JP2009066796A - Printer, printing control method, and control program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the smudge of a printed matter resulting from the non-anchoring of an ink and toner without reducing a throughput more than required. <P>SOLUTION: When performing a print processing for a recording medium using the ink or toner, an interval time from this print processing completion up to the next print processing start is established from the consumption of the ink or toner in each print processing, and the start timing of the print processing is controlled from the established interval time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a printing control method, and a control program. In particular, the present invention is caused by unfixed ink, toner, or the like between printed materials even when continuous printing processing is performed. The present invention relates to a technique for preventing stains between printed materials.

In a conventional printing apparatus, for example, when printing on a cut sheet, the time from the end of the printing process for the nth cut sheet to the start of the printing process for the (n + 1) th cut sheet In particular, when the amount of ink or toner is large, the cut sheets after the printing process are overlaid before the ink or toner is completely fixed, so that there is a problem that the printed matter becomes dirty. It was.
For this reason, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, control is performed so that the time interval between the printing processes is a constant time interval.
JP-A-5-278209

However, the technique described in Patent Document 1 cannot prevent the printed matter from being stained in any case. If the amount of ink discharged is large due to the print data, the time interval is insufficient and the printed matter becomes dirty. There was a possibility.
In order to prevent this, it is sufficient to increase the time interval, but a new problem arises that the printing throughput is reduced.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus, a printing control method, and a control program that can prevent smearing of printed matter due to unfixed ink or toner without reducing throughput unnecessarily. is there.

  In order to solve the above problems, a print processing unit that performs a printing process on a recording medium using a colored body that is an ink or a toner, and the next time from the end of the current printing process based on the amount of the colored body used in each printing process An interval time setting unit that sets an interval time until the start of print processing, and a print control unit that controls the print processing unit based on the interval time set by the interval time setting unit are provided. .

According to the above configuration, the print processing unit performs print processing on the recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner.
The interval time setting unit sets an interval time from the end of the current print process to the start of the next print process based on the usage amount of the colored body in each print process.
Thus, the print control unit controls the print processing unit based on the interval time set by the interval time setting unit.
According to the above configuration, since the interval time is set and the printing process is performed based on the use amount of the colored body in each printing process, the ink or toner is not fixed without reducing the throughput more than necessary. This prevents the printed material from becoming dirty.

In this case, the interval time setting unit sets the interval time in accordance with a usage amount per unit area of the colored body.
According to the said structure, the stain | pollution | contamination of printed matter can be prevented more reliably.

Further, the interval time setting unit sets the interval time according to the type of the colored body.
According to the above configuration, the interval time can be more reliably set in consideration of the type of the colored body and, as a result, the characteristics of the colored body (particularly, the difficulty of drying), thereby preventing the printed matter from being stained.

Further, the interval time setting unit corrects the interval time based on the type of the recording medium.
According to the above configuration, it is possible to more reliably set the interval time in consideration of the type of the recording medium, and thus the characteristics of the recording medium (particularly the fixing characteristics of the colored body), thereby preventing the printed matter from being stained.

The print control unit may stop generating print data for a time corresponding to the interval time.
According to the above configuration, it is possible to reliably provide an interval period between printing processes, and it is possible to reliably prevent the printed matter from being stained.

In addition, the printing control method includes a printing process for performing a printing process on a recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner, and the next printing process from the end of the current printing process based on the amount of the colored body used in each printing process. An interval time setting process for setting an interval time until the start of the printing process, and a print control process for controlling the process start timing of the printing process based on the interval time set in the interval time setting process. It is a feature.
According to the above configuration, since the interval time is set and the printing process is performed based on the use amount of the colored body in each printing process, the ink or toner is not fixed without reducing the throughput more than necessary. This prevents the printed material from becoming dirty.

In addition, in a control program for controlling a printing apparatus that performs a printing process on a recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner, the current printing process ends based on the amount of the colored body used in each printing process. An interval time from the start to the next print processing start is set, and the print processing processing start timing is controlled based on the set interval time so that the print processing is performed on the recording medium. .
According to the above configuration, since the interval time is set and the printing process is performed based on the use amount of the colored body in each printing process, the ink or toner is not fixed without reducing the throughput more than necessary. This prevents the printed material from becoming dirty.

