Konica Minolta Business Technologies, Inc.

Konica-minolta Holdings, Inc.

Tomoo Kudou

Hiroyuki Arai

Fusako Akimoto

Ken-ichi Ozawa

This invention provides an image printing method and apparatus which accurately correct the read timing of a sensor system used to correct the position of a toner image in the correction operation mode, and accurately corrects the magnification of an image in the vertical direction in the print operation mode. An image printing apparatus according to the invention includes an image printing unit which prints a toner image on an intermediate transfer belt, and a control unit which controls the rotational speed of the intermediate transfer belt by detecting a toner image printing on the intermediate transfer belt by the image printing unit. When the correction operation mode is selected, the control unit executes feedback control on the rotational speed of the intermediate transfer belt on the basis of vertical magnification adjustment value data. When the print operation mode is selected, the control unit executes feedback control on the rotational speed of the intermediate transfer belt on the basis of vertical magnification adjustment value.

Image printing method and apparatus

This invention is directed to an image printing apparatus which prints a color image by superimposing a plurality of images of different colors and a color misregistration correction method for the apparatus. In order to shorten the time required for color misregistration correcting operation, the image printing apparatus of this invention includes a controller which controls color misregistration correcting devices. The controller repeatedly prints color registration marks on an intermediate transfer belt, derives a positional offset correction amount for images of the respective colors on the basis of the positional relationship between the registration marks detected by registration sensors, and corrects the printing position of an image of each color on the basis of the positional offset correction amount. In this case, while the derived positional offset correction amount has not reached a predetermined target range, positional offset correction is performed on a pixel basis. When the positional offset correction amount has reached the target range, positional offset correction including a correction amount less than the pixel unit is executed.

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Tokyo, Japan

Tomoo Kudou