Printer calibration method and apparatus therefor

Claim 2

A calibration method for a printer that prints a full-color image on a recording paper in a color frame sequential fashion, the calibration method comprising the steps of: A. printing a pattern predetermined for use in calibration onto a recording paper by the printer; B. measuring color separation densities of the printed pattern; C. detecting a density difference between the measured density of a first color and a set density of the first color; D. calculating a first correction amount for correcting recording energy for the first color on the basis of the density difference detected in the step C; E. estimating densities of second and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the first color is corrected with the first correction amount; F. detecting a density difference between the estimated density of the second color obtained in the step E and a set density of the second color; G. calculating a second correction amount for correcting recording energy for the second color on the basis of the density difference detected in the step F; H. estimating densities of the first and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the second color is corrected with the second correction amount; I. detecting a density difference between the last obtained estimated density of the third color and a set density of the third color; J. calculating a third correction amount for correcting recording energy for the third color on the basis of the density difference detected in the step I; K. estimating densities of the first and second colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the third color is corrected with the third correction amount; L. detecting a density difference between the last obtained estimated density of the first color and the set density of the first color; M. checking if the density difference detected in the step L is within a predetermined range; N. repeating the steps C to M till the density difference detected in step L comes within the predetermined range, while using the last obtained estimated densities of the first and second colors and the set density of the third color in place of the measured densities of the respective colors; O. memorizing, when the density difference detected in step L comes within the predetermined range, the last obtained recording energy correction amounts for the first to third colors; and P. correcting the recording energies for the first to third colors with the memorized recording energy correction amounts.

Claim 3

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising the steps of: checking if the density difference detected in the step C is within a predetermined range; skipping over the steps D and E when the density difference detected in the step C is within the predetermined range; checking if the density difference detected in the step F is within a predetermined range; skipping over the steps G and H when the density difference detected in the step F is within the predetermined range; checking if the density difference detected in the step I is within a predetermined range; and skipping over the steps J and K when the density difference detected in the step I is within the predetermined range, wherein the measured density of one of the first to third colors is used in place of the estimated density of the one color to detect the density difference in one of the steps F, I and L, if all of the density estimation steps of the one color are skipped.

Claim 4

A calibration method as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the recording energy correction amount for each color is calculated in accordance with a previously obtained characteristic curve representative of a relationship between the density difference of that color and the recording energy correction amount for that color.

Claim 5

A calibration method as claimed in claim 3 , wherein the density estimation of the second and third colors in the step E is based on the measured density of the second and third colors, the density estimation of the first color in the step H is based on the set density of the first color, the density estimation of the third color in the step H is based on the estimated density or the measured density of the third color, the density estimation of the second color in the step K is based on the set density of the second color, and the density estimation of the first color in the step K is based on the estimated density of the first color obtained in the step H or the measured density of the first color.

Claim 6

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pattern consists of a gray patch of a uniform density.

Claim 7

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pattern consists of a plurality of gray patches of different density grades, and the steps B to O are carried out with respect to the respective gray patches to obtain a plurality of recording energy correction amounts for different density grades.

Claim 8

A calibration method as claimed in claim 6 , further comprising the step of deriving intermediate values between the plurality of recording energy correction amounts from the plurality of recording energy correction amounts by spline interpolation or linear interpolation.

Claim 9

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the printer is a thermosensitive color printer, and the recording paper has a cyan thermosensitive coloring layer, a magenta thermosensitive coloring layer and a yellow thermosensitive coloring layer formed on a base material in this order toward an obverse of the recording paper.

Claim 10

A calibration method as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the first, second and third colors are respectively magenta, yellow and cyan.

Claim 11

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the printer records cyan, magenta, yellow and black pixels for reproducing a full-color image, and recording energy for yellow, magenta and cyan are corrected in the steps A to P with regard to a high brightness range where gray is reproduced by use of yellow, magenta and cyan pixels excluding black pixels.

Claim 12

A calibration method as claimed in claim 10 , wherein magenta, yellow and cyan are the first, second and third colors respectively.

