Creating Plural Tones Patents (Class 347/15)
  • Publication number: 20150116409
    Abstract: A printing system for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A plurality of printheads prints each of a plurality of color planes of a first copy of the print job. A processor is used to determine a first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job. A first plurality of local color plane correction values for each document of the print job is determined. Each of the first plurality of local color plane correction values corresponds to one of the first plurality of color registration errors. The plurality of printheads prints a second copy of the print job using the local color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Publication date: April 30, 2015
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Publication number: 20150116408
    Abstract: A method for performing color-to-color correction for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A first copy of the print job is printed using a plurality of color planes. A first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job is determined. For each document in the print job, a processor is used to determine a first plurality of local color plane correction values for each color registration error produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job. Each of the first plurality of local color plane correction values corresponds to one of the first plurality of color registration errors. A second copy of the print job is printed using the local color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Publication date: April 30, 2015
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Publication number: 20150116407
    Abstract: A printing system for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A plurality of printheads prints each of a plurality of color planes of a first copy of the print job. One or more processors determine a first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job. Global color plane correction values for each document of the print job are determined. The global color plane correction values are adjusted locally for each document based on the first plurality of local color plane correction values. The plurality of printheads prints a second copy of the print job using the locally adjusted global color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Publication date: April 30, 2015
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Publication number: 20150116410
    Abstract: Methods and systems for performing color-to-color correction for printing multiple print jobs comprise receiving a first print job, wherein the first print job has one or more documents, receiving a second print job, wherein at least a portion of one of the documents in the second print job is different from a corresponding document in the first print job, and printing a copy of the first print job. One or more processors are used to determine a plurality of color plane registration errors produced during the printing of the copy of the first print job, local color plane correction values based on the plurality of color registration errors, and a difference between the corresponding documents in the first print job and second print job. When the amount of difference is less than a predetermined threshold, the local color plane correction values are used to print the second print job.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Publication date: April 30, 2015
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir
  • Patent number: 9016822
    Abstract: A method for performing color-to-color correction for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A first copy of the print job is printed using a plurality of color planes. A first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job is determined. For each document in the print job, one or more processors are used to determine a global color plane correction value for each color plane error based on the first plurality of color registration errors. The global color plane correction values are adjusted locally based on the first plurality of local color plane correction values. A second copy of the print job is printed using the locally adjusted global color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Patent number: 9019557
    Abstract: A gloss characteristic measurement unit obtains measurement values regarding the gloss characteristic of a plurality of patches formed based on patch data in which the amount of clear color material is changed with respect to an output value from a color separation table for color materials. A color separation table generation unit selects one measurement value for each color or gray level indicated by the patch data, and generates, based on the selected measurement value and the color separation table for color materials, a color separation table in a case where the color materials and the clear color material are used.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Takayuki Jinno, Hiromitsu Nishikawa
  • Patent number: 9016824
    Abstract: A printing system for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A plurality of printheads prints each of a plurality of color planes of a first copy of the print job. A processor is used to determine a first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job. A first plurality of local color plane correction values for each document of the print job is determined. Each of the first plurality of local color plane correction values corresponds to one of the first plurality of color registration errors. The plurality of printheads prints a second copy of the print job using the local color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Patent number: 9016825
    Abstract: When an image is printed with inks each containing a polymer emulsion and a film forming agent, the ejection of the inks is controlled so that the ink having a relatively low dynamic surface tension forms dots having a higher dot connectivity than the dots formed with the ink having a relatively high dynamic surface tension.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tatsuo Shimmoto, Masami Izumizaki, Yoshiyuki Nagase, Takeshi Oota, Takao Ogata, Noboru Kunimine
