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Advanced users manual

Creation of ICC and Device-Link Profiles via

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Contents The features of Power Profiler.................................................. 4 The advantages of Power Profiler ............................................ 4 The ICC standard ....................................................................... 5 What are ICC profiles ................................................................ 6 Rendering intents ...................................................................... 7 When to use ICC profiles .......................................................... 9 What are Device-Links. ........................................................... 10 When to use the Device-Links. ............................................... 11 Use of Power Profiler .............................................................. 13 Start-up of the profiler............................................................. 16 Use of a connected reading instrument ................................ 18 Creation of the profile ............................................................. 21 The black point’s compensation. ........................................... 23 When the black point’s compensation operates. ................. 24 The window elements relating to the black point’s compensation. ......................................................................... 24 Use of the black point compensation cursor. ....................... 26 Saving the profile..................................................................... 28 Creation of the optimised driver............................................. 29 How to use profiles once generated ...................................... 35 Appendix A............................................................................... 37 Reading of targets with an instrument not supported by Power Profiler .......................................................................... 37 Printing the reading Target ..................................................... 37 Reading the Target .................................................................. 40

DevStudio March 2008

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The features of Power Profiler Power Profiler is Power Plotter/Proof’s software module that enables the user to professionally calibrate the colour rendering of the RIP’s RGB printer drivers via the creation of colour profiles and device-links in ICC format. Drivers of this type are those that with Power Plotter / Proof use the most advanced colour-management solutions ensuring the user the best quality colour reproduction. This software module completes the suite of applications for the management of the RIP colour integrated fully with the linearization software module, whose operation is described in detail in the document “Advanced technical addendum for the new generation of printer drivers”. Using Power Profiler the user can deliver on his printers a level of colour reproduction that is very difficult – if not impossible – to achieve using third party software, both for photographic type applications and in the production of certified colour proofs. The advantages of Power Profiler Unlike other profilers, Power Profiler works by sharing a great deal of information with the RIP’s linearization module, among which for example are ink types used by the various printers, the multiple separation models of the components (light and dark colours), the inking limits of the various media, the Black generation modules adapted for ink-jet technologies, and a lot else as well. At an even deeper level, Power Profiler shares the same advanced technologies with the linearization module for the management of the most recent types of ink-jet printing, optimising the management of the colour spaces of the various types of printers supported by the Power Plotter/Proof RIP that far exceeds that achievable with any product for creating generic ICC profiles.

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As well as creating ICC format colour profiles, Power Profiler enables the user to generate Optimised print Drivers, based on ICC device-links, which make the best use of the numerical precision available in the digital encoding of a single colour conversion between two different devices.

The ICC standard The most important problem in workflows based on the use of digital images is the fact that the various devices used to create and reproduce these images (cameras, monitors, printers) interpret and reproduce colour in completely different ways, according to their physical characteristics (for example types of sensors, light sources or pigments and inks used). The factors determining these differences are potentially infinite: at the highest level the physical features of each device demand the use of different colour description models (for example: a monitor must receive RGB data, while a four-colour printer must receive CMYK data), while at the lowest level even the smallest differences in the construction of components or in the environmental variables of places of use of the same type of device cause significant differences in colour rendering. To resolve this problem, the most important leading companies in the digital imaging sector founded the ICC (International Colour Consortium) in 1993 with the aim of creating and promoting a standardised colour management system, open and multiplatform, capable of ensuring the portability of the colour of digital images. This consortium today includes practically all the Companies producing digital imaging hardware and software, making the ICC format the de facto standard in the field of digital colour treatment. PowerPlotter/Proof fully supports this standard (today in version 4) allowing the full use of ICC format colour profiles in its own RIP.

