Abstract: The present invention provides a recording apparatus including recording heads each including a plurality of nozzle arrays that are arranged so as to overlap, wherein the width with which the overlapping portions of the recording heads for colors that are simultaneously used with a relatively high frequency overlap in an intersecting direction that intersects an array direction of nozzles is smaller than the width with which the overlapping portions of the recording heads for colors that are simultaneously used with a relatively low frequency overlap in the intersecting direction.

Abstract: The present invention provides a recording apparatus including recording heads each including a plurality of nozzle arrays that are arranged so as to overlap, wherein overlapping portions of the recording heads for two different colors are separated from each other with a distance therebetween in an array direction of nozzles.

Abstract: A first humidified gas is supplied through a first supply port to a sheet. A second humidified gas is supplied to a space where nozzles of an inkjet recording head are exposed through a second supply port located at a position closer to the recording heads than the first supply port, to increase atmosphere humidity in the space. The sheet portion having a moisture content increased by the humidification in advance is advanced into the space having the increased atmosphere humidity, to record on the sheet using the inkjet recording head. An amount of humidification with the first humidified gas is set according to at least one recording condition.

Abstract: In a line-head type inkjet printing apparatus that ejects a plurality of types of inks, an inkjet printing apparatus is provided in which the change of its ejection properties different depending on the type of ink is prevented from occurring. The line-head type printing apparatus includes an acquisition unit that counts the ejection number of liquid from each of print heads in each of a plurality of print heads. Furthermore, the printing apparatus compares the ejection number of liquid from each of the print heads counted by the acquisition unit with a threshold value set for each of the print heads. The printing apparatus includes a change unit that can move a holder in the main scanning direction when the counted ejection number of liquid exceeds the threshold value set for the print head.

Abstract: A waiting time Ts is decided on the basis of ink type information and ink feed amount information, referring to waiting time table A (Step 6). Along with this, a dried printing paper is carried to and stopped in a waiting area 9 (Step 7), a time period T is measured after stopping, and measurement processing in the next step is delayed until the time period T reaches the waiting time Ts. Then, when the time period T reaches the waiting time Ts, a measuring instrument 10 is used to measure a density of a patch printed on the printing paper (Steps 8 and 9).

Abstract: An apparatus includes: a drying unit to dry a printing medium on which an image was printed using an inkjet head; a humidification unit to humidify the printing medium that was dried by the drying unit so that the moisture content of the printing medium becomes the equilibrium state in the ambient environment; a colorimetric unit to perform colorimetry on the printing medium that was humidified by the humidification unit; and a calibration unit to calibrate printing properties on the basis of the result of colorimetry by the colorimetric unit.

Abstract: A printing apparatus includes a plurality of inkjet print heads to which humidified air is supplied to retain the humidity in the print heads. Ink colors for the plurality of heads are arranged in a sequence corresponding to ink characteristics. The plurality of print heads are arranged in a sequence such that a print head configured to eject ink characterized by having a larger amount of volatile components evaporated within a predetermined time is located in a more upstream area.

Abstract: A cut mark is recorded in an area between one image and the next image to be printed, and the recorded cut mark is to be detected. When the cut mark cannot be detected, a position of the cut mark is estimated based on information on an already detected cut mark and information on a length of the image printed after said already detected cut mark. A first cut position and a second cut position for cutting off the area are set based on the estimation.

Abstract: A first reading unit that reads a pattern or an image formed on a sheet by a print unit for recognizing a print unit state, a second reading unit that reads a cut mark formed on the sheet on a downstream thereof, a cutter that cuts the sheet on a downstream thereof, and a reverse unit that reverses the sheet fed to the print unit again are provided. In duplex printing, the sheet where images are sequentially printed on a first surface is led to the reverse unit, the front and rear faces are reversed, and the sheet is fed to the print unit again. The sheet where images and cut marks are sequentially printed on a second surface is cut by the cutter for each piece and discharged. The sheet is cut on the basis of a reading of the cut mark by the second reading unit.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus which previously sets a reduction order based on saturation with respect to inks to be used in a saving mode. When a color uses two or more colors of ink, the image processing apparatus reduces the ink featuring high on the reduction order, or increases the reduction amount of the ink featuring high on the reduction order.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a first unit for converting primary color data into color data for outputting a dark color material only in a first mode, and a second unit for converting the primary color data into color data for outputting both the dark color material and a light color material in a second mode.

