Patent ID: 7911636

Claim:
A printing method controlling delivery of a stream of print jobs to a sequence of printheads of a press, the method comprising: distributing segments of a first print job in the stream to each of a plurality of downstream processors; processing respective said segments in each of said downstream processors to provide respective printable frames; storing said printable frames from each of said downstream processors in a respective one of a plurality of print queues, each said print queue supplying a respective one or more of the printheads; continuously transporting a receiver past said printheads; sequentially printing said printable frames from said print queues on said transported receiver using respective said printheads; computing a maximum printing duration of said print queues periodically during said printing; regulating speed of said transporting to trend said maximum printing durations toward a predetermined baseline; and delaying sending segments of a second print job in said stream to said downstream processors while said processing of respective segments of said first print job is completed by said downstream processors, said delaying being counter to said regulating, wherein said delaying reduces said print queues of said first print job non-uniformly relative to said baseline.