JPH04229272A - Print room control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To obtain a print room control system having a plurality of printing presses connected to color control systems for ink feed control. CONSTITUTION: The measurement data from the individual color control systems can be fed to a data-capture computer via a master computer. The data-capture computer is so devised as continuously to receive the current data obtained and convert the same to quality data. The quality data are displayed according to their information content on different zones of a monitor screen. The data- capture computer continually updates the quality data display. Thus, the print room manager has available a tool by means of which he can supervise the quality situation of the printed products on the individual presses.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

FIELD OF INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION The present invention is a print room control system for a plurality of printing presses, the printing presses being connected to a color control device for ink supply control, and the printing presses being connected to a color control device for ink supply control, This relates to a format in which measured data is sent to a master computer.

0002

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the manufacturing industry, production planning systems that visualize temporal production processes are known. A graphic display on the image screen terminal shows the actual state of the production process compared to the target plan. From this kind of display, it can be seen whether production is being carried out in accordance with the plan or whether it is behind schedule. Furthermore, quality assurance systems are known which make it possible to read out, in a graphical representation, the distribution of the quality of the production, for example in relation to a target quality agreed between the customer and the producer.

[0003] It is known to use the above-mentioned systems also in the printing industry. For customers in the printing industry, we send certificates with completed orders that show how the ink density and color position of a given printed sheet will be after adjusting the machine's ink supply. It is possible to see whether the ink is distributed centering on the target ink density or target color position. However, the disadvantage in this case is that such systems are located in the quality assurance department or in the print planning or administration department.

From DE 38 29 342 A1, a printing factory control system is known which is constructed as a computer network and consists of a master computer and several station computers. Station computers meet specific tasks in different working areas of printing plants. A station computer is provided, for example for factory management, work preparation, operational data detection and quality control. The last station computer connects the color measurement and control device of the printing press and records the measurement data (
From the color measurements, color density) it is possible to prepare quality data for the prints produced on the machine. The various station computers are connected to each other via data collection lines, so that the data captured and stored by one station computer is available to other station computers and thus also to other work areas. .

[0005] The duties of the print room manager include monitoring the quality of the printing presses in the print room and the printed matter produced by the printing presses. The print room manager's attention must be given to machine utilization, especially in relation to quality, which is important for the sales force of printed products. If the printer determines that the quality of the prints (e.g. color tone in packaging printing) is insufficient on one printing press, i.e. cannot be maintained due to deviations, the printer immediately takes appropriate measures. the printing of unsaleable materials must be prevented. Early discontinuation of production of unsellable printed products is important to ensure that the time slot planned for the development of one print order is not extended and the next order is not shifted. The extension of the time window for one print order, and thus the need to shift the next print order, reduces press utilization, and further increases the burden on certain orders that must be completed within a short period of time related to deadlines. , which means that due to the necessary order shift, it is not possible to develop the project correctly on time.

[0006]

The problem of the present invention is to enable the print room manager to monitor all the current state of the printing presses in the print room, since known systems are of little use to the print room manager for the tasks only briefly mentioned above. To provide a print room manager with a working means that allows him to constantly obtain information about quality data and the temporal progress of production.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The problem of the present invention is to provide a print room control system of the type mentioned at the beginning, in which a data captor computer is provided, and measurement data generated in a color control device for supplying ink is directly transmitted. A captor computer is connected to the master computer in such a way that the captor computer is capable of supplying the measured data to a capter computer, the captor computer transmitting the measured data to a quality representative of the quality of the printed matter produced on the individual printing presses. The system is configured to convert the quality data into data and display the quality data on the monitor according to the information content, and the display of the quality data is immediately updated when new measurement data for the ink supply control is generated by the captor computer. It was resolved by

[0008]

An advantage of the present invention is that measurement data occurring in various printing presses or color control devices can be detected at the time they occur and immediately displayed in full graphic form. Fully graphical display provides easy information transfer. Furthermore, the real-time detection and display of quality data means that print room managers are always provided with up-to-date data about the printing presses in the machine park or the products printed on them. We guarantee that we can.

The present invention also allows the print room manager to be shown other data that are important for him to do his job. This is because the print room control system of the present invention is
It is particularly advantageous when associated with a printing factory control system according to E3829342A1.

