Customer Brief: Black Dot

Black Dot Technology, Inc was founded in 2007 with a mission to develop advanced coding systems that are environmentally friendly, easy to use, and have low maintenance. Using CFdesign on an electronic printer imaging module, engineers were able to lower power consumption, increase ink reservoir heat-up times and maintain a safe circuit board operating temperature.

Understanding the Thermal Challenges
A key component in the Black Dot 200 Series system is the imaging module. The hot wax ink used in the module comes in a solid form, gets melted internally, and is fired through dots like any inkjet printer. Upon contact with the printing surface, the ink changes back to a solid.

Both the heat sources and the electronics to drive the Black Dot printer are in the imaging module enclosure, creating a potentially volatile situation: The circuit board needs to be shielded from the extreme heat source melting the ink and kept cool using natural convection. The reservoir melting the ink needs to maintain a high temperature in order for the printer to operate correctly.

Beyond building and testing additional physical prototypes, Black Dot needed the ability to simulate multiple design options and see how they would perform under extreme conditions. A perfect fit for CFdesign.

Establishing a Baseline
In order to improve the design, Black Dot engineers first established a baseline simulation using CFdesign on the original model, which like the physical testing results showed, temperatures were too high over the printed circuit board (PCB) and the ink reservoir did not retain enough heat. What the CFdesign revealed that design engineers had not seen before from physical testing is a major recirculation zone between the PCB and reservoir that was causing the thermal issues and failures.

The Solution
Adding an insulated shield around the reservoir showed dramatically reduced board temperatures, which in most environments would be enough. But, operating conditions for the Black Dot imaging module require sealing it off from outside air. Without that air, additional measures were needed to reduce temperatures. The final solution was to seal off the outlet to prevent particles from entering the unit, keep the reservoir shield in place, and increase the size of the thermal shield next to the PCB to maximize airflow.

Optimization in half the time
CFdesign helped identify flaws in the design that may not have been apparent in physical testing. In the past, projects of similar complexity have taken twice as long because Black Dot engineers needed to build physical models at great expense and take days to test each one.