System, user support methods, and server

Abstract

This makes it easier to build a history of ink ejection, even while maintaining the provision of high-quality recommendation information. [Solution] A system used to eject ink using an inkjet head, comprising: a receiving unit that receives usage condition information indicating usage conditions related to ink ejection based on operation information by a specific user; history information indicating usage history by a user different from the specific user; and a recommendation unit that, based on the usage condition information, recommends to the specific user, as recommendation information, usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information received by the receiving unit.

Description

[[Technical Field]]

[0001] The present invention relates to a system, a usage support method, and a server. [[Background Art]]

[0002] Conventionally, an inkjet printer having an inkjet head that ejects liquid such as ink has been known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of determining a drive waveform to be applied to an inkjet head by applying an automatic algorithm. In addition, Patent Document 2 discloses a system that stores correspondence information regarding the correspondence between usage conditions such as ink type and drive waveforms, and provides waveform information indicating a drive waveform corresponding to the usage conditions input by a user such as ink type to the user based on the correspondence information. [[Prior Art Documents]] [[Patent Documents]]

[0003] [[Patent Document 1]] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2021-115725 [[Patent Document 2]] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2023-60470 [[Summary of the Invention]] [[Problem to be Solved by the Invention]]

[0004] A system that recommends information regarding the use of an inkjet head is required to recommend information that shows usage conditions suitable for the usage conditions information entered by the user. However, while the technology in Patent Document 1 can recommend information to the user based on the usage conditions information, the recommended information determined by the automated algorithm is not necessarily favorable to the user, meaning that the quality of the recommended information deteriorates. On the other hand, the technology in Patent Document 2 can provide the user with high-quality recommended information if the corresponding information includes the same information as the usage conditions information. However, because the types of information included in the usage conditions information and the types of recommended information are enormous, the correspondence between the usage conditions information and the recommended information is also enormous, making it difficult to construct the correspondence information. For the above reasons, even when maintaining the provision of high-quality recommended information, it has been difficult to easily construct information that shows the correspondence between the usage conditions information and the recommended information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A system according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is a system used for ejecting ink using an inkjet head, comprising: a receiving unit that receives usage condition information indicating usage conditions for ink ejection based on operation information by a specific user; history information indicating a history of use by a user different from the specific user; and a recommendation unit that, based on the usage condition information, recommends to the specific user, as recommendation information, usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information received by the receiving unit.

[0006] A preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is a method for assisting the use of a system used to eject ink using an inkjet head, comprising: a receiving step of receiving usage condition information indicating usage conditions related to ink ejection based on operation information by a specific user; a recommendation step of recommending to the specific user, as recommendation information, usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information received by the receiving unit, based on history information indicating usage history by a user different from the specific user and the usage condition information.

[0007] A server according to a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure is a server used in a system for ejecting ink using an inkjet head, the server comprising: an acquisition unit that acquires usage condition information indicating the usage conditions of a specific user regarding ink ejection; history information indicating the history of use by a user other than the specific user; a search unit that searches for usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information as recommended information to the specific user based on the usage condition information; and an output unit that outputs the recommended information. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram illustrating an inkjet printer 10. [Figure 2] A schematic diagram showing an example configuration of the SYS system according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] A diagram showing an example of the configuration of server 30. [Figure 4] A diagram showing the configuration of the evaluation device 20. [Figure 5] A diagram illustrating the functions of the SYS system. [Figure 6] A diagram showing an example of the contents of the corresponding information CI. [Figure 7] A diagram showing an example of the drive waveform PX indicated by the waveform information. [Figure 8] A diagram showing the contents of an inktable (IkT). [Figure 9] A diagram showing a flowchart illustrating the operation of the SYS system. [Figure 10] This diagram shows an example of an input screen (IW). [Figure 11] A flowchart illustrating the operation of the search process. [Figure 12] A diagram showing a flowchart illustrating the input ink and output head setting process. [Figure 13] A diagram illustrating the process in step SC28. [Figure 14] A diagram illustrating the process in step SC28. [Figure 15] A diagram for explaining processing for setting an ejection head. [Figure 16] A diagram for explaining an example of generating recommendation information RI. [Figure 17] A diagram for explaining an example of generating recommendation information RI. [Figure 18] A diagram showing a flowchart illustrating input ink and ejection head setting processing in a first modification. [Figure 19] A diagram for explaining an example of generating recommendation information RI in a first modification. [Figure 20] A diagram showing a flowchart illustrating input ink and ejection head setting processing in a second modification. [Figure 21] A diagram for explaining processing of step SC28b. [Figure 22] A diagram showing an example of image processing parameters. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. However, in each drawing, the dimensions and scale of each part are appropriately changed from actual ones. Further, since the embodiments described below are preferred specific examples of the present disclosure, various technically preferable limitations are imparted thereto. However, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited to these embodiments unless there is a statement specifically limiting the present disclosure in the following description.

[0010] 1. First Embodiment A system SYS according to the first embodiment provides a service that supports the use of an inkjet head HU when a user U who uses the inkjet head HU manufactures an inkjet printer 10 that ejects ink using the inkjet head HU, by recommending to the user U appropriate usage conditions related to ink ejection. Therefore, in the present specification, the inkjet printer 10 will be described first, and then the system SYS will be described.

[0011] 1-1. Overview of the inkjet printer 10 Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an inkjet printer 10. The inkjet printer 10 is an inkjet printing device that ejects ink, which is an example of a liquid, onto a medium PP. The medium PP is typically printing paper, but any printing material such as resin film or fabric can be used as the medium PP.

[0012] As illustrated in Figure 1, the inkjet printer 10 includes a liquid container 93 for storing ink. The liquid container 93 can be, for example, a cartridge detachable from the inkjet printer 10, a bag-shaped ink pack made of flexible film, or an ink tank that can be refilled. Multiple types of ink with different colors are stored in the liquid container 93.

[0013] As illustrated in Figure 1, the inkjet printer 10 includes a drive signal generation circuit 2, an inkjet head HU, a control unit 7, a storage unit 5, a moving mechanism 91, and a transport mechanism 92. The inkjet head HU ejects ink onto the medium PP from one or more nozzles Nz.

[0014] The control unit 7 is a processing circuit such as a CPU or FPGA. Here, CPU is an abbreviation for Central Processing Unit, and FPGA is an abbreviation for Field Programmable Gate Array. The control unit 7 controls each element of the inkjet printer 10.

[0015] The memory unit 5 is composed of volatile memory such as RAM and non-volatile memory such as ROM, EEPROM, or PROM, and stores various information such as print data Img supplied from the host computer and control programs for the inkjet printer 10. RAM is an abbreviation for Random Access Memory. ROM is an abbreviation for Read Only Memory. EEPROM is an abbreviation for Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory. PROM is an abbreviation for Programmable ROM.

[0016] The moving mechanism 91 transports the medium PP in the Y1 direction along the Y axis under the control of the control unit 7. Hereinafter, the Y1 direction and the Y2 direction opposite to the Y1 direction will be collectively referred to as the direction along the Y axis. Also, hereinafter, the X1 direction along the X axis intersecting the Y axis and the X2 direction opposite to the X1 direction will be collectively referred to as the direction along the X axis. Also, hereinafter, the Z1 direction along the Z axis intersecting the X and Y axes and the Z2 direction opposite to the Z1 direction will be collectively referred to as the direction along the Z axis. In this embodiment, as an example, the case in which the X axis, Y axis, and Z axis are orthogonal to each other will be described. However, this disclosure is not limited to this embodiment. The X axis, Y axis, and Z axis only need to intersect each other.

[0017] The transport mechanism 92 reciprocates the inkjet head HU in the X1 and X2 directions under the control of the control unit 7. As shown in Figure 2, the transport mechanism 92 comprises a storage case 921 for housing the inkjet head HU and an endless belt 922 to which the storage case 921 is fixed. The liquid container 93 may also be stored in the storage case 921 together with the inkjet head HU.

[0018] The control unit 7 controls the ejection operation of the inkjet head HU. Specifically, the control unit 7 generates a print signal SI for controlling the inkjet head HU, a waveform specification signal dCom for controlling the drive signal generation circuit 2, a signal for controlling the transport mechanism 92, and a signal for controlling the moving mechanism 91.

[0019] The waveform specification signal dCom is a digital signal that defines the waveform of the drive signal Com. The drive signal Com is an analog signal used to drive the inkjet head HU. The drive signal generation circuit 2 includes a DA conversion circuit and generates a drive signal Com having the waveform defined by the waveform specification signal dCom.

[0020] Furthermore, the print signal SI is a digital signal used to specify the type of operation of the inkjet head HU. Specifically, the print signal SI specifies whether or not to supply a drive signal Com to the inkjet head HU, thereby specifying whether or not to eject ink from each of the one or more nozzles Nz.

[0021] First, the control unit 7 stores the print data Img supplied from the host computer in the storage unit 5. Next, the control unit 7 generates various control signals, such as a print signal SI, a waveform specification signal dCom, a signal for controlling the transport mechanism 92, and a signal for controlling the moving mechanism 91, based on the various data, including the print data Img, stored in the storage unit 5. Then, based on the various control signals and the various data stored in the storage unit 5, the control unit 7 controls the inkjet head HU while controlling the transport mechanism 92 and the moving mechanism 91 to change the relative position of the medium PP with respect to the inkjet head HU. In this way, the control unit 7 controls the execution of image processing to form an image corresponding to the print data Img on the medium PP.

[0022] 1-2. Overview of the SYS System Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example configuration of the system SYS according to the first embodiment. As described above, the system SYS provides a service that recommends usage conditions related to ink ejection. The system SYS has evaluation devices 20_1 to 20_3 and a server 30. In addition, instead of the evaluation devices 20_1 to 20_3 of user U, the user's processing device (PC, smartphone, etc.) may be connected to the server 30. PC is an abbreviation for Personal Computer.

[0023] Evaluation devices 20_1 to 20_3 are devices for evaluating inkjet heads (HU). In the following description, evaluation devices 20_1 to 20_3 may be collectively referred to as evaluation device 20 without distinction. For example, evaluation devices 20_1 to 20_3 have functions for evaluating inkjet heads (HU), such as observing the ejection state of ink droplets ejected from the inkjet head (HU) and observing how the ink droplets land on the medium (PP).

[0024] User U, who uses the evaluation device 20, is a manufacturer of the inkjet printer 10. Hereinafter, User U, who uses the evaluation device 20, may be referred to as the "printer manufacturer." On the other hand, the manufacturer of the inkjet head HU and the evaluation device 20 may be referred to as the head manufacturer. The printer manufacturer obtains the evaluation device 20 from the head manufacturer and uses the evaluation device 20 to evaluate the inkjet head HU in order to ensure that the image formed by the inkjet printer 10 on the PP medium meets the conditions desired by the printer manufacturer.

[0025] In the example shown in Figure 2, one evaluation device 20 has one inkjet head HU. However, one evaluation device 20 is not limited to having only one inkjet head HU; one evaluation device 20 may have two or more inkjet head HUs.

[0026] Figure 2 shows user U_1 using evaluation device 20_1, user U_2 using evaluation device 20_2, and user U_3 using evaluation device 20_3. In the following description, users U_1 to U_3 may be collectively referred to as user U without distinction.

[0027] In the example shown in Figure 2, the system SYS has three evaluation devices 20, but the number of evaluation devices 20 that the system SYS has is not limited to three; it may be one, two, or four or more.

[0028] Server 30 is a computer that functions as a cloud server CS, as described later. The head maker utilizes a portion of Server 30. The evaluation device 20 is connected to Server 30 via a network NW such as a LAN, WAN, and the Internet. LAN is an abbreviation for Local Area Network. WAN is an abbreviation for Wide Area Network.

[0029] 1-3. Server 30 Configuration Figure 3 shows an example of the configuration of server 30. Server 30 includes a control circuit 31, a memory circuit 32, and a communication device 38. The control circuit 31, the memory circuit 32, and the communication device 38 are interconnected by a bus 39 for communicating information.

[0030] The control circuit 31 includes, for example, one or more processors such as CPUs. CPU is an abbreviation for Central Processing Unit. The control circuit 31 may also include a programmable logic device such as an FPGA in place of, or in addition to, a CPU. FPGA is an abbreviation for Field Programmable Gate Array.

[0031] The memory circuit 32 is composed of a magnetic storage device or flash ROM, etc. The memory circuit 32 is readable by the control circuit 31 and stores multiple programs, including the virtualization program VM and control program PM1 executed by the control circuit 31, the history database RD, and various information used by the control circuit 31. The virtualization program VM divides the resources of the server 30, such as the control circuit 31 and the memory circuit 32, into multiple parts, and operates each of the divided resources as a cloud server CS. The headmaker uses some of the multiple cloud servers CS as part of the server 30. The control program PM1 is developed by the headmaker. The control program PM1 and the history database RD are used to realize the services provided by the system SYS.

