"UV-Curable Large Format Printers Technology Test & Guide" is a new Special Report from Digital Dots that evaluates and explains the importance of colour gamut and resolution and how they influence output quality and consistency across different wide-format UV printers and materials.

Researched and written by Michael Walker and Paul Lindström, "UV-Curable Large Format Printers Technology Test & Guide" provides an in-depth insight into how UV-curable wide-format machines and inks have developed. The thorough tests and clear analysis concentrate on the relevance and importance of colour gamut and resolution as a measure of the performance of a device.

Manufacturers EFI VUTEk, HP Scitex, Inca, Polytype, Océ and Mimaki provided test submissions of UV-curable output on selected media. As these companies have solutions that cover different areas of the wide-format production market, the test results cover most of the scenarios likely to be encountered by print service providers and display producers.

Two specific tests were used to assess the criteria which are key in wide-format ink-jet printers, namely colour gamut and resolution. For the first of these, Digital Dots used a standard IT-8 CMYK profiling chart whilst, for the second, a specially designed test  gauged line pairs at a wide range of spacings to determine the true resolving power relating to droplet size and placement.

The resulting research provides invaluable information for all those involved in the wide-format ink-jet sector, whether printer and ink manufacturers, or the end users or possible buyers of the machines themselves. The companies supplying test samples cover a strong cross-section of present-day systems and their market expectations, and readers of the report will glean relevant information to assist in their understanding of the principles which drive today's technologies.

"The Digital Dots' Special Report is the first of its kind which actually goes beyond explanations of how and why ink-jet printers function, and what they do. It delves deeper into the importance of gamut and why reliable colour matching is becoming increasingly vital to wide-format," says independent inkjet consultant, Sophie Matthews-Paul. "This document is an ambitious project yet is produced in a concise and informative manner so that people don't need to reach for a scientific dictionary to understand the content."

An independent graphic arts research organisation which was founded 12 years ago by a group of industry specialists, Digital Dots concentrates on producing research and information relating to the systems used throughout today's print sector. "UV-curable Large Format Printers: Technology Test & Guide" costs £120 and can be ordered online at http://www.digitaldots.org/merchandise/uv-printers-report