JP2001253068A - Method for controlling recording and recorder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for controlling the recording and a recorder capable of stabilizing an ejection amount of ink ejected by an ink jet recording head at low cost by an end user. SOLUTION: A specific pattern which is recorded on a recording medium by using a plurality of recording heads each of which the amount of ink is already known by varying ejection timings of the ink, is read by using a scanner and then a part where dots forming the specific pattern are superposed by virtue of variation of the ejection timings of the ink is determined. An approximation curve approximating the relationship between the ejection timing of the ink and the amount of the ejected ink is obtained based on the relationship between the ejection timings of the ink and the amounts of the ejected ink corresponding to the determined parts each being determined by each of the recording heads of which the amount of the ejected ink is already known. An processing similar to the above is applied to a recording head of which the amount of ejected ink is unknown and an adequate ink ejection timing and an amount of ejected ink are obtained by using the above approximation curve and then the recording head of which the amount of ejected ink is unknown is controlled.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording control method and a recording apparatus, and more particularly to a recording control method and a recording apparatus when recording is performed using an ink jet recording head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In order to suppress the occurrence of density fluctuation and density unevenness in an image recorded by a recording apparatus which performs recording using an ink jet recording head provided with a plurality of fine nozzles (hereinafter referred to as a recording head). It has been considered that stabilizing the ejection amount of ink ejected from each nozzle of the recording head is an important technique for performing high-quality printing. For this reason, for example, PW
Many controls such as M control have been performed.

As a method for measuring the ink ejection amount of a recording head, a weight method, an absorbance method, and the like have been proposed as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-48111.

[0004]

In the above-mentioned prior art, however, it is possible to measure the amount of ink ejected or to control the amount of ink ejected. The problem is that the cost of the recording head itself increases due to the low yield of the head.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional example, and has as its object to provide a recording control method and a recording apparatus that can stably stabilize the operation and variation of an ink jet recording head at low cost.

[0006]

To achieve the above object, a recording control method according to the present invention comprises the following steps.

In other words, recording is performed by controlling the amount of ink ejected from the recording head based on the recording density obtained by reading a specific pattern recorded by ejecting ink from the recording head onto a recording medium by a reading unit. A control method, using a plurality of recording heads having a known ink ejection amount, a first step of using the reading unit to read the specific pattern recorded on a recording medium while changing ink ejection timing, A second step of specifying a portion where the dots constituting the specific pattern overlap with each other due to a change in the ink discharge timing, and the specified step is performed for each of the plurality of recording heads whose ink discharge amounts are known. The relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount based on the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount corresponding to the portion A third step of obtaining an approximate correspondence relationship, and a step of reading the specific pattern recorded on the recording medium using the recording unit while changing the ink ejection timing using a recording head having an unknown ink ejection amount. A fourth step and a fifth step of specifying a portion where the dots constituting the specific pattern overlap with each other due to a change in the ink ejection timing with respect to the recording head used in the fourth step; Fifth
And a sixth step of controlling the recording of the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the portion specified in the step (a).

Further, based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the portion specified in the fifth step and the approximate correspondence obtained in the third step, the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown is determined. A seventh step of estimating the ink ejection amount, and an eighth step of comparing the ink ejection amount initially assumed for the recording head whose unknown ink ejection amount is unknown with the ink ejection amount estimated in the seventh step. And a ninth control unit that controls the recording of the recording head whose unknown ink ejection amount is unknown based on the comparison result in the eighth step.
May be provided.

Preferably, in the ninth step, the printing control is performed by modulating the width of a pulse applied to drive a printing head whose ink ejection amount is unknown.

The information on the approximate correspondence obtained in the third step may be a printer driver for driving a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown, or a storage medium such as an EEPROM of the recording head. ,
Alternatively, for example, a recording apparatus equipped with the recording head,
It is desirable to use it incorporated in a storage medium such as an EEPROM.

The specific pattern is desirably a pattern in which a portion where the density changes due to overlapping dots constituting the pattern is easily recognized by a scanner. And the density of that particular pattern is
It is obtained by comparing a predetermined threshold value with the density obtained by the reading unit.

[0012] The method may further include a tenth step of acquiring information on a dot diameter of the ink to be recorded based on the ink ejection amount estimated in the seventh step.