[0032] However, the memory circuit 32 does not need to have a virtualization program VM, and the evaluation device 20 may access server 30 instead of cloud server CS.

[0033] The memory circuit 32 includes, for example, one or more volatile memories such as RAM and one or more non-volatile memories such as ROM, EEPROM, or PROM, or both, as semiconductor memory. RAM is an abbreviation for Random Access Memory. ROM is an abbreviation for Read Only Memory. EEPROM is an abbreviation for Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory. PROM is an abbreviation for Programmable ROM.

[0034] The communication device 38 is hardware having a communication circuit for communicating with the evaluation device 20 via a network NW. The communication device 38 may also be referred to as a network device, network controller, network card, or communication module, for example.

[0035] 1-4. Configuration of the evaluation device 20 Figure 4 shows the configuration of the evaluation device 20. The evaluation device 20 includes a control circuit 21, a memory circuit 22, a communication device 23, an input device 26, a display device 27, a moving mechanism 91, a transport mechanism 92, a drive signal generation circuit 2, an inkjet head HU, and an imaging device 29.

[0036] The control circuit 21 includes, for example, one or more processors such as CPUs. The control circuit 21 may also include a programmable logic device such as an FPGA in place of, or in addition to, a CPU.

[0037] The memory circuit 22 is composed of a magnetic memory device or flash ROM, etc. The memory circuit 22 is readable by the control circuit 21 and stores multiple programs, including the recommended program PM2 executed by the control circuit 21, and various information used by the control circuit 21. The memory circuit 22 includes, for example, one or more volatile memories such as RAM and one or more non-volatile memories such as ROM, EEPROM, or PROM, or both, as semiconductor memory. The recommended program PM2 may, for example, be pre-installed on the evaluation device 20, or it may be downloaded from the cloud server CS running on the server 30 and installed on the evaluation device 20 when the evaluation device 20 is first connected to the server 30.

[0038] The communication device 23 is hardware having a communication circuit for communicating with the server 30 via the network NW. The communication device 23 may also be referred to as a network device, network controller, network card, or communication module, for example.

[0039] The input device 26 is a device that outputs operation information in response to user U's actions. The input device 26 is, for example, a mouse and a keyboard.

[0040] The display device 27 displays an image containing some information to the user U. The display device 27 is an organic EL display, an LED display, or an LCD. EL is an abbreviation for Electro-Luminescence. LED is an abbreviation for Light Emitting Diode. LCD is an abbreviation for Liquid Crystal Display. Alternatively, the input device 26 and the display device 27 may be integrated into a single unit. An example of an integrated configuration of the input device 26 and the display device 27 is a touch panel.

[0041] The moving mechanism 91, transport mechanism 92, drive signal generation circuit 2, and inkjet head HU included in the evaluation device 20 have the same functions as the moving mechanism 91, transport mechanism 92, drive signal generation circuit 2, and inkjet head HU included in the inkjet printer 10 shown in Figure 1, so their explanation is omitted.

[0042] The imaging device 29 images ink droplets ejected from the inkjet head HU. Specifically, the imaging device 29 includes, for example, an imaging optical system and an image sensor. The imaging optical system is an optical system including at least one imaging lens, and may include various optical elements such as prisms, and may also include zoom lenses or focus lenses. The image sensor is, for example, a CCD image sensor or a CMOS image sensor. CCD is an abbreviation for Charge Coupled Device. CMOS is an abbreviation for Complementary MOS.

[0043] To implement the functions of the evaluation device 20 described above, namely the function of observing the ejection state of ink droplets ejected from the inkjet head HU and the function of observing how the ink droplets land on the medium PP, the control circuit 21 transmits an imaging instruction Sk1 to the imaging device 29, transmits a print signal SI to the inkjet head HU, and transmits a waveform specification signal dCom to the drive signal generation circuit 2. The imaging device 29 transmits image information to the control circuit 21 showing an image of either or both of the ink droplets in flight and the ink droplets that have landed on the medium PP.

[0044] 1-5. Historical Database RD The services provided by System SYS require the recommendation of ink ejection usage conditions suitable for the usage condition information JI entered by User U. Below, the information indicating the usage conditions recommended by System SYS may be referred to as Recommended Information RI. Recommended Information RI has item values ​​corresponding to one or more items related to ink ejection. One or more items related to ink ejection are, for example, one or more items such as ink type, ink physical properties, and inkjet head HU ejection characteristics. Ejection characteristics are, for example, one or both of ejection volume and ejection speed. Usage condition information JI also has values ​​for one or more items related to ink ejection. Below, one or more items related to ink ejection may be simply referred to as "items," and the values ​​of one or more items related to ink ejection may be referred to as "item values." Furthermore, the item values ​​included in Usage Condition Information JI may be referred to as "input item values." Also, the item values ​​included in Recommended Information RI may be referred to as "recommended item values."

[0045] One possible method for determining the recommended information RI is to determine the usage conditions related to ink ejection by applying an automatic algorithm. However, while this method can recommend usage conditions based on usage condition information JI to the user U, the processing time by the automatic algorithm is excessive, and the recommended information RI determined by the automatic algorithm is not always favorable to the user U; in other words, the quality of the recommended information RI may be reduced. Another possible method is to store the correspondence between the input item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI and waveform information showing a drive waveform that could be one of the recommended item values ​​in a history database RD, and then recommend waveform information corresponding to the usage condition information JI input by the user U based on the history database RD. The drive signal Com has the drive waveform shown in the waveform information. In this method, if the history database RD contains the same information as the usage condition information JI input by the user U, it is possible to recommend waveform information favorable to the user U, that is, to provide high-quality recommended information RI. However, if the usage condition information JI specifies an ink type unknown to the head manufacturer, it was not possible to recommend waveform information favorable to the user U. While head manufacturers could provide appropriate waveform information and guarantee suitable results by conducting experiments each time, the vast diversity of usage condition information (JI) and waveform information, requiring numerous experiments, made it practically difficult to construct a historical database (RD) that could recommend waveform information favorable to the user (U). Therefore, even when maintaining high-quality recommendation information (RI), it was difficult to easily construct a historical database (RD).

[0046] Therefore, in this embodiment, the system SYS stores records with multiple item values ​​in the history database RD, searches for records with appropriate item values ​​according to the item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI, sets one or more item values ​​included in the searched record as recommended item values, and provides the user U with recommended information RI containing these recommended item values.

[0047] 1-6. Functions and Operation of the System SYS Figure 5 shows the functions of the system SYS. The control circuit 21 functions as a reception unit 211, transmission unit 213, receiving unit 215, and recommendation unit 217 by reading the recommended program PM2 and executing the read recommended program PM2. The server 30 functions as a cloud server CS by reading the virtualization program VM and executing the read virtualization program VM. The cloud server CS reads the control program PM1 and executes the control program PM1, thereby functioning as a receiving unit 301, search unit 303, and transmission unit 305.

[0048] The history database RD is accessible from the evaluation device 20 included in the system SYS, and from a computer not shown in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 5, the history database RD has correspondence information CI and ink table IkT. Correspondence information CI will be explained using Figure 6, and ink table IkT will be explained using Figure 8.

[0049] Figure 6 shows an example of the contents of a correspondence information CI. A correspondence information CI has one or more records RC1, each containing a numerical value indicating the user ID, a numerical value indicating the confidence level, a string indicating the ink type, a string indicating the head type, a string indicating the ejection volume level, a string indicating the ejection speed level, a string identifying the waveform information, and a string indicating the temperature range. The correspondence information CI shown in Figure 6 includes records RC1_1 to RC1_14. Hereafter, records included in a correspondence information CI may be referred to simply as record RC1 without distinction.

[0050] Note that the ink type, head type, ejection volume level, ejection speed level, drive waveform indicated by the waveform information, and temperature range correspond to "one or more items related to ink ejection." The string indicating the ink type corresponds to the "item value" corresponding to the ink type that corresponds to the "item related to ink ejection." Similarly, the string indicating the ejection volume level corresponds to the "item value" corresponding to the ejection volume level. The string indicating the ejection speed level corresponds to the "item value" corresponding to the ejection speed level. The string indicating the drive waveform type corresponds to the "item value" corresponding to the drive waveform. The string indicating the temperature range corresponds to the "item value" corresponding to the temperature range.

[0051] Note that Record RC1, as shown in Figure 6, has all of the item values ​​shown in Figure 6, but it may also have only some of the item values.

[0052] The numerical value representing the user ID is a number that uniquely identifies user U, and the item value shown in a particular record RC1 indicates user U who used the inkjet head HU. For simplicity of explanation, user U who used the inkjet head HU, as indicated by the item value shown in a particular record RC1, may be referred to as registered user Ur. The numerical value representing the user ID can also be said to be a numerical value that identifies registered user Ur. In the example in Figure 6, different numerical values ​​are set for each of the records RC1_1 to RC1_14, but there may be two or more records RC1 with numerical values ​​that represent the same user U. In addition, the numerical value representing the user ID may also include a numerical value that indicates the head manufacturer. A record RC1 that includes a numerical value that indicates the head manufacturer indicates that it is a record registered by the head manufacturer in the corresponding information CI. Hereafter, the head manufacturer will also be described as one of the users of the system SYS.

[0053] The numerical value indicating reliability represents the degree of trust in the registered user Ur. In the example shown in Figure 6, a higher numerical value indicates a higher degree of reliability. For example, the usage history of the inkjet head HU of a registered user Ur with high reliability is shorter than that of an inkjet head HU of a registered user Ur with low reliability. It can be said that the quality of records RC1 registered by a registered user Ur with high reliability tends to be higher than the quality of records RC1 registered by a registered user Ur with low reliability. In other words, reliability can be said to indicate the degree of quality of records RC1. The numerical value indicating reliability is set, for example, by the head manufacturer appropriately evaluating the registered user Ur. Alternatively, the system SYS may have a function that allows it to set a high rating for each record RC1 in the corresponding information CI when the evaluation device 20 accesses the corresponding information CI through the operation of user U. The numerical value indicating reliability may then be set according to the number of high ratings set for each record RC1.

[0054] The string indicating the ink type is a string that uniquely identifies the ink used by the inkjet head HU used by the registered user Ur. The string indicating the ink type is, for example, the name of the ink. For simplicity of explanation, in this specification, the string indicating the ink type is denoted as "Ink_x," where x is any single character.

[0055] The string indicating the head type is a string that uniquely identifies the inkjet head HU used by the registered user Ur. For simplicity of explanation, in this specification, the string indicating the head type is denoted as "Head_x," where x is any single character.

[0056] The string indicating the ejection volume level is a string that indicates the level to which the ejection volume of the inkjet head HU used by registered user Ur belongs, out of several levels that divide the range of possible ejection volumes (the amount of ink droplets ejected from a typical inkjet head HU). In this specification, for the sake of simplicity, the string indicating the ejection volume level is denoted as "Iw_x", where x is any single character. In this specification, the range of possible ejection volumes is divided into four levels. The strings indicating these four levels are "Iw_A" for ejection volumes less than 4 [ng], "Iw_B" for ejection volumes between 4 [ng] and 7 [ng], "Iw_C" for ejection volumes between 7 [ng] and 10 [ng], and "Iw_D" for ejection volumes of 10 [ng] or more. [ng] stands for nanogram.

[0057] The string indicating the ejection speed level is a string that indicates the level to which the ejection speed of the inkjet head HU used by the registered user Ur belongs, out of several levels that divide the range of possible ejection speeds, i.e., the speed of ink droplets ejected from a typical inkjet head HU. In this specification, for the sake of simplicity, the string indicating the ejection speed level is denoted as "Vm_x". In this specification, the range of possible ejection speeds is divided into four levels. The strings indicating these four levels are "Vm_A" when the ejection speed is less than 6 [m / s], "Vm_B" when the ejection volume is 6 [m / s] or more and less than 9 [m / s], "Vm_C" when the ejection volume is 9 [m / s] or more and less than 12 [m / s], and "Vm_D" when the ejection volume is 12 [m / s] or more.

[0058] Furthermore, the ejection volume level and ejection speed level correspond to "multiple items related to ink ejection" and also to "multiple ejection characteristic items included in the ejection characteristics of the inkjet head."

