Incremental printing of symbolic information – Ink jet – Controller
Reexamination Certificate
1993-04-19
2001-04-17
Fuller, Benjamin R. (Department: 2853)
Incremental printing of symbolic information
Ink jet
Controller
C347S041000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06217142
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for performing a recording operation by ejecting ink to a medium to be recorded.
2. Description of the Prior Art
To perform a printing operation by employing an ink jet recording process, an ink which contains water soluble pigment, water soluble solvent and water as main components is usually used from the viewpoint of safety, easy handling and color conditioning. However, when the foregoing kind of water based ink is used for recording operations each performed using a so-called ordinary paper such as a high quantity paper, a copying papers or the like as a recording papers (recording media to be recorded with ink), there arises an occasion that the following several problems appear in the course of each recording operation.
Firstly, since ordinary papers each serving as a recording paper have comparatively poor ink permeability, a long time is required for achieving a step of fixing. For this reason, there arise problems that a recorded image is contaminated with unfixed ink due to contact with a certain unit placed on a transport path, a user's hand is contaminated with it, other recording paper is contaminated with it, and a recording unit is contaminated with it.
Secondly, when a color recording operation is performed, there arises an occasion that different kinds of colors are mixed with each other on a recording paper for the reason of poor ink permeability. In this case, a clear image can not be recorded on the recording paper.
Thirdly, when an ink readily permeable into ordinary papers is used in order to avoid the aforementioned problems, there arises an occasion that a coloring substance in the ink excessively permeates into the recording paper. In this case, so-called ink penetration occurs or good color development is not achieved with the recording paper after completion of a recording operation.
To obviate these problems, several proposals have been made with respect to a recording process as disclosed in, e.g., Japanese Patent Application Laying-Open Nos. 60-107975 and 3-231861. The recording process proposed according to each of prior arts is practiced such that a certain image is not recorded on a recording paper at a time but it is recorded on the recording paper by dividing the certain image into two parts per each pixel and then recording them at each of two scanning operations. Consequently, a quantity of ink to be permeated into the recording paper can relatively be reduced. Thus, even in case that recording papers each having poor ink permeability are used for recording operations, there does not arise the problem that different kinds of color inks are mixed with each other on a recording paper because they quickly permeate into the recording paper. Since a quantity of ink to be injected at a time can be reduced to a half when the proposed recording process is employed, there does not arise the problem that coloring substance excessively permeates into the recording paper even when an ink readily permeable into the recording paper is used for a recording operation. Consequently, a clear image visually recognizable with a beautiful color can easily be obtained with the proposed recording process.
However, in case that a recording operation is performed using a recording paper having more poor ink permeability or in case that a quantity of ink to be ejected per unit area is increased in order to raise up an image density for a clear image, it is practically difficult to solve the aforementioned problems with the proposed recording process. Specifically, since each recording operation is achieved by twice scanning divided images with the proposed recording process, a time interval between two scanning operations is relatively shortened in case that each recording operation is performed using a recording paper having poor ink permeability or in case that a quantity of ink to be ejected is increased. Further, since a subsequent droplet of ink is ejected to the recording paper before a droplet of ink ejected for a preceding recording operation is sufficiently fixed, there arises an occasion that the aforementioned three problems appear.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been made in consideration of the foregoing background.
An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording system in which it is possible to raise a quality of a recorded image.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording system in which it is possible to promote ink fixing to a recording medium, to decrease ink mixing of different colors and to raise color development.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus which makes it possible to prevent a problem of image deterioration from appearing due to ink permeation in case that a recording operation is performed using a recording paper having very poor ink permeability or in case that a quantity of ink to be ejected is increased for the purpose of raising up an image density.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet recording apparatus which makes it possible to record a predetermined unit image on a recording paper by way of steps of recording an image corresponding to a single decomposed driving datum among driving data required for recording the predetermined unit image, recording an image corresponding to a next decomposed datum while allowing the subsequent image to overlap the preceding image, and subsequently, repeating the foregoing recording based on decomposed data while the resultant images sequentially overlap one after another.
In the first aspect of the present invention, an ink jet recording apparatus which uses a recording head for ejecting ink in order to perform recording by ejecting ink from the recording head to a recording medium, comprises;
scanning means for scanning the recording medium relative to the recording head,
head driving means for allowing the recording head to eject ink based on driving data,
data processing means for decomposing the driving data for recording a predetermined unit image on the recording medium into a plurality of decomposed driving data corresponding to an image having the substantially same expansion as that of the predetermined unit image to be recorded on the recording medium based on the driving data, and
record controlling means for controlling the scanning means so as to scan the recording medium relative to the recording head and for assigning each of the plurality of decomposed driving data to driving data for the head driving means which are used for respective ones of plural different scanning operations which are not continuously, so that the predetermined unit image is recorded.
In the second aspect of the present invention, an ink jet recording apparatus which uses a recording head for discharging ink in order to perform recording by discharging ink from the recording head to a recording medium, comprises;
supporting means for supporting the recording medium;
scanning means for scanning the recording medium relative to the recording head while the recording medium is supported by the supporting means,
head driving means for allowing the recording head to discharge ink based on driving data,
data processing means for decomposing the driving data for recording a predetermined unit image on the recording medium into a plurality of decomposed driving data corresponding to an image having the substantially same expansion as that of the predetermined unit image to be recorded on the recording medium based on the driving data,
record controlling means for controlling the scanning means so as to scan the recording medium relative to the recording head and for assigning each of the plurality of decomposed driving data to driving data for the head driving means which are used for respective ones of plural different scanning operations which are not continuously performed, so that the predetermined unit image is recorded, and
close cont
Shioya Makoto
Tamura Yasuyuki
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
Fitzpatrick ,Cella, Harper & Scinto
Fuller Benjamin R.
Hallacher Craig A.
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