JP3347540B2 - Printer and printing method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a serial printer and a printing method, and more particularly to a printer having a scroll buffer and a printing method. More specifically,
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a serial printer and a printing method using a print head provided with a plurality of ink jet nozzles, and capable of mounting a print head having a different nozzle configuration with respect to a print color.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Serial printers are widely used as printers that can be configured in a small size and at low cost. In particular,
Ink jet printers have been remarkably developed in recent years as printers capable of quiet and high-speed printing among serial printers, and various performances have been improved.

[0003] In addition, the color graphic environment has been enhanced in low-cost personal computers.
A low-cost, high-quality color printer is also desired. In this field as well, ink jet printers are receiving attention as suitable printers.

[0004]

A conventional color printer is required to have three or four print heads, and therefore is more expensive than a monochrome printer. Further, since the color printer optimizes the print quality and processing speed assuming color printing, there is a drawback that monochrome print with the color printer is inferior in print quality and print speed as compared with the monochrome printer.

[0005] Therefore, a printer has been proposed in which a head for monochrome printing and a head for color printing are exchanged to obtain a desired image efficiently. If a head for monochrome printing is used, color printing cannot be obtained, but high image density can be obtained and printing speed can be improved.

However, the arrangement of the recording elements (nozzles) is different between the head for monochrome printing and the head for color printing, and therefore, it is desired to have a buffer configuration corresponding to both heads.

On the other hand, in a serial printer, one line (band) is formed by a plurality of scans (hereinafter, referred to as a fine mode) in order to make banding less noticeable. The paper feed amount (sub-scanning amount) at this time is 、, の of the head width,
1/4 or the like is adopted. A buffer configuration suitable for performing the fine mode is desired.

An object of the present invention is to provide a printer and a printing method having a buffer configuration which can be applied without depending on the configuration of the recording element of the print head.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a printer and a printing method capable of reading stored print data from an arbitrary position.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a printer and a printing method capable of achieving both monochrome printing and color printing.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a printer for performing recording using a recording head in which a plurality of recording elements are arranged. Are scanning means for scanning in different directions, first and second storage means for storing at least one scan of print data, writing means for writing print data to the first storage means, and first storage means. Transfer means for transferring the recording data from the storage means to the second storage means;
Reading means for reading out the data for one scan transferred to the second storage means to the print head in synchronization with the scan of the print head by the scan means; The means can store print data corresponding to the array direction of the print elements, the print data being larger than the plurality of print elements, in a predetermined number of consecutive addresses, and the plurality of print data for one scan can be stored. The print data corresponding to the print element is stored at a continuous address smaller than the predetermined number, the print data corresponding to the scanning direction is stored at each address offset by the predetermined number, and the writing unit is transferred by the transfer unit. The print data corresponding to the arrangement direction of the print elements in the print data for one scan subsequent to the print data for one scan, Continuously stored, 1 when recording data in the scanning operation is read which is stored in the first storing means,
The address of the first storage means in which the recording data is stored is released to enable the recording data to be written.

Further, the present invention provides a printing method for performing printing using a printing head in which a plurality of printing elements are arranged, wherein a scanning step of scanning the printing head in a direction different from the arrangement direction of the printing elements; A writing step of writing the recording data into a first storage unit capable of storing at least one scan of recording data; and a step of writing the recording data from the first storage unit to a second storage unit capable of storing at least one scanning recording data. A transfer step of transferring the print data for one scan transferred to the second storage means to the print head, and a read step of reading in synchronization with the scan of the print head in the scan step. The first storage means stores the print data corresponding to the array direction of the print elements, the print data being larger than the number of the plurality of print elements, in a predetermined number of consecutive addresses. It is possible to store print data corresponding to the plurality of print elements among print data for one scan at consecutive addresses smaller than the predetermined number, and to shift print data corresponding to the scanning direction by the predetermined number of addresses. And the writing step includes, in the one-scan printing data following the one-scan printing data transferred in the transferring step, printing data corresponding to the arrangement direction of the printing elements following the continuous address. When the print data for one scan stored in the first storage unit is transferred successively from the address, the address of the first storage unit in which the print data is stored is released and the print data is released. Is writable.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a main configuration of a control circuit of a printer embodying the present invention. In FIG. 1, 1 is a CPU, 2 is a ROM, 3 is a parallel interface, 4 is a printer control IC 7, and 5 is an RA.
M and 6 are print heads.

The CPU 1 controls the entire printer and includes a timer function, an input / output port and the like in addition to a processor for executing a program. ROM2 is CPU
1 contains a program to be executed and font data.

