5-Layer Printing

5-Layer Printing

What?

Certain printers support 5-layer printing modes in 1 pass by overprinting a total of 5 layers of color + white + blocker + white + color. Different images (or the same) can be shown on the front and back on a single sheet of media, all printable in one process.

Re-requisites:

the printer driver has to support this mode. E.g. Mimaki UCJV300, HP Latex 700 / 800, Oce Colorado M series

How?

There are 4 steps in Layout

  1. select a pmm with White
  2. Set Double Sided
  3. Set the White layer to Under color
  4. Select the correct driver settings to enable the Blocker layer.

First we need to understand how the layers are organized. See the image below to better understand this:

Now that we understand this we can look at how to achieve this in PrintFactory.

1. Select Ink set with White.

First of all we need to have a PMM with an inkset including White such as CMYK+White.

2. Set to Double Sided

Now we need to open the front and rear image in Layout, activate the Double Sided option and generate the B side:

So looking at the image above, we now have the 1st Layer and the 5th Layer ready. At this point, if you wish to have a different image on the B side(5th Layer), then drag and drop the image onto the B side:

Notice in the image above, the B side (5th Layer) is now a different image. So the next step we need to initiate is the 2nd and 4th Layers, the White ink.

3. Set White Layer

To do this, we need set a White Ink method in Layout:

Finally, we need to switch on the 3rd Layer. This is the blocker layer that separates the 1st and 2nd layer from the 4th and 5th. To switch this on, we need to look under the Print Settings Tab in Layout and set the Layering method to Blocker.

4. Driver settings to enable Blocker layer

In the example of the Mimaki UCJV300, the Blocker needs to be selected in the Layering. For the HP Latex 800 W e.g. , just select the 123pass mode.

Now that we have switched Blocker Layering on as above, we have the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Layers ready to submit to the printer.

Following the setup in the above screenshots, this is the order we would expect the Layers to print:



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