# US 8,783,812 B2 · Printing apparatus and printing method

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- Number: US 8,783,812 B2
- Document ID: US8783812B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 13/658,434
- Filed: 2012-10-23
- Published: 2013-04-25
- Granted: 2014-07-22
- Earliest claimed: 2011-10-25
- Assignees: Seiko Epson Corporation
- Applicants: Seiko Epson Corporation
- Inventors: Takayoshi Kagata
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8783812B2

## CPC

- B41J 2/2103: {Features not dealing with the colouring process per se, e.g. construction of printers or heads, driving circuit adaptations}
- B41M 5/0023: {Digital printing methods characterised by the inks used (inks per se C09D11/00)}
- B41J: TYPEWRITERS; SELECTIVE PRINTING MECHANISMS, i.e. MECHANISMS PRINTING OTHERWISE THAN FROM A FORME; CORRECTION OF TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS
- B41M: PRINTING, DUPLICATING, MARKING, OR COPYING PROCESSES; COLOUR PRINTING, (correction of typographical errors B41J; processes for applying transfer pictures or the like B44C1/16; fluid media for correction of typographical errors by coating C09D10/00; printing textiles D06P)

## Abstract

A printing apparatus includes a nozzle that ejects brilliant ink to a medium to form a brilliant image, a nozzle that ejects color ink to the medium to form a color image, and a control unit that ejects the color ink after ejecting the brilliant ink to the medium, applies, to the color image, a pattern in which blocks each having a predetermined area and each formed of pixels with the same gradation are arranged, and ejects the color ink so that the color image after the application is formed.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A printing apparatus comprising:
a nozzle that ejects brilliant ink to a medium to form a brilliant image;
a nozzle that ejects color ink to the medium to form a color image; and
a control unit that controls the nozzles for ejecting the color ink after ejecting the brilliant ink to the medium, and applies, to the color image, a lame-tone pattern in which blocks each having a predetermined area and each formed of pixels with the same gradation are arranged.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a size of the block having the predetermined area is changed in a fixed range for each block.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the blocks are irregularly arranged.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pattern is not applied to an image having a smaller area than the predetermined area.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit applies, to the brilliant image, the pattern in which blocks each having a predetermined area and each formed of pixels with the same gradation are arranged, and ejects the brilliant ink so that the brilliant image obtained after the applying is formed.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the pattern applied to the color image and the pattern applied to the brilliant image are different from each other.

### Claim 7 (depends on 5)

The printing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein at least one of rotational movement, parallel movement, and inversion of a density which are performed on one pattern of the pattern applied to the color image and the pattern applied to the brilliant image is applied to the other pattern.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:
a nozzle that ejects clear ink to the medium to form the brilliant image,
wherein the control unit controls the nozzles for ejecting the clear ink after ejecting the color ink, and applies, to the clear image, the pattern in which blocks each having a predetermined area and each formed of pixels with the same gradation are arranged.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the nozzle that ejects brilliant ink is located upstream in a transport direction of the medium of the nozzle that ejects color ink on a nozzle row.

### Claim 10

A printing method, comprising the steps of:
applying, to a color image, a lamé-tone pattern in which blocks each having a predetermined area and each formed of pixels with the same gradation are arranged thereby to form the color image after the step of applying;
ejecting color ink to a medium to form the color image after the step of applying; and
ejecting brilliant ink to the medium to form a brilliant image.