JP2020131473A - Printer and distance calculation method - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problem in which: a configuration of a carriage is complicated and a weight of the carriage is increased when a distance sensor for measuring a distance between a medium and the carriage is mounted in the carriage.SOLUTION: A printer includes: a carriage on which a printing section for discharging ink to a medium is mounted; a movement mechanism which relatively moves the carriage to the medium; a measuring section which measures a dropping position of the ink on the medium; and a distance calculation section which calculates a distance between the medium and the carriage. The distance calculation section calculates the distance between the medium and the carriage on the basis of a distance between a first dropping position to be the dropping position when discharging the ink from the printing section by relatively moving the carriage at a first speed and a second dropping position to be the dropping position when discharging the ink from the printing section by relatively moving the carriage at a second speed different from the first speed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a distance calculation method, and the like.

Conventionally, as a printing device such as an inkjet printer, a carriage that is movably held with respect to the media, a printing unit that is mounted on the carriage and prints an image on the media, and a spectroscopic measurement that is mounted on the carriage and performs spectroscopic measurement of the media. A device including a vessel is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
In the printing apparatus of Patent Document 1, the spectroscope irradiates the media with illumination light from a light source and receives the light reflected by the media to perform spectroscopic measurement of the media. At this time, if the distance between the media and the carriage fluctuates, the light amount distribution of the illumination light emitted to the measurement position of the media fluctuates. Therefore, in the printing apparatus of Patent Document 1, a distance sensor configured by PSD or the like is mounted on the carriage, the distance between the carriage and the media is measured by the distance sensor, and the measured distance is used for spectroscopy. The spectroscopic measurement result of the instrument is corrected.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-183929

However, since the printing apparatus of Patent Document 1 is configured to provide the distance sensor on the carriage, the configuration of the carriage is complicated and the weight of the carriage is also increased. Therefore, a printing device and a distance calculation method capable of measuring the distance between the carriage and the media without using a distance sensor are desired.

The printing apparatus according to the first application example includes a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and a dropping position of the ink on the media. The distance calculation unit includes a measurement unit for measuring the ink and a distance calculation unit for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage, and the distance calculation unit relatively moves the carriage at a first speed to print the ink from the printing unit. The first dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is discharged, and the dropping position when the carriage is moved relative to the second speed different from the first speed and the ink is discharged from the printing unit. The distance between the media and the carriage is calculated based on the distance from the second dropping position.

The printing apparatus according to the second application example includes a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and a dropping position of the ink on the media. The distance calculation unit includes a measurement unit for measuring the size of the media and a distance calculation unit for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage, and the distance calculation unit can be used from the printing unit without moving the carriage relative to the media. The third dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is discharged, and the fourth dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is discharged from the printing unit by relatively moving the carriage at a predetermined speed. The distance between the media and the carriage is calculated based on the distance of.

The printing apparatus of each of the above-mentioned application examples is mounted on the carriage and includes a spectroscope for performing spectroscopic measurement of the media and a correction unit for correcting the spectroscopic measurement result by the spectroscopic device. A light source that irradiates the media with light, a spectroscopic element that disperses light having a predetermined spectral wavelength from the light reflected by the media, and a spectroscopic element that receives the light dispersed by the spectroscopic element and outputs the spectroscopic measurement result. It is preferable that the correction unit includes the light receiving unit and corrects the spectroscopic measurement result based on the distance between the media and the carriage calculated by the distance calculation unit.

In the printing apparatus of each of the above-mentioned application examples, the measuring unit is based on the change in the amount of light when the amount of light of a predetermined spectral wavelength is measured by the spectroscope while the carriage is relatively moved at a predetermined speed. , It is preferable to measure the dropping position.

The distance calculation method according to the third application example includes a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and dropping of the ink on the media. A distance calculation method for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage in a printing apparatus including a measuring unit for measuring a position, wherein the carriage is relatively moved at a first speed to move the ink from the printing unit. The first printing step for ejecting the ink, the second printing step for ejecting the ink from the printing unit by relatively moving the carriage at a second speed different from the first speed, and the first printing step for ejecting the ink. Based on the distance between the first dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink, and the second dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink discharged in the second printing step, the media and the carriage The distance calculation step of calculating the distance of is carried out.

The distance calculation method according to the fourth application example includes a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and dropping of the ink on the media. A distance calculation method for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage in a printing apparatus including a measuring unit for measuring a position, from the printing unit without moving the carriage relative to the media. The third printing step of ejecting the ink, the fourth printing step of moving the carriage relative to each other at a predetermined speed to eject the ink from the printing unit, and the dropping of the ink ejected in the third printing step. Distance calculation for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage based on the distance between the third dropping position, which is the position, and the fourth dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink ejected in the fourth printing step. Perform steps and.

The perspective view which shows the structure of the appearance of the printer of 1st Embodiment which concerns on this invention. The block diagram which shows the schematic structure of the printer of this embodiment. The schematic diagram which shows the structure of the carriage of this embodiment. The block diagram which showed the functional structure of the CPU included in the control unit of the printer of this embodiment. The flowchart which shows the spectroscopic measurement method of the printer of 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the distance calculation method of 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the light amount measurement result obtained when the light amount measurement process was performed by moving a carriage. The figure for demonstrating the relationship between the carriage height, the 1st drop position, and the 2nd drop position in 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the relationship between the irradiation position of the light from a light source, and the measurement position when the carriage height fluctuates. The figure which shows the light amount distribution at the measurement position when the carriage height fluctuates. The figure which shows an example of the distance-light amount data in 1st Embodiment. The flowchart which shows the distance calculation method of 2nd Embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the relationship between the carriage height, the third dropping position, and the fourth dropping position in the second embodiment.

[First Embodiment]
Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the appearance of the printer 10 of the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the printer 10 of the present embodiment.
In FIG. 1, the printer 10 is a printing device and includes a supply unit 11, a transfer unit 12, a carriage 13, a carriage moving unit 14, and a control unit 15 (see FIG. 2). The printer 10 controls each unit 11, 12, 14 and the carriage 13 based on print data input from an external device 20 such as a personal computer, and prints an image on the medium A. As the media A, paper, film, cloth, or the like can be used.
Further, the printer 10 of the present embodiment forms a color patch for color measurement at a predetermined position on the medium A based on preset calibration print data, and performs spectroscopic measurement on the color patch. As a result, the printer 10 compares the measured value for the color patch with the print data for calibration, determines whether or not the printed color has a color shift, and if there is a color shift, based on the measured value. To perform color correction.
Hereinafter, each configuration of the printer 10 will be specifically described.