  • Patent number: 9016821
    Abstract: Adequate correction processing is performed on image data based on the degree of ink concentration that occurs even. An image processing apparatus having: acquisition unit for acquiring multi-value image data and a first parameter related to the degree of concentration of ink; first generation unit for generating corrected data by correcting the multi-value data that is to be printed for the first pixel based on the multi-value data that is to printed in the first pixel and a first parameter; and second generation unit for generating the first parameter and a second parameter that indicates the degree of ink concentration of the plurality of nozzles when printing a second pixel that is printed by the nozzles next to the first pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoshi Masuda, Tomoki Yamamuro, Hitoshi Nishikori, Osamu Iwasaki, Norihiro Kawatoko, Atsuhiko Masuyama, Fumiko Suzuki, Nobuhiro Kitabatake, Mitsuhiro Ono
  • Patent number: 9016823
    Abstract: A printing system for printing multiple copies of a print job having one or more documents is disclosed. A plurality of printheads prints each of a plurality of color planes of a first copy of the print job. One or more processors determine a first plurality of color registration errors produced during the printing of the first copy of the print job. Global color plane correction values for each document of the print job are determined. The global color plane correction values are adjusted locally for each document based on the first plurality of local color plane correction values. The plurality of printheads prints a second copy of the print job using the locally adjusted global color plane correction values for each document in the print job.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir, James Alan Katerberg
  • Patent number: 9010900
    Abstract: Methods and systems for performing color-to-color correction for printing multiple print jobs comprise receiving a first print job, wherein the first print job has one or more documents, receiving a second print job, wherein at least a portion of one of the documents in the second print job is different from a corresponding document in the first print job, and printing a copy of the first print job. One or more processors are used to determine a plurality of color plane registration errors produced during the printing of the copy of the first print job, local color plane correction values based on the plurality of color registration errors, and a difference between the corresponding documents in the first print job and second print job. When the amount of difference is less than a predetermined threshold, the local color plane correction values are used to print the second print job.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 25, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
    Inventors: Randy Eugene Armbruster, Christopher M. Muir
  • Patent number: 9013968
    Abstract: A data storage system, having a data processor operable to convert digital data signals into ink dot patterns, and a data processor operable to receive the ink dot patterns and convert them into digital signals, the system having at least one print media receiving carrier or panel, a printing member operable to deposit ink dot patterns in a print medium on the carrier panel, and a print media reader operable to read the ink dot patterns and create data signals there from, and a method of storing and retrieving data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: Nanometer Storage Corporation (California)
    Inventor: Gregory R. Monzar
  • Publication number: 20150103111
    Abstract: Dots with metallic ink are formed in an arrangement in which an average of distances between dots with the metallic dots is shorter than an average of distances between dots with color ink. The “distance between dots with the color ink” indicates a distance from a color dot to be focused to one color dot at the closest position thereto. The same holds true for the metallic ink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2014
    Publication date: April 16, 2015
    Inventor: Yutaka KOBASHI
  • Patent number: 9007653
    Abstract: Provided is an ink jet printing apparatus that, without causing an increase in apparatus size, can print an image having high evenness in both of image clarity and glossiness regardless a gradation or gamut of the image. For this purpose, on the basis of input image data, pieces of multivalued color data respectively corresponding to colored inks, and first multivalued data and second multivalued data that correspond to image enhancing liquid are generated. On a print medium, the colored inks and the image enhancing liquid according to the first multivalued data are printed at nearly the same timing, and after the printing of them has been completed, the image enhancing liquid according to the second multivalued data is printed. In doing so, gloss properties appearing on the print medium can be made to fall within certain ranges, respectively, independently of input image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 14, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hinako Ojiro, Takeshi Yazawa, Kei Yoshizawa, Makoto Torigoe
  • Patent number: 8998367
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus in which in a case of tone-expressing one pixel corresponding to a plurality of areas (printing resolution) in a multi-pass print, it is possible to output a uniform image without graininess or density unevenness over all-tone regions from a low-density region to a high-density region. To this end, by referring to dot patterns in which a print or a non-print of dots onto each pixel (area) corresponding to a printing resolution are in advance defined, quantization data is converted into binary data having the higher printing resolution. At this time, the dot patterns are prepared to be different from each other for M times of scans in a multi-pass print of M passes. In consequence, it is possible to restrict a variation of a coverage ratio due to a printing position displacement in each printing scan.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Wakako Yamamoto, Kiichiro Takahashi, Tetsuya Edamura, Toshiyuki Chikuma, Hirokazu Tanaka, Takatoshi Nakano
