Abstract: A grayscale printing control method, a device thereof and a storage medium are provided. The method comprises: determining the grayscale level of image data of each point in each point line and converting the same into multi-bit binary data; forming a data set using the binary data of the same bit of all the points in a point line, thereby forming multiple data sets; each data set corresponding to a predetermined strobe time, and the print head heater corresponding to each point heating upon receiving predetermined data during the strobe time. The present invention can reduce the number of printing strobes and the times of data transmission while ensuring printing quality, thereby greatly improving printing speed.

Abstract: Improved output quality of a printer used in UV curable ink jet printing is achieved by minimizing or eliminating a print artifact referred to as gloss banding or tire tracking. A same or a similar number of nozzles as used in conventional printers is used to achieve a desired throughput, but the nozzles are arranged so that any given square inch of substrate to which ink is being applied receives a lower amount of ink. A longer effective print head is provided by arranging the print heads into a longer array, where the print heads are butted substantially end-to-end. As a result, the net throughput of the printer is the same as that of a conventional printer because the printer uses the same number of print heads, but the amount of ink that is applied to any given square inch is less on a pass.

Abstract: A method for applying a bonding agent for supplemental ink includes, with a control system of a printing apparatus, determining regions of an image corresponding to regions where a supplemental ink is to be printed, and with the control system, adding an amount of pixels of a standard color channel to portions of a bitmap representing the image, the portions corresponding to the regions where the supplemental ink is to be printed. The amount of pixels is sufficient to trigger application of a bonding agent at the regions.

Abstract: Example embodiments are directed to an ink discharge device that discharges uniform amounts of ink droplets from an inkjet head, and a control method thereof. Voltages applied to plural nozzles of the ink-head are changed based on different characteristics of the respective nozzles to discharge uniform amounts of ink droplets from the nozzles. Voltage increments are calculated using a fixed target color value so as to set color value dispersion and voltage increments are calculated using different target color values according to the nozzles so as to satisfy color value differences between the neighboring pixels and thus time required for a DPN process is shortened, and excessive changes of the applied voltages are prevented and thus a preparatory period required to mass-produce an LCD panel is shortened and yield of the LCD panel is increased.

Abstract: An inkjet printer with a printing bed for displacing a print medium in a forward feed direction and a print head carriage disposed above the printing bed for displacing at least one print head unit in a transverse feed direction, a print head unit with at least one print head being provided for every color to be printed, each print head having at least one nozzle row oriented in the forward feed direction of the print medium. The nozzles of the at least one nozzle row of the print head unit are disposed offset from one another by a nozzle distance D by reference to the forward feed direction. Another print head unit is provided, which has nozzles in at least one nozzle row disposed offset from one another by a second nozzle distance d by reference to the forward feed direction of the print medium, the ratio derived from the nozzle distance D and the second nozzle distance d being a rational number and greater than 1.

Abstract: When data of large capacity compared with the capacity of a recording medium used for storing a backup is divided into sections of data and backed up on recording media, a unit configured to divide data and generate sections of the data in order to record the data on recording media, the sections having an order, and a unit configured to generate representative images for each of the recording media, on which the sections of the data are recorded, are provided. Representative images assigned to a certain recording medium include a representative image generated using one of the sections of the data to be recorded on the certain recording medium and a representative image generated using at least one of a previous section and a next section of the data regarding the section of the data, whereby the relationship between the recording media can be easily recognized.

Abstract: A liquid ejecting apparatus includes a liquid ejecting head having a nozzle row including nozzles that eject a liquid on an ejecting target medium. The liquid ejecting head moves with respect to the ejecting target medium in a main scanning direction. Liquid is ejected to form test patterns on the ejecting target medium, in which the minimum interval between a plurality of dots formed by ejecting the liquid in the main scanning direction is set as a reference interval. A dot group is formed, in which one or more dots line up at the reference interval in the main scanning direction. A line part is formed, in which a plurality of the dot groups is formed at an interval larger than the reference interval in the main scanning direction. A plurality of the line parts is formed in a sub-scanning direction intersecting the main scanning direction.