0010

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a plurality of printing machines 1.1-1 in a print room of a printing factory. n is color control device 2.1-2
．． Connected to n. Color control device 2.1-2. n
is printing machine 1.1-1. It is used to photoelectrically measure the printed matter produced on n and to convert the data obtained from the photoelectric measurement into control data for the ink supply. Correspondingly, the control of the ink supply can be carried out manually (follow-up adjustment according to the displayed control command) or completely automatically (closed regulation circuit). Printing machine 1.1-1. n is a sheet-fed and web printing press, in particular an offset printing press.

As shown in FIG. 1, various printing machines 1.1-1. n is a color control device that works in various formats2.
1-2. It has n. The impressions printed on the printing sheets or webs are measured gradationally or tonally in measuring marks (color measuring strips) or directly at the impression locations. The densitometer or color tone meter can be manually adjusted to the measuring range (e.g. DE3829341A
1) or automatically scan the measuring strip (densitometer with traversing movement, DE 2728738A2). Furthermore, a plurality of printing machines 1.1-1. n may be connected to one color measurement and adjustment device (e.g. EP00
96238B1). It is also known to carry out the determination of ink density or color position in a printing press together with subsequent color control on a running web (e.g. DD).
227094A1). The measurement data obtained in different formats in this way are evaluated according to known, predetermined adjustment plans and converted into control data for the ink supply.

Color control (measurement value detection and evaluation)
Three basic types are most frequently used: Full tone and/or halftone tone adjustment; in this case the ink supply is adjusted so that the ink density of the monochrome measuring field is adjusted to the target density (given by the standardization of the printing process).

- Gray balance: determining the ink density of the gray field produced by overprinting and controlling the ink supply so that the resulting overprint is as neutral gray as possible.

- Tone: determining the tonal color position or color spacing with respect to the target color (special color or neutral gray) and controlling the ink supply in such a way that the color spacing is reduced (eg EP 0 228 347 B1)
.

[0015] The measuring techniques or adjustment plans used here are related to the printing order in relation to the equipment of the printing plant and the predetermined wishes of the customer.

As known from DE 38 29 342 A1, a printing press 1.1-1. n color control device 2.1
-2. n are connected to the master computer 3, and each color control device 2.1-2. The measurement data obtained at n is transmitted to the master computer. Of course color control device 2.1-2. n or other data of the printing press can also be transmitted to the master computer. Thus, for example, machine operating data (operating hours, operating means status, failure time, printing speed), order-specific data (number of sheets already printed or number of unprinted sheets)
etc. can be transmitted. In this case, color control device 2.1-2. n itself represents one or more color control devices 2.1-2. n is the printing machine 1.1-1. n control stand technology, all printing machines and printing processes can be centrally monitored and operated from the control stand, which has a computer with a display device (monitor).

According to the invention, connected to the master computer 3 is a data capture computer 4 having a monitor 5, a keyboard 6 and operating elements 7 (mouse, rollerball, joystick or the like). In this case, the captor computer 4 with the above-mentioned components is constructed in simple form as a personal computer and is connected via suitable data lines to the master computer 3. In this case, the master computer 3 and the captor computer 4 are The connection takes place via a data transmission system which is well known today and will therefore not be described in detail.The master computer 4 acts as a so-called "server" in the aforementioned data network and additionally It has a data storage, for example in the form of a drive (tape, plate).Through the master computer 3, the latest measurement data, ie the color control device 2.1-2.
The data that just occurred in n can be supplied. In this case, the captor computer 4 acts accordingly on the master computer 3 via the data line, so that the master computer sends the latest data to the ink supply control. In the captor computer 3, the color control device 2.1-2. The current measurement data of n are processed into quality data and displayed on the monitor 5 in different graphical formats, corresponding to the different measurement information. Therefore, the print room manager can check all the printing machines 1.1-1. of the print room via the monitor 5. n latest quality data can be monitored.