  • Patent number: 8998360
    Abstract: A dot data generating method uses a first inkjet recording device and a second inkjet recording device, in which a first image is printed using the first inkjet recording device based on first dot data which determines formation or non-formation of dots, and second dot data is generated to print a second image based on the second dot data using the second inkjet recording device in which a speed of a relative movement of the inkjet head and a recording medium when printing an image is small compared to the first inkjet recording device. The dot data generating method includes generating the second dot data by converting the first dot data such that data of each dot in which formation of a dot is determined is converted to form a plurality of dots at predetermined intervals between the dots in a relative movement direction in place of the each dot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Fujita, Yoichi Mitsui
  • Publication number: 20150091965
    Abstract: When an image is printed with inks each containing a polymer emulsion and a film forming agent, the ejection of the inks is controlled so that the ink having a relatively low dynamic surface tension forms dots having a higher dot connectivity than the dots formed with the ink having a relatively high dynamic surface tension.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 29, 2014
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Inventors: Tatsuo Shimmoto, Masami Izumizaki, Yoshiyuki Nagase, Takeshi Oota, Takao Ogata, Noboru Kunimine
  • Publication number: 20150091964
    Abstract: Upon determination that a paper to be printed is a first type of paper, a controller deletes pixels at least in one line from one side end of a pattern image forming a black information code in an information recording direction, and drives a printing unit to eject an ink of at least one color other than black in addition to an ink of black to pixels at least in one line at each of two side ends in the information recording direction of the pattern image with the pixels at least in the one line being deleted such that the pattern image is printed with a same width in the information recording direction as a width of the black information code included in an image data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2014
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Inventor: Kenji SHIMOMURA
  • Patent number: 8991963
    Abstract: There is provided a liquid discharging apparatus including: a first nozzle row and a second nozzle row in which nozzles for discharging liquid are lined up, and the second nozzle row is disposed by forming an overlapped region in which an end portion of one side in a predetermined direction is overlapped with an end portion of the other side in the predetermined direction of the first nozzle row; and a control unit which discharges liquid from the first nozzle row and the second nozzle row depending on input data of an image and a recording duty for discharging liquid, increases a recording duty in the overlapped region with respect to a recording duty in a non-overlapped region which is a region other than the overlapped region, and differentiates increased amounts of the recording duty in the overlapped region from each other depending on the input data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Kazuyoshi Tanase, Toru Takahashi, Hiroshi Wada, Takamitsu Kondo
  • Patent number: 8991962
    Abstract: A method of printing a spit pattern for an inkjet printer includes selecting a dot distance between dots of the spit pattern, selecting at least a sub-matrix of a dither matrix of entries arranged in rows and columns, constructing a bi-level bitmap of the same size as the sub-matrix, splitting each column of the bi-level bitmap which has more than one entry having a value of one into a number of columns such that each column of the number of columns comprises one entry having a value of one, removing each column of the bi-level bitmap which has no entry having a value of one, extracting the row and column number of each entry of the bi-level bitmap having a value of one, adapting the row number of each extracted entry in accordance with the dot distance, and printing the spit pattern.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: OCE_Technologies B.V.
    Inventor: Carolus E.P. Gerrits
  • Patent number: 8988732
    Abstract: In the image processing apparatus, image data is divided into large blocks of a prescribed size and the large blocks are subdivided into small blocks by the dividing unit. The number of isolated points in each large block is then calculated by the large block isolated point calculation unit, and the number of isolated points in each small block is then calculated by the small block isolated point calculation units. It is then determined by the halftone-dot region determination unit whether or not the large block is a halftone-dot region. This determination considers both the number of isolated points in the large block and the number of isolated points in each small block.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 24, 2015
    Assignee: Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Tomohiro Yamaguchi, Yoshihiko Hirota
  • Patent number: 8979238
    Abstract: Provided are an inkjet printing apparatus and inkjet printing method that can, regardless of an ejection frequency of a print head, stabilize density of an image expressed on a print medium. For this purpose, an ink concentration integrated value is obtained according to the ejection history of each nozzle so as to be increased by data indicating non-ejection of the nozzle or decreased by data indicating ejection. Then, image data on the target pixel is corrected such that density of the target pixel is further reduced as the pixel is subjected to printing by a nozzle having a higher ink concentration integrated value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hitoshi Nishikori, Satoshi Masuda, Tomoki Yamamuro, Osamu Iwasaki, Norihiro Kawatoko, Atsuhiko Masuyama, Fumiko Suzuki