Abstract: Provided are a data processing method and a data processor for ink jet printing, which are capable of achieving uniform and high-quality images while stabilizing density and color development in each of pixels. To this end, a mask pattern for setting permission and non-permission to print dots in each area is arranged non-periodically by using an integral multiple of m×n areas as one unit. The m×n areas allow one pixel to be expressed in half-tone. Thereby, density in the pixel is stable since a plurality of dots printed in the same pixel are printed approximately in the same event. Moreover, since each of the units (clusters) is non-periodically arranged, a uniform image can be obtained.

Abstract: An inkjet recording liquid contains water, an organic solvent, a pigment, and a pigment dispersing resin. An weight-average molecular weight of the pigment dispersing resin exceeds 30000 and is 150000 or less. A mass ratio of the pigment dispersing resin to the pigment in the recording liquid (resin content/pigment content) is 0.1 or more and 1.0 or less. An acid value of the pigment dispersing resin is 160 or more and 240 or less. The inkjet recording liquid is discharged from a recording head of the inkjet recording device. Even when nozzles of the recording head become clogged due to drying or thickening of the inkjet recording liquid, the nozzle clogging can be easily resolved with a purge operation and wiping operation of the recording head by a wipe unit. Thus, it is possible to reduce an overconsumption of the recording liquid due to the foregoing purge operation.

Abstract: Provided is a printing device which prints an image using a metallic ink and a color ink, the device including: an input unit which inputs image data; a metallic dot formation unit which forms dot concentration dots on a printing medium using the metallic ink; and a color print unit which prints the image indicated by the image data using the color ink on the printing medium on which the dots using the metallic ink are formed.

Abstract: A print data generating apparatus to generate print data is provided. The print data generating apparatus includes a maximum density setting unit, through which a maximum allowable density of a white colorant is designated, an image storing unit to store originally inputted image data, a data convertor unit to convert the inputted image data into a colorant-enabled data, which is information concerning pixels composing the image in scale values of the plurality of colors, and a density-adjusted data generating unit to generate white density-adjusted data, in which the scale values of the pixels in the colorant-enabled data are adjusted according to the maximum allowable density of the white colorant. The density-adjusted data generating unit adjusts the scale values of white in the pixels in the colorant-enabled data to be lower than or equal to scale values corresponding to the maximum allowable density.

Abstract: A method of printing an image comprises sending a data stream representing the image to a printer driver, generating a stream of print instructions at the printer driver, forwarding the stream of print instructions to a printer, and printing the image in accordance with the print instructions. The data stream or stream of print instructions is intercepted and processed so that the printer uses less ink to print the image than it would if the processing was not performed.

Abstract: An ink-jet printer includes an ink jet head which jets liquid droplets of an ink onto a recording medium; a scanning mechanism which reciprocates the ink-jet head in a forward scan direction and a backward scan direction; a transport mechanism which transports the recording medium in a transport direction intersecting with the forward and backward scan directions; and a jetting controller which controls the ink-jet head. The jetting controller has a reference jetting amount setting section which sets a reference jetting amount based on an input image data for each of a plurality of scans of the ink-jet head, and a jetting amount adjusting section which makes a jetting amount be smaller than the reference jetting amount with respect to an overlapping area at which liquid droplet jetting areas of the forward scan and the backward scan partially overlap each other.

Abstract: While a conveying error of a roller depends on the eccentricity of the roller, the amount and the state of the eccentricity sometimes makes the roller have different conveying errors from one point in the longitudinal direction of the roller to another. There is provided a construction for obtaining a correction value that is suitable for the correction of the conveying error even in such a case as described above. To this end, plural test patterns are formed in the longitudinal direction of the roller. Then, a suitable correction value for correcting the conveying error that depends on the eccentricity of the roller is obtained on the basis of these test patterns.

Abstract: An apparatus for generating data used to apply a plurality of inks similar in color and different in color material density, including a first ink and a second ink higher in color material density than the first ink, onto a pixel area on a recording medium with a recording head includes a generation unit configured to generate the data in such a way that out of a plurality of pixels constituting the pixel area, a number of pixels onto which dots of the first ink are applied in an overlapped manner is greater than a number of pixels onto which dots of the second ink are applied in the overlapped manner.

Abstract: Provided are bitmap based trapping methods, apparatus and systems. According to one exemplary method, black trapping color image data is performed by estimating the continuous tone values associated with non-black pixels near a qualified black pixel and subsequently, the estimated continuous tone values are halftoned at the qualified black pixel locations and ORed with the original bitmap data.

