Method for adjustment and printing system

• US 7,384,110 B2
• Filed: 12/16/2004
• Issued: 06/10/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Hoshiyama, Yoshiko, Endo, Hironori
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Lam S
• Application Number:
  US11/012,282
• Publication Number:
  US 20050248606A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,272 Days
• Field of Search: 347/19, 347 22- 24, 347/74
• US Class Current: 347/9
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 29/393 Devices for controlling or analysing the entire machine ; Controlling or analysing mechanical parameters involving printing of test patterns

Abstract

A method for adjustment of a printing apparatus, includes the steps of: (i) receiving an instruction from a user via a user interface; (ii) forming a plurality of patterns on a medium using an ink ejecting section that ejects ink onto the medium, each of the patterns being a pattern for adjusting a different object; (iii) detecting each of the patterns with a sensor; and (iv) adjusting each of the plurality of objects based on a result of detecting each of the patterns. With this adjustment method, if the image quality of the printed image has dropped, even a user who is not well versed in an inkjet printer'"'"'s functionality can achieve an appropriate image quality improvement.

Claims

1. A method for adjustment of a printing apparatus, comprising:

receiving an instruction from a user via a user interface;

upon receiving said instruction, forming a plurality of patterns on a medium using an ink ejecting section that elects ink onto said medium, each of said patterns being a pattern for adjusting a different object;

detecting each of said patterns with a sensor; and

adjusting each of the plurality of objects based on a result of detecting each of said patterns

wherein said ink electing section is capable of moving while ejecting ink;

wherein one of said plurality of objects is a timing at which ink is ejected from the moving ink ejecting section;

wherein the pattern for adjusting said timing is made of a plurality of correction patterns;

wherein each of said correction patterns comprises a first dot row group formed by the ink ejected by said moving ink ejecting section in a forward pass and a second dot row group formed by the ink ejected by said moving ink ejecting section in a return pass;

wherein said first dot row group comprises a plurality of dot rows formed at a predetermined pitch in a movement direction of said ink ejecting section;

wherein said second dot row group comprises a plurality of dot rows formed at the same pitch as the dot rows of said first dot row group; and

wherein a shift amount of each of said correction patterns by which said first dot row group is shifted with respect to said second dot row group is different from the shift amount of another one of said correction patterns by a predetermined difference.

2. A method for adjustment of a printing apparatus, comprising:

receiving an instruction from a user via a user interface;

upon receiving said instruction, forming a plurality of patterns on a medium using an ink ejecting that ejects ink onto said medium, each of said patterns being a pattern for adjusting a different object;

detecting each of said patterns with a sensor; and

adjusting each of the plurality of objects based on a result of detecting each of said patterns

wherein said ink ejecting section is capable of moving while ejecting ink;

wherein one of said plurality of objects is a timing at which ink is ejected from the moving ink ejecting section;

wherein the pattern for adjusting said timing is made of a plurality of correction patterns;

wherein each of said correction patterns comprises a first dot row group formed by the ink ejected by said moving ink ejecting section in a forward pass and a second dot row group formed by the ink ejected by said moving ink electing section in a return pass;

wherein the pattern for adjusting said timing comprises a fine adjustment pattern in which the predetermined difference between the shift amounts is small and a coarse adjustment pattern in which the predetermined difference between the shift amounts is larger than the predetermined pitch of said fine adjustment pattern; and

wherein said fine adjustment pattern is formed in accordance with the shift amount determined based on said coarse adjustment pattern.