Drip plate design for a solid ink printer

摘要

A drip plate design is provided for a solid ink color printer (10) which reliably directs on-demand ink flow and securely retains solidified ink. The drip plate design includes a combination of one or more sized and shaped cutouts (44) and protrusions (46) for anchoring a solidified ink stick when the printer (10) is not in operation and protrusions (48) that impede downward movement of independent portions of an ink stick so that they remain in contact with a heated melt plate long enough to substantially melt, thereby inhibiting the unchecked sliding off of large separated slivers and chunks of ink during melt and delivery. <IMAGE>