PROFILING - Wasatch Computer Technology, LLC
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1. Note on Fixed Dot with Dilute Ink Sets There are two places where Individual Ink Channel Reductions can be performed in Calibration or Halftone Properties One or the other will be used depending on the inkset and the dot mode being used NEVER USE BOTH SETS OF INDIVIDUAL INK CHANNEL REDUCTION CONTROLS AT THE SAME TIME Illustration 4b Halftone Properties window If printing with dilute inks light cyan light magenta light black gray light gray etc and the printer is in a fixed ee dot mode check the Fixed Dot Ink Sian gt Finish Reduction control in Halftone Properties ry Linearization Patiem Eyeare ps Copyright 2004 Wasatch Corrputer Technology inc and perform all Individual Ink Channel Reductions in the Halftone Properties window Illustration 4b a oO Qs 8 83 Be Jo 8 2 2 Total Ink Limit Review the print of the j 3 gu ge ag generalTest file to determine if a Total L _ Ink Limit is needed in addition to the Illustration 4c Color patches from generalTest Individual Ink Channel Reductions The upper right area of the test print ee E n a a E n E E D a D D a consists of three parts The first part is a i ion rt er wg E E Bun step pattern from 0 to 400 total ink Illustration 4d Total Ink step pattern Illustration 4d For the Total Ink Limit select the highest percentage square that is dry and does not have print artifacts 5 i8 Wasatch noticed2. feels maen lbet Set Default n Sal ern al MECHO Fi Illustration 6b Densitometry Options window Step 6 Linearize Calibrate the Printer Open the appropriate linearization file that matches the spectrophotometer and printing scenario such as c psfiles DTP41 ps or c psfiles DTP32 ps Find more information on which file to use for the spectrophotometer in the Densitometers section of SoftRIP s online help NOTE If the spectrophotometer is the DTP20 or the Eye One the test file already contains the linearization pattern and does not need to be printed again RIP and print the selected linearization test pattern Return to the Calibration window and click the Calibration Curves button to launch the Calibration Curves window Illustration 6a Use the Options menu on this window to choose between performing a density linearization default and a dot linearization Illustration 6b The choice should be driven by the output type and more importantly by the expectations of the ICC profiling software Test each setting to determine which provides the best results with the profiling package Select the densitometry hardware from the Densitometers menu Device specific Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin instructions for reading the linearization patches will be displayed After following the on screen instructions and reading the test patterns strips click OK to exit
3. The resulting data will be displayed in the Calibration Curves window and will look similar to the curves in Illustration 6c If measuring a smooth substrate without any surface texture the appearance of the curves will usually be smooth without any abrupt shifts in the direction of the curve If such discontinuities exist this may indicate the presence of an inaccurate measurement See steps below to help verify the resulting linearization curves Clicking Original will display the density measurements for each patch on the linearization target By reviewing these values overinking issues that may not be visible to the naked eye on the print can be found For each color the highest measured density should be displayed at the top of the column with each value below showing a lower measured density If a higher measured density is displayed below a lower measured density as shown Illustration 6c Calibration Curves display for the Cyan channel in Illustration 6d this indicates that too much ink is being printed for that color channel even if the scanned print had Hand Entry no visual overinking artifacts a As ink increases the measured density will also increase but only to a certain point As the printed ink amount increases and the maximum achievable density measurement is approached the increase in density diminishes and eventually drops off completely Once this point is reached printing more ink will often result in
4. Perceptual Gea for prety design workflow includes using embedded ICC profiles check the Use Embedded ICC CIE Lab Color Profiles box cee Spm AR Devoe Cr Click OK to exit the Color Transforms window and click OK again to exit the Illustration 2a Color Transforms window Imaging Configuration window A Save As window will open to name the new Imaging Configuration We recommend naming the in progress Imaging Configuration with a name like Unlinearized_None If making Imaging Configurations for use in a production capacity it may be best to avoid having too many ambiguously named Imaging Configurations by using a more detailed naming system such as Unlinearized_None_resolution_inktype_media Step 3 Test Print On the Print Setup window make any other non color related selections required for printing These settings include Physical Connection Paper Width etc Click OK SoftRIP is now ready to print the test prints From the File menu select Open and browse to C psfiles and select the appropriate target file for the densitometry device such as generalTest018eyeone ps or generalTest018dtp20 ps Open one of these files and select RIP and Print 2 Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin to print the file The resulting print will be evaluated in the next section NOTE The exact location of the psfiles folder may vary depending on the drive to which it was assigned when SoftRIP was installe
