ISO/IEC 24734:2014

INTERNATIONAL ISO/IEC
STANDARD 24734
Second edition
2014-07-01
Information technology — Office
equipment — Method for measuring
digital printing productivity
Technologies de l’information — Équipements de bureau — Méthode
de mesure de la productivité d’impression numérique
Reference number
ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)
©
ISO/IEC 2014

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ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO/IEC 2014
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form
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Published in Switzerland
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ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Terms and definitions . 1
3 Test Parameters and Conditions . 5
3.1 Test Platform . 5
3.2 Test Platform Test Setup Procedures . 5
3.3 Printing Device System Setup . 6
3.4 Printing Device Connection . 7
3.5 Printing Device Condition . 7
3.6 Sample Size . 7
3.7 Paper . 7
3.8 Maintenance . 7
3.9 Test Files, Test Suites and Software Applications . 7
3.10 Environment . 8
3.11 Voltage . 8
4 Test method . 8
4.1 Test Measurement Procedure . 9
4.2 Test Method Process .12
4.3 Category Tests .13
4.4 Feature Performance Test .17
4.5 Optional Special Tests .18
5 Calculations and Treatment of Data .18
5.1 Overview .18
5.2 Category Tests .19
5.3 Feature Performance Test .20
6 Presentation of Results .21
6.1 General .21
6.2 Category Tests .21
6.3 Feature Performance Tests .26
Annex A (normative) Test platform system parameters that may affect digital printing
productivity measurements .28
Annex B (normative) Test Suites .32
Annex C (informative) Report Presentation .40
Annex D (informative) An example of printing device and test settings to record .45
Annex E (informative) An example of a Full Detailed Report .47
Bibliography
.50
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ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) and IEC (the International Electrotechnical
Commission) form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are
members of ISO or IEC participate in the development of International Standards through technical
committees established by the respective organization to deal with particular fields of technical
activity. ISO and IEC technical committees collaborate in fields of mutual interest. Other international
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO and IEC, also take part in the
work. In the field of information technology, ISO and IEC have established a joint technical committee,
ISO/IEC JTC 1.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for
the different types of document should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject
of patent rights. ISO and IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
Details of any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction
and/or on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity
assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the WTO principles in the Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) see the following URL: Foreword - Supplementary information
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/IEC JTC 1, Information technology, Subcommittee
SC 28, Office equipment.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition (ISO/IEC 24734:2009), of which it constitutes
a minor revision.
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ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)

Introduction
Many digital printing devices produce printed pages at a different rate than their nominal speed when
running with different modes (simplex, duplex, print quality modes), different substrate weight, system
environments, applications and file content, and finishing options. The degree to which a reduction
in productivity is experienced depends significantly on multiple parameters of the job workflow. The
most dominant of the parameters of the job workflow are: system environment, application, and job
characteristics, such as, the number of pages in a set to be printed, single-sided or double-sided output
pages, quality mode, number of print sets to be produced, substrate weight/size used, finishing options,
and job content complexities such as monochrome vs. colour, text/vector vs. raster, page scaling,
and colour conversion. The existing International Standard (ISO/IEC 10561) only addresses printing
throughput for class 1 and class 2 printers and, therefore, is not suitable for comparing colour printing
devices or high-speed page-oriented printing devices with many finishing options and connectivity
configurations.
This International Standard provides a general method for measuring the productivity when the
above-mentioned job workflow parameters for digital printing devices are taken into consideration.
This International Standard also includes a suite of test files, test-platform (hardware and software)
setup guidelines, and a procedure to be used for measuring digital printing productivity. It allows
manufacturers and buyers of digital printing devices to describe the productivity of various digital
printing devices with respect to representative office usage patterns.
