Calibration Look-Up Table for Arbitrary Recording Media
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Image forming apparatuses face challenges in maintaining uniform image quality due to varying environments and recording media types, requiring timely calibration adjustments that are often restricted to specific media, leading to potential toner application issues when using different media.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus includes an image forming unit, a creating unit, and a determining unit that form pattern images on specific and arbitrary recording media to generate conversion setting information, allowing for common image formation conditions to be determined and applied, enabling calibration with arbitrary media types.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If calibration is performed using a specific recording medium only, then image quality can be maintained for that specific medium, but the apparatus cannot adapt to arbitrary recording media types
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a look-up table for an arbitrary recording medium by copying and transforming calibration data from a specific recording medium. The system forms pattern images on both media types, reads their luminance characteristics, and generates conversion setting information that maps the arbitrary medium's properties to the specific medium's calibrated properties, enabling calibration adaptation without requiring identical physical media
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the luminance-to-density conversion parameters based on the recording medium type. By reading luminance information from pattern images formed on different media and applying medium-specific conversion settings from the look-up table, the system adjusts image formation conditions to maintain consistent output quality across varying media characteristics
2Ease of operation
If calibration is performed using a different type of recording medium than designed, then operator convenience is improved, but toner application may fall outside allowable ranges causing image quality degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a look-up table as an intermediary data structure that stores pre-calculated conversion settings for different recording medium types. This intermediary contains luminance-to-density conversion parameters that act as a bridge between the arbitrary recording medium used during calibration and the design-specified toner application ranges, preventing direct mapping errors
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary calibration using a specific recording medium to create the look-up table with appropriate conversion settings before actual operation. This preliminary action establishes safe parameter boundaries that prevent toner application from exceeding allowable ranges during subsequent calibrations with arbitrary media types
3Measurement precision
If separate calibration data is stored for each recording medium type, then calibration accuracy for each medium is improved, but memory storage requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal look-up table that serves multiple recording medium types through parameter transformation. Instead of storing separate complete calibration datasets for each medium, the system stores conversion settings that can be applied universally by reading luminance information from the specific medium type being used, making the calibration system multi-functional across different media
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the approach from storing absolute calibration values for each medium to storing transformation parameters (luminance-to-density conversion settings) that adapt to different media. This parameter-based approach reduces storage requirements while maintaining the ability to accurately calibrate multiple medium types through mathematical transformation rather than duplicate data storage
Data Source
AI summary
To add an arbitrary recording medium as a recording medium that can be used for calibration to maintain the quality of an image to be formed, an image forming unit forms a pattern image on each of a specific recording medium that can be used for the calibration and the arbitrary recording medium. A creating unit creates second conversion setting information applied to the arbitrary recording medium to convert luminance information into density information, using first luminance information obtained from the pattern image formed on the specific recording medium, second luminance information obtained from the pattern image formed on the arbitrary recording medium, and first conversion setting information applied to the specific recording medium for converting luminance information into density information. A determining unit determines a common image formation condition applied to the specific recording medium and the arbitrary recording medium based on the second conversion setting information.