Jump to content
 







Main menu
   


Navigation  



Main page
Contents
Current events
Random article
About Wikipedia
Contact us
Donate
 




Contribute  



Help
Learn to edit
Community portal
Recent changes
Upload file
 








Search  

































Create account

Log in
 









Create account
 Log in
 




Pages for logged out editors learn more  



Contributions
Talk
 



















Contents

   



(Top)
 


1 Advantages  





2 Disadvantages  





3 Standards  





4 Uses  





5 See also  





6 References  





7 External links  














Rollerball pen






Čeština
Dansk
Deutsch
فارسی
Français

Հայերեն
Italiano

Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча
Русский
Українська
Tiếng Vit

 

Edit links
 









Article
Talk
 

















Read
Edit
View history
 








Tools
   


Actions  



Read
Edit
View history
 




General  



What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Cite this page
Get shortened URL
Download QR code
Wikidata item
 




Print/export  



Download as PDF
Printable version
 
















Appearance
   

 






From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 


A gel-based rollerball pen

Roller ball pensorroll pens[1] are pens which use ball point writing mechanisms with water-based liquid or gelled ink, as opposed to the oil-based viscous inks found in ballpoint pens. These less viscous inks, which tend to saturate more deeply and more widely into paper than other types of ink, give roller ball pens their distinctive writing qualities. The writing point is a tiny ball, usually 0.5 or 0.7 mm in diameter, that transfers the ink from the reservoir onto the paper as the pen moves.

Advantages

[edit]
Close up of an extra fine roller ball pen next to something written with it

There are two main types of roller ball pens: liquid ink pens and gel ink pens. The 'liquid-ink' type uses an ink and ink supply system similar to a fountain pen, and they are designed to combine the convenience of a ballpoint pen with the smooth "wet ink" effect of a fountain pen. The 'liquid-ink' type rollerball pens were introduced in 1963 by the Japanese company Ohto.[2][3] The gel ink type rollerball pens were patented in 1982 by Sakura Color Products.[2]

Gel inks usually contain pigments, while liquid inks are limited to dyestuffs, as pigments will sink down in liquid ink (sedimentation). The thickness and suspending power of gels allows the use of pigments in gelled ink, which yields a greater variety of brighter colors than is possible in liquid ink. Gels also allow for the use of heavier pigments with metallic or glitter effects, or opaque pastel pigments that can be seen on dark surfaces.

Liquid ink roller ball pens flow extremely consistently and skip less than gel ink pens do. The lower viscosity of liquid ink increases the likelihood of consistent inking of the ball, whereas the higher viscosity of gel ink produces "skipping", that is, occasional gaps in lines or letters.

In comparison to ballpoint pens,

Disadvantages

[edit]
Close-up shot of a rollerball pen tip

There are a number of disadvantages inherent to roller ball pens:

Standards

[edit]

The International Organization for Standardization has published standards for roller ball pens:

ISO 14145-1
1998: Roller ball pens and refills – Part 1: General use[4]
ISO 14145-2
1998: Roller ball pens and refills – Part 2: Documentary use (DOC)[5]

To comply to the ISO 14145-2:1998 documentary use standard the following has to be established by an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory:

Most roller ball refills comply to the ISO 14145-2:1998 standard and are approved for documentary use.

Uses

[edit]

Former MI-6 agent Richard Tomlinson alleges that Pentel Rolling Writer roller ball pens were extensively used by SIS agents to produce secret writing (invisible messages) while on missions.[7]

The Ohto Model CB-10F Ceramic Roller Ball Pen was used at the 1990 Economic Summit of Industrialized Nations.[8]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "rollerball". Oxford Learner's Dictionaries.
  • ^ a b Ward, James (2014-09-11). Adventures in Stationery: A Journey Through Your Pencil Case. Profile. pp. 59–60. ISBN 978-1-84765-871-5.
  • ^ "Ceramic Ball (OHTO Japan English Website)". ohto.co.jp. 2008. Archived from the original on 18 March 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  • ^ "ISO 14145-1:1998 – Roller ball pens and refills – Part 1: General use". Iso.org. 12 June 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  • ^ "ISO 14145-2:1998 – Roller ball pens and refills – Part 2: Documentary use (DOC)". Iso.org. 12 June 2009. Retrieved 11 September 2010.
  • ^ Standard designation: N-chloro-p-toluene sulfonamide sodium salt. IUPAC designation: N-chloro-4-methyl-benzene sulfonamide sodium salt.
  • ^ Tomlinson, Richard (2001), The Big Breach: From Top Secret to Maximum Security, Mainstream Publishing, p. 44, ISBN 1-903813-01-8, you will need to buy a $200 roller ball pen.
  • ^ "Ohto Innovations". ohto.co.jp. 2008. Archived from the original on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
  • [edit]
    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rollerball_pen&oldid=1222707606"

    Category: 
    Pens
    Hidden categories: 
    Articles with short description
    Short description matches Wikidata
    Articles needing additional references from May 2008
    All articles needing additional references
    Articles containing pro and con lists
    Wikipedia articles with style issues from June 2022
    All articles with style issues
    Articles needing additional references from August 2020
     



    This page was last edited on 7 May 2024, at 13:46 (UTC).

    Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.



    Privacy policy

    About Wikipedia

    Disclaimers

    Contact Wikipedia

    Code of Conduct

    Developers

    Statistics

    Cookie statement

    Mobile view



    Wikimedia Foundation
    Powered by MediaWiki