Printer Software / control.tower

Complete Control Over Variable Printing Jobs

inc.jet takes variable printing solutions to the next level with control.tower, providing complete control for print jobs, turning a regular print machine into an intelligent specialty print system, simply and quickly.

Interfacing not just the inc.jet imagers but other hardware including sensors, cameras and readers, control.tower prints, reads and verifies, with diverts possible for when errors are encountered. By incorporating control.tower into new systems or upgrading existing machinery, not only does it create an intelligent process whereby you can track your print job, it also helps ensure product integrity -  what you print is what you get.

Control Tower consists of three easy to use applications that reads, tracks and verifies product from print set up all the way to the finished product.

Read  Print Data

With the use of a barcode or optical scanner, this function converts and sends plain text to the software, which then locates the record and relays the message to the imager, letting it know what data needs to be printed. The reader can be set for Data, Key or Index mode, identifying what type of file is being printed and where it is located.  This allows for easy, direct communication with the print engine, and signals the jet.engine what file is coming up next for printing.

Track Print Data

Within control.tower, the use of sensors, based on intelligence such as conveyor speed, allows the product to be monitored from the beginning to the end of the process.  Users can view exactly where the product is located, while written logs display detailed progress of the item. The tracking device can be used to trigger a diverter, update a product’s position or signal that the product is ready to be printed, depending on the location of the sensor.  This helps in identifying what, if any, the potential problems are, and also will help determine if the print is happening as quickly and efficiently as need be.

Verify Print Quality in Real Time

Scanners are used in the verifying process, allowing the operator to make sure that output is legible and that it is an exact match to the data scanned by the reader.  If it is not, this product will be diverted and a message sent signifying that the product scanned was rejected. This reconfirms that no illegible data will ever pass inspection, helping save time and money since there is no unnecessary follow up required.  And, even if a product is unidentifiable and has been rejected, the printing order will not be disrupted.  It will continue to print the next page, but notify the operator that one page was diverted.

View Live Print Results with the Vision System

An additional option for control.tower, Vision System gives you the capability of not only knowing that your data has been properly printed, but actually allows you to see the printed data.  This extra feature that adds into Control Tower, introduces the use of a camera as opposed to a scanner, providing the chance to see the data before it leaves the machine.  Having the capability to make side by side comparisons between data sent and data printed, ensures that the data was printed accurately and meets the quality that is demanded.