Image processing apparatus, printing apparatus, image processing method, and printing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9832350-B2
Application number	US-201615079408-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 24, 2016
Priority date	Apr 6, 2015
Publication date	Nov 28, 2017
Grant date	Nov 28, 2017

Abstract

An image processing method includes performing first halftone processing and second halftone processing. The second halftone processing is performed, for a second kind of color in advance among a plurality of colors constituting an original image, in units of blocks each consisting of a plurality of pixels that constitute the original image and the second kind of color is converted into an amount of second kind of ink corresponding to the second kind of color among the plurality of inks. The first halftone processing is performed, for the first kind of color, for each pixel that constitutes the original image or each pixel group having a smaller number of pixels than the block and the first kind of color is converted into an amount of first kind of ink corresponding to the first kind of color among the plurality of inks.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus which converts an original image into a representation obtained by using a plurality of inks, the image processing apparatus comprising:
a processor configured to perform first halftone processing which is determined in advance, and second halftone processing which is different from the first halftone processing,
the processor being further configured to perform the second halftone processing, for a second kind of color which is a color other than a first kind of color, which is a single color or a plurality of colors determined in advance among a plurality of colors constituting the original image, in units of blocks each consisting of a plurality of pixels that constitute the original image and convert the second kind of color into an amount of second kind of ink corresponding to the second kind of color among the plurality of inks,
the processor being further configured to perform the first halftone processing, for the first kind of color, for each pixel that constitutes the original image or each pixel group each having a smaller number of pixels than the block and convert the first kind of color into an amount of first kind of ink corresponding to the first kind of color among the plurality of inks, with the first kind of color including at least a black color, and
the processor being further configured to send the amount of the first kind of ink and the amount of the second kind of ink for improving quality of printing of the representation using a printer head based on the amount of the first kind of ink and the amount of the second kind of ink.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first halftone processing is processing with image quality higher than the second halftone processing.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first kind of color includes only the black color.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the first halftone processing is processing which directly determines whether or not dots are to be formed by the first kind of ink corresponding to the first kind of color on the basis of a gradation value of the first kind of color.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the second halftone processing is processing performed at a higher speed than the first halftone processing.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5 ,
wherein the second halftone processing is processing of comparing a threshold value stored in a dither mask with the gradation value of the second kind of color, in units of the blocks.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the processor is configured to perform the processing for the second kind of color using an average value of the plurality of pixels within the block.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the processor is configured to determine, for the first kind of color, whether or not the first kind of color is present in any of the pixels within the block and perform the first halftone processing only on the pixel in which the first kind of color is present.

9. An image processing apparatus which converts an original image into a representation obtained by using a plurality of inks, the image processing apparatus comprising:
a processor configured to perform first halftone processing which is determined in advance, and second halftone processing which is different from the first halftone processing,
the processor being further configured to perform the second halftone processing, for a second kind of color which is a color other than a first kind of color, which is a single color or a plurality of colors determined in advance among a plurality of colors constituting the original image, in units of blocks each consisting of a plurality of pixels that constitute the original image and convert the second kind of color into an amount of second kind of ink corresponding to the second kind of color among the plurality of inks,
the processor being further configured to perform the first halftone processing, for the first kind of color, for each pixel that constitutes the original image or each pixel group each having a smaller number of pixels than the block and convert the first kind of color into an amount of first kind of ink corresponding to the first kind of color among the plurality of inks, and
the first halftone processing and the second halftone processing being performed for all the pixels of the original image and an ink amount of the second kind of ink being replaced with the ink amount of the first kind of ink for the pixel in which the ink amount of an ink corresponding to the first kind of color which is the processing result is not zero.

10. An image processing apparatus which converts an original image into a representation obtained by using a plurality of inks, the image processing apparatus comprising:
a processor configured to perform first halftone processing which is determined in advance, and second halftone processing which is different from the first halftone processing,
the processor being further configured to perform the second halftone processing, for a second kind of color which is a color other than a first kind of color, which is a single color or a plurality of colors determined in advance among a plurality of colors constituting the original image, in units of blocks each consisting of a plurality of pixels that constitute the original image and convert the second kind of color into an amount of second kind of ink corresponding to the second kind of color among the plurality of inks,
the processor being further configured to perform the first halftone processing, for the first kind of color, for each pixel that constitutes the original image or each pixel group each having a smaller number of pixels than the block and convert the first kind of color into an amount of first kind of ink corresponding to the first kind of color among the plurality of inks,
the processor performing the first halftone processing by defining a color of all the pixels as the first kind of color in a case where the first kind of color is present in any of the pixels within the block, and
the image processing apparatus further comprising a halftone processing results synthesization unit which synthesizes a result of the first halftone processing and a result of the second halftone processing on the basis of a position of the pixel in which the first kind of color is present to obtain a result of the image processing.

11. An image processing apparatus which converts an original image into a representation obtained by using a plurality of inks, the image processing apparatus comprising:
a processor configured to perform first halftone processing which is determined in advance, and second halftone processing which is different from the first halftone processing,
the processor being further configured to perform the second halftone processing, for a second kind of color which is a color other than a first kind of color, which is a single color or a plurality of colors determined in advance among a plurality of colors constituting the original image, in units of blocks each consisting of a plurality of pixels that constitute the original image and convert the second kind of color into an amount of second kind of ink corresponding to the second kind of color among the plurality of inks,
the processor being further configured to perform the first halftone processing, for the first kind of color, for each pixel that constitutes the original image or each pixel group each having a smaller number of pixels than the b

Assignees

• Seiko Epson Corp

Inventors

• Kakutani Toshiaki

Classifications

• H04N1/52

  Circuits or arrangements for halftone screening · CPC title

• H04N1/6008

  with primary colour signals, e.g. RGB or CMY(K) · CPC title

• G06K2215/101

  involving the use of ink jets · CPC title

• H04N1/4057

  the pattern being a mixture of differently sized sub-patterns, e.g. spots having only a few different diameters (multi-toning H04N1/40087) · CPC title

• G06K15/1881 Primary

  Halftoning (halftoning of still images in general H04N1/405, H04N1/52) · CPC title