[0013] The recording head is an ink jet recording head that discharges ink by using thermal energy, and preferably includes an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy to be applied to the ink.

As the reading section, a scanner head mounted on a carriage on which a scanner or a recording head is mounted may be used instead of the recording head.

The approximate correspondence may be represented by an approximate curve or an approximate correspondence table.

According to another aspect of the present invention, ink ejected from the recording head is ejected from the recording head on the basis of a recording density obtained by reading a specific pattern recorded on the recording medium by the reading section. A recording apparatus that performs recording by controlling the ejection amount, using a plurality of recording heads with known ink ejection amounts, and changing the reading unit to read the specific pattern recorded on a recording medium while changing ink ejection timing. A first test recording unit for reading using the first pattern, a first specifying unit for specifying a portion where dots constituting the specific pattern overlap with each other due to a change in the ink discharge timing, For each of the recording heads based on the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount corresponding to the portion specified by the specifying unit. An approximating means for obtaining an approximate correspondence that approximates the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount, and using the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown, and changing the ink ejection timing and recording the specific ink on the recording medium. A second method of reading a pattern using the scanner;
A test recording unit, and a second specifying unit that specifies a portion where the dots constituting the specific pattern overlap each other due to a change in the ink ejection timing, with respect to the recording head used by the second test recording unit. ,
A recording apparatus for controlling the recording of a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the portion specified by the second specifying unit.

The first and second specifying means are respectively a display means for displaying the density of the specific pattern read by the reading section on the screen in correspondence with the specific pattern, and a display means for displaying the specific pattern displayed by the display means. It is desirable to include an instructing means for instructing a man-machine interactive part of the density that has become overlapped due to the change in the ink ejection timing.

With the above arrangement, the present invention is based on the recording density obtained by reading a specific pattern recorded by ejecting ink from a recording head onto a recording medium, for example, by a reading unit such as a scanner or a scanner head. Then, the control of the amount of ink ejected from the recording head is performed as follows.

First, using a plurality of recording heads with known ink ejection amounts, a specific pattern recorded on a recording medium while changing the ink ejection timing is read using, for example, a reading unit such as a scanner or a scanner head. reading,
The dots forming the specific pattern specify the portion where the dots overlap each other due to the change in the ink discharge timing, and the ink discharge timing corresponds to the specified portion for each of the plurality of recording heads with known ink discharge amounts. Based on the relationship with the ink ejection amount, an approximate correspondence that approximates the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount is obtained, for example, in the form of an approximate curve or a table.
The ink ejection amount is divided into several levels.

Next, a specific pattern to be recorded on a recording medium is read by using a reading unit while changing the ink discharge timing using a recording head whose ink discharge amount is unknown. Identify the part where the dots that make up the pattern overlap due to the change in the ink ejection timing, and control the recording of the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the specified part. I do.

Further, based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the specified portion and the obtained approximate correspondence, the ink ejection amount of the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown is estimated. The ink ejection amount is compared with the ink ejection amount initially assumed for the recording head whose unknown ink ejection amount is unknown, and printing of the recording head whose unknown ink ejection amount is unknown is controlled based on the comparison result.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printer / scanner system for measuring an ink discharge amount according to a representative embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, 1 is a recording medium on which a specific pattern is recorded, 2 is a scanner equipped with a line sensor for reading the specific pattern recorded on the recording medium 1, 3
Is a personal computer (PC) which controls the operation of the scanner 2 to process an image signal generated based on an image read by the scanner, and generates an image signal of a specific pattern to be recorded on the recording medium 1; And a printer device 5 having an ink jet recording head (hereinafter, referred to as a recording head). In addition, as shown in FIG.
The printer device 5 is connected to a personal computer (PC) 3 via an ink ejection amount control device 4. Note that, for example, coated paper, plain paper, and the like can be applied to the recording medium 1.

The scanner may be a flatbed type scanner provided as a separate housing outside the printer device 5, or an ON carriage scanner (scanner) mounted on a carriage (not shown) of the printer device 5 instead of a recording head. Head).

A personal computer (PC) 3
CRT, LCD, PD for displaying information on the screen
A display device such as a P and an instruction input device such as a keyboard and a mouse for performing man-machine interactive operation are provided.

