Eight Quick & Easy Steps for Maximizing Color Throughput for Spectrum scanners without Auto Color Detect.

We recommend the use of a Pentium IV 1.6 GHz or faster, 512 MB RAM or better.

Impact: up to 60% in color duplex at 200 dpi dots per inch (dpi)

Since all steps below apply mainly for color scanning, please ensure that your scanning application software is set to scan in color. To do this:

• Start your application
• Select Color for your Image Output Type or Color Mode (the exact wording may vary per application)
• Select a resolution in dots per inch (dpi) in Scanner Settings
• 150 dpi is recommended as the best setting to maximize throughput and image quality while minimizing file size

To maximize document throughput, you should disable your software scanning application’s viewer if your software uses a version of the ImageControls® driver that was released before version 3.75. If you are using ISIS, TWAIN or ImageControls v. 3.75 (or later), please move on to Step 4.

• To check which version of ImageControls your application uses, click on the Help menu option on your application’s toolbar, select About… and look for the version number
• For example, your version of VCDemo, a demonstration scanning application that comes with your Spectrum scanner, might display “ImageControls V3.702.04”
• If it displays this or another version of ImageControls released earlier than 3.75, click Source on the VCDemo toolbar and uncheck Display While Processing
• If you’re using another application, please follow the step above but keep in mind that different applications may describe the same functionality in different ways

Impact: up to 45% in duplex color at 200 dpi

In your scanning application:

• From the toolbar, click File and Storage Format (may be worded somewhat differently)
• Select JPEG as both File Type and Compression Type, and click OK
• Please Note: in some applications JPEG compression will automatically be selected as file type and/or compression type when color is selected as image output type

In VRS (VirtualReScan):

• Open the VRS Interactive Properties dialog box by right clicking on the VRS logo in the lower right hand corner of your PC screen, then select Preview
• Click the VRS Profile tab, select the Default settings profile and click Load
• Click the VRS Options tab and click the Special Features button – this will launch the VRS Advanced Properties dialog box
• Click the VRS Color tab, click the JPEG Compression Enabled checkbox and click OK
• Go back to the VRS Profile tab, click Save and then click OK

Impact: 50%+ in color duplex at 200 dpi

Please Note: Spectrum JPEG compression is available in hardware as a function of the scanner’s EGSA board. This allows each color image to be compressed at the rated speed of the scanner according to the step above. If the scanner’s hardware compression is disabled and the application is set to a compressed format (i.e. JPEG), then VRS compresses via software. This will slow down the scanner’s throughput by more than half. In addition, if hardware JPEG compression is disabled and any software VRS functionality is enabled (see Step 5 for details), VRS will decompress each image in software, perform the operation(s) and recompress the image, thus lowering throughput even further.

Disable any of the following VRS software features that you do not need in your particular application:

• Deskew – make sure there is no check in the checkbox next to the Deskew option on Skew tab in the VRS Interactive Properties dialog box (if there is a check, click on the checkbox to remove it)
• Rotation – click on the Rotation tab in the Advanced Properties dialog box and select a value of zero for both front and back page rotation
• Annotation – click on the Endorser tab in the Advanced Properties dialog box and click the No Endorser and No Annotation checkbox or, if you are physically imprinting on each scanned document, click the Enable Mechanical Endorser Only checkbox
• Barcode and patch code recognition – disable through your scanning application

Impact: 30% in simplex color and 60% in duplex color at 200 dpi

In 8125D models only, you can select the level of scanner sensitivity based on the degree of document preparation. Selecting AVERAGE lowers scanner throughput slightly and thus avoids “stream feeding” problems caused by excessive document skew at maximum throughput. To select doc prep, follow the directions below. If you have an 8100 or 8080 model, please skip to the next section of this step (before Step 7).

• From the home menu, press the RIGHT arrow key until you reach the USER SETUP menu. Press F3 NEXT until you reach the doc prep menu
• Press +/- to toggle between GOOD and AVERAGE document preparation
• Select GOOD if documents are well prepared and aligned, i.e. skew is less than 6°
• Select AVERAGE if documents are poorly aligned, i.e. skew is more than 6°
• Press CLEAR to return to the home menu

The entry and exit sensors on your scanner can be adjusted to ignore holes on the leading or trailing edge of a document, like three-hole punches, that may cause the scanner to detect false starting or trailing edges of the document. Use this setup procedure to adjust for the maximum size hole that may appear in the leading or trailing edge of your documents. To adjust the scanner sensors for holes, please follow the directions below:

• From the home menu, press the RIGHT arrow key until you reach the user setup menu. Press F3 NEXT until you reach the max hole size menu
• Press the +/- keys to adjust the hole size in increments of .05” (1.2 mm) – set the parameter to a width just slightly larger than the holes in the paper
• Press the CLEAR button on the scanner to exit and return to the home menu

Impact: 12%+ in duplex color at 200 dpi

All scanner throughput measurements are typically done with VRS image quality set to Good. However, you can also set the scanner to Better, Best or to a custom setting. Please keep in mind is that the higher the image quality the lower the compression level. To set image quality level:

• Open the VRS Interactive Properties dialog box
• Click the VRS Options tab and click the Special Features button – this will launch the VRS Advanced Properties dialog box
• Click the VRS Color tab
• Choose from one of three choices:
• Good – 65% image quality, medium compression
• Better – 85% image quality, low compression
• Best – 95% image quality, very low compression
• For a custom image quality settings, click the JPEG Compression Custom radio button next to the Good, Better, Best options and enter a compression percentage in the Value field
• Please Note: if you set image quality lower than 65%, you may experience poor image quality due to high levels of compression
• Close the VRS Advanced Properties dialog box

Impact: about 5% in duplex color at 200 dpi (depends on PC speed and document content)

When scanning documents with white backgrounds in color, like standard office-use paper (referred to as “bond”), set VRS to retain a bright uniform white, also known as “saturated white,” in your images instead of what may appear to be an off-white or a light gray. Not only will this image be easier to read, but file sizes will also be reduced. To do this:

• Open the VRS Interactive Properties dialog box and click on the Clarity tab
• Enter a value of between 60 and 65 in the Brightness field – exact settings may vary

Impact: about 5% in duplex color at 200 dpi