A-FLUTE
One of the wave shapes pressed into a corrugated board. A-flute has 33 flutes +/- per 3 feed of corrugated length or 110 +/- flutes per 10 meters of corrugated length. The approximate height of the flute is. 184? (.467cm) with a take up factor of 1.54. See FLUTE or CORRUGATED.
ABSORPTION
(1) In paper the property which causes it to take up liquids or vapors that come into contact with it. (2) In optics the partial suppression of light through a transparent or translucent material.
ABSORPTION COEFFICIENT
The amount of radiant energy absorbed per unit of path length.
ACCELERATION
Increase in speed. A specification given to indicate the acceleration rate of various CAD/CAM output devices.
ACCORDION FOLD
In folding of paper or paperboard- a term used for two or more parallel folds that open like an accordion.
ACCURACY
Error specification of a plotter or sample maker. Absolute accuracy is the maximum error over the entire working area of the device. Relative accuracy is defined as a percentage of line length.
ACETATE
A plastic synthesized from cellulose dissolved in acetic acid that exhibits rigidity, dimensional stability and ink receptivity. Transparent or matte films sometimes used for label stocks.
ACRYLIC
A general chemical term of a particular family of thermoplastic resins based on acrylic acid and its derivatives.
ACRYLIC ADHESIVE
Pressure-sensitive adhesive based on high-strength acrylic polymers. Can be coated as solvent or emulsion systems.
ACRYLIC EMULSION
Water-based latex made with acrylic polymers used in coatings and adhesives.
ACUTE ANGLES
Intersection of two rules with angle less than 90.
ADAPTER BOARDS
The printed circuit boards that connect a system board to peripheral I/O devices or add specialized functions to the system.
ADHESIVE @ PERMANENT
An adhesive characterized by relatively high ultimate adhesion. Sometimes it can be removed when the degree of force used overcomes its bonding ability but generally it is not removable.
ADHESIVE PRESSURE SENSITIVE
A type of adhesive which in dry form is aggressively tacky at room temperature. It has the capability of promoting a bond to dissimilar surfaces on contact with pressure.
ADHESIVE REMOVABLE
An adhesive characterized by relatively high cohesive strength and low ultimate adhesion. It can be removed easily from most surfaces. Some adhesive transfer could take place depending on the affinity of the adhesive to the surface.
AGAINST THE GRAIN
Folding or feeding papers at right angles to the grain of the paper.
AIR EJECTION
Some cutting dies are equipped with air ejection to eject the die cut parts or scrap out of a die.
AIR HOLES
Air escape holes are often required in die blade or at the back of the die to allow the built up air in a die cavity to escape during the diecutting process. If air holes are not provided the captured air in a die cavity can impede the diecutting action and hinder the ejection of the diecut piece from the die after the diecutting cycle. In clicker and high dies, the diemaker will often grind several grooves in the back of the die to allow air to escape from the die. Also used on autoplaten stripping & blanking dies.
ALGORITHM
An algorithm is a specific method of solving a problem in computer programming, an algorithm refers to a routine in a program that performs a certain task, such as rotating an image.
ALL-STEEL DIE
Made totally from steel. This usually refers to an all steel clicker dies or solid milled clicker dies vs. a steel rule dies.
ALPHANUMERIC
Refers to any set or line of text that contains any combination of numbers (2,6,9,1) ,symbols (#,@,$,*) or letters (a,b,e,x), such as (95 Mt. Blue Street) or part number LCD-1347A
AMBIENT TEMPERATURE
A term used to denote the temperature of the surrounding air.
AMPLIFICATION
The growth of the radiation field in the laser resonator cavity. As the light wave bounces back and forth on each pass through the active medium
AMPLITUDE
The maximum values of the electromagnetic wave measured from the mean to the extreme; put simply at the height of the wave.
ANALOG
A mechanical or electrical display or signal with smooth variation at a signal not broken down into equal increments a non-digital device.

ANALOG MONITOG
A computer graphics monitor that relies on analog signals from the computer to reproduce an image. A special monitor capable of reproducing a very high resolution images in hundreds or thousands of different colors.

ANILOX ROLL
The ink transfer roll used in flexographic printing.
ANNEALED DIE STEEL
Soft and untreated dies steel that can be easily bent or formed into the desired shape before the die is heat-treated. Clicker dies are generally hand bent or forged with annealed die steel which is then heat treated to a Rockwell 50C hardness.
ANODE
An electrical element in laser excitation which attracts electrons from a cathode. An anode can be cooled directly by water or by radiation.
ANSI
The American National Standards Institute(ANSI, /ˈænsi/ AN-see) is a private non-profit organization that oversees the development of voluntary consensus standards for products, services, processes, systems, and personnel in the United States.
ANVIL
(1) Is a press plates that the knives in a die cut against. (2) In rotary die cutting a soft urethane surface. The die knives penetrate while cutting the product. (3) A hardened steel roll upon which the bearers of a rotary die cutter ride which also provides the hardened surface to support the die cutting.
Anvil Drum
In rotary die cutting, steel or cast iron cylinder on which the urethane blankets and the cutting die are mounted onto.
ARBOR PRESS
A small hand operated press with a long handle or lever arm. Pressure is applied to the leverage bar to apply pressure to the downward stroke of the head of the press to cause the adequate pressure to make a die cut.
AUTOMATIC FEED SYSTEMS
Diecutting systems which have automatic feed systems are systems which automatically feed the material to be die cut up to the diecutting area of the press. An automatic feed system could be belt driven, pinch drives or using air transport tables.
AUTOMATIC PLATEN PRESS
Such as Bobst, Iberica and Sanwa are automatic platen types of diecutting presses.
AUTOMATIC PRESS
Other than manually tripped or hand operated.
AUTOPLATEN
Registered trademark for an automatic platen die cutting press by Bobst SA.
AXIS
In a two-dimensional coordinate system, lines used in reference for vertical (Y) and horizontal (X) measurements.