Imposition Apparatus Page Box Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
In the printing and plate making industry, setting the page box parameters, which define the page boundary, can be cumbersome and error-prone, especially when designers submit electronic data without correctly specifying these settings, requiring operators to manually adjust them for printing.
Innovation Solution
An imposition apparatus and method that includes a reference position determination unit, a display unit, an image change instruction unit, and an image update unit to easily set the page box by superimposing a frame image on a page image, allowing for relative position or size adjustments and automatic alignment with a reference position, facilitating accurate and efficient setting of page boundaries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual adjustment of page box settings is performed, then accuracy of page boundary specification is improved, but operation time and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary determination of the reference position based on positioning marks in the electronic data before the operator needs to set the page box. This pre-processing step automatically establishes a reference point that guides subsequent page box placement, eliminating the need for time-consuming manual measurements and adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables self-service by automatically determining the reference position from positioning marks embedded in the electronic data. The positioning marks contain inherent spatial information that the system uses to autonomously establish the reference position, reducing operator intervention to simple verification rather than manual adjustment.
2Ease of operation
If automatic reference position determination is implemented, then ease of operation is improved, but positioning accuracy may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
Positioning marks serve as an intermediary element between the electronic data and the reference position determination. These marks are embedded in the original design data and contain precise spatial information that mediates the automatic determination process, ensuring both ease of operation and high positioning accuracy by providing a reliable reference source.
Solution Approach 2:
The system copies spatial information from the positioning marks in the electronic data to establish the reference position. By replicating the precise positional relationships defined in the original design through these marks, the system maintains measurement precision while achieving automatic determination and ease of operation.
3Productivity
If frame image is automatically aligned with reference position, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces manual mechanical alignment operations with automated image processing and coordinate transformation algorithms. The frame image is automatically positioned by calculating its coordinates relative to the reference position determined from positioning marks, substituting complex manual adjustment mechanisms with software-based solutions that improve productivity without requiring additional hardware complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
There are provided an imposition apparatus, an imposition method, and a non-transitory computer readable recording medium capable of setting a page box very easily. An instruction to change the relative position (or the relative size) of a frame image with respect to a page image in a preview image and an instruction to stop the change are given. The preview image is updated so that the frame image is in contact with a determined reference position (reference frame or reference line) by performing an additional change when a stop instruction is received.