Patent ID: 7369264

Claim:
A host based printer which receives compressed data of a printed image from a host device, restores the printed image by expanding this compressed data, and performs printing on the basis of the printed image, comprising: storage means for storing a timing S at which it is judged whether or not a printing operation can be started with respect to the entirety of the image; first prediction means for predicting the data quantity q of the remaining compressed data of the entirety of the image on the basis of the data quantity p of the compressed data that has been received by the timing S for the entirety of the image, when the timing S arrives; second prediction means for predicting the time T 1 that is required to receive the data of said predicted data quantity; third prediction means for predicting the time T 2 that is required to print the entirety of the image; and starting judgment means which judges that printing can be started for the entirety of the image in cases where T 1 is equal to or less than T 2 , and which cause a printing operation be performed that restores and prints the entirety of the image wherein said first prediction means determines a band average data quantity on the basis of the number of received bands and the data quantity p, and predicts the data quantity q by multiplying the number of bands not yet received by the band average data quantity.