The supply unit 11 is a unit that supplies the media A to be image-formed to the image-forming position. The supply unit 11 includes, for example, a roll body 111 around which media A is wound, a roll drive motor (not shown), a roll drive train wheel (not shown), and the like. Then, based on the command from the control unit 15, the roll drive motor is rotationally driven, and the rotational force of the roll drive motor is transmitted to the roll body 111 via the roll drive train wheel train. As a result, the roll body 111 rotates, and the paper surface wound around the roll body 111 is supplied in a predetermined transport direction. In the following description, the direction in which the media A is conveyed will be described as the Y direction.
In the present embodiment, an example of supplying a paper surface wound around the roll body 111 is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the media A may be supplied by any supply method, for example, the media A such as the paper surface loaded on the tray or the like is supplied one by one by a roller or the like.

The transport unit 12 is one of the moving mechanisms that move the carriage 13 relative to the media A, and sends the media A supplied from the supply unit 11 to the + Y side. The transport unit 12 includes a transport roller 121, a driven roller (not shown) that is arranged with the transport roller 121 and the media A sandwiched between the transport roller 121 and the media A, and a platen 122.
When the drive force from the transfer motor (not shown) is transmitted to the transfer roller 121 and the transfer motor is driven by the control of the control unit 15, the transfer roller 121 is rotationally driven by the rotational force to move the media A between the transfer roller 121 and the driven roller. In the sandwiched state, it is conveyed to the + Y side of the transfer roller 121. Further, a platen 122 facing the carriage 13 is provided on the + Y side of the transport roller 121.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a schematic configuration of the carriage 13.
As shown in FIG. 3, the carriage 13 includes a printing unit 16 that prints an image on the media A, and a spectroscope 17 that performs spectroscopic measurement of a predetermined measurement position R on the media A.
The carriage 13 is provided by the carriage moving unit 14 so as to be movable along the X direction intersecting the Y direction.
Further, the carriage 13 is connected to the control unit 15 by a flexible circuit 131, and based on a command from the control unit 15, a printing process (image forming process for the media A) by the printing unit 16 and a light intensity measurement process by the spectroscope 17 are performed. To carry out.
The detailed configuration of the carriage 13 will be described later.

The carriage moving unit 14 is a moving mechanism that moves the carriage 13 relative to the media A. In the present embodiment, the carriage moving unit 14 reciprocates the carriage 13 along the X direction based on a command from the control unit 15.
The carriage moving unit 14 includes, for example, a carriage guide shaft 141, a carriage motor 142, and a timing belt 143.
The carriage guide shaft 141 is arranged along the X direction, and both ends thereof are fixed to, for example, a housing of the printer 10. The carriage motor 142 drives the timing belt 143. The timing belt 143 is supported substantially parallel to the carriage guide shaft 141, and a part of the carriage 13 is fixed. Then, when the carriage motor 142 is driven based on the command of the control unit 15, the timing belt 143 travels forward and reverse, and the carriage 13 fixed to the timing belt 143 is guided by the carriage guide shaft 141 and reciprocates.
Further, the carriage moving unit 14 is provided with a scale (not shown) for measuring the coordinate position of the carriage 13 in the X direction.

Next, the configuration of the printing unit 16 and the spectroscope 17 provided on the carriage 13 will be described.
[Structure of printing unit 16]
The printing unit 16 is provided so as to face the media A, and ejects ink onto the media A to form an image on the media A.
Ink cartridges 161 corresponding to inks of a plurality of colors are detachably mounted on the printing unit 16, and ink is supplied from each ink cartridge 161 to an ink tank (not shown) via a tube. Further, on the lower surface of the printing unit 16, that is, at a position facing the media A, nozzles (not shown) for ejecting ink are provided corresponding to each color. For example, a piezo element is arranged in these nozzles, and by driving the piezo element, the ink supplied from the ink tank is ejected as ink droplets and lands on the media A to form dots.

[Structure of spectroscope 17]
As shown in FIG. 2, the spectroscope 17 includes a light source 171, a spectroscopic element 172, and a light receiving unit 173. In this spectroscope 17, the light source 171 irradiates the media A with light, and the light reflected by the media A is incident on the spectroscopic element 172. The spectroscopic element 172 is configured to transmit light having a predetermined spectral wavelength from the incident light and to change the spectral wavelength. As a result, the light receiving unit 173 can acquire the amount of light having a spectral wavelength. Further, the spectroscope 17 is arranged on the carriage 13 on the −X side of the printing unit 16.
Although not shown, the spectroscope 17 has a bandpass filter that limits the wavelength range of the light received by the light receiving unit 173, guides the light from the light source 171 to the media A, or reflects light by the media A. The light source 172 and the light receiving unit 173 may be provided with a plurality of lenses.

The light source 171 includes a light source in an emission wavelength range including a plurality of spectral wavelengths that are separated by the spectroscopic element 172. For example, when the spectroscopic element 172 disperses a plurality of spectral wavelengths included in the visible light region to the near infrared region, a light emitting element such as a halogen lamp or an LED is used in which the visible light region to the near infrared region is the emission wavelength region. .. When detecting the presence or absence of a fluorescent component in the media A, a light emitting element that outputs light in the ultraviolet region may be used, or a plurality of light emitting elements may be combined to output light in a wide wavelength region.

The spectroscopic element 172 is composed of a tunable filter. For example, a Fabry-Perot Etalon element capable of arranging a pair of reflective films facing each other and changing the distance between the pair of reflective films can be used. In such a Fabry-Perot Etalon element, it is possible to change the wavelength of the transmitted light by changing the distance between the pair of reflective films.
The spectroscopic element 172 is not limited to the Fabry-Perot Etalon element as described above, and a liquid crystal tunable filter, an acoustic-optical tunable filter, a grating element, or the like may be used.
The light receiving unit 173 receives light having a spectral wavelength transmitted through the spectroscopic element 172, and outputs a light receiving signal according to the amount of light received as a spectroscopic measurement result.

