Abstract: An inkjet printer includes an inkjet head that ejects ink droplets, and a sub tank that stores an ink to be supplied to the inkjet head, where the sub tank is provided with an ink outflow port through which the ink flows out from the sub tank, and an ink inflow port through which the ink that flowed out from the ink outflow port and passed through a predetermined circulation path flows toward the sub tank. In the inkjet printer, the ink is flowed out from the ink inflow port and the ink that passed through the circulation path is flowed into the sub tank from the ink outflow port at a predetermined timing.

Abstract: A three-dimensional structure forming method is provided for forming a three-dimensional structure including an object and a colored region in which a surface of the object is colored, by using a three-dimensional structure forming device equipped with a recording unit and a maintenance unit for laminating layers formed by depositing ink, and the three-dimensional structure forming method includes a recording step of causing the recording unit to perform scans, and discharging the ink from the recording unit during the scans to form the layers; and a preliminary discharging step of preliminarily discharging the ink from the recording unit while being between a position to be performed maintenance by the maintenance unit and a position to start to form the layers.

Abstract: In a three-dimensional shaping device, a support layer includes a dissolution removal target region removed by dissolving in the predetermined liquid and formed at a periphery of at least one part of the three-dimensional shaped object, and a non-dissolution removal target region removed through a method other than dissolution by the predetermined liquid and formed at a periphery of at least one part of the dissolution removal target region. At least one part of the support layer other than the dissolution removal target region is a different material region which is a region formed using a material different from the dissolution removal target region, and is formed at a position of at least one part of the periphery of the dissolution removal target region to indicate a position of a boundary between the dissolution removal target region and the non-dissolution removal target region.

Abstract: A printing system is provided and includes an image processing portion that generates a generated image by image processing, and a printing portion that performs printing on a medium based on the generated image. The image processing portion generates the generated image by performing a quantization processing that performs quantization by comparing the pixel value of each pixel in the input image with a threshold, and in the quantization processing, calculates a dot influence value indicating to what extent a position corresponding to a selected pixel is covered by the ink dots formed at the position set on the medium in correspondence with the peripheral pixels of the selected pixel, performs adjustment of reflecting the dot influence value on at least one of the pixel value of the selected pixel or the threshold, and compares the pixel value and the threshold based on a value after adjustment.

Abstract: An inkjet printer is provided. An inkjet printer includes; a heater for heating up a medium after a printing operation, a second heater for further heating up the medium after the medium is heated up by the heater, a frame to which the second heater is fixed, and a wound roll holder for holding a wound roll that is the medium, being wound like a roll after the printing operation. The wound roll is placed at a position lower than the heater. The second heater is movable in relation to the frame, between a first position, where the second heater is placed at a location of a lower side of the heater and a front side of the wound roll, and a second position, where the second heater is placed at a location of an upper side of the wound roll.

Abstract: To suppress the risk of ink bleeding and thereby attain an improved printing quality, a printing apparatus 10 is provided that carries out an inkjet printing operation for a medium 50. The printing apparatus 10 includes inkjet heads 102 that eject droplets of ink using inkjet technique; and ultraviolet light sources 104 that radiate ultraviolet light. The ink ejected from the inkjet heads 102 contains an ultraviolet absorbent that absorbs ultraviolet light, and a solvent that dissolves or disperses the ultraviolet absorbent. The ejected ink is adherable to the medium 50 and fixable by evaporating the solvent. The ultraviolet light sources 104 irradiate the ink adhered to the medium 50 with ultraviolet light so as to volatilize and remove at least part of the solvent from the ink.

Abstract: [Object] It is an object to provide a method for forming a three-dimensional object that suppresses generation of streaks on the three-dimensional object, which streaks are parallel to a main scanning direction. [Means of Realizing the Object] A method for forming a three-dimensional object includes a slice information calculation step (step ST23) of dividing three-dimensional data of the three-dimensional object into a plurality of layers so as to calculate cross-sectional slice information of each of the layers; and a unit-layer formation step (step ST27) of forming each of the layers based on the cross-sectional slice information. The unit-layer formation step (step ST27) is repeated a plurality of times. The unit-layer formation step (step ST27) includes a printing step (step ST27A) of extruding inks onto a work surface while moving the extruders in the main scanning direction so as to form a single print path.

