Abstract: Reduce image quality deterioration of an object area that is gazed viewed by a user in a case where information is embedded in an image. An image processing apparatus including a recognition unit configured to recognize an object within an image and a layout unit configured to lay out information relating to an object recognized by the recognition unit in an area except for an object area for the recognized object within the image.

Abstract: Ink in a print head is heated to a target temperature by driving heating elements included in a print head. After heating control is completed, operation that is performed using power stored in a power storage unit is started. The target temperature in the heating control is determined in such a manner that the temperature of the print head when the operation is started is a set temperature or higher.

Abstract: Heating is conducted sequentially by dividing a heating operation into first heating control and second heating control consuming higher electric power than that in the first heating control.

Abstract: Formed is a dither pattern that makes it possible to output an image with excellent dot dispersibility and reduced graininess regardless of controls after quantization processing. To this end, an extended pattern in which multiple divided pixels correspond to each of multiple pixels included in quantization data and one or more of the multiple divided pixels are determined as dot-arrangeable-pixels in which dots can be printed is generated. Thereafter, the thresholds of the dither pattern are set based on the extended pattern in which the dots are arranged to obtain predetermined dispersibility.

Abstract: Provided is an inkjet printing apparatus including: a print head configured to eject a metallic ink containing silver particles; a carriage configured to scan the print head; and a control unit configured to print a metallic image by causing the print head to eject the metallic ink while scanning the print head; a reduction unit configured to control ink ejection from the print head so as to reduce coloring of a metallic dot formed by ejecting the metallic ink; and a setting unit capable of setting a plurality of printing modes including a first printing mode in which the reduction unit controls the ink ejection from the print head to reduce the coloring to a first degree, and a second printing mode in which the reduction unit controls the ink ejection from the print head to reduce the coloring to a second degree lower than the first degree.

Abstract: Provided is an inkjet printing apparatus including: a print head configured to eject a metallic ink containing silver particles; a carriage configured to scan the print head; and a control unit configured to control the print operation so as to print an image on a print medium by causing the print head to eject the metallic ink onto the print medium and thereby form dots on the print medium while causing the carriage to scan the print head a plurality of times over a predetermined region on the print medium, wherein the control unit controls the print operation so as to print the image by causing the print head to eject the metallic ink at the same pixel position on the print medium in two or more printing scans and thereby generate a superimposed dot.

Abstract: Provided is an image processing apparatus including a generating unit configured to print data to be used in a process of printing a metallic image using a metallic ink containing silver particles in an inkjet printing apparatus capable of ejecting the metallic ink and at least one type of chromatic color ink; and an obtaining unit configured to obtain metallic image data corresponding to a predetermined region on a print medium and indicating a tone in the metallic image. The generation unit generates print data of the metallic ink to be printed in the predetermined region based on the metallic image data and generates print data of the chromatic color ink to be printed in the predetermined region based on the metallic image data obtained by the obtaining unit and pre-stored data indicating the correspondences between tone values of the metallic image data and amounts of the chromatic color ink.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus performs image processing to print a color materials of a first color and a second color. When a sum of a first gradation data for the first color and a second gradation data for the second color is equal to or smaller than the maximum value of thresholds of a first threshold matrix, a generation unit generates a second quantization data for the second color based on a result of comparing the second gradation data with a second threshold. When the sum is greater than the maximum value, the generation unit generates third gradation data by subtracting the maximum value from the sum and generates the second quantization data based on a result of comparing the third gradation data with the first threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the second gradation data and the third gradation data with the second threshold.

Abstract: When a sum of a first gradation data for a first color and a second gradation data for a second color is greater than the maximum value of thresholds of a first threshold matrix, a generation unit generates a first overlapping gradation data and second overlapping gradation data by dividing a value obtained by subtracting the maximum value from the sum. Further, the generation unit generates a first quantization data based on a result of comparing the first overlapping gradation data with the second threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the first gradation data and the first overlapping gradation data with the first threshold, and generates a second quantization data based on a result of comparing the second overlapping gradation data with the first threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the second gradation data and the second overlapping gradation data with the second threshold.

