Abstract
Flexographic printing plate is used for the transfer of image onto a printing substrate. The surface of printing plate is stretched lengthwise when the plate is mounted on plate cylinder. As a result, the print length on the impression is always longer than the actual length of the plate. Prepress must compensate for this difference in length. The result of wrong plate distortion is different print length in flexography compared to the processes that follow printing. The aim of this paper is to research the influence of repeat length in printing and polymer plate thickness on the factor distortion. The distortion factor values were calculated using the derived formulas. Regardless of the repeat length in printing, the value of the thickness factor for a particular printing plate is constant. However, the values of the distortion factor decrease with the increasing thickness of the polymer plate and the decreasing of the total plate cylinder circumference.
Highlights
Flexographic printing has an advantage over other printing techniques, which can use a wider range of inks [1], and due to elastic printing plates, it is good for printing on various absorbent and non-absorbent printing substrates such as plastic foils and films, cardboard and paper, and other materials used in the production of packaging [2]
The calculation used five values of the total plate cylinder circumference according to the number of gear teeth, in a step consisting of 20 teeth (Tab. 1)
This is the value of the circle circumference CC = 2ππππ where the value of the thickness of the soft polymer plate part is used for radius (Fig. 6)
Summary
Flexographic printing has an advantage over other printing techniques, which can use a wider range of inks [1], and due to elastic printing plates, it is good for printing on various absorbent and non-absorbent printing substrates such as plastic foils and films, cardboard and paper, and other materials used in the production of packaging [2]. The quality of reproduction in flexographic printing is conditioned by a combination of different parameters related to the platemaking technology and type of polymer plates [3], specification of anilox rollers and pressure strength in printing [4] as well as characteristics of printing substrate [5]. The lightest pressure or "kiss impression" is ideal for printing [6]. Kiss impression is a clean print image created while applying the lowest value of pressure possible with the plate against the paper [7]. The gap value or the nip engagement between the plate and impression cylinder for lightest printing pressure is 3 thousand of an inch or 75 microns (0,0762 mm) [8]. The entire process of flexography consists of a large number of influential parameters [10] that need to be standardized in accordance with the ISO 12647-6 standard [11]
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