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What are ICC profiles The basic concept of ICC technology is relatively simple: if the problem of colour portability has its roots in the different ways that various digital devices have of interpreting it, the solution is to provide a universal model of colour description and consequently correlating each device used in the digital workflow; a document that describes it exactly according to this metric, containing the conversion tables adapted to deal with the digital data that the device transmits or receives. This document is called the ICC COLOUR PROFILE and it enables all programs to perform the necessary colour conversions each time that – for example – the digital images are viewed on a monitor or reproduced by a printer. The “universal” colour space implemented by the ICC is typically the CIE L*a*b* (even if it is not the only one) and it is technically defined with the initials PCS, meaning Profile Connection Space. It is sufficiently broad to contain all colours visible to the human eye, describing them clearly. The various colour conversion tables in the ICC profiles therefore allow programs like PowerPlotter/Proof to know which colour corresponds to any mix of colorants in a given device and also to know what mix of colorants to use to re-produce any particular visible colour. The colour profiles can be incorporated by the various graphic and page lay-out programs in the images themselves, thus enabling the programs that receive them to know what colours they have, independently of the fact that they are RGB or CMYK files. In the ICC workflow, a RIP like Power Plotter/Proof accurately reproduces the colours of an image carrying out a double conversion: in the first place translating the selected image’s RGB or CMYK values into L*a*b* colours (using the appropriate table in the profile connected to the image, known as the ‘input’ profile) and subsequently converting these L*a*b* colours into RGB values adapted to obtain an accurate print on the selected driver (in this case consulting the table supplied by the profile connected to it, defined as the ‘output’ profile). The result of the linking together of these two operations is accurate colour conversion based on IPC profiles.

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Rendering intents As we have seen, the internal structure of an ICC profile is determined by the PCS: all the profile’s conversion tables refer to this. We have also seen how one of the most important features of the PCS is that of being able to describe all colours visible to the human eye. However no device on the market – either a monitor or a printer – can reproduce all visible colours, by virtue for example of the chemical and physical limitations of the colorants and of the media it uses. Despite this, even colours that are not reproducible by a particular device must be resolved in the contents tables of its profile, via simulation with similar colours, so as to create a complete reproduction of the PCS that any observer can see. Given that the criteria of such an evaluation differ according to the different contexts (for example a particular type of simulation can be very well adapted to the reproduction of photographic images, while not being the best for reproducing the flat colour printing elements), the ICC standard provides for many conversion tables within a single colour profile to convert from the PCS to the device’s colour space, each of which is dedicated to a specific application. These tables are selected by referring to the ‘RENDERING INTENTS’, which allow the user to specify which conversion he or she wants to raise from the profile in function of the type of colour reproduction he intends to perform.

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There are four rendering intents defined in the ICC standard and they have the following names: * COLORIMETRIC, ABSOLUTE. This intent activates a type of reproduction free of colour adaptation mechanisms, advisable mainly only in the production of colour proofs. In conversions of this type, the colorant values are mapped in the PCS just as they have been measured, and analogously the PCS values are reproduced by colorants without being modified. In this type of colour reproduction event the differences between the white of the input device and that of the output device are maintained. Non-reproducible colours are generally simulated with colorant values that produce the lowest ΔEs. * COLORIMETRIC, RELATIVE. This intent actuates a type of colour reproduction very similar to the above, with the single difference being that the PCS values are scaled so that the white of the colorants corresponds to the white of the PCS and vice versa. Typically conversions based on this intent are implemented only when all colours of the input colour space are approximately reproducible in the output colour space. * PERCEPTIVE. This intent actuates a type of reproduction with various types of colour and tonal adaptation, aimed at scaling the colour space in the selected device up to sizes close to those of the PCS. The main mechanisms of adaptation are the alignment of the white point (described and implemented also in the relative colorimetric intent) and the black point compensation. This latter type of adaptation corresponds to a transformation that synthetically maps the darkest colour reproducible by the device’s colorants in the PCS’s zero point and vice versa. The non-reproducible colours are replaced with simulations that maintain as far as