Abstract: Ink in a print head is heated to a target temperature by driving heating elements included in a print head. After heating control is completed, operation that is performed using power stored in a power storage unit is started. The target temperature in the heating control is determined in such a manner that the temperature of the print head when the operation is started is a set temperature or higher.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus performs image processing to print a color materials of a first color and a second color. When a sum of a first gradation data for the first color and a second gradation data for the second color is equal to or smaller than the maximum value of thresholds of a first threshold matrix, a generation unit generates a second quantization data for the second color based on a result of comparing the second gradation data with a second threshold. When the sum is greater than the maximum value, the generation unit generates third gradation data by subtracting the maximum value from the sum and generates the second quantization data based on a result of comparing the third gradation data with the first threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the second gradation data and the third gradation data with the second threshold.

Abstract: When a sum of a first gradation data for a first color and a second gradation data for a second color is greater than the maximum value of thresholds of a first threshold matrix, a generation unit generates a first overlapping gradation data and second overlapping gradation data by dividing a value obtained by subtracting the maximum value from the sum. Further, the generation unit generates a first quantization data based on a result of comparing the first overlapping gradation data with the second threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the first gradation data and the first overlapping gradation data with the first threshold, and generates a second quantization data based on a result of comparing the second overlapping gradation data with the first threshold or a result of comparing a difference between the second gradation data and the second overlapping gradation data with the second threshold.

Abstract: Heating is conducted sequentially by dividing a heating operation into first heating control and second heating control consuming higher electric power than that in the first heating control.

Abstract: Recording data for recording an achromatic color image having a high lightness is generated as follows. A first color material and a second color material which has a hue complementary to that of the first color material are used to record the image. Recording data is generated such that a recording amount of the first color material and a recording amount of the second color material are larger than a recording amount of another color material, and such that a pixel where it is determined that the first color material is to be recorded and a pixel where it is determined that the second color material is to be recorded are at positions different from each other.

Abstract: An image printing apparatus can print an image in which graininess is suppressed while using a color material of light blue. To achieve this, the color material of light blue satisfies the following condition. ?LB?(?LC??LB)>0 and ?LB?(?LM??LB)>0 Here, ?LC represents a difference in lightness between cyan ink and a blank area, ?LM represents a difference in lightness between magenta ink and the blank area, and ?LB represents a difference in lightness between light blue ink and the blank area. Further, the color material of light blue satisfies the following condition. hC+(h(C+M)?hC)/2?hB?hM?(hM?h(C+M))/2 Here, hC represents a hue of the cyan ink, hM represents a hue of the magenta ink, h(C+M) represents a hue of the image printed with the cyan ink and the magenta ink in the same amount, and hB represents a hue of the light blue ink.

Abstract: Recording data for recording an achromatic color image having a high lightness is generated as follows. A first color material and a second color material which has a hue complementary to that of the first color material are used to record the image. Recording data is generated such that a recording amount of the first color material and a recording amount of the second color material are larger than a recording amount of another color material, and such that a pixel where it is determined that the first color material is to be recorded and a pixel where it is determined that the second color material is to be recorded are at positions different from each other.

Abstract: A light blue ink discharge opening array unit is located between cyan ink discharge opening array units, between the magenta ink discharge opening array units, and not between the black ink discharge opening array unit.

Abstract: A discharge port array unit including discharge ports having a small discharge port diameter is not arranged in a position adjacent to a discharge port array unit generating a strong airflow, and a discharge port array unit including discharge port array having not a small discharge port diameter is arranged in the position adjacent to the discharge port array unit generating a strong airflow.

Abstract: Driving orders of driving blocks are controlled with regard to each of multiple types of ink so that landing positions of ink from the driving blocks differ in multiple scans, and in the mask patterns used, there is a relatively small number of superimposed pixels among pixels regarding which a large number of discharge permitted has been stipulated regarding a mask pattern corresponding to one type of ink and one scan and pixels regarding which a large number of discharge permitted has been stipulated regarding a mask pattern corresponding to another type of ink and the one scan.

Abstract: An image printing apparatus can print an image in which graininess is suppressed while using a color material of light blue. To achieve this, the color material of light blue satisfies the following condition. ?LB?(?LC??LB)>0 and ?LB?(?LM??LB)>0 Here, ?LC represents a difference in lightness between cyan ink and a blank area, ?LM represents a difference in lightness between magenta ink and the blank area, and ?LB represents a difference in lightness between light blue ink and the blank area. Further, the color material of light blue satisfies the following condition. hC+(h(C+M)?hC)/2?hB?hM?(hM?h(C+M))/2 Here, hC represents a hue of the cyan ink, hM represents a hue of the magenta ink, h(C+M) represents a hue of the image printed with the cyan ink and the magenta ink in the same amount, and hB represents a hue of the light blue ink.