Serial inkjet printing apparatus, program, printing method, and printing system

Abstract

To provide a technique for suppressing deterioration in image quality during reduced printing.SOLUTION: The invention is a serial inkjet printing apparatus capable of printing image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than a document size in the image data, the serial inkjet printing apparatus including: a print mode setting unit that sets a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value and a reduction ratio of an image size of the output image with respect to the document size with a second threshold value; and a print control unit that prints the output image by reducing the image data at the reduction ratio in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a serial inkjet printing device, a program, a printing method, and a printing system. [Background technology]

[0002] Inkjet printing devices are known that eject atomized ink to form an image on a print medium such as paper. Among inkjet printing devices, those in which the print head ejects ink while moving in the main scanning direction are called serial inkjet printing devices. Serial inkjet printing devices have multiple printing modes so that the user can select a printing mode taking into account the image quality and printing time required for the printed material. Serial inkjet printing devices may also have a function that automatically selects the optimal printing mode depending on the print medium, etc.

[0003] A technology for automatically switching image resolution in consideration of image quality is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patent Document 1 discloses a facsimile machine that has multiple resolution modes and an image reduction means, determines the degree of degradation in image quality of a reduced image relative to an original, and automatically selects a low-resolution mode that allows high-speed communication without degrading image quality. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when serial inkjet printers print large-sized original image data at reduced size in high-speed printing mode, there are problems such as a significant degradation in image quality, blurred characters, and poor line reproducibility. This is because serial inkjet printers often print large-sized original images as small-sized output images so that users can check or carry them around. When the reduction ratio is small, the characters on the printed material become smaller and the lines become thinner.

[0005] In view of the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a technique for suppressing degradation in image quality during reduced printing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In view of the above problems, the present invention provides a serial inkjet printing device that can print image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than the document size in the image data, and is characterized by having a print mode setting unit that sets a print mode according to the result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and the reduction rate of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value, and a print control unit that reduces the image data at the reduction rate and prints the output image in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] It is possible to provide a technology that suppresses deterioration in image quality during reduced printing. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of control of a print mode. [Figure 2] 1 is a perspective view of an example of a serial inkjet printing device. [Figure 3] 1 is a side view of an example of a serial inkjet printing device. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a serial inkjet printing device. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams for explaining the resolution in a high-speed printing mode and the resolution in a high-quality printing mode. [Figure 6] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating deviations in ink landing positions during bidirectional printing. [Figure 7] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating deviations in ink landing positions during bidirectional printing. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a print mode setting screen displayed by a serial inkjet printing device. [Figure 9]FIG. 1 is an example of a functional block diagram illustrating functions of a serial inkjet printing device, divided into blocks. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is an example of a functional block diagram illustrating functions of a main control unit divided into blocks. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control flow in which the main control unit automatically sets a print mode during reduced printing. [Figure 12] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating details of three printing modes. [Figure 13] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a print mode setting screen. [Figure 14] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a printing mode switching condition in a reduced-image-quality priority mode. [Figure 15] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control flow in which the main control unit automatically sets a print mode during reduced printing. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a control flow in which the main control unit automatically sets a print mode during reduced printing. [Figure 17] FIG. 1 illustrates an example of the system configuration of a printing system. [Figure 18] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a terminal device. [Figure 19] FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a terminal device and a serial inkjet printing device in a printing system. [Figure 20] 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an example of a process in which a printing system reduces and prints image data of a large document size. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A serial inkjet printing apparatus and a printing method performed by the serial inkjet printing apparatus will be described below as an example of an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0010] <Characteristics of serial inkjet printing devices> Serial inkjet printers have an operating mode called a high-speed printing mode, which prioritizes printing speed. This mode reduces pixel density and increases the carriage scanning speed. However, this mode can result in poor image quality due to reduced ink landing accuracy and ink bleeding caused by large ink droplets.

[0011] On the other hand, in a high-quality print mode that prioritizes image quality, serial inkjet printing devices reduce the droplet size and finer the scanning density of the main scan and sub-scan. In the case of serial inkjet printing devices, ejecting ink in only one direction, the main scan, can improve image quality but slow down printing speed in order to increase ink landing accuracy.

[0012] In addition, serial inkjet printing devices capable of printing large-sized output images such as A0 or A1 size take a long time to print large-sized output images, so the default (initial setting) print mode is often set to high-speed print mode.

[0013] Even in high-speed printing mode, the scanning speed and droplet size are adjusted to a level that does not affect image quality when printing at full size. However, when printing at reduced size, rather than full size printing, image data from a larger original size such as A0 or A1 is reduced to a smaller output image size such as A3 or A4, image quality may deteriorate. When printing at reduced size, such as when reducing an A0 or A1 image to A3 or A4, where the reduction ratio (printed output image / image data original size) is small, the character size becomes smaller and the lines become thinner than before reduction. For this reason, when a serial inkjet printing device prints at reduced size in the default high-speed printing mode, the deterioration in image quality becomes noticeable, resulting in blurred characters and poor line reproducibility.

[0014] <Terminology> The high-quality print mode is a print mode that prints an output image of relatively higher quality than a certain print mode (or the high-speed print mode if there are two print modes), and the high-speed print mode is a print mode that prints relatively faster than a certain print mode (or the high-quality print mode if there are two print modes).

[0015] The original size of image data is the size of the output image when printed without reduction or enlargement. The original size of image data is set in the file that stores the image data. The original size can be a standard value (such as A0 size) defined by JIS standards, or it can be a physical size.

[0016] <Example of Print Mode Control in This Embodiment> Therefore, when printing by reducing the document size of the image data, the serial inkjet printing apparatus of this embodiment selects a print mode with higher image quality according to the document size and reduction rate of the image data.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating an outline of print mode control in this embodiment.

[0018] First, the serial inkjet printing device determines whether the user has selected the image quality priority mode when reducing the print size (S1). The image quality priority mode when reducing the print size is a setting that automatically switches from high-speed printing mode to high-quality printing mode based on certain conditions when the serial inkjet printing device is performing reduced print, thereby minimizing degradation in image quality.

[0019] If the determination in step S1 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S2, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S5.

[0020] In step S2, the serial inkjet printing device determines whether the document size is A1 size or larger (S2). The document size is the image size in the image data. If the document is printed in A0 size without reduction or enlargement, the document size is A0 size. In this embodiment, the document size is described as A0 to A4, etc., as defined by JIS standards, but the document size may also be defined by dimensions. Furthermore, A1 size is a threshold (an example of a first threshold) for determining whether the document size is large, and the document size may be compared with thresholds such as A0 size and A2 size.

[0021] If the determination in step S2 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S3, and if No, the process proceeds to step S5.

