Correlation Analysis of Flexographic Printing Plate Surface Pattering and the Anilox Cell Geomoetry By White Ink On Transparent Substrates
Dr. Csaba Horvath, Óbuda University; Klaudia Manurova, Edina Preklet, and Ferenc Varza, University of Sopron
This paper aims to explore the relationships between the flexographic printing plate surface patterning and anilox cell geometry and simultaneously searches for the solution to a genuine phenomenon in the flexographic printing – to find an answer on how to achieve an optimal white underprint coverage.
Despite of the massive expansion and development of digital printing techniques the innovation is not dropped away in the branch of the flexography at all. In the full width of the flexographic printing process, we can meet exciting innovations- fast, precise, more-economic printing machines, advanced ink recipes, ecofriendly materials, revolutionary aniloxes, etc.
Over the past two decades, in the production of flexographic printing plates we could observe a massive technological progress. The newest technologies in platemaking work with flat top dots and nowadays we can choose from flat top dots generated inherently by the plate material, or we can create them by different technologies where the absence of oxygen at the main exposure is essential for the creation of flat top dots. Big advantages in quality can be achieved by the plate surface patterning. There exist many structures which are applicable on the plate surface helping to optimize the ink transfer and the ink laydown and supporting through that the achievement of excellent print quality.
Not only the contemporary technology is driving through changes, so do the market and the customer needs too. The market is becoming faster and faster because the customer today wants everything immediately, in good quality and cheap if possible. The technical progress aims to help printing houses to fight with the new trends successfully, but every step through the whole process needs to be optimized, standardized and improved to the best possible level.