Image printing apparatus and method
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorTsuyoshi Otani
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An image printing apparatus and method capable of preventing any smearing that occurs in printing at the same landing position using nozzles of different colors with a smaller RAM capacity are provided. For this purpose, for example, to prevent any ink smearing that occurs when K (black) ink and color ink are printed at the same landing point, K data in raster data transferred in accordance with the order of drive of the printing elements of a printing head is temporarily stored. In printing color data on the same raster, it is determined whether color data to be printed at the same landing point as that of the K data in the temporary storage area is present. If such data is present, smearing preventing processing is performed. In this way, any smearing between the K (black) ink and color ink can be prevented.
Claims20
An image printing apparatus which causes a carriage having, for each of a plurality of inks, a printing head having a plurality of printing elements arrayed in a predetermined direction to scan on a printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the array direction of the printing elements, thereby forming a color image on the printing medium, comprising:
- a reception buffer for storing print data transmitted in a raster format;
- printing buffers for divisionally storing the data stored in said reception buffer for each ink and for each predetermined area to be printed by the printing head;
- determination means for determining whether a designated printing buffer and an undesignated printing buffer in said printing buffers have data to be printed at the same position;
- and
- preventing means for, when it is determined that the data to be printed at the same position are present, preventing any ink smearing that occurs in printing at the same position.
An image printing method using an image printing apparatus which causes a carriage having, for each of a plurality of inks, a printing head having a plurality of printing elements arrayed in a predetermined direction to scan on a printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the array direction of the printing elements, thereby forming a color image on the printing medium, the image printing apparatus comprising:
- a reception buffer for storing print data transmitted in a raster format;
- and
- printing buffers for divisionally storing the data stored in the reception buffer for each ink and for each predetermined area to be printed by the printing head;
- and
- the method comprising:
- a determination step of determining whether a designated printing buffer and an undesignated printing buffer in the printing buffers have data to be printed at the same position;
- and
- a preventing step of, when it is determined that the data to be printed at the same position are present, preventing any ink smearing that occurs in printing at the same position.
A control program which controls an image printing method using an image printing apparatus which causes a carriage having, for each of a plurality of inks, a printing head having a plurality of printing elements arrayed in a predetermined direction to scan on a printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the array direction of the printing elements, thereby forming a color image on the printing medium, the image printing apparatus comprising:
- a reception buffer for storing print data transmitted in a raster format;
- and
- printing buffers for divisionally storing the data stored in the reception buffer for each ink and for each predetermined area to be printed by the printing head;
- and
- the control method comprising:
- a code of a determination step of determining whether a designated printing buffer and an undesignated printing buffer in the printing buffers have data to be printed at the same position;
- and
- a code of a preventing step of, when it is determined that the data to be printed at the same position are present, preventing any ink smearing that occurs in printing at the same position.
A computer-readable storage medium storing a control program which controls an image printing method using an image printing apparatus which causes a carriage having, for each of a plurality of inks, a printing head having a plurality of printing elements arrayed in a predetermined direction to scan on a printing medium in a direction perpendicular to the array direction of the printing elements, thereby forming a color image on the printing medium, the image printing apparatus comprising:
- a reception buffer for storing print data transmitted in a raster format;
- and
- printing buffers for divisionally storing the data stored in the reception buffer for each ink and for each predetermined area to be printed by the printing head;
- and
- the control method comprising:
- a code of a determination step of determining whether a designated printing buffer and an undesignated printing buffer in the printing buffers have data to be printed at the same position;
- and
- a code of a preventing step of, when it is determined that the data to be printed at the same position are present, preventing any ink smearing that occurs in printing at the same position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.