Abstract: For a printing apparatus which saves on a color material, an image processing apparatus is realized which enables a user to incur printing costs only for necessary information and necessary areas in a print product. For this purpose, there is provided an image processing apparatus including a separation unit configured to analyze and separate print information into text, photograph, and graphic constituent elements, a display unit configured to display information about a color material used amount to be used in printing for each of the separated constituent elements, and a setting unit configured to allow a user to set a change in the color material used amount for each of the separated constituent elements.

Abstract: This invention provides an image processing device and a printing apparatus that obviate the need for manual processing on the part of the user or operator and which can automatically perform an optimum image correction without using added information such as photographing information. For this purpose, this invention including: a highly chromatic color area detection unit to detect highly chromatic color area in an original image according to the input color image data; a concentration calculation unit to calculate a concentration level of the highly chromatic color area; and a print data generation unit to generate output color image data according to the concentration level of the highly chromatic color area.

Abstract: The color of magenta using newly developed magenta ink has characteristics L*?41, a*?82, and b*?24, and has differences ?L*?4, ?a*?0, and ?b*?26 from the conventional magenta ink, i.e., the lightness value is low, and the color difference b* assumes a very small value. When the color of red is reproduced using such new magenta ink, its lightness and saturation values are low, and subdued red is reproduced, i.e., a visually favorable color cannot be obtained. Hence, when a color included in a first color gamut is input, and the input color is converted into the color of a second color gamut narrower than the first color gamut, color conversion is made using a three-dimensional lookup table having red defined by L*?45 to 50, a*?67 to 70, and b*?50 to 55.

Abstract: Print data is generated for being printed by an ink-jet printing apparatus, which has a first mode for high-speed printing and a second mode for high-quality printing, for performing multiple-pass printing by an ink-jet printhead provided with orifices for discharging ink droplets of large volume and orifices for discharging ink droplets of small volume. When the print data is generated, a user is allowed to select whether specified image data should be printed in the first or second mode. When image data is converted to print data in accordance with the mode selected, the number of ink droplets of the small volume, which are used to print an area of high density or high saturation in regard to a prescribed color in the first mode, is set to be less than the number of ink droplets of the small volume used in printing this area in the second mode.

Abstract: The quality of an image read from a degraded image of an original document can be improved. Hence, a specific pixel of an image is selected, and additional information to be added to the image is generated from the position information and color information of the selected pixel. The image of an original document is read, position information and color information added to the original document are extracted, and the color information of a pixel corresponding to the position information is acquired from the read image. The color of the read image is corrected based on the extracted color information and the acquired color information.

Abstract: An image processing method is a method for correcting both an image quality of an overall image and an image quality of a partial image with excellent balance.

Abstract: When image data output to an ink-jet recording apparatus for performing color recording using inks of a plurality of colors is to be processed, input image data is converted into data corresponding to colors of inks and gamma correction is applied to the data corresponding to colors of inks. In this gamma correction processing, the grayscale value represented by the data is decreased to reduce the amount of shot-in ink. In the present invention, gamma correction for data corresponding to a chromatic ink differs from gamma correction for data corresponding to an achromatic ink such that higher gray level data is decreased by a smaller factor than lower gray level data for the data corresponding to the achromatic ink.

Abstract: For M (magenta) and C (cyan), in a case of generating, e.g., ternary data of C0 to C2 and M0 to M2 respectively by using a look-up table on the basis of an error diffusion method, in a highlight portion of input M and C data (to which errors Ce and Me have been added respectively), a conversion space of correlating these data is used, while in a high-density portion, a conversion space equivalent to ordinary error diffusion is used. Thus, in a case of converting multivalued color image data into data of a lesser number of bits than the number of bits of color components constituting the multivalued color image data, it is possible to maintain excellent tonality on the entire image, and particularly to control graininess by preventing image quality deterioration in the highlight area.

Abstract: A high quality gray scale (monochrome) image in which influences of “recorded color deviation” and “color transition” are suppressed is formed even in the case of a slightly uneven discharge amount. When a gray scale (monochrome) mode is set, in the entire range of a luminance signal, density signals corresponding to achromatic dots and small chromatic dots respectively are generated based on the luminance signal so that the density signal corresponding to the achromatic dots has a greater value than that of the density signal corresponding to the small chromatic dots. Accordingly, even a slight “recorded color deviation” that occurs when the achromatic dots are recorded can be corrected by the small chromatic dots having a hue opposite to the direction of color deviation, and a high quality gray scale image in which influences of “recorded color deviation” and “color transition” are suppressed can be formed.