JP2010165038A - Image forming apparatus and image forming method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus and method supporting a wide format, which easily set a highly productive image output condition, while satisfying image quality to be requested. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus supporting the wide format includes: an information input means for inputting information which indicates the observation distance of an image to be formed on a recording medium; an output condition setting means for determining the output condition including at least one among recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, an image forming direction in recording, a carriage speed, and a fixing process, based on the inputted information indicating the observation distance; and an image output control means for forming an image corresponding to image data on the recording medium by controlling the operations of a recording head and a scanning means in response to the set output condition and the image data. An image kind (a low frequency image and a high frequency image) is determined based on the inputted image data, so as to determine the optimum condition by considering the image kind, a purpose, and the observation distance. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and an image forming method, and in particular, an image forming control technique suitable for optimizing and simplifying setting of image output conditions in a wide format ink jet printer used for business printing such as signs and advertisements. About.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a serial scan type ink jet recording apparatus having a plurality of recording modes corresponding to the type of recording medium to be used and the purpose and application of printing. For example, when “glossy paper” is designated as the type of recording medium, a desired mode is selected from the four modes of “speed priority” mode, “standard” mode, “high quality” mode, and “highest quality” mode. Can be selected.

  In Patent Document 1, in an apparatus equipped with a wide variety of recording modes, a plurality of test patterns are recorded in a plurality of recording modes on the same recording medium from the viewpoint of facilitating the user to select an appropriate recording mode according to the application. In addition to recording, a recording mode identification information corresponding to the vicinity of each test pattern and information on an estimated recording time according to the recording mode are recorded, and a configuration that contributes to a comparative study by a user has been proposed.

JP 2003-34063 A

  However, in a printer capable of large format printing such as a wide format, the required quality varies greatly depending on the use of the printed matter and its observation distance, and there is a demand to increase the productivity as much as possible in business printing. Patent Document 1 does not include such a viewpoint.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances. An image forming apparatus and an image that can easily set image output conditions that can cope with large-format printing, satisfy required quality, and improve productivity. An object is to provide a forming method.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is a wide format image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to image data on a recording medium based on input image data, and the image is formed on the recording medium. A recording head for forming the image, scanning means for moving the recording head relative to the recording medium, information input means for inputting information indicating an observation distance of the image formed on the recording medium, and the information Based on the information indicating the observation distance input from the input unit, an output condition for determining an output condition including at least one of the recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, the drawing direction during recording, the carriage speed, and the fixing process conditions The operation of the recording head and the scanning unit is controlled according to the setting unit and the output condition and the image data set by the output condition setting unit. Characterized in that the image corresponding to the image data and an image output control means for forming on said recording medium by.

  According to the present invention, by inputting information indicating the observation distance of an image to be output, it is possible to appropriately set output conditions with high productivity while satisfying the required quality required for the observation distance. .

1 is an external perspective view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is an enlarged perspective view of an image recording unit of the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG. Block diagram showing the configuration of an inkjet recording apparatus Explanatory diagram showing an example of the relationship between the use of printed matter and the observation distance Flow chart showing the setting procedure of output conditions in the ink jet recording apparatus of this example Explanatory drawing which shows the example of a display of a graphical user interface (GUI) Network system configuration diagram

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<Overall configuration of inkjet recording apparatus>
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an ink jet recording apparatus according to an embodiment of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. The inkjet recording apparatus 100 is a wide format printer that records a wide drawing range, such as a large poster or a commercial wall advertisement, and includes an apparatus main body 21 and support legs 23 that support the apparatus main body 21. In addition, here, what corresponds to A3 Nobi or more is called a “wide format”.

  The apparatus main body 21 includes a multi-channel type inkjet head (head unit) 25 and a fixed platen 27. The head unit 25 is moved in a direction (scanning direction Y) orthogonal to one direction (recording medium conveyance direction X) along a guide mechanism 29 which is a head moving means (scanning means).