Abstract: Disclosed are methods and systems for creating a printer model which maps device dependent color space representations of reference colors to device independent color space representations of the reference colors for a direct marking color printer. According to an exemplary method, a plurality of printer models are initially generated, each printer model corresponding to a predetermined width associated with the cross-process direction of an image receiving surface.

Abstract: A printing apparatus includes an image disposition processing unit that disposes a metallic image and a color image as a printing image. The image disposition processing unit disposes a color image in an outline area of the printing image.

Abstract: A liquid ejection device includes first and second heads. A first color conversion table is for converting a tone value of a first color space of a pixel, for which the liquid is ejected from the first head, to a tone value of a second color space corresponding with a color of the liquid, and a second color conversion table is for converting a tone value of the first color space of a pixel, for which the liquid is ejected from the second head, to a tone value of the second color space. For a pixel of an overlapping portion for which the liquid is ejected from the first and second heads, a tone value of the first color space is converted to a tone value of the second color space according to a third color conversion table created based on the first and second color conversion tables.

Abstract: In a 2M-pass printing operation that forms dots including overlapping dots, this invention makes an arrangement to ensure that the number of overlapping dots that are printed in a unit area in pairs of passes each straddling a print medium convey operation executed between an Mth pass and an (M+1)st pass is greater than the number of overlapping dots that are printed in pairs of passes straddling any other convey operation. This arrangement can cause two dots of the overlapping dots to be separated from each other in the event of a print position misalignment, preventing a possible density fall even in a unit area where the largest density reduction is feared to occur at time of the print position misalignment.

Abstract: A printer is disclosed. The printer prints colors near saturation using mostly a first ink and prints saturated colors using mostly a second ink. The second ink has a reduced loading of the colorant in the first ink.

Abstract: A recording apparatus, a recording method, and an operation control program, which are superior in color stability (gray balance), are capable of achieving an image quality in which dots are inconspicuous, and are capable of providing images in which phenomenon such that color varies from light source to light source is restrained.

Abstract: A recording head having a plurality of recording elements arranged at a prescribed pitch in a first direction. A scanning unit is configured to move the recording head back and forth in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. A setting unit is configured to set process pixels in an input image by rendering at least one of the plurality of recording elements disabled so as not to form dots and at least another one of the plurality of recording elements enabled to allow dots to be formed in each of a plurality of columns of a recording medium. A dot data generating unit is configured to generate dot data by applying a weight matrix to the density data of the process pixel. The dot data is applied to the recording head to form dots on the recording medium.

Abstract: A recording apparatus includes a recording unit configured to record a first dot and a second dot having a diameter smaller than that of the first dot on a recording medium, and a scanning unit configured to move the recording unit in a scanning direction. A recording resolution of the second dot in the scanning direction is lower than a recording resolution of the first dot in the scanning direction.

Abstract: When recording with the use of a multi-pass recording method, the order in which a specific ink and the other inks are applied in layers is controlled while preventing the multiple recording scans (passes) from becoming unnecessary uneven in terms of the ink recording permission ratio, and also, the ratio with which the specific ink is permitted to be applied to each unit pixel is determined for each recording scan (pass), based on the information (for example, CMYK information, RGB information, etc.) regarding the specific ink and the other inks, which are to be applied to each unit pixel. Therefore, it is possible to change the recording scan(s), to which the application of the specific ink is concentrated, based on the application conditions for the specific ink and the other inks, and therefore, it is possible to change the ratio with which the specific ink is applied before or after the other inks are applied.

Abstract: It is determined whether the pixel of interest in image data to be processed belongs to area 1 not close to a scan line changing point where a scan line changing process is done (S101). If the pixel of interest belongs to area 1, an error diffusion process is performed using an error diffusion matrix for area 1 (S102). If the pixel of interest belongs to area 2 close to the scan line changing point, the error diffusion process is performing using an error diffusion matrix for downward scan line changing for area 2 when the scan line changing process is changing to a lower line, or an error diffusion matrix for upward scan line changing for area 2 when the scan line changing process is changing to an upper line.

