The sign of the computer to plate (CTP) technology officially entering the market is the Drupa 95 World Printing Exhibition. For colleagues in the printing industry, the emergence of CTP technology can be said to be a revolution in platemaking technology. This is not only the use of CTP technology to eliminate the film as an intermediate link, but also more important is that CTP technology truly realizes the direct integration of computer technology and printing technology. CTP technology combines digital computer information processing technology with the development of laser technology and exposes directly on the printing plate. The imaging technology and the selection of photosensitive materials used in the plate are the focus of CTP technology development.
At the Drupa95 World Printing Exhibition, 43 different CTP plate systems were exhibited. From the perspective of the applied imaging technology, most of the platemaking light sources at that time were red laser or green laser light sources. From the perspective of the photosensitive material system to which it is applied, it is mainly divided into a silver salt type and a heat-sensitive type. Because the price of the CTP system was very expensive at the time, the promotion of the CTP technology was greatly limited.
Five years later, due to the rapid development of computer technology and laser technology, CTP technology has become increasingly mature. Technological advances have also led to a substantial reduction in the price of CTP systems. CTP technology is no longer an unattainable aristocratic product, but is increasingly entering the homes of ordinary people. According to relevant statistics, in 1995, only 311 CTP systems were used worldwide; by the end of 1999, more than 12,000 CTP systems had been put into use. In five years, the average annual increase in the use of CTP systems was over 200%. During this period, the price drop of the CTP system is also alarming. At Drupa 95, the price of an 8-port CTP system was about $400,000. By Drupa 2000, only one (20-30) million dollars was needed for a CTP system. According to the survey of the US print technology authority GATF, about 65% of the large-scale printing companies in the United States use CTP technology, and the US newspaper printing industry has widely adopted CTP technology. The reasoning behind this is self-evident, because shortening the publication time means that the deadline for submission is postponed. The postponement of deadlines means that the newspaper’s news is more timely.
At the Drupa 2000 exhibition, the CTP equipment displayed has a rapid development compared to Drupa 95 in terms of variety and quantity. Nowadays, CTP technology is not only used in offset printing, but also has been widely used in flexographic and gravure screen printing. In other words, computer-to-plate technology has developed into a mature technology module that can be applied to any platemaking system. in. From the point of view of the type of photosensitive material for the offset CTP plate, in addition to the existing silver salt type and heat-sensitive type, a photosensitive resin type has now appeared. Of course, from the perspective of five years of development, thermal imaging is the fastest growing CTP plate. Thermal-type CTP plate is characterized by excellent resolution, good dot shape, wide selection of photosensitive materials, and high printing plate printing rate (without baking version up to 200,000 printing); its main drawbacks The imaging speed is relatively slow, and the energy consumption of the device is also relatively high. At present, most manufacturers have introduced thermal CTP systems and their associated plates, and the thermal CTP system has become larger and larger. This is also a major issue on Drupa2000. At this exhibition, the luxel P-9600CTP plate-making system exhibited by Fujifilm was said to be the largest and fastest at present, and its largest plate format reached BI. It took about 10 minutes to make a four-color version of a BI format. The plate does not need to bear the printing rate of up to 200,000 printing. Creo, which is known for its mature thermal technology technology, was more powerful after reorganizing it with Scitex earlier this year. Apart from bringing products from the two companies, they also introduced a four-touch thermal CTP platemaking system. - Trendsetter. In addition, the thermal CTP system, such as the one exhibited by Barco, USA, has a web width of 60 inches by 80 inches.
In recent years, a new type of violet laser light source has gradually been used for many new CTP systems. The CTP system on display at Drupa2000 sees that the violet laser light source can already be flush with the red laser light source and the green laser light source. Using violet laser as the light source for CTP plate making, the energy consumption of the equipment is lower than before. With this technology, the manufacturing cost of the equipment can be greatly reduced, and the applied plate material is also cheaper. On the Drunpa2000, many large companies have exhibited CTP systems using violet laser light sources, demonstrating that this technology has its own advantages and matures. For example, the latest Galileo Violet from Agfa is this type of device (see Figure 1). The lv-1/cobat8CTP plate-making system introduced by Mitsuhishi Chemical Co., Ltd. is also a product of this type. When the plate-making demonstration was performed at the site, its extensive plate adaptability attracted the attention of many viewers (see Figure 2).
Drupa2000 exhibition, the most eye-catching and at the same time the first new technology introduced at the World Printing Exhibition, is a conventional PS version of the UV light source CTP system, referred to as CTcP, it was first introduced by the United States BasysPrint Corporation (image 3). Its working principle is shown in Figure 4, which is roughly: ordinary UV light source, through the lens will be scattered light into parallel light, projected to the computer integrated chip DMD (Digital Micromirror Device), and DMD is controlled by computer digital image information, The changed image information is converted into a reflection dot, and the image information is thus imaged on the plate. The core component of this CTP system is a computer integrated chip (DMD) of about 4 cm x 3 cm produced by Texas Industries, Inc. (see Figure 5). According to Basysprint, applying this technology to a computer-to-plate system is the company's first. According to reports, at present, the dots formed by this plate-making method are square dots (Figure 6 is a dot-size electron microscope image with a magnification of 2,000), and its image dots are very neat.
From Drupa 95 to Drupa 2000, it took only 5 years. However, in this short period of five years, CTP technology has made great progress. The author believes that due to the appearance of violet laser light source, the CTP equipment has entered the small and medium-sized printing factories without costly value; and the emergence of CTcP technology has made the conventional PS version have a broader development prospects. In the past, CTP technology relied on special printing plates, and their high prices made it unbearable to a large number of Chinese users. The emergence of low-cost purple laser CTP technology and CTcP technology may become the mainstream of China's development of CTP technology, and this has led to a technological revolution in China's plate making industry. At the same time, the emergence of CTcP technology is also likely to give China's existing production capacity of nearly 50 million square meters of conventional PS version, bringing new opportunities for development.
