Benjamin Franklin gave us some theories about electrostatics. You know, his whole kite experiment and everything. 300 years later, we still look to his theories to explain a lot of the unknowns about this area. One man, physicist Lawrence Schein, looked to Franklin’s theories to help explain some things about how laser printing works. Schein has started a company called Aetas Systems in order to develop new and better technology for color laser printers.

The reason Ben’s theories on electrostatics relate to laser printers is because electrostatic adhesion is used in laser printing. Basically, the toner and the paper are charged in order to make the toner stick to the paper. Once it sticks, it is then fused permanently to the paper. The the amount of adhesion (basically ’stickiness’) during this process between the paper and the toner is a lot higher than it should be. This isn’t a big deal for monochrome printing, but it ends up being a problem with color printing because it leads to inefficiency. Color printers have to use four different kinds of belts (one for each color) and this adds to the complexity and cost. Schein is hoping to reduce the adhesion in the process and thus make color laser printers with only one belt.

Cheaper Color Printing by Harnessing Ben Franklin’s Electrostatic Forces [Newswise]