Methods for ejecting fluids having a viscosity ranging from about 20 mPa-sec to about 100 mPa-sec at 22 C. from a micro-fluid ejection head. The methods include the steps of applying a heat signal to the ejection head for a first period of time to heat the ejection head to a first temperature that is about 20 C. above a steady state fluid ejection temperature for continuous or intermittent fluid ejection from the ejection head; and subsequently, applying a firing signal to ejection heaters on the ejection head during which fluid ejection from the ejection head occurs.

Methods and systems are described herein for driving droplet ejection devices with multi-level waveforms. In one embodiment, a method for driving droplet ejection devices includes applying a multi-level waveform to the droplet ejection devices. The multi-level waveform includes a first section having at least one compensating edge and a second section having at least one drive pulse. The compensating edge has a compensating effect on systematic variation in droplet velocity or droplet mass across the droplet ejection devices. In another embodiment, the compensating edge has a compensating effect on cross-talk between the droplet ejection devices.

Methods for ejecting fluids having a viscosity ranging from about 20 mPa-sec to about 100 mPa-sec at 22 C. from a micro-fluid ejection head. The methods include the steps of applying a heat signal to the ejection head for a first period of time to heat the ejection head to a first temperature that is about 20 C. above a steady state fluid ejection temperature for continuous or intermittent fluid ejection from the ejection head; and subsequently, applying a firing signal to ejection heaters on the ejection head during which fluid ejection from the ejection head occurs.

There is provided a liquid ejecting control method for outputting an image without an influence of ejection amount variations. Therefore among a plurality of drive modes in which an amount of liquids ejected from one nozzle is different from each other, control information indicating a drive mode to be associated is obtained, and a drive signal to an individual pixel is generated according to the control information and image data that is input for each pixel. The control information sets a drive mode in which an ejection amount closer to a target ejection amount is obtained, among the plurality of drive modes. In addition, a difference between the target ejection amount and the ejection amount to be realized in the set drive mode is found, and this difference is used to correct a target ejection amount of the other pixel in which the drive mode is not set yet.

A method for reducing a locally increased viscosity of ink in an ink print head of an ink printer during printing operation includes: a determination of a printing pause with the aid of a pixel preview; an application of a first sequence of pulses for measurement of the activation current of a piezoelement of the ink print head; and an application of a second sequence of pulses for vibration of the ink meniscus at the exit of a nozzle if the ink print head to intermix the ink having locally increased viscosity with ink having the initial viscosity given a threatened failure of the nozzle.

There is provided a liquid discharge apparatus, including: a drive element configured to apply discharge energy to the liquid to discharge the liquid; signal generators configured to generate a plurality of types of drive signals having mutually different waveforms to drive the drive element; and drive switches electrically located between the signal generators and the drive element to correspond to the plurality of types of drive signals respectively. The drive switches include a first drive switch and a second drive switch which are different in ON-resistance.

Recording elements are driven by changing a driving pulse applied thereto in accordance with information regarding a total number of times the recording elements have been driven.

A liquid discharging apparatus includes a driving signal creation section that creates a driving signal, a discharge section provided with a piezoelectric element, and a pressure chamber, and a detection section that is capable of detecting residual vibrations. The driving signal creation section is capable of creating a signal having an inspection waveform of which a potential of a first period is a first potential, a potential of a second period is a second potential, and a potential of a third period is a third potential, as the driving signal. The first potential is a potential that is between the second potential and the third potential, and the internal volume of the pressure chamber in a case in which the driving signal is the second potential is smaller than the internal volume of the pressure chamber in a case in which the driving signal is the third potential.

In an example, a method for determining an issue in an inkjet nozzle includes providing an initial fire pulse for firing a nozzle, and receiving the initial fire pulse as a delayed fire pulse at a primitive of the nozzle. The method includes firing the nozzle with the delayed fire pulse, and determining a first time instant following the delayed fire pulse for taking a first impedance measurement across the nozzle.

According to an example, in a method for enhancing temperature distribution uniformity across a printer die, in which the printer die includes a plurality of drop generators arranged in a plurality of columns, a warming map that identifies the drop generators of the plurality of drop generators that are to be supplied with warming pulses to enhance temperature distribution uniformity across the printer die may be accessed. The warming map may identify a non-uniform distribution of the drop generators across a column of the plurality of columns. In addition, the warming map may be implemented to supply the drop generators identified in the warming map as the drop generators that are to receive the warming pulses.