Helix cylindrical inkjet printer

The Helix® digital cylinder printer is designed to print superior quality full-color (CMYKWW + varnish) images on straight-walled and tapered cylinders. Fast and flexible, this cylinder printing machine is ideal for use in the drinkware, barware, candle, and industrial printing industries.

The Helix® UV cylindrical printer strikes an ideal balance between speed and image quality thanks to its patented Helix® software, which places 7-picoliter drops of ink precisely along the cylinder at extremely high speed. This heavy-duty state-of-the-art machine is designed and built in the U.S.

The Helix® digital cylinder printer minimizes setup time with an advanced quick-change tooling fixture that easily adjusts to print on both straight and tapered parts. Inkcups offers a custom tooling service from concept to build. Simply send in a few of your drinkware or cylindrical items and we will create tooling that will fit perfectly into your Helix® rotary inkjet printer.

Time-consuming prepress and screen-making steps are eliminated with this all-digital inkjet-based process. Import an image, choose the quantity for production, and print directly on the product via user-friendly control software. Rotary printing could not be easier! Interested in hearing more about it? Listen to our Digital Cylinder Printing and Technology podcast!

Choose from a variety of UV inks to print utilizing the Helix® cylindrical inkjet printer. The DL Series was formulated for excellent adhesion to glass and plastic. Paired with MagiCoat pre-treatment solution, glassware items can handle up to 200 residential washes (depending on temperature and detergent). The Prop. 65 compliant S1 Series is the perfect solution for a variety of rigid substrates such as stainless steel and metal. This UV inkjet ink recently got an upgrade with a new UV curable white ink- Vivid White. Finally, the XFlexx Series is compatible with flexible applications such as squeezable water bottles. This Series fully passes the squeeze test without cracking. In addition to the numerous inkjet inks we carry, we also perform all adhesion requirements for you. This is done during the sampling process. Once we have completed adhesion testing according to ASTM, we will send your samples back to you along with the report.

New printing era truly offers a full solution from consulting to setting up the machine for print to training your operators on how to use the Helix® digital cylinder printer. Training can either be done at one of our facilities or at your facility. We want to ensure your operators understand how to operate and how to perform daily maintenance to the machine.

PRINT INNOVATION

MIRROR PRINT

The mirror print feature on the Helix® digital cylinder printer leverages our specialized helical software to lay down an image using colored ink, then a layer of white ink over it, and another color image layer over that. The resulting effect is a mirror image of the interior and exterior artwork. Depending on the design, an image printed on the inside layer can be different from what’s printed on the outside.

TONE-ON-TONE & CONTOUR PRINT

The Helix® digital cylinder printer’s tone-on-tone feature gives drinkware a truly elegant look by applying gloss effects using high-quality varnish formulations without color. Contour print layers the ink to give drinkware a highly appealing textured 3D feel. The end result is a one-of-a-kind, almost irresistible print effect.

PRINT ON DEMAND WORKFLOW

The Helix® has the unique ability to integrate with print on demand shops both for eCommerce and stand alone companies looking to enter this market. This machine paired with our patent barcode scanning mechanism can make inventory management and production a breeze. Learn more about our print on demand drinkware solutions.

OPTIONAL ACCESSORIES

TPC SYSTEM

Transparent pin curing or TPC enables clear products such as plastic bottles and glassware to be printed without filling the vessel with a UV-blocking substance. This field upgradeable, patent pending technology reduces the wear and tear of print heads, improves production processes and ensures your product remains uncontaminated on the inside. Inkcups is using a unique, proprietary curing lamp to ensure uniform pinning radiation over a range of radii, taper angles, and curvatures in the vessel.

APPLICATIONS

PRINT-ON-DEMAND DRINKWARE SOLUTIONS

Equipped with an advanced workflow system, the Helix® is the ideal solution for e-commerce companies looking to differentiate their brand, to appeal to a wider variety of purchase occasions and to increase margins. Add the hottest product category of the decade to your product mix!

STAINLESS STEEL TUMBLERS

The Helix® offers greater adhesion and abrasion resistance to stainless steel. See all our drinkware printing applications.

MIXING GLASSES

Also known as pint glasses, are ideal for breweries, bars, restaurants, and special events. Paired with the Helix®, MagiCoat® Pre-Treatment System for Glass works to ensure optimal adhesion when UV printing on glass.

BARWARE

Customize labels on the fly. Ideal for beer bottles, wine bottles, and growlers. As with mixing glasses, the MagiCoat® glass primer works to ensure the best adhesion for this substrate.

CANDLES

Print directly onto wax candles with the Helix®. Add a personal touch to any candle.

ROTARY UV PRINTER SPECIFICATIONS

PRODUCT TYPE	Cylinder or Taper (360 degree print)
SPEED (BASED ON BED SIZE)	11 seconds per part (Based upon a 2.3" image (60mm) CMYKWW no varnish)
PART DIAMETER	51 mm - 127 mm (2 - 5 in)
PART LENGTH	76 mm - 305 mm (3 x 12 in)
LAMP STYLE	8W LED
INK TYPE	UV LED
INK CONFIGURATION	CMYKWW (Varnish optional)
PRINT MODES	4 pass • 6 pass • 8 pass • 12 pass • 16 pass • 24 pass
BULK INK SYSTEM	3 Liter
DIMENSIONS (LXWXH)	2209.80 x 711.2 x 1574.80 mm (87 x 28 x 62 in)
VOLTAGE	220/208 VAC, Single Phase, 4 Amp
MAXIMUM RESOLUTION	1200 dpi
BED TYPE	Rotary