Talking about Digital Image (8)——Digital Image Output Equipment
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This issue is the last issue of digital imaging. The previous pages include digital image definition, digital input devices (such as digital cameras), digital image production and software. This issue is the end of the article, the author will try to introduce a variety of digital image output devices, of course, in this small space can not cover all products or technologies. There are many types of digital video output devices, which can be roughly divided into products for general household use, products for professional photography or digital shop, products for publishing and printing, and products for medical, astronomy and scientific research. Previous image output devices were analogous, and today they have entered the digital or electronic age, and most of the products have joined digital technology. Now I am going to introduce the following eight kinds of digital image output devices, some of which you use in daily life, others may appear in the advertising publishing and printing industry.
(1) laser photocopying / printer
The photocopying technology, named after Xerography, was invented by American Chester Carlson in 1938, and the first photocopying machine has been available for more than 50 years. Old-fashioned photocopiers use light bulbs or light pipes to expose them. Currently, new laser photocopiers use laser and digital technology to greatly improve image quality. Some laser photocopiers can be connected to computers, so we can also regard them as computer printers. On the other hand, some computer printers are equipped with scanners, which can also be used for photocopying purposes. At this moment, color laser photocopying or printers generally have a resolution of 600dpi, while black and white laser photocopiers or printers are up to 1200dpi, which is several times better than the old one ten years ago, and the price is several times cheaper. Usually the laser photocopying or printer only has A4 or A3 format. The general price ranges from about HK$2,000 (black and white machine) to tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars (color machine).
(2) inkjet printer
Most color computer printers in the home market now use inkjet technology because they are cheaper than color laser printers. In addition to home products (small/desktop), there are also medium and large inkjet printers for commercial advertising or promotion, such as A dozen-foot poster can be output by a large inkjet printer (Figure 2). The advantage of inkjet printing is that it can be printed on a variety of materials, besides paper, it can be metal, glass, plastic or textured surfaces. In addition, inkjet technology is also used in drafting, such as the Iris professional inkjet printer from Sai Angel. At present, professional inkjet printers have an output resolution of up to 1800 dpi, while household products have as high as 1440 dpi.
(3) Sublimation printer
Early sublimation printing technology was a high-tech commercial application, but it is now also used in general households. In recent years, small sublimation printers have been used for digital photo printing. The home use is generally 3R format; while the shop is A4 or A3. Because its output is close to the pointless state, the color and quality are close to traditional photos (the output technology introduced later is the real digital photo printing, the quality is very high). In addition, this technology is also used for color proofing or proofreading. Generally, the temperature of sublimation printing does not exceed A3, and the resolution is about 300ppi (not dpi, as explained in Table 1). 300ppi (such as 2 4-bit or more per pixel) is already high resolution, enough to satisfy the eyes.
(4) Digital photo printer
Italy's Durst launched the Lambda large format (50-inch wide and unlimited length) digital photo printer in 1996, followed by the smaller Lambda; Jiecheng is the agent of Lambda Hong Kong and China, and Chai Wan ColorSix is One of them has one of Lambda's digital photo output services companies. The American company also has a similar product, Lightjet, whose maximum format is 49 inches by 97 inches; its Hong Kong agent is Kodak, and Wanchai FingerPrint can provide both Lightjet and Kodak LED digital photo printing services. In addition, Sienna FotoPrint, also represented by Aihuaxing, is also a digital photo printer with a format of only A3 or A4. Due to its compact size, it is suitable for small professional shop. Durst Lambda, Cinematic Lightjet, Kodak LED Photo Printer and Sienna FotoPrint can also use traditional photo paper and syrup. The output digital photos and traditional photos are the same material and no point (continuous tone), but digital photos are better than Traditional photos are noticeably brighter and more saturated, while images and lines are sharper and sharper. In addition to the Kodak LED, which can only output RA4 photo paper, all of them can output a variety of RA4 and P3 photographic papers and lamps. In addition, in addition to only Kodak using LED as a photographic paper source, the other three are red, green and blue lasers. For the digital photos output by the four, the author thinks that the quality is very close, and it is also very beautiful. In addition, because digital photo printers can use traditional scouring materials (a cost of A4 photographic paper is about $2.5), the material cost is much lower than that of sublimation materials (an A4 output costs $2.0). I am very grateful to the information and digital photos provided by the agents and digital output companies. Table 2 lists the maximum output format, resolution, and print speed of the four printers.
(5) 35 cm digital slide output machine
Such products existed a decade ago or earlier and are often used in design, advertising, or publishing houses. This device can output digital slides with very high resolution. A 35mm slide can contain over 10 million pixels, and the output slides have no dots, which is no different from traditional slides.
(6) Digital Document Feeder
In addition to traditional mechanical drafting and chemical proofing, digital drafting is another option. The advantage of digital drafting is that you can output color proof without the need for film, saving cost and time, and it is more ideal with computer printing or digital printing. There are also a variety of digital drafting machines, such as inkjet printers, sublimation proofing machines, and digital drafters using lasers. The second issue of the 1998 issue has a more detailed introduction.
(7) Computer Direct Plate Making (CTP)
In the past one or two years, Hong Kong's printing industry has begun to accept computer-to-plate, and the popular premium brands include Heidelberg Creo Trendsetter. Companies such as Angels, Screens, Agfa and Cinema also offer large CTP computer platesetters in Hong Kong. In addition to large or giant CTP computer platesetters, Hong Kong also has small CTP computer platesetters, and Next Technologies has small CTP devices. Plate making is one of the most arduous tasks of the printing house, often the neck of a large factory. CTP can quickly complete the plate making work, improve production efficiency, and improve quality.
(8) Digital printing
Digital printing presses have been unearthed in recent years and have been one of the hot topics in the printing industry. They are not very popular in Hong Kong and have not become a global climate. Although the author believes that digital printing is one of the inevitable technologies in the future, it is also a long way to be popular or mature. The more famous brands still seem to be Xeikon, Indigo and Heidelberg DI, the first two are all digital presses that offer a variable data printing function (that is, you can print different pages per page, like your computer printer), while the latter is just The semi-digital printing machine is plated and operated by computer control machine, but the information after the plate making is fixed and cannot be changed, so the content printed on each page is the same.