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possible the reciprocal relations between the PCS values rather than their nominal values. The perceptive intent for all these characteristics is recommended for example when we print photographic images deriving from RGB colour spaces, as in these cases it is almost mathematically certain that large portions of the input colour space will be outside the output colour space limits. *SATURATION. This intent operates colour reproduction based adaptation mechanisms whose perceptive intent has already been described, with the difference that the non-reproducible colours are simulated to enhance their saturation. Although being the less commonly used intent, it can always be employed when we want particularly lively colours. When to use ICC profiles Power Profiler enables the calibration of a printer driver via the creation of a colour profile that conforms totally to the ICC standard. On the basis of what has been shown up to now, a driver configured via this type of calibration enables the user to print any type of images (RGB, CMYK, BN, etc.) from any given colour space. Moreover it lets us on each occasion choose the most appropriate rendering intent for producing individual prints. From this point of view, the use of ICC profiles in the colour calibration of a driver is suited to all the users who operate using the differentiated workflows of a large variety of types of different images, in which it is difficult if not impossible to ‘normalise’ the input material in relation to a standardised condition. If the basic advantage of using an ICC profile in the calibration of a printer driver lies in the flexibility it brings, the main disadvantage is that it does not allow for the maximum exploitation of the quality obtainable from a colour conversion process. The cause of this lies in the internal structure of ICC profiles, which as we have seen comprises a series of numerical

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tables that convert the colours passing via the PCS. The loss of accuracy is largely due to the sum of two distinct factors: 1. A table’s conversion tables do not contain all the colours, but they consist of a sort of grid of values that only tabulate a determined number, leaving the intermediate values to be interpolated. If for example the 8 bit codified PCS includes about 16 million colours, a profile’s more extended table directly tabulates a three dimensional 33 point grid, that is just under 36,000. 2. The PCS ICC is conceived so as to include the entire range of visible colours. However, it is rare for a real workflow to be based on images endowed with such an extended colour range. For example, the offset printing colour range can include only 15-20% of the PCS L*a*b* defined by the ICC. A workflow based on ICC profiles in which the input images are CMYK files passed onto the offset press will then be processed by transformations based on the interpolation of about 5400 colours (that is 15% of 36,000). It is easy at this point to understand why in some cases the use of ICC colour profiles may bring losses of tonal detail or accuracy of colour reproduction. What are Device-Links. Also to overcome this problem the same ICC standard provides for a second type of document adapted to allow colour conversion between two different colour spaces, alternative to the colour profile that we have extensively discussed. This alternative format has been named ‘DEVICE-LINK’, meaning the connection between devices. Unlike an ICC profile, a device-link contains just one conversion table, which maps the colours of any input device (for example an RGB standard space like the sRGB IEC61966-2.1) directly into those of any other output device (for example an inkjet printer), without necessitating a table including the tabulation of all visible colours (that is the PCS). Reusing the example given in the last paragraph, the replacement of a profile by a device-link would have entailed the use of a data interpolation process based on a four-dimensional

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33 point grid, that is more than one million colours rather than 5400, with a significant increase in precision. Power Profiler takes advantage of the existence of the device-link format, allowing the user to create ‘OPTIMISED DRIVERS’ that are set to reproduce a single colour input space on the selected printer via a single rendering intent. Acting thus enables users to deliver higher resolution and detail in printing photographic images and greater colorimetric accuracy in the production of colour proofs. When to use the Device-Links. Power Profiler enables the calibration of a printer drier via the creation of a device-link that conforms totally to the ICC standard. A driver configured via this type of calibration is optimised for the printing of images of just one type (coming from just one colour space) and according to a single rendering intent. Should we want to print images that do not conform to the colour space predefined by the Device-link under discussion, the software will carry out a conversion via a standard ICC profile. From this point of view, the use of device-links in a driver’s colour calibration is successful for all users who work using standardised workflows in which the documents are homogenised and passed on to a single type of application. Here are two examples of standardised workflows:

1. A photographic studio that prints sRGB digital images can configure an optimised driver based on a device-link that connects the inkjet printer piloted by Power Plotter/Proof to the sRGB profile using the PERCEPTIVE intent.

2. A photolithograph that produces colour proofs according to the ISO XXX norm can configure an optimised driver based on a device-link that connects the inkjet printer piloted by Power Plotter/Proof to the ISO XXX profile using the ABSOLUTE COLORIMETRIC.

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Using Power Profiler, the user can then calibrate the Power Plotter/Proof printer drivers employing both ICC COLOUR PROFILES and DEVICE-LINKS. The user can choose which type of calibration is best for his workflow choosing between the flexibility of profile-based drivers and the quality of those configured via device-links technology. It is obviously also possible to produce more calibrations with the same driver, producing a base calibration configured by an ICC profile and some additional configurations based on the device-links technology so as to optimise the quality of the colour conversions for the most used applications.

