The Development Trend of Digital Processes after Printing (II)

Connection, offline, nearline

When talking about post-press equipment, words such as connection, offline, or nearline are often mentioned. First of all, we need to clarify the definition of these terms. Connection refers to the actual connection between the printing equipment and the post-press equipment, and thus the form of communication in real time. Off-line refers to the fact that the post-press equipment is actually separated from the printing equipment, and the paper-filling operation must be performed and the post-press equipment must be set separately. The form in which the two are located is called the near-line, which is a form in which the post-press equipment is actually separated from the printing equipment, but it still transmits the processed information in some form.

For the near-line concept, it is further explained that the bar code, terminal mark, and other information in the above example are printed on the paper by the printing machine and the product is processed by the information on the bar code when the saddle stitching is performed. However, although the JDF-based means of communication is actually separated from the device (machine), it still communicates information. This meaning is consistent with the concept of near-line.

So, what kind of form is the best when it comes to selecting equipment for printing? Unfortunately, there is no clear answer to this question. In different situations, the answer is naturally different. For example, what kind of equipment do you have now? What kind of equipment will you invest in the future? These are the reasons that lead to different answers.

With the connection, the time spent in the work setup can be minimized and the workload is light. However, there are cases where the quality of the binding cannot be satisfied due to the different machines. In addition, since the connection can only be used on a specific printer, even if it is currently available only for this printer, if you intend to invest in more than one printing device in the future, then other options may be appropriate. of. Further, when using the connection method, it must be considered in advance how to deal with the case of a failure of the printing equipment.

For off-line and near-line, the increase of workload is a major drawback. However, since it can be used as a post-processing device for multiple printing presses, and the processing speed of the post-printing device is not affected by the output speed of the printing press, it can maximize the production performance of the post-printing device itself.

UP3I and binding machine

Recently, there are many topics about JDF, and the degree of recognition in the market is also quite high. The concept of JDF has also been introduced in the bookbinding field and sellers are beginning to work hard in this area.

In the prepress phase, the necessary information in the post-printing device settings is added to convey the information to the post-printing device. In this way, the above “button operation” reflects its true meaning, which is after the post-press processing. Consistent with the basic concept of JDF.

In terms of achieving the most appropriate overall effect, focusing on JDF is a natural trend. But on the other hand, regarding the UP3I, which greatly facilitates the improvement of production performance, is the level of awareness of the market too low? Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to talk about what exactly UP3I is all about, and to explain with practical examples what convenience it can bring to everyone.

UP3I is the abbreviation of UniversalPrinter, PreandPostprocessingInterface, which means “global printing, prepress, postpress universal interface”. It is an open standard for the exchange of information from end to end. Its purpose is to standardize the various operations before printing, printing, and printing in the digital printing workflow environment, so that they can be integrated together. This is mainly due to the following considerations. That is, because setting up the machines in all processes is cumbersome and inefficient, a centralized controller is used to set up all the machines that are wired together. In order to manage. The UP3I Standards Committee, formed by a leading supplier in the printing industry, has developed the first system based on UP3I to achieve the digitalization of post-press processing equipment. The core members of UP3I are Duplo, Hunkeler, IBM, Lasermax RollSystems, Océ, Xerox (in alphabetical order), a total of 6 companies.

From the above-mentioned concept, the convenience is reflected in the fact that it can shorten the operation preparation time, realize remote setting, improve the efficiency, and shorten the time when the error occurs. These are great advantages for practitioners who perform a wide variety of small batch operations. In addition, the controller has a graphical user interface that is easy for the user to use. In this case, if an error occurs, it can be determined instantaneously which part of the system has caused a problem. This is one of its characteristics.

However, one of the problems that often arises here is where is the difference between JDF and UP3I? Before discussing differences, it is necessary to clarify such a problem, that is, JDF and UP3I have in common. For the purpose of improving the efficiency of work processes, this is the goal that JDF and UP3I have to achieve together. It is definitely not the opposite. As for the differences, the UP3I is currently mainly used for connection with printing presses, and JDF is suitable for the use of near-line information exchange, which is its fundamental difference (Figure 1).

For examples of practical applications on real devices, there is a rich and detailed introduction on the UP3I website. In one case described on this website, the UP3I was used to connect the Duplo company's saddle stitching machine with the digital finishing system OcévairoPrint5000 series and put it into practical operation (see Figure 2). If you use offline, you need to set up the postpress equipment separately. However, since it uses UP3I to communicate, the settings of the postpress equipment can also be centralized on the press. In addition, even if it is necessary to frequently change the job, since the machine including the post-printing machine can be fully automatically set, the operator's operation burden is light.

For example, if you want to staple 10 A4 size booklets first, then you will need to bind 10 A5 size booklets, and then you will have to bind 10 A4 size jobs, even if there are such things that you need to change frequently. The operator does not need to operate the finishing device to complete the job. With regard to setting examples in this system, Sweden's Elander, a company devoted to large-scale printing and bookbinding, has introduced five systems to produce personalized financial instruments. Since it is a personalized document, the number of pages per booklet is certainly different. However, since it is consistent with the UP3I, it is possible to carry out a variable saddle stitching operation without special setting in the postpress.

The bookbinding industry is also evolving with the digitization of printing and the development trend of JDF and UP3I.