Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and storage medium
阅读说明:本技术 信息处理设备、信息处理方法和存储介质 (Information processing apparatus, information processing method, and storage medium ) 是由 五十岚勇树 笠松健彦 西川史一 森本泰司 须田康士 原田敬子 于 2020-03-26 设计创作,主要内容包括:本发明提供了信息处理设备、信息处理方法和存储介质。信息处理设备被配置为控制确定打印单元所要打印的打印介质的类型的操作,将通过输入单元输入的信息表示的打印介质的类型确定为要打印的打印介质的类型,并且能够执行测量模式和指定模式。在测量模式中,通过使用测量结果和预先设置的基准特性值来确定要打印的打印介质的类型。在指定模式中,在不使用测量结果的情况下确定要打印的打印介质的类型。信息处理设备被配置为,即使在指定模式中,也基于测量结果来改变针对通过输入单元输入的信息表示的打印介质的类型预先设置的基准特性值。(The invention provides an information processing apparatus, an information processing method, and a storage medium. The information processing apparatus is configured to control an operation of determining a type of a printing medium to be printed by the printing unit, determine the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input through the input unit as the type of the printing medium to be printed, and is capable of executing a measurement mode and a designation mode. In the measurement mode, the type of printing medium to be printed is determined by using the measurement result and a reference characteristic value set in advance. In the designation mode, the type of printing medium to be printed is determined without using the measurement result. The information processing apparatus is configured to change a reference characteristic value set in advance for a type of a printing medium indicated by information input through the input unit based on a measurement result even in the designation mode.)
1. An information processing apparatus comprising:
a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement result obtained by measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a reference characteristic value to identify a type of each printing medium, which is set in advance for the type of the printing medium;
an input unit configured to input information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed; and
a changing unit configured to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for a type of a printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquiring unit,
a control unit configured to control an operation to determine a type of a printing medium to be printed, wherein,
the control unit is configured to determine a type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit as a type of the printing medium to be printed,
the control unit is configured to be able to perform a measurement mode and a designation mode, wherein,
in the measurement mode, a type of a printing medium to be printed is determined by using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit and the reference characteristic value set in advance acquired by the second acquisition unit, and
in the designation mode, a type of a printing medium to be printed is determined without using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit, and
the control unit is configured to cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit, even in the designation mode.
2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value that is set in advance for the type of the printing medium that is determined to be the printing medium and that is input through the input unit.
3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,
the control unit is configured to enable the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of the printing medium, an
The control unit is configured to cause the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of a printing medium without using the measurement result in the designation mode.
4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2,
the control unit is configured to enable the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of the printing medium, an
The control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, extract a candidate for a type of the printing medium whose characteristic value is measured based on the measurement result and the reference characteristic value set in advance, and cause the notification unit to provide the candidate.
5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result, cause the notification unit to provide a type of a plurality of printing media based on the measurement result and the reference characteristic value set in advance, determine a type of a top printing medium of the types of the plurality of printing media as a type of a printing medium to be printed in a case where no operation is performed for a predetermined time, and cause the input unit to input information on the type of the top printing medium of the types of the plurality of printing media, and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium input by the input unit.
6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4,
the preset reference characteristic value is a value including a maximum value and a minimum value, an
The control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of a printing medium for which the reference characteristic value set in advance has a center value and the measurement result falls within a first range with respect to the center value.
7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to cause the notification unit to provide the information indicating the type of the printing medium in a predetermined order in the measurement mode.
8. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the notification unit to preferentially provide information indicating a type of a printing medium that is used more recently, based on usage history information indicating a type of a printing medium that has been determined to be printed.
9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the designation mode, set a type of the printing medium to be printed in advance before measuring a characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed, cause the first acquisition unit to acquire a measurement result of the characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed, cause the input unit to input information relating to the type of the printing medium set in advance, and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium input by the input unit.
10. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the designation mode, acquire a type of a printing medium by reading information for identifying the type of the printing medium, which is printed on the printing medium by a user as information designating the type of the printing medium, the control unit is configured to cause the input unit to input information relating to the acquired type of the printing medium, and to cause the changing unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium input by the input unit.
11. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising a receiving unit configured to receive an input of a mode selected from a plurality of modes for determining a type of a printing medium to be printed and including the measurement mode and the specified mode.
12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the changing unit is configured to change the reference characteristic value so that the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium determined to be printed is close to the measurement result.
13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12,
the reference characteristic value set in advance is a value including a maximum value and a minimum value, an
The changing unit is configured to change the reference characteristic value such that a center value of the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium determined to be printed is close to the measurement result.
14. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the changing unit is configured to set, for a predetermined type of printing medium, the average value of the measurement results when the input unit inputs the information on the predetermined type of printing medium, as the reference characteristic value set in advance for the predetermined type of printing medium.
15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:
a printing unit configured to apply a printing material to a printing medium; and
a conveying unit configured to convey a printing medium to a position where printing is performed, wherein,
in a case where the conveying unit conveys a printing medium to a position where the printing unit can perform printing, the printing unit is configured to perform printing on the printing medium.
16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising:
a carriage loaded with the printing unit and configured to be movable, an
A measurement unit mounted on the carriage and configured to measure a characteristic value of the printing medium conveyed by the conveyance unit to a position where the measurement unit can perform measurement.
17. An information processing apparatus comprising:
a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement result obtained by measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a reference characteristic value to identify a type of each printing medium, which is set in advance for the type of the printing medium;
an input unit configured to input information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed;
a changing unit configured to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for a type of a printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit, based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquiring unit; and
a control unit configured to control an operation to determine a type of a printing medium to be printed, wherein,
the control unit is configured to determine a type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit as a type of the printing medium to be printed, and
the control unit is configured to be able to perform a measurement mode and an identification mode, wherein,
in the measurement mode, a type of a printing medium to be printed is determined by using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit and the reference characteristic value set in advance acquired by the second acquisition unit, and
in the identification mode, without using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit, the type of the printing medium is acquired by reading information for identifying the type of the printing medium printed on the printing medium and the input unit is caused to input information on the acquired type of the printing medium to determine the type of the printing medium to be printed, and
the control unit is configured to cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result even in the recognition mode, and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit, based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit.
18. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value that is set in advance for a type of a printing medium that is input by the input unit and that is determined as a printing medium to be printed.
19. The information processing apparatus according to claim 17,
the control unit is configured to enable the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of the printing medium, an
The control unit is configured to cause the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of a printing medium without using the measurement result in the recognition mode.
20. The information processing apparatus according to claim 17,
the control unit is configured to enable the notification unit to provide information indicating a type of the printing medium, an
The control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, extract a candidate for a type of the printing medium whose characteristic value is measured based on the measurement result and the reference characteristic value set in advance, and cause the notification unit to provide the candidate.
21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the control unit is configured to, in the measurement mode, cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result, cause the notification unit to provide types of a plurality of printing media based on the measurement result and the reference characteristic value set in advance, determine a type of a top printing medium of the types of the plurality of printing media as a type of a printing medium to be printed in a case where no operation is performed for a predetermined time, and cause the input unit to input information on the type of the top printing medium of the types of the plurality of printing media, and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium input by the input unit.
22. An information processing method comprising:
in the case where the measurement process is performed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and
in the case where the specified processing is executed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information about a type of a printing medium to be printed without using the measured characteristic value; and
based on the measured characteristic value, a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium is changed.
23. The information processing method according to claim 22, further comprising:
in the case where the measurement process is performed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
extracting candidates for the type of the print medium on which the measurement is performed, based on the measured characteristic value and a reference characteristic value set in advance;
providing information indicating candidates of the extracted type of the printing medium, and inputting information indicating the type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium is changed based on the measured characteristic value and the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium.
24. An information processing method comprising:
in the case where the measurement process is performed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and
in the case where the specified processing is executed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
determining a type of a printing medium to be printed without considering the measured characteristic value;
inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
based on the measured characteristic value, a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium is changed.
25. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute a process, the process comprising:
in the case where the measurement process is performed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information on a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and
in the case where the specified processing is executed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed without using the measured characteristic value; and
based on the measured characteristic value, a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium is changed.
26. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer to execute a process, the process comprising:
in the case where the measurement process is performed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and
in the case where the specified processing is executed,
measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed;
acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium;
determining a type of a printing medium to be printed without considering the measured characteristic value;
inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and
based on the measured characteristic value, a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium is changed.
Technical Field
The invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a printing apparatus, an information processing method, and a program.
Background
When printing is performed using a printing apparatus, it is known to perform printing by using control parameters suitable for the type of printing medium. Japanese patent laid-open No. 2016-.
Disclosure of Invention
However, since errors of sensors for measuring characteristic values of the printing medium, individual differences between the printing media, differences in measurement environments, and the like affect the measured values, the type of the printing medium may not be identified with sufficient accuracy in the case of using a reference prepared in advance.
The present invention provides accurate identification of the type of printing medium by increasing the chances to improve the accuracy of determining the type of printing medium based on the measurement result.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an information processing apparatus includes: a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement result obtained by measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed; a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a reference characteristic value to identify a type of each printing medium, which is set in advance for the type of the printing medium; an input unit configured to input information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed; and a changing unit configured to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit, a control unit configured to control an operation to determine the type of the printing medium to be printed, wherein the control unit is configured to determine the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit as the type of the printing medium to be printed, the control unit is configured to be capable of executing a measurement mode in which the type of the printing medium to be printed is determined by using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit and the reference characteristic value set in advance acquired by the second acquisition unit, and a designation mode in which the type of the printing medium to be printed is determined, the control unit is configured to cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit, even in the designation mode.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an information processing apparatus includes: a first acquisition unit configured to acquire a measurement result obtained by measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed; a second acquisition unit configured to acquire a reference characteristic value to identify a type of each printing medium, which is set in advance for the type of the printing medium; an input unit configured to input information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed; a changing unit configured to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for a type of a printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit, based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquiring unit; and a control unit configured to control an operation to determine a type of a printing medium to be printed, wherein the control unit is configured to determine the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit as the type of the printing medium to be printed, and the control unit is configured to be capable of executing a measurement mode in which the type of the printing medium to be printed is determined by using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit and the reference characteristic value set in advance acquired by the second acquisition unit, and an identification mode in which the type of the printing medium is acquired by reading the information for identifying the type of the printing medium printed on the printing medium without using the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit and the input unit inputs the type of the printing medium related to the acquired type of the printing medium Information to determine a type of a printing medium to be printed, and the control unit is configured to cause the first acquisition unit to acquire the measurement result even in the recognition mode, and cause the change unit to change the reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the printing medium indicated by the information input by the input unit, based on the measurement result acquired by the first acquisition unit.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an information processing method includes: measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed in a case where the measurement process is performed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and measuring a characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed in a case where the specified processing is executed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information about a type of a printing medium to be printed without using the measured characteristic value; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an information processing method includes: measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed in a case where the measurement process is performed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and measuring a characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed in a case where the specified processing is executed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; determining a type of a printing medium to be printed without considering the measured characteristic value; inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores a program for causing a computer to execute a process, the process including: measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed in a case where the measurement process is performed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information on a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and measuring a characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed in a case where the specified processing is executed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information indicating a type of a printing medium to be printed without using the measured characteristic value; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores a program for causing a computer to execute a process, the process including: measuring a characteristic value of a printing medium to be printed in a case where the measurement process is performed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value; and measuring a characteristic value of the printing medium to be printed in a case where the specified processing is executed; acquiring a reference characteristic value preset for each type of printing medium to identify the type of the printing medium; determining a type of a printing medium to be printed without considering the measured characteristic value; inputting information indicating a type of the printing medium determined to be printed; and changing a reference characteristic value set in advance for the type of the input printing medium based on the measured characteristic value.
Other features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the attached drawings. The embodiments of the present invention described below can be implemented alone or as a combination of a plurality of embodiments. Furthermore, features from different embodiments may be combined, where desired, or where combinations of elements or features from various embodiments from a single embodiment are beneficial.