5. a TA These settings should remain constant Gop Mate r m during profiling All adjustments should be I Register Marks r z redone after loading any new material The T Haines r printer should be in its optimal operating a ee condition before following the steps outlined below Illustration 1a Print Setup window w Annotation Details Step 1 Setup Configuration Text Lines Per Inch Typeface Launch Wasatch SoftRIP and select Setup from the Print menu C B cmall type Courier aa C4 Helvetica cae Select the Printer Model and set the Imaging Configuration C2 C Helvetica Bold pp to none in the Print Setup window Illustration 1a Check C 1 large type ne oon Separate Lines System Font Annotate Prints and the Annotation Details window will open Illustration 1b We recommend enabling Printer Imaging Configuration Date Time and Comment so each image will be T Job Name printed with the settings and additional comments E V Printer On the Print Setup window click the Edit button This will launch 7 Tanging Coniguration the Imaging Configuration window Illustration 1c Hip 7 Comment 100 i00 100 K100 a On the Imaging Configuration window click the Properties button This will launch a window that provides additional settings for the printer such as print modes resolutions inksets etc Every printer has a different set of printer properties Determine the intended outp
6. improved results when the Total Ink Limit was applied within the profiling software rather than within SoftRIP The Total Ink Limit will be set before generating patches in the profiling software This could be done at this step or at Step 8 Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin 3 Illustration 4e Composite Blacks step pattern Illustration 4f Primary inks and CMY black swatches The second part is a series of open boxes consisting of composite blacks Illustration 4e Check this area for media bleed over spray and resolution issues The third part is a series of three rows of swatches located below the boxes of black lines Illustration 4f These swatches consist of primary inks and one CMY black in the upper right corner circled in red The CMY black may show excessive bleeding or artifacts due to the inks mixing where the first two tests above do not This is why it s very important to review this patch Check this area for individual ink channel retention issues NOTE Be aware of the amount of drying time needed before the patches can be handled in this step because this may indicate that further ink limiting is required This is an individual preference and is determined by what drying time would be acceptable in a production environment If there are issues with any of these test patterns set a Total Ink Limit or return to the Individual Ink Channel Reduction
7. scan the linearization target to verify that it is linear and examine the row of composite black patches running from 25 to 400 located in the top right corner for any overinking artifacts Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin 7 Use the value of the patch with the most ink that doesn t bleed to set the Total Ink Limit when generating the first target from the ICC profiling software After the ICC profiling target file has been generated with the Total Ink Limit used from the step above print this file and examine it for any overinking issues If none exist proceed to scan this target generate an output ICC profile and import into SoftRIP as outlined in Step 8 If the printed ICC profiling target does have overinking issues go back to the ICC profiling software and generate a new target with a larger reduction If there are only a few places with minor bleeding it may be best to let the target dry for an hour or so scan and see if the ICC profile generated from the data creates a quality result NOTE on Setting the Total Ink Limit Below 200 When setting the Total Ink Limit it is best to set the maximum value without introducing overinking artifacts For many profiles this value is often in the range of 250 to 350 In special cases it may be necessary to set the Total Ink Limit below 200 While this is more common with Hi Fi profiles it may be necessary for some CMYK profiles as well Thi
8. WASATCH COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY LLC TECHNICAL BULLETIN PROFILING WITH WASATCH SOFTRIP Getting Started This document will outline the steps to follow to create ICC profiles using a combination of Wasatch SoftRIP and a third party color profiling software package Further it will provide instructions for importing the ICC output profile into SoftRIP and printing a final test of the newly created Imaging Configuration The document will also cover processes for Hi Fi profiling In addition to this document you will also need to refer to the ICC profiling software manual for intermediate steps where noted It is recommended that a minimum of 30 linear feet of media be allocated to produce each Imaging Configuration i NOTE Always adjust the printer before profiling Follow the steps outlined in the oe a printer s user manual for printer adjustment nonam Bez Adjustment refers to the set rocesses Physical Connection TCP P 192 168 1 60 9100Epson 4900 o CPAP List Help eee aaa a aae E ke Pint Margins EPPP performed on the printer and are specific to Paper Width ee O a that printer model Adjustment processes Paper Height 9999 764 Set Maximum Height T Height Center Left Margin 0 000 Set Margins to Zero include media feed adjustment bidirectional alignment head height media thickness ei MESE head speed and any other adjustments ean sma prescribed by the printer manufacturer
