JP2001347652A - Ink jet recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of realizing a system of recording a plurality of rows which raises an effective main scanning rate and contributes to improving a throughput. SOLUTION: This ink jet recording apparatus for recording images onto recording media 1A and 1B by jetting ink has a plurality of transfer paths 10A and 10B for transferring the recording media of a plurality of rows respectively, transfer means 2 set correspondingly over the transfer paths 10A and 10B of the plurality of rows for transferring the recording media of the plurality of rows, recording means 3 for executing recording by scanning over the recording media of the plurality of rows in a direction nearly orthogonal to a transfer direction of the recording media of the plurality of rows and jetting ink, a storage means for storing image data, and a recording control means for making the recording means start recording by scanning over the recording media of the plurality of rows after the image data corresponding to images of a plurality of rows are stored in the storage means.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an ink jet recording apparatus, and more particularly, to an ink jet recording apparatus capable of realizing a multi-row recording method which increases an effective main scanning rate and contributes to an improvement in processing performance.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a shuttle type ink jet printer has been recording on one sheet of paper or one row of roll paper. For this reason, when recording a plurality of images at the same time, the images have to be recorded side by side and cut in a later manner. However, it is difficult to record a plurality of images side by side and cut them to an accurate size. This point becomes more difficult as the image size to be cut is longer when continuously recording images in the length direction.

Conventionally, when printing an image without a border, in order to print accurately to the border, recording is performed on paper or roll paper cut in advance to a required size. The smaller the size of the print, the lower the effective main scanning rate by the acceleration / deceleration time of the recording head and the lower the processing ability.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to realize a multi-row recording system which increases an effective main scanning rate and contributes to an improvement in processing performance. It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink jet recording apparatus capable of performing the above.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an ink jet recording apparatus for ejecting ink to record an image on a recording medium, wherein a plurality of rows of recording media are conveyed. A transport path, a transport unit provided corresponding to the plurality of rows of transport paths, for transporting the plurality of rows of the recording medium, and the plurality of rows of the recording medium in a direction substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the plurality of rows of the recording medium. A scanning unit that performs scanning over the entire surface and performs recording by ejecting ink, a storage unit that stores image data, and a storage unit that stores image data corresponding to a plurality of column images. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a recording control unit that causes the recording unit to start recording by scanning over a recording medium.

According to the present invention, since printing can be performed in a plurality of rows, the processing capability can be improved as compared with a conventional single-row type ink jet printing apparatus.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, at the start of the recording, the image data corresponding to the plurality of column images stored in the storage means is all of the image data corresponding to the image in each column. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

According to the present invention, in addition to the above-described effects, all the images to be recorded are stored. Therefore, when the stored images are repeatedly recorded, high-speed recording can be performed regardless of the data transfer speed from the host device. It is possible.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, at the start of the recording, the image data corresponding to the plurality of column images stored in the storage means is a part of the image data corresponding to the image of each column. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

According to the present invention, data required at the start of image recording is smaller than that of all image data, so that the time until the start of recording can be shortened, and the processing speed can be further increased.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the image data corresponding to a plurality of columns of images stored in the storage means is image data necessary for at least one scan corresponding to each column of images. The inkjet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

According to the present invention, a scanning unit or a line unit,
When data to be recorded on each transport path is divided and transferred in a format close to a recording unit such as a pixel unit, the processing speed can be increased.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, at the start of the recording, of the image data corresponding to the plurality of columns of images stored in the storage means, the image data corresponding to the image of the last column to be transferred is 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ink jet recording apparatus is a part of image data.

According to the present invention, when data is transferred in the order of images, or when data is transferred in a format close to a recording unit such as a scanning unit, a line unit, or a pixel unit, the data is transferred last in any case. Since the recording is started after the image data corresponding to the image of a certain column is partially stored, the processing speed can be increased.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, at the start of the recording, among the image data corresponding to the plurality of column images stored in the storage means, the image data corresponding to the image of the last column to be transferred is at least 2. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the data is image data necessary for one scan.

According to the present invention, the processing speed can be increased when data is transferred in the order of images and in a format close to the recording unit in the image.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the image of the column transmitted before the image of the column transmitted last, all corresponding image data is stored. 7. An ink jet recording apparatus according to item 6.

According to the present invention, when data is transferred in the order of images, the processing speed can be increased.

The invention according to claim 8 is an ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink, comprising: a plurality of rows of transport paths for transporting a plurality of rows of the recording medium; A transport unit is provided corresponding to the plurality of rows of transport paths and transports the plurality of rows of recording media, and scans the plurality of rows of recording media in a direction substantially orthogonal to the transport direction of the plurality of rows of recording media. Recording means for performing recording by ejecting ink, storage means for storing image data for a plurality of rows of images, and a row in which image data corresponding to part or all of an image is stored in the storage means. A recording control unit for starting recording by the recording unit in a state having a column in which substantially no image data is stored.

In the present invention, the fact that image data is not substantially stored means that image data necessary for one scan is not stored.

According to the present invention, when data is transferred in the order of images, the processing speed can be further increased.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the ink jet recording apparatus according to the eighth aspect, wherein the image data of the columns stored in the storage means is image data corresponding to all of the images.

