Patent ID: 7583407
Filing Date: 2009-09-01
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A color processing method for generating color separation data corresponding to at least one basic color material and one or more particular color materials, the color processing method comprising: generating color separation data corresponding to the at least one basic color material in a high lightness region of a color hue corresponding to the at least one basic color material, the high lightness region ranging from a lightness level corresponding to the maximum color saturation level that is reproducible by the at least one basic color material to the highest lightness level; generating color separation data corresponding to the at least one basic color material and two color materials that have color hues close to that of the at least one basic color material in an intermediate lightness region whose lightness level is lower than that of the high lightness region; and, generating color separation data corresponding to the two color materials and a further black color material in a low lightness region below a lightness level corresponding to the maximum color saturation level that is reproducible by a color mixture of the two color materials, the lightness level of the low lightness region being lower than that of the intermediate lightness region, wherein the generation of color separation data in the low lightness region is performed in such a manner that, with a decrease in lightness, the amount of the two color materials used is reduced, and the amount of the black color material used is increased, the generation of the color separation data in the high lightness region is performed in such a manner that, with a decrease in lightness, the amount of the at least one basic color material used is increased, and the generation of the color separation data in the intermediate lightness region is performed in such a manner that, until the amount of the at least one basic color material and the one or more particular color materials used reaches the limit of the total amount of the color materials used, with a decrease in lightness, the amount of the two color materials used is increased maintaining the amount of the at least one basic color material used at the maximum level, and after the amount of the at least one basic color material and the one or more particular color materials used reaches the limit of the total amount of the color materials used, with a decrease in lightness, the amount of the at least one basic color material used is reduced, and the amount of the two color materials used is increased.