Drawings
Fig. 1A and 1B are perspective views illustrating the structure of a printing apparatus according to an embodiment.
Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a structure of a carriage according to the embodiment.
Fig. 3 is a diagram showing the structure of an optical sensor in the embodiment.
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a block configuration of a control system of the printing apparatus in the embodiment.
Fig. 5A to 5D are diagrams illustrating display modes of the input/output unit in the embodiment.
Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing a print medium determination process in the embodiment.
Fig. 7A to 7G are diagrams illustrating display modes of the input/output unit in the embodiment.
Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an estimation manual mode in the embodiment.
Fig. 9A and 9B are tables showing characteristic values stored in the EEPROM in the embodiment.
Fig. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a print medium extraction process in the embodiment.
Fig. 11A to 11C are diagrams illustrating other modes of the input/output unit.
Fig. 12 is a table showing an example of measured values in the embodiment.
Fig. 13 is a table showing the judgment result in the print medium determination process of the embodiment.
Fig. 14A and 14B are tables showing priority assignment in the embodiment.
Fig. 15A to 15D are tables for illustrating a method of calculating a characteristic value in the embodiment.
Fig. 16 is a flowchart showing an estimation automatic mode in the embodiment.
Fig. 17 is a flowchart showing a manual mode in the embodiment.
Fig. 18 is a flowchart showing a fixed mode in the embodiment.
Fig. 19 is a flowchart showing a barcode mode in the embodiment.
Fig. 20A and 20B are diagrams illustrating a barcode to be printed on a print medium in the embodiment.
Detailed Description
First embodiment
Integral structure
Fig. 1A and 1B are perspective views illustrating the structure of a
The
The carriage 101 includes an optical sensor 201 (fig. 2) and a
A
Structure of carriage
Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating the structure of the carriage 101. The carriage 101 includes a translator 202 and a head holder 203. The head holder 203 holds the
Structure of optical sensor
Fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the
The second LED 302 is a light source having an irradiation angle of 60 ° with respect to the Z direction from the surface (measurement surface) of the
The third LED 303 is a light source having an irradiation angle of 90 ° with respect to a normal line (measurement surface) of the surface (measurement surface) of the
In the present embodiment, the
Block diagram of a computer system
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a block structure of a control system of the
An interface (I/F)
The input/
Alternatively, the input unit may be a keyboard of an external host computer, and may be configured to be able to receive an instruction of a user from the external host computer. The output unit may be a display connected to an LED display, an LCD display, or a host device. Alternatively, when the input/
An information processing apparatus that includes a CPU and a ROM having the same functions as those of the
When measurement is performed with the
The print
The data transmitted from the I/
Method of selecting type of printing medium
By identifying the type of the
In the present embodiment, there are five modes in selecting the type of printing medium. The five modes are a fixed mode, a manual mode, an estimated automatic mode, and a barcode mode. Among these modes, the estimation manual mode and the estimation automatic mode are measurement modes for estimating the type of the printing medium from the measurement result. The manual mode, the fixed mode, and the barcode mode are designated modes for determining the type of the printing medium by a user designating the type of the printing medium or by mode designation without using the measurement result.
In the fixed mode, the type of printing medium set in advance by the user is automatically determined as the type of printing medium to be printed.
In the manual mode, categories of printing media are displayed on the input/
In the evaluation manual mode, the characteristics of the
In the estimation automatic mode, the characteristics of the
In the barcode mode, information indicating the type of a printing medium is printed as a barcode on the printing medium in advance, and the type of the printing medium to be printed is determined by reading the barcode.
The user can switch the above five modes. Fig. 5A illustrates a home screen displayed on the input/
When "main setting" is selected on the main screen, a main setting screen as shown in fig. 5B is displayed. When the
Common flow between modes
Fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a print medium determination process of determining the type of the
In the following print medium determination process, a measurement value is obtained as new information of a characteristic value for a type of print medium selected by a user, and a predetermined characteristic value is changed based on the measurement value so that the predetermined characteristic value approaches the measurement value. By such learning, a characteristic value with which the type of printing medium can be selected more accurately is obtained.