According to the present invention, in addition to the effect of the eighth aspect, the recording control can be simplified.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, the image data of the columns stored in the storage means store image data corresponding to all of the images and image data necessary for at least one scan. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein

According to the present invention, the processing speed can be further increased.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided the ink jet recording apparatus according to the eighth aspect, wherein the image data of the column stored in the storage means is image data necessary for at least one scan.

According to the present invention, in addition to the effect of claim 8, even when data is transferred in a format close to a recording unit such as a scanning unit, a line unit, or a pixel unit, the data is transferred last in any case. The recording is started after a part of the image data corresponding to the image of the column to be stored is stored, so that the processing speed can be further increased.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, ink is ejected based on image data received from an image processing apparatus.
An inkjet recording apparatus that records an image on a recording medium, comprising a plurality of rows of recording media, a plurality of rows of transport paths for transporting each of the plurality of rows, and a plurality of rows of Conveying means for conveying the recording medium, recording means for performing scanning over the plurality of rows of the recording medium in a direction substantially orthogonal to the conveying direction of the plurality of rows of the recording medium, and performing recording by ejecting ink, Storage means for storing image data transmitted from the image processing apparatus, wherein the image processing apparatus splits image data corresponding to one image into a plurality of divided image data corresponding to the first image After the data, the divided image data corresponding to the N-th image (N is an integer of 2 or more) is sequentially transferred, and after storing the image data corresponding to the N-th image in the storage unit, Recording means An ink jet recording apparatus characterized by initiating the due recording.

According to the present invention, the capacity of the memory used for the storage means can be reduced, and the processing speed can be increased.

The invention according to claim 13 is the ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the division unit of the image data is M (M is an integer of 1 or more) line units.

According to the present invention, when the nozzle density of the recording head is lower than the recording density, data is transferred in units of M lines, and the recording apparatus rearranges the data into recording units based on the stored data. Thus, the processing load on the image processing apparatus can be reduced.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, ink is ejected based on image data received from an image processing apparatus,
An ink jet recording apparatus that records an image on a recording medium, comprising a plurality of rows of recording media, a plurality of rows of transport paths for each transport, and a plurality of rows of the plurality of rows of recording media provided corresponding to the plurality of rows of transport paths. Conveying means for conveying the recording medium, recording means for performing scanning over the plurality of rows of the recording medium in a direction substantially orthogonal to the conveying direction of the plurality of rows of the recording medium, and performing recording by ejecting ink, Receiving means for receiving image data transmitted from the image recording apparatus, wherein the image processing apparatus divides image data corresponding to one image into a plurality of pieces, and divides the image data corresponding to the first image. Following the image data, up to the divided image data corresponding to the Nth image (N is an integer of 2 or more) is sequentially transferred, and the recording by the recording unit is performed in response to the reception by the reception unit. Features and That an ink jet recording apparatus.

According to the present invention, it is possible to shorten the time until the start of image recording and to perform recording in accordance with the data received from the image processing apparatus. It can be simplified and contributes to cost reduction.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the ink jet recording apparatus according to the twelfth or fourteenth aspect, wherein the division unit of the image data is a unit necessary for recording of each scan.

According to the present invention, the processing speed can be further increased.

According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing apparatus for transferring image data for recording an image on a recording medium of an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the image data corresponding to one image is divided into a plurality of pieces. , (N is an integer of 2 or more) following the divided image data corresponding to the first image
An image processing apparatus for sequentially transferring up to the divided image data corresponding to the image.

According to the present invention, the capacity of the storage means can be reduced or reduced to zero, and the processing speed can be increased.

The invention according to claim 17 is the image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the division unit of the image data is M (M is an integer of 1 or more) line units.

According to the present invention, when the nozzle density of the print head is lower than the print density, data is transferred in units of M lines, and the printing apparatus rearranges the print units based on the stored data. Thus, the processing load on the image processing apparatus can be reduced.

The invention according to claim 18 is the image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the division unit of the image data is a unit necessary for recording of each scan.

According to the present invention, the processing speed can be further increased.

[0042]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

First, an example of the overall configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an outline of an ink jet recording apparatus adopting a two-row recording method, wherein 1A and 1B denote recording media, 10A and 10B denote recording media 1A and 1B, respectively.
, A conveying means for conveying the recording media 1A and 1B, a recording means 3 for recording on the recording medium,
Reference numeral 4 denotes a cutter for cutting the recording media 1A and 1B.

The recording media 1A and 1B are respectively rotatably held above the apparatus as a first paper roll 100A and a second paper roll 100B which are wound into a long shape and formed into a roll shape. . As a result, the recording media 1A and 1B are attached to each of the paper rolls 100A and 1A.
00B, and are conveyed in the downward direction in the drawing by the conveying means 2 described later.

In this specification, the case where the recording media 1A and 1B are supplied from the two paper rolls 100A and 100B, respectively, is illustrated and described. However, in the present invention, an image is recorded. The number of paper rolls that supply the recording medium is not limited to the two shown in the drawing, as long as the recording medium is configured to have two or more rows.

The transport means 2 is provided on transport paths 10A and 10B of the recording media 1A and 1B.
1B corresponding to the transport rollers 21A and 21B and the respective recording media 1A and 21B with respect to the transport rollers 21A and 21B.
B, a pressure roller 22A for pressure-bonding each B independently,
22B, and transport motors 23A and 23B for driving the transport rollers 21A and 21B. The recording media 1A and 1B supplied from each of the paper rolls 100A and 100B respectively correspond to the transport rollers 21.
While being sandwiched between A, 21B and the pressure rollers 22A, 22B, they are respectively conveyed downward in the drawing by the rotation of the conveyance roller 21.