9. d r 9 Calibration Step 4 Determine Ink Limiting Press Curves After evaluating the print from the steps above determine if an Individual Ink Channel Reduction to one or more of the channels is required An Individual Ink Channel Reduction is intended to correct individual ink channel problems Ink reduction is performed for each channel so look at the patches for each color individually Examine each color channel contained in the linearization target in the top left of the generalTest target Illustration 4c If any visible overinking artifacts are present such as undried ink bleeding substrate warping etc an ink reduction should be applied to that specific Illustration 4a Calibration window channel To make adjustments to the Individual Ink Channel Reduction Precision Stochastic Screens click on Calibration from the Color Transforms menu R rrr ox Illustration 4a Use the slider controls to set the ink reductions Scale Factor 1 oe Core E Minimum Dot Size microns 23 These controls may be used for any channel individually or for all EEE Beak ES Linear Dot Selection channels together if the Lock box is checked Steps differ if using fixed dot with dilute inks See note below After setting the ink reductions re save the Imaging Configuration named Unlinearized_None or similar and add notes on what changes were made by using Edit Info as described in Step 1
10. erating the ICC output profile set the Total Ink Limit LOWER than the value set in SoftRIP All brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders 8 Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin
11. guration 1440V_CMYK_Premium_Glossy_Photo V Use Embedded ICC Profiles when present Use Color Separation Rule RGB Vector ICC Output Profile RGB 1440v_Premium_Glossy_Photo_1 Raster _ Select View ICC Device Link Profile Vector gt Sla Vew Perceptual default for pretty CMYK System Default Raster Sa View Perceptual default for pretty v CIE Lab Color HiFi Device Color Split HiFi Device Color in the profiling software for best results 1 If the profiling software applies a curve to Spot Colors we recommend modifying the default curve so that it is linear for each Spot Color 2 When profiling a 5 color inkset such as CMYKR or CMYKOr with i1Profiler ensure the software is configured to save the ICC or ICM file as a version 2 profile rather than a version 4 2 profile shown as version 4 which is the default in i1Profiler Calibration eke 400 Ink Limit Total Percent lt 4 FPresenecrateSeees Step 9 Import Profile Halftone Properties Once the ICC profile has been generated from the profiling software import it into SoftRIP and match it to the linearization in the Color Transforms window Illustration 9a To do this open the Color Transform menu In the middle section of this window is Illustration 9a Color Transforms window the ICC Output Profile section It should Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin still s
12. how None as the profile Browse for the correct ICM or ICC file in the directory where it was saved from the profiling software Once the output ICC profile is selected the arrows on the Color Transforms window should turn green indicating that the color workflow is working correctly with an output ICC profile in place Click OK until the Save As window is displayed Save the Imaging Configuration with the desired final name We recommend using the Resolution_Inkset_Media naming convention to make it easier to find the Imaging Configuration later Clicking OK will save the Imaging Configuration The Imaging Configuration can now be accessed from the Imaging Configuration pull down menu on the Print Setup window Step 10 Print Profile Test With the new Imaging Configuration complete we recommend gi i printing a reference file to help determine the quality Wasatch l does not supply a file for this use but we suggest creating one 10 Link Test ho internally as a final standardized testing procedure This test file should be one in which the original color is standardized We ai recommend NOT using a customer file or a random color file as it will be difficult to locate color issues in these types of files Rather Wasatch recommends printing a standard familiar image It should have primary colors secondary colors and an image with A details like faces shadows etc It should also have both CMYK e fy and RGB components De
13. lustration 7a If the curves look linear use the Cancel button to back out of all windows and return to the main window If the curves do not look linear have large bumps or fall sharply away from the center line perform a new linearization To do this first clear out the linearization curves by using Clear All from the top menu Click OK to exit out of the Calibration Color Transforms and Imaging Configuration windows Re save the Imaging Configuration with a new name such as Linearization_Second_Attempt Return to Step 6 to perform a new linearization and repeat the steps to confirm linearization If the curves still have bumps or fall away from the center line after the second confirmation reconsider the Individual Ink Channel Reduction settings Step 8 Print Profile Target Open the profiling software being used and generate a standard set of patches The Total Ink Limit may need to be set at this step before generating the patches refer to Step 4 Now with the newly created linearized Imaging Configuration applied RIP and print the file created in the profiling software Allow the patches to dry if necessary and scan the patches into the profiling software Save the generated ICC or ICM file to a location easily browsed to for importing into SoftRIP such as the Windows Desktop NOTE When working with a Hi Fi print mode additional steps may need to be taken w Color Transforms Confi
