Hexachrome
Hexachromeis a discontinued six-color printing process designed byPantone.In addition to customCMYKinks, Hexachrome uses orange and green inks to expand the color gamut for better color reproduction. It is therefore also known as a CMYKOG process.
Hexachrome was discontinued by Pantone in 2008 whenAdobe Systemsstopped supporting the HexWarepluginsoftware. While the details of Hexachrome were not secret, its use was limited by trademark and patent to those obtaining a license from Pantone. The inventor of Hexachrome is Richard Herbert, who is also the president of Pantone Inc.[1]
Software[edit]
To use the Hexachrome process in a digital printing process, Pantone produced apluginforAdobe Photoshopthat allowed the designer to work in anRGBcolor spacemore typical of computer work.[2]The plugin was called HexWare, which contained a set of Adobe plugins used by printers and designers who used the Hexachrome system.[2]Older versions ofQuarkXPressandAdobe InDesignalso came with the Hexachrome system already installed and enabled.[2]
Purpose[edit]
The main purpose of Hexachrome was to create a printing ink system that could depict brighter and clearer pictures by being able to produce more accurate colors.[3]Using this system instead of the CMYK ink system also allowed for printing more accurate skin tones and pastels.[4]The Hexachrome system let users print images from computer screens that were not able to be accurately duplicated before.[4] As well as producing more accurate color photo reproduction than previous systems, Hexachrome also increased efficiency as it was able to match many more Pantonespot colors.[3]Designers would specify Pantone spot colors when designing logos, but many of the Pantone colors could not be produced using the CMYK color system, requiring additional passes on the press for each Pantone color, increasing printing costs. By using the Hexachrome system, a wider range of custom colors could be printed on the same pass as the color photo images.[3]
Users[edit]
Hexachrome was used by software companies includingAldus Corporation,Adobe Systems,andQuarkand printer manufacturers includingHP,Epson,andXerox.[1]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^abAnchell, Steve."The Pantone Story".Rangefinder Magazine. Archived fromthe originalon 27 January 2010.Retrieved1 March2012.
- ^abcReid, Dan."Hexachrome Printing".Digital Output. Archived fromthe originalon 8 August 2007.Retrieved2 March2012.
- ^abcReid, Dan."6 colors hits the spot".Business Source Complete (AN=18772022 not publicly available).
- ^ab"An extreme color gamut can help".Retrieved1 March2012.
- "Pantone Expands the Color Range With Hexachrome System".Business Source Complete (AN=9897108 not publicly available).
- "Hexachrome on web offset line".Pantone Inc.
- "Richard Herbert".Electronic Publishing (AN=15409111, not publicly available).
External links[edit]
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| CIE | |
| RGB | |
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| Color systems and standards | |
For the vision capacities of organisms or machines, see  Color vision. | |