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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)
Information technology — Office equipment — Method for
measuring digital printing productivity
1 Scope
This International Standard specifies a method for measuring the productivity of digital printing devices
with various office applications and print job characteristics. This International Standard is applicable
to digital printing devices, including single-function and multi-function devices, regardless of print
technology (e.g. inkjet, laser). Devices can be equipped with a range of paper feed and finishing options
either directly connected to the computer system or via a network. It is intended to be used for black and
white (B&W) as well as colour digital printing devices. It allows for the comparison of the productivity
of machines operating in various available modes (simplex, duplex, size of substrates, etc.) and office
applications when the test system environment, operating modes, and job mix for each machine are held
identical. This International Standard includes test files, test setup procedure, test runtime procedure,
and the reporting requirements for the digital printing productivity measurements.
This International Standard is not intended to be used for devices which are not able to print on a media
size of A4/8.5”x11” or for devices, which are not able to collate multiple copies of a print.
This International Standard is not intended to replace a manufacturer’s rated speeds.
The productivity of a digital printing device depends on factors other than the printing device itself. These
include, but are not limited to, computer manufacturer and model, central processor type and speed,
RAM and hard disk memory capacity and speed, software driver, version of the application being used,
operating system, and the type and speed of the communication path from computer to printing device,
etc. Because of this, in order to make useful and accurate direct comparisons of printing productivity
with this International Standard, the same computer system hardware and software have to be used for
measuring the printing devices, if, for the purpose of being directly compared one to another. For every
printing productivity measurement, the basic specifications of the computer hardware and software
have to be included with the results of the printing productivity measurement.
NOTE There are other factors that influence the number of prints that a person can make on a printing device
within a defined time period. These factors include typical job portfolio that is printed on a particular printing
device, reliability of the system, downtime due to a service call, ease-of-use, (un)loaded paper during printing,
routine maintenance, interaction with other users of the printing device and the network, etc. Such productivity
items are not taken into account within the scope or methods of this International Standard.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
2.1
category test
test pertaining to one of two separate categories: Office category and Advertising and Graphics category,
whereby the Office Category test is used to test and report FSOT, ESAT, and EFTP using content from
typical office applications and the Advertising and Graphics Category test is used to test and report
FSOT, ESAT, and EFTP using applications and files representing more complexity, higher coverage, and a
higher ratio of image and graphic content such as pictures, gradients, and embedded elements
2.2
collation
printing device’s capability to produce multiple hard copies of an electronic document in repeating
original order, such as 1234, 1234, 1234, etc, which can be achieved through either software features
that ensure proper output order or via a hardware finishing device
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ISO/IEC 24734:2014(E)

2.3
default driver
printing device driver that is automatically selected as the default per the manufacturers’ installation
procedure
2.4
duplex printing
printing where the printing device can make a number of prints with the printing being done to both
sides of the sheet
Note 1 to entry: Other equivalent terms are “two-sided printing” or “two-sided perfecting”.
2.5
EFTP
effective throughput
average speed at which a device produces pages measured from the initiation of the job through the
complete exit of the last page of the last test set
Note 1 to entry: EFTP is expressed in images per minute (ipm). EFTP can be affected by the digital processing time
of the test set as well as the run time of the test set.
2.6
ESAT
estimated saturated throughput
rate at which a device produces pages measured from the complete exit of the last page of the first test
set through the complete exit of the last page of the last test set
Note 1 to entry: ESAT is expressed in images per minute (ipm).
2.7
feature performance percentage
ratio of the printing performance (such as FSOT and ESAT) with the subject feature ON versus the
printing device default baseline performance (without the subject feature ON)
2.8
feature performance test
optional test used to evaluate productivity changes with various printing and finishing features enabled
Note 1 to entry: The feature performance test suite is run with default printing system settings to establish a base
line, and then with the selected feature (e.g. stapling) ON, for comparison.
2.9
FSOT
first set out time
number of seconds between the initiation of the job to the complete exit of the last page of the first test
set
2.10
full detailed report
presentation of information including machine setup and measured test results
2.11
full report
presentation of results, including the FSOT, EFTP, and ESAT values for each file tested for a given category
or feature test as well as the calculated averages for the overall FSOT, EFTP, and ESAT values
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2.12
host-based controller
(printing devices with a host-based controller) page description interpreter and RIP residing in the host
computer; these processes convert the PDL into a simplified format such as a raster bitmap, and the
simplified data are then sent to the printing device
Note 1 to entry: Most of the data and images processing is done on the host computer side. The performance of the
printing device depends upon the whole system (the host computer, the data transfer, and the printing device).
