Recording system for transferring offset data to be recorded

Claim 3

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined direction is a sub-scanning direction.

Claim 4

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined direction is a main scanning direction.

Claim 5

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 1, wherein said obtaining step is a step in which a request for the quantity of offset is issued to said recording apparatus and the quantity of offset is obtained from said recording apparatus.

Claim 6

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 1, wherein said recording apparatus causes said recording head to main-scan an upper surface of a recording medium to record the data.

Claim 7

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 1, wherein said recording head of said recording apparatus uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 8

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded, which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors in quantities corresponding to the number of said recording elements; and receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in a predetermined direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors.

Claim 9

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded, which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors in quantities corresponding to the number of said recording elements; and receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in a predetermined direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors.

Claim 10

A recording apparatus according to claim 7 further comprising storage means for storing information indicating the quantity of offset.

Claim 11

A recording apparatus according to claim 8 further comprising transmitting means for transmitting the information stored in said storage means.

Claim 12

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined direction is a sub-scanning direction.

Claim 13

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the predetermined direction is a main scanning direction.

Claim 14

A recording apparatus according to claim 7 further comprising scanning means for causing said recording head to main-scan an upper surface of a recording medium.

Claim 15

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said recording apparatus is connected to a host computer which transfers the data to be recorded.

Claim 16

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said recording apparatus is adapted to a word processor which has a document processing function.

Claim 17

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 18

A recording system having a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, said recording system comprising: obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the predetermined direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, wherein said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 19

A recording system having a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, said recording system comprising: obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the predetermined direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, wherein said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 20

A recording system according to claim 16, wherein the predetermined direction is a sub-scanning direction.

Claim 21

A recording system according to claim 16, wherein the predetermined direction is a main scanning direction.

Claim 22

A recording system according to claim 16 further comprising scanning means for causing said recording head to main-scan an upper surface of a recording medium.

Claim 23

A recording system according to claim 16, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 26

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 21, wherein the number of said recording elements of said recording head for at least one color is larger than the number of said recording elements for other colors, all of said recording elements provided by a larger number are not used during on scanning operation, and said changing step is a step in which the positions, at which said recording elements are used, are changed in accordance with a predetermined rule.

Claim 27

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 21, wherein the number of said recording elements of said recording head for use in a scanning operation for recording at least one color is larger than the number of said recording elements for recording other colors.

Claim 30

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 21, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 31

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors; receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; and thinning means for thinning data to be recorded for at least one color so as to be complemented and completed by a plurality of scanning operations for recording.

Claim 32

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors; receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; and thinning means for thinning data to be recorded for at least one color so as to be complemented and completed by a plurality of scanning operations for recording.

Claim 33

A recording apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 34

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; changing means for changing the quantity of offset to change the positions of said recording elements to be used; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 35

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; changing means for changing the quantity of offset to change the positions of said recording elements to be used; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 36

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; thinning means for thinning data to be recorded for at least one color so as to be complemented and completed by a plurality of scanning operations for recording; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 37

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has obtaining means for obtaining quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; thinning means for thinning data to be recorded for at least one color so as to be complemented and completed by a plurality of scanning operations for recording; and transferring means for transferring the data which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the obtained quantity of offset and which corresponds to the plurality of colors, to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors.

Claim 38

A recording system according to claim 29, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 39

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors; receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; detection means for detecting an image boundary portion between different-color regions in accordance with the data received by said receiving means; and bleeding preventive means for preventing bleeding occurring in the boundary portion in accordance with a result of detection performed by said detection means.

Claim 40

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: storage means for storing data to be recorded which corresponds to said recording elements for the plurality of colors; receiving means for receiving the data, which is offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; detection means for detecting an image boundary portion between different-color regions in accordance with the data received by said receiving means; and bleeding preventive means for preventing bleeding occurring in the boundary portion in accordance with a result of detection performed by said detection means.

Claim 41

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said detection means has storage means for storing a fact that data for at least one color has been recorded in a predetermined region.

Claim 42

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said detection means has storage means for storing data for at least one color for a predetermined period after the data has been used to perform recording.

Claim 43

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said detection means has storage means for storing logical calculation data of data for at least two colors for a predetermined period after the data has been used to perform recording.

Claim 44

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said receiving means receives offset data to be recorded and non-offset data to be recorded, said detection means detects an image boundary portion between different-color regions in accordance with the non-offset data received by said receiving means.

Claim 45

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said bleeding preventive means has at least any one means selected from a group consisting of means for delaying recording, multi-pass means for controlling the number of passes and image correction means for correcting an image to be recorded.

Claim 46

A recording apparatus according to claim 31, wherein said recording head of said recording apparatus uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 47

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has transferring means for transferring the data offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and corresponding to the plurality of colors to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors, detection means for detecting an image boundary portion between different-color regions in accordance with the data received by said receiving means, and bleeding preventive means for preventing bleeding occurring in the boundary portion in accordance with a result of detection performed by said detection means.

Claim 48

A recording system comprising: a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded, wherein said host computer has transferring means for transferring the data offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with the quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and corresponding to the plurality of colors to said recording apparatus, and said recording apparatus has receiving means for receiving the data transferred by said transferring means and corresponding to the plurality of colors, detection means for detecting an image boundary portion between different-color regions in accordance with the data received by said receiving means, and bleeding preventive means for preventing bleeding occurring in the boundary portion in accordance with a result of detection performed by said detection means.

