Printer Facing Member Stabilizes Medium to Reduce Banding

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional printers face issues with banding near the boundaries of band areas due to variations in conveying amount, leading to conspicuous banding and compromised image quality.

Innovation Solution

A printer system with a controller that alternately executes partial printing and medium conveyance, using a facing member to stabilize the medium and adjust nozzle ranges based on conveying amounts, ensuring stable printing and minimizing banding.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If multi-pass printing is performed to improve image quality, then print quality improves, but banding becomes conspicuous at boundary areas between pass regions

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprint qualityVSAvoidbanding

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by performing a first pass printing operation before the second pass. The first pass printing establishes a base layer of ink deposition, and the second pass is carefully controlled to add detail without creating conspicuous banding at boundaries. This sequential preparation allows the boundary areas to be treated differently and reduces the harmful banding effect.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements local quality by differentiating the printing approach for boundary areas versus normal areas. The controller identifies boundary regions where passes overlap and adjusts printing parameters specifically for these zones. By applying different printing strategies to different spatial locations, the patent reduces banding at boundaries while maintaining overall print quality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Productivity

If conveying amount is increased to improve printing speed, then productivity improves, but variation in conveying amount causes banding

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprinting speedVSAvoidprint quality

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback by continuously monitoring the actual conveying amount and using this information to adjust subsequent printing operations. The controller detects variations in conveying distance and compensates by modifying ink deposition patterns or timing in affected areas. This closed-loop control maintains print quality even when conveying speed varies, preventing banding while preserving productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS11780249B2Printer and non-transitory computer-readable medium storing program

Publication Date: 2023.10.10 BROTHER KOGYO KK

AI summary

There is provided a printer including: a printing part which is provided with: a conveyor configured to convey a medium in a conveying direction, a printing head having a plurality of nozzles from which an ink of a specified color is discharged and of which positions in the conveying direction are mutually different, the printing head being configured to discharge the ink from the plurality of nozzles to the medium so as to form dots in the medium, and a facing member configured to be capable of facing a print surface of the medium on an upstream side in the conveying direction with respect to the plurality of nozzles of the printing head; and a controller.