2.13
initial installation state
state of the test platform after the installation and configuration of the operating system and applications
but before the installation of unique software, e.g. print driver for the printing device under test
2.14
input image equivalent
number of original electronic input images printed independent of the number of hardcopy output
sheets the images are printed on
Note 1 to entry: Input image equivalent is expressed in terms of the equivalent number of images input from the
source test file. For example, if two A4-sized input images from the test file are printed on one side of an A3 page
in simplex printing, the output printed on this A3 page is a two A4-sized input image equivalent. For another
example, if four A4-sized input images from the test file are printed in reduction on one side of an A4 page in a
4-up mode in simplex printing, the output printed on this A4 page is a four A4-sized input image equivalent.
2.15
interface
network
interface between the host and the printing device, such as a direct (via parallel, serial, USB, Firewire, or
wireless) or an indirect (via network router/server) connection
2.16
LSOT
last set out time
number of seconds between the initiation of the job to the complete exit of the last page of the last test
set
2.17
nominal printing speed
printing rate, excluding time to first page printed, and measured when producing pages in a continuous
printing mode with a single static data page using a nominal weight substrate, expressed in pages or
images per minute
2.18
PDL
page description language
specifies commands and data structures that a printing system interprets to produce an intended print
page image
2.19
PDL-based controller
[printing devices that include a PDL-based controller (such as a PostScript RIP)] host computer processing
the page information through a software application into a standardized or well-known format (with
embedded PDL and compression) and the standardized/well-known page data is sent to the printing
device via an interface/network
Note 1 to entry: The printing device’s controller has its own decompressor, PDL interpreter, and RIP, with job
storage and the required large amount of processing power. Most of the final page data processing, images
processing, and job and file management are done on the printing device side. However, the performance of the
printing device still depends upon the whole system (the host computer, the data transfer, and the printing device).
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2.20
printing device
produces hard copy output, or prints on media such as paper, from digital electronic documents
Note 1 to entry: The function of the device is not limited to printing only, such as is the case with multi-function
devices, which have the ability to print and perform other functions such as copy, scan, and/or digital send.
2.21
RIP
raster image processor
component used in a printing system, which produces a bitmap
2.22
set count
the total number of sets printed during a test run, with set count N, and then N (as in N test sets) × M
(number of pages in one test file) pages will be printed.
Note 1 to entry: This is often referred to as copy count in the application or print driver setting.
2.23
simplex printing
use of a printing device when only a single side of a sheet is printed on
Note 1 to entry: Single-sided printing mode is similar to the copying modes often referred to as 1:1 mode, simplex
to simplex, or single-sided originals to single-sided copies.
2.24
summary report
presentation of results including the average overall FSOT and ESAT values calculated for a given
category or feature test
2.25
test file
refers to individual files used for testing as per the test method
1)
EXAMPLE A single Microsoft Excel file within the Office test is a “test file”.
2.26
test platform
set of hardware and software system components configured to perform the collection of digital printing
productivity tests, including, but not limited to a computer installed with an operating system and
applicable application software, installed printing device software, hardware and software interfaces,
and timing devices (stopwatch or automated)
2.27
test run
refers to the operation of printing one test file, in a particular system configuration, with a particular
set and page count
Note 1 to entry: Print times are recorded for each test run.
2.28
test set
all of the pages of a single test file
1) Microsoft Excel is an example of a suitable product available commercially. This information is given for the
convenience of users of this document and does not constitute an endorsement by ISO and IEC of this product.
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2.29
test suite
refers to the combination of test files for each category test
EXAMPLE 1 The Office Category test suite consists of three test files.
EXAMPLE 2 The Advertising and Graphics Category test suite consists of four test files.