Although the recording head is not shown in FIG. 1, the recording head includes a plurality of heaters for heating ink, and a heater board on which a control circuit for driving the heaters is mounted. And a top plate to be put on the heater board. The recording head is mounted on a carriage (not shown) of the printer device 3 and reciprocates. This reciprocating direction is called a main scanning direction. Further, the printer 3 is provided with a transport mechanism for transporting the recording medium 1 in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the carriage. This transport direction is called a sub-scanning direction. The plurality of heaters formed on the heater board of the recording head have a one-to-one correspondence with a plurality of ink ejection nozzles (hereinafter, referred to as nozzles) for ejecting ink, and the nozzle rows are arranged in the sub-scanning direction. Are arranged.

The ink discharge amount control device 4 changes the discharge timing of the heat pulse applied to the print head and outputs the heat pulse to the print head, or the heater of the print head has two types of constants for adjusting the ink discharge amount. A voltage pulse can be provided. Since a configuration for applying different types of pulses is known, the description thereof is omitted here. Further, in this embodiment, the ink ejection amount control device 4 is illustrated in FIG. 1 as hardware, but a program of a printer driver installed in a personal computer (PC) may perform this function.

In any case, in the system shown in FIG. 1, a specific pattern is recorded on the recording medium 1 by the recording head mounted on the printer device 5 under the control of the personal computer (PC) 3, and the recording medium is further recorded by the scanner 2. The specific pattern recorded in 1 is read, the reflection density of the pattern is measured, and the ink ejection amount is estimated. The ink ejection amount estimated in this way varies from printhead to printhead, and information on the variation is fed back to the printer driver and incorporated.

The medium on which the ink discharge amount is written may be an EEPROM in a printer or an EEPROM provided on a control circuit board of a recording head.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the discharge amount control processing of each print head executed by the system shown in FIG.

First, in step S100, a specific pattern is printed by changing the ejection timing of the print head. As the pattern, a pattern whose line density is easy to recognize is selected as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, a specific pattern is ejected one dot at a time in the same nozzle direction (ie, main scanning direction) and different nozzle directions (ie, sub-scanning direction) for each nozzle of the recording head. Recording is performed while the timing is made smaller at a certain interval than T1. Therefore, even when printing a line along the sub-scanning direction, by reducing the ink ejection timing, 101, 1 in FIG.
As shown at 02, 103, and 104, the line spacing gradually narrows.

When a printer device having a low resolution is used, the ink discharge amount control device 4 controls the ink discharge amount control device 4 to make adjustments such as changing the speed of the carriage so that the ink can be discharged at a timing shorter than the resolution.

Next, in step S110, the specific pattern is read by the scanner 2 to obtain the reflection density of the pattern, and this is reflected on the personal computer (PC) 3.
Output to

FIG. 4 is a view showing a state where a specific pattern recorded on the recording medium 1 shown in FIG. 3 is read by the scanner 2 and this pattern is displayed on the display screen 6 of the personal computer (PC) 3. is there.

The scanner 2 of this embodiment sets a certain reflection density as a threshold, and the sensor responds to the threshold density depending on whether the read reflection density is high or low. Therefore, 104, 1 in FIG.
As indicated by reference numeral 04 ', as the ink ejection interval becomes shorter, the dots overlap (the lines overlap in the specific pattern of FIGS. 3 and 4), and the area covered by the ejected ink per unit area of the recording medium becomes larger and the area becomes larger. The concentration increases. As a result, there is a portion where the measured reflection density is high (saturated).

In consideration of the above, step S120
Then, the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount in the portion where the dots overlap is examined. That is, the timing at which the reflection density starts to become constant (saturation starts) is measured for each recording head whose ink ejection amount is known, and an approximate curve is estimated from the relationship between the ejection timing and the ejection amount. For this approximation, spline approximation or the like is used. Then, the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount quantified by such approximation is incorporated into the printer driver.

In the printer driver, the EEPROM of the printer, or the EEPROM of the recording head, a table indicating the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount may be incorporated, or a function indicating the relationship may be incorporated. good.