[0059] The string identifying the waveform information is a string that identifies the waveform information showing the drive waveform applied to the inkjet head HU used by the registered user Ur. The waveform information shows the potential value applied to the inkjet head HU during one drive cycle, which is a division of the operating period of the inkjet printer 10. In this specification, for the sake of simplicity, the string identifying the waveform information is denoted as "No_x", where x is any single character. Although different from the example in Figure 6, the string identifying the waveform information may also be, for example, a string that indicates the characteristics of the drive waveform shown by the waveform information. Examples of strings that indicate the characteristics of the drive waveform shown by the waveform information are "large dot waveform" and "small dot waveform". The waveform information will be explained using Figure 7.

[0060] Figure 7 shows an example of a drive waveform PX as indicated by waveform information. The drive waveform PX has a first period in which the potential is lowered from the intermediate potential V0 to the lowest potential VLX, a second period in which the lowest potential VLX is maintained, a third period in which the potential is raised from the lowest potential VLX to the highest potential VHX, a fourth period in which the highest potential VHX is maintained, and a fifth period in which the potential is lowered from the highest potential VHX to the intermediate potential V0. The waveform information includes, for example, termination information that includes information indicating the end time and the end potential of each period of the drive waveform PX. For example, the waveform information includes termination information for each of the first to fifth periods.

[0061] Note that the string used to identify waveform information is just one example of "information related to waveform information." Information related to waveform information is not limited to a string used to identify waveform information. For example, information related to waveform information may also be image information showing the shape of the drive waveform indicated by the waveform information.

[0062] Returning to FIG. 6. The character string indicating the temperature range indicates the range of environmental temperature when the registered user Ur uses the inkjet head HU. In this specification, the character strings indicating the temperature ranges are: "T≦10" indicating that the environmental temperature is 10 degrees Celsius or lower, "10<T≦20" indicating that the environmental temperature is higher than 10 degrees Celsius and 20 degrees Celsius or lower, "20<T≦30" indicating that the environmental temperature is higher than 20 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius or lower, "30<T≦40" indicating that the environmental temperature is higher than 30 degrees Celsius and 40 degrees Celsius or lower, and "40<T" indicating that the environmental temperature is higher than 40 degrees Celsius. Note that the temperature range is an example of the "use environment of the inkjet head".

[0063] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the contents of the ink table IkT. The ink table IkT has one or more records RC2 that associate information related to ink for one or more types of ink. The ink table IkT has one or more records RC2, each of which includes a character string indicating the type of ink, a numerical value indicating density, a numerical value indicating viscosity, a numerical value indicating surface tension, a character string indicating the type of solvent, a character string indicating the type of colorant, and information indicating suitability for use. The ink table IkT shown in FIG. 7 includes records RC2_1 to RC2_4. Hereinafter, records included in the ink table IkT may be referred to as record RC2 without distinction. Furthermore, record RC1 and record RC2 may be collectively referred to as record RC without distinction.

[0064] The record RC2 is registered in the ink table IkT by the head manufacturer, and may also be registered by the user U of the evaluation apparatus 20.

[0065] The character string indicating the type of ink is identical to the character string indicating the type of ink in the correspondence information CI. However, the character string indicating the type of ink in the ink table IkT is also a character string that uniquely identifies the record RC2. Hereinafter, an ink uniquely identified by the character string indicating the type of ink in a certain record RC2 may be referred to as a registered ink.

[0066] The numerical value indicating density is the density of the registered ink. Hereafter, the numerical value indicating density may be referred to as the density value. In the example in Figure 7, the density value of the registered ink is given as [kg / m³]. 3 The units are shown in [ ].

[0067] The viscosity value is the viscosity of the registered ink. Hereafter, the viscosity value may be referred to as the viscosity value. In the example in Figure 7, the viscosity value of the registered ink is shown in units of [mPa·s].

[0068] The numerical value indicating surface tension is the surface tension of the registered ink. Hereafter, the numerical value indicating surface tension may be referred to as the surface tension value. In the example in Figure 7, the surface tension value of the registered ink is shown in units of [mN / m].

[0069] The string indicating the solvent type is the string indicating the solvent type of the registered ink.

[0070] The string indicating the type of colorant is the string indicating the type of registered ink.

[0071] The application suitability information indicates whether the registered ink is suitable for each of the one or more applications in which the inkjet head HU is used. The application suitability information consists of an "OK" string indicating that the registered ink is suitable for the application and an "NG" string indicating that the registered ink is not suitable for the application. In the example in Figure 7, the application suitability information indicates whether the registered ink is suitable for sign printing, whether the registered ink is suitable for label printing, and whether the registered ink is suitable for printing on fabric, for three applications.

[0072] In addition to the type of ink, density, viscosity, surface tension, solvent type, colorant type, and suitability for application also correspond to "one or more items related to ink ejection" and "one or more items related to ink." The suitability for application also corresponds to "items related to applications using an inkjet head." Furthermore, density, viscosity, and surface tension correspond to "one or more physical properties of the ink." Density value, viscosity value, and surface tension value correspond to "one or more physical property values ​​of the ink." Also, sign printing, label printing, and printing on fabric are examples of "applications using an inkjet head."

[0073] Note that Record RC2, as shown in Figure 7, may have all of the item values ​​shown in Figure 7, but it may also have only some of the item values.

[0074] Note that record RC1 included in the correspondence information CI and record RC2 included in the ink table IkT are examples of "multiple pairs". Record RC1 included in the correspondence information CI and record RC2 included in the ink table IkT are used by one or more users who have access to the system SYS.

[0075] In addition to the items shown in Figures 6 and 7, the history database RD may also include one or more items related to the inkjet head HU. These one or more items related to the inkjet head HU may include, for example, the model number of the inkjet head HU, the type of ink corresponding to the inkjet head HU, the size of the inkjet head HU, an image showing the appearance of the inkjet head HU, the number of nozzles Nz on the inkjet head HU, the resolution of the inkjet head HU, the effective print width of the inkjet head HU, the number of ink colors of the inkjet head HU, whether or not the ink circulates within the inkjet head HU, the viscosity of the ink corresponding to the inkjet head HU, and the amount of ink droplets on the inkjet head HU.

[0076] Furthermore, the history database RD may include, in addition to one or more items related to the inkjet head HU, items related to the ink cartridge and the minimum value of the drive cycle. The minimum value of the drive cycle can also be expressed as the maximum value of the drive frequency. In addition, as an example of ejection characteristic items, the history database RD may include the image of the ink droplet ejected from the inkjet head HU, one or more items related to ejection stability, and residual vibration. Residual vibration is the vibration that remains in the pressure chamber where pressure is applied by the piezoelectric element, which is an example of a drive element (not shown) included in the inkjet head HU, after the drive signal Com is supplied to the piezoelectric element. The item value corresponding to residual vibration is information indicating the potential corresponding to the electromotive force of the piezoelectric element due to residual vibration until a certain period of time has elapsed since the drive signal Com was supplied. Note that the inkjet head HU does not necessarily have a piezoelectric element and may have a heating element. One or more items related to ejection stability are, for example, the variation in ejection speed, the curvature of ejection speed, and the number of satellites. The item value corresponding to the variation in ejection speed is, for example, the variance value of the ejection speed. The curve of the ejection speed is a value that indicates the angle of the ejection direction with respect to the Z axis. A satellite is a fine ink droplet that separates from the main ink droplet when the main ink droplet is ejected. Therefore, the value corresponding to the number of satellites is a numerical value that indicates the number of fine ink droplets that have separated from the main ink droplet.

[0077] Furthermore, the history database RD may include a humidity range as an example of the "inkjet head usage environment." The humidity range is the range of ambient humidity when registered user Ur uses the inkjet head HU.

[0078] Furthermore, the history database RD may include items related to ink other than those corresponding to "one or more items related to ink" in the ink table IkT shown in Figure 7. Examples of items related to ink include the components of the ink, the speed at which sound travels through the ink, the contact angle within the medium PP or nozzle Nz, the concentration of solid components contained in the ink, and the particle size distribution within the ink.

[0079] Furthermore, the history database RD may include comments by user U. In addition, as mentioned above, the history database RD may have a function that allows setting a high rating for record RC1, and user U may also be able to set comments for record RC1 in addition to setting an rating. The rating for a record RC1 may be given by user U who registered the record RC1, or by a different user U. For example, user U_y, who is different from user U who registered a record RC1_x, downloads the waveform information identified by record RC1_x to the evaluation device 20_y. The evaluation device 20_y supplies a drive signal Com having the drive waveform indicated by the downloaded waveform information to the inkjet head HU. The evaluation device 20_y sends a comment indicating user U_y's evaluation of the ejection result to the cloud server CS. The cloud server CS associates the received comment with record RC1_x. Similarly, the history database RD may allow setting a high rating for record RC2, and may allow setting comments for record RC2.

[0080] Note that the history database RD is an example of "history information." The correspondence information CI shown in Figure 5 has item values ​​corresponding to six items related to ink ejection: ink type, head type, ejection volume level, ejection speed level, drive waveform indicated by waveform information, and temperature range. However, there only need to be two or more items related to ink ejection. For example, if the correspondence information CI has item values ​​corresponding to two items related to ink ejection, one of the two items corresponds to the "first item" and the other corresponds to the "second item." Also, there only needs to be one or more item values ​​corresponding to items related to ink ejection.

[0081] Figure 9 is a flowchart showing the operation of the system SYS. In step SJ2, the control circuit 21 of the evaluation device 20_x operated by user U_x functions as a reception unit 211 and receives usage condition information JI, which includes one or more input item values, based on the operation information from user U_x's input device 26. x is any integer from 1 to 3. Step SJ2 corresponds to the "reception process".

[0082] Note that user U_x is an example of a "specific user". However, the history database RD shows the history of inkjet head HU being used by a user other than user U_x. A "user other than user U_x" could be user U of the evaluation device 20, or a head manufacturer, who is different from user U_x. Also, user U_x may or may not have previously registered record RC included in the history database RD. In other words, the history database RD may or may not include the history of inkjet head HU being used by user U_x. To put it another way, the "history information showing the history of use by a user other than a specific user" may or may not include the history of use by the "specific user". Specifically, in the processing of step SJ2, the evaluation device 20_x displays an input screen IW on the display device 27 for user U_x to input usage condition information JI, and waits for user U_x's operation. An example of the input screen IW is explained using Figure 10.

[0083] Figure 10 shows an example of an input screen IW. The input screen IW is a screen that prompts the user U_x to input item values ​​corresponding to one or more items related to ink ejection. The input screen IW has an area TE1 where the names of two or more items related to ink ejection are displayed, an area TE2 where input fields IF and selection fields SF are placed for inputting item values ​​corresponding to two or more items related to ink ejection, and an input completion button BT1. In Figure 10, in order to prevent the drawing from becoming too complex, only six items related to ink ejection shown in Figures 6 and 7 are displayed: ink type, density, viscosity, head type, ejection volume level, and ejection speed level. Area TE2 shown in Figure 6 has two input fields IF and four selection fields SF. The two input fields IF are input field IF1, which prompts the user U_x to input the density value, and input field IF2, which prompts the user U_x to input the viscosity value. The four selection fields SF are: selection field SF1, which allows the user U_x to select a string indicating the ink type; selection field SF2, which allows the user U_x to select a string indicating the head type; selection field SF3, which allows the user U_x to select a string indicating the ejection volume level; and selection field SF4, which allows the user U_x to select a string indicating the ejection speed level.

[0084] User U_x operates the input device 26 to input or select an item value for at least one of the input field IF and selection field SF located in area TE2. For example, if user U_x wants to use an ink registered in the history database RD, they select a string indicating the type of ink from the selection field SF1. On the other hand, if the ink is not registered in the history database RD, user U_x inputs physical properties such as the density value, viscosity value, and surface tension value (not shown in Figure 7) of the ink they want to use. The input screen IW shown in Figure 10 shows the state where user U_x has entered "Ink_A" in input field IF1 and selected "Iw_A" in selection field SF1. When the input end button BT1 is pressed, the evaluation device 20_x generates usage condition information JI with the input item values ​​that were entered or selected at the time the input end button BT1 was pressed.

[0085] Return to Figure 9 for the explanation. After the processing of step SJ2 is completed, in step SJ4, the control circuit 21 functions as a transmitter 213 and controls the communication device 23 to send the usage condition information JI to the cloud server CS. After the processing of step SJ4 is completed, the control circuit 21 waits for a response from the cloud server CS.

[0086] In step SC2, the cloud server CS functions as the receiving unit 301 and receives usage condition information JI from the evaluation device 20_x. By executing the process in step SC2, the cloud server CS also functions as an "acquisition unit" that acquires the usage condition information JI. After the completion of the process in step SC2, in step SC4, the cloud server CS functions as the search unit 303 and executes the search process. The search process will be explained using Figure 11.

