Image forming apparatus, image forming method, and computer program product for processing an image based on the type and characteristics of the recording medium

An image forming method comprising:

• determining a sheet type of a recording sheet;
• measuring a sheet characteristic of the recording sheet;
• storing setting information including a save rate which is associated with one or more sheet characteristics for each sheet type, the save rate indicating a ratio of a reduction amount of color material for an image on the recording sheet to a consumption amount of the color material for an image on a reference sheet and the save rate being a value determined based on an amount of information relating to an appearance obtained from an output result on the recording sheet and the reference sheet;
• determining the save rate corresponding to the sheet type and the sheet characteristic of the recording sheet from the setting information;
• adjusting the save rate based on a difference between the measured sheet characteristic of the recording sheet and the sheet characteristic of the reference sheet:
• performing an image processing on image data of an image to be formed on the recording sheet on the basis of the determined save rate;
• and
• forming the image of the image data processed at the performing on the recording sheet.

A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable program codes embodied in the medium that when executed cause a computer to execute:

• determining a sheet type of a recording sheet;
• measuring a sheet characteristic of the recording sheet;
• storing setting information including a save rate which is associated with one or more sheet characteristics for each sheet type, the save rate indicating a ratio of a reduction amount of color material for an image on the recording sheet to a consumption amount of the color material for an image on a reference sheet and the save rate being a value determined based on an amount of information relating to an appearance obtained from an output result on the recording sheet and the reference sheet;
• determining the save rate corresponding to the sheet type and the sheet characteristic of the recording sheet from the setting information;
• adjusting the save rate based on a difference between the measured sheet characteristic of the recording sheet and the sheet characteristic of the reference sheet:
• performing an image processing on image data of an image to be formed on the recording sheet on the basis of the determined save rate;
• and
• forming the image of the image data processed at the performing on the recording sheet.