[0022] In step S3, the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 determines whether the reduction ratio is 0.5 or less (S3). 0.5 is a threshold value (an example of a second threshold value) for determining whether the reduction ratio is small, and the reduction ratio may be compared with a threshold value other than 0.5.

[0023] If the determination in step S3 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S4, and if No, the process proceeds to step S5.

[0024] In step S4, the serial inkjet printing device 100 sets the print mode to high-quality print mode and prints the image data as an output image (S4). The high-quality print mode is a print mode in which the size of ink droplets is reduced and the scanning density of the main scan and sub-scan is finer.

[0025] In step S5, since the document size is not large or the reduction ratio is not small, the serial inkjet printing device is set to a high-quality print mode and prints the image data as an output image (S5).

[0026] In this way, when the original size is large and the reduction ratio is small, the serial inkjet printing device selects the higher image quality print mode for printing, thereby suppressing deterioration in image quality when image data of a large original size such as A0 size or A1 size is reduced to a small output image size such as A3 size or A4 size and printed.

[0027] <Configuration example of serial type inkjet printing device> First, the configuration of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 will be described with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figure 2 is a perspective view of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100, and Figure 3 is a side view of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100.

[0028] The serial inkjet printing device 100 comprises a device main body 101 and a roll paper feeder 102 located below the device main body 101. Inside the device main body 101, a carriage 5 is held by a guide rod 1 and a guide stay 2 in a state where it can move in the direction of arrow A (main scanning direction, carriage movement direction). The carriage 5 can move back and forth in the main scanning direction by a main scanning motor 6, a drive pulley 7 that is rotationally driven by the main scanning motor 6, a driven pulley 8, and a timing belt 9 that is wound around between the drive pulley 7 and the driven pulley 8.

[0029] The carriage 5 is equipped with a droplet ejection head 11. The droplet ejection head 11 integrally includes a plurality of droplet ejection heads that eject droplets of each color—black (K), yellow (Y), magenta (M), and cyan (C)—and a head tank that supplies droplets to the droplet ejection heads. On the bottom surface of the droplet ejection head 11, a nozzle row consisting of a plurality of nozzles is arranged in a sub-scanning direction that is perpendicular to the main scanning direction. The droplet ejection head 11 is mounted on the carriage 5 with the droplet ejection direction facing downward, toward the paper.

[0030] Meanwhile, roll paper 120 is fed from roll paper feeder 102 to device main body 101 and transported intermittently in a direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction of carriage 5 (sub-scanning direction, paper transport direction: arrow B direction).

[0031] <Hardware configuration example> Next, the hardware configuration of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100. As shown in Fig. 4, the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 301, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 302, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 303, an NVRAM (Non-Volatile Random Access Memory) 304, an external device connection I / F 308, a network I / F 309, and a bus line 310.

[0032] The serial inkjet printing device 100 also includes a paper transport unit 311, a sub-scanning driver 312, a main-scanning driver 313, a carriage 5, and an operation panel 330. The carriage 5 also includes a droplet ejection head 11 and a droplet ejection head driver 322.

[0033] Of these, the CPU 301 controls the overall operation of the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100. The ROM 302 stores programs, such as an IPL, used to drive the CPU 301. The RAM 303 is used as a work area for the CPU 301. The NVRAM 304 stores various data, such as programs, and retains the data even when the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 is powered off. The external device connection I / F 306 is connected to a PC (Personal Computer) via a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable or the like, and communicates control signals and data to be printed with the PC. The network I / F 309 is an interface for data communication using a communication network such as the Internet. The bus line 310 is an address bus, data bus, or the like, for electrically connecting the components, such as the CPU 301.

[0034] The paper transport unit 311 is, for example, a roller and a motor that drives the roller, and transports printing paper in the sub-scanning direction along a transport path within the serial type inkjet printing device 100. The sub-scanning driver 312 controls the movement of the paper transport unit 333 in the sub-scanning direction. The main scanning driver 313 controls the movement of the carriage 5 in the main scanning direction.

[0035] The droplet ejection head 11 of the carriage 5 has a plurality of nozzles for ejecting droplets of ink or the like, and is mounted on the carriage 5 so that its ejection surface (nozzle surface) faces the printing paper. The droplet ejection head 11 ejects droplets onto the printing paper that is transported intermittently in the sub-scanning direction while moving in the main scanning direction, thereby ejecting droplets at predetermined positions on the printing paper to form an image. The droplet ejection head driver 322 is a driver for controlling the driving of the droplet ejection head 11.

[0036] The operation panel 330 displays current setting values, selection screens, etc., and is configured with a touch panel that receives input from the operator, an alarm lamp, etc.

[0037] The droplet ejection head driver 322 may be configured not to be mounted on the carriage 5 but to be connected to a bus line outside the carriage 5. Furthermore, the main scanning driver 313, the sub-scanning driver 312, and the droplet ejection head driver 322 may each be a function realized by an instruction from the CPU 301 according to a program.

[0038] <Printing modes provided by serial inkjet printing devices> The serial inkjet printing device 100 provides multiple print modes that the user can select depending on the required image quality and print speed. The user can set the print mode depending on the required image quality, allowable print time, print medium, etc. The following explanation uses the following two print modes as examples. High-speed printing mode is the first printing mode High-quality print mode as the second print mode The difference in resolution depending on the print mode will be explained with reference to Figure 5. Figure 5(a) shows the resolution in high-speed print mode, and Figure 5(b) shows the resolution in high-quality print mode. In Figure 5, circled numbers indicate droplets that have been ejected, and droplets with the same number indicate that they were ejected in a single scan. The larger the number, the more recently the droplet was ejected.

[0039] Figure 5 provides an overview of a typical print mode using a 300 dpi / 3-nozzle droplet ejection head 11 as an example. The horizontal arrow in Figure 5 indicates the carriage movement direction in the main scanning direction, and the vertical arrow indicates the paper feed direction and feed amount. The vertical position of the droplet ejection head 11 indicates the positional relationship of the droplet ejection head to the printing position when the paper is fed.

[0040] First, the printing speed in the serial inkjet printing device 100 is defined as "the area in which an image is formed on a medium (recording paper) per unit time." When the specifications of the droplet ejection head 11 and the feed speed in the sub-scanning direction are the same, the printing speed is determined by the scanning speed of the carriage 5, the printing area printed per scan in the main scanning direction, and the amount of intermittent feeding of the paper in the sub-scanning direction. In the first printing mode (high-speed printing mode) that prioritizes printing speed, the print pixel density is set to 300 dpi in the main scanning direction x 300 dpi in the sub-scanning direction, - The main scanning direction uses high-speed carriage 5 and main scanning bidirectional printing. Increase the intermittent feed amount in the sub-scanning direction (in this case, by one head length) This allows the serial inkjet printing device 100 to increase printing speed and shorten printing time.

