A process is disclosed for creating a print profile to control the operation of a direct-to-shape printing system for applying images on the exterior of an axially symmetrical media object that has a contoured, varying exterior surface, such as occurs on curved wine bottles and sports equipment like bats. The process takes a media recipe holding media geometry information and an image intended to be printed and processes that information to control a motion control subsystem and a print engine subsystem. The geometry information is manipulated to generate a CAM table suitable for the motion control subsystem, and the image file is processed to create a raster image file suitable for ink head expression. Various setup values are included in the process to prepare the direct-to-shape printing system for use of the media recipe.

Misalignment between landing positions is appropriately corrected. A printing device 10 that performs printing by an inkjet method includes an inkjet head 102, a carriage 100, a main scan driving part 18 (carriage drive mechanism), a detection mechanism 106, and a controller 30. The controller 30 detects a position where a concentration is the highest among concentrations of a correction pattern changing depending on positions in a main scanning direction, calculates magnitude of misalignment between a landing position of ink ejected from the inkjet head 102 when the carriage 100 moves to a first direction side and a landing position of the ink ejected from the inkjet head 102 when the carriage 100 moves to a second direction side based on a detection result of the position where the concentration is the highest, and corrects the misalignment between the landing positions based on a calculation result.

Examples describe maintenance scheduling of printhead in an image forming device by monitoring image data processed by an image forming device, determining that the image data processed by the image forming device comprises color image data, and generating a firing signal based on a mode of the image forming device.

A setting device for a print engine is configured to cause the print engine to print a specific image including a first image to be printed using first nozzles of a first head unit and a second image to be printed using second nozzles of a second head unit, receive relative position information determined based on the printed specific image, the relative position information including information indicating a positional deviation amount in a specific direction between the first nozzles and the second nozzles, and set, based on the relative position information, use nozzles to be used for printing and non-use nozzles not to be used for printing among the first nozzles and the second nozzles within a range in which a first range where the first nozzles are located and a second range where the second nozzles are located overlap with each other.

Provided are a nozzle inspection method and a nozzle inspection apparatus capable of accurately detecting a defect in an inkjet head nozzle within a short time. The nozzle inspection method comprises discharging a plurality of droplets into a first region of interest of a substrate using a first nozzle to form an inspection pattern, and determining whether the first nozzle is defective based on the inspection pattern.

In a printing method, at least one image of a substrate supported in a printing system is acquired. An actual position of a first alignment feature on the substrate in a frame of reference of the printing system is determined based on the at least one image. Expected positions of second alignment features on the substrate are determined based on the actual position of the first alignment feature. Actual positions of the second alignment features in the frame of reference of the printing system are determined based on the at least one image and the expected positions of the second alignment features. Target positions of print regions on the substrate are determined based on the actual positions of the second alignment features. Ejection of print material onto the substrate in the print regions is controlled based on the target positions of the print regions.

A liquid jetting apparatus jetting a liquid onto a recording medium conveyed in a first direction includes head units arranged in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction. One head unit includes nozzle chips; one nozzle chip has a nozzle arrangement area wherein nozzles are aligned in a third direction crossing the first and second directions. The nozzle chip is arranged to be shifted relative to another nozzle chip in a direction crossing the first and second directions and different from the third direction. The head unit has a first overlapping portion wherein nozzle arrangement areas of first and second nozzle chips included in the nozzle chips partially overlap with each other in the first direction. The liquid jetting apparatus has a second overlapping portion wherein nozzle arrangement areas of third and fourth nozzle chips included in the head units partially overlap with each other in the first direction.

A marking system includes a valve body including an orifice plate including multiple orifices and multiple micro-valves. Each micro-valve includes an actuating beam movable from a closed position in which a corresponding one of the orifices is sealed by a portion of the actuating beam such that the micro-valve is closed, into a peak position in response to application of a control signal. A controller is configured to generate a control signal for each of the actuating beams, each control signal including a drive pulse having a predetermined voltage such that the actuating beam moves from the closed position into the peak position in which the corresponding orifice is open and returns to the closed position in a characteristic period, wherein the drive pulse has a duration that substantially corresponds to the characteristic period such that the actuating beam is in the closed position after the drive pulse is complete.

In an example, there is provided a method and apparatus for controlling spit on page operation, the method comprising receiving at least one image to be printed, for each row of a plurality of rows of the image: identifying two or more pixels of the row of the image to be printed by a nozzle of a printhead, determining if a spacing between two consecutive pixels of the two or more pixels is greater than a threshold distance, and in response to a determination that the spacing between the two consecutive pixels is greater than the threshold distance, providing an indication that spit on page dots should be provided when printing the image.

An ejection apparatus includes an ejection head having an ejection port, a droplet detection unit, an acquisition unit, a control unit, and a decision unit. The droplet detection unit detects that a droplet ejected from the ejection port has reached a predetermined position. The acquisition unit acquires information regarding a velocity of movement of the detected droplet. The control unit controls the ejection head to eject the droplet from the ejection port. The decision unit decides a number of consecutive ejections of a plurality of droplets from the ejection head based on the acquired information regarding the velocities of each of the plurality of droplets ejected consecutively and detected by the droplet detection unit. If the acquisition unit acquires the information regarding velocities of detected droplets, the control unit controls the ejection head to consecutively eject the droplets from the ejection head based on the decided number of consecutive ejections.