DETAILED ACTION
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 1-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kido (2014/0233071) in view of Nishimura (2020/0406632) and Suzuki (2020/0039248).
Regarding claim 1, Kido teaches a printing device comprising:
a recording head including a black nozzle row in which a plurality of black nozzles for ejecting black ink droplets are aligned and a plurality of color nozzle groups in which a plurality of color nozzles for ejecting color ink droplets are aligned along the black nozzle row, the color nozzle groups being aligned in order in an alignment direction of the plurality of black nozzles ([0043]);
a drive section configured to perform main scanning in which a relative position between the recording head and the recording medium is changed in a forward path and a return path along a main scanning direction, which intersects the alignment direction, and to perform sub-scanning in which the relative position between the recording head and the recording medium is changed along a sub-scanning direction, which intersects the main scanning direction ([0043]); and
a control section (fig. 1) configured to control bidirectional printing in which color ink droplets are deposited on the recording medium in both the forward path and in the return path of one main scanning between sub-scannings, from the color nozzle groups allocated to band regions, which correspond to lengths in the sub-scanning direction of the color nozzle groups that eject the color ink droplets ([0043], see fig. 2), wherein
the plurality of color nozzle groups includes
a first color nozzle group that ejects first color ink droplets of the color ink droplets to a band region in at least one of the forward path and the return path in the bidirectional printing ([0043], see fig. 5A) and
a second color nozzle group that ejects second color ink droplets of the color ink droplets to the band region in at least the other of the forward path and in the return path in the bidirectional printing, ([0043], see fig. 5A),
the control section includes a compensation section that compensates for a color shift due to a timing difference between a timing of ejection of the first color ink droplets and a timing of ejection of the second color ink droplets that occurs depending on a position in the main scanning direction in the band region ([0043], see fig. 5A), and
the compensation section is configured to
form a reference patch on a reference area of the recording medium by ejecting the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets in a predetermined recording density ratio at a reference timing difference, which is a reference for the timing difference such that the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets overlap on the reference area, the predetermined recording density ratio is a ratio of a density of the first color ink droplets relative to the second color ink droplets in the reference area, the reference timing difference is a difference between a timing of the ejection of the first color ink droplets to the reference area and a timing of the ejection of the second color ink droplets to the reference area ([0043], see fig. 5A),
form a plurality of first patches on a plurality of first areas the recording medium by ejecting the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets in a plurality of different recording density ratios of the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets in the first areas, respectively, such that
the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets overlap on each of the plurality of first areas,
all of the first patches have a same density of the first color ink droplets,
all of the first patches are formed with at a same timing difference that is a first timing difference between a timing of the ejection of the first color ink droplets to each of the first areas and a timing of the ejection of the second color ink droplets to each of the first areas, the first timing difference is different from the reference timing difference ([0043], see fig. 5A), and
form a print image after compensating for the color shift due to the timing difference, wherein the compensation is based on a recording density ratio that corresponds to a first color shift compensation patch that was selected from the plurality of first patches ([0043], see figs. 2, 5A, Note reference patch 504 with a reference ejection timing difference and plurality of first patches 503/505 and patches corresponding to -2 and +2 timing differences).
Kido does not expressly teach wherein different colors are ejected in the forward pass and the return pass or wherein the color of the first ink droplets and the color of the second ink droplets are different from each other or wherein each of the first patches has a different density of the second color ink droplets. Nishimura teaches wherein different color inks are deposited in each patch of a test pattern, and wherein different densities of color droplets are deposited in each patch while the density of black in in each patch remains the same (Nishimura, see fig. 15). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to deposit inks of different colors in patches of a test pattern, as disclosed by Nishimura, in the device disclosed by Kido because doing so would amount to combining prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results. In other words, because Kido does not go into detail about the colors of its inks in each pass, it would be obvious to one of skill to look to Nishimura for information about the colors of inks that could be deposited in the forward and return paths.
Examiner acknowledges that Nishimura is directed to a thermal printer rather than an inkjet printer of the type disclosed by Kido. Nonetheless, Examiner maintains that the density varying technique for test pattern print patches disclosed by Nishimura would have been obvious to apply to any printer using test patterns to calibrate ink deposition.
Kido in view of Nishimura does not teach wherein the processor is configured to form a plurality of first reference patches, as the reference patches, such that each of the plurality of first reference patches is disposed between adjacent first patches of the first patches, the predetermined recording density ratio is the same for all of the first reference patches, and the reference timing difference is same for all of the first reference patches or wherein the first timing difference is greater than the reference timing difference. Suzuki teaches this (Suzuki, see fig. 10, Note reference patches 1001, first patches 1011, note that the references patches are between adjacent first patches, note that reference patches have the same density, note that the timing difference varies by a greater amount between the first patches than it does with the reference patches). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the technique disclosed by Suzuki to the device and method disclosed by Kido in view of Nishimura because doing so would make for a more robust timing calibration method.
Regarding claim 2, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 1, wherein
form a plurality of second patches on the recording medium by ejecting the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets in a plurality of different recording density ratios of the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets in the second areas, respectively, such that the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets overlap on each of the plurality of second areas,
all of the second patches have a same denity of the first color ink droplets, each of the second patches has a different density of the second color ink droplets, and all of the second patches are formed sane timing difference that is a second timing difference between a timing of the ejection of the first color ink droplets and a timing of the ejection of the second color ink droplets to each of the second areas, and the second timing timing difference is smaller than the reference timing difference and form the print image after compensating for the color shift due to the timing difference, wherein
the compensation is based on the recording density ratio that corresponds to the first color shift and a recording density ratio corresponding to a second color shift compensation patch that was selected from the plurality of second patches (Kido, [0043], see figs. 2, 5A, Nishimura, see fig. 15, Note that upon combination of the references the claimed limitations are met).
Regarding claim 3, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 2, wherein the compensation section forms, as the reference patch, a first reference patch disposed between the first patches and a second reference patch disposed between the second patches on the recording medium (Kido, see fig. 5A).
Regarding claim 4, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 1, wherein the compensation section performs control such that ejections of the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets for forming the reference patch on the recording medium are aligned with either the forward path or the return path (Kido, [0043]).
Regarding claim 5, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 2, wherein the compensation section performs control such that ejections of the first color ink droplets and the second color ink droplets for forming the plurality of first patches and the plurality of second patches on the recording medium are aligned with either the forward path or the return path (Kido, [0043], fig. 5A).
Regarding claim 6, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 2, wherein the first timing difference is a maximum of the timing difference in the bidirectional printing and the second timing difference is a minimum of the timing difference in the bidirectional printing (Note that “maximum timing difference” has not been defined in any way, and thus to recite a maximum or minimum of “the timing difference” could mean anything).
Regarding claim 7, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 1, wherein the recording medium includes a first recording medium and a second recording medium, the second recording medium having a smaller color shift due to the timing difference than does the first recording medium and the control section is configured to receive a setting of a type of the recording medium on which the print image is to be formed, when the type corresponds to the first recording medium, form the print image after compensating, in the compensation section, for the color shift due to the timing difference, and when the type corresponds to the second recording medium, not perform a process of compensating for the color shift due to the timing difference (Kido, [0043]).
Regarding claim 8, Kido in view of Nishimura and Suzuki teaches the printing device according to claim 1, wherein the compensation section acquires reading results of the reference patch and the plurality of first patches and selects the first color shift compensation patch from the plurality of first patches based on the reading results (Kido, [0043], see figs. 2, 5).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are moot in light of the new ground(s) of rejection.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/ALEJANDRO VALENCIA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853