[0041] On the other hand, the second print mode (high-quality print mode) has a print pixel density of 600 dpi in the main scan direction and 600 dpi in the sub-scan direction, and as the print density increases, the speed of the carriage 5 is slower than in the first print mode (high-speed print mode), while still achieving high image quality in unidirectional printing. As shown in Figure 5(b), the intermittent feed amount of the paper in the sub-scan direction is set to the length of "1 / 2 head + 1 / 2 pixel density," thereby achieving a resolution of 600 dpi in the sub-scan direction.

[0042] Next, factors that cause image quality to deteriorate in bidirectional printing will be explained based on Figure 6. Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating misalignment of ink landing positions in bidirectional printing. Figure 6(a) schematically shows an impact position where impact position misalignment does not occur, and Figure 6(b) schematically shows an impact position where impact position misalignment has occurred. Arrows 351 and 352 represent the carriage speed on the outbound path, and arrows 353 and 354 represent the carriage speed on the return path. Arrows 355 and 356 represent the ink ejection speed on the outbound path, and arrows 357 and 358 represent the ink ejection speed on the return path. Additionally, arrows 359 and 360 indicate the ink flight path on the outbound path, and arrows 361 and 362 indicate the ink flight path on the return path.

[0043] In bidirectional printing, as shown in Figure 6, the carriage 5 ejects ink on both the forward and backward passes. To improve image quality, it is preferable that the ink landing positions do not shift between the forward and backward passes. The ink ejection speed is adjusted to the scanning speed so that the landing positions do not shift even in high-speed printing mode.

[0044] However, when the viscosity of the ink changes due to a change in temperature, the ink ejection speed also changes. That is, as the temperature drops, the ink viscosity increases and the ejection speed slows. As such, in bidirectional printing, the ink landing position on the printing surface can become misaligned. For this reason, in high-quality printing mode, the serial inkjet printing device 100 increases the accuracy of the ink landing position in unidirectional printing to print with high quality.

[0045] However, in the second print mode (high-quality print mode), the print area per scan in the main scan direction is smaller than in bidirectional printing in the first print mode (high-speed print mode). Furthermore, to achieve a pixel density of 600 dpi, the intermittent paper feed amount in the sub-scan direction is also set to "1 / 2 head + 1 / 2 pixel density," so the intermittent paper feed amount in the sub-scan direction is smaller than in the first print mode (high-speed print mode), which reduces the print speed and lengthens the print time.

[0046] On the other hand, in terms of image quality, the pixel density in the second print mode (high-quality print mode) is doubled in both the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction, resulting in a total resolution four times that of the first print mode (high-speed print mode).

[0047] Figure 7 shows the difference in image quality depending on the print mode. Figure 7(a) shows an image obtained in the second print mode (high-quality print mode), and Figure 7(b) shows an image obtained in the first print mode (high-speed print mode). As shown in Figure 7, the image reproducibility in the second print mode (high-quality print mode) is finer than in the first print mode (high-speed print mode), with smoother image contours in particular, resulting in better image quality.

[0048] However, the printing speed is slower, at 1 / 4 of the first printing mode (high-speed printing mode), due to the effects of carriage speed, unidirectional printing, and the amount of paper feed in the sub-scanning direction.

[0049] Furthermore, in the serial inkjet printing device 100 (although not limited to serial types), ink has the tendency to bleed onto the paper, and as shown in Figure 5, the size of the ink droplets for one pixel becomes larger in the first printing mode (high-speed printing mode), but larger ink droplets are more likely to bleed, further degrading the image.

[0050] [First embodiment] In serial inkjet printing devices 100 that can print image data of large document sizes such as A0 and A1, the large document size is often used to print large output images, which takes a long time to print. For this reason, the first print mode (high-speed print mode) is often set as the default print mode to shorten the print time even for large document sizes.

[0051] FIG. 8 shows an example of a print mode setting screen 401 displayed by the serial inkjet printing device 100. As shown in FIG. 8( a), the print mode setting screen 401 has a color / monochrome setting field 402, a print mode setting field 403, and a reduced-image-quality-priority mode setting field 404. The color / monochrome setting field 402 allows full color or monochrome to be set, with monochrome being the default. Full color, which is not the default, is set to half brightness. The print mode setting field 403 allows high speed or high image quality to be set, with high speed being the default. High image quality, which is not the default, is set to half brightness. The reduced-image-quality-priority mode setting field 404 allows ON or OFF to be set, with OFF being set to half brightness in this example. When the reduced-image-quality-priority mode setting field 404 is ON, the print mode described in this embodiment is automatically set. The user can arbitrarily set the color / monochrome setting field 402, the print mode setting field 403, and the reduced-image-quality-priority mode setting field 404 on the print mode setting screen 401.

[0052] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8(b), the serial inkjet printing device 100 can automatically change the default setting of "high speed" in the print mode setting field 403 to "high quality" depending on the document size and reduction ratio.

[0053] <About reduction ratio> In order for a user to check or carry large document size image data such as precision drawings, such as A0 or A1 size, the image may be printed as a small output image of A3 or A4 size using an image reduction means.

[0054] In this embodiment, the reduction ratio is defined as follows. Reduction ratio = "Image size of output image / Original size of image data" For example, when A1 size (841 mm x 594 mm) image data is printed on A3 size (420 mm x 297 mm), the reduction ratio is 420 mm / 841 mm or 297 mm / 594 mm = approximately 0.5 times. When A1 size (841mm x 594mm) image data is printed on A2 size (594mm x 420mm), the reduction ratio is 594mm / 841mm or 420mm / 594mm = approximately 0.71 times. The smaller the reduction ratio, the smaller the printed output image will be compared to the original document size.

[0055] When the serial inkjet printing device 100 reduces and prints image data, the characters become relatively smaller and the lines become thinner, so when printing in the default first printing mode (high-speed printing mode), the deterioration in image quality becomes apparent, resulting in crushed characters and poor line reproducibility.

[0056] When a user wants to print at a reduced size, they can change from the default first print mode (high-speed print mode) to the second print mode (high-quality print mode) in consideration of image quality. However, if the user prints with the default settings, the required image quality may not be achieved, and they may have to switch to the second print mode (high-quality print mode) and reprint the image data at a reduced size again.

[0057] To address this inconvenience, one of the features of this embodiment is that when the serial inkjet printing device 100 reduces and prints image data, it controls switching from a first printing mode (high-speed printing mode) to a second printing mode (high-quality printing mode) based on the document size and reduction ratio.

