Printing gloss effects in a 2.5D system

Abstract

An important aspect for print quality assessment is the perceived gloss level across the printout. There exists a strong relationship between the surface roughness of a printout and the amount of specular reflection which is perceived as gloss variations. Different print parameters influence the surface roughness of the printouts such as the paper substrate, the type of inks and the print method. The lack of control over the print’s surface roughness may result in artefacts such as bronzing and differential gloss. Employing a 2.5D or relief printing system, we are able to control the printout roughness by manipulating the way the ink is deposited in a layer-by-layer basis. By changing the deposition time in between two layers of white ink and the order on which the pixels are printed, we achieve different gloss levels from a matte to a glossy appearance that can be controlled locally. Understanding the relationship between different printing parameters and the resulting gloss level allows us: to solve differential gloss artefacts (to obtain a print with a full gloss or matte finish) and to use the local gloss variations to create reflection effects in the printouts. Applications related to security printing have also been explored. Our results showed a reduced level of gloss toward a matte appearance as the ink deposition time between the layers was increased, allowing more time for the ink to dry between passes. We measured the gloss levels using a gloss meter and a psychophysical experiment was conducted to validate our measurements and observations.