In step S130, the operator (end user) uses a personal computer (PC) by using the printer driver incorporated as described above.
The specific pattern shown in FIG. 3 is printed by using the printer 3 and the printer 5 equipped with a print head whose ink ejection amount is unknown.

Next, in step S140, step S140
The specific pattern recorded at 130 is read from the scanner 2 and displayed on the display screen 6. At this time, the operator (end user) sees the line of the specific pattern overlapping (that is, the portion where the reflection density is saturated) and the pattern number (for example, 10 in FIG. 4).
1 ', 102', 103 ', 104'). Since the ink ejection timing corresponding to these pattern numbers is known, and the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount is incorporated in the printer driver, the EEPROM of the printer device, or the EEPROM of the recording head, etc. The optimum ink ejection timing for the printhead is determined from the pattern number thus set.

Therefore, according to the above-described embodiment, the relationship between the saturation point of the reflection density and the ink ejection amount is obtained by using many recording heads whose ink ejection amounts are known. Based on this, it is possible to obtain the optimal ink ejection timing for a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown.

As a result, the optimum ink ejection timing at the saturation point of the reflection density can be obtained for each recording head.
It is possible to perform recording at a stable density with any recording head. As a result, it is possible to suppress the variation in the manufacturing stage of the recording head and increase the yield.

[0044]

Other Embodiments In this embodiment, an example will be described in which the optimum ejection timing for each print head is determined using different patterns or patterns using inks of different colors.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a pattern used in this embodiment. It is needless to say that a pattern in which the line density can be easily recognized is selected as in the above-described embodiment.

In the case of FIG. 5A, the ink ejection timing is shifted by T1 between the dot rows 201 and 202, but between the dot rows 202 and 203, the ink ejection timing is T2 and the dot row 203 is shifted. And 204, the ink ejection timing is T3, between the dot rows 204 and 205, the ink ejection timing is T4, and the dot rows 205 and 2
06, the ink ejection timing is shifted by T5. And the relation of the shift is T1>T2>T3> T
4> T5, and the respective timings are shortened by one at regular intervals.

In the case of FIG. 5B, recording is performed alternately using secondary colors (for example, red and green) at a high duty by utilizing the principle of a bleed phenomenon (bleeding between colors) which is likely to occur on plain paper. ing. That is, line 301 is red, line 302 is green, line 303 is red, line 304 is green, and line 30
5 is recorded in red and the line 306 is recorded in green. At this time, the ink ejection timing between the lines 301 and 302 is T
1, the ink ejection timing between the lines 302 and 303 is T2, the ink ejection timing between the lines 303 and 304 is T3, the ink ejection timing between the lines 304 and 305 is T4, and the lines 305 and 306. In the interval, the ink ejection timing is shifted by T5. The relationship of the shift is T1>T2>T3>T4> T5, and the respective timings are shortened at regular intervals.

In such a case, the line interval gradually becomes shorter, and finally the two colors are mixed.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a discharge amount control process for each print head according to this embodiment. Note that, in this flowchart, the same reference numerals are given to the same processing steps as described in the above-described embodiment, and description thereof will be omitted.

First, after the processing in steps S100 to S110, in step S120 ', as in step S120, a dot (in the case of FIG. 5A) or a line (in the case of FIG. The relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount is examined. This is shown in FIG.
In the case of (a), the relevance analysis is performed at the portion where the reflection density starts to be saturated, and in the case of FIG. 5B, the relevance analysis is performed at the portion where the color mixing starts.

FIG. 7 shows a specific pattern recorded on the recording medium 1 shown in FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state in which a density change 7 of the pattern is displayed on a display screen 6 of a personal computer (PC) 3. In such a case, the ink ejection timing (T1, T
,...) Become shorter, dots overlap each other, and as a result, there is a timing at which the reflection density becomes higher (saturates). Therefore, here, similarly to the above-described embodiment, the timing at which the reflection density starts to be constant (saturation starts) is measured for each recording head whose ink ejection amount is known, and the relationship between the ejection timing and the ink ejection amount is determined. Estimate the fitted curve.

The accuracy of the approximate curve becomes more effective as the number of recording heads serving as samples increases. Also, by taking the differential value at the point where the reflection density changes for each printhead, information relating to the ejection speed of each printhead can also be obtained.

