Image data generating apparatus, an image data generating method, and a printing system
AssigneeSCREEN Holdings Co., Ltd.
InventorSatoru Kiyohara
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A replacing unit replaces lower bits of tone values expressed in binary numbers of the specific pixels of source image data with additional information needed in a print data creating process in a printing machine. That is, least significant bits of the tone values expressed in binary numbers of specific pixels of the source image data after RIP processing are replaced with information to be communicated to the printing machine. As the information to be communicated to the printing machine, there is multi-SPM selection information used in a halftone dot process in the printing machine.
Claims3
An image data generating apparatus for generating image data for transmission to a printing machine through a network, the apparatus comprising:
- a storage device that stores source image data after RIP (Raster Image Processor) processing, the source image data comprising a plurality of pixel data each expressing a tone value of a specific number of bits;
- a first processor which carries out said generation of image data for transmission to the printing machine, the first processor configured to:
- replace lower bits of the pixel data of only specific pixels of the source image data stored in the storage device with additional information for use in creating printing data on the printing machine so as to output as the pixel data of the specific number of bits, while maintaining higher bits of the pixel data of only the specific pixels of the source image data stored in the storage device, with pixels other than the specific pixels remaining unchanged to be output as pixel data of the tone value of the specific number of bits;
- and
- transmit replaced image data with the additional information embedded therein to the printing machine through the network,
- wherein the additional information is matrix switching information indicating which of a plurality of sets of threshold matrices to apply to each predetermined image area when the printing machine carries out a halftone dot process on the replaced image data, and
- the first processor is further configured to replace the lower bits of the pixel data of the only specific pixels of the source image data with the matrix switching information.
An image data generating method for an image data generating apparatus which generates image data for transmission to a printing machine through a network, the method comprising:
- a storage step that stores source image data after RIP (Raster Image Processor) processing, the source image data comprising a plurality of pixel data each expressing a tone value of a specific number of bits;
- a replacing step that replaces lower bits of the pixel data of only specific pixels of the source image data stored in the storage step with additional information for use in creating printing data on the printing machine so as to output as the pixel data of the specific number of bits, while maintaining higher bits of the pixel data of only the specific pixels of the source image data stored in the storage device, with pixels other than the specific pixels remaining unchanged to be output as pixel data of the tone value of the specific number of bits;
- and
- a transmitting step that transmits, from the image data generating apparatus to the printing machine through the network, replaced image data with the additional information embedded therein,
- wherein the additional information is matrix switching information indicating which of a plurality of sets of threshold matrices to apply to each predetermined image area when the printing machine carries out a halftone dot process on the replaced image data, and
- the replacing step is executed to replace the lower bits of the pixel data of the only specific pixels of the source image data with the matrix switching information.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.