Printing apparatus, printing method, printing data generation program, and dither mask generation method

• US 8,767,261 B2
• Filed: 03/26/2012
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Kakutani, Toshiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): ZHU, RICHARD Z
• Application Number:
  US13/429,856
• Publication Number:
  US 20120243052A1
• Time in Patent Office: 827 Days
• Field of Search: 358 306- 323, 358533-536
• US Class Current: 358/1.9
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4051 producing a dispersed dots halftone pattern, the dots having substantially the same size different sizes H04N1/4057
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4058 with details for producing a halftone screen at an oblique angle H04N1/4056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/52 Circuits or arrangements for halftone screening

Abstract

A printing apparatus which forms dots, according to dot data generated through comparison of a grayscale value of each of pixels with each of threshold values of a dither mask. The printing apparatus forms the dots through division into a plurality of pixel groups having different printing conditions and performs at least a part of the dot formation by the pixel groups in a common region. The dither mask has a second threshold value disposition, with respect to a first threshold value disposition which is each of dispositions of the respective threshold values set such that distribution of dots formed in the common region has noise characteristics having a peak on a high frequency side, in a case where a relative position of the dots between the pixel groups is formed in a target positional relationship which is a target in at least a part of a printing grayscale region.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus which forms dots on a printing medium and prints an image, comprising:

a printing portion that forms the dots on the printing medium and prints the image according to dot data, indicating whether or not the dots are formed, generated through comparison of a grayscale value of each of pixels based on image data of the image to be printed with each of threshold values of a dither mask which is prepared in advance,

wherein the printing portion forms the dots through division into a plurality of pixel groups having different printing conditions and performs at least a part of the dot formation by the plurality of pixel groups in a common region,

wherein the dither mask has a second threshold value disposition where threshold values corresponding to a part of groups of the plurality of pixel groups are shifted by a predetermined pixel in a predetermined direction, with respect to a first threshold value disposition which is each of dispositions of the respective threshold values set such that distribution of dots formed in the common region has noise characteristics having a peak on a high frequency side in the spatial frequency region, in a case where a relative position of the dots between the pixel groups is formed in a target positional relationship which is a target in at least a part of a printing grayscale region,

wherein the predetermined direction is one or two directions,

wherein the printing apparatus has singularity in a direction where a relative position of dots between the pixel groups is shifted from a target positional relationship which is a target, and

wherein, in relation to a shift amount of the threshold value in the second threshold value disposition, a shift amount in a direction different from a specific direction having the easily shifted singularity is larger than a shift amount in the specific direction.

2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first threshold value disposition is set such that, for each of the plurality of pixel groups, distribution of dots belonging to the pixel group has noise characteristics having a peak on the high frequency side in the spatial frequency region.

3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a dot data generation portion that generates the dot data using the dither mask.

4. The printing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a receiving portion that receives the kind of printing medium,

wherein the dot data generation portion configures the image so as to be printed according to the dot data which is generated using a first dither mask having the first threshold value disposition instead of a second dither mask which is the dither mask having the second threshold value disposition, and determines the dither mask which is used from the first dither mask and the second dither mask according to the received kind of printing medium.

5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a dither mask generation portion that generates the other dither mask by shifting threshold values corresponding to the part of groups of one dither mask with respect to the one dither mask of the first dither mask and the second dither mask.

6. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing portion forms the dots by reciprocating a printing head in a main scanning direction and ejecting ink from the printing head in both of an outward movement main scanning and an inward movement main scanning, and thereby prints the image, and

wherein the plurality of pixel groups include a pixel group where the dots are formed by the outward movement main scanning and a pixel group where the dots are formed by the inward movement main scanning.

7. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing portion forms the dots by making a printing head scan in a main scanning direction and ejecting ink from the printing head, and prints the image of a predetermined region by a plurality of main scannings, and wherein the plurality of pixel groups include the respective pixel groups where the dots are formed by different main scannings of the plurality of main scannings.

8. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of printing heads that are arranged over a printing range and form the dots on the printing medium,

wherein the printing heads adjacent to each other among the plurality of printing heads partially overlap each other in the arrangement direction, and

wherein the printing portion forms the dots by relatively moving the printing medium with respect to the plurality of printing heads and ejecting ink from the plurality of printing heads, and thereby prints the image,

wherein the plurality of pixel groups include the respective pixel groups where the dots are formed by different printing heads among the plurality of printing heads, and

wherein the common region is a region where the printing heads adjacent to each other overlap each other.

9. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of nozzle strings of which nozzles are arranged over a printing range and that eject ink and are provided in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction,

wherein the printing portion forms the dots by relatively moving the printing medium in the intersecting direction with respect to the plurality of nozzle strings and ejecting ink from the plurality of nozzle strings, and thereby prints the image, and

wherein the plurality of pixel groups include the respective pixel groups where the dots are formed by different nozzle strings among the plurality of nozzle strings.

10. A printing apparatus which forms dots on a printing medium and prints an image, comprising:

a printing portion that forms the dots on the printing medium and prints the image according to dot data, indicating whether or not the dots are formed, generated through comparison of a grayscale value of each of pixels based on image data of the image to be printed with each of threshold values of a dither mask which is prepared in advance,

wherein the printing portion forms the dots through division into a plurality of pixel groups having different printing conditions and performs at least a part of the dot formation by the plurality of pixel groups in a common region, and

wherein the dither mask has a threshold value disposition where threshold values corresponding to a part of groups of the plurality of pixel groups are shifted by a predetermined pixel in a predetermined direction, with respect to the respective dispositions of the threshold values which are set such that a covering ratio which is a ratio of the area where each of the dots covers the printing medium is larger than that when the dots are formed to be shifted from the target positional relationship, in a case where a relative position of the dots between the plurality of pixel groups is formed in a target positional relationship which is a target in at least a part of a printing grayscale region.

11. A manufacturing method of a dither mask in a printing apparatus which forms dots on a printing medium and prints an image by performing the dot formation on the printing medium through division into a plurality of pixel groups having different printing conditions and performing at least a part of the dot formation by the plurality of pixel groups in a common region, wherein the dither mask, formed by the respective threshold values, is used to generate dot data indicating whether or not the dots are formed, through comparison of a grayscale value of each of pixels based on image data of the image to be printed with each of threshold values of a dither mask which is prepared in advance, the method comprising:

determining a disposition of the respective threshold values which are set such that distribution of dots formed in the common region has noise characteristics having a peak on a high frequency side in the spatial frequency region, in a case where a relative position of the dots between the pixel groups is formed in a target positional relationship which is a target in at least a part of a printing grayscale region; and

generating the dither mask by shifting threshold values corresponding to a part of groups of the plurality of pixel groups by a predetermined pixel in a predetermined direction, with respect to each of the dispositions of the threshold values determined in the determining of the disposition,

wherein the predetermined direction is one or two directions,

wherein the printing apparatus has singularity in a direction where a relative position of dots between the pixel groups is shifted from a target positional relationship which is a target, and

wherein, in relation to a shift amount of the threshold value in the second threshold value disposition, a shift amount in a direction different from a specific direction having the easily shifted singularity is larger than a shift amount in the specific direction.

12. A manufacturing method of a printing apparatus which forms dots on a printing medium, prints an image, and includes a printing portion that forms the dots on the printing medium and prints the image according to dot data, indicating whether or not the dots are formed, generated through comparison of a grayscale value of each of pixels based on image data of the image to be printed with each of threshold values of a dither mask which is prepared in advance;

and a storage portion that stores the dither mask, wherein the printing portion forms the dots through division into a plurality of pixel groups having different printing conditions and performs at least a part of the dot formation by the plurality of pixel groups in a common region, the method comprising;

preparing the printing apparatus;

determining a disposition of the respective threshold values of the dither mask which are set such that distribution of dots formed in the common region has noise characteristics having a peak on a high frequency side in the spatial frequency region, in a case where a relative position of the dots between the pixel groups is formed in a target positional relationship which is a target in at least a part of a printing grayscale region;

generating the dither mask by shifting threshold values corresponding to a part of groups of the plurality of pixel groups by a predetermined pixel in a predetermined direction, with respect to each of the dispositions of the threshold values determined in the determining of the disposition; and

recording the generated dither mask in the storage portion in a computer readable manner,

wherein the predetermined direction is one or two directions,

wherein the printing apparatus has singularity in a direction where a relative position of dots between the pixel groups is shifted from a target positional relationship which is a target, and

wherein, in relation to a shift amount of the threshold value in the second threshold value disposition, a shift amount in a direction different from a specific direction having the easily shifted singularity is larger than a shift amount in the specific direction.