Image Processing Apparatus Edge-Intensity Toner Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image processing technologies for printing struggle to reduce toner consumption while maintaining image perceivability, as they often lower the print-density of non-edge areas, making the printed image difficult for users to perceive.
Innovation Solution
An image processing apparatus that calculates edge-intensity for target pixels and adjusts their print-density, increasing it for edge pixels and decreasing it for non-edge pixels, creating a watercolor effect where the print-density of non-edge areas appears higher, thereby reducing toner consumption while maintaining image perceivability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If the print-density of non-edge parts is lowered to reduce toner consumption, then the amount of toner consumption is reduced, but the printed image becomes difficult for users to perceive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different processing to different regions of the image: edge parts maintain their original print-density while non-edge parts have reduced print-density. This local differentiation allows toner savings in non-critical areas while preserving visual importance in edge regions that define the image structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of uniformly reducing print-density across the entire image (which would harm perceivability), the patent inverts the approach by selectively maintaining higher print-density only where necessary (edge parts) and reducing it elsewhere (non-edge parts). This inversion of the conventional uniform approach resolves the contradiction between toner savings and image quality.
2Loss of substance
If the print-density of all pixels is uniformly reduced to save toner, then the amount of toner consumption is reduced, but the overall image quality and perceivability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements spatially varying print-density adjustment where edge pixels retain original density values and non-edge pixels receive reduced density values. This local quality differentiation ensures that image structure and definition (manufacturing precision) are preserved in critical edge regions while achieving toner savings in less critical interior regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the image into two distinct regions: edge parts and non-edge parts, applying different print-density strategies to each segment. This segmentation allows the system to optimize toner usage in non-edge regions without compromising the structural integrity and quality of edge regions that define the image.
Data Source
AI summary
An image processing apparatus causes a printing executing section to perform a printing process using color-materials, the image processing apparatus includes: a first processing unit that performs a first image-processing by processing original image data in order to generate first processed image data; and a supplying unit, wherein the first processing unit includes: a calculating unit that calculates an index value relating an edge-intensity about a target pixel in object image data; and a correcting unit that corrects a value of the target pixel based on the index value of the edge-intensity, wherein the correcting unit corrects the value of the target pixel such that print-density of the target pixel increase if the target pixel is a first pixel, and wherein the correcting unit corrects the value of the target pixel such that print-density of the target pixel decrease if the target pixel is a second pixel.