the thick, plastic cardstock. Because the industry is growing and new types of tags are being made, new specialized printers and printer settings are being released to keep up with demand (e.g. printers designed for foam-backed and metal-mount tags).

Types of Printing

Direct vs Thermal Transfer

Direct Thermal printing is the standard in many industries that need to consistently print text or images, the best example being printing receipts. The Direct Thermal process involves two steps: heating up the printhead, and the printhead coming into contact with the heat-sensitive paper. The paper type is the key in this process because, if the paper is not chemically-coated to be heatsensitive, the printhead will not be able to produce the color change that occurs when the paper is in contact with heat.

Direct Thermal printers are more expensive when compared to generic ink or LaserJet printers; however, because direct thermal printers do not require a regular ink supply the investment over the long term is typically much lower. The downside to direct thermal printing is that the paper used is very sensitive to light, heat, and abrasion, so if the label is exposed to any of those elements for too long, the printed information may become unreadable.

Direct thermal printing is also not recommended for items that need to be labeled for a long-time period because the text will begin to fade over time.

Barcodes on shipping labels, receipts, parking tickets, and some logistics applications use direct thermal printing because the labels do not need to have a long lifespan. Mobile printers typically use direct thermal as well, because of the transient nature of the barcode printed labels.

Thermal Transfer printing is typically used in RFID label printing because of its general resistance to environmental elements and longer lifespan. Thermal Transfer printing requires purchasing a thermal transfer ribbon which is an added cost associated with this type of printing (in comparison to direct thermal). Thermal transfer involves the process of heating up the printhead and pressing it to the back of the thermal ribbon. The heated printhead melts the ribbon and transfers the color to the front of the label, which creates the printed text or image. 

The pros of thermal transfer printing are long ink lifespan and little reactance to heat, light, or abrasions. Another positive aspect of this printing process is that there is a ribbon in between the printhead and label, which acts as a buffer for foreign items like dust and dirt. The ribbon helps keep these impurities out of the printed text or image as well as expands the lifespan of the printhead. A negative aspect of printing via thermal transfer is the reoccurring ribbon cost. 

Due to the heavy use of Thermal Transfer printer with RFID tags, the remainder of this guide will focus solely on Thermal Transfer printing.

Printer Ribbon

For Thermal Transfer printing, the printer must be equipped with a ribbon. Three groupings of ribbon are available for printing on RFID labels: Wax Ribbon, Wax-Resin Ribbon, and Resin Ribbon. Each of these ribbon types has its pros and cons as outlined below.

Wax vs. Resin vs. Wax Resin

Facts about Wax Ribbon

Low melting point 
Most commonly used ribbon 
Should be used on paper labels, coated or non=coated 
Produces softer images 
Inexpensive 
Susceptible to smudges, scratches, and abrasions 
Printed images have a shorter lifespan 

Facts about Wax-Resin Ribbon

Mid-level melting point 
Should be used on coated paper labels like, glossy, smooth surfaces, and synthetic labels 
Clear, sharp image 
Mid-level price point 
Resistant to certain chemicals, abrasions, smudges, and scratches 
Printed images have a long lifespan

Facts about Resin Ribbon

High melting point 
Should be used on synthetic labels and garment labels 
Clear, sharp images 
High price point 
Highest resistance against chemicals, abrasions, smudges, and scratches 
Printed images have a very long lifespan

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