Plotter

The plotter is a computer printer for printing vector graphics. In the past, plotters were used in applications such as computer-aided design, though they have generally been replaced with wide-format conventional printers. A plotter gives a hard copy of the output. It draws pictures on paper using a pen. Plotters are used to print designs of ships and machines, plans for buildings and so on. Pen plotters print by moving a pen or other instrument across the surface of a piece of paper. This means that plotters are vector graphicsdevices, rather than raster graphics as with other printers. Pen plotters can draw complex line art, including text, but do so slowly because of the mechanical movement of the pens. They are often incapable of efficiently creating a solid region of color, but can hatch an area by drawing a number of close, regular lines.

Plotters offered the fastest way to efficiently produce very large drawings or color high-resolution vector-based artwork when computer memory was very expensive and processor power was very limited, and other types of printers had limited graphic output capabilities.

Pen plotters have essentially become obsolete, and have been replaced by large-format inkjet printers and LED toner based printers. Such devices may still understand vector languages originally designed for plotter use, because in many uses, they offer a more efficient alternative to raster data.