Image Processing Apparatus for Colored Base Material Printing

Solution Overview

Problem

Users face challenges in determining the optimal printing conditions for colored base materials, such as cloth, as the amount of pretreatment liquid and white ink required varies significantly based on material properties, leading to inconsistent white hiding ratios and durability issues, making it difficult to find preferred conditions without actual printing and washing tests.

Innovation Solution

An image processing apparatus that extracts characteristic information of printed materials using pretreatment liquid, white ink, and color ink, and generates a characteristic information image representing printing conditions, including fastness to washing and white density, allowing users to select suitable conditions through test print images and advanced setting screens.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If printing is performed on colored base materials without predetermined condition determination, then printing can be conducted, but the white hiding ratio becomes inconsistent and durability issues occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewhite hiding ratioVSAvoidprinting condition determination complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary determination of printing conditions by extracting characteristic information from images of the base material before actual printing. This includes analyzing color, texture, and other visual features to pre-calculate optimal printing parameters, thereby ensuring consistent white hiding ratio without requiring complex real-time adjustments during printing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a digital representation (characteristic information image) of the base material's visual properties. This copied visual information is then processed to determine printing conditions, replacing the need for physical sampling and manual analysis, thus simplifying the determination process while maintaining precision

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

2Reliability

If actual printing and washing tests are conducted to determine optimal conditions, then preferred printing conditions can be found, but time and resource consumption increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprinting condition suitabilityVSAvoidtime for printing and washing tests

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary determination of printing conditions by extracting characteristic information from images of the base material before actual printing. This includes analyzing color, texture, and other visual features to pre-calculate optimal printing parameters, thereby ensuring consistent white hiding ratio without requiring complex real-time adjustments during printing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a digital representation (characteristic information image) of the base material's visual properties. This copied visual information is then processed to determine printing conditions, replacing the need for physical sampling and manual analysis, thus simplifying the determination process while maintaining precision

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Manufacturing precision

If the amount of pretreatment liquid and white ink is increased to improve white hiding ratio, then coverage on colored materials improves, but durability decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewhite hiding ratioVSAvoiddurability

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically adjusts printing parameters including the amount of pretreatment liquid and white ink based on the extracted characteristic information of the base material. By analyzing the base material's properties visually, the system optimizes the ratio and quantity of materials to achieve adequate white hiding ratio while maintaining durability, avoiding the trade-off that occurs with fixed material application amounts

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS20240326496A1Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and storage medium

Publication Date: 2024.10.03 RISO KAGAKU CORP

AI summary

An image processing apparatus includes a processor being configured to extract characteristic information of a printed material corresponding to a base material used for printing using pretreatment liquid, base ink, and color ink and a printing condition of the printing, and to generate a characteristic information image representing the extracted characteristic information.