Inkjet Flushing Dot Positioning to Prevent Edge Blurring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ink-jet printers face issues with image edge visibility due to flushing dots being formed near image dots, leading to blurred edges and complex control requirements.
Innovation Solution
A liquid ejecting apparatus with a feeding mechanism, a first ejection head, image-data storage, and a flushing-data producing section that controls the ejection of flushing dots to be formed on dot areas distant from image edge areas, improving edge visibility without complicated control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If flushing dots are formed near image dots to prevent clogging, then the liquid ejection openings are kept clear, but the image edge visibility is deteriorated due to blurred edges
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating the treatment of different regions on the recording medium. Flushing dots are selectively formed only in non-image regions or in image regions with sufficiently large distances to image edges, while image dots are formed in their designated positions. This spatial differentiation resolves the contradiction by allowing flushing operations in areas where they do not compromise image quality.
2Ease of operation
If flushing dots are formed near image dots, then the flushing operation is simple, but complicated control is required to move image dot positions to avoid quality degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-calculating the positions where flushing dots should be formed based on the image data and the distance to image edges. The flushing-data producing section generates flushing dot position information in advance, identifying suitable locations that maintain adequate distance from image edges. This eliminates the need for complex real-time control to move image dots, as the flushing positions are predetermined to avoid image quality issues.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances image edge visibility by preventing flushing dots from being perceived as part of the image edge, thereby maintaining image quality and simplifying control processes.
Implementation Method 1
a first energy generating portion configured to generate an ejection energy for ejecting the first liquid through the at least one first ejection opening
Implementation Method 2
a second energy generating portion configured to generate an ejection energy for ejecting the second liquid through the at least one second ejection opening
Data Source
AI summary
A liquid ejecting apparatus, including: a feeding mechanism which feeds a recording medium; a first ejection head including a first ejection opening for ejecting first liquid and a first energy generating portion which generates an energy for ejecting the first liquid; an image-data storage section storing image data for ejecting the first liquid onto dot areas on the recording medium; an image-recording controlling section which controls the first energy generating portion based on the image data; a flushing-data producing section which produces flushing data for flushing; and a flushing controlling section which controls the first energy generating portion such that a flushing dot is formed on the recording medium, wherein the flushing-data producing section produces the flushing data such that the flushing dot is landed on one of the dot areas which is distant, by a specific area, from an edge dot area corresponding to an edge of the image.