Printing apparatus, printing method, and printing program

Abstract

To provide a printing device, a printing method and a printing program which can further improve accuracy in color calibration.SOLUTION: A printing device comprises a printing part that prints an image on a medium to be printed, on the basis of image data, a memorizing part that memorizes a patch-entire image which is an image including a plurality of patches for color calibration for printing an image, and a control device. The control device executes processing for generating a designated patch which is a patch for a color designated by a user in a preview image corresponding to the image, and processing for printing the patch-entire image. The patch-entire image includes a first patch area where basic patches which are a plurality of patches corresponding to a plurality of predetermined colors respectively are arranged, and a second patch area which is different from the first patch area. When generating the designated patch, the control device prints at least one designated patch on the first patch area, in the processing for printing the patch-entire image, and prints at least one of the basic patches on the second patch area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4B

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing apparatus such as an inkjet printer, a printing method using the printing apparatus, and a printing program to be executed by a computer in the printing apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a printer that can display a preview screen of print target data and allow a user to specify a color for which a patch is to be created (see Patent Document 1). In addition to existing gamut patches, patches of colors specified by the user are printed, and color correction is performed on the image data of the print target based on colorimetric data obtained by colorimetrically measuring the entire printed calibration patch image using a colorimeter.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, even if the data is the same color, the printed color may differ depending on the printing conditions. For example, in a printer having two transport rollers, there may be a case where an area between the two rollers on the print medium supported by the two transport rollers is printed, and for an area near the downstream end or the upstream end of the print medium, there may be a case where printing is performed with the print medium supported by only one transport roller. Here, in a scene where the print medium is supported by only one transport roller, compared to a scene where it is supported by two transport rollers, the support of the print medium becomes unstable, so a difference in color reproducibility may occur between the two scenes.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus, a printing method, and a printing program capable of further improving the accuracy of color correction. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The printing apparatus of the present invention comprises a printing unit that prints an image on a printing medium based on image data, a storage unit that stores a patch image which is an image containing a plurality of color proofing patches for printing the image, and a control device. The control device performs the following processes: generating a specified patch which is a patch for a color specified by a user in a preview image corresponding to the image, and printing the patch image. The patch image includes a first patch region where a plurality of basic patches corresponding to a predetermined plurality of colors are arranged, and a second patch region different from the first patch region. When the control device generates the specified patch, in the process of printing the patch image, it prints at least one of the specified patch in the first patch region and at least one of the basic patches in the second patch region.

[0007] According to the present invention, at least one designated patch is placed in the first patch area, and at least one basic patch is placed in the second patch area. This reduces the possibility, compared to the conventional method, that a patch of a color specified by the user, if it belongs to an area on the printing medium where the ink placement accuracy may be reduced (i.e., an area caused by instability in the support of the printing medium by the transport roller), will be printed in an area where the ink placement accuracy is not reduced due to the reduced ink placement accuracy. In other words, by placing the designated patch in the first patch area, if the patch of a color specified by the user belongs to an area where the ink placement accuracy may be reduced, the possibility of the patch being printed in that area where the ink placement accuracy is reduced can be increased. On the other hand, if the patch of a color specified by the user belongs to an area where the ink placement accuracy cannot be reduced, the possibility, compared to the conventional method, that the patch being printed in an area where the ink placement accuracy is reduced due to the reduced ink placement accuracy can be reduced. In other words, by placing the designated patch in the first patch area, if the patch of a color specified by the user belongs to an area where the ink placement accuracy is not reduced, the possibility of the patch being printed in that area where the ink placement accuracy is not reduced can be increased. This reduces the possibility that the position of the color specified by the user in the image data (i.e., the color for which color proofing is desired) will not match the position of the patch in the overall image of the printed medium. This makes it easier to perform more accurate color proofing than before, thereby improving the accuracy of color proofing. Furthermore, since at least one basic patch is placed in the second patch area when the specified patch is placed in the first patch area, the loss of that basic patch can be avoided. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a printing apparatus, a printing method, and a printing program that can further improve the accuracy of color proofing. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1]This is a perspective view showing the external appearance of the printing apparatus according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a plan view showing the configuration of the printing apparatus, including the ejection head, as shown in Figure 1. [Figure 3] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control system of the printing device. [Figure 4A] This figure shows an example of a specified image designated by the user in the preview image related to the image data displayed on the display device. [Figure 4B] This figure shows the arrangement of the specified patch on the overall patch image related to the specified image in Figure 4A. [Figure 5A] This figure shows another example of a specified image designated by the user in the preview image displayed on the display device. [Figure 5B] This figure shows the arrangement of multiple specified patches related to the specified image in Figure 5A on the overall patch image. [Figure 6A] This figure shows another example of a specified image designated by the user in a preview image related to image data displayed on a display device. [Figure 6B] This figure shows the arrangement of the specified patch on the overall patch image related to the specified image in Figure 6A. [Figure 7] This figure shows multiple print characteristic regions on the overall patch image. [Figure 8] This diagram shows the printing medium being transported while being held only by the upstream transport rollers. [Figure 9] This figure shows a printing medium being held in place by a pressing member and transported while being gripped only by the downstream transport roller. [Figure 10] This figure shows a printable medium being transported while being held only by the downstream transport rollers and not by the pressing member. [Figure 11] This flowchart shows an example of how to place a specified patch related to a specified image. [Figure 12A] This figure shows another example of a specified image designated by the user in a preview image related to image data displayed on a display device. [Figure 12B] It is a diagram showing the arrangement on the entire patch image of a designated patch related to the designated image in FIG. 12A. [Figure 13] It is a diagram showing another example of a plurality of print characteristic regions on the entire patch image. [Figure 14A] It is a diagram showing another example of a designated image designated by a user in a preview image related to image data displayed on a display device. [Figure 14B] It is a diagram showing the arrangement on the entire patch image of a designated patch related to the designated image in FIG. 14A. [Figure 15A] It is a diagram showing another example of a designated image designated by a user in a preview image related to image data displayed on a display device. [Figure 15B] It is a diagram showing the arrangement on the entire patch image of a designated patch related to the designated image in FIG. 15A.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] Hereinafter, a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The printing apparatus described below is merely one embodiment of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and additions, deletions, and changes are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, directions orthogonal to each other are defined as a first direction Ds, a second direction Df, and a third direction Dz. In the present embodiment, for example, the first direction Ds is the moving direction of a carriage 41 described later (corresponding to the intersecting direction of the moving part), the second direction Df is the conveying direction of a printing medium W described later, and the third direction Dz is the vertical direction. In the following description, Ds will be referred to as the moving direction, Df will be referred to as the conveying direction, and Dz will be referred to as the vertical direction.