By supplying the recording media 1A and 1B in this manner, a plurality (two) of the transport paths 10A and
0B is formed.

With the above configuration, by pressing and releasing the pressure rollers 22A and 22B provided on each of the transport paths 10A and 10B, transport and stop can be controlled for each transport path.

The recording means 3 is arranged on the downstream side of the transport means 2 and has a plurality of nozzles on the surface side (recording surface side) of each of the recording media 1A and 1B. A recording head 31 for ejecting ink droplets from the recording medium to record and form an image, and a scanning guide 32 laid transversely to a direction substantially perpendicular to the conveying direction (sub-scanning direction) of the recording media 1A and 1B. The carriage 33 is movably attached to the carriage 33 and a carriage motor 34 for moving the carriage 33.

The recording head 31 is, for example, Y (yellow), M (magenta), C (cyan), K (black)
And the like, and a plurality of nozzle heads for ejecting ink in the respective ink tanks in the form of droplets. The carriage 3
3 is driven by the carriage motor 34,
It moves along a direction (main scanning direction) substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the recording media 1A and 1B and over each of the recording media 1A and 1B. The movement amount of the recording head 31 is detected by an encoder (not shown).

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining an example of the electrical configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 41 denotes a CPU for performing various arithmetic processing, reference numeral 42 denotes a RAM, reference numeral 43 denotes a ROM, and reference numeral 44 denotes an I / F (interface) for enabling connection with a host device such as a computer. is there.

The CPU 41 is connected to a host device such as a computer via an I / F 44. Such a CPU 4
1 is a signal read from the host device into the RAM 42;
The recording operation is controlled based on programs and data stored in a program memory or the like in the OM43 format.

In FIG. 2, the input / output terminal I /
O45 is an encoder 4 for detecting the amount of movement of the carriage.
6. Connected to a carriage motor 34 for driving the carriage, a paper feed control unit 47 for controlling the conveying means, an operation panel 48 for an operator to perform various operations, various sensors 49 for detecting the position of the recording medium, and the like. are doing.

Fetching of an encoder signal from the encoder 46, control of the carriage motor 34,
The control of 7, communication with the operation panel 48, and taking in of input values from various sensors 49 are performed by the CPU 41 via the I / O 45.

Further, in FIG. 2, 50 is an image transfer controller, 51 is an image memory, 52 is a head driver,
31 is a recording head.

The image transfer controller 50 is controlled by the CPU 41. The image transfer controller 50 stores the image data transferred from the host in the image memory 51, reads out the image data stored in the image memory 51 at the time of recording, and controls the head driver 52. The recording head 31 is controlled via the control unit.

The image memory 51 is storage means for temporarily storing image data transferred from the host.

The head driver 52 is for driving and controlling the recording head 31.

The image data from the host is stored in the image memory 51 via the I / F 44 by the CPU 41 or by the image transfer controller 50 controlled by the CPU 41. The image data stored in the image memory 51 is
The image data is read out by the CPU 41 or read out by the image transfer controller 50 according to the setting of the CPU 41,
The recording head 31 is controlled via the.

A first example of the recording control of the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2 will be described.

First, the image memory 5 used for this control
1 will be briefly described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of a memory configuration when two columns are recorded in four colors of K, C, M, and Y.

The memory has K, C, M, Y corresponding to each column.
The horizontal direction has the maximum recording width of the image to be recorded, and the vertical direction has the maximum recording height. Image data from the host device via the I / F 44 is stored in each column memory as an image of the image. Thereafter, FIGS. 4, 6, 7A, 8A, and 9 show the state of the image memory 51.
In (a), the portion where the image data is stored is indicated by oblique lines.

In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which an image having n pixels in width and m pixels in height is recorded in two columns in four colors of K, C, M, and Y. Note that the head condition is a nozzle interval of 7
A description will be given assuming that printing is performed at 720 dpi with a head arranged at 4 dpi in the sub-scanning direction at 20 dpi.

In the present invention, the state of the image memory at the start of recording is important, and FIG. 4 shows an example of the state. In FIG. 4, hatched portions indicate portions where image data is stored. In this embodiment, the image memory 51 is a storage unit.
Indicates that the data corresponding to the plurality of images stored in the image data is all of the image data corresponding to each image.

(Reception of Image Data) Prior to recording by the recording head 31, image data is transferred from the host device for each image. The transferred image data is I / F4
4 and stored in the image memory 51. In this image transfer, after the data for one image in column 1 has been transferred, the data for one image in column 2 is transferred. At this time, the transfer of the image may be performed not from the image in column 1 but from the image in column 2. As for the method of transferring data from the host in one image, each color may be sent for each surface, each color may be sent for each scanning line, or each color may be sent for each point. In this way, the recording by the recording head 31 is started when all the images are transferred as shown in FIG.

(Reading and Recording of Image Data) Recording by the recording head 31 is performed based on image data read from the image memory 51 by the CPU 41 or the image transfer controller 50 and sent to the head driver 52. That is, the order of recording by the recording head 31 depends on the order of reading image data from the image memory 51.

