Systems and methods for compensating for streaks in images

A storage medium storing a set of program instructions executable on a data processing device and usable to create data for compensating for streak defects in an image formed using an image forming device that forms the image on a receiving material that is translated through the image forming device along a process direction, the set of program instructions comprising:

• instructions for printing a compensation pattern usable to determine a difference in gray level between an actual gray level value and an intended gray level value at a cross-process-direction image-forming device pixel location in the image, comprising:
• instructions for printing a plurality of gray level portions, each gray level portion having a gray level that is different from the other gray level portions and extending along the cross-process-direction, the plurality of gray level portions arranged along the process direction, and spaced from each other along the process direction such that a gap is provided between each pair of adjacent gray level portions,
• instructions for printing, for each gray level portion, a first edge locating mark located adjacent to a first end of that gray level portion and a second edge locating mark located adjacent to a second end of that gray level portion;
• instructions for printing a first row of fiducial marks before the plurality of gray level portions along the process direction,
• instructions for printing a second row of fiducial marks after the plurality of gray level portions along the process direction, and
• instructions for printing a plurality of third rows of fiducial marks, one third row of fiducial marks located in each gap between a pair of adjacent gray level portions;
• instructions for scanning the compensation pattern to generate a set of scanned image data, the scanned image data defining an image value for each of a plurality of scanned image pixel locations;
• instructions for analyzing the scanned image data for at least one of the gray level portions to determine at least one actual gray level value for at least one of the plurality of gray level portions for at least one cross-process-direction image-forming device pixel location based on a location of at least one fiducial mark of at least one row of the first row, the second row and the plurality of the third row of fiducial marks in the scanned image data;
• instructions for generating, for each analyzed cross-process-direction image-forming device pixel location, for each analyzed gray level portion of that analyzed cross-process-direction image-forming device pixel location, at least one compensation parameter based on the determined actual gray level value for that analyzed gray level portion and the intended gray level value for that analyzed gray level portion.

A method for printing a compensation pattern usable to determine a difference in gray level between an actual gray level value and an intended gray level value at a cross-process-direction image-forming device pixel location in the image, comprising:

• printing a plurality of gray level portions, each gray level portion having a gray level that is different from the other gray level portions and extending along the cross-process-direction, the plurality of gray level portions arranged along the process direction, and spaced from each other along the process direction such that a gap is provided between each pair of adjacent gray level portions;
• and
• printing a number of rows of fiducial marks, the rows of fiducial marks distributed among the plurality of gray level portions, at least one pair of fiducial marks in each row being separated by a whitespace, the rows of fiducial marks comprising at least some of:
• a first row of fiducial marks located before the plurality of gray level portions along the process direction,
• a second row of fiducial marks located after the plurality of gray level portions along the process direction, and
• at least one third row of fiducial marks, each third row of fiducial marks located in a gap between a pair of adjacent gray level portions.