Abstract: A printing apparatus is provided that prints a print target on a medium made of chemical fiber fabric. The printing apparatus includes inkjet heads which are chromatic color heads that eject inks having chromatic colors, and an inkjet head which is a black color head that ejects ink having black color. The inks ejected from these inkjet heads are allowed to dry by evaporation and each contain a solvent and a coloring material for expressing the ink color. The inks are dried by evaporating the solvents in the inks to be fixed to the medium. The chromatic color heads include at least six or more inkjet heads that respectively eject the inks having chromatic colors distinct from each other.

Abstract: A three-dimensional object shaping method for shaping a three-dimensional object by layering a unit layer formed using a colored ink of one or more colors, the method including a slice information calculating process of calculating a plurality of pieces of cross-sectional slice information from three-dimensional data including color data, a halftone processing process of carrying out a halftone process using a dither matrix on at least one part of the color data with respect to each layer of the plurality of pieces of cross-sectional slice information and carrying out the halftone process so that a pattern of the dither matrix used with respect to at least two of the plurality of pieces of cross-sectional slice information differs, and a unit layer forming process of forming the unit layer based on the cross-sectional slice information subjected to the halftone process.

Abstract: A shaped object formed by using a layering scheme, the shaped object including: a color region 11 having a uniform thickness from a surface toward an inside of the shaped object; and a light reflective region 12 arranged on an inner side of the color region 11, wherein, at a portion where ink in the color region does not satisfy a predetermined ink density by a sole use of color ink, an ink density of the color region 11 is supplemented with white ink. As the white ink, ink with 20% to 70% light transmittance of visible light is used.

Abstract: A shaping device is provided and includes a head portion that ejects a material of a shaped object, and a controller that controls the operation of the head portion based on ejecting position specifying data indicating a position to eject the material of each color, the ejecting position specifying data being data in which a color is expressed in a predetermined material color space. The controller generates the ejecting position specifying data based on input data in which colors are expressed in a predetermined input color space, and in the process of generating the ejecting position specifying data, performs a color conversion process of converting a color using at least a profile that associates the color in the input color space with the color in the material color space, and a color adjustment parameter which is a parameter used for adjustment performed for color conversion performed using the profile.

Abstract: An ejection nozzle cleaning device includes: a gripping portion held by a user; a horn protruding from one end of the gripping portion and extending away therefrom; a reservoir disposed on one side of the horn in an extending direction in which the horn is extending; and an ultrasonic generator disposed on another side of the horn in the extending direction. The reservoir is a tubular member with a closed bottom and an opening in a part thereof that faces the ink ejection face. The reservoir has a storage space where a cleaning liquid is containable. The reservoir has a through cavity allowing the horn to be at least partly inserted and located in the storage space. A peripheral wall surrounding the opening of the reservoir is formed to a height, which allows one side of a vibration transmitter of the horn to be located in the storage space.

Abstract: A diaphragm pump, a pump unit and an inkjet printer are provided. A housing of the diaphragm pump includes: a circular supporting groove portion for supporting a supported portion, and a passage opening for passing the supported portion to the supporting groove portion in a direction indicated by an arrow, where a shape of an outer edge of a cross section of the supported portion orthogonal to the direction indicated by an arrow is a shape of an outer edge of a circle in which a part of the outer edge is missing. A width of the passing opening at a coupling portion of the supporting groove portion and the passing opening is greater than or equal to a minimum width of the supported portion in the direction orthogonal to the direction indicated by the arrow and smaller than a maximum width of the supported portion in the relevant direction.