In this case, the data of the first scan of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → the data of the first scan of (K2, C2, M2, Y2) → the data of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) Data of the second scan → Data of the second scan of (K2, C2, M2, Y2) →... Data of the i-th scan of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → (K2, C2, M2, Y2) ), The image data is read out as in the data of the i-th scan. CP in this order
U41 or the image data is read from the image memory 51 by the image transfer controller 50, and the head driver 52
And the recording by the recording head 31 is performed. By repeating this scanning until the recording of m pixels is completed, the recording is completed. If the height of the image data in each column is different, scanning is performed until all the images have been recorded. In addition, during scanning of a row having no image data to be printed, the apparatus is controlled to a non-printing state.

At this time, the recording length of the recording head 31 (=
If the height of the image memory 51 is larger than (nozzle interval × number of nozzles), it is possible to overwrite the portion where the printing scan has been completed. You can do it.

The reading order in each scan will be described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 5, the numerals indicate the data reading order for one color. In FIG. 5, for the sake of simplicity, it is assumed that there is no displacement of the head in the main and sub-scanning directions. However, in practice, in order to match the recording position of each color, the memory writing position during data storage is shifted or The reading position of the data necessary for the i-th emission for each scan is shifted. In this example, the nozzle density and the recording density are the same,
If they are not the same, the data necessary for one emission is read with the nozzle interval in mind.

In column 1 of FIG. 5, data necessary for the first emission of the first scan of K1 → data required for the first emission of the first scan of C1 → data required for the first emission of the first scan of M1 → one scan of Y1 It indicates that the data required for the first emission is read out. ・ ・ Similarly, in column n, the data required for the first scan n-th emission of K → the data required for the first scan n-th emission of C → M The data necessary for the first-scan n-th emission is read out. → The data necessary for the first-scan n-th emission is read out, and thereafter, the data for the first scan in K2 is similarly read. In a non-printing period between scanning, data reading and emission to the head are stopped. In this manner, the reading of the image data at each scanning is performed.

Next, a second example of recording control of the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG.

In the present embodiment, the image memory 51 is stored in FIG.
The following describes an example in which an image having a width of n pixels and a height of m pixels is printed in two columns in four colors of K, C, M, and Y using the image shown in FIG. Note that the head condition is a nozzle interval of 720 dp.
i, a head having four nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction,
Description will be made assuming that recording of dpi is performed.

FIG. 6 shows the state of the image memory 51 at the start of recording in this embodiment. The hatched portion indicates a portion where the image data is stored, and FIG. 6 shows that the image data corresponding to the last image among the image data corresponding to the plurality of images stored in the image memory 51 as the storage means is 1 This indicates that only the scan amount is stored.

(Reception of Image Data) Prior to recording by the recording head 31, image data is transferred from the host device for each image. The transferred image data is I / F4
4 and stored in the image memory 51. In this image transfer, after data for one image in column 1 has been transferred, column 2
Is transferred for one image. At this time, the transfer of the image may be performed not from the image in column 1 but from the image in column 2.
Also, in the present embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, the method of transferring image data from the host device in one image is such that image data corresponding to one image is divided into a plurality of pieces, and each color is The image data of each color is transmitted for each unit necessary for recording of each scan, such as a method for transmitting each color or a method for transmitting each color for each pixel unit. When the image data of the first scan is transferred for the last transfer image transferred as shown in FIG. 6, printing by the print head 31 is started.

(Reading and Recording of Image Data) Recording by the recording head 31 is performed based on image data read from the image memory 51 by the CPU 41 or the image transfer controller 50 and sent to the head driver 52. That is, recording by the recording head 31 is performed by the image memory 5.
1 is performed based on the order in which the image data is read out.

In this embodiment, the nozzle interval 720d
Pi and nozzles record 720 dpi in two in the sub-scanning direction with a head in which a total of four nozzles of K, C, M and Y are arranged.
Consider the case of performing in a column. In this case, the first scan data readout of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → the first scan data readout of (K2, C2, M2, Y2) is performed. Thereafter, the image is stored in the column 2 memory, and the next scan is performed. As soon as the data necessary for the subsequent scans has been stored in the memory, the second scan data readout of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → the second scan data readout of (K2, C2, M2, Y2)... → (K1 , C1, M1, Y1), the image data is read from the image memory 51 in the order of (i), (K2, C2, M2, Y2) i-scan data read,
The recording is completed by being sent to the head driver 52 and repeating scanning until the recording of m pixels is completed.

When the height of the image data in each column is different, scanning is performed until all the images have been recorded.
During scanning of a row having no image data to be recorded, data reading and emission to the head are stopped, and sub-scanning of the row is stopped.

The recording length of the head (= nozzle interval ×
If the height of the image memory is larger than (the number of nozzles), it is possible to overwrite the portion where the sequential scanning has been completed, so that the transfer of the next image data of the corresponding column is started, so that the printing speed can be improved. .

The reading in each scan is the same as the recording control shown in FIG.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the first example of the recording control, the image recording is started after all the transfer of the image data for the number of recording rows is completed, but in the ink jet recording apparatus according to the present embodiment, the image memory 51 is stored in the image memory 51. Shortening the time from image input to recording by starting recording when the image data of one column less than the recording column and the data necessary for recording one main scan of the last image are completed. Can be.

Next, a third example of the recording control of the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7, 8 and 9.

