Font Cache Segmentation for Faster Character Rasterization

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing image forming apparatuses face inefficiencies in creating graphic images of characters due to the time-consuming process of font rasterization, particularly when dealing with surrogate pair-enabled characters and composite glyphs, which can lead to increased printing time and resource utilization.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a data processing device with a font cache system that includes a primary, secondary, and tertiary font cache, along with a surrogate pair determiner and rasterizer, to efficiently manage and create graphic images of characters, especially by storing surrogate pair-enabled characters in the primary cache and reusing common components for composite glyphs.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Quantity of substance

If graphic images of characters are created in real-time during printing, then memory usage is reduced, but printing time increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvememory usageVSAvoidprinting speed

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent pre-generates graphic images of characters during idle periods or when memory is available, storing them in the font cache memory before they are needed for printing. This preliminary action ensures that when printing occurs, the pre-generated images are immediately available for output, eliminating the time-consuming real-time generation process while maintaining efficient memory utilization.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Speed

If a single large font cache memory is used, then character image retrieval is fast, but memory allocation becomes inefficient and wasteful

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecharacter image retrieval speedVSAvoidmemory allocation efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

SpeedVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent divides the font cache memory into multiple separate cache memories, each dedicated to storing graphic images of characters from specific language scripts or character sets. This segmentation allows the system to allocate memory more efficiently by only loading and caching characters from the languages actually being used, rather than pre-allocating space for all possible characters. Each segmented cache operates independently, maintaining fast retrieval speeds while improving overall memory utilization efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

3Productivity

If graphic images of all possible characters are pre-stored in cache, then printing speed is maximized, but memory consumption increases excessively

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprinting speedVSAvoidmemory consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a caching strategy where graphic images of characters are stored in the font cache memory based on their local usage characteristics - specifically, characters from frequently used languages or scripts are cached while less commonly used characters are not. The system analyzes the print job requirements and device language settings to determine which character sets to cache, creating a localized, optimized cache that maximizes printing speed for the specific usage context while minimizing memory consumption by excluding unnecessary character images.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS20250356548A1Data processing device capable of creating graphic image of character contained in print data, image forming apparatus, non-transitory computer-readable recording medium with image processing program stored thereon, and non-transitory computer-readable recording medium with computer program stored thereon

Publication Date: 2025.11.20 KYOCERA DOCUMENT SOLUTIONS INC

AI summary

An image forming apparatus includes a character drawer and a storage device. The character drawer creates a graphic image of a character contained in print data. The storage device stores the graphic image created by the character drawer. When the graphic image of the character is absent in the storage device, the character drawer creates a graphic image of the character and allows the created graphic image to be stored in the storage device.