Scanning The Horizon

The world of color scanners is constantly changing. Discover new advances and products that can benefit your in-plant.

COLOR SCANNING isn't what it used to be. Say good-bye to the time-consuming task of separating transparencies from prints and switching scanner modes accordingly. Today's scanners recognize what's on the bed and automatically change the mode for you, allowing you to scan film, slides and photos on the same device.

"That's been the target machine that the manufacturers were trying to get to," says Don Rogers, product manager for scanners at Heidelberg Prepress. "These scanners allow all the work to be handled in-house without investing in several scanner models that only handle specific functions."

Bill Gillooly, scanner marketing manager for CreoScitex says that buyers want this type of machine.

"People are expecting one scanner to do every type of scan," he reports.

Gillooly says that with advances such as oil-mounting and resampling, flatbed scanners now combine near-drum-quality resolution with convenience and affordability.

Gillooly says CreoScitex XY-Stitch technology is the next step in XY-Zoom scanning. With XY-Zoom, the high-resolution charged coupled device (CCD)—which responds to light and records the image—moves across the entire bed of a flatbed scanner, increasing its potential for batch scanning. The only problem with XY-Zoom is that it can only be used to scan small images, like 35mm slides.

Gillooly says XY-Stitch technology now allows the CCD to move along the surface of a larger image, scanning as it goes. Then the computer "stitches" all the scans together for a high-resolution image, eliminating the size limitation.

Rogers notes that Heidelberg's direct capture technology (DCT), which uses no mirror, increases resolution by eliminating noise.

Both Rogers and Gillooly report that new scanning software and filing systems enable users to batch-scan multiple objects and save them in files that can later be edited.

"The future is going to be more and more people who want to scan images one time and not worry about going back and scanning them again," Rogers states.

He says that CIELab and high-capacity RGB files are able to save almost all of the information contained in a scanned image. This has opened the door for a new field—image archiving. Companies now archive pictures for many purposes, from reuse to possible sale.

"Anyone that has [archived] images has realized that they are sitting on a bank account," Gillooly reports. "People are willing to pay for pictures if they can get them easily."

Gillooly feels this industry will boom in the not-too-distant future.

Here are a variety of new scanners that may help your in-plant boom:

"The future is going to be more and more people who want to scan images one time and not worry about going back and scanning them again."

—Don Rogers

Forty Scans Per Hour

From Agfa, the AgfaScan XY-15 high-end CCD scanner includes the AgfaScan XY-15 scanning unit, ColorExact application software, and ColorTune color management software. XY-Zoom architecture enables single-pass scanning of any image in any bed position at any resolution. The AgfaScan XY-15 can do more than 40 scans per hour. It scans transmissive originals of up to 13.8x17.9˝ and reflective originals of 13.8x18.5˝. A fixed top surface glass allows for unrestricted size and depth of originals.

Circle 110

Jazz Up Your Scanning

CreoScitex offers the Jazz scanner, with an optical resolution of 2,000 dpi and a maximum resolution of 6,000 dpi. It can perform 15 scans per hour. The Jazz Plus has an optical resolution of 2,540 dpi and a maximum resolution of 7,620 dpi. It can produce 25 scans per hour. Both scanners are based on CreoScitex XY-Stitch technology and come with EverSmart scanning application software (Mac or PC), FinalTouch application software and CreoScitex ICC profiles.

Expressive Machine

The Epson Expression 1600 includes a 1,600-dpi CCD sensor and is able to achieve a resolution of 1,600x3,200 dpi. The scanner offers 36-bit color depth both internally and externally. It has a Dmax of 3.3 to capture detail in highlight and shadow areas. The Expression 1600 uses a Xenon cold cathode fluorescent lamp, allowing the Expression 1600 to scan without warm-up time. The dual-focus mechanism lets you change the focal distance to 2.5mm above the glass.

Two Degrees Of Celsis

The Fujifilm Celsis 5250 CASC drum scanner has a 20x28˝ scanning area, 25- to 8,000-dpi optical resolution and 14 bits per color. In addition, the 5250 has a simplified keyboard, Autoscan facility and predefined setups for ease of use. Another scanner model, the Celsis 6250 CASC, achieves the concept of one-touch scanning and uses C-dot technology, integrating screened separations into a digital workflow.

Desktop Model

At Drupa, Heidelberg Prepress introduced a desktop scanner model, the Linoscan 2400 XL. This 11x17˝ flatbed scanner has a resolution of 2,400 optical dpi using LinoColor Elite software. It is for users who want quality color scans, but don't have high-volume requirements. Another 11x17˝ model, the QuickStep, also has 2,400 dpi optical resolution and uses LinoColor 6.0 software. It is for users who need higher productivity and quality.

Perfect Mate

Howtek offers Scanview ScanMate scanners like the ScanMate F4, which has one-button operation, resolutions up to 2,400 dpi and a scanning area of 12x17˝. Other scanners include the F6, F8 Plus and F10 series, all of which offer a compact, vertical design and no mirrors for true optical resolutions up to 4,000 dpi. The ScanMate F10 uses XY-Zoom technology and a 10,200 CCD to capture 5,400 dpi across the entire imaging area of 12x17˝.

4,000-dpi Film Scanner

Polaroid's SprintScan 4000, a 4,000-dpi film scanner, produces images in under one minute from 35mm slides, filmstrips and Advanced Photo System (APS) film formats. The high-resolution, productive scanner offers quality output with a true optical resolution of 4,000 dpi and an optical density of 3.4.

An Artist's Scanner

The Screen (USA) Cezanne Elite flatbed CCD color desktop scanner can scan 35mm originals up to 12.8x20.7˝ at 350 dpi and 400 percent magnification. It will handle 104 scans per hour. Elite offers XY-Zoom technology for resolutions up to 5,300 dpi with a Dmax density range of 4.2. The user has a choice of RGB, CMYK, grayscale and line art output.

Meet Vincent

From Purup-Eskofot, the Eskoscan Vincent is an A3 color and CopyDot flatbed scanner. You can prepare the next job while the first one is scanning. It uses XY scanning and has a maximum image size of 12.2x17.3˝, with a top resolution of 5,080 dpi. It comes with a built-in digital dust filter. PERfection software lets you retouch CopyDot/bitmap files, and EskoProof software lets you prepare CopyDot scans for proofing on CT printers.

Powerful Looking Scanner

The UMAX PowerLook 3000 scans reflective or transparent originals at 3,048 dpi with a maximum optical density of up to 3.6 Dmax. It can detect full detail in both highlights and shadows. In addition, the PowerLook 3000 features a dual-lens design, making it ideal for scanning small images and 35mm slides.

by Joe Ranoia