Arizona printers with the White Ink Option provide under-printing for non-white media or objects, over-printing for backlit applications on transparent media and/or printing white as a spot color.
Arizona Quality-Layered print mode is used to print white ink applications such as under-printing for non-white media, over-printing for backlit applications viewed 2nd surface or as middle layer for a day-night application.
NOTE
Prepare the ONYX Thrive software for handling white ink print jobs. See Configure ONYX Thrive for White Ink
When working with white ink there are three data layers available that allow you to determine the area the white ink will cover and also how it will appear (or not appear) in relation to other colors, depending on the layer it is placed in. You can determine the density of the white ink by altering the drop size. The layer setup is defined in the media model but can be modified as a job printer setting within the ONYX software.
Layers can be defined at any of the following locations:
Defined in the media when the media is created - Mode Options
Selected in a Quick Set - Media Options
Modify the printer settings of a processed job in RIP Queue - right-click the job, edit printer settings.
You are not required to use layers when you print white spot data. It can also be printed with print modes other than Quality-Layered as long as the ONYX media profile (media model) has been made with a CMYKSS ink configuration with spot colors defined.
NOTE
When you print white ink using a print mode other than Quality-Layered, we recommend that you don't print white ink in the same area of an image as CMYK inks. The white ink does not mix well with the other ink colors.
See Print White Ink Jobs for more information.
White ink print job output can be accomplished in a variety of ways depending on the desired results and preferred working process.
There are three primary methods:
Printer Flood Fill Layer Configuration
An ONYX workflow that does not require any pre-rip file preparation and is the easiest method of achieving white ink output. All that is required is to set up the Layer Configuration to include a printer flood layer. The printer flood layer encompasses the bounding box (the outer border of the image) of the file being processed. There is also an option to control the amount of flood by choosing the drop level. The higher the drop level number the greater the amount of white ink. See White Ink Quick Start for information about creating a Printer Flood Fill Layer.
ONYX Spot Layer Tool
It offers many options to process an image, and thus allows various possible configuration choices. You can save these configurations as Filters and place them in a Quick Set and this makes it possible to re-create with minimal effort settings that are often used. All work with the Spot Layer tool requires an ONYX media profile with at least one spot color. See Create Spot Data with the Spot Layer Tool.
Spot Data Image Preparation
The white data is prepared in image editing programs such as Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop. You must use specific naming conventions and image use protocols in order for the ONYX RIP-Queue software to process the data as desired. This method may be the best choice if the desired white ink spot data includes complicated selections or if data is being created for outsourcing. A reasonable level of proficiency in these programs is recommended to use this technique. See Create Spot Data in Adobe Illustrator or Create Spot Data in Photoshop.
All of these methods can be used either independently or all at the same time. For example, you may generate the spot layer information for parts of an image in Photoshop and then go on to specify a Flood Layer Configuration in ONYX Thrive. This can result in a Flood Layer and a Spot Layer followed by a CMYK Layer. The spot data and the flood will occupy two layers of white density and the CMYK image data can occupy the third layer. You can determine the print order of these layers in ONYX Thrive.
The following are some specific examples of the ways that the white ink workflow can be applied.
|
Application |
Bottom |
Middle |
Top |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Backlit First Surface (printing on the front side of the media) |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
CMYK |
CMYK |
CMYK layers contain same data. |
|
Backlit Second Surface (printing on the back side of clear media) |
CMYK (mirrored) |
CMYK (mirrored) |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
|
|
Day-Night (First or Second surface) |
CMYK (mirrored) |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
CMYK (mirrored) |
CMYK data is reversed or right-reading |
|
Opaque |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
CMYK |
3 layers |
|
Opaque |
<empty> |
White (spot data or printer generated flood) |
CMYK |
2 layers |
Backlit Application
The backlit application involves printing onto a transparent or translucent material and mounting the finished piece onto a light box or location where illumination from behind is possible. In the backlit application, white ink is intended to provide a light diffusing layer. This application is possible using either 2 or 3 layers.
Day-Night Application
Similar to backlit, the day-night application also involves printing onto a transparent or translucent material. A day-night print can be viewed either front-lit or backlit. This is achieved by printing color data on two separate layers with a white diffusing layer in the middle.
Opaque Application
The opaque application involves printing CMYK data onto non-white media. For this application, white ink is required both to enable the printer to produce images where white forms part of the image content, as well as to act as a base for the CMYK color set.