On-line control of the colour printing quality by image processing

A prototype called ARGUS is under development for automatic colour quality inspection of the printing web. The inspection is performed by a movable( 2D) colour CCD-camera which takes images under stroboscopic Light. To guide the measurements, the digital "page design files" are analysed by image processing techniques and used to determine several measurement spots and templates under a set of criteria. These measurements include co-ordinate system reference, colour registration, colour density, grey balance, micro-homogeneity and ink consumption pattern, which are all needed for printing press control.<
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