At the Drupa95 World Printing Exhibition, 43 different CTP plate systems were exhibited. From the perspective of the applied imaging technology, most of the platemaking light sources at that time were red laser or green laser light sources. From the perspective of the photosensitive material system to which it is applied, it is mainly divided into a silver salt type and a heat-sensitive type. Because the price of the CTP system was very expensive at the time, the promotion of the CTP technology was greatly limited.
Five years later, due to the rapid development of computer technology and laser technology, CTP technology has become increasingly mature. Technological advances have also led to a substantial reduction in the price of CTP systems. CTP technology is no longer an unattainable aristocratic product, but is increasingly entering the homes of ordinary people. According to relevant statistics, in 1995, only 311 CTP systems were used worldwide; by the end of 1999, more than 12,000 CTP systems had been put into use. In five years, the average annual increase in the use of CTP systems was over 200%. During this period, the price drop of the CTP system is also alarming. At Drupa 95, the price of an 8-port CTP system was about $400,000. By Drupa 2000, only one (20-30) million dollars was needed for a CTP system. According to the survey of the US print technology authority GATF, about 65% of the large-scale printing companies in the United States use CTP technology, and the US newspaper printing industry has widely adopted CTP technology. The reasoning behind this is self-evident, because shortening the publication time means that the deadline for submission is postponed. The postponement of deadlines means that the newspaper’s news is more timely.
At the Drupa 2000 exhibition, the CTP equipment displayed has a rapid development compared to Drupa 95 in terms of variety and quantity. Nowadays, CTP technology is not only used in offset printing, but also has been widely used in flexographic and gravure screen printing. In other words, computer-to-plate technology has developed into a mature technology module that can be applied to any platemaking system. in. From the point of view of the type of photosensitive material for the offset CTP plate, in addition to the existing silver salt type and heat-sensitive type, a photosensitive resin type has now appeared. Of course, from the perspective of five years of development, thermal imaging is the fastest growing CTP plate. Thermal-type CTP plate is characterized by excellent resolution, good dot shape, wide selection of photosensitive materials, and high printing plate printing rate (without baking version up to 200,000 printing); its main drawbacks The imaging speed is relatively slow, and the energy consumption of the device is also relatively high. At present, most manufacturers have introduced thermal CTP systems and their associated plates, and the thermal CTP system has become larger and larger. This is also a major issue on Drupa2000. At this exhibition, the luxel P-9600CTP plate-making system exhibited by Fujifilm was said to be the largest and fastest at present, and its largest plate format reached BI. It took about 10 minutes to make a four-color version of a BI format. The plate does not need to bear the printing rate of up to 200,000 printing. Creo, which is known for its mature thermal technology technology, was more powerful after reorganizing it with Scitex earlier this year. Apart from bringing products from the two companies, they also introduced a four-touch thermal CTP platemaking system. - Trendsetter. In addition, the thermal CTP system, such as the one exhibited by Barco, USA, has a web width of 60 inches by 80 inches.
In recent years, a new type of violet laser light source has gradually been used for many new CTP systems. The CTP system on display at Drupa2000 sees that the violet laser light source can already be flush with the red laser light source and the green laser light source. Using violet laser as the light source for CTP plate making, the energy consumption of the equipment is lower than before. With this technology, the manufacturing cost of the equipment can be greatly reduced, and the applied plate material is also cheaper. On the Drunpa2000, many large companies have exhibited CTP systems using violet laser light sources, demonstrating that this technology has its own advantages and matures. For example, the latest Galileo Violet from Agfa is this type of device (see Figure 1). The lv-1/cobat8CTP plate-making system introduced by Mitsuhishi Chemical Co., Ltd. is also a product of this type. When the plate-making demonstration was performed at the site, its extensive plate adaptability attracted the attention of many viewers (see Figure 2).
Drupa2000 exhibition, the most eye-catching and at the same time the first new technology introduced at the World Printing Exhibition, is a conventional PS version of the UV light source CTP system, referred to as CTcP, it was first introduced by the United States BasysPrint Corporation (image 3). Its working principle is shown in Figure 4, which is roughly: ordinary UV light source, through the lens will be scattered light into parallel light, projected to the computer integrated chip DMD (Digital Micromirror Device), and DMD is controlled by computer digital image information, The changed image information is converted into a reflection dot, and the image information is thus imaged on the plate. The core component of this CTP system is a computer integrated chip (DMD) of about 4 cm x 3 cm produced by Texas Industries, Inc. (see Figure 5). According to Basysprint, applying this technology to a computer-to-plate system is the company's first. According to reports, at present, the dots formed by this plate-making method are square dots (Figure 6 is a dot-size electron microscope image with a magnification of 2,000), and its image dots are very neat.
From Drupa 95 to Drupa 2000, it took only 5 years. However, in this short period of five years, CTP technology has made great progress. The author believes that due to the appearance of violet laser light source, the CTP equipment has entered the small and medium-sized printing factories without costly value; and the emergence of CTcP technology has made the conventional PS version have a broader development prospects. In the past, CTP technology relied on special printing plates, and their high prices made it unbearable to a large number of Chinese users. The emergence of low-cost purple laser CTP technology and CTcP technology may become the mainstream of China's development of CTP technology, and this has led to a technological revolution in China's plate making industry. At the same time, the emergence of CTcP technology is also likely to give China's existing production capacity of nearly 50 million square meters of conventional PS version, bringing new opportunities for development.
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