Claim 49

A recording system according to claim 38, wherein said recording head of said recording apparatus uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 54

A method of transferring data to be recorded according to claim 41, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 55

A recording system in which communication between a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded is performed by a bidirectional interface, wherein said host computer has first transferring means for transferring the data corresponding to the plurality of colors and stored in storage means to said recording apparatus without offsetting the data in the sub-scanning direction; receiving means for receiving the data processed by said recording apparatus; conversion means for, in accordance with received data, converting the data stored in said storage means; and second transferring means for offsetting the converted data in accordance with the quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and transferring the offset data, and said recording apparatus has discrimination means for discriminating whether or not data received from said host computer has been offset, processing means for processing the data if the received data has not been offset, transmission means for transmitting the processed data to said host computer, and control means for recording the received data if the received data has been offset.

Claim 56

A recording system in which communication between a recording apparatus for recording data by using a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors; and a host computer for transferring, to said recording apparatus, the data to be recorded is performed by a bidirectional interface, wherein said host computer has first transferring means for transferring the data corresponding to the plurality of colors and stored in storage means to said recording apparatus without offsetting the data in the sub-scanning direction; receiving means for receiving the data processed by said recording apparatus; conversion means for, in accordance with received data, converting the data stored in said storage means; and second transferring means for offsetting the converted data in accordance with the quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and transferring the offset data, and said recording apparatus has discrimination means for discriminating whether or not data received from said host computer has been offset, processing means for processing the data if the received data has not been offset, transmission means for transmitting the processed data to said host computer, and control means for recording the received data if the received data has been offset.

Claim 57

A recording system according to claim 43, wherein said processing means has boundary detection means for detecting boundary between different-color pixels and boundary-pixel replacing means for converting pixel data in the boundary portion detected by said boundary detection means into pixel data for another color.

Claim 58

A recording system according to claim 43, wherein said host computer initially transfers the data stored in said storage means to said recording apparatus without offsetting the data in the sub-scanning direction, and then offsets the data stored in said storage means in the sub-scanning direction to transfer the offset data to said recording apparatus.

Claim 59

A recording system according to claim 43, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 60

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: bidirectional interface means for communication with an external apparatus; discrimination means for discriminating whether or not the data received from said bidirectional interface has been offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; processing means for processing the data if the received data has not been offset; transmission means for transmitting the processed data to said external apparatus through said bidirectional interface; and control means for recording the received data if the received data has been offset.

Claim 61

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: bidirectional interface means for communication with an external apparatus; discrimination means for discriminating whether or not the data received from said bidirectional interface has been offset in the sub-scanning direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the sub-scanning direction relative to recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors; processing means for processing the data if the received data has not been offset; transmission means for transmitting the processed data to said external apparatus through said bidirectional interface; and control means for recording the received data if the received data has been offset.

Claim 62

A recording apparatus according to claim 47, wherein said processing means has boundary detection means for detecting boundary between different-color pixels and boundary-pixel replacing means for converting pixel data in the boundary portion detected by said boundary detection means into pixel data for another color.

Claim 63

A recording apparatus according to claim 47, wherein said recording head uses thermal energy to discharge ink to a recording medium.

Claim 64

A method according to claim 1, wherein said recording elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each said group being separated from those of said groups adjacent thereto by a gap such that said recording elements in said groups are offset in a predetermined direction for recording the plurality of colors.

Claim 65

A recording apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said recording elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each said group being separated from those of said groups adjacent thereto by a gap such that said recording elements in said groups are offset in a predetermined direction for recording the plurality of colors.

Claim 66

A recording system according to claim 16, wherein said recording elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each said group being separated from those of said groups adjacent thereto by a gap such that said recording elements in said groups are offset in a predetermined direction for recording the plurality of colors.

Claim 67

A method of transferring data according to claim 21, wherein said recording elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each said group being separated from those of said groups adjacent thereto by a gap such that said recording elements in said groups are offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording the plurality of colors.

Claim 68

A method of transferring data according to claim 41, wherein said recording elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each said group being separated from those of said groups adjacent thereto by a gap such that said recording elements in said groups are offset in a sub-scanning direction for recording the plurality of colors.

Claim 69

A method according to claim 1, wherein said obtaining step obtains quantities of offset predetermined for each of the plurality of colors.

Claim 70

A recording system according to claim 16, wherein said obtaining means obtains quantities of offset predetermined for each of the plurality of colors.

Claim 73

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: receiving means for receiving both data, which is non-offset and corresponds to said recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and data which is offset in a predetermined direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to the recording elements for the one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; and storage means for storing the non-offset data and the offset data received by said receiving means which correspond to said recording elements for the plurality of colors.

Claim 74

A recording apparatus having a recording head including a plurality of recording elements offset in a predetermined direction for recording a plurality of colors, said recording apparatus comprising: receiving means for receiving both data, which is non-offset and corresponds to said recording elements for any one of the plurality of colors and data which is offset in a predetermined direction in accordance with quantities of offset of said recording elements for the plurality of colors in the predetermined direction relative to the recording elements for the one of the plurality of colors, and which corresponds to the plurality of colors; and storage means for storing the non-offset data and the offset data received by said receiving means which correspond to said recording elements for the plurality of colors.