[Configuration of control unit 15]
As shown in FIG. 2, the control unit 15 includes an I / F 151, a unit control circuit 152, a memory 153, and a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 154.
The I / F 151 inputs the print data input from the external device 20 to the CPU 154.
The unit control circuit 152 includes a control circuit that controls each of the supply unit 11, the transport unit 12, the printing unit 16, the light source 171 and the spectroscopic element 172, the light receiving unit 173, and the carriage moving unit 14, and is a command signal from the CPU 154. The operation of each unit is controlled based on. The control circuit of each unit may be provided separately from the control unit 15 and connected to the control unit 15.

The memory 153 stores various programs and various data that control the operation of the printer 10.
As various data, V-λ data showing the driving voltage for each spectral wavelength when controlling the spectral wavelength dispersed by the spectroscopic element 172 is recorded. In addition, print profile data or the like that stores the ejection amount of each ink for each color when printing an image on the media A is recorded. In addition, the light emitting characteristics for each wavelength of the light source 171 and the light receiving characteristics for each wavelength of the light receiving unit 173 may be stored.
Further, the distance-light amount data is stored in the memory 153. This distance-light amount data is data showing the relationship of the light amount at the measurement position R with respect to the distance between the media A and the carriage 13.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the CPU 154 included in the control unit 15 of the printer 10.
The CPU 154 reads and executes various programs stored in the memory 153, and as shown in FIG. 4, the scanning control unit 154A, the print control unit 154B, the measurement control unit 154C, the position measurement unit 154D, the distance calculation unit 154E, It functions as a color measuring unit 154F, a calibration unit 154G, and the like.

The scanning control unit 154A outputs a command signal to drive the supply unit 11, the transport unit 12, and the carriage moving unit 14 to the unit control circuit 152. As a result, the unit control circuit 152 drives the roll drive motor of the supply unit 11 to supply the media A to the transfer unit 12. Further, the unit control circuit 152 drives the transport motor of the transport unit 12 to transport a predetermined region of the media A to a position facing the carriage 13 of the platen 122 along the Y direction. Further, the unit control circuit 152 drives the carriage motor 142 of the carriage moving unit 14 to move the carriage 13 along the X direction.

The print control unit 154B outputs a command signal to control the print unit 16 to the unit control circuit 152, for example, based on the print data input from the external device 20. When a command signal is output from the print control unit 154B to the unit control circuit 152, the unit control circuit 152 outputs a print control signal to the print unit 16 and drives a piezo element provided in the nozzle to the media A. To eject ink. When printing is performed, the carriage 13 is moved along the X direction, and during the movement, ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 to form dots, and the media A is conveyed in the Y direction. An image composed of a plurality of dots is printed on the medium A by alternately repeating the transfer operation.

The measurement control unit 154C controls the spectroscope 17 to perform spectroscopic measurement processing on the measurement position R of the media A. Specifically, the measurement control unit 154C outputs a command signal for controlling the light source 171 to the unit control circuit 152, and emits light from the light source 171.
Further, the measurement control unit 154C reads the drive voltage for the spectral wavelength dispersed by the spectroscopic element 172 from the V-λ data of the memory 153, and outputs a command signal to the unit control circuit 152. As a result, the unit control circuit 152 applies a commanded drive voltage to the spectroscopic element 172, and light having a desired spectral wavelength is transmitted from the spectroscopic element 172.
Then, the measurement control unit 154C stores the light receiving signal output from the spectroscope 17, that is, the amount of light received by the light receiving unit 173 in the memory 153 in association with the spectral wavelength of the spectroscopic element 172.

The position measuring unit 154D is a measuring unit that measures the dropping position of the ink on the media A. The position measuring unit 154D moves the carriage 13 at a constant speed to measure the amount of light having a predetermined spectral wavelength with the spectroscope 17, and based on the measurement results, the ink ejected from the printing unit 16 to the media A Measure the dropping position.

The distance calculation unit 154E calculates the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 based on the landing position of the ink when the ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 to the media A.
The color measuring unit 154F functions as a correction unit that corrects the amount of light received for light of a plurality of wavelengths obtained by the spectroscopic measurement process based on the distance calculated by the distance calculating unit 154E. Further, the color measuring unit 154F measures the chromaticity with respect to the measurement position R based on the corrected light receiving amount.
The calibration unit 154G corrects (updates) the print profile data based on the color measurement result by the color measurement unit 154F.
The detailed operation of each functional configuration in the control unit 15 will be described later.

[Spectroscopic measurement method]
Next, the spectroscopic measurement method in the printer 10 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, an example of performing the spectroscopic measurement process on a plurality of color patches printed by the printing unit 16 as the spectroscopic measurement process by the printer 10 will be described.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the spectroscopic measurement process of the present embodiment.

[Distance calculation process]
In the present embodiment, the carriage 13 is supported by the carriage guide shaft 141 and moves in the X direction along the carriage guide shaft 141. In such a configuration, the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 may fluctuate depending on the position of the carriage 13 in the X direction due to the bending of the carriage guide shaft 141 or the like. Therefore, in the present embodiment, first, a distance calculation process for calculating the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 is performed (step S1).
The position for calculating the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 is the measurement position R where the spectroscopic measurement process is performed by the spectroscope 17. In the present embodiment, the measurement position R is a predetermined point in the color patch region forming the plurality of color patches and the calibration position for acquiring the calibration data. As one point in the color patch area, for example, the center point or the center of gravity point of the color patch area may be set. Further, as the calibration position, for example, a part of a white region where a color patch is not formed in the media A can be exemplified.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a method of calculating the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 at the measurement position R.
In calculating the distance between the media A and the carriage 13, first, the scanning control unit 154A controls the transport unit 12 and the carriage moving unit 14 to transport the media A in the Y direction, and then transports the media A on the platen 122. Is set (step S11).

Next, the scan control unit 154A includes a carriage 13, at a first speed _{V 1} which is set in advance, is moved from the home position on the + X side (step S12). The home position is the position of the −X side end portion in the printer 10.
Then, the print control unit 154B ejects ink from the print unit 16 at the timing when the carriage 13 moves to the measurement position R (step S13: first printing step). Here, in the present embodiment, the distance calculation for a plurality of measurement positions R is performed. Therefore, in step S13, the print control unit 154B causes eject ink while moving the carriage 13 at a first speed V ₁ for a plurality of measurement positions R aligned in the X direction.

