Inkjet Print Head Power Control for Ruled Line Quality
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing printing technologies face issues with ink condensation in print head nozzles, leading to poor ink ejection and image quality, especially when printing thin lines or ruled lines, due to inadequate power control during scanning.
Innovation Solution
A printing apparatus with a determination unit that identifies pixels with a ruled-line attribute in image data, applying higher energy to the print head for regions containing these pixels to prevent ink condensation and maintain ink droplet ejection accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If power for driving the print head is increased to prevent ink condensation, then ink ejection accuracy is improved, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different power levels to different regions of the printing medium based on image density characteristics. High power is applied only to low-density regions (including ruled line regions) where ink condensation occurs, while normal power is used for high-density image regions. This localized power adjustment prevents ink condensation in critical areas without unnecessarily increasing energy consumption across the entire printing process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically changes the driving power parameter based on the detected image density of different regions. By analyzing the dot count or image density in each region and comparing it to threshold values, the system adjusts the power level applied to the print head accordingly. This parameter change ensures optimal ink ejection for each specific region, preventing condensation in low-density areas while maintaining energy efficiency.
2Reliability
If the number of ink droplets ejected to a region is small, then the region is determined to be a non-image region, but this causes ink condensation and degradation of droplet landing accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary detection of image density or dot count in each region before actual printing. By identifying low-density regions in advance (where ruled lines or thin lines will be printed), the system proactively applies high power to prevent ink condensation before it occurs. This preliminary anti-action ensures reliable ink ejection and maintains droplet landing accuracy in regions that would otherwise be misclassified as non-image regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses feedback from image density analysis to control power adjustment. The system detects the density characteristics of each region, compares them against threshold values, and uses this feedback information to determine the appropriate power level for printing that region. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures that regions with ruled lines or thin lines receive appropriate high power treatment, preventing ink condensation and maintaining ejection reliability.
3Use of energy by moving object
If a region including only a thin ruled line is printed with low power, then energy consumption is reduced, but ink condensation occurs causing variation of line width and degradation of density
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies high power specifically to low-density regions containing ruled lines or thin lines, while using normal power for high-density image regions. This localized quality adjustment ensures that ruled lines are printed with sufficient energy to prevent ink condensation and maintain consistent line width, without unnecessarily increasing energy consumption for regions that don't require it.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically changes the driving power parameter based on region-specific image density characteristics. By detecting whether a region contains ruled lines or thin lines (low density) versus regular images (high density), the system adjusts the power parameter accordingly. This ensures that ruled lines maintain consistent width and density by receiving appropriate high power, while overall energy consumption is optimized by using normal power for other regions.
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
This solution ensures proper power control for printing thin lines and ruled lines, preventing ink condensation and maintaining image quality by increasing energy for regions with ruled-line attributes, thus addressing the issue of ink droplet degradation and width variation.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of printing elements for generating energy used for ejection of ink
Data Source
AI summary
An inkjet printing apparatus which performs printing by performing scanning using a print head has a problem in that quality of an image of a ruled line is degraded when ink is not ejected for a certain period of time. To address this problem, control is performed such that power for driving the print head for unit regions including pixels having a ruled-line attribute becomes higher than power for driving the print head for unit regions which do not include the pixels having the ruled-line attribute. By this, a high-quality ruled-line image may be printed.