Harlequin Server^® simple in-RIP imposition

• small print shops printing on small-format conventional presses and digital production presses;
• enterprise-level digital printers who will find the N-Up and saddle-stitch schemes particularly useful;
• wide-format printing and flexo work where the tiling, scaling and page rotation options will also ensure fast and high-quality results.

Manual imposition is slow and expensive.

Harlequin in-RIP imposition does not require expensive operator time and generates output faster.

Simple in-RIP imposition occurs automatically in the RIP without the need for manual intervention. It also works with dedicated imposition design programs. Harlequin simple in-RIP imposition also works well in slightly larger print sites, with dedicated imposition software, giving OEMs the choice of how they implement imposition in their products. Jobs can be sent from imposition tools as PostScript, or as PDF. When used with the optional JDF Enabler module, a Harlequin RIP can also accept imposed jobs as a JDF job, leading to rapid job delivery from the imposition tool, and increased operator throughput.

A print site where a significant proportion of work requires complex enough imposition that a dedicated imposition design tool is in use can also gain by using the in-RIP imposition in the Harlequin RIP, when processing jobs that can be processed using one of the supported imposition schemes. The sheer speed and efficiency of an in-RIP solution can pay back the investment in in-RIP imposition very rapidly, even if it is not used for every job.

The configuration of a Harlequin RIP is built around “page setups”. In a sense they are job tickets, that will be applied to all jobs arriving at the RIP. Page setups allow the user to define which device jobs will be output to, at what resolution, along with all the standard processes such as screening and calibration. They are also used to control all of the functionality provided in the Harlequin RIP beyond straightforward interpreting and rendering, such as in-RIP imposition that will be applied to all jobs that use that page setup. An imposition setup might, for instance, pair up pages for saddle-stitching, complete with trim, fold and register marks, and with compensation for creep.

Four-up prefect bound - position of the pages on press sheet can be controlled

One-up (1 & 2 sided)

These are provided to allow the addition of crop and register marks, text slug lines and color bars to the output. One-up is also used for Tiling (introduced in Genesis release (v7.1) and for automatically scaling pages to fit the size of the media, e.g. for point of sale materials.

N-Up (1 & 2 sided)

These are similar to the 2-up & 4-up selections available in some printer drivers, printing multiple pages in reader order on each press sheet. These schemes are provided primarily for the digital print market place.

Cut & stack (1 & 2 sided)

The most efficient method for printing a relatively small number of copies of multi-page jobs that will be wire or comb bound.

Step & repeat (1 & 2-sided)

For post-cards, labels, etc.

Saddle-stitch (left, right & top-bound)

For brochures, calendars and other booklets, available in 2-and 4-up*. Four-up saddle-stitch can be head-to-head, foot-to-foot or side-to side to suit the dimensions of the page, the plate and your bindery equipment.

Saddle-stitch, stepped and repeated

For smaller booklets.

Perfect-bound, four-up (left & right bound)

For perfect-bound books etc. A variety of geometries, including head-to-head and foot-to-foot are available. Position of the pages on the sheet can be fully controlled.

Position of the pages on the sheet can be fully controlled, allowing for non-printing margins on digital devices, leaving space for the gripper on a sheet-fed press, or making laps for saddle-stitching.

If in-RIP imposition is applied using the same imposition setup for output to a proofing device and a plate-setter, the page positioning, fold and trim marks etc will be accurately proofed, even when it's necessary to scale down the press sheet to fit on a smaller proofing device.

• imposition occurs automatically in the RIP without the need for manual intervention
• ideal for instances where a dedicated imposition programme is not in use or not desired
• also works with dedicated imposition design programmes – so gives the OEM maximum flexibility in their choice of implementation
• can accept imposed jobs as a JDF job
• supports a number of imposition schemes
• increases speed and efficiency offering rapid pay back even it if is not used for every job.