Thereafter, the scan control unit 154A returns the carriage 13 to the home position (step S14), and further, the carriage 13, at a second velocity _{V 2} which is set in advance, is moved from the home position on the + X side (step S15) .. The second speed V ₂ is a speed different from the first speed V _1. For example, in the present embodiment, the carriage 13 is moved at the second speed V ₂ which is faster than the first speed V ₁ .
Then, the print control unit 154B ejects ink from the print unit 16 at the timing when the carriage 13 moves to the measurement position R, as in step S13 (step S16: second printing step). The ink dropped in step S16 is preferably an ink having the same color as the ink used in step S13. That is, it is preferable to eject ink from the same nozzle.

Next, the scanning control unit 154A returns the carriage 13 to the home position (step S17), and moves the carriage 13 from the home position to the + X side at a preset predetermined speed (step S18). The moving speed of the carriage 13 here may be the first speed V ₁ , the second speed V ₂ , or another speed. Further, it suffices if the position of the carriage 13 in the X direction can be grasped. In the present embodiment, the carriage moving unit 14 has a scale for measuring the position of the carriage 13, so for example, the carriage 13 is moved at a constant speed in step S18. You do not have to let it. Even if the carriage moving unit 14 does not have a scale, the carriage 13 does not have to move at a constant speed as long as the speed change pattern is known.

Further, the measurement control unit 154C measures the amount of light by the spectroscope 17 while moving the carriage 13 in step S18 (step S19). In this step S19, the measurement control unit 154C fixes the light to be split by the spectroscopic element 172 to a predetermined predetermined spectral wavelength. As a result, the change in the amount of light having a predetermined spectral wavelength along the X direction of the media A can be measured by the spectroscope 17.
The spectral wavelength at which the light amount measurement is performed in step S19 is not particularly limited, but it is preferable to use a wavelength having a large light amount difference between the media A and the ink. For example, when white printing paper is used as the medium A and the ink discharged in steps S13 and S16 is black, any wavelength in the visible light region may be the spectral wavelength used in step S19.

After that, from the spectroscopic measurement result obtained in step S19, the position measuring unit 154D determines the first dropping position, which is the ink dropping position in step S13, and the second dropping position, which is the ink dropping position in step S16. The distance to the position is detected (step S20).
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the light intensity measurement result obtained when the carriage 13 is scanned to the + X side in steps S18 and S19.
In FIG. 7, the white media A is ejected with black ink in steps S13 and S16, and in step S19, the spectral wavelength to be separated by the spectroscope 17 is set to a predetermined wavelength in the visible light region, and the carriage 13 It is a light amount measurement result when scanning from the home position to the + X side.
In this case, the spectrometer 17, in a section facing the white part where the ink of the medium A is not dropped, the received light amount is increased, the first dropping position Q ₁ and the second dropping position where the ink was dropped the amount of light received by Q ₂ takes a minimum value. Position measuring section 154D, in light amount measurement result, the point at which the amount of received light becomes the minimum value, the first dropped was measured as a position Q ₁ and the second dropping position Q _2, further first dropping position Q ₁ and the It calculates the distance ΔQ between the two dropping position Q _2.

After that, the distance calculation unit 154E calculates the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 at each measurement position R (step S21: distance calculation step).
FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the distance between the media A and the carriage 13, the first dropping position, and the second dropping position.
As shown in FIG. 8, when the ink is ejected at the measurement position R while moving the carriage 13, the initial velocity of the ink in the direction from the printing unit 16 toward the media A (Z direction) is a predetermined ink ejection speed V _0. Therefore, the initial speed of the ink in the X direction is the moving speed of the carriage 13. Therefore, the ink freely falls from the printing unit 16 in a parabola and reaches the media A. Here, X-direction distance from the measurement position R to which ink is struck to the first dropping position Q _1, and, X-direction distance from the measurement position R to a second dropping position Q ₂ are very small, the fine In the range, the change in the distance from the media A to the carriage 13 in the Z direction is sufficiently small. Therefore, at the measurement position R, the first dropping position Q ₁ , and the second dropping position Q ₂ , the distances from the media A to the carriage 13 can be regarded as the same distance. Similarly, the time from the ink ejection in step S13 to the impact on the media A and the time from the ink ejection in step S16 to the impact on the media A are considered to be the same time. be able to. Hereinafter, the distance from the media A to the carriage 13 is referred to as a carriage height H, and the time from which the ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 until the ink lands on the media A is referred to as a flight time T.
Assuming that the rate of fire of ink ejected by the printing unit 16 from step S13 and step S16 is V ₀ , the carriage height H can be expressed by the following equation (1). The distance ΔQ from the first dropping position Q ₁ to the second dropping position Q ₂ is can be represented by the formula (2).

Therefore, by substituting the equation (2) into the equation (1) and eliminating T, the following equation (3) is obtained.

In the formula (3), the ink firing speed V ₀ , the first speed V ₁ , and the second speed V ₂ are preset known values, g is the gravitational acceleration, and ΔQ is step S20. It is calculated. Therefore, the distance calculation unit 154E can calculate the carriage height H by inputting ΔQ calculated in step S20 to the equation (3).

[Spectroscopic measurement processing]
Returning to FIG. 5, the spectroscopic measurement process will be described. After calculating the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 at each measurement position R in step S1 described above, the printer 10 prints a color patch on the media A (step S2). Specifically, the scanning control unit 154A controls the transport unit 12 and the carriage moving unit 14 to transport the media A by a predetermined amount in the Y direction and move the carriage 13 to the position where the color patch of the media A is formed. .. Further, the print control unit 154B ejects ink from the print unit 16 based on the print profile data to print the color patch on the media A.