14. n it is highly recommended to follow the instructions below closely to confirm the linearization process was successful As this step is only to confirm that the linearization curve is accurate DO NOT use the OK button when exiting Profiling with Wasatch SoftRIP Wasatch Computer Technology Technical Bulletin 5 ox w Calibration Curves Densitometers Original Clear ClearAll Curves Options Help Calibration Curves v Colorant All channels Cyan Red Magenta Green Yellow Blue Black White Illustration 7a Confirm linearization from these windows during this step unless explicitly instructed to do so It is very important to use the CANCEL button to exit all windows Clicking OK will write over the linearization data with the confirmation data and invalidate the linearization process RIP and print the same linearization test pattern from Step 6 using the linearized Imaging Configuration If one of the generalTest files was used RIP and print it again Open the Calibration Curves window Use the Options menu to select the same linearization type used in the original linearization Select the hardware from the Densitometers menu again and follow the steps to read the linearization patches from this newly printed target When asked to overwrite or add the new curves to the linearization choose Yes Now the curves shown in the Calibration Curves display should look nearly linear Il
15. olor Transforms Configuration Click on the Color Transforms button to launch the Color Transforms window Illustration 2a This is the master color flowchart window Notice that all color data is cleared and set to none or default as a result of setting the Imaging Configuration to none In the lower right hand corner of the window note that Precision Stochastic Screens is displayed as the default halftone method For most applications Precision Stochastic Screens is the preferred halftone method and Wasatch Imaging Configurations are created using it However it is possible to choose from a Color Transforms Configuration none few halftone methods from this window on oa a which to build an Imaging Configuration aa E Whatever halftone method is chosen will be a incorporated into the Imaging Configuration tia Changing it later will invalidate the Imaging Configuration This technical document only ICC Output Profile covers processes for profiling with Precision Raster pe Stochastic Screens Profiling steps will var ee trem for other halftone eod i ICC Device Link Profile b EK Bypass ICC 00 ink Limit Total Percent In the ICC Input Profile column on the ut left side of the Color Transforms window Precision Stochastic Screens all four input color spaces should be set to Haftone Properties System Default Also the default rendering Rader intent of Perceptual has been set If the
16. s section gives additional tips when setting the Total Ink Limit below 200 for most situations When setting the Total Ink Limit below 200 there is the possibility of artificially restricting the overall color gamut of the resulting profile To maximize the resulting color gamut try to keep the Individual Ink Channel Reductions set to their maximum values without introducing overinking artifacts When possible use the controls available in the ICC profiling software to set the Total Ink Limit The first step to setting the Total Ink Limit in the ICC profiling software is generating the ICC profiling target file Use the controls available in this software to generate a target with the appropriate Total Ink Limit as determined in Step 4 above Some ICC profiling packages do not allow an ICC profiling target to be generated with a Total Ink Limit below 200 If an ICC profiling target with a 200 Total Ink Limit prints with some minor bleeding but an acceptable amount of dry time still allows the target to be scanned with a profiling device it is recommended to proceed Once the target has been scanned set the Total Ink Limit to an appropriate level below 200 when generating the ICC profile If the 200 target print has overinking issues that makes scanning impossible even after an extended dry time do the following e Set an appropriate Total Ink Limit in SoftRIP prior to printing the 200 target e Print and scan the target e When gen
17. step to apply stronger reductions If setting a Total Ink Limit in Wasatch return to the Color Transforms window Above the Halftone Properties on the right side of the Color Transforms windows is the Ink Limit Total Percent control Enter the percent for Total Ink Limit click OK to exit the Color Transforms window click OK to exit the Imaging Configuration window and save the unlinearized Imaging Configuration Step 5 Test Print RIP and print the generalTest018eyeone ps C psfiles target to check for any additional Individual Ink Channel Reductions or Total Ink Limits that may be required All squares should have good retention show no print artifacts and have no bleeding problems If there are still ink retention issues depending on the printer model there are other options that can be used for limiting ink For example lower the resolution or change to a dry mode if available If changes to these settings are required to create a quality Imaging Configuration restart the profiling process from Step 1 r amp Calibration Curves Densitometers Original Clear ClearAll Curves Options Help Calibration Curves Colorant All channels Cyan Red Magenta Green Yellow Blue Black White Illustration 6a Calibration Curves window i Densitometry Options i Linearize Density Linearize Dot Area Convert Density Measurements to Dot Area fi OO Yule Mielzen Co
