Patent ID: 7029095

Claim:
An ink jet printing apparatus capable of performing a preliminary ejecting operation that does not contribute to printing, said apparatus comprising: a print head having an ejecting portion, wherein an amount of ink ejected through said ejecting portion varies depending on the amount of time during which printing is not executed, and a first preliminary ejecting operation and a second preliminary ejecting operation are performed, the first preliminary ejecting operation being performed on a print medium if the print medium lies in a printing position relative to said print head, wherein an ejection is performed through said ejecting portion of substantially only one or two ink droplets, selectively, in one preliminary ejecting operation, and the second preliminary ejecting operation, in which an ejection amount of the second preliminary ejecting operation in one preliminary ejecting operation is greater than that of the first preliminary ejecting operation, being performed on an object other than the print medium if the amount of ink decreases below a normal value before the print medium reaches the printing position.