For the fixed mode, the manual mode, the barcode mode, the measurement result of the print medium characteristic measured with the
The processing of step S101 to step S107 of fig. 6 is realized, for example, when the
When the
When "yes" is selected in fig. 7A and sheet feeding starts, conveying the
Subsequently, the
Hereinafter, a process suitable for each mode in step S103 to step S107 will be described.
Estimating manual mode
In the evaluation manual mode, a measurement value is obtained as new information of a characteristic value for a type of printing medium selected by a user, and a predetermined characteristic value is changed based on the measurement value so that the predetermined characteristic value approaches the measurement value. By such learning, a characteristic value with which the type of printing medium can be selected more accurately is obtained.
Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing the estimation manual mode of step S103.
In step S201, the
The type of the printing medium whose characteristic value falls below the characteristic indicated by the measured value to a degree higher than a predetermined degree is extracted. The details will be described below. Fig. 9A shows characteristic values of the types of respective printing media stored in the
In step S701, the type of the printing medium whose acquired paper thickness falls within the paper thickness extraction range stored in the storage unit (EEPROM)404 is extracted. In the present embodiment, the paper thickness extraction range is a range of ± 50 μm with respect to the central value.
It is judged whether there is any extracted type of printing medium (step S702).
In the case where the type of the print medium type is not extracted, information indicating that the type of the extracted print medium does not exist is stored in the RAM403, and the print medium extraction process is ended.
In the case where there is the extracted type of printing medium in step S702, the type of printing medium whose acquired diffuse reflection value falls within the diffuse reflection value extraction range stored in the storage unit (EEPROM)404 is extracted (step S703). As shown in fig. 9A, the diffuse reflection value extraction range is a range of ± 5 with respect to the central value. Here, it is determined whether there is a type of the extracted printing medium (step S704). When there is no type of applicable printing medium, information indicating that there is no type of extracted printing medium is stored in the RAM403, and the printing medium extraction process is ended.
In the case where there is the extracted type of printing medium in step S704, the type of printing medium whose acquired specular reflection value falls within the specular reflection value extraction range stored in the storage unit (EEPROM)404 is extracted (step S705). As shown in fig. 9A, the high light reflectance value extraction range is a range of ± 5 with respect to the central value. Here, it is judged whether or not there is a type of the extracted printing medium (step S706). When there is no type of applicable printing medium, information indicating that there is no type of extracted printing medium is stored in the RAM403, and the printing medium extraction process is ended.
In the case where there is the type of the extracted printing medium in step S706, information indicating the type of the extracted printing medium is stored in the RAM403, and the printing medium extraction process is ended.
When the print medium extraction process ends in step S201, it is determined whether there is any extracted print medium in step S202. This determination is made by the
In the case where there is the extracted type of printing medium in step S202, the type of printing medium is assigned a priority in order of the proximity of the characteristic value of the extracted type of printing medium with respect to the measurement value (step S203). A method of determining the display order will be described in detail later.
As shown in fig. 7D, the names of the types of printing media are displayed in descending order of the priority determined in step S203 from the top (step S204).
Fig. 7D displays the names of the printing media in descending order of priority, in the form of the names of the printing media preceded by
In fig. 7D, candidates of up to three printing media may be displayed from the top; however, since the number of types of extracted printing media is two, only two printing media are displayed in fig. 7D. The user is notified that there is no third candidate by displaying "no available selection" in a light color (or dark color) in the third column so as to be less noticeable than the names of the above-described two printing media. For example, in the case where the background color of the operation panel is black, two print media are displayed in white, and the text "no available selection" is displayed in gray with lower brightness than white. The category of paper is displayed under the text "no available selections". In this way, in a case where a print medium desired by the user is not included in the print media displayed on the input/
Fig. 11A to 11C illustrate a method of displaying candidates of the type of printing medium on the input/
Alternatively, as shown in fig. 11C, only the printing medium having the first bit priority may be displayed. When the user desires to select other of the extracted printing media, the user can select a portion of the item of the printing media displayed as standard plain paper in fig. 11C. The display method may be configured such that when a selection is input, the screen appears as shown in fig. 7D, and other printing media may be selected.
