Details:
Summary:
For any color printing process a set of inks must be selected and standardized so that they always give the same result when printed in the same way. To approach this goal, both visual method and instrumental method are used by printers to communicate color specifications and tolerances to their customers. such color measurement methods are also used to monitor and control the printing process within its capability. This paper examines typical mechanisms of how colors and their tolerances are established by printers and some of the pitfalls these approaches have caused. Taking the above as a problem, a colorimetric method along with color tolerance modeling is explored as a solution in specifying not only the target or okay color, but also high/low or boundary colors based on pre-established color tolerance limits. Since a color and its acceptance tolerance are described in a space, the volume as well as the shape of the tolerance sphere will be discussed in relationship to the number of over-printing conditions and customer's expectations. A computer software with 3-D, spinning, and color display capabilities is critical in visualizing and determining color tolerances for both communication and control of printed colors.