After that, the control unit 15 carries out a calibration data acquisition process for acquiring calibration data for correcting the spectroscopic measurement result (step S3).
Specifically, the scanning control unit 154A moves the carriage 13 to a predetermined calibration position. As described above, the calibration position is one of the plurality of measurement positions R, and in step S1, the distance between the calibration position of the media A and the carriage 13 is calculated.
Then, the measurement control unit 154C performs a spectroscopic measurement process on the calibration position. That is, the measurement control unit 154C switches the spectral wavelengths to be separated by the spectroscope 17 at predetermined wavelength intervals, and measures the amount of light of each spectral wavelength as a reference light amount. The measurement control unit 154C records the amount of reference light for each measured spectral wavelength in the memory 153 as calibration data.

Next, the measurement control unit 154C performs a spectroscopic measurement process on the measurement position R of each color patch (step S4).
Specifically, the scanning control unit 154A moves the carriage 13 to the measurement position R of the color patch. Then, the measurement control unit 154C performs a spectroscopic measurement process on the measurement position R. That is, the measurement control unit 154C switches the spectral wavelengths to be separated by the spectroscope 17 at predetermined wavelength intervals, and measures the amount of light of each spectral wavelength as the amount of measurement light. The measurement control unit 154C records the measured light amount for each measured spectral wavelength in the memory 153 in association with the measurement position R.

After that, the color measuring unit 154F corrects the reference light amount measured in step S3 and the measured light amount measured in step S4 based on the distance-light amount data stored in the memory 153 (step S5).

Hereinafter, the light amount correction by the color measuring unit 154F will be described.
9 and 10 are diagrams showing the relationship between the irradiation position of the light from the light source 171 and the measurement position R in the present embodiment. Here, FIG. 9 shows the relationship between the irradiation position of the light from the light source 171 and the measurement position R when the carriage height H fluctuates. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a light amount distribution at the measurement position R when the carriage height H fluctuates.
When the carriage height H of the media A is a predetermined reference value H ₀ , the measurement position R ₀ received by the light receiving unit 173 of the spectroscope 17 is the light irradiation position as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. It becomes the center. In this case, as shown in the light amount distribution of FIG. 10, a large area with high illuminance is included in the measurement position _R0 , and the light receiving amount in the light receiving unit 173 also increases.

On the other hand, when the carriage height H is larger than the reference value H ₀ by Δh, the measurement position R ₁ received by the light receiving unit 173 is on the −X side of the measurement position R ₀ , as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. Move to. In this case, as indicated by the light quantity distribution of FIG. 10, but the center from the + X side of the portion of the measurement positions R ₁ is the illuminance is high, part of the -X side illuminance is low. Therefore, when receiving light from the measurement position R ₁ in the light receiving section 173, the received light amount is reduced as compared with the case of receiving light from the measurement position R ₀ by the light receiving portion 173.
Similarly, when the carriage height H is smaller than the reference value H ₀ by Δh, the measurement position R ₂ received by the light receiving unit 173 moves to the + X side from the measurement position R ₀ . Thus, as shown in Figure 10, at the center from the + X-side portion of the measurement positions R _2, illuminance is low, the amount of received light decreases as compared with the case of receiving light from the measurement position R ₀ by the light receiving portion 173 ..

In the present embodiment, the distance-light amount data indicating the change in the amount of light received by the light receiving unit 173 with respect to the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 as described above is stored in the memory 153.
FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of distance-light intensity data in the present embodiment.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the distance - the light quantity data for the amount of change Δh from the reference value H ₀ of the carriage height H, the received light amount change rate of the light receiving portion 173 is recorded as a correction factor ing. Further, these distance-light intensity data are provided for each wavelength. For example, when performing spectroscopic measurement processing for a plurality of spectral wavelengths in the visible light region, distance-light amount data for each of these spectral wavelengths is stored in the memory 153.
In FIG. 11, the distance-light amount data in which the correction coefficient for the distance change amount is recorded is illustrated, but the correction coefficient for the carriage height H may be recorded.

Then, the color measuring unit 154F acquires a correction coefficient for each of the carriage heights H at each measurement position R calculated in step S1 to correct the reference light amount and the measured light amount. For example, the reference light amount measured in step S2 is corrected by dividing by the correction coefficient corresponding to the carriage height H of the calibration position, and the correction reference light amount is obtained. Further, the measured light amount for each color patch measured in step S3 is corrected by dividing by the correction coefficient corresponding to the carriage height H of each measurement position R, and the corrected measurement light amount is acquired.

After that, the color measuring unit 154F sets the reflectance R _λ to R _λ = E _λ / based on the corrected reference light amount (E _λ0 ) calculated for each spectral wavelength and the corrected measurement light amount (E _λ ). Calculated by E _λ0 (step S6). The color measuring unit 154F may further calculate the chromaticity such as the XYZ value and the L ^* a ^* b ^* value from the reflectance R _λ of each measurement wavelength.
After that, the calibration unit 154G updates the print profile data stored in the memory 153 based on the color measurement result of each color patch (step S7).

[Action and effect of this embodiment]
The printer 10 of the present embodiment includes a carriage 13 on which a printing unit 16 that ejects ink to the media A is mounted, and a carriage moving unit 14 that moves the carriage 13 with respect to the media. Further, the control unit 15 of the printer 10 includes a CPU 154, and the CPU 154 reads and executes a predetermined program recorded in the memory 153 to measure the ink dropping position of the media A, the position measuring unit 154D, and the position measuring unit 154D. It functions as a distance calculation unit 154E that calculates the distance between the media A and the carriage 13. Then, the distance calculation unit 154E includes a first dropping position to Q ₁ when the ink is ejected from the print unit 16 moves the carriage 13 at a first velocity V _1, and the carriage 13 first velocity V ₁ was based on the distance ΔQ between the second dropping position Q ₂ at the time of ejecting ink from a different second speed V ₂ printing unit 16 is moved, the distance between the medium a and the carriage 13 (the carriage height H) calculate.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, even if the carriage height H fluctuates depending on the position of the carriage 13, the carriage height H can be calculated, and the correction process based on the calculated carriage height H is performed. can do.
Further, in the present embodiment, it is not necessary to mount the distance sensor for obtaining the carriage height H on the carriage 13, and the carriage height H can be calculated with a simple configuration. Further, since it is not necessary to mount a member such as a distance sensor on the carriage 13, the weight of the carriage 13 can be reduced. Since the weight of the carriage 13 is reduced, the inconvenience of bending the carriage guide shaft 141 due to the weight of the carriage 13 is suppressed, so that the printing accuracy of the printing unit 16 can be suppressed from being lowered due to the fluctuation of the carriage height H. Further, by reducing the weight of the carriage 13, it is possible to improve the moving speed of moving the carriage 13, and it is possible to realize a quick printing process on the media A.