Abstract: A printhead and a method of ejecting liquid droplets are provided. The method includes providing a printhead operable to eject liquid drops having a plurality of drop volumes Vi, for i equal to 1 through n, where n?2, with Vj>Vi when j>i. One of the plurality of drop volumes is a minimum drop volume Vmin, and a difference in drop volumes between successively larger drops equals (Vk+1?Vk) which is less than Vmin, for k equal to 1 through n?1. The method also includes ejecting liquid drops through the printhead.

Abstract: A method for modifying an input digital image having three color channels, to form a modified digital image suitable for use by an inkjet printer having reduced ink bleed artifacts comprising computing a transformed digital image containing at least a black color channel and a color dependent scale factor channel, computing a filtered black color channel using a convolution operation, and forming the modified digital image in response to the corresponding pixel values of the color dependent scale factor channel and the filtered black color channel, so that when the modified digital image is used to produce a printed image on an inkjet printer there are reduced ink bleed artifacts.

Abstract: According to the present invention, the size of a droplet ejected to a target area is minimized to obtain high printing resolution, and effects of attraction and adhesive forces acting between a nozzle and air resistance can be minimized so that the target area is finely controlled to obtain high printing precision. An inkjet printing apparatus according to the present invention includes an ejecting device ejecting a droplet of a solution to a target area; and a light irradiating device irradiating light onto the droplet at an acute angle with respect to a line going through the ejecting device and the target area to heat and evaporate a part of the droplet before the ejected droplet reaches the target area, so that the droplet is accelerated along the line.

Abstract: A method for printing images on an inkjet printer having grayscale print and color print modes, comprising performing an inspection process to inspect lines of image data in an inspection region downstream from a current swath of image data to determine a print mode for a future swath of image data. The inspection process includes inspecting the lines of image data in the inspection region according to a predetermined inspection sequence, determining whether an inspected line contains any pixels to be printed with color ink, and if so terminating the inspection process and designating that the future swath is to be printed with the color print mode; otherwise, if none of the lines are found to contain any pixels to be printed with color ink, designating the future swath to be printed with the grayscale print mode.

Abstract: A method of printing a high density image. An image is accessed, wherein the image has a plurality of pixels, and each pixel has an r,g,b value. For each pixel, each r,g,b value is separated into separate grayscale components and color components. A lookup table is applied to each grayscale and color component to generate an ink value for each of the print heads. The ink values are combined to produce a final ink output value for each pixel, and the final ink output values are employed for printing on medium using an ink-jet printer.

Abstract: An inkjet printing method includes the steps of a) providing a white inkjet ink and at least one color inkjet ink to an inkjet printer; and b) jetting the white inkjet ink at a higher temperature than the color inkjet ink onto an ink-receiver. The difference in jetting temperature between the white inkjet ink and the color inkjet ink is at least 5° C. Inkjet ink sets and inkjet printers are also disclosed.

Abstract: An inkjet nozzle assembly includes: a nozzle chamber having a floor and a roof spaced apart from the floor, the roof having a displaceable portion defining an ejection port; and an actuator for displacing the displaceable portion of the roof towards the floor. Displacement of the displaceable portion of the roof alters a volume of the nozzle chamber such that when the volume is altered, fluid is ejected from the ejection port.

Abstract: A method of using an inkjet printer to print an input digital image containing at least one color channel having a plurality of rows and columns of pixels sampled at a first resolution, each pixel having a code value, includes partitioning the input digital image into a set of spatially non-overlapping blocks; computing an average code value for each block responsive to the pixels in the input digital image that correspond to the block; computing an image quality score for each block responsive to the average code value for that block; determining a print mode in response to the image quality scores for the set of blocks; and printing the image on the inkjet printer using the print mode.

Abstract: An image forming apparatus which forms a halftone image on a print medium by using a multipass process to scan a printhead N (N is an integer of 2 or more) times in a single area on the print medium and form dots by each scan operation includes a pass division unit which sets the print density of a scan operation in the first pass so as to prevent dots from overlapping with each other on the print medium, and sets the print densities of scan operations in the second to Nth passes, a tone reduction unit which generates print data of the respective scan operations in accordance with the print densities set by the pass division unit, and a printhead which prints a halftone image on a print medium on the basis of the print data generated by the tone reduction unit.

