Page composition system

A page composition method for composing a page from elements in a continuous tone pixelized form or in a bit-mapped form for printing comprising:

• (a) determining the position of the elements on a printed page;
• (b) dividing the page into bands;
• (c) serially transferring pixel data values for sections of bands corresponding the portions of respective elements in a band, to a buffer memory, wherein the data from the portion of one element in a band is completely read prior reading data corresponding to the portion of the second element in the band;
• (d) writing the data to the buffer memory as it is read;
• and
• (e) transferring the data from the buffer memory when all the data corresponding to all portions of all elements in the band is written in the buffer memory, and including:
• determining the relative layer of the overlapping elements,
• wherein the portions of the elements in the band are transferred to the buffer memory in an order which corresponds to the determined relative layer of the overlapping elements.

A page composition method for composing a page from elements in a continuous tone pixelized form or in a bit-mapped form for printing comprising:

• (a) determining the position of the elements on a printed page;
• (b) dividing the page into bands;
• (c) serially transferring pixel data values for sections of bands corresponding tee portions of respective elements in a band, to a band buffer memory, wherein the data from the portion of one element in a band is completely read prior reading data corresponding to the portion of the second element in the band;
• (d) writing the data to the band buffer memory as it is read;
• and
• (e)transferring the data from the band buffer memory when all the data corresponding to all portions of all elements in the band is written in the band buffer memory,
• wherein a band contains overlapping portions of two elements.