[0087] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing the operation of the search process. In step SC20, the cloud server CS performs the input ink and output head setting process. The input ink and output head setting process will be explained using Figure 12.

[0088] Figure 12 is a flowchart showing the input ink and output head setting process. The input ink and output head setting process is the process of setting the input head and the output head, which will be described later. In step SC22, the cloud server CS determines whether or not the string indicating the type of ink included in the usage condition information JI exists in the history database RD. If the usage condition information JI does not contain the string indicating the type of ink, the cloud server CS determines that the result of step SC22 is negative.

[0089] If the result of step SC22 is positive, the cloud server CS sets the ink identified as the ink type included in the usage conditions information JI as the input ink in step SC24. On the other hand, if the result of step SC22 is negative, the cloud server CS obtains the physical properties of the ink in the usage conditions information JI in step SC26. The physical properties of the ink are one or more of the density value, viscosity value, and surface tension value, as described above. If the physical properties of the ink are not included in the usage conditions information JI, the cloud server CS may request the evaluation device 20_x to input the physical properties of the ink to user U_x.

[0090] After the processing in step SC26 is completed, the cloud server CS, in the processing in step SC28, sets as the input ink an ink from among the one or more inks registered in the ink table IkT that is similar to the ink obtained in the processing in step SC26. In the first embodiment, the cloud server CS sets as the input ink an ink having physical properties similar to the physical properties of the ink obtained in the processing in step SC26. Hereinafter, the ink registered in the ink table IkT may be referred to as "registered ink". Furthermore, the physical properties of the ink obtained in the processing in step SC26 may be referred to as "obtained physical properties". Furthermore, hereinafter, the viscosity value among the obtained physical properties may be referred to as "obtained viscosity value", the density value among the obtained physical properties may be referred to as "obtained density value", and the surface tension value among the obtained physical properties may be referred to as "obtained surface tension value". The processing in step SC28 will be explained using Figures 13 and 14.

[0091] Figures 13 and 14 are diagrams illustrating the process of step SC28. In Figures 13 and 14, two examples of usage condition information JI are shown: usage condition information JI_a1 and usage condition information JI_a2. Hereafter, usage condition information JI_a1 and usage condition information JI_a2 may be referred to simply as usage condition information JI without distinction. For ease of understanding, the usage condition information JI shown in Figures 13 and 14 includes the name of an item such as "density," but the usage condition information JI may or may not include the name of an item.

[0092] In step SC28, the cloud server CS determines inks with similar physical properties to the acquired physical properties according to Table Tb1 shown in Figure 13. Table Tb1 indicates that, in determining whether the physical properties of two inks are similar, viscosity is given the highest priority among the three physical properties of ink: density, viscosity, and surface tension, followed by density, and finally surface tension. Specifically, in step SC28, the cloud server CS performs a viscosity comparison process to determine whether there is a viscosity value close to the acquired viscosity value among the viscosity values ​​of one or more registered inks. A viscosity value close to the acquired viscosity value among one or more registered inks means that the absolute value of the difference between the viscosity value of any of the one or more registered inks and the acquired viscosity value is less than a threshold predetermined by the head manufacturer. If the viscosity value of any one of the one or more registered inks is close to the acquired viscosity value, the cloud server CS sets the registered ink with a viscosity value close to the acquired viscosity value as the input ink. Furthermore, if the viscosity values ​​of two or more registered inks are close to the acquired viscosity value, the cloud server CS sets the registered ink with the viscosity value closest to the acquired viscosity value as the input ink. On the other hand, if the viscosity values ​​of all one or more registered inks are not close to the acquired viscosity value, the cloud server CS performs the density comparison process described later. Note that even if the acquired physical property value does not include viscosity, the cloud server CS also performs the density comparison process.

[0093] If the viscosity values ​​of all registered inks from one or more registered inks are not close to the acquired viscosity value, or if viscosity is not included in the acquired physical properties, the cloud server CS performs a density comparison process to determine whether there is a density value close to the acquired density value among the density values ​​of each of the one or more registered inks. Subsequently, the cloud server CS performs a density comparison process in the same manner as the viscosity comparison process. If the density values ​​of all registered inks from one or more registered inks are not close to the acquired density value, the cloud server CS performs the surface tension comparison process described later. Note that the cloud server CS also performs the surface tension comparison process if density is not included in the acquired physical properties.

[0094] If the density values ​​of all registered inks from one or more registered inks are not close to the acquired density value, or if the acquired physical properties do not include a density value, the cloud server CS performs a surface tension comparison process to determine whether there is a surface tension value among the surface tension values ​​of each registered ink from one or more registered inks that is close to the acquired surface tension value. If the surface tension values ​​of all registered inks from one or more registered inks are not close to the surface tension value among the acquired physical properties, or if the acquired physical properties do not include a surface tension value, the cloud server CS may terminate the series of processes shown in Figures 9, 11, and 12, by determining that there are no inks with physical properties similar to the ink whose physical properties were acquired by the process in step SC28. Alternatively, the cloud server CS may have user U_x select an ink from one or more registered inks that user U_x considers to be similar to the ink whose physical properties were acquired by the process in step SC26.

[0095] The usage condition information JI_a1 illustrated in Figure 13 is the ink density value of 600 [kg / m³]. 3 The input fields include the viscosity value of the ink, which is 5 [mPa·s], and the surface tension value of the ink, which is 40 [mN / m]. In step SC28, the cloud server CS sets the registered ink "Ink_C" registered in record RC2_3 as the input ink because its viscosity value is 5 [mPa·s].

[0096] The usage condition information JI_a2, illustrated in Figure 14, differs from the usage condition information JI_a1 in that it has the ink viscosity value of 4.2 [mPa·s] as an input item value, while other physical properties are the same. In the example in Figure 14, the absolute value obtained by subtracting the acquired viscosity value of 4.2 [mPa·s] from the viscosity value of the registered ink "Ink_A" registered in record RC2_1, which is 4 [mPa·s], is 0.2 [mPa·s]. Similarly, the absolute value obtained by subtracting the acquired viscosity value of 4.2 [mPa·s] from the viscosity value of the registered ink "Ink_C" registered in record RC2_3, which is 5 [mPa·s], is 0.8 [mPa·s]. It is assumed that both 0.2 [mPa·s] and 0.8 [mPa·s] are below the threshold predetermined by the printhead manufacturer. In this case, the cloud server CS sets the registered ink "Ink_A," which has the viscosity value closest to the acquired viscosity value, as the input ink.

[0097] In the example in Figure 14, the viscosity of the ink corresponds to "Item 1," the density or surface tension of the ink corresponds to "Item 2," and the type of ink corresponds to "Item 3." The acquired viscosity value of 4.2 [mPa·s] corresponds to the "Third Viscosity Value," the viscosity value of the registered ink "Ink_A" of 4 [mPa·s] corresponds to the "First Viscosity Value," and the viscosity value of the registered ink "Ink_C" of 5 [mPa·s] corresponds to the "Second Viscosity Value." Therefore, the absolute difference of 0.2 [mPa·s] between 4 [mPa·s], which corresponds to the "First Viscosity Value," and 4.2 [mPa·s], which corresponds to the "Third Viscosity Value," is smaller than the absolute difference of 0.8 [mPa·s] between 5 [mPa·s], which corresponds to the "Second Viscosity Value," and 4.2 [mPa·s], which corresponds to the "Third Viscosity Value." The string "Ink_A" indicating the ink type corresponds to "first ink information indicating the first ink type," and the string "Ink_A" indicating the ink type corresponds to "second ink information indicating the second ink type." The history database RD does not contain a record RC that includes the acquired viscosity value of 4.2 [mPa·s]. Record RC2_1 corresponds to "a set containing the first viscosity value and the first ink information," and record RC2_3 corresponds to "a set containing the second viscosity value and the second ink information." Note that the information indicating the ink type is not limited to a string indicating the ink type; for example, it may be a numerical value indicating the ink type, or an ID. ID is an abbreviation for Identification.

[0098] Let's return to the explanation in Figure 12. After the processing in step SC24 or step SC28 is completed, in step SC32, the cloud server CS derives the type of head suitable for the input ink from the history database RD. Hereafter, the inkjet head HU derived in step SC32 may be referred to as the "derivated head". After the completion of step SC32, the cloud server CS terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 12. Using Figure 15, we will explain the process in step SC32, that is, the process of setting the derived head.

[0099] Figure 15 is a diagram illustrating the process of setting the derivation head. In Figure 15, usage condition information JI_b1 is shown as one example of usage condition information JI.

[0100] The process of setting the derived head can be performed in two ways, as shown below. In the example in Figure 15, the arrows relating to the process of the first way of setting the derived head are indicated by dashed lines, and the arrows relating to the process of the second way of setting the derived head are indicated by dotted lines.

[0101] In the first embodiment of setting the output head, the cloud server CS refers to record RC1, which contains a string indicating the type of input ink, and sets the inkjet head HU, which is used by the most people, as the output head. The history database RD can identify the number of people who have used record RC1, which contains a string indicating the type of input ink and a string indicating the type of head. The number of people who have used record RC1 may be counted as a separate person if the same person has registered two or more records RC1, i.e., it may mean the total number of times, or it may be counted as one person if the same person has registered two or more records RC1. Identifying the number of people who have used record RC1 means that a numerical value indicating the number of people who have used record RC1 may be included in the history database RD, or the number of people who have used record RC1 may be identified by counting the number of records RC1.

[0102] The usage condition information JI_b1 illustrated in Figure 15 contains the string "Ink_A" which indicates the type of ink. Furthermore, in the example in Figure 15, it is assumed that there are 18 records RC1 that satisfy extraction condition CN_1, where the string indicating the type of ink is "Ink_A" and the string indicating the type of head is "Head_B". It is also assumed that there are 16 records RC1 that satisfy extraction condition CN_2, where the string indicating the type of ink is "Ink_A" and the string indicating the type of head is "Head_D". Therefore, the cloud server CS sets the derived head to "Head_B" because the number of records RC1 that satisfy extraction condition CN_1 is greater than the number of records RC1 that satisfy extraction condition CN_2.

[0103] In a second embodiment of setting the output head, the cloud server CS refers to record RC1, which contains a string indicating the type of input ink, and sets the inkjet head HU, which has the highest representative confidence value for one or more users, as the output head. The representative confidence value for one or more users is a value that shows the central trend of the confidence of these one or more users, and is typically the mean. However, the representative value is not limited to the mean; for example, it may be the median or the mode. In the following explanation, the representative value will be assumed to be the mean. The history database RD can identify the average confidence value for one or more users that used record RC1, which contains a string indicating the type of input ink and a string indicating the type of head. Identifying the average confidence value for one or more users that used record RC1 means that the average confidence value for one or more users that used record RC1 may be included in the history database RD, or the average confidence value for one or more users that used record RC1 may be identified by calculating the average confidence value for one or more users that used record RC1.

[0104] In the example in Figure 15, it is assumed that the average confidence score of record RC1 satisfying extraction condition CN_1 is 1.72, and the average confidence score of record RC1 satisfying extraction condition CN_2 is 2.44. Therefore, the cloud server CS sets the derived head to "Head_D" because the average confidence score of record RC1 satisfying extraction condition CN_2 is higher than the average confidence score of record RC1 satisfying extraction condition CN_1.

[0105] Furthermore, the cloud server CS may perform an action that combines the first and second modes for setting the output head. For example, the cloud server CS may refer to record RC1, which contains a string indicating the type of input ink, and set the inkjet head HU, which has the largest number of users weighted by confidence, as the output head.

[0106] Furthermore, common to both the first and second embodiments for setting the output head, the ink type is an example of the "first item," "Ink_A" is an example of the "first item value," the head type is an example of the "second item," "Head_B" is an example of the "second item value," and "Head_D" is an example of the "third item value." In addition, extraction condition CN_1 is an example of the "first condition including the first item value and the second item value," and extraction condition CN_2 is an example of the "second condition including the first item value and the third item value." Record RC1 that satisfies extraction condition CN_1 is an example of the "set that satisfies the first condition," and record RC1 that satisfies extraction condition CN_2 is an example of the "set that satisfies the second condition."

[0107] Return to the explanation in Figure 11. After the processing in step SC32 is completed, the cloud server CS determines in step SC34 whether or not the usage condition information JI contains a string indicating the type of head.

[0108] If the result of step SC34 is positive, the cloud server CS determines in step SC36 whether the output head matches the inkjet head HU identified by the string indicating the head type in the usage conditions information JI. Hereafter, the inkjet head HU identified by the head type included in the usage conditions information JI may be referred to as the "input head".

