Printing Plate Border Pixel Adjustment for Ghosting Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional printing technologies suffer from printing artifacts such as ghosting and halo effects, which are dependent on print parameters and disrupt the linearization of continuous-tone images.
Innovation Solution
A method involving adapting a digital image by moving pixels from a first border area to a second border area to smooth out contiguous areas of image and non-image pixels, maintaining the same number of image pixels and reducing ink thickness variations at boundaries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional printing technology is used to print digital images, then printing can be performed with standard processes, but printing artifacts such as ghosting and halo effects occur at boundaries of contiguous areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by modifying the digital image data before printing to pre-compensate for expected printing artifacts. Specifically, it adjusts pixel values at boundaries of contiguous areas to counteract the density differences that would otherwise cause ghosting and halo effects during the printing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by treating different regions of the image differently. It specifically targets boundary regions of contiguous areas with localized adjustments to pixel values, while leaving other regions unchanged. This ensures that corrections are applied only where needed to prevent printing artifacts.
2Measurement precision
If linearization is applied to control printing behavior, then printed colors behave linearly to input colors, but printing artifacts still occur at boundaries of contiguous areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges two processing steps: linearization and artifact prevention. It combines the color linearity adjustment with boundary region adjustment into a single integrated process, so that both color accuracy and boundary uniformity are achieved simultaneously without requiring separate processing steps.
3Manufacturing precision
If print parameters are adjusted to reduce printing artifacts, then artifact reduction may be achieved, but the linearization of continuous-tone images is disrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary adjustment of the digital image data to pre-compensate for printing artifacts before the actual printing process. By modifying pixel values at boundaries in advance, it eliminates the need to adjust print parameters during printing, thereby maintaining color linearity while preventing artifacts.
Data Source
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AI summary
Method for making a printing plate comprising the steps: selecting a digital image (100, IMGsel) having a contiguous area of image pixels (107, Aimgpix) surrounded by a contiguous area of non-image pixels (105, Anonimgpix); determining a boundary (200, B) of said contiguous area (107, Aimgpix); determining a first border area (207, BA1) according said boundary (200, B) and within said contiguous area of image pixels (107, Aimgpix); and a second border area (205, BA2) according said boundary (200, B) and within said contiguous area of non-image pixels (105, Anonimgpix); selecting N contiguous clusters (CLsel,1..N) from the first border area (207, BA1) and adapting the selected digital image (100, IMGsel) by moving each contiguous cluster (CLsel, i) of the N contiguous clusters (CLsel,1..N) to said second border area (205, BA2); imaging the adapted digital image (IMGadp) on a plate precursor to form said printing plate.