Datasheet

Image Stability: Also a Question of Balance

General Observations

To adequately characterize the expected print-life of a photographic print, all known

environmental factors must be considered. For example, inkjet prints are known to be

affected by to varying degrees to:

• Light

• Heat

• High humidity

• Ozone

Unprotected display is the toughest condition because a print is simultaneously exposed

to all four factors. Recent print-life claims made by several brands of inkjet media have

been limited to only light fade, and stipulate in the fine print that these estimates are only

valid if the print is protected behind glass. In order to estimate the print-life of the new

KODAK Ultima Picture Paper, we assume unprotected display, and test against all four

factors.

There are no current standard test methods that address the estimation of print-life for

digital photographic output across the relevant environmental factors listed above.

However, the current ANSI/ISO standard

that has been used for traditional chromogenic

silver halide materials does offer some guidance with respect to accelerated testing for

the effects of light and heat.

Overall print-life is assumed to be only as good as the “weakest link”, i.e., print-life will

be limited by the factor that produces the lowest overall estimate. Thus, a print that

might be projected to last 100 years based on light fade, but only 6 months with respect to

ozone fade, would result in a print-life estimate of 6 months.

The End-User Environment

Before any estimate of print-life can be made, one must first determine the typical

environment that represents the intended use of the product. For the new Ultima Picture

Paper, the intended use environment is the typical home consumer. Published studies by

Anderson and coworkers in the1980s suggest that the typical home environment is

represented by a temperature of about 20°C (68°F), a relative humidity (RH) of about

50%, and a light intensity in the range of 100-150 lux for 12 hours during the day.

8,9

have recently completed an even broader study of 32 homes in 4 cities around the world,

and the results are essentially the same: 20°C ± 3.5° (± 1σ), 51 ± 11% RH (± 1σ), and <

137 lux per 12 hour daytime cycle (90

percentile).

For the purposes of accelerated

print-life testing, we have therefore defined the typical home display environment as

23°C, 50% RH, and 120 lux per 12 hour daytime cycle (1440 lux-hr/day). This is the

same assumption used previously for traditional silver halide as well as thermal dye

transfer prints.

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