Canon Inc has come out with a small light-weight low-cost full-colour copier, the BJ Copier Pixel Jet, which can be connected as an output device to Apple Computer Inc Macintoshes, NeXT Computer Inc workstations and Japanese personal computers such as the NEC PC-9801 series. Canon first released copiers in its Pixel series in 1987, and since then has been trying to sell computer users on the concept of connecting their computers to a dual purpose colour copier and printer. Until the advent of this 400 dots per inch, 256-colour model with a base price of about $6,000, this has not seemed realistic. Canon claims to have developed two new key pieces of the technology – BIIPS, BJ Intelligent Image Processing System, the full-colour image processing technology; and Basis, a high-precision sensor, Base-Stored Image Sensor, as well as a new bubble-jet cartridge incorporating the Canon-developed bubble-jet head and ink – this supposedly promises three years of maintenance-free operation. Canon first applied for basic patents in bubble-jet technology in 1977. In the year to March 31 last, bubble-jet technology brought Canon in revenues of $455m. Canon says it expects bubble-jet technology to line up with copier technology as one of the pillars of Canon business in the 21st century. In 1992 in the US it had 400 patents registered in ink-jet technology alone (Japanese companies pride themselves on the number, rather than the content, of their patents). The company foresees more use of colour (printers, copiers) in the office, and new industrial uses such as printing on different materials and in dying and marking techniques. By 1993, Canon expects revenues of around $1,515m annually and a cumulative installed base of the output devices using bubble-jet technology of 7.5m.