  • Patent number: 8979234
    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.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tetsuya Edamura, Kiichiro Takahashi, Minoru Teshigawara, Akiko Maru, Yoshiaki Murayama, Takatoshi Nakano
  • Patent number: 8982413
    Abstract: Methods and systems for dynamically detecting and switching profiling configuration in digital rendering. A set of color patches utilized for profiling can be rendered via a calibration engine and the color patches can be measured via inline/offline spectrophotometer. A high-accuracy MFD model can be built based on measurement from the color patches. A set of measurement values for a set of CMYK color probes can be obtained directly from the measurement and/or by processing through a MFD model. A classifier can be configured to determine a toner set based on the predicted and/or measured Lab values. The profiling procedure then automatically sets up a parameter set for the corresponding toner set to build a color look-up table via an inversion and optimization function. A destination ICC profile can be built based on the color LUTs. The system can handle multiple toner sets and produce optimized color outcome for each toner set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Guo-Yau Lin, James Michael Sanchez
  • Patent number: 8974032
    Abstract: An image processing method includes: forming a density unevenness measurement test image based on image data subjected to unevenness correction processing to correct density unevenness, using a preset unevenness correction value; acquiring a pre-conversion density measurement value that is a density measurement value of each density setting value for every recording element in the density unevenness measurement test image before processing after image formation using a recording head; converting the pre-conversion density measurement value into a post-conversion density measurement value corresponding to a density measurement value after the processing, using a density measurement value conversion value derived beforehand and indicating a conversion relationship of density measurement values before and after the processing for every density setting value and to which the set unevenness correction value is applied as the density setting value; and deriving a new unevenness correction value using the post-conve
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Sasayama
  • Patent number: 8967751
    Abstract: When an image is recorded using a multichip recording head including a plurality of chips each having a plurality of nozzle arrays, a change in image density can occur due to a registration error between chips in an overlapping part where two chips are connected. To suppress the change in image density, input image data is distributed to two chips such that there are dots overlapping each other between the two chips in the overlapping part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 3, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Satoshi Azuma, Yoshiaki Murayama, Shigeyasu Nagoshi, Minoru Teshigawara, Susumu Hirosawa, Yutaka Kano, Takeshi Murase, Kentarou Muro, Masao Kato, Minako Kato, Tomokazu Ishikawa, Fumitaka Goto, Mitsuhiro Ono, Akitoshi Yamada, Yugo Mochizuki
  • Patent number: 8970903
    Abstract: Disclosed is a printing apparatus that forms a color image and a background image on a medium by repeating a dot formation operation of causing ink to be discharged from a first nozzle array and a second nozzle array moving in a moving direction so as to form the color dot and the background dot on the medium and a transport operation of transporting the medium in a transport direction, wherein a pixel in which the background dot is formed on the color dot and a pixel in which the color dot is formed on the background dot are mixed so as to form an area where the color image and the background image overlap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 3, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Hirotaka Matsunaga
  • Patent number: 8960839
    Abstract: A method of operating a printer includes identifying a halftone level a first ink drop parameter corresponding to a contone level in image data for using a contone to halftone mapping. The method includes operating printheads to form a printed pattern using the first ink drop parameter and identifying a reflectance level of the printed pattern in scanned image data. The method includes modifying the halftone level in the mapping if the identified reflectance level is outside of a tolerance range from a normalized reflectance value associated with the contone level and storing the modified halftone level in a memory for printing the contone level.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: David A. Mantell, Howard A. Mizes, Jeffrey J. Folkins
  • Publication number: 20150049137
    Abstract: A method for detecting a dot of functional material on a medium at a predetermined location, the dot having a predetermined color, is based on lightness, chroma and hue components of colors present in an area of the predetermined location on a scanned image of the printed medium. A color image reproduction apparatus is disclosed for carrying out the method for detecting a dot of functional material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 2, 2014
    Publication date: February 19, 2015
    Inventor: Alexander LINT
  • Patent number: 8955940
    Abstract: A method of operating a printer includes identifying coordinates in a device independent color space for a spot color, identifying color components in a device dependent full color profile in a printer model for an association between the spot color in the device independent color space and a device dependent color space, and emitting a pattern of colorants with reference to the color components to reproduce the spot color in a printed image. The colorant pattern has a colorant density exceeding a predetermined colorant limit threshold associated with printed colors other than spot colors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Mark A. Smith, Katherine Loj
