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UNDERSTANDING THE COLOR CHARACTERIZATION PROCESS FOR TEXTILE PRINTING 

© Jonathan Read 2017

UNDERSTANDING THE COLOR CHARACTERIZATION PROCESS

FOR TEXTILE PRINTING 

OutputICCprofilesarebuiltuponamyriadofvariablesandpredeterminedcondi8ons.Thesevariables&condi8onsarethebuildingblocksorfounda8onforthequality&accuracyofthefinaloutput.

Ifthefounda8onispoorlybuiltoraltereda@ertheICCprofileiscreated,thentheICCprofilemayberendereduselessandpredictablecolorreproduc8onisimpossible.

Thekeytosuccessisconsistentlycontrollingvariables.

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS

• Temperature

• Humidity

• Electrical (Amperage, Voltage, & Ground)

• Static Electricity

• Dust, Dirt, & DebrisAmbient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORSTemperature, Humidity, Electrical, & Debris

Optimum Conditions: 68 F (+/- 10) & 50% RH (+/-10)

Affects: -Ink absorption on printed substrates-Droplet placement & jetting

Symptoms: -Ink bleed & coalescence-Paper cockle-Clogged Nozzles-Banding-Ink color/density shifts-Ink voids on printed substrate-Bad dot patterns

• Media Loading & Take-Up Unit Procedure

• Printhead Height

• Printhead Alignment (Uni/Bi-Directional)

• Media Feed Adjustment

• Heat Settings

MEDIA TO PRINTER CALIBRATION

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

Affects: -Droplet placement, jetting, fixation

Symptoms: -Fuzzy, blurry, grainy appearance -Bad dot pattern-Banding

MEDIA TO PRINTER CALIBRATIONMedia & Take-Up Unit Loading, Printhead Height, Printhead Alignment,

Media Feed Adjustment, On-Printer Heat Settings

• Temperature

• Dwell Time

• Pressure

• Placement

• Ink “Bloom”

OPTIMIZING HEAT PRESS / CALENDAR

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

Ink Bloom:

Comparing different dwell

times on heater :

10 sec.20 sec.30 sec.40 sec.50 sec.

Affects: -Color gamut-Ink consumption-Consistency

Symptoms: -Dull / flat color-Excess ink left on transfer paper-Color change -Non-uniformity across media width

OPTIMIZING HEAT PRESS / CALENDARTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

• Halftone / Dither Settings

• Resolution

• Printhead Pass Count

• Overprint or Second Strike

• Variable Dot Setting

• Light Ink Transitions

• Print-head Voltage & Waveforms

RIP SETTINGS & DEVICE OPTIONS

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

Affects: -Print Speed-Overall print quality-Resolving power-Color gamut-Droplet placement-Ink consumption

Symptoms: -Low productivity-Bad dot pattern-Fuzzy, blurry, grainy appearance-Banding -Color fidelity-Over-inking artifacts-Low total ink limit

Halftone/Dither, Resolution, Pass Count, Overprint/Second Strike, Variable Dot, Light Ink Transitions

RIP SETTINGS & DEVICE OPTIONS

Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, Light Inks, Spot Colors, & Device N Colors

Each channel can expense up to 100% of ink. In most cases 100% is unnecessary & some ink

restriction is required to allow for re-linearization.

PRIMARY INK RESTRICTIONS

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

Affects: -Color gamut-Color accuracy

Symptoms: -Dull/Flat Color-Hue Shift-Heavy ink consumption-Fuzzy, blurry, grainy appearance -Over-inking artifacts-Banding-Low total ink limit

PRIMARY INK RESTRICTIONSPrimary Ink Restrictions

Demonstrates how primary ink

restrictions provide the framework for the device’s color

gamut.

PRIMARY INK RESTRICTIONS

Linearization is the process of determining the default tonal response of a device and altering it’s response to

a desired & repeatable state.

The unaltered tonal response of a device is usually non-linear (an increase in ink dispersion doesn’t produce an

equal increase in density). By calibrating the tonal response to known and

repeatable state, you can “re-linearize” back to that state when the tonality drifts over time.