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Use of Power Profiler When this module is installed, a new button appears on the top button bar:

To be able to use it we must first select a valid printer driver (see the side image). In particular it helps to select the driver of the media that we want to profile. If this does not exist it has to be created first with the “Create Driver” option shown on the following page.

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Pressing the Power Profiler button opens the following printer driver management interface:

If the selected driver turns out to be incompatible with this function the following message will appear.

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A summary of the currently selected settings appears on the screen along with a series of buttons that enable the selection of a series of driver options. The “Create Driver” button enables the launching of the procedure to create the new driver and it opens the following screen.

The “Manage Linearization” button enables the opening of a creation module or the modification of the linearization, and shows the following dialogue window.

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These two functions are fully described in the technical manual called: “Advanced technical addendum for the Generation of new printer Drivers”. For the purposes of this manual we will jump directly to the description of the third button called: “Create Profile” Start-up of the profiler Pressing the “Create Profile” button initiates the real and proper profile creation procedure. Initially the following progress screen appears, during which the system is initialised. This screen appears automatically after a few seconds.

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The profiler’s main screen looks as follows:

The first item above shows the initial linearization, and this is predetermined on the basis of previous choices and therefore cannot be modified. The first thing to do is therefore to print the chart with the sample colours that must then be read with the spectrophotometer. There are two ways of performing this operation:

1) printing and reading the target directly from this interface (pressing the “FROM INSTRUMENT” button…”)

2) load a readings file that we have obtained from an external program or in a previous phase of reading. To use a reading instrument not directly supported by Power Profiler we can follow the guidelines described in Appendix A at the bottom in the next manual, which describes the use of X-Rite® Measure Tools.

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Use of a connected reading instrument Pressing the “From Instrument” button opens the following interface from which we can chose the instrument and the target to print and therefore to measure.

The instrument chosen, the remaining part of the interface is configured as a consequence showing the particular features and options of the instrument in examination.

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In the image shown here above we see the interface for the X-Rite® Eye-One® instrument . The options common to all instruments are the choice of the type of target and the type of warning sounds. The choice of target type is made on the basis of the number of patches that we want to use. It is possible to choose between three sizes of target:

a) 729 patches b) 1748 patches c) 3510 patches

The larger sizes correspond to greater accuracy in the production of the profile, but also to longer reading times and the need for a larger sheet. The choice of BEEP between “Sound Card” and “Internal” works so that the sounds are reproduced respectively from the PC’s audio card or from the motherboard’s internal Buzzer. It is generally good to use “Sound Card”. However if the sound is not audible it can be necessary to direct the audio onto the internal sound. Having selected the target it is possible to press the “PRINT” button to print the target chosen on the selected printer and with the active settings :

After printing it is worth waiting for a period (which can vary between 15 minutes and a few hours depending on the type of paper and inks used) to allow the print to dry and stabilise, then press the “GO TO READINGS” button to open the target’s dialogue reading.

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Here there opens a preview of the target to read and two buttons: - Set readings to return to the previous screen to change the reading options or change the instrument. - Start readings to start-up the reading. A number of notices will be shown when the readings have started (particular to each instrument) to guide the user between the operations to carry out.

The reading completed, press the “Save Readings” button to return to the profiler’s main screen.

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Creation of the profile After having saved the readings file we can proceed to the creation of the profile by pressing the NEXT>>> button. Another screen opens where we can view two summary screens that give a visual assessment of the profile that is being created. You can then move between a view of one and representation the other simply by clicking on the above right button. The “Color Chart” screen shows the colours that have been read by the instrument and that give an idea of the colour space we have available.

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In the “Color Space” screen however there is a three dimensional graphic representation of the Gamut (=the precise colour space) of the printer of the media under examination. The larger the dimensions of the figure, the greater the number of colours that the printer can reproduce.

In this phase it is not possible to change any of the parameters, so we can move forwards at any moment. In the following page we can define the black point’s compensation size.

