Processing an image into sub-images mapped into multi-layer print mask data

• US 9,591,185 B2
• Filed: 01/29/2013
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Borrel Bayona, M. Isabel, Puigardeu Aramendia, Sergio, Martinez Barambio, Angel, Garcia Garcia, Luis
• Primary Examiner(s): Rogers, Scott A
• Application Number:
  US14/763,508
• Publication Number:
  US 20150352871A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,498 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/105 Multipass or interlaced printing
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/1857 involving parallel processing in the same printing apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/233 according to characteristics of the data to be reproduced, e.g. number of lines
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4092 Edge or detail enhancement
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/58 Edge or detail enhancement; Noise or error suppression, e.g. colour misregistration correction H04N1/62 takes precedence

Abstract

A printer and a method of processing an image (1) to be printed with a printer which has a printing unit arranged to produce a printout from image-representing print data of the image, and a processing unit for processing image-representing input data of the image so as to generate the image-representing print data. The processing unit is arranged for separating the image into a line detail sub-image (20) containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image (25) containing area details, performing a first printing mode processing pipeline on the line detail sub-image and performing a second, different printing mode processing pipeline on the area detail sub-image, and generating multi-layer print mask data, wherein at least one print mask data layer is usable to print the line detail sub-image in at least one line detail print pass, and the remaining, i.e. at least one of the print mask data layers being used to print the area detail sub-image in at least one area detail print pass to produce an image (50) which has optimized image quality.

Claims

1. A printer, comprising:

a printing unit including a print media advance system and a print media advance driver arranged to produce a printout from image-representing print data of an image to be printed; and

a processing unit including a processor coupled to a machine readable medium, the processing unit coupled to the printing unit and the medium containing instructions that when executed by the processor perform the tasks of;

the print media advance driver; and

processing image-representing input data of the image so as to generate the image-representing print data, including further instructions for;

separating the image into a line detail sub-image containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details;

performing a first printing mode processing pipeline on the line detail sub-image and performing a second, different printing mode processing pipeline on the area detail sub-image; and

generating multi-layer print mask data by mapping each sub-image into multiple masking levels representing a number of drops fired in a printing cell at a given level when producing a printout from the image, wherein each sub-image is mapped separately into four different masking levels, comprising mapping the image-representing print data of the line detail sub-image to masking levels 0 and 1, and mapping image-representing print data of the area detail sub-image into levels 0, 2 and 3, wherein no drops per printing cell are fired at level 0, 1 drop per printing cell is fired at levels 1 and 2, and 2 drops per printing cell are fired at level 3, and wherein at least one print mask data layer is usable to print the line detail sub-image in at least one line detail print pass, and the remaining, at least one, of the print mask data layers usable to print the area detail sub-image in at least one area detail print pass.

2. The printer of claim 1, wherein N-layer print mask data are generated, one print mask data layer being usable to print the line detail sub-image in one single line detail print pass, and the remaining N layers being used to print the area detail sub-image in N−

1 area detail print passes.

3. The printer of claim 1, wherein separating the image into a line detail sub-image containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details comprises a Canny'"'"'s edge detection algorithm.

4. The printer of claim 1, wherein the printer is one type of printer from the group consisting of an inkjet printer, a liquid electrophotographic printer, and a wide format printer.

5. A printer, comprising:

a processor; and

a machine readable medium having instructions that when executed by the processor cause the processor to;

provide a print media advance driver for detail print passes using a media advance system; and

process image-representing input data of an image to be printed so as to generate image-representing print data, further including instructions to;

separate the image into a line detail sub-image containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details;

perform a first printing mode processing pipeline on the line detail sub-image and performing a second, different printing mode processing pipeline on the area detail sub-image; and

generate multi-layer print mask data by mapping each sub-image separately into multiple different print mask data layers representing a number of drops fired in a printing cell at a given level when producing a printout from the image, wherein the image-representing print data of the line detail sub-image is mapped to masking levels 0 and 1, and the image-representing print data of the area detail sub-image into masking levels 0 and other than 1, and wherein no drops per printing cell are fired at level 0, and the number of drops for the other levels are specified in a drop sequence table, and wherein the mask data layer of level 1 is usable to print the line detail sub-image in one line detail print pass, and the remaining print mask data layers usable to print the area detail sub-image in area detail print passes.

6. The printer of claim 5, wherein N-layer print mask data are generated, one print mask data layer being usable to print the line detail sub-image in one single line detail print pass, and the remaining N layers being used to print the area detail sub-image in N−

1 area detail print passes.

7. The printer of claim 5, wherein separating the image into a line detail sub-image containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details comprises a Canny'"'"'s edge detection algorithm.

8. The printer unit of claim 5, wherein the printer is one type of printer from the group consisting of an inkjet printer, a liquid electrophotographic printer, and a wide format printer.

9. A method of processing an image to be printed on a printer having a processor coupled to machine readable medium including instructions to perform the method, comprising:

separating the image into a line detail sub-image containing edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details;

performing a first printing mode processing pipeline on the line detail sub-image and performing a second, different printing mode processing pipeline on the area detail sub-image; and

generating multi-layer print mask data by separately mapping each sub-image into masking levels representing a number of drops fired in a printing cell at a given level when producing the printout from image-representing print data, wherein each sub-image is mapped separately by mapping the image-representing print data of the line detail sub-image to masking levels 0 and 1, and mapping image-representing print data of the area detail sub-image into levels 0, 2 and 3, wherein no drops per printing cell are fired at level 0, 1 drop per printing cell is fired at levels 1 and 2, and 2 drops per printing cell are fired at level 3, and wherein at least one print mask data layer is usable to print the line detail sub-image in at least one line detail print pass, and the remaining, at least one, of the print mask data layers usable to print the area detail sub-image in at least one area detail print pass.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein N-layer print mask data are generated, one print mask data layer being usable to print the line detail sub-image in one single line detail print pass, and the remaining N layers being used to print the area detail sub-image in N−

1 area detail print passes.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein separating the image into a line detail sub-image containing at least one of edge and line details, and an area detail sub-image containing area details comprises a Canny'"'"'s edge detection algorithm.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the printer is one type of printer from the group consisting of an inkjet printer, a liquid electrophotographic printer, and a wide format printer.