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of an image recording unit of the inkjet recording apparatus 100 shown in FIG.
The platen 27 is formed in an inverted bowl shape, and the upper surface becomes the support surface 27 a of the recording medium S. Two pairs of scanning conveyance rollers 31A and 31B, which are recording medium conveyance means, are disposed in the vicinity of the platen 27 in the recording medium conveyance direction. The scanning conveyance roller pairs 31A and 31B transfer the recording medium S to the platen 27. The recording medium is moved in the recording medium conveyance direction X. The scanning conveyance roller pair 31B holds only the end portion in the width direction of the recording medium S and reduces the diameter of the central portion of the recording medium S, thereby preventing interference with the opening / closing lid 53 of the platen 27 described later. . The head unit 25 is moved by the guide mechanism 29 in the scanning direction Y perpendicular to the recording medium conveyance direction X and parallel to the support surface 27 a of the platen 27.

  The apparatus main body 21 is provided with a replaceable cartridge 33 for storing ink. The cartridge 33 is provided corresponding to each color ink of Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan), and K (black) used in the ink jet recording apparatus 100 of this example. Each cartridge 33 is connected to the head unit 25 by an ink supply path (not shown) formed independently.

  The ink jet recording apparatus 100 of this example can use either ultraviolet curable ink (UV ink) or solvent ink, and the type of ink can be changed by replacing the cartridge 33. .

  The head unit 25 has ultraviolet irradiation units 35a and 35b which are active energy irradiation means on both the left and right sides in the scanning direction Y. The ultraviolet irradiation units 35 a and 35 b can be moved together by the reciprocating movement of the head unit 25. When ultraviolet curable ink (UV ink) is used, the color ink ejected from each nozzle and landed on the recording medium S is irradiated with one of the ultraviolet irradiation portions 35a and 35b passing immediately above. The part is irradiated with ultraviolet rays.

  The ink jet recording apparatus 100 includes elevating means such as a screw mechanism that elevates the head unit 25 up and down with respect to the platen 27, and the head unit according to the thickness of the recording medium S mounted on the platen 27. 25 can be moved up and down with respect to the platen 27.

  Further, as an ink discharge method in the head unit 25, a method in which ink droplets are ejected by a deformation of an actuator represented by a piezo element (piezoelectric element) (piezo jet method), and an ink is heated by a heating element such as a heater to generate bubbles. Any of the thermal jet methods that generate ink and eject ink droplets with the pressure can be employed. However, when UV ink is used, it is preferable to employ a piezo jet method. In this embodiment, a piezo jet method is employed. Next, the control system of the inkjet recording apparatus 100 will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus 100. The inkjet recording apparatus 100 is provided with a control device 71 that is a control means. As the control device 71, for example, a computer having a central processing unit (CPU) can be used. An input device 73 such as an operation panel, a power switch 75 and a display device 77 are connected to the control device 71. The input device 73 is means for enabling manual operation signals to be input to the control device 71. For example, various forms such as a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, and operation buttons can be adopted.

  The power switch 75 supplies / shuts off power to the control device 71. Various forms such as a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, and a CRT can be adopted as the display device 77. The operator can input printing conditions and input / edit attached information by operating the input device 73, and various information such as input contents and search results can be confirmed through display on the display device 77. it can.

  The control device 71 is connected to a pair of scanning and conveying rollers 31A and 31B, a guide mechanism 29, a head unit 25, and ultraviolet irradiation units 35a and 35b, and these components are operated by an operation control signal sent from the control device 71. Be controlled.

<Examples of usage and observation distance>
FIG. 4 shows an example of the relationship between the use of various images (printed matter) and the observation distance. As shown in the figure, there are various uses and observation distances of the printed matter, but it is roughly divided into indoor use and outdoor use. What can be approached by an observer (person) needs to be drawn with high definition, both indoors and outdoors. On the other hand, what the observer cannot approach is only required to be satisfactory when viewed from a distance, and an excessively high-definition high-quality image output is unnecessary.

