A processor maintains image quality degradation for a printing device. A communications device receives a print job that includes instructions to print a plurality of printed sheets in a sheet printing sequence. The processor generates a predicted output image for a mid-job sheet of the printed sheets based on the image quality degradation and the sheet count of the mid-job sheet within the sheet printing sequence. The printing engine alter printing characteristics to print a proof sheet matching an appearance of the predicted output image.

Provided are a defect inspection device, a defect inspection method, and a program, and a printing device and a method of manufacturing a printed matter, in which a defect of a printed matter is inspected by performing registration between reference data and imaging data of the printed matter printed on the basis of the reference data with high accuracy at high speed. The reference data and the imaging data of the printed matter printed on the basis of the reference data by a single-pass type printing device that includes an inkjet head having a plurality of nozzles disposed in a nozzle direction are acquired, registration between the imaging data and the reference data in the nozzle direction is performed by using nozzle mapping information indicating a correspondence relationship between positions of the plurality of nozzles and pixel positions of the imaging data in the nozzle direction, and a defect of the printed matter is inspected in response to an input of the imaging data and the reference data that have been subjected to registration.

A recording apparatus includes a recording head that has a plurality of nozzles that eject liquid onto a medium and a control section that controls an ejection of liquid by the recording head, wherein the control section controls the recording head to record a plurality of first patterns having mutually different densities on the medium in a intersecting direction that intersects a nozzle alignment direction in which the nozzles are arranged, and to record a plurality of second patterns for identifying positions of the nozzles in the nozzle alignment direction on the medium in the intersecting direction such that each of the plurality of first patterns is adjacent to the second patterns on at least one of one end side and the other end side in the intersecting direction.

A printing apparatus includes a nozzle inspection unit configured to inspect nozzle clogging of a nozzle, a discharged dot count unit configured to count a number of times a discharge signal is transmitted to the nozzle, a storage unit configured to store ink residual amount-related information containing an ink consumption amount for one dot, and an ink residual amount control unit configured to calculate an ink consumption amount based on the number of times the discharge signal is transmitted counted by the discharged dot count unit and the ink consumption amount for one dot, and to update the residual amount of the ink retained in the ink retaining unit. The printing apparatus removes the nozzle determined to be clogged by the inspection of the nozzle clogging by the nozzle inspection unit from the nozzles targeted for calculating the ink consumption amount.

Examples relate to a method to print a print job. The method comprise comparing an operational parameter of the print job with a reference operational parameter and determining to perform a maintenance task during the print job based on at least a result of comparing the operational parameter with the reference operational parameter. If the maintenance task is to be performed, the method further comprises determining a safety area on a printable medium and performing a maintenance task on a printable medium.

A printing apparatus includes a printing head including a nozzle configured to discharge ink, and a control unit configured to control the printing head to print a test pattern on a printing medium, for inspecting a state of ink discharge by the nozzle. The test pattern includes a pattern element formed by a plurality of dots of the ink, and the control unit causes the printing head to print the test pattern where a number of the dots forming the pattern element on a second printing medium is smaller than a number of the dots forming the pattern element on a first printing medium, the second printing medium being more susceptible to bleed-through of the ink than the first printing medium.

A system (93) monitors the break-up phase of an electrostatic deflection continuous ink jet printer to identify phase instability likely to be caused by a partial blockage of the jet-forming device (17). It ignores alternations between adjacent phase positions and brief unrepeated periods of phase disruption. Preferably it ignores phase changes caused by changes in other operational parameters of the printer, such as variations in ink pressure. Monitoring may be done in the printer (99) or in an external system (93), (95).

A method for compensating for failed printing nozzles in an inkjet printing machine uses a computer to provide an increased ink drop volume of adjacent nozzles. All existing printing nozzles are measured regarding print failure and deviation of a printed dot beyond a specific threshold, so that the printing nozzles are marked either as functioning, failed, or printing a dot deviating in a direction transverse to the printing direction, and the results are saved on the computer. The computer hides all functioning printing nozzles and marks all remaining isolated printing nozzles as failed nozzles. The computer groups adjacent remaining printing nozzles by marking nozzles printing a dot deviating in a direction transverse to the printing direction as functioning printing nozzles contributing to the compensation or as failed printing nozzles in accordance with a rule, and the computer compensates for all printing nozzles having been marked as failed.

A printing apparatus includes a printing head provided with a first nozzle row and a second nozzle row arranged shifted from the first nozzle row in a nozzle alignment direction, and a control unit configured to control ejection of ink from nozzles included in the printing head onto a medium based on print data. The control unit is configured to set an image to be complemented as a partial region of an image to be printed on the medium in accordance with a boundary portion between the first nozzle row and the second nozzle row, assign print data for printing the image to be completed to at least one of a first adjacent nozzle that is a nozzle in the first nozzle row and adjacent to the boundary portion and a second adjacent nozzle that is a nozzle in the second nozzle row and adjacent to the boundary portion, and complement the image to be complemented by ink ejection from at least one of the first adjacent nozzle and the second adjacent nozzle.

There is provided a liquid discharge apparatus including: a head having nozzles; a conveyer; and a controller. The controller is configured to carry out a conveyance process of conveying a recording medium in a conveyance direction, and a discharge process of discharging a liquid from the nozzles to the recording medium. The discharge process includes a plurality of discharge steps carried out to a unit area of the recording medium based on data obtained by decomposing an image data into complementary patterns. In at least one of the discharge steps corresponding to the unit area, a function of a discharge duty of the nozzles has an ascending portion or a descending portion. The controller is configured to carry out before the discharge process: a detection process of detecting a defect nozzle in the nozzles; and in a case that the defect nozzle is detected, a change process of changing the function.