In a printing apparatus, an indefinite area in which slits are not formed is configured in a portion of a linear encoder scale in a rotation direction, and an adjustment unit, adjusts the timing of discharge from a printhead with respect to a first printing area out of a plurality of printing areas on a rotating member, without using a detection result of a first encoder sensor, based on a detection result of a second encoder sensor, the first encoder sensor being provided at a position corresponding to the indefinite area during a discharge of printing material with respect to the first printing, and the second encoder sensor being provided at a position that does not correspond to the indefinite area during the discharge of the printing material with respect to the first printing area.

A measurement method of nozzle overlapping width, in a main scanning direction intersecting a conveying direction of a recording medium, in an inkjet recording apparatus including a plurality of heads each having a plurality of nozzles that eject ink, includes a first step (S120), a second step (S130), and a third step (S140). The first step (S120) includes forming an image for measurement on the recording medium, using image data including combination patterns of droplet sizes, different with respect to each of blocks extending along the main scanning direction. The second step (S130) includes selecting the block having uniform density along the main scanning direction, in the image for measurement. The third step (S140) includes determining the nozzle overlapping width using a droplet size ratio adopted to form the image for measurement, on a basis of a position of the selected block.

A system for printing at least one stretchable ink on a thermoformable substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, the system including an unwinder arranged to feed the thermoformable substrate from a first roll into a web drive subsystem, a surface energy modification device arranged to alter a substrate surface energy of the first surface to enhance wetting and adhesion of the at least one stretchable ink to the thermoformable substrate, at least one first full width printhead array arranged to deposit a first portion of the at least one stretchable ink on the first surface of the thermoformable substrate, at least one second full width printhead array arranged to deposit a second portion of the at least one stretchable ink on the first surface of the thermoformable substrate, at least one radiation pinning device positioned proximate the first surface and arranged to partially cure the first portion of the at least one stretchable ink on the thermoformable substrate prior to the second portion of the at least one stretchable ink being deposited on the thermoformable substrate, at least one radiation curing device arranged to cure the at least one stretchable ink on the thermoformable substrate, a full width array sensor arranged to monitor the at least one stretchable ink on the thermoformable substrate, and a rewinder arranged to receive the thermoformable substrate and to form the thermoformable substrate into a second roll.

In a method to create a print image with an inkjet printing system that has optional nozzles, for each image point, a distribution parameter can be determined. The distribution parameter can indicate how the ink quantity that is to be ejected for the image point is to be divided up among the optional nozzles. A controller can be configured to control a printing system to perform the method.

A droplet deposition apparatus (1) comprising: a first head module (101A, 101B, 102A) and a second head module (101B, 102A, 102B) arranged in at least partially overlapping relationship, each head module having a plurality of nozzles in at least one nozzle array (A1, B1); and a storage (200) configured to store a table of determined best aligned nozzle pairs in an overlap region and corresponding skew angles (Θi) of at least one of the head modules relative to a datum of the droplet deposition apparatus and/or a corresponding positional offset of the second head module relative to the first head module; wherein, in the overlap region, nozzles of the first head module are arranged at a first nozzle pitch (P2) and nozzles of the second head module are arranged at a second nozzle itch (P3). Associated methods in respect of determining misalignment information in respect of such a droplet deposition apparatus, and determining one or more best aligned nozzle pairs in an overlap region between at least two head modules, are also provided.

This invention provides an image processing apparatus for generating image data for recording in a recording apparatus including a recording unit including a plurality of nozzles discharging ink, comprising a converting unit which converts, based on characteristic information according to a characteristic of each nozzle included in the recording unit, image data corresponding to an input print job into image data to be used for recording by the recording unit; and a control unit which executes one of a plurality of correction processes based on image data obtained by reading an image recorded by the recording unit, wherein the plurality of correction processes include first correction processing that is performed after the recording of the image according to the print job is stopped, and second correction processing that is performed without stopping the recording of the image according to the print job.

A liquid ejecting apparatus includes an ejection head, a carriage, a conveyor and a controller configured to, when it is determined that the state of the ejection is in a first state, execute a first printing process and, when it is determined that the state of the ejection is in a second state, execute a second printing process. In the first printing process, (i) a previous pass-printing is performed, (ii) the printed medium is conveyed by a first distance after the previous pass-printing, and (iii) a succeeding pass-printing is performed after the conveyance of the printed medium. In the second printing process, (i) the previous pass-printing is performed, (ii) the printed medium is conveyed by a second distance larger than the first distance after the previous pass-printing, and (iii) the succeeding pass-printing is performed after the conveyance of the printed medium, in the interlaced-printing.

An image shifter creates plural pairs of shift image data. A shading corrector and a halftone dot processor create halftone shift image data from shift images. Further, a difference image creator creates halftone common image data which is a common part of a pair of halftone shift image data, and creates halftone positive difference image data and halftone negative difference image data each of which is a difference between the halftone common image data and one of a pair of halftone shift image data. A composite image creator synthesizes the halftone common image data corresponding to an amount of positional deviation, and the halftone positive difference image data or halftone negative difference image data. A controller executes printing on web paper. Since the image data is only synthesized, processing load can be lightened even if printing is performed to restrain positional deviations.

A printer for printing on a print medium as said print medium advances through a print zone, the printer including a number of print heads extending over the print zone, each print head including at least one nozzle array wherein at least two adjacent nozzle arrays overlap forming at least one stitching zone in the overlap region; and a printer controller for generating a sequence of nozzle firing commands for each nozzle array to selectively deposit droplets of print fluid on said print medium from said nozzle arrays in accordance with an image to be printed, wherein the printer controller further applies masks having decorrelated patterns to said sequence of firing commands for at least those overlapping nozzles of the nozzle arrays coinciding with the at least one stitching zone to obtain a predetermined optical parameter of the printed image in the stitching zone, irrespective of an offset between two adjacent nozzle arrays.

Printheads and printers are described herein. In one example, a printhead includes a number of drop generators disposed in a first array and a second array. The drop generators in both the first array and the second array are spaced one dot pitch apart perpendicular to the motion of a print medium, and alternate between a high drop weight (HDW) drop generator and a low drop weight (LDW) drop generator. Each drop generator in the first array is in a line of the motion of the print medium with a corresponding drop generator in the second array, wherein each HDW drop generator in the first array is in line with an LDW drop generator in the second array, and each LDW drop generator in the first array is in line with an HDW drop generator in the second array.