[0012] As shown in Figure 1, the printing device 1 is an inkjet printer that prints an image on a printing medium W (Figure 2), such as printing paper, and has a rectangular parallelepiped shape. The printing device 1 comprises a printer unit 2 and a scanner unit 3. Note that the printing device 1 in Figure 1 is merely an example and is not limited thereto; for example, it may be a printing device that includes a printing section (discharge head) that ejects ultraviolet-curable ink droplets and a light source that cures the ink droplets with ultraviolet light.

[0013] The scanner unit 3 reads an image using an image sensor and generates image data. The generated image data is then stored inside the printing device 1 in the printer unit 2 or printed onto a printing medium W supplied from outside the printing device 1. The scanner unit 3 is placed on top of the printer unit 2 and connected to the printer unit 2 by a connecting part 2a provided on the rear part of the printer unit 2. As a result, when the front part of the scanner unit 3 is lifted, it rotates upward relative to the printer unit 2 using the connecting part 2a as a pivot point, exposing the inside of the printer unit 2.

[0014] The scanner unit 3 has a document tray 7 and a lid 8, the lid 8 being positioned to cover the top of the document tray 7. The scanner unit 3 reads the image recorded on the document when the document is placed between the document tray 7 and the lid 8.

[0015] The printer unit 2 prints an image onto the printing medium W using ink supplied from a tank 12, which will be described later. The printer unit 2 has a case 4 that forms part of the housing of the printing device 1. The case 4 is fitted with a cover 6 that opens and closes an opening that leads to an internal space provided inside the case 4. A tray 5 for holding the printing medium W is arranged inside the case 4, and the tray 5 can be pulled out from the front of the case 4 to replenish the printing medium W.

[0016] Tank 12 stores ink. Tank 12 is exposed to the outside when cover 6 is opened. Tank 12 is connected to the ejection head 20 (Figure 2) via a flow path to supply ink to the ejection head 20.

[0017] As shown in Figure 2, the printing apparatus 1 is a serial head type and comprises a plurality of ejection heads 20, a platen 11, a plurality of tanks 12, a transport device 30, and a scanning device 40. The transport device 30 corresponds to the transport section. The printing apparatus 1 may also be a line head type. In this case, the printing apparatus 1 does not have a scanning device 40, and the ejection heads 20 do not move but have dimensions longer than the length of the printing area of ​​the printing medium W in the direction of movement Ds.

[0018] The ejection head 20 prints an image onto the printing medium W based on image data using basic color inks, which will be described later. The ejection head 20 corresponds to the printing unit. The ejection head 20 includes, for example, two first ejection heads 21 and two second ejection heads 22. The platen 11 has a flat upper surface and defines the distance between the printing medium W placed on its upper surface and the lower surface of the ejection head 20 provided opposite it. The tanks 12 are containers for storing ink, and their number is equal to or greater than the number of ink types. For example, the tanks 12 have four first tanks 12a, each storing one of four basic color inks, and one or more second tanks 12b, each storing a special color ink.

[0019] Examples of basic ink colors include cyan, yellow, magenta, and black. Special inks, on the other hand, are inks of different colors from the basic inks, such as red, green, and blue.

[0020] The first tank 12a stores the basic color ink and is connected to the first discharge head 21 via the first channel 13a. The basic color ink is supplied from the first tank 12a to the first discharge head 21 via the first channel 13a. The second tank 12b is connected to the second discharge head 22 via the second channel 13b. When the special color ink is stored in the second tank 12b, the special color ink flows from the second tank 12b to the second channel 13b, fills it, and is supplied to the discharge head 20. Before the special color ink is stored in the second tank 12b, it is filled with a storage liquid different from the special color ink. The first channel 13a and the second channel 13b are, for example, rubber tubes or plastic tubes, preferably those that are resistant to bending.

[0021] The conveying device 30 includes, for example, two sets of conveying rollers 31 and a conveying motor 32 (Figure 3). The two sets of conveying rollers 31 are arranged in the conveying direction Df (front-to-back direction) with the platen 11 in between them. Each conveying roller 31 has an axis extending in the direction of movement Ds. Each set of conveying rollers 31 is arranged in the vertical direction Dz with the printing medium W between them. One of the conveying rollers 31 in each set is connected to the conveying motor 32. The conveying rollers 31 rotate around their axis when driven by the conveying motor 32, and convey the printing medium W on the platen 11 in the conveying direction Df.

[0022] The scanning device 40 includes a carriage 41, two guide rails 42, a scanning motor 43, and an endless belt 44. The two guide rails 42 extend above the platen 11 in the direction of movement Ds so as to sandwich the discharge head 20 between them in the transport direction Df. The carriage 41 holds the discharge head 20 and is supported by the two guide rails 42 so as to be movable in the direction of movement Ds. The endless belt 44 extends in the direction of movement Ds and is attached to the carriage 41 and is attached to the scanning motor 43 via a pulley 45. When the scanning motor 43 is driven, the endless belt 44 travels and the carriage 41 reciprocates along the guide rails 42 in the direction of movement Ds. This causes the carriage 41 to move the discharge head 20 in the direction of movement Ds.

[0023] As shown in Figure 3, the discharge head 20 has a plurality of drive elements 25. The drive elements 25 are piezoelectric elements, heating elements, electrostatic actuators, etc., and are provided in correspondence with the nozzles 27 of the discharge head 20, and apply pressure to the ink to discharge ink droplets from the nozzles 27.

[0024] The printing device 1 further includes a display device 14, an input device 15, and a control device 50. The control device 50 corresponds to a computer and has an interface 51, an arithmetic unit 52, and a storage unit 53. The interface 51 receives various data, such as image data, from external devices 200 such as computers, cameras, communication networks, recording media, displays, and printers. The image data is raster data that shows the image to be printed on the printing medium W, and includes information on printing conditions, including the type of the printing medium W. The control device 50 may consist of a single device, or multiple devices may be distributed and configured to cooperate in the operation of the printing device 1.

[0025] The storage unit 53 pre-stores a patch image PA, described later, which is an image containing multiple patches P for color proofing for printing an image. The storage unit 53 also pre-stores information on multiple printing characteristic regions CR, which are regions in the patch image PA described later that have different printing characteristics regarding the reproducibility of printed colors. Details of the patch image PA and the printing characteristic regions CR will be described later. The storage unit 53 is a memory accessible from the arithmetic unit 52 and includes RAM and ROM. The RAM temporarily stores various data, such as data received from an external device 200 such as image data and data converted by the arithmetic unit 52. The ROM stores a printing program for various data processing and predetermined data. The printing program may be stored on an external storage medium different from the storage unit 53 and accessible from the arithmetic unit 52, such as a CD-ROM.