FIG. 2 shows, by way of example, quality data displayed graphically on the image screen of the monitor 5. In FIG. In this example, there are five printing machines in the print room: 1.
1-1.5 exists. Depending on the number of printing presses, the image screen is divided into five vertical screen sections of equal size. The top line of each screen section contains, for example, the order number, press type and menu line (
menu) is displayed. For example, when a menu line is activated (keyboard 6, operating member 7), another display format or function can be selected. In each screen section, the quality data of each printing press 1.1-1.5 are displayed in two screen windows one above the other, depending on the respective measurement information.

Depending on the different display data in the upper window row, the printing presses 1.1-1.5 can be controlled with different adjustment schemes or the color control device 1
．． 1-1.5 has been shown to work with different types of measurement value detection (forms of photoelectric detection) and measurement value processing. Each window additionally has a mark with which the window can be zoomed to the size of the entire image (zoom). This takes place, for example, via the actuating element 7. In the upper row of windows, the quality data of the latest measurements are displayed. In the lower row of windows there is an indication of the production quality control, i.e. printing press 1.1.
-1.5 For each inking device, the trend in color density, the ink density deviation from the target value or the brightness and color position deviation of the tonal measurements carried out in successive prints are displayed.

In the embodiment of FIG. 2, printing presses 1.1 and 1.5 are gray balanced in continuous operation. 6
In the rectangular area, the color positions of the gray raster field in intermediate tones (three-color overprint) and deep tones (three-color full-tone overprint), detected by dense measurements, are displayed. Such color adjustment and color position display can be done, for example, by MAN Roland Dr.
uckmaschinen AG's brochure "Pi
ture contrast technology
gy PCT nach System Br
underwear-Roland Print Pito
t-Rotand Autopilot'' 1988. The measurement and display of this "color position" takes place, for example, for each image zone resulting from the composition of a plurality of ink metering zones. By selecting a menu point (menu) the image zones displayed on the monitor 5 or their quality data can be freely selected and can also be exchanged. Thus, for example, it is possible to display quality data of image zones that are considered particularly important and that are agreed upon between the customer and the printer.

In the hexagonal display, for example, the last 10
Short-term trends over the measurements can additionally be displayed. In this case, the large square corresponds to the "color position" of the middle tone and the small square corresponds to the "color position" of the deep tone. The latest measurement is marked in this case. When this window is zoomed to the size of the image screen, additional information such as the order number, the number of the image zone, the intermediate "color position", etc.
, the spread of "color position" over a print run, and data such as midtones (light-to-dark ratio) can be displayed.

In the lower window of the quality data display for presses 1.1 and 1.5, the variations around the average and middle values for full tone densities (cyan, yellow, aniline red, black) are shown. gradations are displayed for print run quality control. If this window is enlarged to the size of the image screen, it is additionally possible to display the data (numerical values) written at the end of the lower window.

In the example of FIG. 2, printing presses 1.2 and 1.
4 is adjusted to full tone or raster tone. Both printing presses 1.2 and 1.4 can be four-color printing presses. The upper window therefore displays the standard deviation of the full tone or raster tone of the print color in the form of four horizontal bars. This is true across the entire print size width.
That is, the density deviation (horizontal axis) is averaged over all measured ink zones. The upper window additionally shows the maximum absolute deviation (value) for all printed colors in the form of a vertical line. In addition, the average value of the density over the current sheet and the associated standard deviation can be displayed numerically in the zoomed-in window.

In the lower display window of the printing press 1.2, the course of the standard deviation relative to the setpoint value is displayed for each printing unit over the course of the printing run. Printing machine 1
．． What is displayed in the lower window for the display of 4 (
(Order progress control) will be discussed in detail later.

In the example of FIG. 2, the printing press 1.3 is tonally adjusted. In the upper window, the color positions of the last seven measurements are displayed in the LUV system for one image zone (this is freely selectable - menu) (e.g. "Graufeldmessung und Gr").
auachse im Mehrfalben-B
ilderdruck"Papier and D
ruck 39, 1990, No. 3, P104-1
(see 08).

[0026] The tonal color position is filled in as a square and the last current measurement is marked. For ease of identification, the arc segments are shown in corresponding colors at their color positions. The center point of this "color clock" corresponds to the target color position of each image zone. "Color Clock"
Next to the light-dark deviation delta L is shown as a black (too dark) bar or as a white (too bright) bar. In the zoomed-in window, the values of the mean and variance of the print color black detected in gradations, the brightness deviation delta L and the total color deviation delta E (color spacing) are additionally displayed.