Abstract: A plating method includes a first mask forming step of ejecting a UV-curable ink in the form of ink droplets from an inkjet head so as to have the ejected ink droplets land on a plating target object and to form a first plating mask on the plating target object, a catalyst applying step of applying a catalyst for deposition of plating material to the plating target object on which the first plating mask is formed, a second mask forming step of having the ink droplets land on the first plating mask so as to form a second plating mask on the first plating mask, a plating step of performing electroless plating to the plating target object subsequent to the second mask forming step, and a mask removing step of removing the first plating mask and the second plating mask from the plating target object subsequent to the plating step.

Abstract: A curl straightening method applied upon printing on a spread medium in a printing step, the method being provided with a first spreading step of spreading the medium fed out from a medium roll between a feeding step of feeding the medium from the medium roll in which the medium made of a textile fabric and having a predetermined width is wound on a roll core, and the printing step of printing on the medium fed out from the medium roll, and in the first spreading step, spreading of the medium is performed in a state where the medium fed out from the medium roll is stretched on an outer circumference of a first spreader roller rotating about a pivotal axis parallel to a pivotal axis of the medium roll, and the medium has its surface side with a curl stretched on the outer circumference of the first spreader roller.

Abstract: A printing apparatus capable of fixing a medium appropriately during printing is provided. The printing apparatus includes a feeding roller, a printing portion configured to make a print on the textile supplied from the feeding roller, and a conveyance portion configured to convey the textile to the printing portion. The conveyance portion includes a pressure roller configured to sandwich the textile and rotate along with conveyance of the textile. The printing apparatus further includes a brake roller disposed between the pressure roller and the feeding roller for producing force acting on the textile against conveyance force for the textile by the conveyance portion to apply tension to the textile between the brake roller and the pressure roller. Tension smaller than tension exerted on the textile between the brake roller and the pressure roller is exerted on the textile between the brake roller and the feeding roller.

Abstract: A three-dimensional object that maintains a satisfactory visual color quality when the object is observed at different positions or through different angles, and a three-dimensional shaping apparatus for and a three-dimensional shaping method of shaping such a three-dimensional object are provided. The three-dimensional object includes: a shaping base having a first and second outer surfaces adjacent to each other at an adjacent angle; a first colored layer formed on the first outer surface and including a transparent material colored in a first color; a second colored layer formed on the second outer surface and including a transparent material colored in a second color different from the first color; and a partition layer interposed between the side surfaces of the first colored layer and the second colored layer. The partition layer is opaque and has one of the first color, the second color, and an achromatic color.

Abstract: A shaping system for shaping a stereoscopic shaped object, the shaping system including a shaping device serving as a shaping portion and a control PC serving as a shaping controller. At a time of shaping a shaped object, the shaping device further forms a support layer that supports at least a part of the shaped object being shaped, and the control PC predicts a support layer removal time which is a time required for removing the support layer after formation of the shaped object and the support layer in the shaping device is completed.

Abstract: A printing device prints an object on a medium by inkjet printing. The printing device includes: a glossy ink head that discharges ink droplets of a glossy ink having a glossy color; and a main scan driver that prompts the glossy ink head to perform main scans in which the glossy ink head discharges the ink droplets while moving in a predetermined main scanning direction. The glossy ink contains a glossy pigment. In the main scans, the glossy ink head discharges the ink droplets plural times while moving in the main scanning direction to form ink dots at positions on the medium aligned in the main scanning direction. The ink droplets discharged from the glossy ink head each have a volume constituting a size that allows for contact on the medium between any ones of dots formed in each one of the main scans.

Abstract: The present disclosure prevents a visible pattern corresponding to the pattern of a mask from being noticeable and enables more appropriate printing. A printing apparatus 10 performing printing by an inkjet scheme includes: an inkjet head 102; and a controller 20, configured to control the operation of a main scan driver 16 and a sub scan driver 18 to perform a main scanning operation multiple times on each position on a medium 50. In the main scanning operation, for at least part of ejection positions serving as ejection targets of ink droplets in the main scanning operation, the controller 20 causes the inkjet head 102 to eject an ink droplet in accordance with a mask for selecting part of the at least part of ejection positions. In the main scanning operation at one time, the controller 20 causes the inkjet head 102 to eject an ink droplet in accordance with a preset first mask.