  Examples of those with a short observation distance include POP (point-of-purchase advertising) attached to products in the store, in-store POP posted in the store, store signboard, and the like. These are mainly installed indoors, and the observation distance is a short distance of about 0 to 1 m. Traffic advertisements posted on station premises, electrical signs and color cortons (lighting panels embedded in pillars and walls), various signs, mobile advertising truck panels, event signs installed at event venues, etc. There is a possibility of being used both indoors and outdoors, and the observation distance is generally in the range of 1 to 7 m. In addition, wrapping advertisements, advertisements outside stores, signs, billboards, wall advertisements, etc., which are attached to trains and bus bodies, are mainly used outdoors, and the observation distance is generally over 7 m, and long distances such as 15 m and 25 m or more. Some become.

  As shown in FIG. 4, when the observation distance is within about 5 m, many observers can come close and observe the image in detail, so that high-definition image output is required. On the other hand, when the observation distance is 5 m or more, it is often difficult for the observer to approach the image, and the image is viewed from a distant place. For this reason, an image observed from a long distance does not require high-definition image reproduction as required at a short distance.

  The ink jet recording apparatus of the present embodiment is configured so that optimum image output conditions can be easily set in consideration of the above circumstances and productivity.

<Setting flowchart in the inkjet recording apparatus of this example>
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of setting in the ink jet recording apparatus.

  First, in step S11, the ink to be used and the material (base material) of the recording medium are set. In this step, an operator (user) performs a desired input from a user interface (a combination of the input device 73 and the display device 77 described with reference to FIG. 3). Alternatively, for example, a mode in which ink information or medium information is automatically acquired by a sensor or the like provided in an ink loading unit or a recording medium supply unit in the inkjet recording apparatus 100 is also possible.

  In step S12, image data to be printed is input. The image data input interface (image input means) can be a communication interface with a host computer, a media interface of an external storage device such as a memory card, or the like. In step S13, image diagnosis is performed on the input image data.

  For example, there are the following methods for image diagnosis.

  [Method 1]: A method in which a user (operator) selects a low-frequency image or a high-frequency image depending on the image type and inputs an instruction.

  [Method 2]: A method in which a user uses image analysis software to determine whether a low-frequency image is a high-frequency image.

  [Method 3]: Image data is sent to the service center via the network, the operator of the service center confirms the image data, and details whether the image is a low frequency image or a high frequency image based on the data stored in the center. How to judge.

  Examples of low-frequency image types include CG (computer graphics) and dark / solid images. An example of an image type of a high-frequency image is a photograph-based image.

  By any one of the above methods 1 to 3, it is determined whether the target image is a “low frequency image” (step S14) or a “high frequency image” (step S15).

  Next, the use / observation distance is set (steps S16 and S17).

  The application and the observation distance may be input separately, or as described in FIG. 4, the input (designation) of the other may be omitted by inputting one of the correlations between the application and the observation distance. Is possible.

  Here, an example in which the user determines and selects whether the object is observed at a short distance (for example, within 5 m) or a long distance (for example, at a distance of 5 m or more) is used. (Steps S18 to S21).

  Specific examples of short-distance applications include POPs posted indoors, signboards, traffic advertisements, and electric signs. Specific examples of long-distance applications include advertisements outside stores, wall surface advertisements, train and bus wrapping advertisements, etc. posted outdoors.

  When the observation distance is selected (steps S18 to S21), the optimum setting conditions corresponding to the conditions are determined (steps S22 to S25).

[Example of graphical user interface (GUI)]
The example of GUI in the process of step S11-S25 mentioned above is demonstrated.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of GUI display. FIG. 5A shows an example of an ink / base material setting screen.

  On this screen, the type of ink to be used and the type of base material to be used are selected. The ink is roughly classified into a solvent-based ink and an ultraviolet curable (UV) ink. There are various inks in the solvent system, and there are various inks in the UV ink. In the example of FIG. 6, the ink list is displayed and the selection button for the ink to be used is selected from among the solvent-based inks 1 to 3 and the UV ink 21. Various forms are possible, and a mode of selection by a pull-down menu or the like is also possible. Moreover, the kind of used base material is also various, and the same figure illustrated the structure selected from base material AD.

  When the ink to be used and the base material to be used are selected, the screen shifts to an image diagnosis screen shown in FIG.

