Systems and methods for reducing edge effects

• US 20070134561A1
• Filed: 12/09/2005
• Published: 06/14/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Diehl, Michael, Butterfield, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 7,511,855 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 430/5
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/50 Mask blanks not covered by G03F1/20 - G03F1/34; Preparation thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 1/68 Preparation processes not covered by groups G03F1/20 - G03F1/50
• CPC Class Codes: G03F 7/2014 Contact or film exposure of light sensitive plates such as lithographic plates or circuit boards, e.g. in a vacuum frame

Abstract

systems, methods, and programs for reducing edge effects, the systems, methods, and programs include inputting an image mask, the image mask defining the location of a boundary to recieve a coating , modifying an edge of the image mask to reduced the thickness of the coating at the modified edge; creating a printing plate base on the modifide image mask; and using the printing plate to print the coating on a substrate.

Claims

1. A method for reducing edge effects, the method comprising:

inputting an image mask, the image mask defining the location of a boundary to receive a coating;

modifying an edge of the image mask to reduce a thickness of the coating at the modified edge;

creating a printing plate based on the modified image mask; and

utilizing the printing plate to print the coating on a substrate.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein modifying the edge of the image mask includes applying a gradient sweep at a region of the boundary to receive the coating.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein applying the gradient sweep to the coating further includes converting a binary image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the coating is a spot coating.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein modifying the edge of the image mask includes converting the image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to reduce the thickness of the coating between a coated boundary and uncoated boundary.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

utilizing the modified image mask to create a flexographic plate to hold the coating in desired areas, while repelling the coating in undesired areas; and

utilizing the flexographic plate to print the coating on paper.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

utilizing a digital printing press to create the image mask;

creating a graphic design to define a plurality of boundaries of areas to receive spot coating, the plurality of boundaries defining a binary pattern to determine portions of the substrate that will be overprinted with a spot coating and portions of the substrate that will remain untreated;

adding to coating boundaries a gradient sweep to transform the coated and uncoated boundaries from binary edges to gradient sweeps, the binary image being converted to continuous tone, blurred, then halftoned to create the gradient at the boundaries;

creating a flexographic plate utilizing the modified image mask, the flexographic plate being created from the digital printing press, the digital printing press utilizing the modified image mask to determine the boundaries of the flexographic plate for holding the spot coating in the coated areas and to repel the spot coating in the uncoated areas; and

utilizing the flexographic plate to print the spot coating on the substrate.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein modifying the edge of the image mask includes adding at least one gradient sweep to a UV coating by converting the image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create the gradient sweep at a region of a coated boundary and uncoated boundary.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein modifying the edge of the image mask includes adding a continuous slope to a spot coating by converting the image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create the continuous slope at a region of a coated boundary and uncoated boundary.

10. A system for reducing edge effects, comprising:

a controller that;

inputs an image mask, the image mask defining the location of a boundary to receive a coating;

modifies an edge of the image mask to reduce the thickness of the coating at the modified edge;

creates a printing plate base on the modified image mask; and

uses the printing plate to print the coating on a substrate.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein the controller applies a gradient sweep at a region of the boundary to receive the coating.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein the controller creates a binary image mask from inputted image mask data, and converts a binary image mask to continuous tone, blurs and then halftones to create the gradient sweep at the coated and uncoated boundaries.

13. The system according to claim 10, wherein the controller adds at least one gradient sweep to a spot coating by converting the image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create the gradient sweep at a coated and uncoated boundaries.

14. The system according to claim 10, wherein the controller adds a continuous slope to the coating by converting a binary image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create the gradient sweep at the coated and uncoated boundaries.

15. The system according to claim 10, wherein the controller uses the modified image mask to create a flexographic plate to hold the coating in desired areas, while repelling the coating in undesired areas;

and

uses the flexographic plate to print the coating on paper.

16. The system according to claim 10, wherein the controller uses a digital printing press to create the modified image mask;

creates a graphic design to define a plurality of boundaries of areas to receive spot coating, the plurality of boundaries defining a binary pattern to determine portions of the substrate that will be overprinted with the spot coating and portions of the substrate that will remain untreated;

adds to coating boundaries the gradient sweep to transform the coated and uncoated boundaries from binary edges to gradient sweep, the binary image being converted to continuous tone, blurred, then halftone to create the gradient at the boundaries;

creates a flexographic plate using the modified image mask, the flexographic plate being created from the digital printing press, the digital printing press uses the modified image mask to determine the boundaries of the flexographic plate for holding the spot coating in the coated areas and to repel the spot coating in the uncoated areas; and

uses the flexographic plate to print the spot coating on the substrate.

17. A storage medium storing a set of program instructions executable on a data processing device and usable for reducing edge effects, the instructions comprising:

instructions for inputting an image mask, the image mask defining the location of a boundary to receive a coating;

instructions for modifying an edge of the image mask to reduce the thickness of the coating at the modified edge;

instructions for creating a printing plate base on the modified image mask; and

instructions for using the printing plate to print the coating on a substrate.

18. The program according to claim 17, wherein the program further includes instructions for converting the binary image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create a gradient sweep at a coated and uncoated boundaries.

19. The program according to claim 17, wherein the program further includes instructions for converting the binary image mask to continuous tone, blurring, and then halftoning to create a continuous slope at a coated and uncoated boundaries.

20. The program according to claim 17, further comprising instructions for:

utilizing a digital printing press to create the modified image mask;

creating a graphic design to define a plurality of boundaries of areas to receive spot coating, the plurality of boundaries defining a binary pattern to determine portions of the substrate that will be overprinted with a spot coating and portions of the substrate that will remain untreated;

adding to coating boundaries a gradient sweep to transform the coated and uncoated boundaries from binary edges to gradient sweeps, the binary image being converted to continuous tone, blurred, then halftone to create the gradient at the boundaries;

creating a flexographic plate utilizing the modified mask, the flexographic plate being created from the digital printing press, the digital printing press utilizing the modified mask to determine the boundaries of the flexographic plate for holding the spot coating in the coated areas and to repel the spot coating in the uncoated areas; and

utilizing the flexographic plate to print the spot coating on the substrate.