Abstract: A control signal is generated, so that if dots, which are formed in a transverse direction across a recording medium, are classified into plural groups depending on a plurality of timings, then preceding dots, which belong to a group having an earliest timing, are formed in a pale color. A head drive circuit controls a recording head based on the generated control signal.

Abstract: A printing device and a positioning method of a printing device can accurately compensate for deviation between the intended conveyance of the print medium and the actual movement of the print medium when conveyed. A printer 5 has a conveyance motor 32 that can selectively convey print media forward and reverse; and a control unit 101 controls the conveyance motor 32 to convey the print medium. The control unit 101 executes a specific sequence, and calculates the difference in the conveyance amount of the print medium in each direction when the conveyance unit is operated the same amount in both directions. This sequence includes changing from forward to reverse and from reverse to forward the same number of times, a first conveyance of the continuous paper M forward or reverse, and a second conveyance in the opposite direction as the first conveyance.

Abstract: A mark detection method includes a first step for acquiring a signal that is outputted from a detector configured to output a signal of a first level when a detection value is equal to or more than a first threshold value and output a signal of a second level different from the first level when the detection value is less than the first threshold value, while a state of a web is being detected using the detector, a second step for acquiring conveyance information indicative of a state of conveyance of the web, and a third step for determining whether or not to count the signal of the second level outputted by the detector based on the conveyance information.

Abstract: The number of recording-permitted pixels in an increment in each of multiple mask patterns is a relatively small number, and the number of recording-permitted pixels in an increment in each of multiple logical sum patterns is a relatively large number.

Abstract: An embodiment of this invention is directed to determination of the ink discharge state of a printhead capable of accurately determining the discharge state of each nozzle while suppressing increases in the size and cost of an apparatus. In the embodiment, the ink discharge state of a printing apparatus including a printhead including a heater for discharging ink and a temperature sensor, and a driving unit configured to drive the heater is determined as follows. It is controlled to drive the heater by applying the first voltage for discharging ink, and drive the heater by applying the second voltage enough not to discharge the ink. Whether ink is normally discharged or discharge failure has occurred is determined based on information obtained from detected plural temperatures in regard to the application timing of the second voltage.

Abstract: A printing control apparatus includes a dither halftone component configured to convert printing data into a multi-value dot pattern. A reference pattern is a pattern that includes a first dot row in which two or more dots are arranged side by side in a main scanning direction and a second dot or second dot row that is arranged side by side in the main scanning direction, the second dot or second dot row having a number of dots not greater than a number of dots of the first dot row including a dot adjacent in an oblique direction with respect to the main scanning direction to a predetermined dot included in the first dot row. The dither halftone component carries out halftoning by using a mask pattern with which a probability that the reference pattern occurs in a dot pattern that is generated is substantially high.

Abstract: In an inkjet printing apparatus, the colors of ink dots are controlled to make it possible to change the colors of an image to be printed. More specifically, ink temperatures, ink permeation speeds, and the capillary occupancy rates of inks in a print medium are used to control a permeation area formed by performing printing with preceding cyan and subsequent magenta, thereby controlling the colors realized by the inks which are ejected in an overlapping manner.

Abstract: The present invention provides a printing apparatus including, a printhead; a preliminary discharge unit; a detecting unit detecting a size of a printing medium; and a scaling process unit. The scaling process unit scales an image to be formed on the printing medium in accordance with a detected size when a size of a printing medium indicated by size setting information and the detected size do not match each other. The preliminary discharge unit causes the printhead to perform preliminary discharge in accordance with a scaling result of the scaling process unit.

Abstract: A liquid supply device includes diaphragms, pressing members, a movement unit, a rotating shaft, and cams. In the liquid supply device, when the rotating shaft is rotated in a first direction, the cams are moved to arrange adjoining ones of the cams to have a phase difference around the rotating shaft, in which one of the cams selectively causes a corresponding one of the pressing members to regulate an increase in a volume of a corresponding one of the diaphragms. When the rotating shaft is rotated in a second direction, the cams are moved to arrange the cams in phase with one another when viewed from an axial direction of the rotating shaft, in which the cams simultaneously cause all the pressing members to regulate the increase in the volume of each of the diaphragms.

Abstract: A liquid ejection head including a substrate having an ejection-energy-generating element for generating energy for ejecting a liquid; an orifice plate including at least an ejection-orifice-forming wall that constitutes an ejection orifice for ejecting the liquid and an upper wall of a liquid chamber communicating with the ejection orifice, and a liquid chamber side wall that constitutes a side wall of the liquid chamber. The orifice plate is formed of an inorganic material. The liquid ejection head includes a plurality of liquid chambers; and an elastic member filled into a depressed portion formed between the liquid chamber side wall of one liquid chamber of the liquid chambers adjacent to each other and the liquid chamber side wall of the other liquid chamber. The upper end of the elastic member is arranged in a position higher than an upper face of the ejection-orifice-forming wall.

Abstract: A print control device communicably connected to an inkjet recording apparatus capable of performing form overlay printing for incorporating original document data into form data, the print control device comprising: a correction unit that performs head shading correction on the form data based on information of a characteristic of a nozzle of a recording head provided in the inkjet recording apparatus; a storage unit that stores the form data therein; and a control unit that, upon reception of information on another recording head different from the recording head, causes the correction unit to perform head shading correction on the form data stored in the storage unit based on information of a characteristic of a nozzle of the another recording head, and causes a transmission unit to transmit, to the inkjet recording apparatus, the original document data and corrected form data corresponding to the another recording head.