  In this case, the method 1 is a screen for selecting whether the image is a low-frequency image such as “CG, dark color, solid” or a “photo-based” high-frequency image.

  When one of the selection buttons is selected on the screen of FIG. 6B, the screen shifts to the application / observation distance input screen of FIG. 6C. Here, it is selected whether the observation distance of the target printed matter is within 5 m or within 5 m.

  When any one of the selection buttons for designating the observation distance is selected, the optimum output condition is set (recording mode is selected) automatically according to the program based on the input information. When the setting of the optimum output condition is completed, a message to that effect is presented (FIG. 6 (d)).

  Before automatically setting the contents of the automatically determined output conditions (recording mode) on the device, the contents of the determined setting conditions are displayed on the screen to prompt the operator to confirm the approval. A configuration in which setting is executed on condition of input may be used.

  <Examples of Setting Contents> Tables 1 to 4 show examples of output condition settings. In each table, “Substrate A” is a vinyl chloride sheet having an adhesive layer on the back side of the printed surface, and “Substrate B” is tarpaulin. The base material A is used when a printed material is attached to a vehicle body or a wall surface in bus wrapping or the like. Tarpaulin (base material B) is a material in which fibers are woven into polyvinyl chloride (PVC), has excellent weather resistance, and is widely used for billboards, wall advertisements, and the like.

  Table 1 is an example when the combination of the solvent-based ink and the substrate A is selected. Table 2 shows an example in which a combination of solvent-based ink and base material B is selected. Table 3 shows examples of combinations of UV ink and substrate A, and Table 4 shows examples of combinations of UV ink and substrate B. Settings 1 to 4 in each table correspond to the settings 1 to 4 in FIG. That is, settings 1 and 2 are for short-distance use, setting 1 corresponds to a low-frequency image, and setting 2 corresponds to a high-frequency image. Settings 3 and 4 are for long-distance use, setting 3 corresponds to a low-frequency image, and setting 4 corresponds to a high-frequency image. The resolution tends to gradually decrease in the order of settings 1 to 4.

  “Number of passes” is the number of times the head performs drawing scanning (scanning) when forming an image. One direction of “drawing direction” means that printing (image formation) is performed only by moving the head in one direction (either forward direction or backward direction) when printing, and printing is not performed in the other direction. This is a drawing method in which the head is skipped. Bidirectional is a method of drawing in both directions.

  The “carriage speed” is the speed at which the head moves. In the case of solvent-based ink, “drying temperature” includes a pigment in the solvent, but expresses the drying capacity when controlling the heating means such as a heater or the air blowing means in order to evaporate the solvent after drawing. ing. In order to increase print productivity, it is necessary to increase the drying temperature (heating at a high temperature). Therefore, in Table 1, the drying temperature is increased from setting 1 to setting 4.

  In the case of the combination of the solvent-based ink and the base material B (Table 2), the tarpaulin is a material having an uneven surface. Therefore, even if an image is formed with high image quality, there is a limit in image quality due to the unevenness of the base material surface. For this reason, priority is given to speed (productivity) as an optimum output condition. When the settings 3 and 4 in Table 1 are compared with the contents of Settings 3 and 4 in Table 2, the display 2 is about twice as fast in terms of productivity.

  In the case of the UV inks shown in Tables 3 and 4, the item “Exposure” is used instead of “Drying temperature” in Tables 1 and 2. In the case of UV ink, the ink is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays (UV light) after droplet ejection. The progress of the curing reaction can be controlled by the intensity of the UV light. The “drying temperature” and “exposure amount” correspond to the conditions of the fixing process.

  As shown in Tables 1 to 4, the optimum setting differs depending on the ink used and the substrate used. Regarding the base material used, for example, when comparing the surface roughness between vinyl chloride (base material A) and tarpaulin (base material B), since the tarpaulin is higher, banding and graininess are less noticeable, and the productivity is higher. Can be set.

  In addition, the resolution can be suppressed at a long distance. This is the reason why setting 4 in Table 1 and setting 3 in Table 2 have the same setting contents.