[0058] <About the function> 9 is a functional block diagram explaining the functions of the serial inkjet printing device 100 by dividing them into blocks. The serial inkjet printing device 100 has a display control unit 19, an operation reception unit 21, an image data input unit 22, an image output condition input unit 23, a main control unit 24, a print head control unit 25, and a motor control unit 26. For ease of explanation, the illustration also shows the droplet ejection head 11, which is a hardware element 29, a paper feed and delivery motor 29b, a main scanning motor 6, a sub-scanning motor 29d, and various sensors 29e.

[0059] The main control unit 24 performs overall control of the serial inkjet printing device 100. The main control unit 24 also sets an appropriate print mode based on the acquired document size and reduction ratio. For example, if the first print mode (high-speed print mode) is set, the main control unit 24 controls switching to the second print mode (high-quality print mode).

[0060] The display control unit 19 displays an operation screen (such as a print mode setting screen 401, which will be described later) serving as a user interface on the operation panel 330. The operation acceptance unit 21 accepts instructions such as a print job required for printing and the start of printing when the user prints an image. The operation acceptance unit 21 also accepts settings on the print mode setting screen 401 (color / monochrome setting field 402, print mode setting field 403, and reduced image quality priority mode setting field 404) shown in FIG.

[0061] The image data input unit 22 acquires the document size (A0 size, A1 size, etc.) of the image data to be printed based on the print job instructed by the user, and the image size of the output image to be printed.

[0062] The image output condition input unit 23 acquires the currently set print mode and calculates the reduction ratio from the document size of the image data and the image size of the output image.

[0063] The main control unit 24 controls the print head control unit 25 and the motor control unit 26. The print head control unit 25 controls the droplet ejection head 11 to eject ink according to the print mode. The motor control unit 26 controls each motor to operate the carriage and transport paper.

[0064] 10 is a functional block diagram illustrating the functions of the main control unit 24. The main control unit 24 includes a document size determination unit 31, a reduction ratio determination unit 32, a print mode setting unit 33, and a print control unit .

[0065] The document size determination unit 31 determines whether the document size of the image data is equal to or larger than a threshold value. The threshold value may be a fixed value such as A0, or may be set by the user (see the second embodiment).

[0066] The reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio calculated by "image size of output image / original size of image data" is equal to or less than a threshold value. The threshold value may be a fixed value such as 0.5, or may be user-settable (see the second embodiment).

[0067] If the document size is equal to or larger than a threshold and the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a threshold, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the print mode of the serial inkjet printing device 100 to high-quality print mode. If this condition is not met, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the print mode to high-speed print mode. In other words, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the print mode according to the results of comparing the document size of the image data with the threshold, and the reduction ratio with the threshold.

[0068] The print control unit 34 reduces the image data at a reduction ratio set by the user in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit 33, and prints the output image.

[0069] <Operation or control> FIG. 11 is an example of a flowchart illustrating the control flow when the main control unit 24 automatically sets the print mode during reduced printing.

[0070] The image data input unit 22 acquires the document size of the image data to be printed and the image size of the output image from the print job (S11).

[0071] The image output condition input unit 23 calculates the reduction ratio from the document size of the image data and the image size of the output image (S12).

[0072] Next, the image output condition input unit 23 acquires the current print mode (S13). Note that the current print mode does not need to be acquired because it is used to determine whether to switch the print mode.

[0073] Next, the main control unit 24 determines whether the reduction image quality priority mode setting field 404 is set to ON (S14). If the determination in step S14 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S15, and if No, the process proceeds to step S19.

[0074] In step S15, the document size determination unit 31 determines whether the document size is equal to or larger than A1 size (S15). A1 size is an example of a large document size, and may be compared with A0 size or A2 size.

[0075] If the determination in step S15 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S16, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S19.

[0076] In step S16, the reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio is equal to or less than 0.5 (S16). 0.5 is an example of a small reduction ratio, and the threshold value may be other than 0.5.

[0077] If the determination in step S16 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S17, and if No, the process proceeds to step S19.

[0078] In step S17, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the print mode to a high-quality print mode (S17). The high-quality print mode is a print mode in which the size of ink droplets is reduced and the scanning density of the main scan and sub-scan is increased.

[0079] The print control unit 34 of the main control unit 24 controls the print head control unit 25 and the motor control unit 26 to start printing in the high-quality print mode (S18). The print control unit 34 prints the image data of the original size as an output image at a reduction ratio set by the user.

[0080] In step S19, since the document size is not A1 or larger, or the reduction ratio is not small, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the print mode to the high-speed print mode (S19).

[0081] The print control unit 34 controls the print head control unit 25 and the motor control unit 26 to start printing in high-speed print mode (S20). The print control unit 34 prints the image data of the original size as an output image at a reduction ratio set by the user.

[0082] In this way, both the document size and the reduction ratio are compared to their respective thresholds to set the print mode. Because a large document size alone does not degrade image quality, the serial inkjet printing device 100 can operate in high-speed print mode, preventing print times from becoming longer. Similarly, because a small reduction ratio alone does not degrade image quality, the serial inkjet printing device 100 can operate in high-speed print mode, preventing print times from becoming longer. Therefore, by comparing both the document size and the reduction ratio to their respective thresholds to set the print mode, printing can be performed in high-quality print mode when there is a high possibility of image quality degradation.

[0083] <Major Effects> With the above control, even if the user reduces and prints the image data, if the reduction image quality priority mode setting field 404 is ON, the print mode can be automatically switched to the second print mode (high-quality print mode) and printed. Therefore, even if the user reduces the reduction ratio and prints image data of a large document size, the image quality does not deteriorate and reprinting can be reduced.

[0084] Furthermore, printing large document size image data takes a long time in the second print mode (high-quality print mode), but for example, if an A1 size image is printed at a reduction ratio of 0.5, the printed image size is A3 size. The printing time for A3 size is at an acceptable level even in high-quality print mode.

[0085] As described above, if the second print mode (high-quality print mode) is selected when the reduction ratio relative to the image size is large (not reduced much), the image is less likely to deteriorate because the printed image size is large, but the print time will be longer. However, in this embodiment, even if the user sets the image quality priority mode setting field 404 when reduced to ON, if a No determination is made in step S14 or S15, printing will be performed in the first print mode (high-speed print mode), thereby preventing the print time from being longer.

[0086] In addition, simple image data such as illustrations may not suffer from degradation in image quality even if the image data is reduced from a large original size, and may be printed in the first print mode (high-speed print mode) without any problems. In this case, the user can turn OFF the setting in the image quality priority mode setting field 404 when reducing.

