A discharge head includes an orifice surface in which orifices each configured to discharge a droplet are arrayed in a predetermined direction. A detecting unit includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and optically detects a droplet discharged from the orifice. A suppression unit is arranged between the light emitting element and the orifice surface, and suppresses the light emitted from the light emitting element from reaching the orifice surface by shielding at least some rays of the light which are emitted from the light emitting element and would otherwise propagate to the orifice surface.

A method is described in which a difference in height is determined between a current position and a calibration position of a printhead of a printer. An alignment value for the printhead is then determined based on the difference.

One of printing modes including a first mode in which printing is performed by an even number of scans and a second mode in which printing is performed by an odd number of scans, the odd number being three or more, is executed. In the first mode, printing is performed using a first mask pattern in which the nozzle array is divided into a plurality of blocks each including a first number of continuous nozzles and an ink ejection area or non-ejection area is set for each of the blocks. In the second mode, printing is performed using a second mask pattern in which the nozzle array is divided into a plurality of blocks each including a second number of continuous nozzles, the second number being less than the first number, and an ink ejection area or non-ejection area is set for each of the blocks.

A liquid discharging device includes a support unit configured to support a medium, a discharging unit configured to discharge liquid to the medium, a reading unit configured to read an image formed on the medium with the liquid, a holding unit configured to hold the discharging unit and the reading unit while moving in a scanning direction, and a control unit configured to control operation of the discharging unit, the reading unit, and the holding unit. The control unit is configured to perform pattern forming operation that causes the discharging unit to discharge the liquid to form a test pattern image on the medium, reading operation that causes the reading unit to read at least a partial region of the test pattern image, and flushing operation that causes the discharging unit to perform flushing for discharging the liquid to the region in the test pattern image which was read.

When an image recording apparatus records an specific image over a boundary between a first dot formation range where dots are to be formed in a preceding recording operation of two consecutive recording operations and a second dot formation range where dots are to be formed in a subsequent recording operation of the two consecutive recording operations, the apparatus sets, as a correction portion, an end portion in a scanning direction of a specific region including at least one of a first boundary region adjacent to the second dot formation range and a second boundary region adjacent to the first dot formation range in the specific image, and forms the dot placed at the correction portion by discharging liquid of a discharge amount smaller than the discharge amount set for a dot element corresponding to the dot from nozzles.

A control unit controls a print head to print a print image by ejecting ink through a nozzle to form dots on a print medium and a movement unit to impart relative movement between the print head and the print medium to print a print image on the print medium. The control unit obtains a dot adjustment value in the predetermined print operation based on the measurement result of a measurement unit measuring a first pattern composed of a print image printed by the predetermined print operation including the relative movement, and a second adjustment value for adjusting dot printing positions in the predetermined print operation in a unit of length shorter than in the adjustment using the first adjustment value based on a second pattern printed by the predetermined print operation in a density according to density information on the first pattern, measured by the measurement unit.

A liquid ejecting device includes: a head having a plurality of nozzles for ejecting droplets onto a printing medium; a movement unit configured to move the head relative to the printing medium in a relative movement direction; and a control unit configured to record a test pattern on the printing medium by controlling the head and the movement unit, and to perform recording by correcting control of the head and/or the movement unit based on a correction value obtained from the test pattern, wherein the test pattern includes a plurality of patches from which a plurality of candidates for the correction value for correcting a landing position at which the droplet lands on the printing medium in the relative movement direction are obtained.

A printing apparatus includes: a head portion that discharges droplets toward a printing medium while reciprocating on the printing medium; and a controller that controls movement of the head portion during a printing operation such that a movement stop time of the head portion when a movement direction of the head portion is reversed at an endmost portion of a range in which the head portion moves is longer than the movement stop time of the head portion when the movement direction of the head portion is reversed on the printing medium.

A discharge head includes an orifice surface in which orifices each configured to discharge a droplet are arrayed in a predetermined direction. A detecting unit includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and optically detects a droplet discharged from the orifice. A suppression unit is arranged between the light emitting element and the orifice surface, and suppresses the light emitted from the light emitting element from reaching the orifice surface by shielding at least some rays of the light which is emitted from the light emitting element and propagates to the orifice surface.

A liquid discharging apparatus, having a liquid discharging head, a relatively-movable device, and a controller, is provided. The controller controls the liquid discharging head and the relatively-movable device to record a plurality of relative movement adjuster patterns, arranged at different positions in an arrayed direction, and a different pattern, arranged side by side with the plurality of relative movement adjuster patterns along a direction orthogonal to an arrayed direction on a same liquid-discharge objective medium. The controller controls the relatively-movable device, after recording at least one of the plurality of relative movement adjuster patterns, and before recording a next one of the plurality of relative movement adjuster patterns next to the at least one of the plurality of relative movement adjuster patterns, to perform a relative moving action by a moving amount different from a predetermined relative moving amount for recording the different pattern at least once.