Abstract: In a multipass printing system, this invention prints a quality image even when the number of passes is reduced to increase a printing speed. For this purpose, in a multipass printing system which repetitively alternates a printing scan, which causes the print head to eject ink from the nozzles as it moves in the main scan direction, and a feeding operation, which feeds a print medium in a sub-scan direction, this invention sets the feed distance of the print medium according to a density of an image being printed on the print medium.

Abstract: The invention has an object to provide a liquid discharge recording method and a liquid discharge recording apparatus capable of outputting images at high speed with high quality and high reliability, and has a feature in that when adjacent overlapping dots are formed on a print material, the dots are formed with a dot placement time difference that may reduce uneven optical densities of the overlapping portion of the dots.

Abstract: A recording apparatus for forming a color image on the recording material, includes a recording head having a plurality of recording elements; recording head driving means for driving the recording elements of the recording head in accordance with image data to form an image on the recording material; a plurality of supplementing means for effecting supplementations, in different manners, for supplementing defects, in a recorded image resulting from a non-operating recording element of the recording elements; and control means for selectively operating the plurality of supplementing means depending on a record image to effect the supplementation.

Abstract: An ink jet print head is provided which can print a high-quality image with no density variation-caused lines at high speed and which can be manufactured at low cost and with ease. For this purpose, the print head of this invention has a plurality of nozzle groups each having at least one nozzle array arranged in a predetermined array direction Y crossing a relative motion direction X. A distance in the relative motion direction between the nozzles in each nozzle group adjoining each other in the array direction Y is set almost equal to a distance in the relative motion direction between the nozzle groups adjoining each other in the array direction Y.

Abstract: A recording apparatus for forming a color image on the recording material. The recording apparatus includes a recording head having a plurality of recording elements; recording head driving units for driving the recording elements of the recording head in accordance with image data to form an image on the recording material; a plurality of supplementing units for effecting supplementations, in different manners, for supplementing defects in a recorded image resulting from a non-operating recording element of the recording elements; and control units for selectively operating the plurality of supplementing units depending on a record image to effect the supplementation.

Abstract: This invention provides an ink jet printing apparatus of a low cost construction having a plurality of print head units arranged at equal intervals and capable of forming a high quality image at high speed. A plurality of print head units each having a plurality of ink ejection nozzles are arranged side by side in the scan direction. An ink volume applied to a unit area of a print medium by at least the print head unit situated most upstream in the scan direction is set greater than those applied by the other print head units.

Abstract: A spliced ink-jet head including head chips, each of which is capable of discharging inks of two or more colors, and which are spliced in a staggered manner which restrains the occurrence of splice streaks, white streaks caused by deflection at ends or uneven colors attributable to different landing orders of ink droplets in spliced portions of different colors when one-pass recording is carried out. The head chips is arranged such that, in a relationship between two adjoining head chips, at least one discharge port of one head chip and one discharge port of the other head chip for the same color tone ink in end portions overlap on a line in a recording material feeding direction, while discharge ports for different color tone inks do not overlap.

Abstract: In an ink jet printing apparatus that adopts an area grayscale system using halftone elements, this invention prevents degradations of grayscale reproducibility caused by a plurality of dots pulling each other on a print medium, and thereby realize a stable grayscale and color reproducibility. To this end dots to be applied to halftone elements, whose arrangement is determined by the halftone element-based area grayscale system, are divided into a dot group for interior halftone elements and a dot group for outline halftone elements. These two dot groups are printed with a predetermined time difference between them. The subsequent dots are then drawn to the preceding dots that are not yet absorbed in the print medium. Therefore, the overall shape and grayscale level of the merged dot in each pixel become stable, allowing for reliable image processing which in turn realizes excellent grayscale and color reproducibility.

Abstract: When multilevel printing is performed by using a plurality of types of inks, which present different densities for similar colors when used for printing, and changing the types of inks and the numbers of ink droplets in printing each pixel, an ink distribution table which defines a combination of the types of inks and the numbers of ink droplets in correspondence with each gray level value is generated on the basis of input information associated with the relative densities of the respective inks. A combination to be used to print each pixel is selected on the basis of the ink distribution table, thereby printing a good grayscale image free from gray-level reversal and the like.

Abstract: When multilevel printing is performed by using a plurality of types of inks, which present different densities for similar colors when used for printing, and changing the types of inks and the numbers of ink droplets in printing each pixel, an ink distribution table which defines a combination of the types of inks and the numbers of ink droplets in correspondence with each gray level value is generated on the basis of input information associated with the relative densities of the respective inks. A combination to be used to print each pixel is selected on the basis of the ink distribution table, thereby printing a good grayscale image free from gray-level reversal and the like.

