Measurement of print-through
Print-through is an unwanted effect when you see some of the ink from the opposite side of a paper in a magazine. It is a combination of the show-through (=effect from opacity) and the strike-through (=effect from ink penetration), both properties are closely related to the paper structure
This service is also relevant in: Metrology, Production and manufacturing
Service details
- Service
- Measurement of print-through
- Price
- Price on tender
- Delivery time
3 weeks
- Preparations
Send samples consisting of printed areas of size at least 10 x 10 mm (preferebly larger), and also unprinted areas. The printed samples should preferably be printed using black ink since this is more decisive. The sample size should be at least 100 x 100 mm. Note: Printed text can't be analysed using this method.
Purpose
Print-through is an often-encountered print quality problem mainly caused by ink penetration and insufficient opacity of the paper.
Non uniformity in substrate structure relates closely to print-through. Therefore, spatial variations of print-through provide a probe to the substrate’s structure.
The print through measurement can be used to:
- Check if the print through is acceptable and stable over time
- Benchmark to competitors
- Monitor how new settings in the productions affect the print through
- Check if new products are better or not
Method
The measurement gives:
- Assessment of the print quality and it's relationship with paper’s structure in an effective, reliable, fast and intuitive way, using an affordable standard flatbed scanner
- Quantitative characteristics of print-through over a big area, both in average and in detail
- Quantitative evaluations of print-through and its components: show-through, strike-through, the relationships between the print-through phenomenon and the underlying physical properties and quantities
Deliveries
Histograms of reflectance, light absorption, light scattering, and depth of ink penetration. The calculated numbers are saved as ASCII-files for import to Excel or another spread sheet software.