[0026] The arithmetic unit 52 includes at least one circuit, such as a processor like a CPU and an integrated circuit like an ASIC. The arithmetic unit 52 controls each part by executing a printing program and performs various operations such as printing. In this embodiment, the arithmetic unit 52 corresponds to a computer, memory control means, generation means, and printing control means.

[0027] The display device 14 is, for example, a display, which displays images related to image data and preview images PI described later, according to instructions from the control device 50. The input device 15 is, for example, a button, which is operated by the user. The display device 14 may not be able to display an image that is exactly the same as the image printed on the printing medium W by the ejection head 20 (an uncorrected image related to image data) and a preview image PI that is exactly the same as the image printed on the printing medium W by the ejection head 20, but even if they are not exactly the same, they are considered to be included within a comparable range. The input device 15 may also be a touch panel integrated with the display device 14.

[0028] The control device 50 is electrically connected to the transport motor 32 of the transport device 30 via the transport drive circuit 33 and controls the drive of the transport motor 32. This controls the transport of the printing medium W by the transport device 30. The control device 50 is also electrically connected to the scanning motor 43 of the scanning device 40 via the scanning drive circuit 46 and controls the drive of the scanning motor 43. This controls the movement of the ejection head 20 by the scanning device 40. Furthermore, the control device 50 is electrically connected to the drive element 25 via the ejection head drive circuit 26. The control device 50 outputs a control signal for the drive element 25 to the ejection head drive circuit 26, and the head drive circuit 26 generates a drive signal based on the control signal and outputs it to the drive element 25. The drive element 25 is driven according to the drive signal, and as a result, ink droplets are ejected from the nozzle 27.

[0029] In the printing apparatus 1 having the above configuration, the control device 50 acquires image data and executes a printing operation based on the image data. In this case, the control device 50 moves the ejection head 20 in the movement direction Ds during the printing path and ejects ink from the ejection head 20 onto the printing medium W. The control device 50 then transports the printing medium W forward in the transport direction Df. In this way, the printing apparatus 1 alternately repeats the printing path and the transport operation. As a result, the image related to the image data is printed on the printing medium W.

[0030] Figure 4A shows an example of a specified image SI designated by the user in the preview image PI related to the image data displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 4B shows the arrangement of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI on the overall patch image PA.

[0031] The control device 50 receives image data transmitted from the external device 200. The image data includes color values. Color values ​​are represented, for example, as RGB values ​​in the RGB color space as color coordinates in a device-dependent color space. An RGB value represents a single color through a combination of red color values ​​from 0 to 255, green color values ​​from 0 to 255, and blue color values ​​from 0 to 255.

[0032] As shown in Figure 4A, the control device 50 displays a preview image PI related to the image data on the display device 14. When the preview image PI is displayed on the display device 14, the user specifies the image (pixels) related to the color for which they want to create a patch P as the specified image SI. In this case, the specified image SI specified by the user is pointed to by the pointer 14a on the display device 14. Note that for simplification, images other than the specified image SI are omitted in Figure 4A, and will be omitted in similar drawings thereafter.

[0033] The control device 50 generates a specified patch SP in the preview image PI, which is a patch of a color specified by the user. Specifically, when generating the specified patch SP, the control device 50 generates raster data including the ink color, droplet size, and ink droplet ejection order (arrangement) for forming the patch P related to the specified patch SP. In this embodiment, patch P is a patch image having a predetermined shape and area.

[0034] As shown in Figure 4B, the overall patch image PA includes a first patch region PR1 where the basic patch BP is placed, and a second patch region PR2 which is a blank region different from the first patch region PR1 and adjacent to the first patch region PR1 in the direction of movement Ds. The first patch region PR1 and the second patch region PR2 each have multiple patch sections PK, which are areas where patches P should be placed and printed, and each section has a predetermined area. Here, the basic patch BP is a patch P placed in a predetermined patch section PK corresponding to each of the multiple basic colors in the image data. Such basic patch BPs are placed in each patch section PK of the first patch region PR1. For ease of understanding, the position of each patch section PK will be specified and explained below using its position in a matrix (for example, its position in a 6x8 matrix in Figure 4B).

[0035] In the process of printing the entire patch image PA, the control device 50 causes the ejection head 20 to print at least one specified patch SP in the first patch area PR1 and at least one basic patch BP in the second patch area PR2. Specifically, before the process of printing the entire patch image PA, the control device 50 places the specified patch SP at the corresponding position CP on the entire patch image PA, which corresponds to the position on the preview image PI of the specified color (specified image SI), as shown in Figure 4B.

[0036] Here, the corresponding position CP is a position on the first patch region PR1 of the overall patch image PA, predetermined according to the position of the specified image SI on the preview image PI. More specifically, assuming that the shape of the preview image PI and the shape of the overall patch image PA are similar, the corresponding position CP is a position on the overall patch image PA where the ratio of the distance between a predetermined origin on the preview image PI and the specified image SI, and the distance between a predetermined origin on the overall patch image PA and the corresponding position CP, is a constant value.

[0037] When the control device 50 places a designated patch SP at a corresponding location CP, it first determines whether the corresponding location CP is within the first patch area PR1. If the corresponding location CP is within the first patch area PR1, the control device 50 places the basic patch BP already located at the corresponding location CP into an empty patch compartment PK in the second patch area PR2 before placing the designated patch SP. In Figure 4B, the basic patches placed in the empty patch compartment PK are shown as BPs. After placing the basic patch BPs, the control device 50 places the designated patch SP at the corresponding location CP in the first patch area PR1. In this way, the designated patch SP is placed at the corresponding location CP. If the corresponding location CP is not within the first patch area PR1, the control device 50 may perform other processing, such as placing the designated patch SP into a patch compartment PK in the second patch area PR2.

[0038] Figure 5A shows another example of a specified image SI designated by the user in the preview image PI displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 5B shows the arrangement of multiple specified patches SP related to the specified image SI on the overall patch image PA.

[0039] The specified image SI provided by the user may contain multiple colors. In Figure 5A, the specified image SI has two colors, and each color is identified and illustrated using different hatching.

[0040] If the user has specified multiple colors, and the corresponding position CP for each color is located on the same patch section PK in the overall patch image PA shown in Figure 5B, the control device 50 performs the following process. That is, as shown in Figure 5B, the control device 50 places a designated patch SP for one color with a predetermined priority among the multiple specified colors at the corresponding position CP. Then, the control device 50 places the designated patches SP for the remaining colors among the multiple colors at adjacent positions AP adjacent to the corresponding position CP. In other words, there are no patches of other colors between the designated patch SP for the one color with a predetermined priority and the designated patch SP for the remaining colors among the multiple colors.

