BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024
Office equipment — Print quality measurement methods for colour prints Part 1: Image quality measurement methods
- Standard No.
- BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024
- Release Date
- 2024
- Published By
- British Standards Institution (BSI) GB / BSI
- Latest
- BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024
- Introduction
Background of Standard Formulation and Technical Evolution
With the widespread adoption of color printing in office environments, user requirements for the consistency and reliability of print quality are increasingly rising. Existing standards such as ISO/IEC 24790 and ISO/IEC 29112 address uniformity, line quality, and sharpness for monochrome printing, respectively, but lack standardized measurement methods for color consistency in color printing and stability in duplex printing. The ISO/IEC 22592 series emerged to fill this gap, with this part (Part 1) focusing on image quality measurement methods for color printing, thereby addressing an industry void. In terms of technical evolution, the standard has expanded from traditional monochrome evaluation to multi-dimensional color evaluation, introducing key indicators such as color reproduction range, intra-page variation, front-and-back variation, inter-sheet variation, and show-through variation, reflecting a deep consideration of actual office scenarios (such as duplex printing and multi-page documents).
Comparison of Standardized Test Chart Frameworks
The standard defines three test charts, each targeting different quality attributes. The following table compares them from three perspectives: chart purpose, layout, and measurement dimensions:
Chart Type Measurement Attributes Layout Characteristics Key Measurement Dimensions Chart 1 (Figure 1) Color reproduction and variation A4 duplex, 9 sets × 16 color patches (C/M/Y/K/R/G/B/W and light tones), with back-side patches offset by half a distance Color reproduction range, intra-page variation, front-and-back variation, inter-sheet variation Chart 2 (Figure 2) Show-through variation A4 single-sided, 16 sets × 9 color patches, arranged centrally on the front side, with 8 saturated color patches on the back side Color difference caused by show-through (ΔE of front-side patches under different back-side colors) Chart 3 (Figure 3) Line quality, graininess, and mottle Four pages duplex, 4 repeated patterns per page, each pattern containing 9 halftone blocks (C/M/K three-color shadows, mid-tones, highlights) and 3 sets of lines with different angles/line widths Line width, blurriness, roughness, character blackness; graininess, mottle (based on ISO/IEC 24790)
Interpretation of Core Measurement Methods and Indicators
Color reproduction range is calculated as the sum of 12 ΔE*ab values between the white point and six primary colors (C, M, Y, R, G, B), and between the black point and the aforementioned primary colors. This indicator is highly correlated with CIELAB color volume (R²>0.98), but the calculation is simpler. Variation indicators use the 95th percentile (PERCENTILE.INC) to eliminate random errors.
Line quality measurement uses a scanner to capture images, evaluating line width, blurriness, roughness, and character blackness according to ISO/IEC 24790. The standard specifically stipulates measuring only black lines (as the original scope of the standard was limited to monochrome), with line widths as fine as 0.12 pt (approximately 42.3 μm), testing the fine reproduction capability of the printing system.
Graininess and mottle correspond to brightness fluctuations at high frequencies (>0.4 cy/mm) and low frequencies (<0.4 cy/mm), respectively. Measurement is performed only on black halftone blocks to avoid color influence.
Implementation Recommendations
To ensure the comparability of test results, the following recommendations are made:
- Environmental Control: Printing environment temperature (23±5)°C, relative humidity (50±10)%; paper samples should be conditioned for at least 24 hours prior to use.
- Consumables and Settings: Use recommended consumables and factory default driver settings; disable color/sharpness enhancement functions; select borderless mode and long-edge duplex binding.
- Sample Processing: Inkjet prints must be dried for at least 24 hours in an environment with 30%-70% RH, 15-28°C, and illuminance <1000 lx.
- Measurement Conditions: Color measurement shall adopt ISO 13655 conditions, with M2 illumination recommended (to exclude the influence of optical brighteners); all measurements must be performed on the same instrument and regularly calibrated.
- Report Completeness: Detailed records of printer model, driver settings, paper information, scanner model, and any deviations from the standard shall be maintained.
By adhering to this standard, equipment manufacturers and users can objectively evaluate color print quality, providing a reliable basis for product selection and quality improvement.
BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024 Referenced Document
- IEC 61966-2-1 Multimedia systems and equipment - Colour measurement and management - Part 2-1: Colour management - Default RGB colour space - sRGB; Corrigendum 1
- ISO 13655 Graphic technology - Spectral measurement and colorimetric computation for graphic arts images
- ISO/CIE 11664-4 Colorimetry — Part 4: CIE 1976 L*a*b* Color Space
- ISO/CIE 11664-6 Colorimetry-Part 6: CIEDE2000 Colour-Difference Formula
- ISO/IEC 24790 Amendment 1 - Information technology - Office equipment - Measurement of image quality attributes for hardcopy output - Monochrome text and graphic images
BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024 history
- 2024 BS ISO/IEC 22592-1:2024 Office equipment — Print quality measurement methods for colour prints Part 1: Image quality measurement methods