The lower window of the display for printing press 1.3 shows the variation in color density of the printing ink black around the reference value for print quality control over the print run.
Average color deviation delta-E (color interval), color deviation sigma variation (delta-E), average lightness deviation delta-L
and brightness deviation sigma are displayed. In FIG. 2 these values are labeled DB, ΔE, σΔE, ΔL and σΔL. Each printing press 1.1-1. The current print schedule is displayed for the purpose of order progress control. In this case 1
All orders in one shift on one printing press can be viewed simultaneously. The estimated time for one order is shown as a pair of horizontal bars above the time, with the difference depending on preparation (R) and continuing printing (F). Each order belongs to two bars of the same length. The upper bar starts from the planned start, and the lower bar starts from the actual possible machining period at that time. If an order is offset by a processing time longer than the planned time or if an order is interrupted, all subsequent practically possible periods are shifted accordingly. The entire order (number of printed sheets) is displayed as a number, and the portion that has already been printed is displayed graphically (K) in a bar above the order that is just being printed. Across the entire window is a marking line T for the current time.
is running. By comparing the already printed part of one order (graphical mark K) on the upper bar with the time marking line, one can also see how far the order production is ahead or behind schedule. be able to.

An advantageous embodiment of the invention provides printing press 1.1-
1.5 is obtained by displaying the current order assignment in the aforementioned format for order progress control in all lower windows of the display. In such a display, in each upper window the quality data of the products printed by the individual printing presses 1.1-1.5 can be read out in connection with the respective order assignment. The print room manager can now simultaneously manage all printing machines 1.1-1. For n, each machine's order assignment (
Monitoring can be carried out in relation to goals and actual results). The captor computer 4 receives the current measurement data from the master computer 3, and the quality data is immediately updated on the monitor display, so that the print room manager is immediately aware of any changes in the quality of the printed matter. The corresponding processing takes place directly and without any time delay.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a print control system.

FIG. 2 shows an array of advantageous monitor configurations.

[Explanation of symbols]

1.1-1. n Printing machine 2.1-2. n Color control device 3 Master computer 4 Captor computer 5 Monitor 6 Keyboard 7 Operation members.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A print room control system for a plurality of printing presses, wherein the printing presses are connected to a color control device for ink supply control and in which measurement data generated on the individual color control devices are mastered. In the version that is adapted to be sent to a computer, a data captor computer (4) is provided, in which the measurement data generated for the color control device (2.1-2.n) for supplying the ink is transmitted to the computer. The captor computer (4) is connected to the master computer so that it can be supplied directly to the captor computer (4).
) transfers the measurement data to the individual printing machines (1.1-1.n
) is configured to convert the quality data into quality data representing the quality of the printed matter produced on the machine and display the quality data on a monitor (5) in accordance with the information content. A print room control system characterized in that a display of quality data is updated immediately in the event of new measurement data of an ink supply control. 2. Individual color control device (2.1-2.
2. Print room control system according to claim 1, wherein the display of the quality data of the printers (1.1-1.n) or of the printing presses (1.1-1.n) takes place in each separate image screen area (window). 3. In addition to the current quality data, each color control device (2.1-
2. 3. Print room control system according to claim 1, wherein the course of all quality data or measurement values (ink supply trends) that have already occurred can be displayed. 4. Individual color control device (2.1-2.
n) or the current quality data of the printing presses (1.1-1.n), as well as data for order progress control of each printing press (1.1-1.n) in two parallel bars. The bar can be displayed in the form of , and the bars indicate preparation (R) and continue printing (
F), in which the marking line (T) indicates the current time and the already printed part of the order can be displayed graphically in the form of a bar diagram. 3. The print room control system according to any one of items 3 to 3. 5. Claim 1, wherein the captan computer (4) is configured as a personal computer having, in addition to a monitor (5), a keyboard (6) and operating members (7) (mouse, roller ball, joystick, etc.). 4. The print room control system according to any one of items 4 to 4.