  Furthermore, as the number of passes for banding increases and the direction of drawing becomes less conspicuous in one direction, the optimum condition is determined from the balance of image type, application / observation distance and productivity.

  Here, the combinations shown in Tables 1 to 4 are exemplified, but the combinations of the base materials used and the inks used can be combined in various ways. In addition to Tables 1 to 4, depending on the combination mode of the ink used and the base materials used Thus, a table defining the corresponding setting contents is stored in the storage means (internal memory or external memory) of the apparatus. Each setting 1 to 4 described in Tables 1 to 4 can be handled as a “recording mode”, and various recording modes can be prepared according to the combination of the base material used and the ink used. According to the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, by selecting the image data that the user wants to output and the application / observation distance, it is possible to select an optimum and highly productive recording mode according to the image type, application / observation distance. You can do it properly.

<Example of network system configuration>
FIG. 7 is a configuration example of a system 200 that performs image diagnosis via a network. Here, an example will be described in which a terminal device 210 of a user who uses the inkjet recording apparatus 100 is connected to the server 222 of the service station 220 via a network.

  The terminal device 210 is communicably connected to the server 222 via a communication line (network) 230. The form of the communication line 230 is not particularly limited, and may be a wide area communication network (WAN) such as the Internet or a local area LAN. The communication method is not particularly limited, and a combination thereof may be used regardless of wired or wireless.

  As the terminal device 210, a personal computer having a communication interface can be used. The terminal device 210 can also be configured to serve as the control device 71 described with reference to FIG.

  The user sends image data and information such as the use / observation distance from the terminal device 210 to the server 222 via the communication line 230. The server 222 stores the information collected from the terminal device 210 in the storage device 224 and creates a database.

  The server 222 incorporates image analysis software and image recognition software. The server 222 analyzes image data received from the terminal device 210, searches for an image similar to the image data, and automatically determines an image type.

  Alternatively, instead of or in combination with this automatic determination, the operator of the service station 220 confirms the image content on a display (not shown) or the like, and individually selects the image type based on the accumulated data of past image diagnosis. You may decide to.

  Information on the image type determined in this way is transmitted from the server 222 to the terminal device 210 via the communication line 230 and is stored together with the corresponding image data in the storage device 224 of the server 222. Thus, the user can obtain an appropriate image diagnosis result.

  Preferably, image analysis software is incorporated in the terminal device 210 or the control device 71 described with reference to FIG. 3, and the input image data is first processed by software processing in the device on the user side. Make a diagnosis. Then, when the user is unsure about the diagnosis result (primary judgment) by the software processing, the user transmits image data or other input information to the service station 220 as necessary to ask the service station 220 for judgment. Also, a usage mode such as correcting the result of the software processing is preferable. In this example, the case where only the image diagnosis process is performed at the service station 220 has been described. However, not only the image diagnosis process but also the optimum condition determination algorithm considering the application and observation distance is installed in the server 222, and the optimum An aspect in which condition information is provided to the terminal device 210 is also possible.

<Application examples to other device configurations>
In the above embodiment, the inkjet recording apparatus 100 has been described as an example of an image forming apparatus. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to this, and other systems such as a laser recording system and an electrophotographic system are not limited thereto. The present invention can also be applied to other image forming apparatuses. For example, a thermal transfer recording apparatus having a recording head with a thermal element as a recording element, an LED electrophotographic printer having a recording head with an LED element as a recording element, and a silver salt photographic printer having an LED line exposure head. The present invention can also be applied to a color image forming apparatus.

<Appendix>
As can be understood from the description of the embodiment described in detail above, the present specification includes disclosure of various technical ideas including the invention described below.

  (Invention 1): An image forming apparatus compatible with a wide format that forms an image corresponding to the image data on a recording medium based on input image data, and a recording head that forms an image on the recording medium; Scanning means for moving the recording head relative to the recording medium, information input means for inputting information indicating an observation distance of the image formed on the recording medium, and input from the information input means An output condition setting means for determining an output condition including at least one of a recording resolution, a number of scanning passes, a printing direction during recording, a carriage speed, and a fixing process based on the information indicating the observation distance; and the output By controlling the operation of the recording head and the scanning unit according to the output condition and the image data set by the condition setting unit, An image forming apparatus comprising an image output control means for forming an image corresponding to the data on the recording medium, further comprising a.

