Inkjet Printer Test Pattern Synchronization for Detection Accuracy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Liquid droplet discharging apparatuses, such as ink jet printers, face inefficiencies in reading test patterns due to the separate processes of printing and detection, which prolong the time required for pattern recognition and reduce accuracy.
Innovation Solution
A liquid droplet discharging apparatus that simultaneously prints and reads a test pattern by using a printing unit with a nozzle row moving in a scanning direction and a transporting unit that intermittently moves the medium, allowing the reading unit to read the pattern as it is printed, with overlapping reference and deviation patterns to correct transportation and discharge position errors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the printing unit prints the test pattern and the reading unit reads the test pattern in separate processes, then the detection can be performed by multiple detecting units for different colors, but the time required to complete detection is prolonged
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the printing unit and reading unit to operate simultaneously on the same medium. The reading unit reads the test pattern while it is being printed, merging the printing process and detection process into a unified operation, thereby eliminating the time delay between separate printing and detection steps
2Loss of time
If the test pattern is read immediately after printing, then the reading process is faster, but the positioning accuracy of the test pattern is reduced due to transportation variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having the reading unit read the test pattern during the printing process itself, before the transportation variation fully affects the final position. The reading occurs while the pattern is being formed, allowing correction values to be calculated based on the pattern's position at the time of printing rather than after transportation completes
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by using the reading unit to detect the test pattern's position and using this information to calculate correction values that are then applied to adjust the printing unit's operation. This closed-loop feedback mechanism compensates for positioning errors in real-time
Data Source
AI summary
A liquid droplet discharging apparatus includes a printing unit that moves a discharging head in a scanning direction and prints a test pattern on a medium by discharging a liquid droplets from nozzles of the discharging head, a transporting unit that intermittently transports the medium in a transporting direction, and a reading unit that reads the test pattern. The printing unit prints the test pattern by overlapping a transportation reference pattern and a transportation deviation pattern, in order to correct at least any one of a transportation amount of the medium being transported by the transporting unit and a discharging position to which the liquid droplets are discharged from the nozzles. The reading unit reads a completed part of the test pattern at the same time as printing the test pattern by the printing unit.