Abstract: A temperature calibration method for a baking apparatus comprising forming a photoresist film onto a substrate, forming a latent image of a dose monitor mark onto the photoresist film, preparing baking processing apparatuses, baking the substrate or another substrate by temperature settings performed every repeat of a series of the forming the resist film and the forming the latent image with each prepared baking apparatus, cooling the baking-processed substrate, measuring a length of the latent image of the dose monitor mark after the cooling or a length of a dose monitor mark which being obtained by developing the resist film, determining relationship between a temperature setting and an effective dose in advance, and calibrating temperature settings corresponding to the each baking processing apparatus to be obtained a predetermined effective dose on the basis of the determining relationship and the measured length corresponding to the each baking processing apparatus.

Abstract: A pattern forming method comprising forming a first layer on a semiconductor substrate, forming a resist layer on the first layer, patterning the resist layer to form a first patterning layer having several patterns, slimming or thickening a pattern width of the first patterning layer, forming a second patterning layer between patterns of the first patterning layer, and patterning the first patterning layer using the second patterning layer as a mask.

Abstract: Ink ejection/non-ejection from a plurality of ink ejection print elements is controlled by looking up a first table that indicates the correspondence between a plurality of inks and gray scale values of print pixels, and a second table indicating combinations of density distribution patterns of print pixels and ink ejection print elements in correspondence with gray scale values, in accordance with a pixel density pattern and its gray scale value.

Abstract: An image correcting method for an ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image by ejecting ink onto a recording material using a recording head having an array of a plurality of nozzles for ejecting the ink, the method includes the steps of an outputting step of outputting at least two kinds of uniform patterns for detection of a recording property of a recording head; a measuring step of measuring a density distribution of the patterns outputted by the outputting step; a calculation step of calculating, for each of the kinds of patterns, data for correction for respective one of the plurality of nozzles on the basis of a result of the measuring step: an image correcting step of comparing data corresponding to the at least two kinds of patterns, classifying states of the plurality of nozzles, and correcting images corresponding to respective ones of the plurality of nozzles, wherein the correcting step effects correction processes which are different from depending on the classification.

Abstract: A baking apparatus according to one embodiment of the invention includes a hotplate which performs heat treatment to a substrate placed on the hotplate, a base which has at least three support pins passing through through-holes made in the hotplate and supporting the substrate on the hotplate from a backside of the substrate and is vertically movably placed, and a plurality of sensors which are provided at a tip portion of each support pin respectively and sense contact with the substrate.

Abstract: In an image area printed by a nozzle group including a defective nozzle, pixels printed by the defective nozzle and part of pixels located in the vicinity of the same are printed by another nozzle group. As a result, since printing is performed not only at the pixels printed by the defective nozzle but also at the pixels in the neighborhood thereof simultaneously by separate nozzles, irregularities of printing attributable to interpolation are distributed even when there is a relative misalignment between the nozzle groups. It is therefore possible to obtain a preferable image without any increase in output time even when a printing head including a defective nozzle is used.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device comprises preparing a working film to be processed, forming an adhesion improving region on the working film for increasing an adhesion between the working film and a mask material containing carbon, forming the mask material on the working film, forming a resist pattern on the mask material, the mask material having a higher etching resistance for the working film than the resist pattern, transferring the pattern of the resist pattern onto the mask material, and etching the working film by using the mask material as a mask.

Abstract: A method of forming a pattern, which comprises forming a first resist film on a surface of a substrate, patterning the first resist film to form a first resist pattern, and forming a covering layer containing silicon or a metal on the first resist pattern by making use of a coating method using a solution containing a solvent which is incapable of dissolving the first resist.

Abstract: An ink jet printing method and apparatus using a color ink and a print performance improving ink which minimizes an image quality degradation due to blank lines formed by failed or faulty nozzles. This system enables the use of a print head even with failed or faulty nozzles by minimizing the image quality degradation and extends the life of the print head before replacement. The print performance improving ink is deliberately ejected onto a blank line or its vicinity to produce the so-called primer effect, thereby inducing the color ink dots on the lines adjoining the non-ejecting nozzle line to spread into the blank line to make the blank line undistinguishable.

Abstract: Density correction method capable of performing density correction at high speed with high precision. In a printing apparatus adopting this method, a predetermined test pattern image is printed on a printing medium, the printed test pattern image is optically read by a sensor at first resolution, the quality of the read image is evaluated, based on the evaluation result the printed test pattern image is optically read by the sensor at second resolution higher than the first resolution, and correction data is generated based on the read test pattern image.