Provided is a thermal printer achieving high repeatability of one dot even in an image having a large change in a density and capable of printing a printing material having high sharpness. A thermal printer includes: an image data extension processing unit generating extended image data having pixels in which the number of pixels in a feed direction of a paper sheet is extended; a printing data correction processing unit correcting a density of at least one extended pixel based on a change in a density of the extended pixels in the extended image data in the feed direction or a change in a density of pixels in the image data before extended in the feed direction; and a printing unit printing the image on the paper sheet based on the extended image data in which the density of the at least one extended pixel is corrected.

A raster image processing system including a computer readable media storing digital information that includes information corresponding to an image, and instructions for performing raster image processing (RIP) using an over scan RIP technique on the image to generate a bitmap. Also included is a processor configured to RIP the image using the over scan RIP technique at a multiple of the desired output pixel resolution to produce a plurality of sub-pixels per output pixel. The processor is further configured to determine each image output pixel value based on the values set for the plurality of sub-pixels of each image pixel, by firstly comparing the values of the plurality of sub-pixels to each other and, and then secondly comparing the values of the plurality of sub-pixels to a set background value if needed. The processor then sets the output pixel value based upon that second comparison, and generates a bitmap.

An image processing unit includes a region separation device and a spatial filtering device. The region separation device detects line widths of a manuscript image in which the line widths are different between a vertical line and a horizontal line and determines which of the vertical line or the horizontal line is thinner. The spatial filtering device executes an emphasizing process to make a widening ratio of a thinner line of the vertical line or the horizontal line higher than a widening ratio of the other line.

A printing apparatus includes a reception unit that receives outline information representing an outline of a character, a generation unit that generates, using the outline information, a bitmap including pixels corresponding to the character, the pixels being associated with a graphic attribute, a changing unit that refers an attribute associated with a pixel adjacent to one of the pixels corresponding to the character, and changes a density value of the adjacent pixel associated with the referred attribute being different from a graphic attribute and a character attribute to a density which is based on a density value of the one pixel, and a printing unit that prints an image based on the bitmap after the change.

Examples analyze at least one of a plurality of planes of image data of print content to determine media expansion characteristics for the print content based at least in part on the at least one of the planes of image data. Examples adjust, prior to printing the print content, at least one plane of image data based at least in part on the media expansion characteristics to thereby compensate for media expansion during printing of the print content.

Apparatus and methods for printing multi-level and multi-color digital image are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, first and second level AM half-tone screens are respectively applied to first and second multi-level color-components of the multi-level and multi-color input digital image to respectively generate first and second target binary images. The first and second target binary images are printed respectively using first and second inks (e.g. of different colors) onto a common surface. Specific properties of the AM half-tone screens as well as techniques for producing the AM half-tone screens are disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the techniques overcome objectionable textures derived from rounding errors in divisional of conventional AM supercells.

A raster image processing system including a computer readable media storing digital information that includes information corresponding to an image, and instructions for performing raster image processing (RIP) using an over scan RIP technique on the image to generate a bitmap. Also included is a processor configured to RIP the image using the over scan RIP technique at a multiple of the desired output pixel resolution to produce a plurality of sub-pixels per output pixel. The processor is further configured to determine each image output pixel value based on the values set for the plurality of sub-pixels of each image pixel, by firstly comparing the values of the plurality of sub-pixels to each other and, and then secondly comparing the values of the plurality of sub-pixels to a set background value if needed. The processor then sets the output pixel value based upon that second comparison, and generates a bitmap.

An image processing apparatus performs: acquiring target image data representing a target image including a plurality of pixels, the target image data including a plurality of pixel values each having a plurality of component values; generating image data, the image data being one of first and second component data respectively including a plurality of first and second pixel values, each of the plurality of first and second pixel values being respectively related to maximum and minimum values among the plurality of component values of corresponding one of the plurality of pixels; calculating a plurality of edge strengths corresponding to respective ones of the plurality of pixels using the image data to generate edge strength data including the plurality of edge strengths; and specifying a plurality of edge pixels included in the target image. The specifying includes binarizing the edge strength data to generate binary image data.

The image processing apparatus of the present invention includes: a generation unit configured to generate a sharpness recovery amount for recovering degradation of a spatial frequency response from a target image; and a line width correction unit configured to perform line width correction processing for the target image based on the sharpness recovery amount, and the line width correction unit corrects a line width in accordance with a sign of a pixel whose absolute value of the sharpness recovery amount is large in a case where signs of the sharpness recovery amounts reverse between adjacent pixels of the target image.

An image forming apparatus includes: an image processor configured to perform first image processing on image data having a first resolution and to add tag data to a target pixel where second image processing is to be performed; a resolution converter configured to convert the image data into image data having a second resolution higher than the first resolution, and to perform the second image processing based on arrangement of the image data having the first resolution and the tag data; a pulse generator configured to generate an on-off modulation signal and an application-current switching signal in accordance with the image data having undergone the second image processing; and a light source driver configured to drive the light source in accordance with a current setting value output from an application current setter depending on the application-current switching signal and the on-off modulation signal.