Abstract: A printing apparatus has an ink printing device onto which a flat item being transported om the x-direction for printing thereon is pressed by a contact pressure device, wherein the base of the contact pressure device has a contact pressure body floor plate biased by a spring force. A notch at the edge of the contact pressure body floor plate extends further in the contact pressure body in the z-direction, up to the ink printing device. An additional contact pressure device for strip-shaped printing substrates has a contact pressure element designed so as to be movable separate from the contact pressure body, and biased with a spring force of an additional spring or resiliently elastic element. The contact pressure element is arranged so as to be movable in the notch. A sensor for print triggering is arranged at a front wall of a lower housing shell of the printing apparatus and has a sensor region that is adjacent to the separate contact pressure element in the insertion direction y of a box-shaped module.

Abstract: The aim of the present invention is to propose a method for assessing and correcting the alignment of print heads carried out using at least one linear adjustment algorithm, allowing greater accuracy in the use of same by eliminating inaccuracies linked to the ejection of drops from the print heads, while limiting the use of the resources of the IT system on which the method is used. Moreover, the number of print heads of which the alignment needs to be assessed and optionally corrected has very little influence on the overall processing time required by said method.

Abstract: A printer includes a cap member, a head, a suction pump, a first electromagnetic valve, and a waste liquid flow path including a first flow path portion and a second flow path portion. The cap member seals a discharge surface in the head. The suction pump is connected to the waste liquid flow path and puts it into a negative pressure state. The first electromagnetic valve connects the cap member and the suction pump, cuts off the connection between the cap member and the waste liquid flow path, and includes a first wall portion. The first wall portion includes a side face portion on which an inflow opening and an outflow opening are formed. The inflow opening connects to the first flow path portion. The outflow opening connects to the second flow path portion and is disposed farther in the direction of the force of gravity than the inflow opening.

Abstract: There is provided a line printer including: a nozzle that discharges liquid; a pressure chamber that communicates with the nozzle; a piezoelectric element that is provided to correspond to the pressure chamber and to discharge liquid; a pulse generation unit that generates a drive pulse to discharge liquid from the nozzle and an inspection pulse to inspect a liquid discharge state; and a residual vibration detection unit that detects residual vibration in the pressure chamber, which occurs after the inspection pulse is applied to the piezoelectric element. The drive pulse is caused to be applied to the piezoelectric element and the inspection pulse is caused not to be applied to the piezoelectric element at a first printing speed. The drive pulse and the inspection pulse are caused to be applied to the piezoelectric element at a second printing speed. The second printing speed is slower than the first printing speed.

Abstract: An ink-jet printer for printing on cards includes a printing station having an ink-jet printhead. A reservoir containing an ink is coupled to the ink-jet printhead. The ink includes: a medium consisting of a low-boiling organic solvent, an auxiliary solvent consisting of a high-boiling organic solvent, and a coloring component soluble in said medium. A driving system is adapted to drive the printhead between a first operative condition wherein the ink ejected by the printhead impinges on the card, and at least a second operative condition, wherein the ink ejected by the printhead does not impinge on the card. A control unit is active on the printhead for commanding ejections thereof, and on the driving system for controlling movement of the printhead. The control unit is configured for commanding an ink ejection in the second operative condition before ink ejection in the first operative condition.

Abstract: There are provided a landing position measuring apparatus and a landing position measuring method capable of achieving normal evaluation or inspection without any erroneous recognition of a printed pattern. For this purpose, black pixels within a limitation area are regarded as ink ejected from one ejection port, followed by processing.

Abstract: An electrostatic actuator array including a plurality of recesses within an actuator membrane and a method for forming same. In an embodiment, a width of each recess is wider than a width of each bonding feature of a plurality of bonding features, and each bonding feature extends into one of the recesses. In another embodiment, a width of each recess is narrower than a width of each bonding feature. In each embodiment, adhesive within the recesses bonds the membrane to the bonding feature. The recesses provide a flow path for the adhesive to reduce or prevent adhesive encroachment into an air chamber within which an actuator electrode is located.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes: a plurality of nozzles that include a normal nozzle which is normal in ejection of liquid droplets and an abnormal nozzle which is abnormal in ejection of liquid droplets; a storage unit in which nozzle information capable of determining a non-ejection nozzle which does not eject liquid droplets at the time of image forming is stored to correspond to each of a plurality of different conditions; and a control unit that performs a control based on the nozzle information corresponding to at least one of the conditions related to the image forming such that liquid droplets are not ejected from the non-ejection nozzle, and performs a control based on the image information such that liquid droplets are ejected from the nozzles except the non-ejection nozzle among the plurality of nozzles.

Abstract: A liquid ejection device includes a head, a liquid-receiving face and a flushing box. The head is configured and arranged to eject a liquid. The liquid-receiving face is configured and arranged to receive the liquid ejected from the head when flushing is carried out by the head. The flushing box is configured and arranged to receive the liquid deposited on the liquid-receiving face and dripped from the liquid-receiving face.