Abstract: When color measurement is performed, a printer driver of a host apparatus 150 transmits a job start command “JS” to a printer 10, then performs printing instruction (print data transmission for color measurement printing), color measurement instruction, reception of a color measurement result (color measurement data) from a color measuring device (a color meter 41 and a color measurement driving device 80), label printing instruction, job information storage instruction, and positioning instruction, and subsequently transmits a job end command “JE” to the printer 10. During a period from the job start command “JS” until the job end command “JE” is received, a communication connect between the printer 10 and the host apparatus 150 is maintained while an interrupt from other than the host apparatus 150 is inhibited.

Abstract: A printing apparatus performs printing on a print medium. The printing apparatus includes: a dot data generator that performs a halftone process on image data, wherein the print image is formed by mutually combining print pixels belonging to each of a plurality of pixel position groups for which a physical difference is assumed at a formation of dots by the print image generator, in a common print area, and the halftone process is configured to determine the status of dot formation on each of the print pixels on an assumption of the physical difference.

Abstract: Provided is a printing apparatus that performs printing by moving a print head in main scan directions and sub scan directions relative to a printing medium, including: an input unit that inputs image data constituting an image; a halftone processing unit that converts the input image data to dot data indicating whether or not dots are formed; and a printing unit that performs printing by controlling ejection of ink from the print head based on the result of the halftone process, wherein, in a printing area where an ink duty is in a predetermined range, the printing unit forms dots by forward movement in which the print head relatively moves in one direction of the main scan directions and backward movement in which the print head relatively moves in the direction opposite to the one direction so that a forward-moving dot occurrence ratio that is a ratio of forming the dots by the forward movement and a backward-moving dot occurrence ratio that is a ratio of forming the dots by the backward movement are gradu

Abstract: According to this invention, the image attribute is determined by determining whether the image of each color component of color image data having undergone a screen process is a continuous tone image, and whether the image of each color component is a pattern image. Whether to perform an interpolation process is determined for each color component based on the attribute determination result of each color component. If it is determined that the images of all the color components are pattern images, interpolation determination results do not coincide with each other, and there is a color component determined to represent a continuous tone image, the interpolation determination result of this color component is overwritten with the interpolation determination result of the remaining color components. The interpolation process is executed in accordance with the interpolation determination result.

Abstract: A printing system using multiple printheads maintains color consistency between the printheads by printing a first color patch (102) with a first color with a plurality of printheads (30) at a first pressure and with a first pixel fill coverage. A second color patch (104) is printed with the first color with the plurality of printheads at a second pressure with the first pixel fill coverage. The print density of the first patch and the second patch is measured for each of the plurality of printheads and the print density for each of the plurality of printheads is compared. A pressure for each of the plurality of printheads is adjusted to compensate for differences in density between the first patch and the second patch for each of the printheads.

Abstract: A system and method is disclosed for managing resource consumption during print production. The method discloses receiving a print job and a set of print job constraints; calculating a set of printing resources required to produce a print job output from the print job according to the set of print job constraints; measuring a set of available printing resources; producing the print job output from the print job, if the required printing resources are less than the available printing resources; and identifying a set of fall-back print job constraints and repeating the calculating and producing steps using the fall-back constraints, if the required printing resources are greater than the available printing resources. The system discloses various modules for effecting the method and including: a processor, a color transformation module, a printing resource module, a printing module, and a print job dialog module.

Abstract: A print controller is provided for generating dot data, which specifies a dot formation state and which is to be provided to a printing unit. The printing unit is configured to execute, based on the dot data, dot-forming operations to form dots in dot rows extending in a prescribed direction by moving a print head in the prescribed direction while ejecting ink droplets from nozzles in the print head and to print an image by repeatedly executing the dot-forming operation to form a plurality of dot rows juxtaposed in a direction orthogonal to the prescribed direction. The print controller includes: a printing width determining unit; a density data generating unit; and a dot data generating unit. The printing width determining unit determines a printing width value corresponding to a working distance of the print head in the prescribed direction.

