A screen mask inspection device inspects a screen mask including a screen opening that forms a printing pattern, and includes: an inspection control device that detects solder position information of a solder paste printed on a substrate via the screen opening, and based on the solder position information, determines whether a quality of printing using the screen mask is good or bad, the solder position information being based on an amount of positional misalignment of the solder paste actually printed on the substrate relative to a predetermined reference position.

A printing method includes determining a master machine setting by using a master substrate, printing a first test print including test fields, and using a first combination of printing fluid and master substrate, recording test fields of the first test print, and computationally determining and storing a first setting value for a first machine setting as the master setting. Printing a print job is prepared by changing the substrate to a second combination of printing fluid and substrate, printing a second test print including test fields, and using the second combination of printing fluid, substrate and master setting, recording the test fields of the second test print, and computationally determining and storing a second setting value for a second machine setting, the second setting value defined relative to the master setting. The print job is printed by using the second combination of printing fluid, substrate and second machine setting.

A measurement apparatus for measuring values for color adjustments in a print technique includes a measurement instrument including a measurement value detecting device at an arbitrary measurement point, a movement device, a reference coordinate calculation device, a measurement coordinate calculation device, and a computation device. The reference coordinate calculation device calculates a measurement point reference coordinate value. The measurement coordinate calculation device compares both origins to calculate a corrected value relative to the coordinate system of the reference-image, and corrects the position of the measurement origin based on the corrected value to correct the reference coordinate value and calculates a measurement coordinate value in the coordinate system of the measurement-image corresponding to the measurement point of the reference-image. The computation device calculates information for comparing and evaluating the measurement value acquired at the measurement point of the reference-image and the measurement value acquired at the measurement point of the measurement-image.

A device for setting at least one operating parameter of ink for a printing process of a rotary printing press having an inking system which has a doctor blade device with a doctor blade chamber containing the ink for the printing process, and an ink reservoir from which ink can be supplied to the doctor blade chamber, includes a supply system which allows ink to be supplied inside the inking system. The supply system can be switched to a setting mode (I) or to a production mode (II), the operating parameter being automatically set in the setting mode (I) and no ink being supplied to the doctor blade chamber, and the supply system supplying ink to the doctor blade chamber in the production mode (II).

A method operates a flexographic printing press. The flexographic printing press includes a printing cylinder carrying a sleeve with at least one flexographic printing forme or a flexographic printing cylinder and an impression cylinder. At least one parameter of the flexographic printing press is set. The sleeve is marked with an ID, the ID is detected in a flexographic printing unit of the flexographic printing press or in the flexographic printing press. Data saved in association with the ID are transmitted to the flexographic printing unit or to the flexographic printing press, and the data are used when the parameter is set. In this manner, a cost-efficient way of producing high-quality prints in an industrial flexographic printing process is obtained. In addition, the method provides further automation of the printing process.

A method is provided for setting a layer thickness of a covering coating material to be applied to a substrate by an application device. The coating material is applied to the substrate in a printing machine or in a paper-processing machine. The coating material is applied at various points on the substrate by the use of the application device in a machine process. At each of at least one first point on the substrate, the coating material is applied in a grid having a plurality of grid points, and at each of at least one other second point on the substrate, the coating material is applied over the full area. Each first point on the substrate forms a grid zone and each second point on the substrate forms a solid zone. A control unit connected to a sensing device determines respective values of the optical density of the layer of the coating material applied on the points on the substrate using data captured by the sensing device at the first and second points on the substrate. The control unit defines the layer thickness of the coating material currently applied to the substrate by the application device in an ongoing machine process. At the defined thickness, the value of the optical density determined in a grid zone corresponds to the value of the optical density determined in a solid zone, as the layer thickness of the coating material having an opacity of 100%.

A method controls the color in a printing press, which includes at least one printing station printing a respective color design. The method includes the procedures of determining a control factor to color model, printing a design on a web and acquiring color characteristics corresponding to the printed design on the web. The method further includes the procedures of determining the color quality of the printed color design and determining a required change to at least one control factor when a correction to the color characteristics of the printed design is required. The change to at least one control factor is determined by determining the at least one control factor with respective color related information, which results in a reference color characteristic, according to the control factor to color model. The method returns to the procedure of printing when a correction is not required.

A method is provided for setting a layer thickness of a covering coating material to be applied to a substrate by an application device. The coating material is applied to the substrate in a printing machine or in a paper-processing machine. The coating material is applied at various points on the substrate by the use of the application device in a machine process. At each of at least one first point on the substrate, the coating material is applied in a grid having a plurality of grid points, and at each of at least one other second point on the substrate, the coating material is applied over the full area. Each first point on the substrate forms a grid zone and each second point on the substrate forms a solid zone. A control unit connected to a sensing device determines respective values of the optical density of the layer of the coating material applied on the points on the substrate using data captured by the sensing device at the first and second points on the substrate. The control unit defines the layer thickness of the coating material currently applied to the substrate by the application device in an ongoing machine process. At the defined thickness, the value of the optical density determined in a grid zone corresponds to the value of the optical density determined in a solid zone, as the layer thickness of the coating material having an opacity of 100%.

A method for setting up a lithographic printing press is provided which reduces the make-ready time of on-press developable printing plates so that less copies are wasted. The method uses an ink boost at the startup of the press by presetting the inking system to a configuration whereby the amount of ink supplied to the plate is different from the amount prescribed by standard printing conditions. The ink boost can be positive or negative and can be made dependent on the difference in the image coverage between plates used in successive print jobs or on different paper types used in successive print jobs.

A method controls the color in a printing press, which includes at least one printing station printing a respective color design. The method includes the procedures of determining a control factor to color model, printing a design on a web and acquiring color characteristics corresponding to the printed design on the web. The method further includes the procedures of determining the color quality of the printed color design and determining a required change to at least one control factor when a correction to the color characteristics of the printed design is required. The change to at least one control factor is determined by determining the at least one control factor with respective color related information, which results in a reference color characteristic, according to the control factor to color model. The method returns to the procedure of printing when a correction is not required.