LINEARIZATION

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

LINEARIZATION

Unaltered tonal response of the black

channel.

Desired response

Affects: -Smoothness of gradients-Tonal detail-Ink consumption-Gray balance / Neutrality

Symptoms: -Loss of shadow or highlight detail-Lack of consistency-Hue shift-Possible heavy ink consumption

LINEARIZATIONLinearization

Limits the maximum total amount of ink that can be used when mixing primary inks (C,M,Y,K).

Each channel can expense up to 100% of ink x the amount of ink channels = 400%

The goal is to set the maximum total ink consumption to the highest acceptable level without producing

over-inking artifacts.

TOTAL INK LIMIT

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

TOTAL INK LIMITExample of a test target used to determine the maximum level of

total ink to be used.

TOTAL INK LIMIT

TOTAL INK LIMIT

Examples of Over-Inking Artifacts

TOTAL INK LIMITExamples of Over-Inking Artifacts

Before Transfer / After Transfer Before Transfer / After Transfer

It can be very difficult to determine over-inking artifacts on dye sub transfer paper. Sometimes it helps to look at the paper after it has been transferred to see what has remained. The most important thing is the end result, the finished transferred

product. It that looks good then it doesn’t really matter what is occurring on the paper.

Affects: -Color Gamut-Gradients -Tonal detail-Ink consumption-Gray balance / Neutrality

Symptoms: -Over-inking artifacts-Loss of shadow or highlight detail-Lack of consistency-Hue shift-Possible heavy ink consumption

TOTAL INK LIMITTotal Ink Limit

The ICC Profile describes the color gamut that can be achieved based upon all of the previous

conditions. They are used to translate the appearance of color from one device to

another device.

ICC Profiles do not correct over-inking or bad print quality!

OUTPUT ICC PROFILE

Ambient / Environmental Conditions

Temperature, Humidity, Static Electricity, Bad Grounding of Equipment, Dust/Dirt, etc.

Calibrating Media to Printer

Head Height, Nozzles, Uni/Bi Directional Alignment, Media Feed Adjustment, Heat/Cure Settings, etc.

RIP Settings

Dot Pattern, Resolution, Pass Count, Print Speed, Overprint/2nd Strike, Variable Dot Settings, Light Ink Transitions, etc.

Linearization

T.A.C.(Total Ink Limit)

(Total Area Coverage)

ICC Profile

Primary Ink Restrictions

Optimizing Heat Press / CalendarTemperature, Dwell Time, Pressure, Placement, Ink Bloom, etc.

The ICC Profile in created by printing a range of various colors, measuring them, then creating

a characterization dataset.

The IT8.7.4 Target is a Print Industry Standard Target for CMYK Printer Characterization.

It consists of 1,617 Patches.

ICC PROFILE123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49

IT8.7/4-2005

GCR is a way to replace component gray (CMY) with single channel black (K).

The overall effect is ink savings without compromising the achievable color gamut.

Another benefit of using a high amount of GCR is to minimize metamerism.

ICC PROFILEGCR (Gray Component Replacement) & Black Generation

When the characterization data is brought into a ICC Profiling Engine you can decide how you want to produce black when generating the ICC Profile.

K %

Lightness

0%

100%

Amount of GCR

Black Start

Special care should be taken when deciding the level of CGR to use and where to “Start” black replacement. If your single channel black ink produces a very grainy appearance and you start black too early, you may see “peppering” or black

dots in areas that aren’t desired like skin-tones.*Look at your linearization target to see how grainy your K ink is to make an educated guess as to where to start black replacement.

ICC PROFILEGCR (Gray Component Replacement) & Black Generation

K Start in Highlights

K Start in 1/4 Tones

K Start in Mid-tones

K Start in 3/4 Tones

Affects: -Color Accuracy-Gray balance / Neutrality-Ink consumption

Symptoms: -Metamerism-Heavy/light ink consumption $$$

ICC PROFILE& GCR (Gray Component Replacement)

ICC PROFILE

© Jonathan Read 2017

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