[0041] The predetermined priority may be based, for example, on the size of the area of ​​a color in a specified image SI having multiple colors, or on the order specified by the user among multiple colors. Furthermore, the adjacent position AP may be any position in a patch section PK adjacent to the patch section PK related to the corresponding position CP, for example, any position in a patch section PK adjacent to the corresponding position CP in the transport direction Df. However, it is preferable that in Figure 5A, the respective parts related to the two colors in the specified image SI are located side by side in the movement direction Ds, and in this case, it is preferable that the adjacent position AP be a position aligned with the corresponding position CP in the movement direction Ds.

[0042] Before executing the process described above, the control device 50 places one designated patch SP at the corresponding location CP and the other designated patch SP at the adjacent location AP, it places the basic patch BP that is already placed at the corresponding location CP as basic patch BPs in the patch section PK of the second patch area PR2. In addition, before executing the above process, the control device 50 places the basic patch BP that is already placed at the adjacent location AP as basic patch BPa in the empty patch section PK of the second patch area PR2.

[0043] Figure 6A shows another example of a specified image SI specified by the user in the preview image PI related to the image data displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 6B shows the arrangement of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI in Figure 6A on the overall patch image PA. Figure 7 shows multiple print characteristic regions CR on the overall patch image PA.

[0044] Figure 8 shows the printing medium W being transported while being held only by the upstream transport roller 31. Figure 9 shows the printing medium W being transported while being held by the pressing member 63 and being held only by the downstream transport roller 31. Figure 10 shows the printing medium W being transported while not being held by the pressing member 63 and being held only by the downstream transport roller 31.

[0045] The control device 50 may place the designated patch SP based on whether the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position of the designated image SI specified by the user (i.e., the corresponding position CP) belongs to one of several printing characteristic regions CR in the overall patch image PA, which are regions with different printing characteristics regarding the reproducibility of printed colors. The printing characteristic regions CR will be described below.

[0046] The printing characteristic area CR includes, for example, printing characteristic areas CR1 to CR8, as shown in Figure 7. The positions and sizes of these printing characteristic areas CR1 to CR8 are merely examples. The control device 50 determines whether the corresponding position CP belongs to any of the printing characteristic areas CR1 to CR8.

[0047] The print characteristics region CR1 is located downstream in the transport direction in the overall patch image PA, and the print characteristics region CR2 is located further downstream in the transport direction than the print characteristics region CR1 in the overall patch image PA. In Figure 7, the print characteristics region CR1 is the region containing patch section PK belonging to all columns (columns 1 to 8) located in the 8th row, and the print characteristics region CR2 is the region containing patch section PK belonging to all columns (columns 1 to 8) located in the 9th row.

[0048] As shown in Figure 8, the conveying device 30 includes a conveying roller 31 located upstream in the conveying direction and a conveying roller 31 located downstream in the conveying direction. The conveying rollers 31 on the upstream and downstream sides in the conveying direction each consist of an upper roller 31a and a lower roller 31b located below the upper roller 31a. When the printing medium W is being conveyed, the printing medium W is held between the upper roller 31a and the lower roller 31b.

[0049] As shown in Figure 8, the print characteristic region CR1 is the region where the specified patch SP or image is printed on the print medium W by the ejection head 20 when the print medium W is being transported by the transport roller 31 on the upstream side in the transport direction and not being transported by the transport roller 31 on the downstream side in the transport direction. In addition, the print characteristic region CR1 is the region printed in the first print mode described later.

[0050] The control device 50 can switch between a first printing mode, which is a printing mode achievable by the ejection head 20, and a second printing mode, which is different from the first printing mode. The first printing mode is a printing mode in which, when the carriage 41 moves in the movement direction Ds, the ejection head 20 ejects ink droplets from a first number of nozzles 27 that are continuous in the transport direction Df to perform printing. On the other hand, the second printing mode is a printing mode in which, when the carriage 41 moves in the movement direction Ds, the ejection head 20 ejects ink droplets from a second number of nozzles 27 that are continuous in the transport direction Df to perform printing, which is greater than the first number. In other words, the first printing mode and the second printing mode differ in the number of nozzles 27 that are continuous in the transport direction Df, that is, in the printing width in the transport direction Df.

[0051] Printing characteristic region CR2 is the same as printing characteristic region CR1 in that the specified patch SP is printed on the printing medium W when the printing medium W is being transported by the transport roller 31 on the upstream side in the transport direction and not being transported by the transport roller 31 on the downstream side in the transport direction. However, printing characteristic region CR2 differs from printing characteristic region CR1 in that it is the region printed in the second printing mode.

[0052] The print characteristics region CR3 is located upstream in the transport direction in the overall patch image PA, and the print characteristics region CR4 is located further upstream in the transport direction than the print characteristics region CR3 in the overall patch image PA. In Figure 7, the print characteristics region CR3 is the region containing patch section PK belonging to all columns (columns 1 to 8) located in the second row, and the print characteristics region CR4 is the region containing patch section PK belonging to all columns (columns 1 to 8) located in the first row.

[0053] As shown in Figure 9, the printing apparatus 1 is provided with a pressing member 63 located between the discharge head 20 and the upstream transport roller 31 in the transport direction Df, for pressing the printing medium W from the vertical direction. The printing characteristic region CR3 is the region in which the printing medium W is transported by the transport roller 31 on the downstream side in the transport direction, the printing medium W is pressed down by the pressing member 63, and the printing medium W is not transported by the transport roller 31 on the upstream side in the transport direction, and the printing medium W-specified patch SP is printed.

[0054] As shown in Figure 10, the printing characteristic region CR4 is the region in which the specified patch SP is printed on the printing medium W when the medium W is being transported by the transport roller 31 on the downstream side in the transport direction, when the medium W is not being held down by the pressing member 63, and when the medium W is not being transported by the transport roller 31 on the upstream side in the transport direction.