In the present embodiment, the image memory 51
The following describes an example in which an image having a width of n pixels and a height of m pixels is printed in two columns in four colors of K, C, M, and Y using the image shown in FIG. Note that the head condition is a nozzle interval of 720 dp.
i, a head having four nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction,
Description will be made assuming that recording of dpi is performed.

FIGS. 7A and 7B show the state of the image memory 51 at the start of recording and the state of recording by the recording head 31 at that time in this embodiment, respectively.

FIGS. 8A and 8B respectively show the state of the image memory 51 at the time of certain recording and the state of recording by the recording head 31 at that time in this embodiment.

FIGS. 9A and 9B respectively show the state of the image memory 51 at the time of another recording and the state of recording by the recording head 31 at that time in this embodiment.

In FIG. 7A, FIG. 8A, and FIG. 9A, hatched portions indicate portions in which image data is stored, and FIG. 7A shows an image memory 51 as storage means. Indicates that only one scan corresponding to the image in the first column is stored in the image data corresponding to the plurality of images stored in. FIG. 8A shows an image memory 5 serving as a storage unit.
In FIG. 1, image data having a width of n pixels and a height of m pixels is completely filled in the first column, and the second column shows a state in which one scan is filled. FIG. 9A shows that the image data corresponding to a plurality of images stored in the image memory 51 as the storage means is all of the image data corresponding to each image.

(Reception of Image Data) Prior to recording by the recording head 31, image data is transferred from the host device for each image. The transferred image data is I / F4
4 and stored in the image memory 51. In this image transfer, after data for one image in column 1 has been transferred, column 2
Is transferred for one image. At this time, the transfer of the image may be performed not from the image in column 1 but from the image in column 2.
In addition, a method of transferring image data from the host device within one image is determined by a method of transmitting each color for each scanning line unit or a method of transmitting each color for each pixel unit. Send image data. As shown in FIG. 7A, when the transfer of the image data has been completed for one main scan of one column or more, the printing operation is started. (Reading and printing of image data) The data is read from the image memory 51 by the transfer controller 50 and the head driver 52
This is performed based on the image data sent to. That is,
Recording by the recording head 31 is performed based on the order of reading image data from the image memory 51.

In this case, the first scan data reading of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) is performed, and thereafter, as soon as the image data necessary for the scanning of the recorded row after the next scanning is completed, the image data is read from the image memory 51. The image data is read out, sent to the head driver 52, and the recording scan is repeated. It should be noted that the sub-scanning of the non-recorded column is not performed. FIG. 7B also shows a printing state in the middle when the scanning of only the row 1 is repeated.

FIG. 8A shows a state where image data of n pixels in width and m pixels in height are all filled in the first column, and the second column is filled with one scan. I have. If the transfer speed is greater than the recording speed, the recording has not been completed even if the image transfer in the first column has been completed. Therefore, while the recording head is recording the image in the first column, the image memory shown in FIG. 2 as shown
Recordable data is also available for the image in the column. Therefore, as soon as the image data that can be scanned in the second column during the recording by the recording head 23 is available in the image memory 23, the two columns are simultaneously recorded. Thereafter, the image is recorded as soon as the data necessary for recording the image in the second column is available. FIG. 8B shows a recording state in which columns 1 and 2 are recorded in parallel.

Thereafter, when there is no image to be newly recorded in the first column, the image data is filled in the entire image memory 51 as shown in FIG. Only the image in the second row is recorded. Column 2
FIG. 9B shows a recording state in which only the information is recorded. At this time, the sub-scan is stopped for column 1 on which printing has been completed.

Although the description has been made using the case where two rows are printed in parallel with two images, the height of the image memory is larger than the printing length of the print head 31 (= nozzle interval × number of nozzles). For example, it is possible to overwrite the part where the sequential scanning has been completed, so by starting the transfer of the next image data in the corresponding column, printing is performed without time lapse or shortened until the next image recording in the column. Speed can be improved.

The reading in each scan is the same as the recording control shown in FIG.

In the ink jet recording apparatus according to the second example of the recording control, after the image data necessary for recording one main scan of the last image and the image data which is one less than the total number of recording rows in the image memory is completed, Recording started. But,
In the present embodiment, by sequentially starting recording from a recording row in which image data necessary for recording in one main scan is arranged, when transfer speed> recording speed, recording is performed even when the first image transfer is completed. Has not been completed, the first image and the second image can be recorded in parallel. By doing so, the time from image input to printing can be further shortened, and the printing width can be reduced because the main scanning printing width is also reduced in the latter half of the printing unit. Note that the description of the case where the recording speed is equal to or higher than the transfer speed is omitted, but in this case, the recording is performed for each row. Even in this case, the recording time can be reduced.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart showing the image transfer time and the image recording time by the ink jet recording apparatus shown in FIG.

In FIG. 10, td1 is the data transfer time of the first column image, td2 is the data transfer time of the second column image, tR1 is the image recording time of the first column image, and tR2 is 2
The image recording time of the second image, tR is the image recording time of the first and second columns in the first and second columns, tR12 is the image recording time of the first and second columns in the third example, and t1, t2, and t3 are each. The completion time t4 indicates the completion time of the image in the first column. A indicates the operation of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the first example of the recording control, B indicates the operation of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the second example of the recording control, and C indicates the third operation of the recording control. 4 illustrates the operation of an inkjet recording device according to an example.