  According to the present invention, since the interval time for separating the printing places is set based on the amount of use of a colored body such as ink or toner in the printing process, the ink or toner is unfixed without lowering the throughput more than necessary. It is possible to prevent the printed material from being stained.

Next, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a printing system according to an embodiment.
The printing system 100 includes a host computer 1 that performs printing control and a printer 2 that performs actual printing processing under the control of the host computer 1. The host computer 1 and the printer 2 are connected to a communication network. 3 is connected.

The host computer 1 includes an application 101 that provides a user interface for causing the printer 2 to execute various commands related to printing, a printer driver 102 that is called by the application 101 and directly controls the operation of the printer 2, print data, A transmission / reception unit 103 that functions as an interface for transmitting commands to the printer 2.
Here, the user creates, edits, and issues a print data on the application 101.
The printer driver 102 includes a print data generation unit 104 that generates print data according to settings in the application 101 and the like, and a command generation unit 105 that generates various commands including a power OFF command.
Note that the application 101 and the printer driver 102 are programs stored in advance in the ROM of the host computer 1, and various functions are realized by reading and executing the programs by the control unit (CPU) of the host computer 1. Is done.

On the other hand, the printer 2 includes a transmission / reception unit 111 that functions as an interface for receiving print data and commands transmitted from the host computer 1, and a print stored in a state where the print data received by the transmission / reception unit 111 is expanded. A buffer 112, a print control unit 113 that performs print control based on the received print command, and a print mechanism unit 114 that performs actual printing based on print data developed in the print buffer 112 under the control of the print control unit 113. And.
Here, the print control unit 113 converts the print data developed in the print buffer 112 into dot data that can be printed by the printing mechanism 23.
The printing mechanism 23 performs a printing operation based on the dot data converted by the printing control unit 113. The printing head 115 for directly printing on printing paper and a carriage 116 on which the printing head 115 is placed. And.

Next, a specific configuration of the host computer 1 will be described.
FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of the host computer.
The host computer 1 is configured as a personal computer, and includes a CPU 11 that controls the entire host computer 1, a RAM 12 that temporarily stores various data, a ROM 13 that stores various data including a control program, and external communication. For controlling a communication interface (I / F) 14 for performing a display, a display device controller 15 for controlling a display device 18 described later, a keyboard controller 16 for controlling a keyboard described later, and an external memory 20 described later. A memory controller 17, a display device 18 for displaying various information, a keyboard 19 for a user to input various data, and an external memory 20 for storing various data. Further, the respective units are connected to each other via a bus 21.

Next, a specific configuration of the printer 2 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration block diagram of the printer.
The printer 2 is configured as an inkjet printer, and performs communication with the outside, a CPU 31 that controls the entire printer 2, a RAM 32 that temporarily stores various data, a ROM 33 that stores various data including a control program, and the like. A printing unit interface (I / F) 35 that performs an interface operation between a communication interface (I / F) 34 and a printing unit 37 to be described later, a memory controller 36 for controlling an external memory 39 to be described later, 1 includes a printing unit 37 that performs actual printing, an operation panel 38 that allows a user to perform various operations, and an external memory 39 that stores various data. . Further, the respective units are connected to each other via a bus 40.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of an application print setting screen.
When the application 101 is activated, a print setting screen 30 as shown in FIG. 4 is displayed on the display device 18 of the host computer 1.
The print setting screen 30 selects a printer that performs print output and a printer setting display operation unit 61 that performs property settings described later, a print range designation display operation unit 62 that designates a print range, and a number for specifying the number of copies to be printed. A print number designation display operation unit 63; a print target display operation unit 64 for specifying a print target; and a print designation display operation unit 65 that controls the print target (all pages, only odd pages, only even pages); An enlargement / reduction display operation unit 66 for specifying enlargement printing / reduction printing, a “property” button 67 for displaying a property setting screen by clicking, and executing the printing process by confirming the operation content. The “OK” button 68 and the “Cancel” button 69 for canceling the operation contents and canceling the printing process are arranged. It is.
When the “property” button 67 is pressed in the display of the print setting screen, the property setting screen is displayed.