[0055] The printing characteristic region CR5 is the acceleration region where the carriage 41 moves while accelerating. In Figure 7, the printing characteristic region CR5 is the region that includes patch section PK belonging to all rows (rows 1 to 9) located in the first column. The printing characteristic region CR6 is the deceleration region where the carriage 41 moves while decelerating. In Figure 7, the printing characteristic region CR6 is the region that includes patch section PK belonging to all rows (rows 1 to 9) located in the eighth column. Furthermore, the printing characteristic region CR7 is the constant speed region where the carriage 41 moves at a constant speed, and in Figure 7, it is the region that includes patch section PK in the overall patch image PA, excluding printing characteristic regions CR5 and CR6. Furthermore, the printing characteristic region CR8 is the region where the printed medium W is transported by the transport roller 31 on the upstream side in the transport direction and the transport roller 31 on the downstream side in the transport direction, and the printed medium W is held down by the pressing member 63, and the specified patch SP etc. is printed on the printed medium W. Thus, the printing characteristic region CR8 is a region (stable region) in which stable printing can be performed on a stable printed medium W. In Figure 7, the print characteristic region CR8 is the region containing patch section PK, excluding print characteristic regions CR1, CR2, CR4, CR5, and CR6 in the overall patch image PA, and a portion of print characteristic region CR3. In other words, Figure 7 shows an example where a portion of print characteristic region CR3 and a portion of print characteristic region CR8 overlap in the transport direction Df. The print characteristic regions CR1 to CR8 described above exist corresponding to the positions in the overall patch image PA.

[0056] The control device 50 determines which of the multiple printing characteristic regions CR the position on the patch-wide image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI (specified color) specified by the user belongs to. If the position belongs to multiple printing characteristic regions CR, the control device 50 then determines whether the position spans multiple printing characteristic regions CR. In this regard, in Figure 6, it is assumed that the position on the patch-wide image PA in Figure 6B corresponding to the position in Figure 6A specified by the user spans printing characteristic region CR3 and printing characteristic region CR8. In this case, the control device 50 places the corresponding position CP of the specified patch SP in patch section PK, which spans printing characteristic regions CR3 and printing characteristic region CR8. Note that the printing characteristic regions CR to which the above position spans are not limited to printing characteristic regions CR3 and printing characteristic region CR8, but may be any other adjacent printing characteristic regions CR.

[0057] Figure 11 is a flowchart showing an example of how the control device 50 arranges the designated patch SP related to the designated image SI.

[0058] As shown in Figure 11, the control device 50 displays a preview image PI related to the image data on the display device 14 and accepts a specified image SI (specified color) specified by the user (step S1). The control device 50 acquires the position on the entire patch image PA corresponding to the position of the specified image SI (step S2). Next, the control device 50 performs a determination process to determine whether the acquired position belongs to any of the print characteristic areas CR (step S3).

[0059] Next, the control device 50 calculates the corresponding position CP on the overall patch image PA of the specified patch SP corresponding to the specified image SI (step S4). In this case, for example, if the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the specified position as described above spans multiple print characteristic areas CR, the corresponding position CP is placed in the patch section PK that spans multiple print characteristic areas CR.

[0060] Then, the control device 50 determines whether there are any other specified colors (step S5). If no specified patch SPs related to other specified colors are placed, that is, if there are no other colors specified by the user (No in step S5), the control device 50 places the original basic patch BP, which is located at the corresponding position CP where the specified patch SP should be placed, into patch section PK of the second patch area PR2 (step S6). After that, the control device 50 places the specified patch SP at the corresponding position CP (step S7).

[0061] On the other hand, if a designated patch SP relating to another designated color has already been placed (Yes in step S5), the control device 50 determines whether the other designated patch SP has a higher predetermined priority (for example, priority based on area) than the unplaced designated patch SP that is to be placed (step S8). If the other designated patch SP has a higher priority (Yes in step S8), the control device 50 calculates the placement position of the unplaced designated patch SP (step S9). Then, the control device 50 places the designated patch SP at the calculated placement position (step S10).

[0062] On the other hand, if the priority of other designated patch SPs is low (No in step S8), the control device 50 recalculates the placement position of the other designated patch SPs (step S11), places the other designated patch SPs in the recalculated positions, and places any unplaced designated patch SPs in the positions where the other designated patch SPs were placed (step S12). Subsequently, the control device 50 causes the ejection head 20 to print the entire patch image PA with the designated patch SPs on the printing medium W. The control device 50 then has the color of the entire patch image PA printed on the printing medium W measured by a colorimeter such as a spectrophotometer, and stores the measured color value in the storage unit 53 in correspondence with the color value of patch P. The control device 50 then creates a calibration profile to calibrate the color of the printed image to the target color based on the above correspondence, and causes the ejection head 20 to print the image based on the calibration profile on the printing medium W.

[0063] Figure 12A shows another example of a specified image SI specified by the user in the preview image PI related to the image data displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 12B shows the arrangement of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI in Figure 12A on the overall patch image PA. Figure 13 shows another example of multiple print characteristic regions CR on the overall patch image PA. Note that Figure 13 is the same as Figure 7 except that print characteristic region CR3 and print characteristic region CR8 do not overlap in the transport direction Df.

[0064] The control device 50, as in the case of Figure 6A, determines which of the multiple printing characteristic regions CR the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI specified by the user belongs to. Then, if the above position belongs to one of the multiple printing characteristic regions CR, the control device 50 places the corresponding position CP of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI into the patch section PK that belongs to the one printing characteristic region CR that has the larger color range on the image data among the multiple printing characteristic regions CR.

[0065] To explain in more detail, the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI in Figure 12A is assumed to belong to both the printing characteristic area CR3 and the printing characteristic area CR8. In Figure 12A, the portion of the specified image SI belonging to the printing characteristic area CR3 is designated as SI1, and the portion of the specified image SI belonging to the printing characteristic area CR8 is designated as SI2. The area (range on the image data) of portion SI1 is larger than the area of ​​portion SI2. In such a case, the control device 50 places the corresponding position CP of the specified patch SP in the patch section PK (the patch section PK at the position of the 2nd row and 2nd column in Figure 12B) in the printing characteristic area CR3 to which the larger portion SI1 belongs.

[0066] Figure 14A shows another example of a specified image SI specified by the user in the preview image PI related to the image data displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 14B shows the arrangement of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI in Figure 14A on the overall patch image PA.

[0067] In this example, it is determined whether the same color specified by the user exists in the image data. The control device 50 determines which of the multiple printing characteristic regions CR each position on the patch-wide image PA corresponds to the color specified by the user (the color of the specified image SI) and the image data of the same color. In Figures 14A and 14B, for example, the position on the patch-wide image PA corresponding to the position in the image data of the specified image SI belongs to printing characteristic region CR3, and the position on the patch-wide image PA corresponding to the position in the image data of image SIa related to the same color as the specified image SI belongs to printing characteristic region CR8.