  The form of the “recording medium” is not particularly limited, and includes various media regardless of materials and shapes such as continuous paper, cut paper, sticker paper, resin sheet, film, cloth, rubber, and the like.

  Examples of the “fixing process” include a drying process and an ultraviolet irradiation process.

  The “information input unit” may be a manual input unit accompanied by a user input operation, or may be an automatic input unit using an information reading sensor or the like.

  The information indicating the observation distance may be distance information indicating the observation distance or indirect information correlated with the distance information. For example, since there is a correlation between the use and the observation distance, the use may be input and replaced with information related to the observation distance from the corresponding table.

  In the present invention, the output condition determined by the output condition setting means may be at least one of the conditions of the recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, the image drawing direction at the time of recording, the carriage speed, and the fixing process, but preferably It is assumed that two or more of these are combined.

  (Invention 2): The image forming apparatus according to Invention 1, further comprising an image type specifying unit that specifies an image type of the image data, wherein the output condition setting unit includes the image type specified by the image type specifying unit The image forming apparatus, wherein the output condition is determined based on information indicating the observation distance input from the information input unit.

  The “image type specifying means” may be a manual input means accompanied by a user input operation, or an automatic discrimination means using image analysis software or the like.

  A mode in which the output condition is determined according to the image type and the observation distance is preferable, and both required image quality and high productivity can be satisfied in a balanced manner.

  (Invention 3): The image forming apparatus according to Invention 2, wherein the image type is classified into a low-frequency image and a high-frequency image.

  Depending on whether the image is a low-frequency image or a high-frequency image, the conspicuousness of image defects such as banding streaks and the image quality (granularity and resolving power) are different. preferable.

  (Invention 4): In the image forming apparatus according to Invention 2 or 3, the output condition setting unit includes a recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, and the like according to a combination of an image type of the image data and information indicating the observation distance. An image forming apparatus for determining a drawing direction, a carriage speed, and a fixing process condition during recording.

  It is preferable to collectively determine settings that combine all of the recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, the drawing direction during printing, the carriage speed, and the fixing process conditions.

 (Invention 5): In the image forming apparatus according to any one of Inventions 1 to 4, an inkjet head is used as the recording head, and the information input unit includes a type of ink to be used and a base as the recording medium. An image forming apparatus comprising: means for inputting material information, wherein the output condition setting means determines the output condition in accordance with the type of ink to be used and information on the substrate.

  The present invention can be applied to a wide format inkjet printer. In this case, it is preferable that the output condition is determined according to the type of ink to be used and the type of the recording medium.

  An ink jet recording apparatus as one aspect of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a nozzle (discharge port) for discharging ink droplets for forming dots and a pressure generating element (piezoelectric actuator or heating) for generating discharge pressure. A liquid discharge head (recording head) in which a large number of droplet discharge elements including a foaming heating element) are arranged at high density, and the liquid is based on ink discharge data (dot image data) generated from an input image. An ejection control unit that controls ejection of droplets from the ejection head, and forms an image on the recording medium by the droplets ejected from the nozzles.

  For example, color conversion and halftoning processing are performed based on image data (print data) input via the image input means, and ink ejection data corresponding to the ink color is generated. Based on this ink ejection data, the drive of the pressure generating element corresponding to each nozzle of the liquid ejection head is controlled, and an ink droplet is ejected from the nozzle.

  When a color image is formed using an inkjet recording head, a recording head may be arranged for each color of a plurality of inks (recording liquids), or a plurality of colors of ink are ejected from one recording head. It is good also as a possible structure.

  (Invention 6): In the image forming apparatus according to Invention 5, either a solvent ink or an ultraviolet curable ink can be selectively used, and the recording head is provided with a piezoelectric element corresponding to each nozzle. An image forming apparatus having a configuration in which ink is ejected by driving.

  When UV ink is used, the piezo jet method is preferable to the thermal jet method.

