Patent ID: 8317288

Claim:
A liquid discharge apparatus which discharges a liquid in each of a plurality of continuing discharge opportunities, the liquid discharge apparatus comprising: a liquid discharge head which discharges the liquid from a plurality of nozzles; a controller which controls the liquid discharge head to discharge the liquid from the plurality of nozzles; a duty detecting section which detects a value of a duty which is a ratio of a discharge amount of the liquid discharged from the liquid discharge head with respect to a maximum discharge amount of the liquid to be discharged from the liquid discharge head in each of the discharge opportunities; and a wait time determining section which determines whether or not a wait time, in which the liquid is not discharged, is provided after each of the discharge opportunities, wherein the wait time determining section determines whether or not the wait time is provided based on the values of the duties which are detected by the duty detecting section in past continuing discharge opportunities including the last discharge opportunity; wherein the controller controls the liquid discharge head to wait for the wait time after the last discharge opportunity when the wait time determining section determines that the wait time is to be provided; wherein the wait time determining section determines a value of a parameter in each of the discharge opportunities based on the value of the duty in each of the discharge opportunities detected by the duty detecting section so that the value of the parameter is greater as the detected value of the duty is greater; wherein the wait time determining section determines that the wait time is to be provided, when a total value, which is obtained by totalizing the values of the respective parameters in the past continuing discharge opportunities including the last discharge opportunity, exceeds a predetermined threshold value; and wherein, when the values of the respective parameters are totalized, the wait time determining section multiplies the value of the parameter corresponding to a first discharge opportunity, among the discharge opportunities, by a first coefficient, and multiplies the value of the parameter corresponding to a second discharge opportunity which is after the first discharge opportunity by a second coefficient which is greater than the first coefficient.