Recording material consumption control for an image forming apparatus

An image processing method that supplies an image signal to an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording medium using recording material, the image processing method comprising:

• inputting C, M, Y and K signals as image signals;
• reading out from a storage unit a limiting value of a sum of signal levels of image signals output to the image forming apparatus;
• comparing the limiting value and the sum of the signal levels of the input C, M, Y and K signals;
• replacing an under color removal level of C, M and Y signals with a K signal in an under color removal process when the sum of the signal levels of the input C, M, Y and K signals exceeds the limiting value;
• comparing the limiting value and the sum of the signal levels of the C, M, Y and K signals after undergoing the under color removal process;
• and
• reducing, where the sum after the under color removal process exceeds the limiting value, the C, M and Y signals, but not the K signal, after undergoing the under color removal process at an identical rate so as to reduce the sum after the under color removal process to less than the limiting value.

An image processing apparatus comprising:

• a communications unit that receives print information;
• an image processing unit that processes the print information received by said communications unit and generates image data in dot sequence;
• a temporary storage unit that temporarily stores at least a portion of the image data generated by said image processing unit;
• a printing unit that prints based on the image data stored in said temporary storage unit;
• and
• a limiting unit that determines whether or not the image data is comprised of density information, and if so, compares an addition value of the density information of each pixel of the image data and a predetermined limiting value, and, if the addition value is greater than the predetermined limiting value, reduces the addition value to equal to or less than the predetermined limiting value,
• wherein said limiting unit is provided between said image processing unit and said temporary storage unit.

An image processing method executed by an image processing apparatus, said image processing method comprising:

• receiving print information;
• processing the received print information and generating image data in dot sequence;
• determining whether or not the image data is comprised of density information;
• comparing an addition value of the density information of each pixel of the image data and a predetermined limiting value, where the image data is comprised of density information;
• reducing the addition value to equal to or less than the predetermined limiting value, if results of the comparison indicate that the addition value is greater than the predetermined limiting value;
• storing temporarily at least a portion of the image data which has and has not undergone the reducing step;
• and
• printing based on the temporarily stored image data.