The leap from DTP to CTP

The Present Situation and Development Direction of CTP System

1. The CTP (Computer-to-plate computer-to-plate) wave has set off in the global printing industry, and the era of digital printing has been

The arrival of CTP technology has become an inevitable trend for the prepress industry, and it is in contrast to the color desktop system (DTP system) that emerged in the mid-1980s.

A great deal of progress can be said to be yet another technological revolution in the printing industry.

The computer-to-plate making technology will bring significant social and economic benefits, and will strive to achieve the goal of printing in China by printing.

Pre-electronic digitization, printing of high-speed color printing, multiple automation after printing, strong reference to foreign advanced technology, and promotion of the use of CTP technology is imperative

Row.

2. Since 95'Drupa, computer platemaking technology has developed rapidly and is maturing. Whether it is flat plate, inner drum or outer drum

The direct plate making technology, no matter what kind of outlets, regardless of the use of silver salts or thermal plates, has reached a practical level in the improvement of printing

Quality, output, cost reduction, efficiency improvement, etc. have great advantages.

According to the United States Printing Technology Foundation (GATF) publishing statistics for international major printing and publishing technologies: CTP technology ranks first for three consecutive years, 1997

At the end of the year, there were about 31 manufacturers worldwide producing 63 different types of direct plate making equipment. Including the famous Oppennikov - Heidelberg

Companies, Barco, Agfa, Saturn, Pollux, and DuPont-Haussen. In 1996, the top 100 in the United States

55% of the large-scale printing companies use the CTP system. To date, more than 2,700 CTP systems have been installed worldwide. According to the United States

The former authoritative magazine Seybold predicts that by the year 2001, the world will assemble 4000 sets of CTP systems, and the CTP technology has been established in many developed countries.

Industry printing and newspaper printing have been widely developed and entered the mature stage of practical application. With the decline in prices of CTP machines and CTP plates, lasers

Phototypesetting machines will be phased out gradually, and the soft version will be reduced year by year.

3. In recent years, CTP technology has also developed in China. Since 1997, China Institute of Institutes has held several CTP seminars.

Yesterday and for the first time in 1998 at the Beijing International Electronic Birth and Multimedia Exhibition, various types of CTPs were introduced comprehensively and systematically.

Equipment plays an active role in promoting its application. Following the introduction of a CTP system by Beijing Standard Press in 1996, the Yangcheng Evening News Agency

Introduced in May 1998, Beijing Daily has completed its experimental application in the near future. There is also a company in China engaged in the localization of CTP systems and plates.

Research work, but still remain at the same level of imitation of foreign equipment, there is still a certain distance from the actual application.

Printing Features> Printing Features of CTP System Ink Jet

In recent years, high-tech penetration in the field of printing and publishing has been reflected in three aspects: computer direct-printing, digital printing, and color proofing.

For CTP technology, the specific definition is as follows:
1, Computer To Plate (computer direct plate), that is, off-line direct plate making technology;
2, Computer To Press (computer directly to the press), that is, direct machine plate technology;
3, Computer To Paper / Print (computer directly to the paper or printed products), that is, direct printing technology;
4, Computer To Proof (computer direct proofs), that is, color digital proofing.

The CTP system not only has the functions of direct plate making and direct proofing, but also has some features of direct inkjet printing. Its standard components are:

CTP plate-making machine (EPSON PRO 9000) + special printing software + special consumables
It uses the Epson styls pro 9000 color inkjet plotter as an output device, supplemented by special printing software and special consumables to form a TP system.

Through the output device's performance added value to meet the special requirements of the printing industry.

1, direct plate machine:

Acceptable special film, special PS plate and plain paper to complete the format output (split version + BO1118mm). Its performance characteristics are as follows:

(1) 6 picoliter drop control technology:

The size of ink droplets is the key to improving digital image quality because it directly affects the “graininess” of digital images, which is the traditional silver salt technology.

