Patent ID: 7244010

Claim:
An image processing method for specifying dot arrangements for respective ink components according to image data, when forming an image on a recording medium by means of dots of inks of n colors, where n is any positive integer, the method comprising the steps of: calculating color correlation and spatial frequency components from the image data; specifying a dot overlap function for controlling overlapping between dots of the ink components, according to the calculated color correlation and spatial frequency components; calculating an ink recording rate of each of the inks from the image data; specifying the dot arrangement of a first ink component by means of a prescribed method, according to the ink recording rate; and determining a dot arrangement for the inks of the n colors, in such a manner that, taking k to be an integer where 2≦k≦n, the dot arrangement of the kth ink component is specified according to the ink recording rate of the kth ink component, and the previously specified dot arrangement and dot overlap function of the first ink component through to the (k−1)th ink component.