[0109] If the result of step SC36 is positive, the cloud server CS derives item values ​​in step SC42 that correspond to one or more items from the following: usage condition information JI, input ink, ejection characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range, depending on the output head. The derived item values ​​are the recommended item values ​​for user U_x. Hereinafter, the derived item values ​​may be referred to as recommended item values. The recommended item values ​​corresponding to usage condition information JI, input ink, and output head are the item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI, the input ink, and the output head, and of record RC1 which has the output head, the item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI, the input ink, and the output head, excluding the item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI, the input ink, and the output head. The specific processing of step SC42 will be described later using Figure 16. Even if the result of step SC34 is negative, the cloud server CS still executes the processing of step SC42.

[0110] If the result of step SC36 is negative, the cloud server CS derives recommended item values ​​in step SC44 corresponding to one or more items from the usage condition information JI, input ink, ejection characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range according to the input head. Furthermore, in step SC46, the cloud server CS derives recommended item values ​​corresponding to one or more items from the usage condition information JI, input ink, ejection characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range according to the output head. In steps SC42, SC44, and SC46, the cloud server CS generates recommended information RI with the derived recommended item values. Steps SC42, SC44, and SC46, that is, examples of the generation of recommended information RI, will be explained using Figures 16 and 17.

[0111] Figures 16 and 17 illustrate examples of generating recommended information (RI). The summary table Ag shown in Figure 16 aggregates all records RC1 of the corresponding information (CI) that satisfy the condition that the string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A", and shows the number of users for each combination of head type, ejection volume level, and ejection speed level. For example, summary table Ag shows that there are 4 users of record RC1 that satisfies the condition that the string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A", the string indicating the head type is "Head_A", the string indicating the ejection volume level is "Iw_A", and the string indicating the ejection speed level is "Vm_A".

[0112] Figure 16 shows three examples of usage condition information JI: usage condition information JI_b1, usage condition information JI_b2, and usage condition information JI_b3. Figure 17 shows usage condition information JI_a2 as an example of usage condition information JI. Also, Figure 16 shows recommended information RI_b1 generated based on usage condition information JI_b1, recommended information RI_b2 generated based on usage condition information JI_b2, and recommended information RI_b3 generated based on usage condition information JI_b3. Figure 17 shows recommended information RI_a2 generated based on usage condition information JI_a2. Hereafter, recommended information RI_b1, recommended information RI_b2, recommended information RI_b3, and recommended information RI_a2 may be referred to simply as recommended information RI. To facilitate understanding, the Recommended Information RIs shown in Figures 16 and 17 include item names such as "Head Type," but the Recommended Information RIs do not necessarily have to include item names, or they may or may not.

[0113] In the usage condition information JI_b1, it is premised that the derived head is set to "Head_B". Furthermore, the usage condition information JI_b1 does not include a character string indicating the type of head. Therefore, the cloud server CS determines that the determination result of step SC34 is negative, and executes the processing of step SC42. The usage condition information JI_b1 only includes the character string "Ink_A" indicating the type of ink. Therefore, the cloud server CS searches for a combination of a discharge amount level and a discharge speed level with the largest number of users from the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b1, wherein the character string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A" and the character string indicating the head type is "Head_B". Among the records RC1 satisfying the extraction condition CN_b1, the number of users for each combination of a discharge amount level and a discharge speed level is shown in a range Ag_b1 illustrated in FIG. 16. As can be understood from the range Ag_b1, among the combinations of a discharge amount level and a discharge speed level obtained from the records RC1 satisfying the extraction condition CN_b1, the combination in which the character string indicating the discharge amount level is "Iw_B" and the character string indicating the discharge speed level is "Vm_B" has the largest number of users. Therefore, the cloud server CS generates one or more item values not included in the usage condition information JI as recommended information RI_b1 from each item value of the record RC1 having "Ink_A", "Head_B", "Iw_B" and "Vm_B". In the illustration of FIG. 6, the records RC1 having "Ink_A", "Head_B", "Iw_B" and "Vm_B" are records RC1_1 to RC_12. The cloud server CS generates the recommended information RI_b1 including "Head_B", "Iw_B" and "Vm_B" as recommended item values. The recommended information RI_b1 means that when the ink type is "Ink_A", the usage condition in which the head type is "Head_B", the discharge amount is "Iw_B" and the discharge speed is "Vm_B" is recommended to the user U_x. Furthermore, the cloud server CS may specify that among the records RC1 satisfying the condition that the character string indicating the discharge amount level is "Iw_B" and the character string indicating the discharge speed level is "Vm_B", the record RC1 in which the character string identifying waveform information is "No5" and the character string indicating the temperature range is "20<T≦30" is the most frequent.Further, the cloud server CS may include "No5" and "20<T≦30" as recommended item values in the recommendation information RI_b1.

[0114] In the usage condition information JI_b2, it is premised that the derived head is set to "Head_C". Furthermore, the usage condition information JI_b2 does not include a character string indicating the type of head. Accordingly, the cloud server CS determines that the determination result of step SC34 is negative, and executes the processing of step SC42. The usage condition information JI_b2 includes, in addition to the character string indicating the type of ink, the character string "Iw_D" indicating the discharge amount level. Accordingly, the cloud server CS searches for the discharge speed level with the largest number of users from the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b2 in which the character string indicating the type of ink is "Ink_A", the character string indicating the type of head is "Head_C", and the character string indicating the discharge amount level is "Iw_D". Among the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b2, the number of users for each discharge speed level is shown in the range Ag_b2 illustrated in FIG. 16. As can be understood from the range Ag_b2, among the discharge speed levels included in the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b2, the discharge speed level whose character string indicating the discharge speed level is "Vm_C" has the largest number of users. Accordingly, the cloud server CS generates recommendation information RI_b2 that includes the character string "Head_C" indicating the type of head and the character string "Vm_B" indicating the discharge speed level.

[0115] The usage condition information JI_b3 assumes that the output head is set to "Head_D". Furthermore, the usage condition information JI_b3 contains a string indicating the type of head, but it is different from the output head. Therefore, the cloud server CS determines that the result of step SC36 is negative and executes the processes of step SC44 and step SC46. The usage condition information JI_b2 contains a string indicating the type of ink and a string indicating the type of head, as well as a string indicating the ejection volume level, "Iw_A". Therefore, in step SC44, the cloud server CS searches for the ejection speed level with the most users from record RC1 that satisfies the extraction condition CN_b31, where the string indicating the type of ink is "Ink_A", the string indicating the type of head is "Head_B", and the string indicating the ejection volume level is "Iw_A". The number of users for each ejection speed level among the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b31 is shown in the range Ag_b31 in Figure 16. As can be understood from range Ag_b31, among the ejection rate levels contained in record RC1 that satisfy extraction condition CN_b31, the number of users whose ejection rate level string is "Vm_B" is the most numerous. Therefore, the cloud server CS generates recommendation information RI_b3 which has pair Un1 containing "Head_B" and "Vm_B".

[0116] Furthermore, in step SC46, the cloud server CS searches for the ejection speed level with the most users from record RC1 that satisfies the extraction condition CN_b32, where the string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A", the string indicating the head type is "Head_D", and the string indicating the ejection volume level is "Iw_A". The number of users for each ejection speed level among the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b32 is shown in the range Ag_b32 in Figure 16. As can be understood from the range Ag_b32, among the ejection speed levels included in the records RC1 that satisfy the extraction condition CN_b32, the string indicating the ejection speed level, "Vm_A", has the most users. Therefore, the cloud server CS adds the pair Un2, which has "Head_D" and "Vm_A", to the recommendation information RI_b3.

[0117] Note that record RC1 containing "Ink_A", "Head_B", "Iw_A", and "Vm_B", and record RC1 containing "Ink_A", "Head_D", "Iw_A", and "Vm_A", correspond to "two or more sets out of multiple sets".

[0118] Furthermore, "Ink_A" included in the usage condition information JI_b3 corresponds to the "first item value," and "Head_B" corresponds to the "second item value." If "Head_D," which is not included in the usage condition information JI_b3, corresponds to the "third item value," then the extraction condition CN_b31 corresponds to the "first condition having both the first and second item values," and record RC1 that satisfies extraction condition CN_b31 corresponds to the "set that satisfies the first condition." Extraction condition CN_b32 corresponds to the "second condition having both the first and third item values," and record RC1 that satisfies extraction condition CN_b32 corresponds to the "set that satisfies the second condition."

[0119] Furthermore, Recommended Information RI_b1, Recommended Information RI_b2, and Recommended Information RI_b3 include a string indicating the type of print head. The string indicating the type of print head is an example of "information indicating the type of inkjet print head".

[0120] Furthermore, the usage condition information JI_b3 contains a string indicating the discharge volume level, which is one of several "discharge characteristic items." On the other hand, the recommendation information RI_b2 and RI_b3 contain a string indicating the discharge rate level, which is different from the discharge volume level among several "discharge characteristic items." The string indicating the discharge volume level and the string indicating the discharge rate level are examples of "information indicating discharge items."

[0121] Furthermore, the recommended information RI_b1 may include the string "No5" which identifies the waveform information. The waveform information is an example of "waveform information showing the drive waveform".

[0122] For example, in the usage conditions information JI_b1, the cloud server CS searched for the pair of print volume level and print speed level with the most users from record RC1 where the string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A" and the string indicating the print head type is "Head_B", but it is not limited to this. For example, the cloud server CS may search for the pair of print volume level and print speed level with the highest average confidence score from record RC1 where the string indicating the ink type is "Ink_A" and the string indicating the print head type is "Head_B".

[0123] In the usage condition information JI_a2, it is assumed that the input ink is set to "Ink_A", as shown in Figure 14. Since the condition that the input ink is "Ink_A" is the same as in the usage condition information JI_b1, the setting of the output head and the identification of the ejection level and ejection speed level are the same as in the example of usage condition information JI_b1, so the explanation is omitted. The cloud server CS generates the recommended information RI_b1 from the item values ​​of record RC1, which has the string indicating the ink type as "Ink_A", the string indicating the head type as "Head_B", the string indicating the ejection volume level as "Iw_B", and the string indicating the ejection speed level as "Vm_B", by selecting one or more item values ​​that are not included in the usage condition information JI. For example, as shown in Figure 17, the cloud server CS generates the recommended information RI_a2 which has the string indicating the ink type as "Ink_A". Furthermore, the cloud server CS may add "Head_B" to the recommendation information RI_a2 from the item values ​​of record RC1, which has the string "Ink_A" indicating the ink type, the string "Head_B" indicating the head type, the string "Iw_B" indicating the ejection volume level, and the string "Vm_B" indicating the ejection speed level, or it may add "Iw_B" and "Vm_B" to the recommendation information RI_a2.

[0124] Let's return to the explanation in Figure 11. After the processing of step SC42 is completed, or after the processing of step SC46 is completed, the cloud server CS sends the recommendation information RI, which includes the recommended item values ​​derived from step SC42, or the recommended item values ​​derived from steps SC44 and SC46, to the evaluation device 20_x in step SC48. The usage conditions indicated by the recommendation information RI are different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage conditions information JI. The difference between the usage conditions indicated by the recommendation information RI and the usage conditions indicated by the usage conditions information JI includes the fact that the usage conditions indicated by the recommendation information RI are conditions that limit the usage conditions indicated by the usage conditions information JI. For example, let's assume that the usage conditions information JI is "Ink_A" and the recommendation information RI is "Head_A". In this assumption, the recommendation information RI means that if the ink type is "Ink_A", then the usage condition of the head type is "Head_A" is recommended. In other words, the usage conditions indicated by the recommendation information RI can be said to be usage conditions that limit the head type from the usage conditions indicated by the usage conditions information JI. As described above, in this specification, even if the usage conditions indicated in Recommendation Information RI are limited to the usage conditions indicated in Usage Condition Information JI, this is considered to be included in the statement that the usage conditions indicated in Recommendation Information RI are different from the usage conditions indicated in Usage Condition Information JI.

[0125] After the processing in step SC48 is completed, the cloud server CS determines in step SC50 whether user U_x permits updating the history database RD. Specifically in step SC50, the cloud server CS queries the evaluation device 20_x to ask whether user U_x permits updating the history database RD. Alternatively, if the usage conditions information JI contains permission information indicating whether user U_x permits updating the history database RD, the cloud server CS may execute the processing in step SC50 according to this permission information.

[0126] If the result of step SC50 is positive, the cloud server CS updates the history database RD in step SC52. After the processing in step SC52 is completed, the cloud server CS terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 11. If the result of step SC50 is negative, the cloud server CS also terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 11.