In the present invention, either the recording speed of the recording head 31 or the transfer speed at which the image data is transferred to the image memory may be higher. Here, the case where the transfer speed is higher than the recording speed will be described as an example. . In the present invention, there is no particular limitation on the number of recording rows as long as it is a plurality of two or more rows. Here, a case where recording is performed in two rows will be described as an example.

In the ink jet recording apparatus of the embodiment A,
When all the images in the first column and the second column have been transferred, the printing operation of all the columns is started. In the ink jet printing apparatus according to the mode B, a part of the image data in the second column is transferred. The printing operation of all the columns is started at the point of time, and in the ink jet printing apparatus of the aspect C, the printing operation of the first column is started when the image data of one copy of the first column is transferred, and
The recording operation in the column starts when the image data of one copy in the second column is transferred.

The ink jet apparatus according to the first example of the recording control can perform a recording operation on a plurality of columns at the same time.
Although the processing capacity is improved compared to the conventional ink-jet apparatus, the ink-jet apparatus according to the second example of the recording control has a higher processing capacity because the recording start time is earlier than that of the ink-jet apparatus according to the first example of the recording control. Since the ink jet device according to the third example of the recording control has a further earlier recording start time than the ink jet device according to the second example of the recording control, the processing capability can be further improved.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram for explaining another example of the electrical configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. 2 denote the same components, and a detailed description will be omitted.

In the present invention, N (N is an integer of 2 or more) image data can be recorded in N columns, but in the present embodiment, it is assumed that N = 2.

In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which an image of n pixels in width and m pixels in height is recorded in two rows in four colors of K, C, M, and Y. Note that the head condition is a nozzle interval of 7
A description will be given assuming that printing is performed at 720 dpi with a head arranged at 4 dpi in the sub-scanning direction at 20 dpi.

In the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2, the transfer of image data was transmitted from the host device for each image. That is, after the data for one image in column 1 has been transferred, the data for one image in column 2 is transferred. In the embodiment of FIG. 11, the transfer of image data from the image processing apparatus is performed. Are performed in an order corresponding to the order of recording by the recording head 31. By doing so, recording can be performed without a special image memory. At this time, a host device capable of dividing and sending an image is used as the image processing device.

An image processing apparatus capable of transferring such a divided image is included in the scope of the present invention when the image is transferred to the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

The recording control in the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 11 will be described.

(Reception and Recording of Image Data) First, the host device transfers image data in a unit necessary for recording of each scan in an order corresponding to the order of recording by each scan and recording head. In this embodiment, since there is no image memory,
The host device transfers the image data in the emission order of the recording head 31 in consideration of the recording position correction amount between the colors due to the displacement of the mounting position of the head in the sub-scanning direction.

Next, when the data necessary for each scan, each color, and the emission of each nozzle is completed, recording is performed by the recording head 31 as needed. The emission to the head is stopped during the non-printing period during the scanning, and the image data is transferred in consideration of this in advance in the host device. The image data in the non-printing period can be white data or non-ejection data. The above data reception and ejection are repeated until one scan is completed. Such scanning is repeated until the printing of all pixels is completed, thereby completing printing. If the height of the image data in each column is different, scanning is performed until all the images have been recorded. During scanning of a row having no image data to be printed, the state is controlled to a non-printing state, or the host adds white data.

According to the present embodiment, it is not necessary to provide a special image memory, so that the apparatus can be simplified as compared with the configuration of FIG.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram for explaining another example of the electrical configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention. Since the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 2 have the same configuration, detailed description will be omitted.

In the present embodiment, similarly to the configuration of FIG.
1 is performed in the order corresponding to the recording order. By doing so, the image memory 51 can have a smaller capacity than the configuration described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram of the configuration of the image memory 51 in the configuration shown in FIG.

Here, the description will be made with two rows. However, in the case of two or more rows, a similar configuration can be obtained by increasing the width in the horizontal direction. Although the case of four colors of YMCK will be described, the number of colors is not limited.

The memory has K, C, M, Y corresponding to each column.
The horizontal direction has the maximum recording width of the image to be recorded, and the vertical direction has the recording length of the recording head 31 (= nozzle interval × number of nozzles). The image data from the I / F 44 is stored in the image memory 51 in accordance with the recording order by the recording head 51.

The configuration of the control unit of the apparatus is almost the same as that of FIG. 2, but the recording size of the head is usually smaller than the height of the image. Instead of a scanning memory).

Further, it is preferable that the recording device can correct the recording position between the colors due to the displacement of the mounting position of the recording head 31 in the sub-scanning direction. It is desirable to provide a margin in the direction.

Next, a recording control method of the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 12 will be described.

In this embodiment, an image of n pixels in width and m pixels in height is recorded in two rows in four colors of K, C, M, and Y at a nozzle interval of 720 dpi, and the nozzles are arranged in a total of four nozzles in the sub-scanning direction. An example in which recording is performed at 720 dpi with the performed head will be described.

First, a method of transferring data from the host device and recording by the recording head 32 will be described.

In the present invention, N (N is an integer of 2 or more) image data can be recorded in N columns, but in the present embodiment, N = 2 will be described.

