Effect of Color Output Modification Approach (COMA) on the gray balance: A mismatch of device calibration, destination and source profiles, and halftone screening

Abstract

The purpose of this applied research in the digital print production was to determine the influence of applied Color Output Modification Approaches (COMA) or Color Output Sequences (COS) to determine the colorimetric variations (COLVA) on the gray balance (GB) hue in a Color Managed Digital Printing Workflow (CMDPW). The experiment analyzed the application of eight COMA or COS on the digital color output. The data contained in this report are the result of an experiment conducted to test an accepted color management practice to gain a greater understanding of the presumptions associated with the application of correct print parameters (Calibration, Screening, Resolution, Source and Destination Profiles) of CMDPW. These parameters rely on the 4-C’s (Calibration, Characterization, Conversion and Control) of Color Managed Workflow (CMW). The experiment examined the eight COMA as independent groups (K = 8) using a one-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with equal n’s method (at α = 0.05) to determine the significant colorimetric variations that exists among the [K = 8, N = 800, ni = 80, nt = 640] groups gray balance average hue deviations. With eight groups, a one-tailed, non-directional hypothesis was established. The conclusions of this study are based upon an analysis of the COLVA by ANOVA test data and associated findings. The data from the ANOVA revealed significant differences in the COLVA of the reproduction among the multiple COMA groups. The colorimetric data derived by the experiment suggest that selection of correct print parameters is an important step in a CMDPW as it relates to achieving accurate GB for a desired use/purpose.