When it is determined in step S202 that there is no type of extracted printing medium, the category is displayed on the operation panel as shown in fig. 7B (step S205). When a category selected by the user is input, the types of printing media in the category are displayed as shown in fig. 7C. Then, among the displayed types of printing media, an input of a selected type of printing media is received. The input is made by touching the name of the displayed print medium. Fig. 7B shows "all" at the bottom in addition to the category of the printing medium. When "all" is selected, all the printing media are displayed in a predetermined order. The print media may be displayed in the latest order (i.e., the order from the most recently used print media).
When the user selects the type of printing medium on the input/
When the print medium determination process is ended and the print preparation is completed, the
In the printing medium extraction process of fig. 10, the type of printing medium having an appropriate paper thickness is extracted in step S701, the type of printing medium having an appropriate diffuse reflectance value is extracted in step S703, and the type of printing medium having an appropriate high specular reflectance value is extracted in step S705. The order to be extracted is not limited to this, and for example, the type of printing medium having an appropriate diffuse reflectance value may be extracted first.
In the case where the
A method of determining the display order of step S203 and updating of the characteristic value of step S208 of the print medium determination process will be described below by way of specific examples. As shown in fig. 12, the characteristic of the printing medium acquired in step S101 is (diffuse reflectance value, high specular reflectance value, paper thickness) ═ 103, 98, 225. Fig. 13 is a table showing the determination result of the processing of step S201. "applicable" means a print medium whose measured value falls within the extraction range. "not applicable" indicates a printing medium whose measured value does not fall within the extraction range. The print medium for which at least one characteristic value does not fall within the extraction range is not subjected to the determination in the next process. This is shown as "don't judge" in fig. 13.
In step S701, standard glossy paper, standard half glossy paper, high-grade glossy paper, and thick glossy paper, which are the types of print media whose acquired paper thicknesses (i.e., 190) fall within the paper thickness extraction range shown in fig. 9A, are extracted. Since there is the type of the extracted printing medium, an affirmative determination is made in step S702, and the process proceeds to step S703.
In step S703, from among the print media extracted in step S701, standard glossy paper, standard semi-glossy paper, and thick glossy paper, which are the types of print media whose measured diffuse reflection values (i.e., 103) fall within the diffuse reflection value extraction range shown in fig. 9A, are extracted. Since there is the type of the extracted printing medium, an affirmative determination is made in step S704, and the process proceeds to step S705.
In step S705, from among the print media extracted in step S703, print media whose measured specular reflectance values fall within the specular reflectance value extraction range shown in fig. 9A are extracted. Here, standard glossy paper, standard semi-glossy paper, and thick glossy paper were extracted. Since there is an extracted printing medium, an affirmative determination is made in step S706, and the process proceeds to step S707. In step S707, information indicating the type of the extracted printing medium is stored in the
Since there is the type of the extracted printing medium in step S202, the process proceeds to step S203. In step S203, priorities are assigned to the printing media such that the printing media having characteristic values closer to the measured values have higher priority orders. Then, in step S204, the names of the types of the extracted printing media are displayed in the order of the printing media having the higher priority order from the top.
Fig. 14A and 14B are tables for illustrating a method of determination of the order in step S203. In the present embodiment, the following calculation method is used to calculate the closeness between the center value and the measured value of each characteristic. | (measurement value-center value of characteristic)/(maximum value of characteristic-center value of characteristic) | ventilation
A minimum value may be used instead of a maximum value of the characteristic.
For example, when calculating the high light reflectance value of standard gloss paper, | (103-100)/(105-95) | is 0.6. The above calculation is performed for the type of the printing medium extracted in step S201, and the values close to the measured value of the characteristic are added. The print medium having the smaller total value has the characteristic value closer to the measured value. The printing medium determined to have the smaller total value is a type of a higher-rank printing medium, and is thus displayed on the input/
The process of step S207 in the case where the user selects the standard half gloss paper displayed for the third digit in step S206 will be described.
