Ink Coverage: Measurement and Limits
Total ink coverage (TAC/TIC) is the sum of the C, M, Y and K percentages at a location. For example, C=80%, M=60%, Y=40%, K=20% gives 200%. A maximum, a page average and estimated ink consumption describe different things; do not interchange them.
Total ink coverage (TAC/TIC) is the sum of the C, M, Y and K percentages at a location. For example, C=80%, M=60%, Y=40%, K=20% gives 200%. A maximum, a page average and estimated ink consumption describe different things; do not interchange them.
What the tool measures
Studio requests an ink map from the PDF engine for a selected page. The result must have a valid format and match that page. If the engine cannot supply the measurement, the tool reports that limitation; it does not invent ink values from the screen preview. A separate legacy screen heatmap is only a visual estimate and is not equivalent to the engine's ink map or plate evidence.
The Studio map request accepts at most 100 MB (1024 × 1024 bytes per MB) and waits at most 60 seconds. These are map-request bounds, not a promise of full-document analysis. Plate data is optional: an older engine may return a map without plates, and a request that requires plates must report that they are unavailable.
A workflow's total-ink decision has its own whole-file measurement and page limits. A report may show measurements for only part of a file. Always read the measured page range and unknown findings; a missing or partial map does not establish that the file is under the ink limit.
How to use the result
- Open the PDF in Studio and select the page you want to inspect.
- Read the available ink evidence and its scope. If a measurement is unavailable, keep that area under review.
- Compare the measured quantity with the print provider's limit for the paper, process and output profile. There is no universal paper-independent TAC limit.
- Ask the provider to verify production-critical colours and separations in the target RIP/DFE. The screen is not a press proof.
NowToPrint does not convert the PDF to CMYK. RGB, spot colours, transparency and overprint can prevent a bounded measurement; this does not mean that their ink value is zero. Colour conversion and ink reduction need a separate, approved production workflow.
Ink coverage alone is not an accurate quote for ink consumption or a print approval. See reading results, colour management and the heatmap guide.
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Font Findings in a PDF
Font checks help identify missing resources and rendering risks. An embedded font is useful evidence, but it does not by itself prove correct glyphs, text extraction or appearance on the target device.
Reading an Ink Heatmap
A heatmap makes spatial differences in an ink measurement easier to see. Its colours are an overlay legend; they are not the colours that will be printed. A bright region is not by itself a failed production check.