Next, after the process of step S130, in step S135, the ink ejection timing shown in FIG. 7 is measured, and the ink ejection amount is estimated from the timing Tn. The relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount can be estimated using the approximate curve obtained in step S120 ', if the ink ejection timing is known. Such an estimation can be performed similarly in the case of the pattern of FIG.

Finally, in step S140 ', if the estimated ejection amount varies from the initially set ejection amount, the pulse condition applied to the print head is modulated (PW
M modulation) to control the discharge amount.

Therefore, according to the embodiment described above, the relationship between the saturation point of the reflection density and the ink ejection amount is obtained by using many recording heads whose ink ejection amounts are known, and then the relationship is determined. Based on the calculated ink ejection amount, the ink ejection amount is estimated for the print head whose unknown ink ejection amount is unknown. If the estimated ink ejection amount is different from the initial set value, the pulse applied to the recording head is modulated to modulate the ink ejection amount. The amount can be controlled.

As a result, it is possible to suppress variations in the manufacturing stage of the print head, increase the yield, and reduce the cost of the print head without any modification to the print head.

Further, the dot diameter (r) can be estimated by estimating the ink ejection amount (Vd). By measuring the ink ejection amount (Vd), the true dot diameter (r) is given by equation (1).

R = (3Vd / 4π) ^1/3 (1) Further, the diameter of the ink dot measured on the recording medium is given by equation (2).

Φ = 2R = 2r × bleed rate (2) Here, φ represents an apparent dot diameter, R represents an apparent dot radius, and r represents a true dot radius.

In the above embodiment, the description has been made assuming that the droplets ejected from the recording head are ink, and that the liquid contained in the ink tank is ink. It is not limited. For example, an ink tank may contain a processing liquid discharged to a recording medium in order to improve the fixability and water resistance of the recorded image or to improve the image quality.

The above-described embodiment is particularly provided with a means (for example, an electrothermal converter or a laser beam) for generating thermal energy as energy used for performing ink ejection even in an ink jet recording system. By using a method in which a change in the state of the ink is caused by energy, it is possible to achieve higher density and higher definition of recording.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method can be applied to both the so-called on-demand type and continuous type. In particular, in the case of the on-demand type, liquid (ink)
By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to the recorded information and providing a rapid temperature rise exceeding the nucleate boiling to an electrothermal transducer arranged corresponding to the sheet or the liquid path holding the Since thermal energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer and film boiling occurs on the heat-acting surface of the recording head, bubbles in the liquid (ink) corresponding to this drive signal on a one-to-one basis can be formed. It is valid. By discharging the liquid (ink) through the discharge opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble, at least one droplet is formed. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubbles are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable.

As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, in addition to the combination of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (linear liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications, A configuration using U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 or U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,600, which discloses a configuration in which a heat acting surface is arranged in a bent region, is also included in the present invention. In addition, for multiple electrothermal transducers,
JP-A-59-123670 which discloses a configuration in which a common slot is used as a discharge part of an electrothermal transducer, and JP-A-59-123670 which discloses a configuration in which an opening for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy corresponds to a discharge part. A configuration based on 138461 may be adopted.

Further, as a full-line type recording head having a length corresponding to the width of the maximum recording medium that can be recorded by the recording apparatus, the length is determined by combining a plurality of recording heads as disclosed in the above-mentioned specification. This may be either a configuration satisfying the above requirements or a configuration as a single recording head formed integrally.

In addition to the cartridge type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself described in the above embodiment, the recording head is electrically connected to the apparatus main body by being mounted on the apparatus main body. A replaceable chip-type recording head, which enables a simple connection and supply of ink from the apparatus main body, may be used.

It is preferable to add recovery means for the print head, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like to the configuration of the printing apparatus described above, since the printing operation can be further stabilized. Specific examples thereof include capping means for the recording head, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, preheating means using an electrothermal transducer or another heating element or a combination thereof. It is also effective to provide a preliminary ejection mode for performing ejection that is different from printing, in order to perform stable printing.

Further, the recording mode of the recording apparatus is not limited to the recording mode of only the mainstream color such as black, but may be a single recording head or a combination of plural recording heads. Alternatively, the apparatus may be provided with at least one of full colors by color mixture.

