Digital printing - the balance of accuracy, repeatability and quality

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Digital printing - the balance of accuracy, repeatability and quality

The digital printing industry has transformed the way print media is produced, providing fast and efficient printing on a variety of substrates such as paper, cardboard, PVC, and laminates. One common type of digital printing is ultraviolet (UV) printing, which uses UV light to dry and harden each layer as ink is transferred to the substrate.

The vital role of encoders in digital printing

Precision encoders are essential components of digital printing equipment, enabling accurate and repeatable movement of the print head or platform across the substrate. They ensure precise printing quality, improve overall efficiency and productivity, and allow the printer to operate at optimal speeds while minimising waste and downtime. Here are a few examples of how precision encoders are used in high-quality digital prints:

1. Image positioning and cropping

Precision encoders are used to accurately position the printing substrate (such as paper or canvas) relative to the printing mechanism. This ensures that the image is printed exactly where it's intended, minimising cropping and alignment errors.

Encoder for printing - Color consistency 2.png

2. Dot placement

High-quality prints require precise dot placement to achieve fine details and smooth gradients. Precision encoders in the printing equipment control the movement of the print head or laser to accurately position each dot, contributing to the overall image quality.

3. Print head movement

In inkjet and laser printing technologies, precision encoders guide the movement of the print head across the substrate. This movement determines the pattern and density of dots laid down, affecting the overall image clarity and quality.

4. Resolution enhancement

Encoders play a role in enhancing print resolution. They ensure that the print head moves at consistent speeds and intervals, allowing for higher resolution output without jitter or irregularities.

5. Colour consistency

Encoders help maintain colour consistency by accurately controlling the amount of ink or toner deposited on the substrate. This is essential for producing prints with accurate and uniform colour reproduction.

6. Colour registration

In multi-colour printing processes, precision encoders help control the precise alignment of different colour plates. This ensures that colours are accurately registered and overlaid, resulting in sharp and vibrant images without colour fringing or misalignment.

Encoder for printing - color registration.png

Navigating the complexity of digital printing requirements

Finding a high-precision encoder that can meet the diverse and demanding requirements of printing machines can be a challenge.

Immunity to contaminants

Encoders must resist potential contaminants, including grease, dust particles, and scratches. This robustness helps to ensures performance and reliability, while keeping maintenance requirements to a minimum.

Renishaw's RESOLUTE™ true absolute optical encoder has excellent dirt immunity and an impressive specification that breaks new ground in position feedback. It is the world's first absolute encoder capable of 1 nm resolution up to 100 m/s.

Critical precision

Encoder accuracy underpins motion control, where even slight errors can lead to positioning discrepancies. These discrepancies result in unfavorable print outcomes, such as prominent streaks, stitching errors, and notable colour irregularities, all detracting from the desired print quality.

The high-performance TONiC™ optical encoder from Renishaw is designed with a super compact readhead, suitable for highly dynamic precision motion systems.

Encoder for printing - Critical precision.png

Large inkjet printer working multicolor cmyk on vinyl banner.

Renishaw offers an range of precision encoders designed to solve the unique challenges of digital printing. Our high precision encoders can be tailored to seamlessly integrate into your equipment design, aligning with your specific output format requirements.

What to consider when selecting encoder systems for digital printing?

Digital printing

Performance

✔ Scale accuracy
✔ Scale linearity
✔ Resolution
✔ Axes lengths
✔ Speed
✔ Controller input frequency
✔ Cable flex life
✔ Cable flex radius

Environment

✔ Temperature
✔ Vibration
✔ IP rating

Installation

✔ Ride height tolerance
✔ Yaw / pitch / roll
✔ Connectors
✔ Cable extension
✔ Readhead travel orientation
✔ Top or side mount
✔ Substrate type
✔ Mounting method - adhesive / track / end fixing /epoxy or screw mounted
✔ Reference datum
✔ Limits

Others

✔ Analogue / digital
✔ Interpolation clock frequency
✔ Alarm type
✔ Reference limit
✔ Protocol

Success stories: digital printing

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Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book.

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Digital presses – accuracy, repeatability and quality in commercial printers

Scodix Ultra™ digital presses enable commercial printers and converters to produce tangible enhancements for a wide variety of applications, such as marketing literature, stationery items, book covers, boxes, premium packages and greeting cards.

A key feature of the Skodix Ultra digital press is its wide range of compatible substrates, including paper, cardboard, PVC and laminates. This requires a novel type of conveyor system capable of precise positioning control.

After reviewing several alternatives, we found the TONiC™ optical linear encoder to answer our needs. The main decision factors were accuracy, repeatability and quality.

Scodix (Israel)

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UV inkjet printers – no compromise between speed and peace of mind

Flora Digital specialises in wide-format inkjet technology for the commercial print industry, its printers include ultraviolet inkjet printers that leverage high-value components to ensure state-of-the-art performance.

For cost and durability reasons, inkjet printers tend to use open-type encoder systems, the encoder design should account for dust particulates, ink and other types of contaminant. Renishaw's advanced optical filtering technology filters out non-periodic signal contributions, caused by contamination of the scale, and ensures a high-fidelity output signal.

The printing plant environment is very intensive; downtime for maintenance invariably results in economic losses. Renishaw's *RGH41 encoder system gives excellent performance, higher axis speed, and peace of mind.

Shenzhen Runtianzhi Digital Equipment Co Ltd (China)

*Alternative upgrade: QUANTiC™ encoder with RKLC40 scale.

Recommended solutions

Digital printing

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For electric vehicles (EVs)

RESOLUTE™ true-absolute encoder

The true-absolute encoder with a high-speed fine-resolution position measurement system. Position is acquired immediately on start-up without requiring any motion, offering smooth velocity control and dependable positional stability. Available with linear and rotary scales with a variety of serial interfaces.

✔ High speed

✔ Excellent dirt Immunity

✔ Low SDE

✔ Low jitter

More details

ATOM™ miniature optical encoder

The miniature optical incremental linear and rotary encoder system offers innovative design combining miniaturisation with leading-edge signal stability, dirt immunity and reliability.

✔ Miniature

✔ Advanced signal stability

✔ Dirt immunity

✔ Reliability

More details

QUANTiC™ incremental encoder

Integrates proven filtering optics and interpolation technology into a super-compact, analogue or digital incremental open optical encoder, with wide installation tolerances and built-in calibration functions.

✔ Wide installation tolerances

✔ Dirt immunity

✔ High performance

✔ Robust

More details

VIONiC™ digital incremental encoder

High performance digital optical encoder designed with super compact readhead, suitable for highly-dynamic precision motion systems.

✔ Superior metrology

✔ Ultra-low Sub-Divisional Error

More details

TONiC™ incremental encoder

A high performance optical encoder designed with super compact readhead, suitable for highly-dynamic precision motion systems.

✔ (Very) low jitter

✔ Fine resolutions down to 1 nm

More details

OnAxis™ encoder modules

✔ Wide installation tolerances

✔ Dirt immunity

✔ High performance

✔ Robust

More details

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