Abstract: A method, associated software and resulting printing plate having both solid and halftone areas comprising ink cells. Ink cells may be provided in the solid areas according to a first pattern with a first density and size of cells per unit area, and in the halftone areas superposed on selected numbers of halftone dots. The selection of halftone dots with superposed ink cells may be according to a second pattern with a second density and size of cells in the halftone area that is a function of halftone dot size and that may or may not be related to the first pattern.

Abstract: flexographic printing plate having solid image areas which are covered by a plurality of very small and shallow cells similar to the ink carrying cells found in anilox ink metering rolls. These cells fill with ink during the plate inking step and reproduce solid image areas with better color saturation while at the same time reducing the halo typical of flexographic printing of solids. Associated with this plate is a method for producing the cells, including the use of an intermediate screened film and of a computer program for generating the film intermediate.

Abstract: A method of producing a halftone screen having a plurality of halftone dots arrayed along a desired screen frequency. The method comprises: a) using variable size halftone dots arrayed along the screen frequency to reproduce shades of gray equal to and above a predetermined shade of gray, the predetermined shade of gray having a first halftone dot size; and b) reproducing shades of gray below the predetermined shade of gray using the first halftone dot size arrayed along the screen frequency by deleting a number of halftone dots per unit area to obtain gray shades below the predetermined shade of gray.

Abstract: A method for developing calibration curves and for calibrating a halftone imaging device to reproduce on an imaging medium gray scale values equal to input gray scale values entered in said imaging device. According to this method a calibration function representing a linear change in reproduced halftone dot size on said imaging medium as a function of input halftone dot size is developed by using the device to reproduce on an imaging medium at least two test input dot values representing two different % halftone dot sizes and determining a linear change between the input and the reproduced halftone dot sizes. The dot growth is used to predict dot changes for other % halftone dots and thus construct calibration curves which may be used to calibrate the imaging device.

Abstract: A flexographic printing plate having solid image areas which are covered by a plurality of very small and shallow cells similar to the ink carrying cells found in anilox ink metering rolls. These cells fill with ink during the plate inking step and reproduce solid image areas with better color saturation while at the same time reducing the halo typical of flexographic printing of solids. Associated with this plate is a method for producing the cells, including the use of an intermediate screened film and of a computer program for generating the film intermediate.