impact printer

n. A technology to print characters or graphics by using a hard surface to strike a ribbon containing a pigment or dye against the printing surface.

Notes

Typewriters are examples of impact printers, but the phrase is generally used to describe computer printers that use similar technology. The device may form characters from a pattern of dots created using small pins (dot matrix) or by using a mechanism that contains fully formed characters (for example, a daisy wheel).