Insurmountable technical obstacles. The plate-making machine can achieve 6 picolitres (1 picoliter = 10-9 milliliters) of ink droplets, not only reducing "graininess" savings

The ink is faster and dries faster. Both black and white and color graphics make it more detailed. The colors are softer, the layers are richer, and the texture is stronger.

(2) Intelligent drop conversion technology:

By adjusting the signal size of the transistor to control the volume of the ink drop, three ink droplets of large, medium, and small can be simultaneously produced in a single printing process, ensuring 1440 dpi

High resolution, uniform color transition, reduced nozzle efficiency, and increased drawing speed.

(3) Micro Piezo Technology

The vibration of the piezoelectric Japan was used to stimulate the ink droplets to fly out of the nozzle to control the size, shape and flying direction of the ink drop. Behind the micro piezoelectric print head nozzle

It is a spray capsule. Behind the spray capsule is a piezoelectric crystal plate. When a small and large voltage is applied to both ends of the spray capsule, it will produce extension and contraction.

The electrical contraction of the crystal is used to drive the ink to eject with the electrical pulse of the print signal. At the same time, the use of flexibility to control the ink droplet size, shape, flight status. Through wisdom

Capable of ink drop conversion, large ink droplets are composed of medium and small ink droplets, thus avoiding cracks in droplets due to ink tension.

Star-shaped, fog-like scattered defects. Therefore, the fine grain, high resolution, sharp outline, sharp image, and clear image can be formed on the film and PS plate.

Clearly high, it is more suitable for cross-stroke reproduction of Chinese fonts.

(4) 6-color quick-drying ink:

Combines 6-color quick-drying inks of Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Ink, Light Cyan, and Light Magenta with the tonal adjustment technology in fine images, using photo-screen printing principles

Combining the three-dimensional rapid calculation table and error diffusion technology, the color reproduction is unprecedentedly improved, and the color expression capability is greatly enhanced.

2, special printing software

Chinese interface, suitable for Windows95/98/NT, Mac platform, support network capabilities, fully compatible with Postscript Levedll, and compatible

The Beijing University Founder typesetting system can directly publish a variety of software layouts on Apple and PC, PageMaker, FreeHand, Quarkpress,

Illustrator, CorelDraw, Word and Founder Feiteng and Wes.

The printing software has a good and feasible data interface, simple operation, high quality screening (up to 175 lines), powerful and comprehensive, explain the speed

Fast and task queues, imposition, preview and other functions. When large-format output is performed, the film width and layout width can also be automatically calculated, and they can be lost in the most provincial way.

Out, automatic small version into a large version of the output, you can also manually control the layout of the imposition.

3, special consumables:

Dedicated CTP film and PS plate are coated with special treatment.

Advantages and disadvantages:

The CTP system adopts a new concept of physical imaging technology to completely eliminate laser generation and the use of photosensitive materials, using inkjet devices directly on film and paper.

Zhang and PS layouts print out the required graphic parts, reducing the number of image transfer, truly 100% transfer, no content loss, direct output

Large format, no need for imposition, revision.

With the same principle as the laser image-setter, regardless of the platform type, external drum or internal drum equipment, computer-controlled laser beam scanning is used.

Photoimaging, then developing, fixing and other processes into the printing plate, can also be said to be a laser phototypesetting machine, development, fixing equipment and printing machine into one

body.

According to the materials and structural features of the plates, the CTP plates currently used abroad can be divided into photosensitive resin plates and silver salt composite high-speed PS plates.

The Silver Salt Expanded Plate, Thermal Plate, and Photoconductor Plates have not yet escaped the photochemical imaging routine in large quantities, and they must be used with a range of kits. among them

Thermal plates and photoconductor plates require a laser generator that uses laser thermal effects. These plates are expensive and require high resolution, high sensitivity, and high resolution

As a guarantee of strength, it is still unable to achieve domestic production in China, and it takes a long time to promote cooperation.