[0127] In the search process shown in Figure 11, the cloud server CS derived item values ​​corresponding to one or more items among the discharge characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range. However, it is also possible to terminate the search process shown in Figure 11 by not deriving item values ​​corresponding to these items and, upon completion of the process in step SC32, sending recommended information RI, in which a string indicating the derived head is used as the recommended item value, to the evaluation device 20.

[0128] Furthermore, in the series of processes shown in Figure 11, the cloud server CS configured the output head and then derived recommended item values ​​corresponding to one or more items from the usage condition information JI, input ink, ejection characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range according to the output head, but is not limited to this. For example, the cloud server CS may derive recommended item values ​​corresponding to one or more items from the usage condition information JI, ejection characteristics, drive waveform, and temperature range according to the input ink, without configuring the output head.

[0129] Returning to the explanation in Figure 9, after the completion of step SC4, the cloud server CS functions as a transmission unit 305 in step SC6 and transmits the recommendation information RI to the evaluation device 20_x. If the recommendation information RI contains a string that identifies waveform information, the recommendation information RI also contains the waveform information itself. By executing the process in step SC6, the cloud server CS also functions as an "output unit" that outputs a recommendation information RI containing one or more recommendation item values. After the completion of step SC6, the cloud server CS terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 9.

[0130] After the processing of step SJ4 is completed, the control circuit 21 waits for a response from the cloud server CS, and in step SJ6, the control circuit 21 functions as a receiving unit 215 and receives recommendation information RI from the cloud server CS. After the processing of step SJ6 is completed, in step SJ8, the control circuit 21 functions as a recommendation unit 217 and recommends the recommendation information RI to user U_x. Step SJ6 corresponds to the "recommendation process".

[0131] As a specific example of the processing in step SJ8, the evaluation device 20_x displays an image on the display device 27 showing the recommended item values ​​included in the recommended information RI. Alternatively, if the recommended information RI includes a string that identifies waveform information, the evaluation device 20_x may, under the instruction of user U_x, supply a drive signal Com having the drive waveform indicated by the waveform information included in the recommended information RI to the inkjet head HU. After the processing in step SJ8 is completed, the series of processes shown in Figure 9 are terminated.

[0132] Furthermore, when recommending the recommended information RI_b3 shown in Figure 16 to user U_x, the evaluation device 20_x may recommend sets Un1 and Un2 in parallel, or it may recommend sets Un1 and Un2 with a priority order. As an example of assigning a priority order to sets Un1 and Un2, the evaluation device 20_x may display an image on the display device 27 showing set Un1 as information matching user U_x's search information and set Un2 as reference information.

[0133] 1-7. Summary of the First Embodiment In the following, we will describe the summary of the first embodiment, assuming that of the six items related to ink ejection included in the corresponding information CI, one of any two items will be designated as the "first item" and the other as the "second item," one or more item values ​​corresponding to the first item will be designated as the "first item value," and one or more item values ​​corresponding to the second item will be designated as the "second item value" and the "third item value." As an example of a "specific user," we will refer to user U_x, who operates the evaluation device 20 to input the usage condition information JI.

[0134] The system SYS according to the first embodiment is a system used to eject ink using an inkjet head HU. The system SYS has a reception unit 211 and a recommendation unit 217. The reception unit 211 receives usage condition information JI indicating usage conditions related to ink ejection based on operation information from user U_x. The recommendation unit 217, based on a history database RD showing the history of use by users U other than user U_x and the usage condition information JI, recommends to user U_x, as recommendation information RI, usage conditions that are different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information JI received by the reception unit 211. Furthermore, the first embodiment can also define a method for supporting the use of the system SYS, which executes step SJ2 corresponding to the "reception process" and step SJ8 corresponding to the "recommendation process". According to the first embodiment, the history database RD contains usage history from users U different from user U_x, and therefore can be said to be information of a certain quality. Consequently, the recommendation information RI can be said to be of higher quality than the recommendation information generated by applying an automatic algorithm. Furthermore, even if the same information as the usage condition information JI is not registered in the history database RD, the recommendation unit 217 may be able to provide user U_x with a history of usage conditions similar to those indicated by the usage condition information JI as recommendation information RI. In other words, according to the first embodiment, the construction of the history database RD becomes easier compared to an embodiment in which there are no usage conditions unknown to the head maker in the history database RD. Thus, according to the first embodiment, the construction of the history database RD can be easily performed while maintaining high-quality recommendation information RI.

[0135] Furthermore, the history database RD includes multiple records RC, each containing one or more item values ​​corresponding to the first item and one or more item values ​​corresponding to the second item among several items related to ink ejection. The usage condition information JI includes at least one item value corresponding to the first item. The recommendation information RI includes item values ​​that are included in the same record as the item value corresponding to the first item received as usage condition information, and that include at least one item value corresponding to the second item. According to the first embodiment, since record RC1 is a record used by one or more users U, it can be said to be a record with a certain level of quality guaranteed. Therefore, the recommended item values ​​according to the first embodiment can be said to be of higher quality than the recommended item values ​​generated by applying an automatic algorithm. In addition, in the first embodiment, a record RC1 with appropriate item values ​​is searched according to one or more item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI. Specifically, the cloud server CS searches for a record RC1 with item values ​​that match or are close to some or all of the one or more item values ​​included in the usage condition information JI. Therefore, in the first embodiment, even if the second item value included in the usage condition information JI is an unknown item value to the head maker that is not registered in the corresponding information CI, if an item value close to this unknown second item value is registered in the corresponding information CI, or if the first item value is an item value registered in the corresponding information CI, a record RC1 suitable for the usage condition information JI can be obtained. Therefore, in the first embodiment, even if the usage condition information JI contains an item value unknown to the head maker, it is possible to provide user U_x with a recommended item value suitable for the usage condition information JI. In other words, according to the first embodiment, the construction of the history database RD becomes easier compared to an embodiment in which the history database RD does not contain item values ​​unknown to the head maker. As a result, according to the first embodiment, the construction of the history database RD can be easily performed while maintaining high-quality recommendation information RI.

[0136] Furthermore, the correspondence information CI can identify the number of people who used record RC1 containing both the first and second item values, and the number of people who used record RC1 containing both the first and third item values. In the following, record RC1 containing both the first and second item values ​​will be referred to as "record RC1 that satisfies the first condition," and record RC1 containing both the first and third item values ​​will be referred to as "record RC1 that satisfies the second condition." The recommendation section 217 recommends information containing the second item value as recommendation information RI to user U_x if the usage condition information JI contains the first item value, and the correspondence information CI identifies that the number of people who used record RC1 that satisfies the first condition is greater than the number of people who used record RC1 that satisfies the second condition. Information other than the second item value that may be included in the recommendation information RI is, for example, information other than the second item value that is included in record RC1 that satisfies the first condition. Records used by many users U can be said to have higher quality field values, making them records RC. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, higher quality recommendation information RI can be provided to user U_x.

[0137] Furthermore, the correspondence information CI can identify the average confidence score of one or more people who used record RC1 that satisfies the first condition, and the average confidence score of one or more people who used a set that satisfies the second condition. If the usage condition information JI contains the first item value, and the correspondence information CI identifies that the average confidence score of one or more people who used record RC1 that satisfies the first condition is higher than the average confidence score of one or more people who used record RC1 that satisfies the second condition, the recommendation unit 217 recommends information containing the second item value as recommendation information RI to user U_x. The higher the average confidence score, the higher the quality of the item values ​​in the record RC. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, higher quality recommendation information RI can be provided to user U_x.

[0138] Furthermore, as shown in the usage condition information JI_b3 in Figure 16, the recommendation unit 217 may recommend to user U_x, based on the history database RD and the usage condition information JI, information that includes one or more item values ​​contained in each of two or more records RC among multiple records RC, as recommendation information RI. According to the first embodiment, compared to an embodiment in which information including item values ​​contained in a single record RC is recommended to user U_x as recommendation information RI, the number of recommended item values ​​that user U_x can use can be increased.

[0139] Furthermore, as shown in the usage condition information JI_b3 in Figure 16, if the usage condition information JI includes a first item value and a second item value, the recommendation unit 217 may recommend to user U_x as recommendation information RI one or more item values ​​included in record RC1 that satisfy the first condition and one or more item values ​​included in record RC1 that satisfy the second condition. Using the usage condition information JI_b3 to explain the effect, the type of inkjet head HU suitable for "Ink_A," which corresponds to the "1st item value," is "Head_D," which is different from "Head_B" entered by user U_x. Therefore, the recommendation unit 217 recommends to user U_x the recommended item value corresponding to "Head_B" entered by user U_x, and the recommended item value corresponding to "Head_D," which is determined to be suitable for "Ink_A" from the history database RD. By recommending the recommended item value corresponding to "Head_B" entered by user U_x, it is possible to recommend a recommended item value that matches the input result of user U_x, and therefore, a recommended item value that is more satisfactory can be recommended compared to the case in which a recommended item value corresponding to "Head_B" entered by user U_x is not recommended. Furthermore, by recommending suitable item values ​​for "Head_D" that are determined to be suitable for "Ink_A" from the history database RD, it is possible to recommend suitable item values ​​for "Ink_A" to user U_x while reflecting some of the item values ​​entered by user U_x.

[0140] Furthermore, the first item included in the usage conditions information JI may also include the type of ink. When user U_x uses an inkjet head HU, the ink to be used is often predetermined. Therefore, by having the first item in the usage condition information JI be the ink type, it is possible to recommend suitable item values ​​for the predetermined ink type to user U_x.

[0141] Furthermore, one or more item values ​​included in the usage conditions information JI may also be one or more physical property values ​​of the ink. As mentioned above, when user U_x uses an inkjet head HU, the ink to be used is often predetermined. However, there is a possibility that the ink that user U_x wants to use is not registered in the history database RD. Therefore, by inputting the physical properties of the ink that user U_x wants to use, the history database RD can recommend recommended item values ​​corresponding to inks registered in the database that have physical properties similar to the ink that user U_x wants to use.

[0142] Furthermore, if the usage condition information JI does not include information indicating the type of ink, but includes information indicating the viscosity of the ink and information indicating physical properties other than the viscosity of the ink, the recommendation unit 217 prioritizes the information indicating the viscosity of the ink to determine the type of ink, and recommends the information including the determined type of ink as recommendation information RI to user U_x. For example, the explanation of the summary of the first embodiment will continue using an example where, among the six items related to ink ejection, the "first item" is the viscosity of the ink, the "second item" is a physical property other than viscosity among the types of physical properties of the ink, and the "third item" is the type of ink. The item value corresponding to the ink viscosity includes the first, second, and third viscosity values ​​within the range of possible ink viscosity values, the item value corresponding to the ink type includes the first ink information indicating the first ink type and the second ink information indicating the second ink type, the absolute value of the difference between the first and third viscosity values ​​is smaller than the absolute value of the difference between the second and third viscosity values, the ink table IkT of the history database RD does not have a record RC2 containing the third viscosity value, but includes a record RC2 containing the first viscosity value and a record RC2 containing the second viscosity value. The recommendation unit 217 recommends to user U_x one or more recommended item values, which are one or more item values ​​included in the record RC2 containing the first viscosity value that is close to the third viscosity value, if the usage condition information JI includes the third viscosity value. The closer the physical properties of two inks are, the more similar their ejection behavior will be. Furthermore, when the viscosity values ​​of two inks are similar, their ejection behavior will be closer than when the physical properties other than viscosity are similar. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, it is possible to recommend to user U_x the recommended item values ​​corresponding to the ink whose ejection behavior is closer to that of the ink that user U_x wants to use.

[0143] Furthermore, the second item is preferably the type of head. By providing information indicating the type of print head, user U, the printer manufacturer, can find out which inkjet print head (HU) is suitable for the ink that user U_x wants to use.

[0144] Furthermore, the first item is one of several ejection characteristics of the inkjet head HU, and the second item may be an ejection characteristic of the inkjet head HU that is different from the first item among the several ejection characteristics. According to the first embodiment, it is possible to obtain information indicating discharge characteristics other than the information indicating discharge characteristics input by user U_x.

[0145] Furthermore, the second item may be the drive waveform supplied to the inkjet head HU. The ejection operation of the inkjet head HU can be changed according to the drive waveform indicated by the waveform information. According to the first embodiment, the evaluation device 20_x can evaluate the drive waveform by a function that observes the ejection state of ink droplets ejected from the inkjet head HU.

