| The new generation of Orlov’s effects |
The 2D Iris security feature represents soft edges in Orlov’s printing.
The presentation of the 2D Iris security feature – the co-development of Goznak and KBA-GIORI – became one of the key events of Banknote-2008 Conference, which took place in April 2008 in Washington.
The development of the idea and the technical proposal belongs to Goznak, and the construction of the inking system of the printing machine was created by KBA-GIORI. On the part of Goznak the development of the graphic variants of the new feature was coordinated by Igor PAVLOV, Head of Department of Control and Expertise of the Security Technology Directorate. He told The Watermark about the new patented invention.
The new security level
- Orlov’s printing still remains one of the most significant in the field of security printing, also thanks to its bright visual effect – the distinct transition from one colour to the other without offsets or line disruption.
In order to increase its security value even more, a few years ago the Security Technology Directorate and the specialists of the Moscow Printing Factory of Goznak offered a new high-security feature.
2D Iris is a new step in security technologies. The feature combined all the best in Orlov’s and iris printing – distinct colour edges without disruptions or displacements (Orlov’s printing) and a smooth colour transition (iris printing). The feature acquired its name 2D Iris thanks to the fact that the smooth colour transition can be achieved in all the directions of the two-dimensional subspace simultaneously.
At the same time, one element may combine sharp edges and a smooth transition between two inks. And the transition itself may vary according to the designer’s wish, be of different length within the limits of one element.
Easy identification
- Those who can recognize Orlov’s printing will easily define the sharp colour edges without displacements or disruptions in the line – the attributes of Orlov’s printing – in the new element as well.
As for the iris printing, the smooth transition from one colour to the other without displacements, disruptions or rasterizing is well-known to many people (first of all, due to the fact that this printing method is used in the banknote production). This principle is also kept in the 2D Iris security feature; only the smooth colour transition is not limited to one direction but may spread wherever. The range zone will depend both on the shape of the graphical element and on some design and technological techniques.
The 2D Iris technology closes out the possibility to print or simply imitate the feature on a commercial machine with the most absolute register. The fact is that these machines a smooth transition in any direction is impossible principally. The imitation is only possible with the help of rasterizing, which is easy to identify.
Being visual, the 2D Iris security feature combines artistic attractiveness for the designer and the customer and very high security based on the special technology and equipment. To identify the feature easily, the security element on the product should be of the size of a few square centimeters. It may be, for example, the banknote face-value, a text or any graphic images.
However, the feature “readability” depends not only or not so much on the area, as on the graphic execution of the elements of the image on which it is located, and its combination with other graphic design elements and security features.
2D Iris is a security feature of “A” category that is the highest. It is made only on special machines. Banknotes and passports correspond to this level of security.
The element application during printing does not increase the product manufacture time, but it dramatically increases its security. The 2D Iris feature may be not only visual, but expert as well (it depends on the materials used for its realization).
The potential is enormous
- Having achieved together with the Swiss specialists the technical realization of the feature, we understand that it is only one of the first of the idea implementations. While working upon the 2D Iris technology, its technical accessories, we will master new opportunities, realize the substantial potential which is in the idea itself.
The new feature opens up vast prospects for artists and designers, who will “inscribe” it into the general product concept. Competently used design possibilities may reveal additional opportunities of the feature, including a richest colour palette creation.
During the printing of 2D Iris elements in the zone of ordinary iris transition the optical ink density may blend in such a way that the transition would create a variety of the colour palette, at the same time keeping the effect of printing from one plate, without disruptions or displacements of its lines.
New goals
- At the first stage of the element development the specialists aimed at a quite simple security element. Now we are to undertake a further step –preserving the major security function of the element, to learn to smoothly inscribe it into the product security complex and the general artistic composition. At the moment the designer developing the image of the 2D Iris security element needs to imagine how the element will change during the printing process at the specially developed unit of Super Simultan IV machine. But very soon the technological process will change – the specialists of the Research Institute of Goznak are designing a special software product calculating and emulating the technological peculiarities of the process, aimed at facilitating the work of designers during the 2D Iris graphic elements creation.