In step S207, it is determined whether the measured value acquired in step S101 falls within the learning range of the standard semi-gloss paper as the type of the selected printing medium. In the case where the measured values fall within the learning ranges of all the characteristics (i.e., the diffuse reflectance value, the high specular reflectance value, and the paper thickness), it is determined that the measured values fall within the learning range of the standard semi-glossy paper. As shown in fig. 9A, the extraction range of the high light reflectance values of the standard semi-glossy paper is from 94 to 104, i.e., the range of (middle) ± 5 with respect to the center value set to 99. As described above, the learning range is a range twice as wide as the extraction range with respect to the same center value as the extraction range. The learning range of the high light reflectance value of the standard semi-glossy paper is from 89 to 109, i.e., a range of ± 10 with respect to the center value set to 99. Likewise, the learning range of the diffuse reflection value of the standard semi-gloss paper is from 85 to 105, and the learning range of the paper thickness is from 90 to 290. Since all the measured values (diffuse reflectance value, high light reflectance value, paper thickness) — (103, 98, 225) fall within the above-described learning range, the process proceeds to step S208.
In step S208, the characteristic value of the type of the selected printing medium is updated based on the measured value. The characteristic values shown in fig. 9A are characteristic values before updating. Fig. 12 shows the measured values. In the present embodiment, the characteristic value of the type of the printing medium approaches the measurement value at the set percentage. Since the measured value contains a measurement error, instead of directly replacing the characteristic value with the measured value at a time, the characteristic value may be changed in such a manner that the difference between the measured value and the characteristic value is reduced stepwise (by a set percentage) a plurality of times by learning. One such example is represented by the following general formula.
Updated characteristic value (T)n+1) (measured value (R) — characteristic value (T)n) ×α + characteristic value (T) before updaten) Where α is a value representing a percentage by which the characteristic value is brought close to the measured value, in the case where the reduction percentage of the difference is set to 25%, the center value of the high light reflectance value is as followsn=T0(initial value) of T is obtained by the first update1。
When R is 103 and Tn=T0When the value is 99, T is obtained as follows1。
T1=(103-99)×0.25+99=100
Likewise, the diffuse reflection value and the characteristic value of the paper thickness are updated. The updated results are shown in fig. 9B. The fact that the extraction range of the high light reflectance value and the extraction range of the diffuse reflectance value are each ± 5 from the center value and the extraction range of the paper thickness is ± 50 from the center value remains unchanged, and the minimum value and the maximum value are also updated in accordance with the center value. The original property values are overwritten with the updated property values. The updated characteristic value is stored in the
In the above example, in the case of updating the characteristic value, the characteristic value is brought close to the measurement value by 25%; however, the reduction percentage of the difference is not limited thereto, and may be a percentage higher than 0% and lower than or equal to 100%. The reduction percentage of the difference may be set for each type of printing medium or may be set for each characteristic.
In a state where the characteristic value is updated as shown in fig. 9B, the standard semi-glossy paper whose characteristic of the printing medium is (diffuse reflectance value, high reflectance value, paper thickness) ═ (103, 98, 225) is measured again. The priority assignment results in the order of the closeness of the characteristic value with respect to the measured value are shown in fig. 14B. As a result of the update of the characteristic values of the standard semi-glossy paper, the order of the standard semi-glossy paper is the first order. Therefore, in step S204, the standard semi-gloss paper as the measured print medium is displayed as the top print medium on the input/
Providing information in order of proximity of the characteristic values relative to the measured values; however, other methods may be employed. When the use history information of the printing medium used or the like is stored in the
Alternatively, as another method of incorporating the measured values into the characteristic values of the type of the printing medium, an average value of the last N measured values may be set as each characteristic value. Fig. 15A to 15D are tables for illustrating a method of setting characteristic values by using the last three measured values. Here, as an example, a high light reflectance value of standard semi-glossy paper will be described. Fig. 15A shows a case where the standard semi-glossy paper is not selected at one time in step S206. In fig. 15A, 99 as an initial setting value is input as the last three values, and the average value is also 99, so the characteristic value is 99. In fig. 15B, in the case where the standard semi-glossy paper is selected, the measured
Estimating automatic mode
Fig. 16 is a flowchart showing the estimation automatic mode of step S104.
