EFI has used the International Sign Expo (ISA) in Las Vegas to unveil SmartSign Analytics (SSA), a system that automatically captures and analyses printed signage viewership and engagement data.
Conceived and shown as a technology demonstration by EFI’s Online Print Solutions (OPS) unit, and due to enter beta testing this quarter, SSA has been developed to help signage providers and retail marketers better measure and understand the effectiveness of their efforts.
“Print can drive relevance, revenue and profit in the age of Big Data, and this technology demonstration can show how that will happen with signage,” said Mark McGowan, director of EFI’s OPS products.
A single SSA unit includes a webcam attached to a sign, connected to a computer or tablet running a partner facial recognition software and EFI’s proprietary SSA software for data organisation, analytics and reporting. EFI said that in an actual retail implementation, most marketers would likely deploy multiple units to measure, compare and improve signage performance at different stores or at different in-store locations.
The SSA system’s webcam and software combination detects the presence of people within viewing range and determines which of them are actually viewing a sign. Eye-tracking tools on the SSA system also allow it to calculate how much time is spent viewing signage.
Using proprietary facial pattern algorithms, the SSA system assigns a gender and age range to each viewer, providing information that businesses cannot quickly or easily collect by any other means.
An embedded, failsafe routine in the software ensures that the SSA system discards facial pattern data on the fly, with no actual images of faces stored during operation.
At ISA EFI also announced the development of new inks for corrugated plastic printing. The company said the inks solve inkjet adhesion problems that have previously limited digital printing’s presence in the popular market for yard signs and other corrugated plastic products. The inks are compatible with all brands of white corrugated polypropylene, and will run on new Vutek GS2000 Pro-CP and GS3250 Pro-CP printers.
Another new offering is the EFI Vutek GS 3M Premium UV Ink for GS Pro series printers, which has 3M MCS Warranty covering fading, cracking peeling and other aspects of graphic performance for the life of the graphic. Co-branded EFI and 3M inks for the Vutek GS2000, GS3200, GS3250, GS3250r, GS5000r and EFI R3225 printers all qualify for the 3M MCS Warranty. The 3M MCS Warranty for Vutek GS2000LX and GS3250LX LED UV-curing printers will be available in the near future.
www.efi.com