[0068] As described above, if each position belongs to multiple print characteristic areas CR, then, as shown in Figure 14B, the control device 50 places the corresponding position CP1 of the designated patch SP related to the designated image SI into patch section PK in print characteristic area CR3, and places the corresponding position CP2 of the patch related to image SIa (referred to as designated patch SP) into patch section PK in print characteristic area CR8. Then, the control device 50 places the basic patch BP that is located at the corresponding position CP1 before placing the designated patch SP related to the designated image SI into an empty patch section PK in the second patch area PR2 as basic patch BPs1. Also, the control device 50 places the basic patch BP that is located at the corresponding position CP2 before placing the designated patch SP related to image SIa into an empty patch section PK in the second patch area PR2 as basic patch BPs2.

[0069] If the control device 50 has performed the processing shown in Figure 14B, it may print the overall patch image PA, in which each designated patch SP is placed, onto the printing medium W, and then have the colorimeter perform color measurement for each designated patch SP. In this case, the control device 50 can create a calibration profile by averaging the color measurement results for each designated patch SP. For example, the color measurement results can be averaged by dividing the sum of the measured values ​​by the number of measurements.

[0070] Figure 15A shows another example of a specified image SI specified by the user in the preview image PI related to the image data displayed on the display device 14, and Figure 15B shows the arrangement of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI in Figure 15A on the overall patch image PA.

[0071] The control device 50 may determine whether the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI (specified color) specified by the user belongs to the first print characteristic region, the second print characteristic region, or the third print characteristic region. For example, it may determine whether the XY coordinates of the centroid of the specified image SI are between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right corners of the first print characteristic region, between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right corners of the second print characteristic region, or between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right corners of the third print characteristic region. In Figure 15B, print characteristic regions CR1 and CR2 correspond to the first print characteristic region, print characteristic regions CR3 and CR4 correspond to the third print characteristic region, and print characteristic region CR8 corresponds to the second print characteristic region. Also, the transport direction Df corresponds to a predetermined direction. In Figures 15A and 15B, the above position is assumed to belong to the third print characteristic region (print characteristic regions CR3 and CR4).

[0072] Thus, if the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI (specified color) belongs to the first print characteristic area or the third print characteristic area, the control device 50 may place the corresponding position CP of the specified patch SP related to the specified image SI in the patch section PK in the print characteristic area CR8, which is the second print characteristic area.

[0073] As explained above, according to the printing device 1, before the entire patch image PA is printed, the basic patch BP, which is placed at the corresponding position CP before the designated patch SP is placed, is placed in the empty patch section PK in the second patch area, and the designated patch SP is placed at the corresponding position CP in the first patch area PR1. This reduces the possibility, compared to conventional methods, that if the designated patch SP is located in an area on the printing medium W where the ink placement accuracy may decrease (i.e., an area caused by instability in the support of the printing medium W by the transport roller 31), the designated patch SP will be printed in an area where the ink placement accuracy does not decrease due to the decrease in ink placement accuracy. In other words, by placing the designated patch SP in the first patch area PR1, if the designated patch SP is located in an area where the ink placement accuracy may decrease, the possibility of the designated patch SP being printed in that area where the ink placement accuracy decreases can be increased.

[0074] On the other hand, if the designated patch SP is located in an area where ink placement accuracy cannot be reduced, the possibility of the designated patch SP being printed in an area where ink placement accuracy is reduced due to a decrease in ink placement accuracy can be reduced compared to the conventional method. In other words, by placing the designated patch SP in the first patch area PR1, if the designated patch SP is located in an area where ink placement accuracy is not reduced, the possibility of the designated patch SP being printed in that area can be increased. This reduces the possibility that the position of the color specified by the user (i.e., the color for which color proofing is desired) in the image data will not match the position of the designated patch SP on the overall patch image PA of the printed medium W. This makes it easier to perform more appropriate color proofing than before, thereby improving the accuracy of color proofing. Furthermore, since the basic patch BP is placed in the second patch area PR2 when the designated patch SP is placed in the first patch area PR1, the loss of the basic patch BP can be avoided.

[0075] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control device 50 may place a designated patch SP for one color with a predetermined priority among a plurality of designated colors at the corresponding position CP, and place designated patches SP for the remaining colors at adjacent positions AP adjacent to the corresponding position CP. This reduces the possibility that the positions of each of the multiple colors that the user wishes to color-proof will not match the positions of each designated patch SP on the overall patch image PA of the printed medium W, thereby improving the accuracy of color proofing for multiple colors.

[0076] Furthermore, in this embodiment, if the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI (specified color) spans multiple printing characteristic areas CR, the control device 50 may place the specified patch SP in the patch section PK at a position that spans multiple printing characteristic areas CR. This improves the color reproducibility of the specified patch SP placed at a position that spans multiple printing characteristic areas CR.

[0077] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control device 50 may place the corresponding position CP of the designated patch SP related to the designated image SI in a patch compartment PK belonging to one of the multiple print characteristic areas CR that corresponds to the one with the larger color range on the image data. This makes it possible to improve the color reproducibility of the designated patch SP without using multiple patch compartments PK in the first patch area PR1 (i.e., without moving multiple basic patches BP to the second patch area PR).

[0078] Furthermore, in this embodiment, if the color of the designated image SI and the positions on the patch-wide image PA corresponding to each position on the image data of the same color as the designated color belong to different printing characteristic regions CR, the control device 50 may place each designated patch SP in the patch section PK in the corresponding printing characteristic region CR. This improves the color reproducibility of each designated patch SP.

[0079] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control device 50 may place the corresponding position CP1 of the designated patch SP related to the designated image SI in the patch section PK in the print characteristic area CR3, and the corresponding position CP2 of the patch related to image SIa (referred to as the designated patch SP) in the patch section PK in the print characteristic area CR8. Then, the control device 50 prints the overall patch image PA on the printing medium W, in which each designated patch SP is placed, and then has a colorimeter perform color measurement for each designated patch SP. The control device 50 may create a calibration profile by averaging the color measurement results for each designated patch SP. By averaging the color measurement results for each designated patch SP in this way, bias in the color measurement results can be suppressed, thereby improving the reproducibility of the printed color using the calibration profile.

[0080] Furthermore, in this embodiment, if the position on the overall patch image PA corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image SI (specified color) belongs to the first or third printing characteristic region, the control device 50 may place the corresponding position CP in the patch section PK in the second printing characteristic region. This allows color measurement to be performed on the color of the specified patch SP in the stable printing characteristic region CR8.

[0081] Furthermore, in this embodiment, by placing the designated patch SP in the patch section PK corresponding to the corresponding position CP in the print characteristic region CR1 to CR6, the reproducibility of the print color, taking into account each print characteristic, can be improved.

[0082] (modified version) The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, the following:

[0083] In the above embodiment, the boundary between one adjacent print characteristic region CR and the other print characteristic region CR may be made to coincide with the boundary between one adjacent patch section PK and the other patch section PK (example in Figure 13), or part of the boundary for the print characteristic region CR (example in Figure 7) or all of it may not be made to coincide with the boundary for the patch section PK.