18. t differences in the steps above when creating Imaging Configurations As in Step 3 it is important to select the appropriate target file for the densitometry device For Hi Fi profiling due to the increased number of colors it is important to select a target file that will address the total number of colors present on the printer being profiled To do so determine the total number of non dilute colors in the printer s inkset Here are a few examples e CMYKLcLmOrGr and CMYKRGdBI use six each e CMYKLcLmLkLIkRGB uses seven If the inkset includes dilute colors such as Lc Lm Lk Llk etc SoftRIP treats these as supplemental to the color channel they are a dilute of and should not be included in the total count of color channels For example the inkset CMYKLcLmLkLIkRGB has eleven different inks but only has seven primary color channels In this example the target file generalTest018eyeone_7color ps would be the correct choice Once the total number of non dilute colors has been determined use the version of the generalTest018eyeone_ Ncolor ps or generalTest018dtp20_Ncolor ps where N is the number of non dilute colors in the inkset Use this target for steps 3 through 7 above in the same manner as when creating a CMYK Imaging Configuration Once Step 7 is complete and linearization is confirmed proceed with the steps below After printing the generalTest target for the linearization check that is done during the validation in Step 7
19. the measured density being lower This is the cause of the overinking issue mentioned above x amp El 3 aE ELL z ae F p E T T a LE a amp 0 476515 0 218149 0 331862 127 25137 0 17966 0 276088 0 196964 0 167224 1 To address this issue cancel out of the Calibration Curves window without saving the linearization curve perform an Individual Ink Channel Reduction to the channel s with this overinking issue save the Imaging Configuration RIP and print the test target and re measure Repeat these steps as necessary until the maximum measured density is displayed at the top of the column in Original Data for each color with all values below descending S a hk TEE l l an a LEEI HEPER FEE i 1 i Illustration 6d Density measurements for each patch on the linearization target When complete click OK until the Save As window is displayed Name the Imaging Configuration so that it is identified as the original linearization data NOTE Exit all windows by clicking OK instead of Cancel or the data will be lost Step 7 Confirm Linearization Optional NOTE This step is optional and not necessary to create an Imaging Configuration However as this step will help confirm the accuracy of the linearization curve scanned into SoftRIP in Step 6 and an accurate linearization curve is an important part of a quality Imaging Configuratio
20. ut configuration and select from features included with the printer When the selections are complete click OK CMYK Vector Test Pattern Illustration 1b Annotation Details window Modified 04 06 15 eS heey Concern NOTE It is extremely important that all printer settings halftone settings inks media print modes and other factors that affect the print condition be set prior to ink limiting If these settings are changed return to the beginning of Step 1 to restart the process Configuration folder C wwrip configurations epson4900 o Configuration none Printer Model Epson Stylus Pro 4900 CMYK 720x1440 dpi Color Transforms Special Colors T Support PostScript Overpint Back on the Imaging Configuration window click the Edit Info button and create a text file to record the properties selected as part of the configuration This is especially helpful if the final Imaging Configuration will be distributed and is a good place to keep track of changes as the Imaging Configuration is built When Edit Info is clicked the default text editor will open for entering notes When done select Save from the File menu and the info txt file will be saved within the Imaging Configuration This information will be available to anyone who clicks the Info button later This file can be edited at any time Separations mode 3 re ee Illustration 1c Imaging Configuration window Step 2 C
21. vice CMYK TIFF r En A Device RGB TIFF f evi Aa A eer es i iz in bhp i Be sure that all color and printer settings are consistent with the es i ii si LEBEEBE SEE EE be oh Ee al settings used when the ICC profile was generated RIP and print z a iin ao sbERPEREE cee i the test image i CREET EPErEEN SEPN PEP B rge c E E E E S T Pe N iF Pe ee ENER M Beene eenan f Analyze the print for quality assurance in order to determine A LT BEREERRRRRBRREBE Do bho whether the new Imaging Configuration should pass or fail i PEEFEEREFERFEERPEEERRE R i Things to check include posterization lizarding effects turtlin of Ce i S P nap 6 8 2 RRR REPT ERP RRTCTeECeeRehee e effects bleeding banding patterns introduced by process and AII e a rr eee any other abnormalities Also check the final print for saturation EECC ME BEES REEL MM and overall color Keeping in mind that different substrates tm BASS Ce ee BBEL i media will look different it is reasonable to ask Is this the p Waa l expected behavior for the media and resolution T a a a a Illustration 10a Profile test NOTE on Hi Fi Profiling Hi Fi profiling refers to creating Imaging Configurations in SoftRIP using a printer that has an inkset with colors beyond CMYK such as RGB OrGr RdBI etc For these inksets please refer to the instructions below for importan
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