In the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 2, the transfer of image data is transmitted from the host device for each image. That is, after the data for one image in column 1 has been transferred, the data for one image in column 2 is transferred. In the embodiment of FIG. 11, the transfer of image data from the image processing apparatus is performed. Are performed in an order corresponding to the order of recording by the recording head 31. By doing so, it is possible to perform recording with a smaller memory than the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration of FIG. At this time, a host device capable of dividing and sending an image is used as the image processing device.
At this time, in the present invention, the division unit of the image from the image processing apparatus can be divided in M (M is an integer of 1 or more) line units, but here, M = i will be described.

An image processing apparatus capable of transferring such divided images is included in the scope of the present invention when the image is transferred to an ink jet recording apparatus having the structure of the present invention.

The recording control in the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG. 12 will be described.

(Reception of Image Data and Reading / Recording) Prior to recording by the recording head 31, I / O
Image data is transferred to the image memory 51 via / F44. When the image data transferred from the host device to the image memory 51 in the amount necessary for each scan is completed, recording is started. Recording is performed by reading image data from the image memory 51 in the order of recording by the recording head 31,
This is performed by sending to the head driver 52. The reading of image data and the emission to the recording head 31 are stopped in synchronization with the non-printing period during scanning.

Thereafter, the image data reception from the host and the reading operation are repeated, and the scanning is repeated until the recording of m pixels is completed, thereby completing the recording. If the height of the image data in each column is different, scanning is performed until all the images have been recorded. During scanning for a row having no image data to be printed, the apparatus is controlled to a non-printing state.

The transfer order and recording order of the image data will be described below. In this case, the first scan of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → the first scan of (K2, C2, M2, Y2) → the second scan of (K1, C1, M1, Y1) → (K2, C2, (M2, Y2) 2nd scan ·· → (K1, C1, M1, Y1) i-scan → (K2, C2, M2, Y2) i-scan Also, the transfer order in each scan is, for example, 4 data required for the first emission of the i-scan of K1 → 4 data required for the first emission of the i-scan of C1 → 4 data required for the first emission of the i-scan of M1 → first emission of the i-scan of Y1 The data is transferred as four data required for. Until the height transfer of m pixels is completed in this manner, the image transfer is repeated in cooperation with the reading of the image data, and the image data is read out and recorded by the recording head.

(Relationship Between Size of Image Memory and Data Reception and Reading) In the present embodiment, the size of the image memory 51 may be at least an amount required for one scan, but the size of the image memory is required for one main scan. In the case of only a small amount, reception of image data from the host and reading and recording of image data can be performed alternately. In addition, if the size of the image memory 51 is set to have an appropriate margin so that image data more than necessary for the two main scanning recordings can be stored, a small amount of memory can be obtained by using a memory as a ring memory for each color. Thus, the reading operation for storing and recording the image data can be performed in parallel. Further, if the image recording speed <the data transfer speed, the data transfer time can be hidden in the recording time, and continuous scanning can be performed, thereby improving the recording speed.

(Size of Image Memory) The relationship between the size of the image memory and data reception and reading is shown in FIG.
In the present embodiment, in order to stabilize (keep constant) the scanning speed of the recording head 31 during the recording period, the image memory 51 is compared with the inkjet recording apparatus having the configuration shown in FIG.
Enables image data required for at least one main scan to be stored, and starts image recording after image transfer necessary for at least one main scan has been completed. By having a memory for image data necessary for at least one scan printing in this manner, the transfer order of the image data from the host does not need to be the order given to the print head 31 within one main scan. This has the effect of reducing restrictions on the order of image transfer from the host device as compared with the ink jet recording apparatus having the configuration shown.

Next, image data corresponding to a plurality of column images stored in the storage unit when the recording unit starts recording in the ink jet apparatus of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15. FIG. 14 and 15 show the storage status of the images to be recorded. The hatched portions indicate the portions stored in the recording means. I do.

FIG. 14A shows one mode of the first, second and fourth aspects. FIG. 14 (b)
It shows one mode of claim 1, claim 3, claim 4, claim 5, claim 6, and claim 7. FIG. 14 (c)
Indicates an aspect of claim 1, claim 3, claim 4, and claim 5. FIG. 14D shows one mode of the first, third, fourth, and fifth aspects.

FIG. 15 (a) shows the eighth and tenth aspects.
FIG. FIG.
And an aspect of claim 11. FIG.
(C) shows an aspect of claims 8 and 11. FIG. 15D shows an aspect of claims 8 and 9. FIG. 15E shows an aspect of claims 8 and 9.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the outline of an inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an electrical configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of a configuration of an image memory.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an example of a state of an image memory at the start of recording;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a reading order in each scanning.

FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram showing another example of the state of the image memory at the start of recording.

FIG. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing another example of the state of the image memory and the recording state at the start of recording.

FIG. 8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating another example of the state of the image memory and the recording state during recording.