In the printer 10 of the present embodiment, a spectroscope 17 for performing spectroscopic measurement of the media A is mounted on the carriage 13. Further, the CPU 154 functions as a color measuring unit 154F for correcting the spectroscopic measurement result by the spectroscope 17. The spectroscope 17 receives the light source 171 that irradiates the media A with light, the spectroscopic element 172 that disperses the light of a predetermined spectroscopic wavelength from the light reflected by the media A, and the light dispersed by the spectroscopic element 172. It includes a light receiving unit 173 that outputs a spectroscopic measurement result. Further, the color measuring unit 154F corrects the spectroscopic measurement result obtained by the spectroscopic measurement of the spectroscope 17 based on the carriage height H calculated by the distance calculation unit 154E.
Therefore, in the printer 10 of the present embodiment, when performing color measurement processing of an image such as a color patch printed on the media A, even if the carriage height H fluctuates, spectroscopic measurement is performed according to the carriage height H. The result can be corrected and the color measurement accuracy for the image can be improved.

In the present embodiment, the position measuring unit 154D moves the carriage 13 at a predetermined speed, and based on the change in the amount of light when the spectroscope 17 measures the amount of light of a predetermined spectral wavelength, the first dropping position Q ₁ and the second dropping position _{Q 2} is measured.
Therefore, an imaging camera or the like for measuring a first dropping position Q ₁ and the second dropping position Q ₂ does not need to be mounted on the carriage 13, simplification of the construction of the carriage 13, and is possible to reduce the weight of it can.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, the second embodiment will be described.
In the first embodiment, in order to calculate the carriage height H, it moves the carriage 13 at a first velocity V ₁ at step S12, moves the carriage 13 at a second velocity V ₂ at step S15. On the other hand, the second embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the ink is ejected without moving the carriage 13 in step S12. In the following description, the matters already described will be designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted or simplified.
The printer 10 of the second embodiment has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, and only the distance calculation process in step S1 is different. Therefore, the description of each configuration of the printer 10 will be omitted.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a distance calculation method in the second embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 12, in the distance calculation method in the present embodiment, the process of step S11 is performed and the media A is set on the platen 122 as in the first embodiment.

Next, the scanning control unit 154A moves the carriage 13 to the home position. After that, the scanning control unit 154A moves the carriage 13 to the + X side (step S12A). The moving speed of the carriage 13 here is not particularly limited and does not have to be constant speed movement.
Then, the scanning control unit 154A stops the carriage 13 at the timing when the carriage 13 moves to the measurement position R (step S12B). Further, the print control unit 154B ejects ink from the print unit 16 at this measurement position R (step S13A: third printing step). That is, in the present embodiment, the ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 without moving the carriage 13 relative to the media A.
After that, the control unit 15 determines whether or not the ink ejection at all the measurement positions R is completed (step S12C). If NO is determined in step S12C, the process returns to step S12A, the carriage 13 is moved to the next measurement position R, and ink is ejected.

When the ejection of ink to all the measurement positions R is completed and YES is determined in step S12C, the scanning control unit 154A returns the carriage 13 to the home position as in step S14. Then, the scan control unit 154A causes the constant speed of the carriage 13 from the home position on the + X side at a predetermined third speed _{V 3} set in advance (step S15A). Third speed V ₃ of the carriage 13 in step S15A is not particularly restricted as long as it is a constant speed.
Then, the print control unit 154B ejects ink from the print unit 16 at the timing when the carriage 13 moves to the measurement position R, as in steps S13 and S16 of the first embodiment (step S16A: fourth printing step). .. The ink dropped in step S16A is preferably an ink having the same color as the ink used in step S13A. That is, it is preferable to eject ink from the same nozzle.

After the above, the processes of steps S17 to S19 similar to those of the first embodiment are carried out to move the carriage 13 from the home position to the + X side, and to carry out the light intensity measurement process by the spectroscope 17. The position measuring unit 154D may implement the same processing as step S20, on the basis of the light amount measurement result, it detects a dropped position of the ink at step S13A a third dropping position Q _3, the ink in step S16A detecting a dropped position as the fourth droplet position Q _4. Moreover, to calculate the distance ΔQ between the third dropping position Q ₃ and the fourth droplet position Q _4.

After that, the distance calculation unit 154E calculates the distance between the media A and the carriage 13 at each measurement position R (step S21A: distance calculation step).
Figure 13 is a diagram for explaining a carriage height H, the third dropping position Q _3, and the relationship of the fourth droplet position Q _4.
In the present embodiment, when the ink is ejected in step S13A, the ink is dropped directly below the measurement position R. Therefore, when the speed of moving the carriage 13 in step S15A and V _3, the distance ΔQ from the third dropping position Q ₃ to the fourth dropping position Q ₄ are, it can be represented by the formula (4).

Therefore, by substituting the equation (4) into the equation (1) and eliminating T, the following equation (5) is obtained.

In step S21A, the distance calculation unit 154E can calculate the carriage height H in the same manner as in the first embodiment by inputting ΔQ calculated in step S20 into the equation (5).

[Action and effect of this embodiment]
Similar to the first embodiment, the printer 10 of the present embodiment includes a carriage 13 on which a printing unit 16 is mounted, a carriage moving unit 14, and a control unit 15, and the CPU 154 of the control unit 15 is a position measuring unit 154D. And functions as a distance calculation unit 154E. Then, the distance calculation unit 154E includes a third dropping position Q ₃ when the ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 without moving the carriage 13, the printing unit is moved a constant speed the carriage 13 in the third speed V ₃ 16 based on the distance between the fourth dropping position Q ₄ at the time of discharging the ink from, and calculates the distance between the medium a and the carriage 13 (the carriage height H).
Therefore, as in the first embodiment, even if the carriage height H fluctuates depending on the position of the carriage 13, the carriage height H can be calculated, and the correction process based on the calculated carriage height H can be calculated. Can be carried out.
Further, also in this embodiment, since it is not necessary to mount the distance sensor for obtaining the carriage height H on the carriage 13, the carriage height H can be calculated with a simple configuration. Further, since it is not necessary to mount a member such as a distance sensor on the carriage 13, the weight of the carriage 13 can be reduced. Therefore, the deflection of the carriage guide shaft 141 due to the weight of the carriage 13 can be suppressed, and the moving speed for moving the carriage 13 is improved, so that the media A can be quickly printed.

