Perpendicular, unequal frequency non-conventional screen patterns for electronic halftone generation
Granted 13 Apr 1993 · no office action yet
Current assignee: Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company · originally 3M Company
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Inventors: Richard L. Rylander · Examiner: Stephen Brinich
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3 dated eventsAbstract
A screen system used in the electro-optical reproduction of half-tone pictures in multicolor prints are generated by an algorithm which simulates a continuous tone image. There is disclosed partial screens and screen systems produced by an algorithm for use with a digitized image which provides a means of simulating a continuous tone image containing a range of gray shades from black to white or a color separation. The \"threshold equation\" is the key of the invention as it calculates a threshold gray value that is compared to the desired local image value to determine whether that particular point should be \"on\" or \"off\". Which points (spots) are \"on\" and which are \"off\" is determined by the function that assigns a \"threshold\" value (the shade at which a pixel changes from \"off\" to \"on\") based on a pixels \"x\" and \"y\" coordinates. The generated screen comprises columns and rows of halftone dot centers, the columns and rows are geometrically orthogonal (perpendicular), but the row to row spacing and/or column to column spacing is not equal, either row to row, column to column, or row to column.
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