[0087] [Second embodiment] The image quality required by a user and the print time they can tolerate vary depending on the user and their circumstances. For example, a user may want to print at high image quality when reducing the size, but also want to shorten the print time slightly. For example, if an A1 document is reduced to A2 size at a reduction ratio of 0.71, the image size of the printed output image will be larger than if the A1 size were reduced to A3 size at a reduction ratio of 0.5. However, the A2 size offers higher image quality and requires less print time than printing at A1 size. Therefore, in this embodiment, the serial inkjet printing device 100 is equipped with a third print mode (standard print mode).

[0088] The third printing mode (standard printing mode) has the following advantages in terms of printing speed and image quality: ·Printing speed First print mode (high-speed print mode) > Third print mode (standard print mode) > Second print mode (high-quality print mode) ·image quality Second print mode (high-quality print mode) > Third print mode (standard print mode) > First print mode (high-speed print mode) When the user reduces and prints the image data, the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 sets one of three print modes based on the acquired document size and reduction ratio.

[0089] FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the details of the three print modes. The third print mode (standard print mode) is For the second print mode (high quality print mode), the main scan printing is changed from unidirectional to bidirectional printing. -Higher image quality than the first print mode (high-speed print mode), but slower print speed The second print mode (high-quality print mode) has lower image quality but faster print speed. It has the following characteristics.

[0090] Note that interlace refers to increasing the print density in the sub-scanning direction from 300 to 600 dpi by moving the paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction by the length of "1 / 2 head + 1 / 2 pixel density," as shown in Figure 5. Therefore, the feed amount in the third print mode (standard print mode) is approximately half that of the first print mode (high-speed print mode).

[0091] As shown in Figure 12, the carriage speed in the second and third print modes is 2 / 3 of the carriage speed in the first print mode (high-speed print mode). When the printing direction is unidirectional, the printing speed is 1 / 2 of that in bidirectional. Therefore, if the printing speed in terms of area is 1 for the first print mode (high-speed print mode), then the second print mode is 1 / 6 and the third print mode is 1 / 3.

[0092] <Setting image quality priority mode when reducing using standard print mode> Since the degree of image degradation during reduction differs depending on, for example, the type of image and whether it is color or monochrome, it is preferable that the document size and reduction ratio conditions for switching the print mode differ depending on the type of image and whether it is color or monochrome.

[0093] Therefore, it is preferable that the user be able to set various thresholds, as shown in Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is an example of a print mode setting screen 420 in this embodiment. The explanation of Fig. 13 will mainly focus on the differences from Fig. 8. In addition to the print mode setting screen 401 in Fig. 8, the print mode setting screen 420 has a document size setting field 411, a reduction ratio setting field 412, an image type selection field 416, a mode selection field 413, a test print button 415, and a registration button 414.

[0094] Furthermore, with the addition of the third print mode, the print mode setting field 403 on the print mode setting screen 420 in FIG. 13 now accepts the selection of three print modes: high speed, standard, and high quality.

[0095] The user can set a threshold value to be compared with the document size for each of the standard and high-quality print modes in document size setting field 411. If the document size of the image data is equal to or larger than the threshold value associated with the standard mode, it can be printed in the standard print mode (further determined by the reduction ratio). If the document size of the image data is equal to or larger than the threshold value associated with the high-quality mode, it can be printed in the high-quality print mode (further determined by the reduction ratio).

[0096] Similarly, for each of the standard and high image quality print modes, the user can select a threshold value to be compared with the reduction ratio from the reduction ratio setting field 412. If the reduction ratio at the time of printing is equal to or less than the threshold value associated with standard (and greater than the threshold value associated with high image quality), printing will be performed in the standard print mode. If the reduction ratio at the time of printing is equal to or less than the threshold value associated with high image quality, printing will be performed in the high image quality print mode. Note that the threshold value associated with standard in the reduction ratio setting field 412 is an example of a third threshold value.

[0097] In this way, the user can arbitrarily set the document size and reduction ratio conditions for switching the print mode, taking into consideration the type of image and whether it is color or monochrome.

[0098] The image type selection field 416 and the mode selection field 413 accept the selection of a preset threshold value that is compared with the document size and reduction rate. The preset threshold value will be described in FIG. 14. The user can switch image types using the up and down buttons on the right side of the image type selection field 416. The preset threshold value is set to an appropriate value depending on the image type, so the user can set the threshold value that is compared with the document size and reduction rate by selecting an image type (or mode). The user can switch modes using the up and down buttons on the right side of the mode selection field 413. The mode is, for example, a number. The mode is associated with the image type, and the display of the mode selection field 413 and the image type selection field 416 switches in tandem. Users who know the threshold value that is set in the mode can select a mode, and users who want to set the threshold value by image type can select the image type.

[0099] The test print button 415 is a button that allows the user to perform a test print using the settings on the print mode setting screen 420 in Fig. 13. When the test print button 415 is pressed, the print control unit 34 prints only the range of image data determined by the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction.

[0100] The registration button 414 is a button that accepts registration of the document size setting field 411 and the threshold value set in the document size setting field 411 in the serial inkjet printing device 100. The threshold value registered with the registration button 414 becomes selectable in the image type selection field 416 as a "user setting." In this way, the user can register any desired switching image size and switching reduction ratio. Because the threshold value set by the user is saved, it can be easily called up and used whenever necessary without having to set it again when printing.

[0101] <When the print mode switching conditions for reduced printing are set in advance> Even if the user can set the print mode switching conditions (thresholds) for the reduced-image-quality-priority mode as desired, as shown in Figure 13, some users may not know the appropriate switching conditions. In such cases, it would be convenient if the print mode switching conditions for the reduced-image-quality-priority mode were determined in advance according to the image type.

[0102] FIG. 14 shows an example of print mode switching conditions in the reduced image quality priority mode. In FIG. 14, various image types are associated with a switching image size and a switching reduction ratio. The mode is image type identification information. Image types include, for example, drawings, posters / illustrations, and photographs. Therefore, by selecting the image type of the image the user wants to print on the print mode setting screen 420 in FIG. 13, the user can set an appropriate switching image size and switching reduction ratio.

[0103] 14, "User setting" is registered in the bottom row of image types. "User setting" is the threshold value (switching image size and switching reduction rate) set by the user in the document size setting field 411 and reduction rate setting field 412 on the print mode setting screen 420 in FIG. 13. Therefore, the user can select the switching image size and switching reduction rate that they have set themselves.

[0104] Note that when the user selects an image type or mode on the print mode setting screen 420 in Fig. 13, the standard print mode is not selected because there is only one switching reduction ratio in Fig. 14. However, two switching reduction ratios may be set in advance for one image type in Fig. 14 so that the standard print mode is selected when the user selects an image type or mode.