In the above-described embodiment, the description has been made on the assumption that the ink is a liquid. However, even if the ink solidifies at room temperature or lower, it is possible to use an ink that softens or liquefies at room temperature. Or, in the ink jet method, generally, the temperature of the ink itself is controlled within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range.
It is sufficient that the ink is in a liquid state when the use recording signal is applied.

In addition, in order to positively prevent the temperature rise due to thermal energy as energy for changing the state of the ink from the solid state to the liquid state,
Alternatively, in order to prevent evaporation of the ink, an ink which solidifies in a standing state and liquefies by heating may be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start to solidify when reaching the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, as described in JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-71260, the ink is held in a liquid state or a solid state in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet. It is good also as a form which opposes an electrothermal transducer. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition to the above, the recording apparatus according to the present invention is not only provided as an image output terminal of an information processing apparatus such as a computer, but also integrally or separately, as well as a copying apparatus combined with a reader and the like. It may take the form of a facsimile machine having functions.

Even if the present invention is applied to a system including a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), a device including one device (for example, a copying machine, a facsimile machine) Etc.).

Further, an object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium (or a recording medium) in which a program code of software for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is recorded to a system or an apparatus, and to provide a computer (a computer) of the system or the apparatus. It is needless to say that the present invention can also be achieved by a CPU or an MPU) reading and executing the program code stored in the storage medium. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium implements the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention. Also,
When the computer executes the readout program code, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also the operating system (OS) running on the computer based on the instructions of the program code.
It goes without saying that a case where the functions of the above-described embodiments are implemented by performing some or all of the actual processing, and the processing performs the functions of the above-described embodiments.

Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into the memory provided in the function expansion card inserted into the computer or the function expansion unit connected to the computer, the program code is read based on the instruction of the program code. Needless to say, the CPU included in the function expansion card or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.

[0075]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to determine the optimum ink ejection timing for the recording head and to estimate the ink ejection amount on the recording apparatus side. It is possible to more stably operate the recording head by controlling the variation by operating the recording apparatus.

As a result, there is an effect that the yield in the production of the recording head is improved, and the production cost of the recording head can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer / scanner system that measures an ink ejection amount according to a representative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a discharge amount control process of each print head executed by the system shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific pattern used for measuring a line density.

FIG. 4 shows a specific pattern read by the scanner 2 in FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a state displayed on a display screen 6 of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a pattern used in another embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a discharge amount control process of each print head according to another embodiment.

FIG. 7 shows a specific pattern shown in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the density change 7 of the pattern is displayed on the display screen 6 of the personal computer (PC) 3.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Recording medium 2 Scanner 3 Personal computer (PC) 4 Discharge amount control device 5 Printer device 6 Display screen 7 Density change

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Yuji Konno 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Takashi Ishikawa 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inside (72) Inventor Norihiro Kawadoko 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Tetsuya Emura 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. F Terms (reference) 2C056 EB08 EB27 EB29 EB42 EC08 EC37 EC42 EC72 FA03 HA58 2C057 AF23 AL36 AL37 AL38 AM17 AM21 BA13

Claims (16)