FIG. 9 is a conceptual diagram illustrating another example of the state of the image memory and the recording state during recording.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart showing image transfer time and image recording time by the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram for explaining another example of the electrical configuration of the inkjet recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram for explaining another example of the electrical configuration of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram showing another example of the configuration of the image memory.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a storage state of an image to be recorded at the start of recording.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a storage state of an image to be recorded at the start of recording.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1A, 1B: Recording medium 2: Conveying means 3: Recording means 4: Cutter 10A, 10B: Conveying path 21A, 21B: Conveying rollers 22A, 22B: Crimping rollers 23A, 23B: Conveying motor 31: Recording head 32: Scanning guide 33 : Carriage 34: Carriage motor 41: CPU 42: RAM 43: ROM 44: I / F 45: I / O 46: Encoder 47: Paper feed controller 48: Operation panel 49: Various sensors 50: Image transfer controller 51: Image Memory 52: Head driver 100A, 100B: Paper roll

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Takashi Nakamizo 2970 Ishikawacho, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo Konica Co., Ltd.In-house F-term (reference) 2C056 EA01 EC37 2C058 AC07 AC17 AE04 AF20 AF54 HA03 HC08 2C062 KA00 KA07 2C087 AA15 AB05 AC02 AC07 BA03 BA07 BC02 BD34 BD46 CB13

Claims (18)

[Claims] In an ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink, a plurality of transport paths for transporting a plurality of rows of recording media and a plurality of transport paths respectively corresponding to the plurality of transport paths are provided. Transport means for transporting a plurality of rows of recording media, and scanning by scanning the plurality of rows of recording media in a direction substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the plurality of rows of recording media, and ejecting ink to perform printing. And a storage unit for storing image data, and after the image data corresponding to the plurality of columns of images are stored in the storage unit, recording by scanning over the plurality of columns of recording media is started in the recording unit. An ink jet recording apparatus comprising: a recording control unit that controls the recording. 2. The image data corresponding to a plurality of column images stored in the storage means at the start of the recording is all of the image data corresponding to the image of each column.
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 3. The image data corresponding to a plurality of columns of images stored in the storage means at the start of recording is a part of image data corresponding to each column of images.
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 4. The ink-jet printer according to claim 1, wherein the image data corresponding to the plurality of rows of images stored in the storage means is image data necessary for at least one scan corresponding to each row of images. Recording device. 5. The image data corresponding to the image of the last transferred column among the image data corresponding to the plurality of column images stored in the storage means at the start of the recording, is a part of the image data. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 6. The image data corresponding to the image of the last column to be transferred among image data corresponding to a plurality of columns of images stored in the storage means at the time of starting the printing, the image data required for at least one scan. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 7. The ink-jet recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image of the column transmitted before the image of the column transmitted last stores all the corresponding image data. 8. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink, comprising: a plurality of rows of transport paths for transporting a plurality of rows of recording media; A conveying unit that is provided correspondingly and conveys a plurality of rows of recording media, and performs scanning over the plurality of rows of recording media in a direction substantially orthogonal to the conveying direction of the plurality of rows of recording media, and ejects ink. Recording means for performing recording according to, and storage means for storing image data for a plurality of rows of images,
A recording control unit that starts recording by the recording unit in a state where a column in which image data corresponding to a part or all of an image is stored in the storage unit and a column in which substantially no image data is stored is provided. And an ink jet recording apparatus. 9. The image data of a column stored in the storage means is:
9. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the image data corresponds to all the images. 10. The image data of a column stored in the storage means includes one of image data corresponding to the entire image and image data necessary for at least one scan. The inkjet recording apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims. 11. An ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the image data of the column stored in the storage means is image data necessary for at least one scan. 12. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink based on image data received from an image processing apparatus, comprising: A plurality of rows of transport paths, a transport unit provided corresponding to the plurality of rows of transport paths, for transporting a plurality of rows of recording media, and the plurality of rows of recording media in a direction substantially orthogonal to the transport direction of the plurality of rows of recording media. The image processing apparatus has a recording unit that scans over a medium and performs recording by ejecting ink, and a storage unit that stores image data transmitted from the image processing apparatus.
The image data corresponding to the image is divided into a plurality of pieces, and after the divided image data corresponding to the first image, the divided image data corresponding to the N-th (N is an integer of 2 or more) image is sequentially obtained. The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein after the transferred image data corresponding to the Nth image is stored in the storage unit, recording by the recording unit is started. 13. The image data division unit is M (M is 1
13. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the unit is a line unit. 14. An ink jet recording apparatus for recording an image on a recording medium by ejecting ink based on image data received from an image processing apparatus, wherein a plurality of rows of recording media are conveyed. A plurality of rows of transport paths, a transport unit provided corresponding to the plurality of rows of transport paths, for transporting a plurality of rows of recording media, and the plurality of rows of recording media in a direction substantially orthogonal to the transport direction of the plurality of rows of recording media. Scanning across the medium, a recording unit that performs recording by ejecting ink, and a receiving unit that receives image data transmitted from the image recording apparatus, from the image processing apparatus,
The image data corresponding to one image is divided into a plurality of pieces, and the N-th (N
An ink jet recording apparatus, in which up to divided image data corresponding to images of 2 or more) are sequentially transferred, and recording is performed by the recording unit in response to reception by the reception unit. 15. The ink jet recording apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the division unit of the image data is a unit necessary for recording of each scan. 16. An image processing apparatus for transferring image data for recording an image on a recording medium of an ink jet recording apparatus, wherein the image data corresponding to one image is divided into a plurality of pieces of image data corresponding to a first image. An image processing apparatus for sequentially transferring data up to the divided image data corresponding to the N-th (N is an integer of 2 or more) image subsequent to the divided image data to be divided. 17. The image data division unit is M (M is 1
17. The image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the unit is an integer) line unit. 18. The image processing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the division unit of the image data is a unit required for recording each scan.