  • Patent number: 8950842
    Abstract: In a high print resolution, high image quality mode and a low print resolution, high speed mode, image processes are made in common between them to the extent possible, and the same gradation characteristics and image densities can be obtained between them. For this purpose, for the high image quality mode, a dot arrangement pattern is prepared for a pixel region having gradation data of K levels, which determines the presence or absence of print dots at K-1 areas, and in which the printing of 1 dot is permitted at all of the K-l areas. On the other hand, for the high speed mode, a dot arrangement pattern which determines the presence or absence of print dots at a number of areas less than K-1 is prepared, and in which the sum of the number of dots permitted to be printed at the pixel region is K-1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroshi Kawafuji, Yasunori Fujimoto
  • Publication number: 20150035889
    Abstract: A printer includes a liquid ejection section and a drive control section. The liquid ejection section is configured to eject a plurality of types of liquids and form dots having different sizes. The drive control section is configured to control a dot size of the liquids to be ejected by the liquid ejection section based on image data. When an image including a three-dimensional image in which a plurality of linear images are arrayed is printed on a medium, the liquid ejection section is configured to eject the liquids, at least in an end section area in an array direction of the linear images in a print area of the image, under a setting in which an ejection ratio of relatively small dots is set lower than in an inner area that is positioned more inward than the end section area.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2014
    Publication date: February 5, 2015
    Inventors: Tomoyuki NAKANO, Hiroshi SHIROTORI, Yoshiyuki OZAWA, Kanako IDE, Katsumi YAMADA
  • Publication number: 20150029253
    Abstract: According to one example of the present invention, there is provided a method of generating data to control the ejection of ink drops from a plurality of arrays of printhead nozzles of a printing system. In the printing system one of the arrays of nozzles is configured to eject a first ink of a first colour having a first colourant density. Another one of the arrays of nozzles is configured to eject a second ink of the first colour having a second colourant density. Each array of nozzles is capable of making ink marks having a plurality of different ink mark volumes on a media. The method comprises obtaining image data for a single colour channel and generating, from the image data, multi-level screen data describing, for each of the first and second inks, the ink mark volume to be made by the array of printhead nozzles at each screen location.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 11, 2011
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Applicant: HEWLETT-PACKARD INDUSTRIAL PRINTING LTD. ET AL.
    Inventor: Alex Veis
  • Patent number: 8941876
    Abstract: When image is formed by a liquid ejection head, input image data is subjected to conversion processing including tone conversion using a first look-up table (LUT) and density correction or non-uniformity correction in nozzle units using second LUTs. Ink use amount in image formation is predicted from reduced image data which is generated from the input image data. In this, the calculation is made more efficient by applying a third LUT which is compiled according to requirements from the second LUTs, to the reduced image data, rather than using the second LUTs directly. Since the image conversion processing is carried out which combines the first LUT for tone conversion and the third LUT corresponding to the non-uniformity correction, and the ink amount distribution data is calculated from the reduced image data after the conversion, then it is possible to ascertain an accurate ink amount which reflects the image adjustment conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Kiyomi Tamagawa
  • Patent number: 8931872
    Abstract: A printing apparatus, which performs the printing using a polish and a colorant includes a reduction region setting portion that sets a reduction region, which is a region where an amount of the polish is reduced, at a dark portion side of a color gamut of the printing apparatus in a device-independent color space; and a color conversion portion which converts color of an image to be input to the printing apparatus into a print color to be expressed by the polish and the colorant, wherein, among pixels constituting the image, in a pixel included in the reduction region, the color conversion portion reduces the amount of the polish compared to a pixel not included in the reduction region, and converts color of the image to the print color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuhiro Yamashita, Seishin Yoshida
  • Patent number: 8931873
    Abstract: Provided is a printing method for multi-pass printing with column thinning in which the multi-pass number is not restricted to being a multiple of the column thinning number. A mask pattern of a size corresponding to the number of printing elements in use is prepared, and divided into blocks 1 to P. Taking R(x) to be the mask pattern for the region corresponding to block x (where x=1 to P), these P block mask patterns satisfy the following condition. Namely, for all integers s obtainable between the values from 1 to M, the arrangements of printing pixels exist in a complementary relationship with each other in the combination of mask patterns R(s), R(s+M), R(s+2M), and so on to R(s+N×M). However, for all s, N is taken to be the largest integer satisfying s+N×M?P.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 24, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yasunori Fujimoto, Akihiro Tomida, Yoshinori Nakajima
  • Patent number: 8928934