[0105] <Test print> Whether the document size is A1 and is being reduced to A2 size at a reduction ratio of 0.71x and printed, or the A1 size is being reduced to A3 size at a reduction ratio of 0.5x, there may be cases where the user wants to check the finished product while minimizing wasted paper and ink usage. In such cases, when the user presses the test print button 415 on the print mode setting screen 420, the print control unit 34 prints the image data within the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction in the print mode determined by the thresholds set in the document size setting field 411 and the reduction ratio setting field 412. This allows the user to check the finished product while minimizing wasted paper and ink usage.

[0106] When the serial inkjet printing device 100 uses roll paper for printing, the paper width is the roll paper width selected by the user. This roll paper width is assumed to be 420 mm. If the original size is A1 and is reduced to A2 size at a reduction ratio of 0.71 and printed, the image size of the output image is 420 mm wide x 594 mm long. If the original size is A1 and is reduced to A3 size at a reduction ratio of 0.5, the image size of the output image is 420 mm wide x 297 mm long.

[0107] The minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction is determined by the configuration of the serial inkjet printing device 100. As an example, if the minimum printable paper feed amount is 210 mm, then when a roll paper with a width of 420 mm is selected, the "minimum printable output size" is 420 mm wide x 210 mm long.

[0108] <Operation or control> FIG. 15 is an example of a flowchart illustrating the control flow when the main control unit 24 automatically sets the print mode during reduced printing. The explanation of FIG. 15 may include differences from FIG. 11. FIG. 15 differs from FIG. 11 in that step S36 has been added. That is, in this embodiment, a third print mode (standard print mode) is provided, and the print mode is selected based on the document size and reduction ratio set to select the third print mode (standard print mode). As an example, in step S36, the reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio is 0.71 times or less (S36). 0.71 times is an example of a third threshold value.

[0109] If the determination in step S36 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S37, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S39.

[0110] In step S37, the reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio is 0.5 or less (S40). If the determination in step S37 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S38, and if No, the process proceeds to step S40.

[0111] In step S38, the print mode setting unit 33 selects the second print mode (high-quality print mode), in step S40 the print mode setting unit 33 selects the third print mode (standard print mode), and in step S39 the print mode setting unit 33 selects the first print mode (high-quality print mode).

[0112] After steps S38 to S40, the process proceeds to step S41. In step S41, the main control unit 24 determines whether the test print button 415 has been pressed (S41). If the determination in step S41 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S43, and if No, the process proceeds to step S42.

[0113] In step S42, the print control unit 34 starts printing at the image size of the output image set in the print job (S42). In step S43, the print control unit 34 starts printing only within the range of the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction (S43).

[0114] When the test print button 415 is pressed, the output image is printed with the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction, so the length of the image data printed in the sub-scanning direction is shorter than A2 and A3 sizes, and the print area is also smaller. Therefore, you can check the finish while minimizing wasteful use of paper and ink.

[0115] <<When the thresholds for both the document size and reduction ratio are different between the standard print mode and the high-quality print mode>> In FIG. 15, there is only one threshold value, A1 size, that is compared with the document size. Referring to FIG. 16, a case will be described in which the threshold values ​​for both the document size and the reduction ratio are different between the standard print mode and the high-quality print mode. FIG. 16 is an example of a flowchart illustrating the control flow in which the main control unit 24 automatically sets the print mode during reduced printing. The explanation of FIG. 16 may include explaining differences from FIG. 11. First, the processing of steps S51 to S54 may be the same as steps S31 to S34 in FIG. 15.

[0116] In step S55, the document size determination unit 31 determines whether the document size is A0 size or larger (S55). This threshold value, A0 size, is the threshold value for the high-quality print mode set by the user.

[0117] If the determination in step S55 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S56, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S57.

[0118] In step S56, the reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio is equal to or less than 0.5 (S56). This threshold value of 0.5 is the threshold value for the high-quality print mode set by the user.

[0119] If the determination in step S56 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S61, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S57. In step S61, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the second print mode (high-quality print mode). In this way, the high-quality print mode can be set based on the threshold value set by the user for the high-quality print mode.

[0120] Next, in step S57, the document size determination unit 31 determines whether the document size is A1 size or larger (S57). This threshold, A1 size, is a threshold for the standard print mode set by the user (an example of a fourth threshold).

[0121] If the determination in step S57 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S58, and if No, the process proceeds to step S59.

[0122] In step S58, the reduction ratio determination unit 32 determines whether the reduction ratio is equal to or less than 0.71 (S58). This threshold value of 0.71 is the threshold value for the standard print mode set by the user (an example of a third threshold value).

[0123] If the determination in step S58 is Yes, the process proceeds to step S60, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to step S59. In step S60, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the third print mode (standard print mode). In this way, the standard print mode can be set based on the threshold value set by the user for the standard print mode.

[0124] In step S59, the print mode setting unit 33 sets the first print mode (high-speed print mode) (S59). The processes of steps S62 to S64 may be the same as steps S41 to S43 in FIG.

[0125] In this way, even if the user sets different thresholds for both the document size and the reduction ratio in the standard print mode and the high-quality print mode, the appropriate print mode can be set by first comparing the thresholds set in the high-quality print mode with the document size and the reduction ratio.

[0126] <Major Effects> As described above, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, the serial inkjet printing device 100 of this embodiment provides a third print mode, which allows high-quality printing in reduced size with slightly shorter print times. Furthermore, the user can set any threshold value and later recall their own threshold value. Furthermore, the user can select a preset threshold value based on the image type or mode.

[0127] [Third embodiment] In the first and second embodiments, the print mode is determined by the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100. However, the print mode may be determined by a terminal device 50, a server, or the like that can communicate with the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100.

[0128] FIG. 17 shows an example of the system configuration of a printing system 1000. In the printing system 1000 of FIG. 17, a terminal device 50, a print server 600, and a serial inkjet printing device 100 are communicably connected via a communication network N. The communication network N may be a wired LAN or a wireless LAN. The print server 600 may exist in the cloud or on-premise. The print server 600 receives a print job from the terminal device 50 and submits the print job taking into consideration the status of the serial inkjet printing device 100.

[0129] The terminal device 50 is an information processing terminal operated by a user, and accepts user operations such as executing a print job. A printer driver runs on the terminal device 50, and the printer driver can communicate with the serial inkjet printing device 100 or the print server 600. The terminal device 50 may be, for example, a PC, a tablet terminal, or a smartphone.

[0130] In such a configuration, the terminal device 50 or the print server 600 can instruct the serial inkjet printing device 100 to change the print mode. In this embodiment, the terminal device 50 is assumed to instruct the print mode.

