The contours and/or an angle-indicating feature of the reproduced image has to be learned in a one-time teach-in process. When changing products, a trained operator will need no more than one extra minute per image to set up the digital alignment, the rest of the printing process is fully automated.

Once the teach-in ends, the actual production process can begin. When the substrate is loaded and an object with the learned contours is identified on the printing table, the software aligns the assigned layout with the object in perfect register. A new print file is automatically generated containing information on the object’s positioning along with the layout placed on top of it. A raster image is then produced, and the machine immediately starts printing.

There are essentially no limits to substrate shape or material.

As soon as a substrate arrives on the printing table, it is scanned for edges and contours. Other features may be used to identify the positions of substrates that are hard to align mechanically: coins, flat injection-molded parts with irregular contours or asymmetrically shaped panes of glass. For round substrates, the contour has to be supplemented with an eccentric feature in order to clearly determine the angular position.

Different substrates can also be automatically printed in parallel as long as they have been taught in. In other words, substrates with different geometries and features can all be loaded on the printing table and printed in a single print cycle. The system will flag non-taught-in substrates as defective and refuse to print them, preventing misprints caused by loading incorrect parts.

Digital Image Alignment is available for all Thieme digital printing solutions, which includes various combinations of inks and printheads.