New screening technology was recognized in the “Must See 'em” technology category at Graph Expo this past fall. “Frequency modulation (FM), or stochastic screening, has been available for many years as an alternative to conventional amplitude-modulation (AM) halftone screening,” says consultant and “Must See 'em” chair Bill Lamparter. “Implemenation of FM screening [had been] hampered by film limitations until CTP made the process more practical. Now FM screening is finding wide acceptance and is spawning a variety of new screening techniques from several prepress suppliers.”
Creo's (Billerica, MA) booth featured more than 1,000 printed samples from sheetfed and web printers showcasing Staccato, its second-generation stochastic printing technology. Visitors were challenged to distinguish offset prints from original photographs.
Agfa (Ridgefield Park, NJ) debuted :Sublima, a cross-modulation (XM) screening technology that uses AM for midtones and FM for highlights and shadows, transitioning smoothly between the two. Users reportedly can generate line screens of 210, 240, 280 and 340 lpi.
Other hybrid products include Fujifilm's Co-Rés and Screen's Spekta. At Graph Expo, Heidelberg indicated it is completing beta testing for its new Satin screening technology.
If you want to hear how fellow printers are using new screening technologies, consider attending GATF's Tech Alert, Feb. 8-9 in Pittsburgh (see gain.net); or VUE/Point, March 29-31 in Washington, DC (see gasc.org).