[0131] <Hardware configuration example> Fig. 18 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the terminal device 50. As shown in Fig. 18, the terminal device 50 is constructed by a computer 500, and includes a CPU 501, a ROM 502, a RAM 503, a HD (Hard Disk) 504, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) controller 505, a display 506, an external device connection I / F (Interface) 508, a network I / F 509, a bus line 510, a keyboard 511, an optical drive 514, and a media I / F 516.

[0132] Of these, the CPU 501 controls the overall operation of the terminal device 50. The ROM 502 stores programs, such as an IPL, used to drive the CPU 501. The RAM 503 is used as a work area for the CPU 501. The HD 504 stores various data, such as programs. The HDD controller 505 controls the reading and writing of various data from and to the HD 504 under the control of the CPU 501. The display 506 displays various information, such as a cursor, menus, windows, characters, or images. The external device connection I / F 508 is an interface for connecting various external devices. In this case, external devices include, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory or a printer. The network I / F 509 is an interface for data communication using a network. The bus line 510 is an address bus, a data bus, or the like, for electrically connecting the components, such as the CPU 501, shown in FIG. 18.

[0133] The keyboard 511 is a type of input means having multiple keys used to input characters, numbers, various instructions, etc. The optical drive 514 controls reading and writing of various data from and to an optical storage medium 513, which is an example of a removable storage medium. The optical storage medium 513 may be a CD, DVD, Blu-ray (registered trademark), etc. The media I / F 516 controls reading and writing (storing) of data from and to a storage medium 515, such as a flash memory.

[0134] <About the function> FIG. 19 shows a functional block diagram of the terminal device 50 and serial inkjet printing device 100 in the printing system 1000. The terminal device 50 has a printer driver 20 and a communication unit 62. The printer driver 20 further has a display control unit 19, an operation reception unit 21, an image data input unit 22, an image output condition input unit 23, a document size determination unit 31, a reduction ratio determination unit 32, and a print mode determination unit 61. The functions of the display control unit 19, the operation reception unit 21, the image data input unit 22, the image output condition input unit 23, the document size determination unit 31, and the reduction ratio determination unit 32 may be the same as those in the first and second embodiments. The print mode determination unit 61 determines the print mode depending on the document size and reduction ratio when performing reduced printing. The determination method may be the same as those in the first and second embodiments. The communication unit 62 of the terminal device 50 transmits the print mode and print job determined by the print mode determination unit 61 to the serial inkjet printing device 100.

[0135] The serial inkjet printing device 100 has a communication unit 63, a main control unit 24, a print head control unit 25, a motor control unit 26, and hardware elements 29. The main control unit 24, the print head control unit 25, the motor control unit 26, and the hardware elements 29 may be the same as those in the first and second embodiments. However, the main control unit 24 does not need to determine the print mode according to the document size and reduction ratio. This is because the communication unit 63 of the serial inkjet printing device 100 receives the print mode from the terminal device 50.

[0136] In this embodiment, the print mode determination unit 61 determines the print mode based on the document size and reduction ratio according to the flowchart in Fig. 11 or 15. The communication unit 62 of the terminal device 50 transmits the determined print mode to the serial inkjet printing device 100, thereby passing it to the main control unit 24. Therefore, the same effects as in the first and second embodiments can be obtained.

[0137] <Action or Processing> FIG. 20 is a sequence diagram illustrating the process in which the printing system 1000 reduces and prints image data of a large document size.

[0138] S101: The document size determining unit 31, reduction ratio determining unit 32, and print mode determining unit 61 of the terminal device 50 determine the print mode according to the flowchart of FIG. 11 or FIG. 15 described in the first or second embodiment.

[0139] S102: The communication unit 62 of the terminal device 50 transmits the print mode and the print job to the serial inkjet printing device 100.

[0140] S103: The communication unit 63 of the serial type inkjet printing device 100 receives the print mode and the print job, and the main control unit 24 starts printing in accordance with this print mode.

[0141] <Major Effects> In addition to the effects of the first and second embodiments, the printing system 1000 of this embodiment can reduce the load on the serial inkjet printing apparatus 100 because the printer driver 20 determines the print mode.

[0142] <Other application examples> The best mode for carrying out the present invention has been described above using examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples in any way, and various modifications and substitutions can be made within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention.

[0143] For example, in this embodiment, the print mode is set by comparing the document size and reduction ratio with threshold values, but the print mode may be set based only on the reduction ratio. This type of control is effective for the serial inkjet printing device 100, in which image quality deteriorates when the reduction ratio is small, even if the document size is small.

[0144] Furthermore, although the present embodiment has been described as a serial inkjet printing device 100, the inkjet printing device may also be a line type. A line type inkjet printing device has fixed droplet ejection heads with the same length as the page width, and feeds paper in the sub-scanning direction without scanning in the main scanning direction.

[0145] In this embodiment, the serial inkjet printing device 100 switches the print mode during reduced printing, but the print mode may also be switched during enlarged printing. Since enlarged printing takes a long time to print, the serial inkjet printing device 100 is set to high-speed print mode when, for example, the document size is equal to or smaller than a threshold and / or the enlargement rate is equal to or larger than a threshold.

[0146] 9, 10, and other configuration examples are divided according to main functions to facilitate understanding of the processing by the serial inkjet printing device 100. The method of dividing the processing units and their names do not limit the present invention. The processing of the serial inkjet printing device 100 can be divided into even more processing units depending on the processing content. Furthermore, the processing can also be divided so that one processing unit includes even more processes.

[0147] Furthermore, each function of the above-described embodiments can be realized by one or more processing circuits. Here, the term "processing circuit" in this specification includes a processor programmed to perform each function by software, such as a processor implemented by an electronic circuit, as well as devices such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and conventional circuit modules designed to perform each of the above-described functions.