The same processing as that of step S201 to step S205 of estimating the manual mode shown in fig. 8 is performed in step S301 to step S303 and step S305.
In step S304, as shown in fig. 7F, the names of the types of printing media are displayed in descending order of priority determined in step S303 from the top. Along with the candidates for the type of printing medium, "
When the user does not operate the input/
When the user operates the input/
In step S310, the characteristic value of the selected type of printing medium is updated with a value changed based on the measurement value, and the changed value is stored in the
Manual mode
Fig. 17 is a flowchart showing the manual mode of step S105.
In step S401, the category of the printing medium illustrated in fig. 7B is displayed on the input/
When the user selects a category, the types of printing media belonging to the category selected by the user are displayed as shown in fig. 7C. When the user selects a printing medium from the displayed types of printing media (step S402), it is determined in step S403 whether the measured value falls within the learning range of the selected printing medium. The same processing as that of step S207 and step S208 in fig. 8 is executed in step S403 and step S404. In a case where the measured value does not fall within the learning range, the print medium determination processing in the manual mode is ended without updating the characteristic value. In the case where the measured value falls within the learning range, in step S404, the characteristic value of the type of printing medium selected in step S402 is updated with a value that changes based on the measured value, and the changed value is stored in the
Fixed mode
In the case of using the fixed mode, before starting the printing medium determination process, the user selects the fixed mode and sets in advance the type of printing medium to be fixedly used. The set type of printing medium is stored in the
Fig. 18 is a flowchart showing the fixed mode of step S106.
In step S501, the name of the type of printing medium set in advance is displayed on the input/
In a case where the user does not operate the input/
When the "paper type" is selected within the predetermined time in step S502, as shown in fig. 7B, the category of the printing medium is displayed, and the user can select the type of the printing medium which is not set in advance. When the type of printing medium is selected in step S503, the process proceeds to step S504.
The same processing as that of step S207 and step S208 of fig. 8 is executed in step S504 and step S505. In step S504, it is determined whether the measured value falls within the learning range of the selected printing medium. When the measured value does not fall within the learning range, the print medium determination processing in the fixed mode is ended without updating the characteristic value. In the case where the measured value falls within the learning range, the characteristic value of the type of the selected printing medium is updated with a value changed based on the measured value in step S505, and the changed value is stored in the
Bar code pattern
The bar code pattern is mainly used for roll paper. Hereinafter, description will be made on the assumption that the printing medium to be printed is roll paper. A print medium is set in the
Fig. 19 is a flowchart showing the barcode mode of step S107.
In step S601, a barcode printed on the
In step S602, it is determined whether the barcode is readable. In the case where the barcode is readable, in step S604, the
In the case where the type of the printing medium is determined in step S604, the same processing as that of step S207 and step S208 of fig. 8 is executed in step S605 and step S606. In step S605, it is determined whether the measured value falls within the learning range of the selected printing medium. In the case where the measured value does not fall within the learning range, the print medium determination processing in the barcode mode is ended without updating the characteristic value. In the case where the measured value falls within the learning range, in step S606, the characteristic value of the selected type of printing medium is updated with a value that changes based on the measured value, and the changed value is stored in the
As described above, even in a mode in which the type of the printing medium to be printed is determined without using the measurement result, the characteristics of the printing medium are measured, and the characteristic value of the type of the printing medium determined based on the measurement value is learned. Therefore, it is more likely that the characteristic value that enables the type of the printing medium to be identified more accurately is obtained than in the case of learning in the mode using only the measurement result.
OTHER EMBODIMENTS
The embodiments of the present invention can also be realized by a method in which software (programs) that perform the functions of the above-described embodiments are supplied to a system or an apparatus through a network or various storage media, and a computer or a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Micro Processing Unit (MPU) of the system or the apparatus reads out and executes the methods of the programs.
According to the embodiments of the present invention, the probability that the type of the printing medium can be accurately identified is higher.
While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments.