Abstract: A color reference guide is provided for ensuring consistency among color-printed products. The guide can include a plurality of calibration pages and each calibration page can include a calibration bar and a color logo. The calibration bar can be the same on each calibration page and the color logo can be different on each calibration page. A method of providing consistency among color-printed products is also provided and involves comparing a printed logo to a corresponding color logo in the color reference guide. The color reference guide can be used in a variety of printing processes, for example, in a CMYK four-color printing process or in a G7 color printing process. The color reference guide and method are also useful in calibrating a color printer.

Abstract: As set forth herein, computer-implemented methods and systems facilitate employing a single stochastic screen defined up to a specified transition level. The dots at the specified level are connected to form a triangle tessellation with an associated spot function. For up to three colorants, a vector screening technique is employed, which involves a first colorant dot being grown from the vertices, second colorant dot grown from the triangle center, and a third colorant dot grown from the side midpoints. Growth in this manner ensures separation of colorants up to a certain density level. In cases where fourth colorant is to be used at a given pixel, the fourth colorant can be added using methods typically used for clustered screens, such as stochastic screening of the lightest colorant, in order to mitigate color shift sensitivity issues.

Abstract: A contone source image is processed to create halftone outputs by identifying intensity thresholds based on the coordinates of the pixels of the source image. The halftone output corresponding to a particular pixel of the contone image in a particular color plane is determined by comparing the intensity of the pixel and any previously accumulated output error to the intensity threshold corresponding to the pixel.

Abstract: A method for providing a double layer GlossMark™ image includes providing a first layer text string for generating a patternink. The method further includes providing a second layer text string through the patternink. The first layer text string is visible as gloss variation between first character and background fields and the second layer text string is visible as a color difference between second character and background fields.

Abstract: There is provided a method of forming a regular array of rows of subpixels on a workpiece. The subpixels have c different colors, where a colors are formed by printing. The subpixel pitch is s.

Abstract: Based on an input profile which regulates a corresponding relationship between an input gradation value of a device-dependent color space depending on a first printing apparatus and a gradation value of a device-independent color space, and an output profile which regulates a corresponding relationship between a gradation value of a device-independent color space and an input gradation value of a device-independent color space depending on a second printing apparatus, the colors of each pixel of a case, where the gradation values of each pixel shown by reference image data are input gradation values of the device-dependent color space depending on the first printing apparatus, are specified by the input gradation value of the device-dependent color space depending on the second printing apparatus, and the output gradation value is specified by converting the specified input gradation value based on the color conversion table of the second printing apparatus.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus for performing color tone conversion on a predetermined original image data using a predetermined color tone conversion parameter, includes a converted image data generating unit that generates weight-applied converted original image data obtained by performing the color tone conversion by the color tone conversion parameter while applying weighted values, which is determined such that the lower the degree to be changed by the color tone conversion is, the smaller the value becomes, on the original image data for each of a predetermined range.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus performs pseudo gradation processing using dithering, and includes an image carrier; a plurality of light-emitting element arrays arranged in a main-scanning direction and including a plurality of light-emitting elements; an image forming unit performing lighting control of the arrays and forming a pattern image on the image carrier; a detecting unit detecting a density of the pattern image; a position detecting unit detecting a position in the main-scanning direction of the detecting unit with respect to the light-emitting element arrays; a determining unit that, based on the detected position, determines whether the detecting unit is positioned at a proper detection position with respect to the pattern image on which noise has no effect; and an operation control unit that, when the detecting unit is positioned at the proper detection position, performs an image density detection operation on the pattern image using the detecting unit.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: an internal storage device; an attachment portion to which an external storage device can be attached; an image reading unit that reads contents of an original as an image and converts the image into an electronic signal; a first image processing unit that generates image data from the electronic signal; and a second image processing unit that separates the image data thus generated into character data that is recognized as characters and data that is recognized as different data from the character data and, when the external storage device is attached to the attachment portion, stores data composed of an entirety or a part of the character data that is recognized as characters as first data in the external storage device and the data that is recognized as different data from the character data as second data in the internal storage device.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method for gray balance calibration in an image printing system is provided. The method includes printing, using a print engine, a reference test pattern consisting essentially of black marking medium; sensing, using a sensor, the reference test pattern to obtain a reference image data, the reference image data being a function of the black marking medium; printing, using the print engine, a second test pattern comprising a combination of marking mediums of different colors, other than the color black, available on the image printing system to simulate the black marking medium; sensing, using the sensor, the second test pattern to obtain a second image data, the second image data being a function of the combination of marking mediums; and determining a difference between the reference image data and the second image data to obtain a correction offset for gray balance calibration in the image printing system.

Abstract: A color printing method includes converting source color data to intermediate color data represented in a device independent color space using a first multidimensional gamut mapping of the first device dependent color space to the device independent color space. The device independent color space has a neutral color component. The method further includes converting the intermediate color data to destination color data represented in a second device dependent color space using a second multidimensional gamut mapping of the device independent color space to the second device dependent color space. The second device dependent color space has three primary color components and a virtual black color component defined by substantially equal tonal values of the three primary color components. The second multidimensional gamut mapping includes a mapping from the neutral color component of the device independent color space to the virtual black color component of the second device dependent color space.

Abstract: There is provided an image processing method which determines the area of a document from an image read on a transparent platen, the image processing method also determines a single object area or a plurality of object areas from the image on the transparent platen, and when the luminance of the area in which the object area is removed from the image on the transparent platen is detected to determine the document area, the image processing method detects whether or not an image of a shadow exists around the periphery of the object area on the image of the transparent platen, and the threshold value used for determining the document area is different depending on whether a shadow is detected.

Abstract: The invention provides an image processing apparatus comprising: forming means for forming a patch based on patch data on a medium; temperature measuring means for measuring the temperature of a white paper portion of a medium to obtain a white paper temperature; colorimetry means for obtaining a colorimetric value by measuring the color of the patch formed on the medium; estimation means for estimating a colorimetry temperature, which is the temperature of the patch at the time when the colorimetry means measures its color, based on the patch data and the white paper temperature; and correction means for correcting the colorimetric value based on the estimated colorimetry temperature.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes an image forming unit, a calibration unit, a determination unit, and a control unit. The calibration unit is configured to perform a calibration operation including forming a measurement image by the image forming unit to adjust an image forming condition. The determination unit is configured to determine available electric energy allowed to be used by the image forming apparatus. The control unit is configured to determine an interval at which to perform the calibration operation based on the available electric energy determined by the determination unit and control the calibration unit to perform the calibration operation each time the determined interval is reached.

Abstract: The movement detection apparatus acquires a movement state of an object by clipping a template pattern from first image data and seeking a region having a high correlation with the template pattern in second image data. The movement detection apparatus performs at least one of first processing, which analyzes the first image data, and second processing, which analyzes a relationship between the first image data and third image data acquired after the first image data has been acquired and before the second image data is acquired, and sets a position at which the template patter is clipped.

Abstract: Disclosed is process of forming a regular array of rows of subpixels on a workpiece. The subpixels having four different colors, and a subpixel pitch s. Of the four colors, q colors are formed by printing and r colors are formed by a non-printing method.

Abstract: Directional data is generated representing a pattern that indicates a growing direction of a dot on a scanning line. Coefficients used to distribute the image data of a pixel of interest are set. An edge of an input image is detected. The image data of the pixel of interest of the input image is distributed to the interest pixel and a pixel adjacent to the interest pixel based on the coefficients. Image data distributed from the adjacent pixel is added to image data of the interest pixel on which the distribution is performed, and the sum of the image data is as corrected image data of the interest pixel. The corrected image data and the generated directional data are selected for an edge, and the image data of the interest pixel and input directional data are selected for a non-edge to generate an image signal pulse-width modulated.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes: a first colorant reducing unit that performs a first colorant reducing process that reduces colorant of black on second image data to output fourth image data representing tone values of the black separation on a per-pixel basis; a second colorant reducing unit that performs a second colorant reducing process that reduces the colorants of the colors other than black on a portion of third image data, the portion corresponding to the separations of the colors other than black, to output fifth image data representing tone values of each of the separations of the colors other than black on a per-pixel basis; and a combining unit that combines the fourth image data and the fifth image data to output sixth image data representing tone values of each of the separations of the colors including black on a per-pixel basis.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus and an image processing method are provided which, when forming an image using a plurality of different sizes of dots, can produce a satisfactory image free from problematical levels of density unevenness, graininess and insufficient density with any of these dot sizes. To this end, when printing on pixel areas of a print medium by a plurality of relative movements between the printing unit and the print medium, the dot overlap rate of a dot size that tends to show density unevenness is set higher than that of a dot size that tends to show other image impairments more conspicuously than the density unevenness. This results in a satisfactory image that eliminates such image impairments as density unevenness, graininess and density insufficiency in the entire grayscale range.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus that forms a color image using a transparent toner and color toners based on received printing information includes a determination unit configured to determine whether a transparency attribute is set for an object included in the printing information, and a generation unit configured to generate a transparent object using the transparent toner on the object when the determination unit determines that the transparency attribute is set for the object.