[0148] <Aspect> [Aspect 1] 1. A serial inkjet printing apparatus capable of printing image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than the document size of the image data, a print mode setting unit that sets a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and the reduction rate of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a print control unit that reduces the image data at the reduction ratio and prints the output image in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit; 1. A serial inkjet printing apparatus comprising: [Aspect 2] The print mode setting unit If the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold value and the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a second threshold value, a second print mode having a higher image quality than the first print mode is set; A serial inkjet printing device as described in aspect 1, characterized in that if the document size is not equal to or greater than a first threshold value or the reduction ratio is not equal to or less than a second threshold value, the device sets the printing mode to the first printing mode, which is faster than the second printing mode. [Aspect 3] a display control unit that displays a reduction-time image quality priority mode setting field that accepts a setting as to whether the print mode setting unit should automatically set the print mode according to the comparison result; and an operation receiving unit for receiving a setting in the reduction image quality priority mode setting field; 3. The serial inkjet printing device according to aspect 2, comprising: [Aspect 4] 4. The serial inkjet printing apparatus according to aspect 3, wherein the operation accepting unit accepts settings of the first threshold value and the second threshold value from a user. [Aspect 5] the display control unit displays the image data in a selectable manner; the operation accepting unit accepts a selection of an image type of the image data; The serial inkjet printing device described in aspect 4 is characterized in that the printing mode setting unit sets a printing mode according to the result of comparing the first threshold value, which is pre-assigned to the image type selected by the operation accepting unit, with the original size, and the second threshold value, which is pre-assigned to the image type selected by the operation accepting unit, with the reduction ratio. [Aspect 6] The first threshold value and the second threshold value, the settings of which have been accepted by the operation accepting unit, are stored; The serial inkjet printing device described in aspect 5 is characterized in that the display control unit displays the first threshold value and the second threshold value set by the user together with the image type of the image data, so that they can be selected as user settings. [Aspect 7] The printing speed is the first printing mode > the third printing mode > the second printing mode. The image quality is the second print mode > the third print mode > the first print mode; the third printing mode being The serial inkjet printing device according to any one of aspects 3 to 6, characterized in that the printing mode setting unit sets the printing mode to the third printing mode when the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold and the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a third threshold that is larger than the second threshold. [Aspect 8] The printing speed is the first printing mode > the third printing mode > the second printing mode. The image quality is the second print mode > the third print mode > the first print mode; the third printing mode being the print mode setting unit sets the print mode to the second print mode when the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold value set by a user and equal to or smaller than a second threshold value set by a user; The serial inkjet printing device according to any one of aspects 3 to 6, characterized in that if the document size is equal to or greater than a fourth threshold value (< the first threshold value) set by the user and equal to or less than a third threshold value (> the second threshold value) set by the user, the device is set to the third printing mode. [Aspect 9] When the user performs a specific operation, A serial inkjet printing device as described in any one of aspects 3 to 8, characterized in that it prints only the range of the image data determined by the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction in a printing mode set based on the first threshold value and the second threshold value, the settings of which are accepted by the operation acceptance unit. [Explanation of symbols]

[0149] 21 Operation reception section 24 Main control unit 100 Serial inkjet printing device [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0150] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-189104

Claims

1. 1. A serial inkjet printing apparatus capable of printing image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than the document size of the image data, a print mode setting unit that sets a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and the reduction rate of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a print control unit that reduces the image data at the reduction ratio and prints the output image in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit; 1. A serial inkjet printing apparatus comprising:

2. The print mode setting unit If the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold value and the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a second threshold value, a second print mode having a higher image quality than the first print mode is set; 2. A serial inkjet printing device according to claim 1, characterized in that if the document size is not equal to or larger than a first threshold value or the reduction ratio is not equal to or smaller than a second threshold value, the device is set to the first printing mode, which is faster than the second printing mode.

3. a display control unit that displays a reduction-time image quality priority mode setting field that accepts a setting as to whether the print mode setting unit should automatically set the print mode according to the comparison result; and an operation receiving unit for receiving a setting in the reduction image quality priority mode setting field; 3. The serial inkjet printing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

4. 4. The serial inkjet printing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the operation accepting unit accepts settings of the first threshold value and the second threshold value from a user.

5. the display control unit displays the image data in a selectable manner; the operation accepting unit accepts a selection of an image type of the image data; 5. The serial inkjet printing device according to claim 4, wherein the print mode setting unit sets a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with the first threshold value, which is pre-associated with the image type selected by the operation accepting unit, and the reduction ratio with the second threshold value, which is pre-associated with the image type selected by the operation accepting unit.

6. The first threshold value and the second threshold value, the settings of which have been accepted by the operation accepting unit, are stored; 6. The serial inkjet printing device according to claim 5, wherein the display control unit displays the first threshold value and the second threshold value set by the user together with the image type of the image data so that they can be selected as user settings.

7. The printing speed is the first printing mode > the third printing mode > the second printing mode. The image quality is the second print mode > the third print mode > the first print mode. the third printing mode being A serial inkjet printing device described in any one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that the printing mode setting unit sets the third printing mode when the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold and the reduction ratio is equal to or smaller than a third threshold that is larger than the second threshold.

8. The printing speed is the first printing mode > the third printing mode > the second printing mode. The image quality is the second print mode > the third print mode > the first print mode. the third printing mode being the print mode setting unit sets the print mode to the second print mode when the document size is equal to or larger than a first threshold value set by a user and equal to or smaller than a second threshold value set by a user; A serial inkjet printing device as described in any one of claims 3 to 6, characterized in that if the document size is equal to or greater than a fourth threshold value (< the first threshold value) set by the user and equal to or less than a third threshold value (> the second threshold value) set by the user, the device is set to the third printing mode.

9. When the user performs a specific operation, 4. A serial inkjet printing device according to claim 3, characterized in that only the range of the image data determined by the minimum paper feed amount in the sub-scanning direction is printed in the printing mode set based on the first threshold value and the second threshold value, the settings of which are accepted by the operation acceptance unit.

10. A serial inkjet printing apparatus capable of reducing image data to an output image smaller than the document size in the image data and printing the image data, a print mode setting unit that sets a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and the reduction rate of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a print control unit that reduces the image data at the reduction ratio and prints the output image in the print mode set by the print mode setting unit; A program to function as a

11. A serial inkjet printing device that can print image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than the document size of the image data, and a terminal device that communicates with the serial inkjet printing device via a network, a print mode determination unit that determines a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and a reduction ratio of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a communication unit that transmits the print mode determined by the print mode determination unit to the serial inkjet printing device; A program to function as a

12. A printing method performed by a serial inkjet printing device that can print image data by reducing the image data to an output image smaller than the document size of the image data, comprising: a process of setting a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and a reduction ratio of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a process of reducing the image data at the reduction ratio in the set print mode and printing the output image; A printing method characterized by carrying out the steps of:

13. A printing system in which a serial inkjet printing device that can reduce image data to an output image smaller than the document size of the image data and print the image data, and a terminal device communicate with each other via a network, The terminal device a print mode determination unit that determines a print mode according to a result of comparing the document size with a first threshold value, and a reduction ratio of the image size of the output image relative to the document size with a second threshold value; a communication unit that transmits the print mode determined by the print mode determination unit to the serial inkjet printing device, The serial inkjet printing device is a print control unit that reduces the image data at the reduction ratio and prints the output image in the print mode transmitted from the terminal device; A printing system characterized by:

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