    Abstract: A printing device includes the following features. The first dot group in which dots are formed based on the first printing condition and the second dot group in which dots are formed based on a printing condition which is different from the first printing condition are formed together in a common region. In the common region, when the printing is performed in a plurality of conditions such that a difference of the dot pitch between a formation position of dots belonging to the first pixel group and a formation position of dots belonging to the second pixel group is 2/720 inch to 5/720 inch, the change in CIEL*a*b* of the printed image is within the preliminary determined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Toshiaki Kakutani
  • Patent number: 8926046
    Abstract: An image forming apparatus includes at least one inkjet head which is disposed above a feed path of a print medium and on which plural nozzles are aligned along a primary sweeping direction perpendicular to a feed direction of the print medium fed along the feed path. The image forming apparatus forms images by ejecting ink droplets from the nozzles. The image forming apparatus includes a controller that is operable to compensate ejection timings of ink droplets to be ejected from the nozzles onto the print medium based on ejection density of the ink droplets. The image forming apparatus can form good images that are not affected by ink dot displacements caused by feed airflow even when the ink dot displacements are affected by self-induced airflow.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Riso Kagaku Corporation
    Inventors: Mamoru Saitou, Takashi Ebisawa, Ryo Terakado, Toshihide Maesaka
  • Publication number: 20150002568
    Abstract: An inkjet printing apparatus includes a printing unit including four inkjet heads configured to discharge black, cyan, magenta, and yellow inks, respectively, to a transferred sheet; and a control unit configured to control the printing unit, wherein the printing unit, when forming a gray image by the printing unit, forms a grey image with three color inks other than black when a level of influence on an ink landing position by an airflow under the inkjet head is a predetermined level or higher, forms the grey image with the black ink when the level of influence is lower than the predetermined level, and controls the printing unit to set higher print resolution and set smaller an ink discharge amount for one pixel from the inkjet head than when forming the gray image with other three color inks, in forming the gray image with the black ink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 9, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventor: Kenji SHIMOMURA
  • Publication number: 20150002570
    Abstract: When the contact angle of a first color ink on a layer of a second color ink is larger than the contact angle of the second color ink on a layer of the first color ink, ejection of the first and the second color ink is controlled so that the number of pixel areas onto which the second color ink is applied after the first color ink is larger than the number of pixel areas onto which the first color ink is applied after the second color ink.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventors: Rie Takekoshi, Takumi Kaneko, Yumi Kamimura
  • Publication number: 20150002569
    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.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2014
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Inventors: Okinori Tsuchiya, Tohru Ikeda, Akihiko Nakatani, Takashi Fujita, Hiromitsu Akiba, Takeru Sasaki
  • Publication number: 20150002567
    Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for color printing onto nonwhite substrates and articles. For example, a method of color printing is provided, including printing multiple layers of ink each including a combination of a white ink and at least one color ink, and each printed layer having a ratio of white ink to color ink, wherein the ratio may be the same or may vary as a function of the number of layers and the color printed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2013
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Applicant: Nike, Inc.
    Inventor: Todd W. Miller
  • Patent number: 8919907
    Abstract: An inkjet printing apparatus includes a printing unit including four inkjet heads configured to discharge black, cyan, magenta, and yellow inks, respectively, to a transferred sheet; and a control unit configured to control the printing unit, wherein the printing unit, when forming a gray image by the printing unit, forms a grey image with three color inks other than black when a level of influence on an ink landing position by an airflow under the inkjet head is a predetermined level or higher, forms the grey image with the black ink when the level of influence is lower than the predetermined level, and controls the printing unit to set higher print resolution and set smaller an ink discharge amount for one pixel from the inkjet head than when forming the gray image with other three color inks, in forming the gray image with the black ink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: Riso Kagaku Corporation
    Inventor: Kenji Shimomura
  • Patent number: 8923721
    Abstract: Disclosed is an image processing apparatus including: a control unit; an image forming unit; a storing unit; and a job reception unit, wherein in case that the control unit identifies that the print job received while the job reception unit receives the print job group is another print job received from another external device in accordance with the identification information, the control unit controls the storing unit so as to hold the another print job until the image forming unit completes the image forming in accordance with the print job group, and after the image forming unit completes the image forming in accordance with the print job group, the control unit controls the image forming unit so as to start the image forming in accordance with the another print job.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: Konica Minolta, Inc.