[Modification example]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the present invention includes configurations obtained by modifying, improving, and appropriately combining the respective embodiments within the range in which the object of the present invention can be achieved. It is a thing.

[Modification 1]
In the above-described embodiment, the position measuring unit 154D detects the ink dropping position by using the spectroscope 17 mounted on the carriage 13. On the other hand, the carriage 13 may be equipped with an image pickup camera, or the position measuring unit 154D may be configured to detect ink dripping based on an image captured by the image pickup camera.
In this case, the position measuring unit 154D can detect the ink dropping position by, for example, performing edge detection processing or the like on the captured image.

[Modification 2]
In the first embodiment, by moving the carriage 13 at a first velocity V ₁ at step S12, after the ink was ejected for a plurality of measurement positions R at step S13, the carriage 13 to the home position in step S14 returning, by moving the carriage 13 at a second velocity V ₂ in step S15, ink is ejected for a plurality of measurement positions R at step S16. On the other hand, step S13 and step S16 may be performed for each measurement position R. That is, to eject the ink at the measurement position R while the carriage 13 is moved to the + X side in the first speed V _1. Thereafter, the carriage 13 than the measurement position R is moved in the -X side predetermined distance to eject ink at the measurement position R while the carriage 13 is moved to the second at a velocity V ₂ + X side. By repeating the above processing for each measurement position R, the ink ejection process when moving the carriage 13 at a first speed V ₁ for each measurement position R, ink when moving at a second velocity V ₂ Discharge processing may be carried out.

A light amount measurement process using the spectroscope 17 may be further performed for each measurement position R. In this case, to discharge the ink in the measurement position R while the carriage 13 is moved to the + X side in the first speed V _1. Thereafter, the carriage 13 than the measurement position R is moved in the -X side predetermined distance to eject ink at the measurement position R while the carriage 13 is moved to the second at a velocity V ₂ + X side. After that, the carriage 13 is moved to the −X side by a predetermined distance from the measurement position R again, and the change in the amount of light having a predetermined spectral wavelength is measured by the spectroscope 17 while moving the carriage 13 to the + X side at a predetermined speed. ..
In this case, further, the calculation of the first distance of the dropping position Q ₁ and the second dropping position Q ₂ to which was measured, and may be carried out the calculation of the carriage height H relative to the measurement position R. That is, the carriage height H may be calculated for each measurement position R.

Also, as in the above embodiment, the spectrometer 17, in the structure than the printing unit 16 of the carriage 13 is disposed on the -X side, the measurement position of the carriage 13 is moved to the second at a velocity V ₂ + X side R The light amount measurement in step S19 may be performed at the same time when the process of ejecting ink is performed in step S17, and the processes of steps S17 and S18 can be omitted.
The same applies to the second embodiment, and the ink ejection in steps S12A and S13A and the ink ejection in steps S15A and S16A may be performed for each measurement position R.

[Modification 3]
In the above embodiment, in step S3, the calibration data was measured using the white portion of the media A, that is, the portion where the ink was not ejected. On the other hand, as the calibration data, for example, the calibration reference member may be provided on the platen 122, and the calibration reference member may be measured by the spectroscope 17 to acquire the calibration data. In this case, the distance between the calibration reference object and the carriage 13 may be separately measured in the distance calculation process in step S1.
The calibration data may be measured in advance at the time of manufacturing the printer 10 and stored in the memory 153. In this case, the process of step S3 can be omitted.

[Modification example 4]
In the above embodiment, the color measuring unit 154F calculates the correction reference light amount obtained by dividing the reference light amount by the correction coefficient according to the distance, and calculates the correction measurement light amount obtained by dividing the measured light amount by the correction coefficient according to the distance. The reflectance was calculated based on the correction reference light amount and the correction measurement light amount of, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the color measuring unit 154F sets the correction coefficient for the carriage height H when the reference light amount is measured as k _λ0 , and the correction coefficient for the carriage height H when the measured light amount is measured as k _λ1, and _sets the reference light amount E. _.lambda.0, using the measurement light quantity E _lambda, the reflectance R _lambda may be calculated by _{R λ = k 0 E λ /} k 1 E λ0.

[Modification 5]
In the above embodiment, the correction of the spectroscopic measurement result by the color measuring unit 154F is illustrated as an example of the correction processing using the carriage height H calculated by the distance calculating unit 154E, but the present invention is not limited to this.
For example, the measurement control unit 154C may be configured to correct the drive voltage of the light source 171 of the spectroscope 17, that is, the amount of light emitted from the light source 171 to the media A based on the carriage height H. In this case, for example, the drive voltage of the light source 171 with respect to the carriage height H may be stored in the memory 153.

[Modification 6]
In each of the above embodiments, the configuration in which the unit control circuit 152 is provided in the control unit 15 has been illustrated, but as described above, each control unit is separate from the control unit 15 and is provided in each unit. May be good. For example, the spectroscope 17 may be provided with a spectroscopic element control circuit for controlling the spectroscopic element 172 and a light receiving control circuit for controlling the light receiving unit 173. Further, the spectroscope 17 may include a microcomputer and a storage memory for storing V-λ data, and the microcomputer may function as the measurement control unit 154C.

[Modification 7]
In each of the above embodiments, as the printing unit 16, an inkjet type printing unit 16 that drives the piezo element to eject the ink supplied from the ink tank has been exemplified, but the printing unit 16 is not limited thereto. For example, the printing unit 16 may have a configuration in which bubbles are generated in the ink by a heater to eject the ink, or a configuration in which the ink is ejected by an ultrasonic vibrator.