[Claims] A recording unit configured to control a discharge amount of ink discharged from the recording head based on a recording density obtained by reading a specific pattern recorded by discharging ink from the recording head onto a recording medium by a reading unit. A control method, comprising: using a plurality of recording heads with known ink ejection amounts, reading the specific pattern recorded on a recording medium while changing ink ejection timing using the reading unit.
A second step of specifying a portion where the dots constituting the specific pattern overlap each other due to the change in the ink ejection timing; and a second step of identifying a plurality of recording heads each having a known ink ejection amount. A third step of obtaining an approximate correspondence that approximates the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount based on the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount corresponding to the specified portion; A fourth step of using the reading unit to read the specific pattern recorded on the recording medium while changing the ink ejection timing using an unknown recording head, and a recording head used in the fourth step. The portion where the dots constituting the specific pattern overlap due to the change in the ink ejection timing is identified. A fifth step of controlling the recording of a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on the ink ejection timing corresponding to the portion specified in the fifth step. A recording control method. 2. A print head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on an ink ejection timing corresponding to a portion specified in the fifth step and an approximate correspondence obtained in the third step. A seventh step of estimating the ink discharge amount, and an eighth step of comparing the ink discharge amount initially assumed for the recording head whose unknown ink discharge amount is unknown with the ink discharge amount estimated in the seventh step. 2. The print control method according to claim 1, further comprising: a ninth step of controlling printing of a print head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on a comparison result in the eighth step. 3. . 3. The printing control according to claim 2, wherein in the ninth step, printing control is performed by modulating a width of a pulse applied to drive a printing head whose ink ejection amount is unknown. The recording control method described in the above. 4. The information on the approximate correspondence obtained in the third step is a printer driver used for driving a printhead whose ink ejection amount is unknown, a storage medium of the printhead, or the printhead. 2. The recording control method according to claim 1, wherein the recording control method is incorporated in a storage medium of a recording device having a head. 5. The print control method according to claim 1, wherein the specific pattern is a pattern in which a portion where the density changes due to overlapping dots constituting the pattern is easily recognized by the scanner. . 6. The apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a tenth step of acquiring information on a dot diameter of the ink to be printed based on the ink ejection amount estimated in the seventh step. Recording control method. 7. The recording head according to claim 1, wherein the recording head is an ink jet recording head that discharges ink by using thermal energy, and includes an electrothermal converter for generating thermal energy to be applied to the ink. The recording control method according to claim 1. 8. The recording control method according to claim 1, wherein the density of the specific pattern is obtained by comparing a predetermined threshold value with a density obtained by the reading unit. 9. The recording control method according to claim 1, wherein the reading unit includes a scanner or a scanner head mounted on a carriage mounting the recording head instead of the recording head. 10. The recording control method according to claim 1, wherein the approximate correspondence is represented by an approximate curve or an approximate correspondence table. 11. A storage medium for the recording head, or
The recording control method according to claim 4, wherein the storage medium of the recording device includes an EEPROM. 12. A method for controlling the amount of ink discharged from the recording head based on a recording density obtained by reading a specific pattern recorded by discharging ink from a recording head onto a recording medium by a reading unit. A recording apparatus for performing recording, wherein a plurality of recording heads having known ink ejection amounts are used, and the specific pattern recorded on a recording medium is read using the reading unit while changing ink ejection timing.
Test recording means, first specifying means for specifying a portion where dots constituting the specific pattern overlap with each other due to a change in the ink discharge timing, and for each of a plurality of print heads having a known ink discharge amount An approximating unit for obtaining an approximate correspondence that approximates the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount based on the relationship between the ink ejection timing and the ink ejection amount corresponding to the portion specified by the specifying unit; A second test recording unit that uses the reading unit to read the specific pattern recorded on the recording medium while changing the ink ejection timing by using a recording head whose amount is unknown; and a second test recording unit that uses the second test recording unit. In the recording head, the dots constituting the specific pattern are caused by a change in the ink ejection timing. A second specifying unit that specifies a portion that is overlapped by the second specifying unit; and controlling the recording of a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on an ink ejection timing corresponding to the portion specified by the second specifying unit. A recording apparatus comprising: a recording control unit. 13. The first and second specifying means respectively display a density of a specific pattern read by the reading unit on a screen in correspondence with the specific pattern, and a specification displayed by the display means. 13. The recording apparatus according to claim 12, further comprising: an instruction unit that instructs a man-machine interactive part of the density of the pattern that overlaps due to a change in the ink ejection timing. 14. An ink ejection of a recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on an ink ejection timing corresponding to a portion specified by said second specifying means and an approximate correspondence obtained by said approximation means. Estimating means for estimating the amount of ink, and comparing means for comparing the ink ejection amount initially assumed to the recording head with the unknown ink ejection amount and the ink ejection amount estimated in the seventh step, 13. The recording apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the recording control unit controls the recording of the recording head whose ink ejection amount is unknown based on a comparison result by the comparison unit. 15. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reading section includes a scanner head mounted on a carriage on which the scanner or the recording head is mounted, instead of the recording head.
3. The recording device according to 2. 16. The recording apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the approximate correspondence is represented by an approximate curve or an approximate correspondence table.