  (Invention 7): The image forming apparatus according to any one of Inventions 1 to 6, wherein the recording resolution is set lower and the recording speed is increased as the observation distance is longer. Image forming apparatus.

  According to this aspect, the request | requirement of making productivity as high as possible can be satisfy | filled.

  (Invention 8): A wide format image forming method for forming an image corresponding to the image data on the recording medium based on the input image data, and observing the image formed on the recording medium Based on the information input step for inputting information indicating the distance, and the information indicating the observation distance input in the information input step, the recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, the printing direction during recording, the carriage speed, and the conditions of the fixing step Among them, an output condition setting step for determining an output condition including at least one, and the recording head and the recording head relative to the recording medium according to the output condition and the image data set by the output condition setting step An image output control step of forming an image corresponding to the image data on the recording medium by controlling the operation of the scanning means to be moved; Image forming method, which comprises a.

  (Invention 9): In the image forming method according to Invention 8, the image data is sent from a terminal device having a communication function connectable to a network to a server via the network, and based on data stored in the server, The image type of the image data is determined, the determination result is sent from the server to the terminal device via a network, and the output condition is determined based on information including the determination result acquired by the terminal device from the server. An image forming method.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 ... Device main body, 25 ... Head unit, 29 ... Guide mechanism, 33 ... Cartridge, 71 ... Control device, 73 ... Input device, 77 ... Display device, 100 ... Inkjet recording device, 210 ... Terminal device, 222 ... Server, 230 ... communication line

Claims (9)

A wide format image forming apparatus that forms an image corresponding to the image data on a recording medium based on input image data,
A recording head for forming an image on the recording medium;
Scanning means for moving the recording head relative to the recording medium;
Information input means for inputting information indicating an observation distance of the image formed on the recording medium;
Based on the information indicating the observation distance input from the information input unit, an output condition including at least one of a recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, a drawing direction during recording, a carriage speed, and a fixing process is determined. Output condition setting means;
Image output control for forming an image corresponding to the image data on the recording medium by controlling the operation of the recording head and the scanning unit in accordance with the output condition and the image data set by the output condition setting unit. Means,
An image forming apparatus comprising: The image forming apparatus according to claim 1,
An image type specifying means for specifying an image type of the image data;
The output condition setting unit determines the output condition based on the image type specified by the image type specifying unit and information indicating the observation distance input from the information input unit. . The image forming apparatus according to claim 2.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image type is classified into a low-frequency image and a high-frequency image. The image forming apparatus according to claim 2 or 3,
The output condition setting means determines the recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, the drawing direction at the time of recording, the carriage speed, and the fixing process conditions according to the combination of the image type of the image data and the information indicating the observation distance. An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein:
An ink jet head is used as the recording head,
The information input means includes means for inputting information on the type of ink to be used and the substrate as the recording medium,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the output condition setting unit determines the output condition according to the type of ink to be used and information on the base material. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.
Either solvent ink or ultraviolet curable ink can be selectively used, and the recording head is configured to eject ink by driving a piezoelectric element provided corresponding to each nozzle. An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the recording resolution is set to be lower and the recording speed is increased as the observation distance is longer. A wide format image forming method for forming an image corresponding to the image data on a recording medium based on input image data,
An information input step of inputting information indicating an observation distance of the image formed on the recording medium;
Based on the information indicating the observation distance input in the information input step, an output condition including at least one of a recording resolution, the number of scanning passes, a drawing direction at the time of recording, a carriage speed, and a fixing step is determined. An output condition setting process;
The image corresponding to the image data is controlled by controlling the operation of the scanning means for moving the recording head and the recording head relative to the recording medium according to the output condition and the image data set in the output condition setting step. Forming an image on the recording medium, and
An image forming method comprising: The image forming method according to claim 8.
Sending the image data from the terminal device having a communication function connectable to the network to the server via the network,
Based on the data stored in the server, the image type of the image data is determined,
The determination result is sent from the server to the terminal device via a network,
An image forming method comprising: determining the output condition based on information including the determination result acquired by the terminal device from the server.

Images