[Modification 8]
In each of the above embodiments, the spectroscope 17 for post-spectroscopy in which the light dispersed by the spectroscopic element 172 is received by the light receiving unit 173 is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, a pre-spectral spectroscope that disperses the light from the light source 171 with the spectroscopic element 172 and irradiates the media A with the light may be used.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the spectroscope 17 shows a configuration example in which the light of the light source 171 is irradiated from the normal direction with respect to the media A, and the light reflected by the media A at 45 ° is incident on the spectroscopic element 172. However, it is not limited to this.
For example, the light may be incident on the surface of the media A at an angle of 45 °, and the light reflected in the normal direction of the media A may be received by the light receiving unit 173 via the spectroscopic element 172.
Further, the light reflected from the media A at 45 ° is received by the light receiving unit 173 via the spectroscopic element 172, but the light reflected at other than 45 ° such as 30 ° may be received. That is, the angles of the optical axes of the light receiving unit 173 and the spectroscopic element 172 may be set so that the light reflected by the media A is not received by the light receiving unit 173.

[Modification 9]
In the above embodiment, an example is shown in which the carriage moving unit 14 moves the carriage 13 to the + X side and ejects ink at the timing when the carriage 13 moves to the measurement position R. On the other hand, the transport unit 12 may transport the media A in the Y direction to move the carriage 13 relative to the media A.
In this case, while stopping the carriage 13 at a predetermined position, and conveys the medium A at a first velocity V _1, ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 at the timing when the predetermined measurement position R is opposed to the carriage 13 of the medium A It is, detects the dropping position as the first dropping position Q _1. Moreover, the medium A returned to a predetermined amount -Y side, and conveys the medium A in the second speed V _2, ink is discharged from the printing unit 16 at the timing when the predetermined measurement positions R of the medium A is opposed to the carriage 13 and it detects the dropping position as the second dropping position Q _2. As a result, the carriage height H can be calculated using the equation (3) as in the first embodiment.
Further, with the carriage 13 stopped at a predetermined position, the media A is conveyed until the predetermined measurement position R of the media A faces the carriage 13, the transfer of the media A is stopped, and the ink is discharged from the printing unit 16. discharged thereby, it detects the dropping position as a third dropping position Q _3. Then, the media A returned to a predetermined amount -Y side, and conveys the medium A in the third speed V _3, ink is ejected from the printing unit 16 at the timing when the predetermined measurement positions R of the medium A is opposed to the carriage 13 and it detects the dropping position as the fourth droplet position Q _4. As a result, the carriage height H can be calculated using the equation (5) as in the second embodiment.

10 ... printer (printing device), 12 ... transfer unit (moving mechanism), 13 ... carriage, 14 ... carriage moving unit (moving mechanism), 15 ... control unit, 16 ... printing unit, 17 ... spectroscope, 153 ... memory, 154 ... CPU, 154A ... Scanning control unit, 154B ... Print control unit, 154C ... Measurement control unit, 154D ... Position measurement unit, 154E ... Distance calculation unit, 154F ... Color measurement unit (correction unit), 154G ... Calibration unit, 171 ... light source, 172 ... spectroscopic element, 173 ... light receiving part, A ... media, H ... carriage height, Q ₁ ... first dropping position, Q ₂ ... second dropping position, Q ₃ ... third dropping position, Q ₄ ... 4th dropping position, R, R ₀ , R ₁ , R ₂ ... Measurement position, V ₀ ... Ink ejection speed, V ₁ ... First speed, V ₂ ... Second speed, V ₃ ... Third speed, ΔQ … The distance between the first dropping position and the second dropping position (or the distance between the third dropping position and the fourth dropping position).

Claims (6)

A carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media,
A moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media,
A measuring unit that measures the dropping position of the ink on the media,
A distance calculation unit for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage is provided.
In the distance calculation unit, the first dropping position, which is the dropping position when the carriage is relatively moved at the first speed and the ink is discharged from the printing unit, and the carriage is referred to as the first speed. The distance between the media and the carriage is calculated based on the distance from the second dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is ejected from the printing unit by moving relative to each other at different second speeds. A featured printing device. A carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media,
A moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media,
A measuring unit that measures the dropping position of the ink on the media,
A distance calculation unit for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage is provided.
The distance calculation unit moves the carriage relative to the third dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is ejected from the printing unit without moving the carriage relative to the media, at a predetermined speed. A printing apparatus characterized in that the distance between the media and the carriage is calculated based on the distance from the fourth dropping position, which is the dropping position when the ink is ejected from the printing unit. In the printing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2.
A spectroscope mounted on the carriage and performing spectroscopic measurement of the media,
A correction unit for correcting the spectroscopic measurement result by the spectroscope is provided.
The spectroscope receives a light source that irradiates the media with light, a spectroscopic element that disperses light having a predetermined spectral wavelength from the light reflected by the media, and the light that is spectroscopically dispersed by the spectroscopic element. Includes a light receiving unit that outputs measurement results
The printing apparatus is characterized in that the correction unit corrects the spectroscopic measurement result based on the distance between the media and the carriage calculated by the distance calculation unit. In the printing apparatus according to claim 3,
The measuring unit is characterized in that the dropping position is measured based on the change in the amount of light when the amount of light of a predetermined spectral wavelength is measured by the spectroscope while the carriage is relatively moved at a predetermined speed. Printing equipment. It is provided with a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and a measuring unit that measures the dropping position of the ink on the media. A distance calculation method for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage in a printing device.
A first printing step in which the carriage is relatively moved at the first speed to eject the ink from the printing unit.
A second printing step in which the carriage is relatively moved at a second speed different from the first speed to eject the ink from the printing unit.
Based on the distance between the first dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink ejected in the first printing step, and the second dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink ejected in the second printing step. A distance calculation method, characterized in that the distance calculation step of calculating the distance between the media and the carriage is performed. It is provided with a carriage equipped with a printing unit that ejects ink to the media, a moving mechanism that moves the carriage relative to the media, and a measuring unit that measures the dropping position of the ink on the media. A distance calculation method for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage in a printing device.
A third printing step in which the ink is ejected from the printing unit without moving the carriage relative to the media.
A fourth printing step in which the carriage is relatively moved at a predetermined speed to eject the ink from the printing unit.
Based on the distance between the third dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink ejected in the third printing step, and the fourth dropping position, which is the dropping position of the ink ejected in the fourth printing step. , A distance calculation method for calculating the distance between the media and the carriage, and the like.