Inkjet Density Correction via Multi-Value Pattern Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing liquid ejecting apparatuses, such as inkjet printers, face challenges in maintaining image density consistency due to variations in nozzle precision and media type, leading to density unevenness and poor print quality on unknown media types.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the generation of multiple correction values based on pre-set values, printing specific patterns on a new medium type, and selecting an optimal correction value from these patterns to adjust for density inconsistencies, using a liquid ejecting apparatus with a controller to manage nozzle ejection and pattern printing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If correction values are obtained by printing patterns on a dedicated paper type, then density unevenness is suppressed for that specific medium, but density unevenness cannot be appropriately suppressed for media of unknown types
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by generating multiple candidate correction values (first, second, and third correction values with different correction amounts) before actually printing on the unknown medium. These correction values are prepared in advance based on a reference medium, enabling the system to handle unknown media types effectively without requiring pre-measurement on the target medium itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes parameters by creating multiple correction values with different correction amounts (first, second, and third correction values) instead of using a single fixed correction value. This allows the system to adapt to unknown media types by selecting the most appropriate correction value from the set, thereby maintaining both reliability for known media and versatility for unknown media.
2Reliability
If multiple correction values with different correction amounts are generated and patterns are printed on unknown media, then appropriate correction can be selected for the specific medium, but the process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The correction process is segmented into distinct stages: generating multiple candidate correction values (first, second, third correction values) with different correction amounts, printing test patterns with these correction values, measuring the patterns, and selecting the most appropriate correction value. This segmentation makes the complex process manageable and systematic.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback by measuring the actual density of printed patterns and using this information to select the most appropriate correction value. The measurement results feed back into the selection process, ensuring that the chosen correction value actually achieves the desired density uniformity for the specific unknown medium type.
Data Source
AI summary
A correction value setting method includes: generating, based on a first correction value that has been set in advance and is used in correcting a density of an image to be printed on a first medium, a second correction value that has a larger correction amount than the first correction value and a third correction value that has a smaller correction amount than the first correction value; printing respectively a first pattern to which the first correction value is applied, a second pattern to which the second correction value is applied, and a third pattern to which the third correction value is applied, on a second medium that differs in type from the first medium, by ejecting liquid from a head including a plurality of nozzles that eject liquid; and setting, based on the first pattern, the second pattern, and the third pattern that have been printed on the second medium, one of the first correction value, the second correction value, and the third correction value, as a correction value used in correcting a density of an image to be printed on the second medium.