Services

Since 1900, Toppan has made continuous efforts to develop its printing technology. The development of digital imaging technology at Toppan started to gather pace in the late 1970’s when total scanners emerged as prepress layout systems. It advanced further during the late 1980’s when designers began adopting DTP systems. Then, when we entered the age of Hi-Vision TV broadcasting at the beginning of 1990’s, the need to display digital images with higher resolution encouraged the fusion of printing and broadcasting media.

Toppan has applied its technical knowledge acquired through printing to digital technologies, which brought proven results in new means of expression, digital archives, virtual reality (VR), computer graphics, and colour management systems. The field of expression will keep expanding into the future through the fusion of design and imaging technologies.

With Toppan’s wealth of experience in content planning and production, we can provide support for all of your needs – from content creation to presentation, and even operations management.

Toppan Colour Management

Colour Management is the technique of controlling the colour realm of differing hardware such as scanners, digital cameras and printers so that they all meet a standard that does not depend on any single device.

If digital data is displayed as it is captured, without going through the process of colour management, the colour displayed will vary according to the medium used to display it. For example, if you were to look at 5 different monitors showing the same image, each monitor would show a slightly different colour depending on which computer the image data was coming from.  This is because the elements of the data sent from each computer (measured in RGB)are displayed very slightly different depending on the screen. Not only does the colour reproduced on a monitor differ depending on model, there can also be differences in the colour of individual units of the same model. 

At Toppan, we utilise the experience we have gained over many years in the field of colour management technology, not only for printed materials but also for the accurate reproduction of colour in digital media.

Toppan Digital Archiving

Toppan’s colour management techniques, arguably the best in the world, are now being put to use in the field of digital archiving.  The precision and quality of our work has attracted attention from the likes of the Uffizi Gallery in Italy and the Forbidden City in China, both of which have now had their artefacts digitally archived by us.

The process begins with image capture.  Digital photographs,  12,000x10,000 pixels in size are taken of each item.  This makes them some of the highest quality digital images in the world.

Even when separated by distance, the ability to conduct detailed confirmation of colour tones between different parties, editing discussions, and so forth gives museum curators and researchers a powerful communications medium to work with. The technology enables us to provide a living art-culture that exceeds national boarders and cultures, with the highest purity in the world, in high definition that will remain unchanged for eternity.

＊In March 2003, the digitization of the entire 1,200-piece collection of artwork and sculptures at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy was completed. Utilizing the colour management system solely developed by Toppan, we collaborated with the Dipartimento Tecnologie Avanzate, the Gallery's Advanced Technology Department, to conduct joint technical operation of ultra-definition digital archiving of Renaissance art.

Toppan's Virtual Reality Systems

Toppan's VR system is digital image representation technology that achieves immersive visualization and enables the audience to freely move around in a space created by computers. The audience can move to any area they wish to see. They can enjoy bird's eye and microscopic views that are impossible in the real world.

VR is a technology that utilizes real-time three-dimensional graphics, or a series of computer-created images transmitted at a speed of nearly thirty frames per second, to give the viewer an experience of being in another place and situation. The new permanent display image system developed by Toppan combines consoles with large spherical screens capable of displaying large, high-definition smooth moving images, and allowing many people to experience VR at the same time.

	In order to create such an effect, the subject must be photographed in minute detail.  In some cases, measurements of the site are also taken in order that the VR accurately recreates proportion and perspective.
		We develop computer graphics using high resolution digital technology to achieve accurate colour reproduction and apply our proprietary image processing technology to obtain images that have the feel and expression of the actual object.
©The Palace Museum Digital Institute
	At Toppan, we offer planning and construction of VR systems as well as production of the contents. These systems are being demonstrated at the VR theatre at Toppan in Tokyo. The theatre features Onyx2, (a high-speed graphics work station manufactured by SGI)12mx4m spherical screens and can seat up to 30 people.
	However the VR data we produced can also be manipulated in order that it can be viewed on smaller, flat screens for smaller or temporary exhibitions, and even PC’s for individual use.  This means that the system can be placed in places like museums or schools and users can choose themselves what they would like to see in detail.

From photographing the subject to supplying the viewing hardware, Toppan can provide you with an entire VR package.  

Potential Applications of VR Technology

Toppan’s VR technology has hundreds of other potential applications. 

• Items limited by geographical or exhibition restrictions can be introduced to many people at once
  • World heritage sites, famous temples, international architecture, etc.
• Virtual restoration of cultural heritage that no longer exists, or indeed never actually existed.
  • Ancient cities, ruined temples or castles, ancient tombs, restoration of faded color pictures and ornaments.
• Visualization of phenomena that cannot normally be experienced:
  • Inside of a nuclear reactor, molecular models, environmental pollution, space, celestial movements, volcanic eruptions, life spans, the human body, etc.
  
  These are just a few examples.  Please challenge us with your own ideas.

Digital Contents Distribution Services

Bitway
In 1999, as part of its commitment to contents digitalisation and networking, Toppan began Bitway – a digital contents distribution service in Japan.  The service grew from strength to strength and was reborn as an independent company in October 2005. (Bitway Co., Ltd)

Bitway offers a number of services:Bitway joins together contents partners and contents vendors, and as a digital contents provider for PC’s and mobiles phones, it now occupies the number one spot in Japan.

Bitway offers a number of services:

Electronic Book Agency

PC Contents Distribution Service

Contents sent to Bitway by its contents partners is first prepared for online sales,  and then sold through sales sites managed by our sales partners (internet service providers, EC sites, Support sites etc, )  The fee paid by the user to receive this contents is split 3 ways between the contents partner, the contents vendor and Toppan in a revenue-share business model.

Examples of Bitway sites for pc downloads include:
 

Bitway Books
An internet site selling books you can download to your PC or PDA. It covers all genres of books from novels, to business books, to photographic books and dictionaries.

Bitway Comics
You can read any comic you want, 24 hours a day on this specialist comic site.

Mobile Phone Contents Distribution

Contents partners send in their contents (comics, books, photographs, moving pictures etc), and after preparing them for distribution, they are sold to users through  NTT DoCoMo, KDDI Soft Bank Mobile and other mobile carriers.  This business model is also based on a 3-way “revenue-share”. Bitway sites selling mobile phone contents include Handy Comic (selling manga contents for your mobile phone) and Kuru Kuru Dai-rensa (selling game downloads for your mobile). These sites can only be accessed by mobile phone in Japan.

Contents Database Services

Museums and art galleries have a responsibility to their visitors to put on interesting exhibitions.  This is itself a full time job, and leaves little if no time for managing databases of the museums collections.

Storage management service "Musescope" is an ASP* service specifically aimed at museums and art galleries to relieve them of the cost and time burden of managing their own databases for their collections.

Specialist database programming staff at Toppan devise a database system tailored to the needs of the museum or gallery, and then data is stored on Toppan’s server, eliminating the need for the museum to purchase their own server.  Furthermore, the database is accessed via the internet, which means that the software required to view it does not need to be installed in each computer at the museum.  This greatly reduces the cost for the museum, and allows them to concentrate on their own specialist areas.