Printer, print control program, medium having print control program recorded therein, and printing method

• US 20030151756A1
• Filed: 01/09/2003
• Published: 08/14/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Yamazaki, Satoshi, Kataoka, Shuichi, Arai, Yoshifumi
• Granted Patent: US 7,414,751 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/1.9
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/2107 characterised by the ink properties supplying ink in a solid state B41J2/17593
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/00 Arrangements for producing a permanent visual presentation of the output data , e.g. computer output printersprinting or plotting combined with another operation, e.g. with conveying, G06K17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2215/0094 Colour printing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/54 Conversion of colour picture signals to a plurality of signals some of which represent particular mixed colours, e.g. for textile printing

Abstract

Colors look differently when observed under sunlight and room light. At least three chromatic colors and additional chromatic colors differing in hue from said three colors are used in combination. The additional colors are those which have a spectral reflectance which smoothens waviness in the spectral reflectance curve of the nearly achromatic color produced by the combination of the three chromatic colors. As the result, the combination of the colors gives rise to a color which has almost uniform spectral reflectance over the entire region of wavelengths. Thus it is possible to obtain printing which is less vulnerable to change in color under different light sources.

Claims

1. A printer of the type having an ink cartridge mount to carry a plurality of ink cartridges thereon and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said ink cartridge mount is so designed as to carry at least three ink cartridges filled respectively with three chromatic color inks and a secondary ink cartridge filled with a chromatic color ink differing in hue from any of said three chromatic color inks.

2. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink differing in hue is an ink which differs in spectral reflectance from the three color inks.

4. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink held in the secondary ink cartridge has a lower spectral reflectance than each of the three colors in the region of wavelengths in which the spectral reflectance produced by the combination of the three colors is higher than the spectral reflectance at other wavelengths.

5. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink held in the secondary ink cartridge has a higher spectral reflectance than each of the three colors in the region of wavelengths in which the spectral reflectance produced by the combination of the three colors is lower than the spectral reflectance at other wavelengths.

6. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink held in each of the ink cartridges is a pigment-based ink.

7. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink cartridge mount is capable of mounting the main ink cartridges filled with at least three color inks, which are cyan ink, magenta ink, and yellow ink, and the secondary ink cartridges filled with either or both of red ink and violet ink.

8. The printer as defined in claim 7, wherein the spectral reflectance of the cyan ink increases as the wavelength increases from 400 nm, remains at about 80% at the wavelengths ranging from 450 nm to 500 nm, decreases as the wavelength increases from 500 nm to 600 nm, and remains below 10% at the wavelengths ranging from 600 nm to 700 nm;

the spectral reflectance of the yellow ink rapidly increases as the wavelength increases from about 450 nm, and remains at about 80% at the wavelengths ranging from 500 nm to 700 nm;

the spectral reflectance of the magenta ink increases once as the wavelength increases from 400 nm, decreases as the wavelength increases from 450 nm to 550 nm, increases as the wavelength increases from 550 nm to 600 nm, and remains at about 80% as the wavelength increases from 600 nm;

the spectral reflectance of the red ink is about 30% at the wavelength of 400 nm, decreases as the wavelength increases, remains at about 10% as the wavelength increases to about 550 nm, increases once as the wavelength increases from 550 nm, and remains at about 80% as the wavelength increases to about 620 nm; and

the spectral reflectance of the violet ink increases once as the wavelength increases from 400 nm, decreases as the wavelength increases from 450 nm to 500 nm, remains constant as the wavelength increases from 500 nm to 600 nm, and increases as the wavelength increases from 600 nm.

9. The printer as defined in claim 1, wherein the ink cartridge mount is capable of mounting ink cartridges for at least six colors, at least one of which is interchangeable with the secondary ink cartridge.

10. The printer as defined in claim 1, which comprises an image data acquisition unit which acquires image data representing dot-matrix pixels, a color conversion table storing unit which stores the color conversion table to specify the correspondence between said image data and the ink color image data defining the colors of pixels by the chromatic colors of at least said three color inks and the color held in the secondary ink cartridge, a color conversion unit which converts said image data into said ink color image data by referencing said color conversion table, a printing data generating unit which generates printing data to execute printing with colors specified by the ink color image data which has undergone color conversion, and a print mechanism control unit which controls said print mechanism in response to said printing data.

11. The printer as defined in claim 10, wherein the color conversion table is prepared by color separation to replace at least said three chromatic colors with the color of the ink held in said secondary ink cartridge.

12. The printer as defined in claim 11, wherein the color separation process replaces magenta ink and yellow ink with red ink.