Here, the property setting screen will be described in detail.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of a property setting screen.
FIG. 5 shows an example of a property setting screen when printing processing is performed on a label surface such as a CD or DVD.
A property setting screen (basic setting screen) 41 specifies a setting call display operation unit 42 for calling a pre-registered setting, a setting target display operation unit 43 for specifying a property setting target, and a recording medium supply source. A supply source display operation unit 44 for specifying the output, a discharge destination display operation unit 45 for specifying the discharge destination (discharge destination) of the recording medium, a print number display operation unit 46 for specifying the number of copies, Print mode display operation unit 47 for designating a print mode (color printing: full color, high color, 256 color, etc., black and white printing: binary, gray scale, etc.) and media type display operation for designating a media type Whether or not to apply an automatic drying time in consideration of an interval time between print processing, which will be described later, and a paper type display operation unit 49 for designating a paper type An automatic drying time application display operation unit 50 for designating a print preview, a print preview display unit 51 for displaying a print preview, and an “OK” button 52 for confirming the displayed setting contents. A “cancel” button 53 for canceling the set contents.

In this case, when various print settings are made on the property setting screen 41, a print preview based on the print settings set in the print preview display unit 51 is displayed. Specifically, when “wide type” is selected in the media type display operation unit 48, a print preview of a wide type medium is displayed on the print preview display unit 51.
Further, when the automatic drying time application display operation unit 50 is checked, as will be described in detail later, the type of toner and ink (colored body) used for printing after printing, the amount used, and the type of recording medium In consideration of the above, the actual print processing is suppressed only for the interval time according to the amount. Specifically, the print processing is suppressed by stopping the generation of print data for the interval time.

Next, the operation of the embodiment will be described.
FIG. 6 is a process flowchart of the embodiment.
First, the CPU 11 of the host computer 1 receives a print command from the application 101 (step S101), and further receives print source data (step S102), the print data generation unit 104 constituting the printer driver 102 performs one print. Whether or not a print data processing process (hereinafter referred to as a “print source data processing process”) that actually processes print source data corresponding to a task (for example, printing of one document) into print data for printing by the printer 2 has started. Is determined (step S103).
Here, the printing source data processing will be described.
FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the printing source data processing.
As shown in FIG. 7, the printing source data P0 is composed of header information and data on the 1st to Nth pages.
The print source data P0 is reconstructed into print data PX1 to PXN for each page by adding print header information and print footer information to the data of each page in the print source data processing.
If it is determined in step S103 that the printing source data processing has not yet started (step S103; No), the amount of ink that will be used is calculated based on the printing source data (step S114).
Then, it is determined whether or not an interval time is necessary based on the ink amount calculated in step S14, and if necessary, the interval time is calculated from the calculated ink amount and determined (step S115).

Subsequently, the process is terminated by setting the time obtained by adding the interval time determined in step S114 to the current time as the next print start possible time (step S116).
On the other hand, when the printing source data processing is started in the determination in step S103 (step S103; Yes), it is determined whether or not the current time exceeds the next startable time of the printing process (step S104). .
If it is determined in step S104 that the current time is less than or equal to the next possible start time of the printing process (step S104; No), the process waits until the next start time (step S105), and after the next start time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S106. Will be transferred to.
If it is determined in step S104 that the current time exceeds the next startable time of the printing process (step S104; Yes), it is determined whether or not the printing data processing process for one page constituting one printing task has been started. It discriminate | determines (step S106).

If it is determined in step S106 that the print data processing process for one page has not yet started, the process proceeds to step S114, and the same process is performed thereafter.
If it is determined in step S106 that the print data processing for one page has been started (step S106; Yes), it is determined whether or not the print source data processing has been completed (step S107).
If it is determined in step S107 that the printing source data processing has not yet been completed, the process proceeds to step S114, and the same processing is performed thereafter.
If it is determined in step S107 that the printing source data processing has been completed, it is determined whether or not one page of printing data processing has been completed (step S108).
If it is determined in step S108 that the print data processing process for one page has not yet been completed (step S108; No), the process proceeds to step S114, and the same process is performed thereafter.
If it is determined in step S108 that the print data processing for one page is completed (step S108; Yes), the amount of ink used corresponding to the print data for one page is calculated (step S109).