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The black point’s compensation. As described at the start of this manual, due to the rendering intents, the black point’s compensation size is one of the main adaptation mechanisms used to optimise the reproduction of the PCS implemented by the ICC standard (which includes all visible colours) to the range of colours reproducible by a particular device that, as far as this manual is concerned, is the printer piloted by Power Plotter/Proof. The black point compensation contributes to adapting the dynamic range of one colour space to that of another. A device’s dynamic range can be conceived as the difference between the lightest colour (white point) and the darkest one (black point) reproducible by the device. This difference can be expressed according to various equivalent metrics, for example using the PCS values (via the L* component, which represents Luminosity) or referring to the logarithmic scale of the visual densities. When the black point compensation is active, the entire range of density of the source colour is scaled so as to adapt it perfectly to that of the destination colour space (if the source black point is darker than the target one this dynamic range is compressed, while if the opposite is the case it is expanded). When the black point compensation is not active, the source colour space’s own densities are reproduced exactly in the destination colour space as far as it is possible to do so. If however the reference colours are too dark to be faithfully copied into the destination colour space then these are simply mapped into the darkest reproducible colour. Controlling the operation carried out by the black point compensation thus enables the regulation of various effects, such as:

1) avoiding the flattening of details and excessive ‘closure’ in the reproduction of dark colours;

2) avoiding the production of ‘grey’ – not dense enough - shadows, in the reproduction;

3) modifying the general contrast of the colour reproduction

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When the black point’s compensation operates. In the creation phase of an ICC colour profile, the black point compensation operates only in PERCEPTIVE and SATURATION rendering intents. In the phase of creating an optimised driver based on device-link technology the black point compensation can also operate when the RELATIVE COLORIMETRIC intent is selected. In no case does it act on the ABSOLUTE COLORIMETRIC rendering intent, used exclusively in the production of colour proofs. The window elements relating to the black point’s compensation. Instead of allowing the simple activation/deactivation of the black point compensation, Power Profiler lets the user regulate it in percentage terms, so as to allow greater control over the action that it exercises over the general image contrast.

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In the left part of the Power Profiler window there is a cursor that enables control over the action exerted by the black point compensation. The scale of values of this cursor’s scrollbar starts from 0% (far left of the bar) and goes up to 200% (far right of the bar). The initial position of the cursor is always on the median point of the scrollbar, corresponding to 100%. * When the control cursor’s value is at 0%, the black point compensation is deactivated. * When the control cursor’s value is at 100%, the black point compensation is fully activated on the black point compensation is fully activated on the basis of the data automatically calculated by the program. This is the ‘DEFAULT’ value. * When the control cursor’s value is above 100%, its action becomes gradually more intense. In the right part of the Power Profiler window there is a diagram showing which RGB values of the calibrated device will be used to reproduce the PCS ICC greyscale, that is the L*a*b* colour space. Every change brought by the user to the position of the cursor placed to the left of the chart, will determine an update of the curves shown.

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Use of the black point compensation cursor. When the user reaches this phase of the creation of a profile or of a device-link, the Power Profiler program automatically intercepts the PCS value of the printer’s black point, calculates the greyscale chart resulting from the use of this value and automatically positions the cursor at 100%. As already stated, this is the program’s default state. * If the chart that shows the RGB curves used to produce the greyscale is regular (that is it shows no defects in the lower left hand part, such as peaks, discontinuities and flattening) the user must simply press the “NEXT” button to proceed to the successive phase of the profile/device-link creation procedure. * If however the RGB curves shown in the chart show defects, the user must move the cursor increasing or reducing the current value of individual units (+1/-1) up to when the RGB curves viewed in the chart are geometrically regular. Then press the “NEXT” button to proceed to the next phase of the profile/device-link procedure. If, after having completed the process of creating the selected profile or device-link, the reproduction of the images or the colours is not fully satisfactory, the user can recalculate the profile or device-link changing the previously selected black point compensation values to achieve the desired quality. In this case proceed as follows: * DEFECT: shadows too closed – loss of detail in the dark zones of the images. Select the previously set cursor black point compensation value, then increase it until the RGB curves in the chart show a visible increase in minimum values. Then press the “NEXT” button to proceed to the creation of a new profile/device-link. * DEFECT: shadows too grey and washed-out – low contrast in the reproduction of the images.