    Inventor: Kenji Manabe
  • Patent number: 8919906
    Abstract: The present invention provides a recording apparatus including recording heads each including a plurality of nozzle arrays that are arranged so as to overlap, wherein the width with which the overlapping portions of the recording heads for colors that are simultaneously used with a relatively high frequency overlap in an intersecting direction that intersects an array direction of nozzles is smaller than the width with which the overlapping portions of the recording heads for colors that are simultaneously used with a relatively low frequency overlap in the intersecting direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Shigeyasu Nagoshi, Satoshi Azuma, Yoshiaki Murayama, Minoru Teshigawara, Susumu Hirosawa, Yutaka Kano, Takeshi Murase, Kentarou Muro, Masao Kato, Minako Kato
  • Patent number: 8919905
    Abstract: In a mask pattern used in effecting multi-path recording, (A) a recording permission ratio in each pixel row of a non-boundary area of a first pattern portion corresponding to a first nozzle block is substantially a first value, and a recording permission ratio in each pixel row of a non-boundary area of a second pattern portion corresponding to a second nozzle block adjacent the first nozzle block is substantially a second value, and (B) in a boundary area including a boundary between the first pattern portion and the second pattern portion, the recording permission ratio in each pixel row is between the first value and the second value, and the recording permission ratios in each pixel line are made different depending on a position with respect to a scanning direction. In-band and inter-band unevenness and a connecting stripe are reduced by (A) and (B), respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yoshitomo Marumoto, Takaharu Aotani
  • Patent number: 8915564
    Abstract: A method for producing small lots of printed plastic film is described, wherein in terms of the resolution and colors the print corresponds to the print generated by means of the intaglio printing method. The film (1) is printed by way of an array of print heads (2a, 2b) with an ink using the ink jet printing method, said ink containing the same dyes and/or pigments, and the property of the ink is adapted to the ink jet printing method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Renolit SE
    Inventors: Hans Jürgen Aumüller, Heiko Usener, Lothar Held
  • Patent number: 8915565
    Abstract: A method obtains color consistency over at least one printing system in order to print a digital image containing pixels and color information of the primary colors per pixel. Each printing system includes at least one engine including a plurality of containers, each of the containers containing a marking material having a primary color. The method includes the steps of, for each primary color, determining a target color which is printable by each engine on the receiving medium, determining for each container how much marking material must be ejected to establish the target color, and for each pixel of the digital image to be printed by an engine, replacing each primary color of the pixel by a corresponding target color, and printing the pixel by ejecting marking material from the containers of the engine according to the determined marking material per target color per container of the engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Oce-Technologies B.V.
    Inventors: Koen Joan Klein Koerkamp, Eduard T.H. De Grijs
  • Patent number: 8911051
    Abstract: In a case where a first image is printed on a recording medium based on first dot data using the first inkjet recording device and a second image is printed based on second dot data on another recording medium using the second inkjet recording device in which ejected ink drops land onto a recording medium with a small degree of dispersion in a main scanning direction compared to the first inkjet recording device, the first dot data is converted to generate the second dot data such that data of a large dot and a medium dot is converted so as to form a plurality of dots having sizes smaller than the dot size at predetermined intervals between the dots in the main scanning direction in place of the large dot and the medium dot.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventors: Toru Fujita, Yoichi Mitsui
  • Patent number: RE45358
    Abstract: The present invention provides a mask for divided printing that completes an image by plural scans using inks of different plural inks, the mask being able to suppress possible grains during printing to reduce image degradation resulting from beading. If for example, among the print permitting pixels for which the total repulsive potential is to be calculated, a print permitting pixel Do has the highest total repulsive potential, changes in repulsive potential after movement of the pixels are determined and the print permitting pixel Do is moved to a pixel having the lowest total repulsive potential after the movement. This processing is repeated to enable a reduction in the total energy of the entire plane. Consequently, the print permitting pixels are appropriately dispersed in overlapping plane masks so as to have few low frequency components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Yoshitomo Marumoto