13. The printer as defined in claim 11, wherein the color separation process replaces magenta ink and cyan ink with violet ink.

3. A printer of the type having an ink cartridge mount to carry a plurality of ink cartridges thereon and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said ink cartridge mount is so designed as to carry at least three ink cartridges filled respectively with three chromatic color inks and a secondary ink cartridge filled with a color ink which smoothens waviness in the spectral reflectance curve of the nearly achromatic color produced by combination of these three colors inks.

14. A print control program to control printing with a printer having an ink cartridge mount capable of mounting main ink cartridges filled with at least three chromatic color inks and secondary ink cartridges filled with chromatic color inks differing in hue from said three color inks, and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said print control program causes a computer to realize an image data acquisition function to acquire image data consisting of pixels arranged in a dot matrix, a color conversion table storing function to store in a prescribed storage area the color conversion table which specifies the correspondence between said image data and the ink color image data which specifies the color of pixels with at least said three chromatic colors and the color of the inks held in the secondary ink cartridge, a color conversion function to convert said image data into said ink color image data by referencing said color conversion table, a printing data generating function to generate printing data to perform printing with colors specified by the ink color image data which has undergone said color conversion, and a printing data output function to output said printing data so as to control the driving of said printing mechanism.

15. A print control program to control printing with a printer having an ink cartridge mount capable of mounting main ink cartridges filled with at least three chromatic color inks and secondary ink cartridges filled with color inks having spectral reflectance capable of smoothing waviness in the spectral reflectance curve of the nearly achromatic color produced by combination of these three colors inks, and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said print control program causes a computer to realize an image data acquisition function to acquire image data consisting of pixels arranged in a dot matrix, a color conversion table storing function to store in a prescribed storage area the color conversion table which specifies the correspondence between said image data and the ink color image data which specifies the color of pixels with at least said three chromatic colors and the color of the inks held in the secondary ink cartridge, a color conversion function to convert said image data into said ink color image data by referencing said color conversion table, a printing data generating function to generate printing data to perform printing with colors specified by the ink color image data which has undergone said color conversion, and a printing data output function to output said printing data so as to control the driving of said printing mechanism.

16. A medium recording thereon a print control program to control printing with a printer having an ink cartridge mount capable of mounting main ink cartridges filled with at least three chromatic color inks and secondary ink cartridges filled with chromatic color inks differing in hue from said three color inks, and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said print control program causes a computer to realize an image data acquisition function to acquire image data consisting of pixels arranged in a dot matrix, a color conversion table storing function to store in a prescribed storage area the color conversion table which specifies the correspondence between said image data and the ink color image data which specifies the color of pixels with at least said three chromatic colors and the color of the inks held in the secondary ink cartridge, a color conversion function to convert said image data into said ink color image data by referencing said color conversion table, a printing data generating function to generate printing data to perform printing with colors specified by the ink color image data which has undergone said color conversion, and a printing data output function to output said printing data so as to control the driving of said printing mechanism.

17. A medium recording thereon a print control program to control printing with a printer having an ink cartridge mount capable of mounting main ink cartridges filled with at least three chromatic color inks and secondary ink cartridges filled with color inks having spectral reflectance capable of smoothing waviness in the spectral reflectance curve of the nearly achromatic color produced by combination of these three colors inks, and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said print control program causes a computer to realize an image data acquisition function to acquire image data consisting of pixels arranged in a dot matrix, a color conversion table storing function to store in a prescribed storage area the color conversion table which specifies the correspondence between said image data and the ink color image data which specifies the color of pixels with at least said three chromatic colors and the color of the inks held in the secondary ink cartridge, a color conversion function to convert said image data into said ink color image data by referencing said color conversion table, a printing data generating function to generate printing data to perform printing with colors specified by the ink color image data which has undergone said color conversion, and a printing data output function to output said printing data so as to control the driving of said printing mechanism.

18. A printing method for a printer having an ink cartridge mount to carry a plurality of ink cartridges thereon and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said ink cartridge mount is so designed as to carry at least three ink cartridges filled respectively with three chromatic color inks and a secondary ink cartridge filled with a chromatic color ink differing in hue from any of said three chromatic color inks.

19. A printing method for a printer having an ink cartridge mount to carry a plurality of ink cartridges thereon and a printing mechanism for printing on printing paper with inks received from said ink cartridges, wherein said ink cartridge mount is so designed as to carry at least three ink cartridges filled respectively with three chromatic color inks and a secondary ink cartridge filled with a color ink which smoothens waviness in the spectral reflectance curve of the nearly achromatic color produced by combination of these three colors inks.