[0084] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the print characteristic regions CR1 to CR8 on the overall patch image PA can be set arbitrarily. For example, for the print characteristic region CR1, the patch section PK may be set to be larger by one row on the upstream side of the transport direction Df, or for the print characteristic region CR3, the patch section PK may be set to be larger by one row on the downstream side of the transport direction Df.

[0085] Furthermore, although the above embodiment displays the preview image PI on the display device 14 of the printing device 1, the invention is not limited to this, and the preview image PI may also be displayed on a display of a personal computer or the like that can communicate with the printing device 1 via wired or wireless connection.

[0086] Furthermore, although an inkjet printer was given as an example of the printing device 1 in the above embodiment, the printing device 1 is not limited to this, and may be other printers such as laser printers or thermal printers. A laser printer includes a printing unit. The printing unit of a laser printer includes an image carrier such as a photosensitive drum or photosensitive belt, a charging unit that charges the image carrier by contact or non-contact, an exposure unit that forms an electrostatic latent image on the charged image carrier using a laser semiconductor or the like (so-called exposure), a toner cartridge or developing cartridge that supplies toner to the image carrier on which the electrostatic latent image has been formed, a transfer unit such as a transfer roller or transfer belt that directly transfers the toner image developed on the image carrier to the printing medium, and a fixing unit such as a fixing roller or fixing belt that heat-fixes the toner transferred to the printing medium. The laser printer is not limited to the direct tandem type described above, but may also be an intermediate transfer type laser printer, in which the toner image developed on the image carrier is transferred to an intermediate transfer belt, and then transferred from the intermediate transfer belt to the printing medium using a transfer unit. A thermal printer also includes a printing unit. The printing unit of a thermal printer comprises a thermal head and an ink ribbon. The thermal head is in contact with the ink ribbon and, when transferring the ink from the ink ribbon to the printing medium, heats up a corresponding heating element, thereby transferring the ink from the ink ribbon to the printing medium.

[0087] Furthermore, although the printing device 1 in the above embodiment was a serial head type, it may also be a line head type.

[0088] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the control device 50 determined whether the XY coordinates of the centroid of the specified image SI are between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the first printing characteristic area, between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the second printing characteristic area, and between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the third printing characteristic area, but is not limited to this. The control device 50 may also determine whether both the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the specified image SI are between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the first printing characteristic area, between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the second printing characteristic area, and between the XY coordinates of the upper left and lower right edges of the third printing characteristic area.

[0089] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the first printing mode is a printing mode in which, when the carriage 41 moves in the movement direction Ds, ink droplets are ejected from a first number of nozzles 27 that are continuous in the transport direction Df at the ejection head 20 to perform printing. On the other hand, the second printing mode is a printing mode in which, when the carriage 41 moves in the movement direction Ds, ink droplets are ejected from a second number of nozzles 27 that are greater than the first number of nozzles 27 that are continuous in the transport direction Df at the ejection head 20 to perform printing. However, it is not limited to this. In the second printing mode, the total number of nozzles 27 that eject ink droplets may be greater than the total number of nozzles 27 that eject ink droplets in the first printing mode.

[0090] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when the control device 50 creates a calibration profile by averaging the color measurement results for each designated patch SP, it averages the color measurement results by dividing the sum of the measured values ​​by the number of measurements. However, it is not limited to this. The maximum and minimum values ​​from all measured values ​​may be excluded, the remaining measured values ​​may be summed, and the color measurement results may be averaged by subtracting 2 from the total number of measurements. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 1 Printing device 14 Display device 20 Discharge heads 27 nozzles 30 Conveying device 31 Conveyor rollers 41 Carriage 50 Control device 52 Arithmetic section 53 Storage section 63 Retaining member AP adjacent location BP Basic Patch CP Corresponding Position CR,CR1~CR8 Printing characteristic area CR5 acceleration area CR6 deceleration area CR7 constant speed area Df Conveying direction Ds moving direction P Patch PA patch overall image PI preview image PR1 Patch Area 1 PR2, second patch area SP Specified Patch W Printing medium

Claims

1. A printing unit that prints an image onto a printing medium based on image data, The upstream transport roller located upstream of the printing section, A downstream conveyor roller located downstream of the printing section, A storage unit that stores a patch image which is an image containing multiple patches for color proofing to print the aforementioned image, A control device is provided, The control device is A process to generate a specified patch, which is a patch for a color specified by the user in the preview image corresponding to the aforementioned image, The process of printing the entire patch image is executed, The aforementioned overall patch image includes a first patch region where basic patches, which are multiple patches corresponding to a predetermined number of colors, are arranged, and a second patch region different from the first patch region. The printing medium includes a first region that is printed on while being held between both the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in a predetermined transport direction, and a second region that is printed on while being held between only one of the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in the transport direction. The control device, when it generates the specified patch, prints at least one of the specified patch in the first patch area and at least one of the basic patch in the second patch area in the process of printing the entire patch image.

2. The control device is Before the process of printing the entire patch image, the specified patch is placed in a predetermined corresponding position. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the corresponding position is a position on the entire patch image that corresponds to the coordinate position of the preview image of a specified image which is an image relating to a color specified by the user in the preview image.

3. The control device is A process is executed to determine whether the corresponding location for the specified patch is within the first patch area. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if the corresponding position for the designated patch is within the first patch area, the designated patch is placed at the corresponding position, and the basic patch that was placed at the corresponding position before the designated patch was placed is placed in the second patch area.

4. The aforementioned patch is a patch image having a predetermined shape and area. The control device is If the specified image designated by the user contains multiple colors, and the corresponding positions for each color are located on the same patch image within the overall patch image, The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a designated patch for one color with a predetermined priority among the specified plurality of colors is placed at the corresponding position, and designated patches for the remaining colors among the plurality of colors are placed at adjacent positions adjacent to the corresponding position.

5. The storage unit stores information about multiple printing characteristic regions in the overall patch image, which are regions with different printing characteristics regarding the reproducibility of printed colors. One of the aforementioned plurality of printing characteristic regions corresponds to the second region, The control device is A process to determine which of the multiple print characteristic regions the position on the overall patch image corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image, which is an image relating to the color specified by the user, belongs to. If the position of the designated image relating to the aforementioned color belongs to one of the multiple printing characteristic regions, the process of determining whether the position of the designated image relating to the aforementioned color spans across the multiple printing characteristic regions is further executed. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if the position of the designated image relating to the color spans across the plurality of printing characteristic regions, the corresponding position of the designated patch of the color is positioned at a position that spans across the plurality of printing characteristic regions.