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Select the previously set cursor black point compensation value, then reduce it until the RGB curves in the chart show a visible decrease in minimum values. Then press the “NEXT” button to proceed to the creation of a new profile/device-link. However, bear in mind that these defects may be connected to the Paper-Inks combination and therefore not 100% resolvable. In this case we can only work to achieve the best compromise.

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Saving the profile The following screen will appear at the end of the calculation, which allows us to give a name to the file and to save the profile:

The program will propose a default name (which shows the name of the linearization used), but we can save it with whatever name we wish.

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Creation of the optimised driver The following screen will appear when the profile’s creation is complete:

Unlike the first time this display appeared, we can now also see an Output profile. If we want to we can terminate the procedure here and start to print with the profile that has just been generated. Otherwise we can decide choose to create an optimised driver by pressing the appropriate button. This procedure can be carried out for simulating an RGB profile or a CMYK one.

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The list of reference profiles available in the software changes depending on whether an RGB or CMYK space is chosen. When we want to create an optimised driver for the RGB space we generally need to use the Perceptive intent, because it is the most suited for accurate reproduction of photographic images.

If however we choose a CMYK space, in general we need to use the Absolute Colorimetric intent, because this is the one that allows the optimum reproduction of a print proof.

Let’s see an example of the creation of an optimised CMYK driver for printing a colour proof:

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After having made our choice, we can push the “Create Optimisation” button to access the calculation procedure:

Like when we created the profile, we must choose the measuring data to use to perform the calculation. These can be both the TXT file (containing the readings) and the profile that we just created in the previous procedure. Here too when we press the “Next” we gain a diagram view of the readings In contrast to what appears in the ICC profiles creation procedure, viewing the colour space shows our print profile in comparison to that of the peripheral device to be simulated, as is shown in the following image.

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In this case it is important that the solid grey (which represents the printer to simulate) is completely included within the grid that represents the proof printer. If it is not similar to it, an accurate proof cannot be produced. The next step proposes the extent of the black point’s compensation. In this case it will only be active if we have chosen to create a perceptive intent simulation. Then we can start the actual calculation.

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This procedure requires much more sophisticated calculations than those for creating the profile and therefore calculation times will also be much longer. The calculation complete, the device-link save screen appears, which, unlike the ICC profile save screen, does not allow for changing the name. It is automatically named by the software itself and then is shown in the RIP interface with its automatic description:

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The saving complete, the profiler’s main interface appears, which will show all the compiled fields. Now we can decide to generate a new profile or a new Device-Link or to close this dialogue box and begin printing at the highest print quality.

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How to use profiles once generated We can use the profiles and device-links selecting them from the program’s main interface, in the driver configuration screen. The first thing necessary is to make sure that profile management is active, something we can check with the icon on the status bar at the bottom in the centre.

If the icon is grey, we can active it simply clicking above. Now we see that in the driver’s settings screen a new icon appears showing the currently active profile.

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Clicking on the button to the side of the profile name, we can change the selection of active profiles and we can also choose to use one of the optimised Device-Links.

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Appendix A Reading of targets with an instrument not supported by Power Profiler If the instrument we have is not directly supported by Power Profiler we will need to print and read the targets outside the guided procedure. The printing of the target must take place directly from the main RIP screen and the reading via external measuring software. Therefore in this first phase it will be necessary to interrupt the procedure and to load the print target directly onto the mounting table. Printing the reading Target We now describe the procedure for printing power proof targets (the same thing can be done with any other RGB printing target) The measuring charts are in the Target folder inside the Power Plotter/Proof folder (for other software consult the particular user guides).