Then, it is determined whether or not an interval time is necessary based on the ink amount calculated in step S109. If necessary, the interval time is calculated from the calculated ink amount and determined (step S110). Specifically, when so-called solid printing (100% filled state) is used as a reference for the recording medium, it is determined whether or not ink corresponding to the 10% filled state is used, and more ink is used. Requires an interval time, and the interval time is set to be larger in proportion to the amount of ink actually used.
Subsequently, a time obtained by adding the interval time determined in step S110 to the current time is set as a next print start possible time (step S111).
Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the print data processing for all pages corresponding to the print task has been completed (step S112).
If it is determined in step S112 that the print data processing for all pages corresponding to the print task has not been completed yet (step S112; No), the process proceeds to step S104 again, and the same process is performed thereafter. .

If it is determined in step S112 that the print data processing for all pages corresponding to the print task has been completed (step S112; Yes), it is determined whether the print source data processing has been completed (step S112). S113).
If it is determined in step S113 that the printing source data processing has not yet been completed (step S113; No), the process proceeds to step S104 again, and the same processing is performed thereafter.
If it is determined in step S113 that the printing source data processing has been completed (step S113; Yes), the processing ends.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the interval time can be set in consideration of the amount of ink used, it is possible to reliably prevent color migration and prevent stains between printed materials.

In the above description, only the amount of ink used has been considered, but it is also possible to configure the interval time in consideration of the ink properties according to the ink type.
Specifically, in the case of a four-color printer using cyan, magenta, yellow, and black inks, for example, the ink contribution as the difficulty of drying the ink is expressed as follows.
Cyan contribution = 20%
Magenta contribution = 10%
Yellow contribution = 5%
Black contribution = 5%

In other words, the larger the ink contribution, the harder it is to dry, and when printing with the same amount of ink, cyan is the hardest to dry, color transfer is the easiest, magenta is hard to dry, yellow and black are easy to dry, Color transfer is also difficult.
For example, when printing one page of a cut sheet as a recording medium with each color, 1000 shots (1000 drops) of ink per page are necessary, and the ink amount per shot is constant for all inks. Then, assuming that the actual printed matter is one page, cyan is 20%, magenta is 10%, yellow is 2%, and black is 5%, the usage amount of each ink can be calculated as follows.
Cyan amount = 20% × 1000 = 200 (equivalent to a shot)
Magenta amount = 10% × 1000 = 100 (equivalent to a shot)
Yellow amount = 2% × 1000 = 20 (equivalent to shot)
Black amount = 5% x 1000 = 50 (shot equivalent)

By the way, assuming that an interval time is required when ink corresponding to a 10% filled state is used as in this example, when the contribution degree of each ink is taken into consideration, predetermined drying conditions (temperature and humidity) Below, when the number of shots × contribution rate for each ink is calculated as an effective ink amount, it was experimentally determined that an interval time is required when the total effective ink amount of all inks exceeds 37.
Under such conditions, when the print data based on the printing source data is for 200 shots of cyan ink only, the effective ink amount is calculated as follows.
Cyan effective ink amount = 20% × 200 = 40
Magenta effective ink amount = 10% × 0 = 0
Yellow effective ink amount = 2% × 0 = 0
Black effective ink amount = 5% x 0 = 0

Therefore,
Total effective ink amount of all inks = 40 + 0 + 0 + 0
= 40
Thus, since the total effective ink amount exceeds 37 which is the reference value, it can be seen that the interval time is required. That is, it can be seen that the cyan ink is difficult to dry, and therefore it is necessary to secure the drying time using the interval time even with a small amount.
Similarly, when the print data based on the print source data is for 1000 shots of yellow ink only, the effective ink amount is calculated as follows.
Cyan effective ink amount = 20% × 0 = 0
Magenta effective ink amount = 10% × 0 = 0
Yellow effective ink amount = 2% × 1000 = 20
Black effective ink amount = 5% x 0 = 0

Therefore,
Total effective ink amount of all inks = 0 + 0 + 20 + 0
= 20
Thus, since the total effective ink amount is less than the reference value of 37, it can be seen that it is not necessary to provide an interval time. That is, since yellow ink is easy to dry, it is understood that it is not necessary to secure the drying time by using the interval time even when it is used five times or more than cyan ink.