[0146] Furthermore, item 2 may also refer to the operating environment of the inkjet head HU. Even if the ink type, head type, and drive waveform are the same, the quality of the image formed on the PP medium may differ depending on the operating environment of the inkjet head HU. By including information indicating the operating environment in the recommended information RI, user U_x can find an operating environment suitable for the operating conditions information JI.

[0147] Furthermore, the first embodiment can also define a server 30 used in a system for ejecting ink using an inkjet head HU. The server 30 includes an acquisition unit that acquires usage condition information JI indicating the usage conditions of user U_x regarding ink ejection, a history database RD indicating the history of use by users different from a specific user, a search unit 303 that searches for usage conditions different from those indicated by the usage condition information JI as recommended information RI to recommend to user U_x, and an output unit that outputs the recommended information RI retrieved by the search unit 303. According to the first embodiment, high-quality recommendation information RI can be searched from an easily constructed historical database RD.

[0148] 2. Variations Each of the forms exemplified above can be modified in various ways. Specific examples of modifications that can be applied to each of the aforementioned forms are given below. Two or more forms arbitrarily selected from the following examples can be combined as appropriate, provided they do not contradict each other.

[0149] 2-1. First variation In the first modification, recommended information RI suitable for the application of the inkjet head HU is provided to user U_x. The first modification is described below. In the first modification, the cloud server CS performs the input ink and output head setting process in the first modification instead of the input ink and output head setting process shown in Figure 12. The input ink and output head setting process in the first modification is explained using Figure 18.

[0150] 2-1-1. Operation of the first modified example Figure 18 is a flowchart showing the input ink and output head setting process in the first modified example. In step SC72, ​​the cloud server CS derives the type of ink suitable for the application included in the usage condition information JI. Hereafter, the ink derived by the process in step SC72 may be referred to as "derived ink". The specific method for setting the derived ink will be described later using Figure 19.

[0151] After the processing in step SC72 is completed, in step SC74, the cloud server CS determines whether or not there is a string indicating the type of ink in the usage condition information JI. If the result of the determination in step SC74 is positive, in step SC76, the cloud server CS sets the ink identified as the type of ink included in the usage condition information JI as the input ink. Next, in step SC78, the cloud server CS determines whether or not the input ink matches the derived ink.

[0152] If the result of step SC78 is positive, the cloud server CS sets the appropriate output head for the input ink from the history database RD in step SC82. Even if the result of step SC74 is negative, the cloud server CS still executes the process in step SC82. After the completion of the process in step SC82, the cloud server CS terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 18.

[0153] If the result of step SC78 is negative, the cloud server CS sends decision information to the evaluation device 20_x in step SC84, prompting user U_x to decide whether or not to allow the exported ink. Next, in step SC86, the cloud server CS awaits response information to the decision information. The response information is either information indicating that the exported ink is allowed or information indicating that the exported ink is not allowed. Upon receiving the response information, the cloud server CS determines in step SC88 whether or not the response information indicates that the exported ink is allowed.

[0154] If the result of step SC88 is positive, the cloud server CS sets the first output head suitable for the input ink from the history database RD in step SC90. Furthermore, the cloud server CS sets the second output head suitable for the output ink in step SC92. After the completion of step SC90, the cloud server CS completes the series of processes shown in Figure 18. If the cloud server CS completes the series of processes shown in Figure 18 after the result of step SC88 is positive, it should execute the series of processes shown in Figure 11 for both the first output head and the second output head. Specifically, the cloud server CS executes steps SC34 to SC46 by replacing "output head" with "first output head," and then executes steps SC34 to SC46 by replacing "output head" with "second output head." Then, in step SC48, the cloud server CS should send the recommended information RI, which includes the recommended item values ​​obtained through the processing in steps SC34 to SC46, to the evaluation device 20.

[0155] If the result of step SC88 is negative, in other words, if information indicating that the derived ink is not acceptable is received, the cloud server CS sets a suitable derived head from the history database RD in step SC94. After step SC94 is completed, the cloud server CS terminates the series of processes shown in Figure 18. Figure 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of generating recommended information RI in the first modified example.

[0156] Figure 19 is a diagram illustrating an example of generating recommendation information RI in the first modified example. In Figure 19, three examples of usage condition information JI are shown: usage condition information JI_c1, usage condition information JI_c2, and usage condition information JI_c3. Also in Figure 19, recommendation information RI_c1 generated based on usage condition information JI_c1, recommendation information RI_c2 generated based on usage condition information JI_c2, and recommendation information RI_c3 generated based on usage condition information JI_b3 are shown.

[0157] The usage condition information JI_c1 contains only the string "Signboard Printing," which indicates the intended use of the inkjet head HU. The string indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU is an example of "information indicating the intended use of the inkjet head." The information indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU is not limited to a string indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU; for example, it may be a numerical value, an ID, or an icon that visually represents the intended use of the inkjet head HU. Although not shown in the diagram, in order to include a string indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU in the usage condition information JI, the input screen IW in the first modified example has a selection field SF from which a string indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU can be selected.

[0158] In the example of usage condition information JI_c1, the cloud server CS, in step SC72, ​​refers to the ink table IkT and sets the ink suitable for "sign printing" as the derived ink. As can be seen from Figure 19, the inks suitable for "sign printing" are the ink identified by "Ink_C" and the ink identified by "Ink_D". In step SC72, ​​if user U_x has not entered a string indicating the type of ink, and there are multiple inks suitable for the entered application, the cloud server CS may set one of the multiple inks suitable for the entered application as the derived ink, or it may set all of the multiple inks as the derived ink. Since there is no string indicating the type of ink in usage condition information JI_c1, the cloud server CS, in step SC72, ​​sets the ink identified by "Ink_C" as the derived ink. Next, the cloud server CS performs the process in step SC82 and the series of processes shown in Figure 11 to generate recommendation information RI_c1, which includes "Ink_C", "Head_C", "Iw_B", and "Vm_A" as recommended item values.

[0159] The usage condition information JI_c2 contains the string "Label Printing," which indicates the intended use of the inkjet head HU, and the string "Iw_D," which indicates the ejection volume level. In the example of usage condition information JI_c2, the cloud server CS, in step SC72, ​​refers to the ink table IkT and sets the ink suitable for "Label Printing" as the output ink. As can be seen from Figure 19, the inks suitable for "Label Printing" are the ink identified by "Ink_A" and the ink identified by "Ink_D." Since the usage condition information JI_c2 does not contain a string indicating the type of ink, the cloud server CS, in step SC72, ​​sets the ink identified by "Ink_D" as the output ink. Subsequently, the cloud server CS performs the processing in step SC82 and the series of processes shown in Figure 11 to generate recommendation information RI_c1, which includes "Ink_D," "Head_B," and "Vm_C" as recommended item values.

[0160] The usage condition information JI_c3 includes the string "Sign printing" indicating the intended use of the inkjet head HU, and the string "Ink_A" indicating the type of ink. In the example of usage condition information JI_c3, the cloud server CS, in step SC72, ​​refers to the ink table IkT and sets the ink suitable for "Sign printing" as the output ink. As can be seen from Figure 19, the inks suitable for "Sign printing" are the ink identified by "Ink_C" and the ink identified by "Ink_D", which are different from the ink identified by "Ink_A" included in the usage condition information JI_c3. Therefore, the cloud server CS determines that step SC78 is negative. In the example of usage condition information JI_c3, it is assumed that the response information indicates that the output ink is acceptable. Therefore, in step SC90, the cloud server CS sets the first output head suitable for the input ink "Ink_A" to the string "Head_B" indicating the type of head. Next, the cloud server CS performs the series of processes shown in Figure 11 and generates recommendation information RI_c3 which has a set Un3 consisting of "Ink_A", "Head_B", "Iw_B", and "Vm_B".

[0161] Furthermore, in step SC92, the cloud server CS sets the second output head suitable for the output ink "Ink_C" to the string "Head_C" which indicates the type of head. Subsequently, the cloud server CS performs the series of processes shown in Figure 11 and adds the set Un4, which has "Ink_C", "Head_C", "Iw_B", and "Vm_A", to the recommendation information RI_c3.

[0162] In the example of usage condition information JI_c1, "sign printing" corresponds to "application using an inkjet head," the string "Ink_C" indicating the ink type corresponds to "first ink information," and the string "Ink_A" indicating the ink type corresponds to "second ink information." Furthermore, among the suitability information for use, the string "OK" indicating suitability for sign printing is an example of "first information," and the string "NG" indicating unsuitability for sign printing is an example of "second information." In addition, record RC2_3 corresponds to "first ink information and the first set containing first information," and record RC2_1 corresponds to "second ink information and the second set containing second information." "Ink_C" included in recommendation information RI_c1 corresponds to "first ink information included in the set containing first information among multiple sets when usage condition information includes information indicating the application."

[0163] In the example of usage condition information JI_c2, "label printing" corresponds to "application using an inkjet head," the string "Ink_D" indicating the ink type corresponds to "first ink information," and the string "Ink_B" indicating the ink type corresponds to "second ink information." Furthermore, among the suitability information for use, the string "OK" indicating suitability for label printing is an example of "first information," and the string "NG" indicating unsuitability for label printing is an example of "second information." In addition, record RC2_4 corresponds to "first ink information and the first set containing first information," and record RC2_2 corresponds to "second ink information and the second set containing second information." "Ink_D" included in recommendation information RI_c2 corresponds to "first ink information included in the set containing first information among multiple sets when usage condition information includes information indicating the application."

[0164] 2-1-2. Summary of the first variation In the first modified example, "Item 2" is the type of ink, and "Item 1" is "items related to the use of the inkjet head." According to the first variation, information about inks suitable for the intended use of user U_x can be recommended.

[0165] 2-2. Second variation In the first embodiment, as a method for setting the input ink, in step SC28, as an example of determining whether two inks are similar, viscosity was given the highest priority among the three physical properties of ink (density, viscosity, and surface tension) to determine whether the physical properties of the two inks are similar, but the method is not limited to this. In the second modified example, the type of solvent is given priority among the type of solvent and the type of colorant to determine whether the physical properties of the two inks are similar.

[0166] 2-2-1. Operation of the second modified example Figure 20 is a flowchart showing the input ink and output head setting process in the second modified example. The flowchart shown in Figure 20 differs from the flowchart shown in Figure 12 in that it has step SC26b instead of step SC26 and step SC28b instead of step SC28.

[0167] If the result of step SC22 is negative, the cloud server CS retrieves the item value corresponding to the ink-related item in the usage condition information JI in step SC26b. Hereinafter, the item value of ink retrieved by the process in step SC26b may be referred to as the "retrieved item value". Next, in step SC28b, the cloud server CS sets the ink having an item value similar to the retrieved item value as the input ink. After the process in step SC28b is completed, the cloud server CS executes the process in step SC32. The process in step SC28b will be explained using Figure 21.

[0168] Figure 21 is a diagram illustrating the process of step SC28b. In Figure 21, usage condition information JI_d1 is shown as an example of usage condition information JI. In the process of step SC28b, the cloud server CS determines inks that have item values ​​similar to the acquired item values ​​according to Table Tb2 shown in Figure 21. Table Tb2 indicates that in determining whether the item values ​​of two inks are similar, the solvent type is used first, followed by the colorant type, out of the two items of ink: solvent type and colorant type. Specifically, in step SC28b, as a solvent type comparison process, the cloud server CS determines whether there is a registered ink with the same solvent type as the acquired solvent type among the one or more registered inks registered in the ink table IkT. If there is one registered ink with the same solvent type as the acquired solvent type, the cloud server CS sets this registered ink as the input ink. If there is no registered ink with the same solvent type as the acquired solvent type, the cloud server CS performs the colorant type comparison process, which will be described later. Furthermore, if there are two or more registered inks with the same solvent type as the acquired solvent type, the cloud server CS will perform a comparison process for the colorant type of these two or more registered inks. Note that even if the acquired item value does not contain a string indicating the solvent type, the cloud server CS will still perform the comparison process for the colorant type.

[0169] If the above conditions are met, the cloud server CS, as a comparison process for the type of colorant, determines whether there is a registered ink with the same type of colorant as the acquired colorant among the one or more registered inks registered in the ink table IkT. However, if there are two or more registered inks with the same solvent type as the acquired solvent type, the cloud server CS determines whether there is a registered ink with the same type of colorant as the acquired colorant among these two or more registered inks. If there is a registered ink with the same type of colorant as the acquired colorant, the cloud server CS sets this registered ink as the input ink. If there is no registered ink with the same type of colorant as the acquired colorant among the one or more registered inks, or if the acquired item value does not contain a string indicating the type of colorant, the cloud server CS may terminate the series of processes shown in Figures 9, 11, and 20, assuming that there is no ink with an item value similar to the item value of the ink acquired by the process in step SC28b. The cloud server CS may ask user U_x to select an ink from one or more registered inks that user U_x considers to be similar to the ink whose item value was acquired by the process in step SC26b.

[0170] The usage condition information JI_d1 illustrated in Figure 21 has the string "organic solvent" indicating the type of solvent, the string "dye" indicating the type of colorant, and the string "Head_C" indicating the type of head. The ink table IkT does not have a record RC2 that has "organic solvent" and "dye". In step SC28b, the cloud server CS sets one registered ink "InkD" from the four registered inks registered in the ink table IkT, which has the same type of solvent as the acquired solvent, as the input ink as part of the solvent type comparison process.

[0171] In the example of usage condition information JI_d1, the type of solvent in the ink corresponds to "item 1," the type of colorant in the ink corresponds to "item 2," and also corresponds to "items other than the type of solvent in the ink." "Organic solvent" corresponds to "the first solvent information that the type of solvent in the ink can take," and "water-based" corresponds to "the second solvent information that the type of solvent in the ink can take." "Dye" and "pigment" correspond to "item values ​​corresponding to item 2," "dye" corresponds to "item 2 value," and "pigment" corresponds to "item 3 value." Record RC2_4 corresponds to "a set having the first solvent information and item 3 value," and record RC2_2 corresponds to "a set having the second solvent information and item 2 value." "InkD" set for the input ink corresponds to "a recommended item value of 1 or more."

[0172] 2-2-2. Summary of the second variation Recommendation Unit 217, when the usage condition information JI received by reception unit 211 does not include information indicating the type of ink, but includes information indicating the ink solvent and item values ​​corresponding to items other than the ink solvent, prioritizes the information indicating the ink solvent to determine the type of ink, and recommends the information including the determined ink type as recommendation information RI to user U_x. Specifically, the "first item" is the type of ink solvent, and the "second item" is the type of ink colorant, and a summary of the second variation is described. The item value corresponding to the type of ink solvent includes the first solvent information and the second solvent information that the ink solvent type can take, the item value corresponding to the second item includes the second item value and the third item value, and the ink table IkT does not have a set containing the first solvent information and the second item value, but includes a set containing the first solvent information and the third item value, and a set containing the second solvent information and the second item value. In the second modified example, if the usage condition information JI includes the first solvent information and the second item value, the recommendation section 217 recommends to user U_x one or more item values ​​included in the record RC2 that satisfies the conditions having the first solvent information as one or more recommended item values. According to the second modification, when the solvent type of the two inks is the same, the ejection behavior of the two inks can be said to be similar compared to when the item values ​​corresponding to other items other than the solvent for the two inks are the same. Therefore, according to the second modification, it is possible to recommend to user U_x the recommended item values ​​corresponding to the ink that more closely matches the ejection behavior of the ink that user U_x wants to use.

[0173] 2-3. Third Variation In the first embodiment, the correspondence information CI includes a string that identifies waveform information, but instead of, or in addition to, the string that identifies waveform information, it may also include information about image processing parameters used for image processing when ejecting ink from the inkjet head HU.

[0174] Figure 22 shows an example of image processing parameters. Figure 22 shows a lookup table LT1, which is an example of image processing parameters. Image processing includes color conversion processing and RIP processing. RIP is an abbreviation for Raster image processor. Color conversion processing is the process of converting RGB values ​​represented in file-format image data to CMYK values ​​or CMY values, which are the ink colors used by the inkjet printer 10, by referring to the lookup table LT1. The lookup table LT1 shown in Figure 22 shows an example of conversion to CMY values. RIP processing is the process of generating print data Img, which is printable data by the inkjet printer 10, using information indicating a dither pattern and information indicating an error diffusion matrix. Image processing is performed by a host computer that supplies the print data Img to the inkjet printer 10. However, the image processing may be performed by the inkjet printer 10. Alternatively, the evaluation device 20 may generate print data Img by performing image processing on file-format image data. The image processing parameters are not limited to lookup tables; they may also include information indicating the dither pattern and error diffusion matrix as described above, or mask patterns for distributing print data (Img) across multiple inkjet heads (HU) or passes.

[0175] In the third modified example described above, if we designate one of any two items related to ink ejection included in the corresponding information CI as the "first item" and the other as the "second item," then the second item is an image processing parameter used for image processing when ink is ejected from the inkjet head HU. The image formed by the inkjet head HU can be changed according to the image processing parameters. According to the third modification, by forming an image on the medium PP using the print data Img converted using the image processing parameters, the evaluation device 20_x can evaluate the image processing parameters by observing how ink droplets land on the medium PP, etc.

[0176] 2-4. Fourth Variation In each of the embodiments described above, the server 30, which functions as a cloud server CS, functioned as the search unit 303, but the evaluation device 20 may also function as the search unit 303.

[0177] 2-5. Fifth Variation In the embodiments described above, a serial inkjet printer 10 in which the inkjet head HU is reciprocated in a direction along the X axis is exemplified, but the present disclosure is not limited to such embodiments. The inkjet printer 10 may also be a line-type liquid ejection device in which a plurality of nozzles Nz are distributed over the entire width of the medium PP.

[0178] 2-6. Other variations The inkjet printer 10 described above can be used in various devices such as facsimile machines and photocopiers, in addition to devices dedicated to printing. However, the use of the recording device of this disclosure is not limited to printing. For example, a recording device that ejects a colorant solution can be used as a manufacturing device for forming color filters for liquid crystal display devices. Also, a recording device that ejects a conductive material solution can be used as a manufacturing device for forming wiring and electrodes for wiring boards. [Explanation of symbols]

[0179] 2...Drive signal generation circuit, 4,5...Viscosity value, 5...Memory unit, 7...Control unit, 10...Inkjet printer, 20_1,20_2,20_3...Evaluation device, 21...Control circuit, 22...Memory circuit, 23...Communication device, 26...Input device, 27...Display device, 29...Imaging device, 30...Server, 31...Control circuit, 32...Memory circuit, 38...Communication device, 39...Bus, 91...Moving mechanism, 92...Transportation mechanism, 93...Liquid container, 211...Reception unit, 213...Transmission unit, 215...Receiver unit 217...Recommendation section, 301...Receiver section, 303...Search section, 305...Transmitter section, 921...Storage case, 922...Endless belt, Ag...Summary table, Ag_b1, Ag_b2, Ag_b31, Ag_b32...Range, BT1...Input end button, CI...Correspondence information, CN_1, CN_2, CN_b1, CN_b2, CN_b31, CN_b32...Extraction conditions, CS...Cloud server, Com...Drive signal, HU...Inkjet head, IF, IF1, IF2...Input feed WROD, IW…Input screen, IkT…Ink table, Img…Print data, JI_a1,JI_a2,JI_b1,JI_b2,JI_b3,JI_c1,JI_c2,JI_c3,JI_d1…Usage condition information, LT1…Lookup table, NW…Network, Nz…Nozzle, PM1…Control program, PM2…Recommended program, PP…Media, PX…Drive waveform, RD…History database, RI_a2,RI_b1,RI_b2,RI_b3,R I_c1,RI_c2,RI_c3…Recommended information, SF,SF1,SF2,SF3,SF4…Selection field, SI…Print signal, SJ2,SJ4,SJ6,SJ8…Step, SYS…System, Sk1…Imaging instruction, TE1,TE2…Region, U,U_1,U_2,U_3,U_x,U_y…User, Un1,Un2,Un3,Un4…Set, V0…Intermediate potential, VHX…Highest potential, VLX…Lowest potential, VM…Virtualization program, dCom…Waveform specification signal.

Claims

1. A system used to eject ink using an inkjet head, A receiving unit that receives usage condition information indicating usage conditions related to ink ejection based on operation information from a specific user, The system includes a recommendation unit that, based on history information showing usage history by users other than the specified user and the usage condition information, recommends to the specified user, as recommendation information, usage conditions that are different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information received by the reception unit. A system characterized by the following features.

2. The aforementioned history information includes multiple sets, each containing one or more item values ​​corresponding to a first item and one or more item values ​​corresponding to a second item among a plurality of items related to ink ejection. The usage condition information includes at least the item value corresponding to the first item, The aforementioned recommended information includes item values ​​that are part of the same set as the item values ​​corresponding to the first item received as the usage condition information, and which include at least the item values ​​corresponding to the second item. The system according to feature 1.

3. One or more item values ​​corresponding to the first item include the first item value, The one or more item values ​​corresponding to the second item include the second item value and the third item value, The historical information can identify the number of people who used a set that satisfies the first condition having the first item value and the second item value, and the number of people who used a set that satisfies the second condition having the first item value and the third item value. The aforementioned recommendation section is, If the usage conditions information includes the value of the first item, and the history information identifies that the number of people who used a set satisfying the first condition is greater than the number of people who used a set satisfying the second condition, then the information including the value of the second item is recommended to the specific user as recommendation information. The system according to feature 2.

4. The item value corresponding to the first item includes the first item value, The item value corresponding to the second item includes the second item value and the third item value, The historical information can identify representative values ​​of the confidence level of one or more people using sets that satisfy the first condition, having the first item value and the second item value, and representative values ​​of the confidence level of one or more people using sets that satisfy the second condition, having the first item value and the third item value. The aforementioned recommendation section is, If the usage conditions information includes the first item value, and the history information identifies that the representative confidence value of one or more people who used a set satisfying the first condition is higher than the representative confidence value of one or more people who used a set satisfying the second condition, then the information including the second item value is recommended to the specific user as the recommendation information. The system according to feature 2.

5. Based on the history information and the usage conditions information, the recommendation unit recommends to the specific user the information that includes one or more item values ​​in each of two or more sets of the plurality of sets as the recommendation information. The system according to feature 2.

6. The item value corresponding to the first item includes the first item value, The item value corresponding to the second item includes the second item value and the third item value, The historical information includes a set that satisfies a first condition having the first item value and the second item value, and a set that satisfies a second condition having the first item value and the third item value. The aforementioned recommendation section is, If the usage conditions information includes the first item value and the second item value, the information including the second item value and the information including the third item value are recommended to the specific user as the recommended information. The system according to feature 2.

7. The first item mentioned above is the type of ink. The system according to feature 2.

8. The aforementioned recommendation section is, If the usage condition information received by the reception unit does not include information indicating the type of ink, but includes information indicating the viscosity of the ink and information indicating physical properties other than the viscosity of the ink, the information indicating the viscosity of the ink will be given priority to determine the type of ink. The information including information indicating the type of ink that was determined is recommended to the specific user as the recommendation information. The system according to feature 2.

9. The aforementioned recommendation section is, If the usage condition information received by the reception unit does not include information indicating the type of ink, but includes information indicating the ink solvent and item values ​​corresponding to items other than the ink solvent, the information indicating the ink solvent will be given priority to determine the type of ink. The information including information indicating the type of ink that was determined is recommended to the specific user as the recommendation information. The system according to feature 2.

10. The second item is the type of inkjet head, The system according to feature 7.

11. The first item is one of the multiple ejection characteristics of the inkjet head, The second item is the ejection characteristic of the inkjet head that is different from the ejection characteristic of the first item among the plurality of ejection characteristics. The system according to feature 7.

12. The second item is the drive waveform supplied to the inkjet head. The system according to feature 7.

13. The second item is the operating environment of the inkjet head, The system according to feature 7.

14. The second item is an image processing parameter used for image processing when ejecting ink from the inkjet head. The system according to feature 7.

15. The second item mentioned above is the type of ink, The first item above concerns the application of the inkjet head. The system according to feature 2.

16. The system further includes a search unit that searches for the recommended information based on the historical information and the usage conditions information. The recommendation unit recommends the recommendation information retrieved by the search unit to the specific user. The system according to feature 1.

17. A method for assisting the use of a system used to eject ink using an inkjet head, A receiving process that receives usage condition information indicating usage conditions related to ink ejection based on operation information from a specific user, A recommendation step is provided that, based on history information showing usage history by users other than the specified user and the usage condition information, recommends to the specified user, as recommendation information, usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage condition information received in the reception step. A method for supporting the use of a user, characterized by the features described above.

18. A server used in a system that ejects ink using an inkjet head, The aforementioned server is An acquisition unit that acquires usage condition information indicating the usage conditions of a specific user regarding ink ejection, A search unit that searches for usage conditions different from the usage conditions indicated by the usage conditions information, based on history information showing the usage history by a user different from the specified user, and the usage conditions information, as recommended information to recommend to the specified user. The search unit outputs the recommended information it has retrieved, A server characterized by having the following features.

Images