Recording apparatus having a plurality of recording elements divided into blocks

A recording apparatus which performs image recording on a recording medium by driving a recording head having a plurality of recording elements, said plurality of recording elements being divided into a plurality of blocks and sequentially driven block by block, said recording elements exhibiting different recording characteristics with respect to a same driving signal due to manufacturing variations, the recording characteristics being related to measurable parameters, said recording apparatus comprising:

• storing means for prestoring data for correcting a driving signal for a respective one of said plurality of blocks, the data being determined in accordance with an average of the parameters relating to the recording characteristics of the recording elements in each of said plurality of blocks, the data being common to the recording elements in a same block;
• selecting means for selecting a block from among said plurality of blocks;
• data output means for outputting data corresponding to said selected block from said storing means;
• and
• driving means for simultaneously driving the recording elements in said selected block according to said data output by said data output means.

A recording apparatus operable in image and non-image recording mode, said apparatus comprising:

• recording means having a plurality of recording elements for performing image recording on a recording medium according to image data, said recording elements being divided into a plurality of blocks;
• driving means for driving said plurality of recording elements sequentially block by block;
• transmission means for transmitting image data to said plurality of recording elements;
• storing means for prestoring data on a drive condition for a respective one of said plurality of blocks, wherein said plurality of recording elements and said storing means are arranged on a single substrate plate;
• decision means communicating with said transmission means for determining a common drive condition via said plurality of recording elements in said block according to the data transmitted from said storing means through said transmission means during a non-image recording mode, wherein during an image recording mode, said driving means drives the recording elements in a same block in accordance with the common drive condition determined by said decision means.