  As described above, according to the present modification, the interval time can be set in consideration of not only the amount of ink used but also the characteristics of each ink (especially the ease of drying), so that color migration is reliably prevented. Stain between printed materials can be prevented.

Although not described in detail in the above description, the same effect can be obtained if the interval time is set according to the amount of ink or toner used as a colored body per unit area.
In the above description, the interval time is set in consideration of the amount of ink used and the ink characteristics (especially ease of drying). However, the interval time is set in consideration of the fixing property of the ink for each recording medium. It is also possible to configure as described above. According to this, it is possible to prevent the printed materials from being stained more reliably.
In the above description, only the case where ink is used as the colored body has been described. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to toner (including color toner).

In the above description, the printer is not limited to a mode connected to the host computer 1 as in the printer 2, but is a built-in or built-in printer that has a function as the host computer 1. Is also applicable.
The printer 2 realizes each functional unit shown in FIG. 1 through cooperation between hardware and software, and a specific hardware implementation form, software specifications, and the like are arbitrary. Other specific detailed configurations of the printer 2 can be arbitrarily changed.

It is a functional block diagram of the printing system of the embodiment. It is a general | schematic block diagram of a host computer. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration block diagram of a printer. It is explanatory drawing of the print setting screen of an application. It is explanatory drawing of a property setting screen. It is a processing flowchart of an embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of printing origin data processing.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Host computer, 2 ... Printer, 3 ... Communication network, 11 ... CPU, 12 ... RAM, 13 ... ROM, 15 ... Display device controller, 16 ... Keyboard controller, 17 ... Memory controller, 18 ... Display device, 19 ... Keyboard 20 ... external memory, 21 ... bus, 23 ... printing mechanism, 29 ... external memory, 30 ... print setting screen, 31 ... CPU, 32 ... RAM, 33 ... ROM, 34 ... print target display operation unit, 35 ... print designation Display operation unit 36 ... Memory controller 37 ... Printing unit 38 ... Operation panel 39 ... External memory 40 ... Bus 41 ... Property setting screen 42 ... Setting call display operation unit 43 ... Setting object display operation unit 44 ... Supply source display operation unit, 45 ... Discharge destination display operation unit, 46 ... Print number display operation unit, 47 ... Print mode 48 ... Media type display operation unit, 49 ... Paper type display operation unit, 50 ... Automatic drying time application display operation unit, 51 ... Print preview display unit, 61 ... Printer setting display operation unit, 62 ... Print range Designated display operation unit, 63 ... Print number designation display operation unit, 66 ... Reduced display operation unit, 100 ... Printing system, 101 ... Application, 102 ... Printer driver, 103 ... Transmission / reception unit, 104 ... Print data generation unit, 105 ... Command Generation unit 111... Transmission / reception unit 112 112 print buffer 113 print control unit 114 print mechanism 115 print head 116 carriage P0 print source data PX print data

Claims (7)

A print processing unit that performs print processing on a recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner;
An interval time setting unit for setting an interval time from the end of the current print process to the start of the next print process based on the amount of the colored body used in each print process;
A print control unit that controls the print processing unit based on the interval time set by the interval time setting unit;
A printing apparatus comprising: The printing apparatus according to claim 1.
The said interval time setting part sets the said interval time according to the usage-amount per unit area of the said colored body, The printing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The printing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The said interval time setting part sets the said interval time according to the kind of the said colored body, The printing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the interval time setting unit corrects the interval time based on a type of the recording medium. The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The printing control unit stops generating print data only for a time corresponding to the interval time. A printing process for performing a printing process on a recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner;
An interval time setting process for setting an interval time from the end of the current print process to the start of the next print process based on the amount of the colored body used in each print process;
A printing control process for controlling the processing start timing of the printing process based on the interval time set in the interval time setting process;
A printing control method comprising: In a control program for controlling, by a computer, a printing apparatus that performs printing processing on a recording medium using a colored body that is ink or toner,
Based on the amount of the colored body used in each print process, the interval time from the end of the current print process to the start of the next print process is set,
Controlling the processing start timing of the printing process based on the set interval time, and performing the printing process on the recording medium,
A control program characterized by that.

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