3 Test Parameters and Conditions
3.1 Test Platform
Due to the rapid change of computer technology, a common test platform (hardware and software)
that can be used for productivity testing over time is considered to be not practical. Instead, when a
test platform is used, the test platform system parameters that may affect digital printing productivity
measurements (see Annex A) shall be recorded.
3.2 Test Platform Test Setup Procedures
3.2.1 Initial Platform Setup
The test platform hardware should be installed as per the manufacturer’s instructions. The test platform
hardware information shall be recorded as listed in Annex A. The test platform operating system and
applications should be installed as per the manufacturer’s instructions. The test platform operating
system and application information shall be recorded as per Annex A. All settings or selections made
during installation that differ from the application’s default settings or operating system’s default
settings shall be recorded.
— The test platform should be configured for the appropriate connection environment, such as direct
USB connection or network Ethernet connection, and the information shall be recorded as per
Annex A along with all settings and selections that differ from the installation default configuration.
— It should be verified that the test platform is configured for optimal performance by evaluating
system parameters such as hard disk fragmentation and compression, swap memory size, etc. Any
settings, changes or optimizations made that differ from the installation default condition shall be
recorded.
— The test platform is now in the Initial Installation State. All recorded settings shall be included in
the Full Detailed Report.
3.2.2 Creation of Disk Image of Test Platform (optional)
Disk imaging software may be used to enable the system to be restored to the Initial Installation State.
Create the disk image after the test platform has been configured and before the print driver for the
printing device is installed. Record the disk imaging software used and all settings that differ from the
imaging software’s installation default condition.
3.2.3 Initial Test State
The test platform shall be restored to the Initial Installation State before beginning the sequence of tests
for each new printing device. Products that are of the same distinct print system can share testing and
reports. Two or more products or bundles may be part of a distinct print system when they use the same
print mechanism and operating points, and there are no differences that might be expected to affect
performance. Devices with differences that could affect performance are not part of the same distinct
print system, and are different print systems, even if they use the same print mechanism, and shall not
share testing and reports. Record the method used to establish the Initial Installation State.
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3.3 Printing Device System Setup
Place the printing device on a horizontal surface and setup the printing device according to the
manufacturer’s recommendation. Install the software (driver, port, etc.) recommended by the
manufacturer. Use the most recent print driver available from the manufacturer. The driver and driver
version shall be recorded on the test report.
The standard test shall be conducted using the manufacturer’s default driver for the given printing
device. If a default driver is not installed/selected automatically by the manufacturer’s installation
procedure, consult the manufacturer’s documentation and use the recommended driver. All image, print
quality, mode and speed modifiers shall be at their factory pre-set configuration for the printing device
and default installed condition for the driver. If the printing device and driver differ, then the driver
defaults shall be used. Disabling manufacturer default installed features, routines or applications, is not
allowed. Examples include, but are not limited to the following: automatic cleaning or calibration cycles,
bi-directional communications and energy save settings.
Testing shall be carried out in the specified modes, regardless of whether they are default settings or
not. For example, if the default driver setting is duplex, the setting shall be changed to simplex for the
simplex tests. Other modes that may need to be modified for specific tests include B&W mode on colour
devices, paper size, paper scaling, and collation. It is allowable to disable automatic media detect and
select plain paper. All changes to the default settings shall be recorded in the Full Detailed Report.
The file shall be rendered on the page in a size corresponding to the dimensions in the test page description.
For example, when testing an A4 sized document, the media settings shall be set to A4, and when testing
a 8.5”x11” size document, set to 8.5”x11”, and so forth. Verify the printing device and print driver default
page margin settings are not larger than 12,7 mm (0,5 inches). Adjust the settings as necessary to insure
the test page printable area is rendered correctly. Adjust the settings as necessary to insure the test
pages printable area is rendered to cover the paper page area as shown in the softcopy display of the test
file. Any modifications to the printing device or print driver settings shall be recorded. Page placement
modifiers such as page centering and auto-rotation can be used to place the image p
...