Printer Control Section Using Non-Proportional Pretreatment Masks
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing printing technologies face challenges in achieving optimal image quality due to variations in the timing and amount of pretreatment applied to the print medium, which can lead to issues like bleed and coalescence, affecting the interaction between the medium and ink, and requiring additional components for drying.
Innovation Solution
The use of non-proportional pretreatment masks, where the number of printable pixels in each pass varies, allowing for flexible control of curing time and drying between pretreatment and ink application, potentially eliminating the need for additional drying components and optimizing the pretreatment parameters without increasing print time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a pretreatment is applied to the print medium prior to printing with colored inks, then image quality is improved by optimizing the interaction between the medium and ink, but additional drying components and time are required to prevent issues like bleed and coalescence
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pretreatment to specific pixels before ink application in a multi-pass printing process. The first pass applies pretreatment to pixels that will be printed in subsequent passes, allowing the pretreatment to optimize the medium-ink interaction and prevent bleed and coalescence without requiring additional drying components.
Solution Approach 2:
The printing process is divided into multiple passes, with the first pass applying pretreatment and subsequent passes applying ink. The pretreatment mask is segmented to apply treatment only to specific pixels that require it, rather than uniformly treating the entire medium, thereby optimizing image quality while minimizing the need for drying components.
2Manufacturing precision
If pretreatment is applied uniformly across the entire print medium, then consistent interaction between medium and ink is achieved, but print time increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pretreatment selectively to specific pixels based on a pretreatment mask rather than uniformly across the entire medium. The mask identifies pixels that require pretreatment to achieve consistent medium-ink interaction, while leaving other pixels untreated, thereby maintaining interaction consistency where needed without increasing overall print time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies pretreatment only to the extent necessary for optimal image quality. By using a pretreatment mask to identify specific pixels that require treatment, the system avoids applying pretreatment excessively to areas where it is not needed, thus maintaining consistent interaction where required while preserving productivity.
3Productivity
If the time interval between pretreatment ejection and ink ejection is reduced, then productivity is improved, but image quality deteriorates due to insufficient curing and drying
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pretreatment in advance during a first pass, allowing the pretreatment to begin curing and drying before ink is applied in subsequent passes. This preliminary action ensures that the pretreatment has sufficient time to prepare the medium for optimal ink interaction without requiring extended delays between pretreatment and ink application.
Solution Approach 2:
The printing process is segmented into multiple passes with pretreatment applied first to specific pixels, followed by ink application in subsequent passes. This segmentation allows the pretreatment to undergo necessary curing and drying processes on selected pixels while the printing system continues to operate efficiently, maintaining both image quality and productivity.
4Manufacturing precision
If additional drying components are added to the printing system, then image quality is maintained by preventing bleed and coalescence, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies pretreatment in advance during a first pass, allowing the pretreatment to begin curing and drying before ink is applied in subsequent passes. This preliminary action ensures that the pretreatment has sufficient time to prepare the medium for optimal ink interaction without requiring extended delays between pretreatment and ink application.
Solution Approach 2:
The printing process is segmented into multiple passes with pretreatment applied first to specific pixels, followed by ink application in subsequent passes. This segmentation allows the pretreatment to undergo necessary curing and drying processes on selected pixels while the printing system continues to operate efficiently, maintaining both image quality and productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
A printer control section arranged to control a printhead, is operable to cause the printhead to: perform a plurality of passes over a swath of a print medium, the plurality of passes including first and second treatment passes; apply treatment to the print medium in each of the treatment passes, the treatment in each treatment pass being applied according to a respective treatment mask, wherein each treatment mask indicates a corresponding set of pixels to which the treatment may be applied in a pass to which the treatment mask is applied, the treatment mask having a weight indicative of the proportion of pixels in the corresponding set of pixels, and the treatment masks of the first and second passes are such that a weight of the first treatment mask is different from a weight of the second treatment mask.