Claim 13

A calibration method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein an alarm is given when the number of times of repetition of the steps C to M comes to a predetermined value.

Claim 14

A calibration apparatus for a printer that prints a full-color image on a recording paper in a color frame sequential fashion, the calibration apparatus comprising: a calibration pattern generator for generating data to print a pattern predetermined for use in calibration; a density measuring device for measuring color separation densities of the pattern as printed on the recording paper by the printer; an operation device for determining recording energy correction amounts for first, second and third colors, wherein the operation device detects a density difference between a density of the first color measured by the density measuring device and a set density of the first color, calculates a first correction amount for correcting recording energy for the first color on the basis of the density difference of the first color, and estimates densities of second and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the first color is corrected with the first correction amount, then the operation device detects a density difference between the estimated density of the second color and a set density of the second color, calculates a second correction amount for correcting recording energy for the second color on the basis of the density difference of the second color, and estimates densities of the first and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the second color is corrected with the second correction amount, then the operation device detects a density difference between the estimated density of the third color and a set density of the third color, calculates a third correction amount for correcting recording energy for the third color on the basis of the density difference of the third color, and estimates densities of the first and second colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the third color is corrected with the third correction amount, and then the operation device detects a density difference between the last obtained estimated density of the first color and the set density of the first color, to check if the last obtained density difference of the first color is within a predetermined range, and repeats the same operation until the density difference of the first color becomes within the predetermined range, while using the last obtained estimated densities of the first and second colors and the set density of the third color in place of the measured densities of the respective colors; a memory for memorizing the last obtained recording energy correction amounts for the first to third colors when the density difference of the first color becomes within the predetermined range; and a device for correcting the recording energies for the first to third colors with the memorized recording energy correction amounts.

Claim 15

A calibration apparatus for a printer that prints a full-color image on a recording paper in a color frame sequential fashion, the calibration apparatus comprising: a calibration pattern generator for generating data to print a pattern predetermined for use in calibration; a density measuring device for measuring color separation densities of the pattern as printed on the recording paper by the printer; an operation device for determining recording energy correction amounts for first, second and third colors, wherein the operation device detects a density difference between a density of the first color measured by the density measuring device and a set density of the first color, calculates a first correction amount for correcting recording energy for the first color on the basis of the density difference of the first color, and estimates densities of second and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the first color is corrected with the first correction amount, then the operation device detects a density difference between the estimated density of the second color and a set density of the second color, calculates a second correction amount for correcting recording energy for the second color on the basis of the density difference of the second color, and estimates densities of the first and third colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the second color is corrected with the second correction amount, then the operation device detects a density difference between the estimated density of the third color and a set density of the third color, calculates a third correction amount for correcting recording energy for the third color on the basis of the density difference of the third color, and estimates densities of the first and second colors of the pattern that would be obtained if the pattern is printed after the recording energy for the third color is corrected with the third correction amount, and then the operation device detects a density difference between the last obtained estimated density of the first color and the set density of the first color, to check if the last obtained density difference of the first color is within a predetermined range, and repeats the same operation until the density difference of the first color becomes within the predetermined range, while using the last obtained estimated densities of the first and second colors and the set density of the third color in place of the measured densities of the respective colors; a memory for memorizing the last obtained recording energy correction amounts for the first to third colors when the density difference of the first color becomes within the predetermined range; and a device for correcting the recording energies for the first to third colors with the memorized recording energy correction amounts.

Claim 16

A calibration apparatus as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the printer is a thermosensitive color printer, and the recording paper has a cyan thermosensitive coloring layer, a magenta thermosensitive coloring layer and a yellow thermosensitive coloring layer formed on a base material in this order toward an obverse of the recording paper.

Claim 17

A calibration apparatus as claimed in claim 14 , wherein the first, second and third colors are respectively magenta, yellow and cyan.

Claim 18

A calibration apparatus as claimed in claim 13 or 14 , wherein the calibration apparatus is incorporated into the printer.