Abstract: In a printing device includes a plurality of heads corresponding to black K ink and colored inks C, M, and Y, wherein the heads are extended in a direction orthogonal to a conveying direction of a medium and are disposed in parallel from the upstream side to the downstream side, and ink droplets are discharged and deposited on the medium in order from the heads while the medium is being conveyed, a print condition setting method includes the steps of setting an order in accordance with the extent of concentration irregularity in the composite colors RGB; and creating, within the discharge order of the inks, the most separation of discharge order between the two colored inks that manifest the composite color having the greatest concentration irregularity, and inserting K ink between the discharge orders of the two colored inks that manifest the composite colors having the second greatest concentration irregularity.

Abstract: An apparatus includes: a first lookup table storage device which stores a first lookup table; a second lookup table storage device which stores a second lookup table; a halftone table storage device which stores a halftone table; a third lookup table generating device which generates a third lookup table by extracting a portion of the data from the second lookup table; a third lookup table storage device which stores the third lookup table; an evaluation processing device which performs calculation for evaluating a liquid ejection volume, on the basis of the evaluation input signal, the first lookup table, the third lookup table, the halftone table and the liquid volume per dot; and an adjusting device which adjusts the ejection volume on the basis of the evaluation results, in such a manner that the liquid ejection volume does not exceed a specified value.

Abstract: An ink jet printing apparatus includes a head that is provided with nozzle holes for ejecting ink, and a control unit that performs a plurality modes, and the plurality of modes includes a first image printing mode of ejecting white-based ink from the nozzle holes to adhere the white-based ink to a first area of a printing medium and a second area different from the first area to print an image, and a second image printing mode of substantially concurrently ejecting color ink and resin ink from the nozzle holes to contact and adhere the color ink and the resin ink onto the white-based ink of the first area to print an image, and ejecting resin ink from the nozzle holes to adhere the resin ink onto the white-based ink composition of the second area to print an image.

Abstract: A multi-color ink jet printing system uses a two-part (Binary) imaging solution, where the precise mixture of the multiple fluid parts (Colorant(s) and Reactant) is controlled with the use of multiple drop size (Grey Scale) ink jet print heads. The precise mixture of colorant(s) and reactant initiates a chemical reaction, which cures the imaging solution into a solid or nearly solid compound that ensures proper drop location.

Abstract: A printing apparatus that generates printed matter composed of a plurality of printing layers, wherein the apparatus includes an ink amount selection unit that selects an ink amount that corresponds to each of printing layers using a profile that regulates the correspondence relationship between the component values of input color data and the ink amount in each of the printing layers; and a print execution unit that generates the printed matter by adding layers of printing layers to a medium based on the selected ink amount, wherein in the profile, the ink amount of each printing layer is regulated so that the number of dots that are formed by a first ink and the number of dots that are formed by a second ink with a lower concentration than the concentration of the first ink change according to the printing order of each printing layer.

Abstract: A recording medium recording a computer readable computer program thereon, where the computer program enables the computer to generate dot recording data supplied to a dot recording device in order to perform dot recording using the dot recording device which repeats a main scanning pass and a transport based on the dot recording data so that a raster line along a main scanning direction is formed in multiple lines in a sub-scanning direction on a printing medium, where the main scanning pass is for performing the dot recording on the printing medium when an output head having a plurality of nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction moves in the main scanning direction, and where the transport is for enabling the printing medium to move in the sub-scanning direction, the computer program enables the computer to implement the functions of: determining a dot reduction degree for reducing the dot recording; setting a recording position of a changing target dot included in the dot recording data, according t

Abstract: An objective is to provide an inkjet print apparatus and an inkjet print method capable of a print without concentration unevenness. To achieve the objective, in a multiple-pass print using mask patterns each having low-print-percentage areas and high-print-percentage areas, the print-percentage difference between high-print-percentage areas and low-print-percentage areas is cancelled out in left-edge and right-edge parts of an image to be printed.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for processing an image are provided that can suppress blur edges at an edge portion of a character so that sharpness and quality of the image can be improved. The apparatus comprises an inside and outside edge discrimination portion for discriminating whether a target pixel to be processed belongs to an inside edge or to an outside edge, a threshold value generating portion for selecting a threshold value from plural threshold values for error diffusion process in accordance with an area discriminated by the inside and outside edge discrimination portion to output the selected threshold value and an error diffusion process portion for performing the error diffusion process for multilevel input data concerning the target pixel by utilizing the threshold value generated by the threshold value generating portion so as to produce output data whose gradation steps are reduced.