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We can choose the files to use depending on our requirements and on reading instrument that we want to use. The files are named so as to make them easily recognisable. The files’ nomenclature is as follows: NP_TCXXXX-RGB_Instrument[_p_N].tif NP shows the number of pages comprising this target (1 = 1 page, 2 = 2 pages etc.) TCXXXX-RGB shows how many colour boxes are in the file; this can be 729, 1728, 3510. A higher number of patches corresponds to greater accuracy, but requires much longer reading times and a greater number of pages. The smaller target already delivers good quality, but if it is necessary to create a very accurate colour proof, it is preferable to use the larger one even if it is only advisable if we have an automatic reading instrument available. Instrument shows the name of the instrument for which the image has been created. It must correspond to the instrument’s name. The next two items are optional and appear only when the print target comprises more than 1 page p shows the number of the page being printed. N shows the total number of pages. In the following example a 1 page 1728 patch image is loaded for the Eye-One iSis instrument; the file is called 1P_TC1728-RGB_Eye-One_iSis.tif. It is essential that the program remains correctly configured with correct driver parameters, which are those that we have set to create the profile. The printer on its part must be in excellent printing condition and the printer media must not have defects or alterations of any

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kind. Clearly the printing must be performed with colour management deactivated, to assure that it is such, we must check that the icon is deactivated in the appropriate bar, as we see in the screen shown here.

(check that the icon is deactivated in the appropriate status bar)

After having carried out the printing, we must treat the print with the utmost care to avoid damaging, marking, or leaving fingerprints on it. Then it should be put in a safe place so that the ink can dry perfectly and the colours stabilise. The waiting time varies, depending on the type of printer, on the printer media and on the method of printing used. We need to wait at least 15-20 minutes because the print loses a good part of its liquid in this time and therefore undergoes the most marked changes. Generally after this first phase the variations are much more marginal. The best way of knowing precisely how long is that of asking the print material supplier, or carrying out our own tests.

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Reading the Target This is when it is necessary to read the target, if we have a non-supported instrument or if we want to read a personalised target we must read the target with external software. Measure Tool is the one advised for X-Rite instruments. We can download it for free and use it in demo mode in which it is nevertheless possible to read and save a file that can then be used within Power Profiler. To download this software connect to the following link: http://www.xrite.com/product_overview.aspx?ID=793&Action=Support&SoftwareID=615 from which we can download the complete installation of Profile Maker (of which Measure Tool is a component). Once downloaded onto our PC we must install it. During installation we must just select the Measure Tool component and the instrument’s targets, because the others cannot be used without an activation key.

Installation completed we need to copy a number of files into this program’s installation folder to be able to read the images just printed.

Choose the targets that correspond to your reading instrument

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Again inside the Power Plotter Targets folder are files that have the same name as the images that we have printed but that are viewed as text files (.TXT). These are the description files for the printed target (the only difference is that this file is always single even if the target was made up of a number of pages). These files are copied into the appropriate folder within Measure Tool. Usually the folder is the following: C:\programs\GretagMacbeth\ProfileMaker Professional 5.0.8\Reference data\Printer The names of the folders can change according to the program’s installation language (for English “Programs” -> “Program Files”, “Reference Data” -> ”Reference” and “Printer” -> “Printer”) Within this folder we need to look for the folder with your instrument’s name it within it copy the file that corresponds to our target. In this case the file is called: 1P_TC1728-RGB_Eye-One_iSis.txt Now we can open the program, which will show the following warning to indicate that a valid key is not present:

Now we need to select our reading instrument pressing the Unit/Door configuration button. This opens the following dialogue box:

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After this we must activate the reading pressing the measuring button, opening the start reading window.

At this point choose from the name of the target we have just used from the dropdown list.

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Then press start and follow the instructions for our instrument. The reading procedure completed, we must close the reading window pressing on “Close” to save the file just created. It is advisable to save it in an easily accessible folder assigning it a name that allows for the rapid recognition of the paper type and peripheral device used (e.g. LargeFormat\InkJet\High GlossyHeavy/Super 11c RGB_Tc1728.txt). Now we have the file containing the readings of the printed chart with our device on the media under examination, we must then calculate the profile. To do this we must return to the main Power Profiler screen. We then need to press the button once more and access the Create Profile heading.

The profiler screen opens again from where we can calculate the profile. Under the Measures heading we must click the button with the blue folder and search for the reading file we saved in the previous procedure. Once this file is loaded on the interface we can press the NEXT>> button and proceed with the profile’s creation. (for which we ask we to return to the part of the manual relating to the creation of the Profile).

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