Patent ID: 6726302
Filing Date: 2004-04-27
Classification: B41J

Abstract:
A test pattern printing method for printing a test pattern on a printing medium with a printing apparatus that uses a plurality of print heads for forming dots of a plurality of colors, respectively, on the printing medium, each of the plurality of print heads being provided with a print element to form the dots, said method comprising:a main scanning step of scanning the plurality of print heads along a main scanning direction; and a test pattern printing step of selectively driving the print elements of the plurality of print heads, thereby to form dots and print a test pattern, wherein said test pattern printing step prints the test pattern for each selected print element, and forms a predetermined number of dots along the main-scanning direction using the selected print element for each test pattern, where the selected print element is changed for each test pattern, and where a density of dots formed along the main scanning direction of a predetermined color among the plurality of colors per unit area formed by one print element is higher than a density of dots formed along the main scanning direction of other colors per unit area formed by other print elements so that an optical density of dots of the predetermined color is increased to print the test pattern.