6. The storage unit stores information about multiple printing characteristic regions in the overall patch image, which are regions with different printing characteristics regarding the reproducibility of printed colors. One of the aforementioned plurality of printing characteristic regions corresponds to the second region, The control device is Further processing is performed to determine which of the multiple print characteristic regions the position on the overall patch image corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image, which is an image relating to the color specified by the user, belongs to. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if the position of the designated image relating to the color belongs to one of the plurality of printing characteristic regions, the corresponding position of the color designation patch is placed in one of the plurality of printing characteristic regions that corresponds to the larger range of the color on the image data.

7. The storage unit stores information about multiple printing characteristic regions in the overall patch image, which are regions with different printing characteristics regarding the reproducibility of printed colors. One of the aforementioned plurality of printing characteristic regions corresponds to the second region, The control device is Further processing is performed to determine which of the multiple print characteristic regions the position on the overall patch image corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image, which is an image relating to the color specified by the user, belongs to. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein if the position of the designated image relating to the color belongs to one of the plurality of printing characteristic regions, the corresponding position of the designated patch of the color is placed in each of the plurality of printing characteristic regions.

8. The control device is A process to perform color measurement on the specified patch placed at the corresponding position in each of the plurality of print characteristic regions, The printing apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising the process of creating a calibration profile by averaging the color measurement results for a plurality of specified patches.

9. The plurality of print characteristic regions include a first print characteristic region, a second print characteristic region, and a third print characteristic region arranged along a predetermined direction. At least one of the first printing characteristic region, the second printing characteristic region, and the third printing characteristic region corresponds to the second region, The control device is Further processing is performed to determine which of the first print characteristic region, the second print characteristic region, and the third print characteristic region the position on the overall patch image corresponding to the position on the image data of the specified image, which is an image relating to the color specified by the user, belongs to. The printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein if the position of the designated image relating to the color belongs to the first printing characteristic area and the third printing characteristic area, the corresponding position of the designated patch of the color is placed in the second printing characteristic area.

10. The printing unit is an ejection head having a nozzle for ejecting ink droplets, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, comprising a first transport unit located upstream in the transport direction, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, further comprising a second transport unit located downstream of the printing medium in the transport direction, The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the corresponding position is a position in which the image or the specified patch is printed on the printing medium by the ejection head while the printing medium is being transported by the first transport unit and not being transported by the second transport unit.

11. The device further comprises a moving part that holds the discharge head and moves in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, The control device is capable of switching between a first printing mode in which, when the moving unit moves, ink droplets are ejected from a first number of nozzles to the ejection head to perform printing, and a second printing mode in which, when the moving unit moves, ink droplets are ejected from a second number of nozzles, which is greater than the first number, to the ejection head to perform printing. The printing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the corresponding position is a position printed in the first printing mode.

12. The device further comprises a moving part that holds the discharge head and moves in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, The control device is capable of switching between a first printing mode in which, when the moving unit moves, ink droplets are ejected from a first number of nozzles to the ejection head to perform printing, and a second printing mode in which, when the moving unit moves, ink droplets are ejected from a second number of nozzles, which is greater than the first number, to the ejection head to perform printing. The printing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the corresponding position is a position printed in the second printing mode.

13. The printing unit is an ejection head having a nozzle for ejecting ink droplets, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, comprising a first transport unit located upstream in the transport direction, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, comprising a second transport unit located downstream of the printing medium in the transport direction, The system further comprises a pressing member located between the discharge head and the first transport unit for pressing the printing medium from a vertical direction, The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the corresponding position is a position in which the image or the specified patch is printed on the printing medium by the ejection head when the printing medium is being transported by the second transport unit, the printing medium is being held down by the pressing member, and the printing medium is not being transported by the first transport unit.

14. The printing unit is an ejection head having a nozzle for ejecting ink droplets, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, comprising a first transport unit located upstream in the transport direction, A transport unit for transporting the printing medium, comprising a second transport unit located downstream of the printing medium in the transport direction, The system further includes a pressing member located between the discharge head and the first transport unit for holding the printing medium in place from a vertical direction, The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the corresponding position is a position in which the image or the specified patch is printed on the printing medium by the ejection head when the printing medium is being transported by the second transport unit, the printing medium is not being held down by the pressing member, and the printing medium is not being transported by the first transport unit.

15. The printing unit is an ejection head having a nozzle for ejecting ink droplets, The device further comprises a moving part that holds the discharge head and moves in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, The region on the overall patch image includes an acceleration region where the moving part moves while accelerating, a constant velocity region where the moving part moves at a constant speed, and a deceleration region where the moving part moves while decelerating. The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the corresponding position is a position in the acceleration region or the deceleration region.

16. A printing method in a printing apparatus comprising: a printing unit for printing an image on a printing medium based on image data; an upstream transport roller located upstream of the printing unit; and a downstream transport roller located downstream of the printing unit, The printing medium includes a first region that is printed on while being held between both the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in a predetermined transport direction, and a second region that is printed on while being held between only one of the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in the transport direction. The system stores a patch image, which is an image containing multiple patches for color proofing to print an image based on image data onto a printing medium. A specified patch is generated in the preview image corresponding to the aforementioned image, which is a patch for the color specified by the user. The aforementioned overall patch image includes a first patch region where basic patches, which are multiple patches corresponding to a predetermined number of colors, are arranged, and a second patch region different from the first patch region. A printing method for printing an image of the entire patch, which, when the specified patch is generated, places at least one of the specified patch in the first patch area and at least one of the basic patch in the second patch area.

17. A printing program to be executed by a computer in a printing apparatus comprising a printing unit that prints an image onto a printing medium based on image data, an upstream transport roller located upstream of the printing unit, and a downstream transport roller located downstream of the printing unit, The printing medium includes a first region that is printed on while being held between both the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in a predetermined transport direction, and a second region that is printed on while being held between only one of the upstream and downstream transport rollers and transported in the transport direction. The aforementioned computer, A storage control means for storing a patch-wide image which is an image that includes multiple patches for color proofing to print the aforementioned image onto the printing medium, and This function serves as a generation means for generating a specified patch, which is a patch for a color specified by the user in the preview image corresponding to the aforementioned image. The aforementioned overall patch image includes a first patch region where basic patches, which are multiple patches corresponding to a predetermined number of colors, are arranged, and a second patch region different from the first patch region. A printing program that, when the specified patch is generated, further functions as a printing control means that places at least one of the specified patch in the first patch area and at least one of the basic patch in the second patch area to print the entire patch image to the printing unit.

Images