The parallel interface 3 is connected to a host system such as a computer and receives print data and commands. Printer control IC 4 is CPU 1
Parallel interface 3, R based on instructions from
AM 5 and the print head 6 are controlled. RAM5 is bus width 1
It is a 6-bit dynamic RAM, and is used to store received data, print data, and various variables for managing the print operation. The receive buffer, raster buffer, edit buffer, and print buffer, which will be described later,
It is provided in a predetermined area of M5.

The print head 6 is an ink jet head in which ink jet nozzles are arranged in a vertical direction. The print head 6 discharges ink droplets while scanning the print paper in the horizontal direction, and performs recording on the print paper. The print head 6 includes a monochrome head capable of printing only in black and a color head capable of printing in three colors of yellow, magenta, and cyan. The user selects one of these heads and mounts it on the printer. From the print head 6, an ID signal for identifying the type of the head is output and input to the CPU 1. The CPU 1 determines whether the mounted head is a monochrome head or a color head based on whether the ID signal is at a high level or a low level.

FIG. 2 shows the dot configuration of the print head. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 6a denotes a dot configuration of a monochrome head, and 6b denotes a dot configuration of a color head. In the monochrome head 6a, 64 nozzles are arranged in a line at intervals of 1/360 inch,
All nozzles eject black ink. Color head 6b
In this example, 48 nozzles are arranged in a line, and are constituted by 16 yellow dots, 16 magenta dots, and 16 cyan dots in order from the top, and a gap of 8 dots is provided between each color. Various configurations other than those described above are conceivable for the configuration of the head and the configuration of the ID for identifying the type of the head.

In FIG. 1, data received by the parallel interface 3 is a printer control I.
After being temporarily stored in the reception register in C4, RAM
5 is stored in the reception buffer area set in the area 5. When the data in the reception register of the printer control IC 4 is transferred to the reception buffer, the next data can be received. Data reception and transfer are performed in byte units.

Writing of data to the reception buffer is performed by the CPU.
1 is performed while the ROM 2 is being read, the transfer of the received data is performed without impairing the processing speed of the CPU 1 at all. The CPU 1 has a ROM 2 for executing the program.
Is frequently read, so that the data received by the parallel interface 3 is immediately stored in the reception buffer. Therefore, high-speed data reception is possible. Since a part of the RAM 5 is used as a reception buffer, there is no increase in cost due to preparing the reception buffer.

The details of the printer control IC 4 will be described with reference to FIG. The parallel interface controller 11 controls the parallel interface 3 to receive data, and stores the received data in a reception register. The reception buffer controller 12 transfers the data received by the reception register to a reception buffer in the RAM 5. The transfer of data to the RAM 5 is performed under the control of the RAM controller 13.

The access to the RAM 5 by the CPU 1 is as follows.
This is performed via the CPU interface 14. HV
The converter 15 converts the horizontal raster data into vertical data suitable for printing by the print head 6.

When data for one scan (one line) is prepared in the print buffer, a print buffer controller 17 described later reads data from the print buffer and supplies it to the head 6 via the head data controller 18. In the present embodiment, since the head 6 is driven by the diode matrix, the signals COM1-8, SE
G1-8 are supplied. Here, the print data is SEG
This corresponds to 1-8. Various timings for the head 6 are generated by a head timing controller 19.

FIG. 3 shows the structure and addresses of the print buffer when the monochrome head 6a is used. In FIG. 3, each frame with a numerical value indicates 1-byte data, and the numerical value (A, A + 1,...) Indicates an address. The height of the print buffer is 64 dots,
Since the print data in the buffer is arranged in the vertical direction, one vertical column is composed of 8 bytes of data. In the horizontal direction, the number of dots corresponding to the print width of the printer is set. For example, when the print width corresponds to A4 paper, the number of dots in the horizontal direction is about 2900 dots. The address of the print buffer increases by one in the vertical direction and increases by eight in the horizontal direction to the right. In FIG. 3, the upper left of the buffer is A
Indicates the address in the case where. As described above, the print buffer has a capacity capable of storing data to be printed by one scan.

FIG. 4 shows the structure and addresses of the print buffer when the color head 6b is used. The configuration of the print buffer itself is the same as that of the monochrome head, but since the color head has a nozzle configuration as shown in FIG.
The first and second bytes from the top of the print buffer are yellow,
The fourth and fifth bytes are magenta, and the seventh and eighth bytes are cyan data. The third and sixth bytes of data from the top are ignored.

The CPU 1 sets an address A in a dress counter in a print buffer controller 17 in the printer control IC 4 before starting the scanning of the print head 6. When the CPU 1 issues a head drive command to the printer control IC 4, the printer control IC 4 reads data from the address A to A + 7 in the RAM 5, drives the print head 6 based on this data, and records 64 dots. At this time, the value of the print buffer address counter is set to A + 8.
The print head 6 is driven by the data up to +15. As described above, while the print head is scanning, the value of the address counter in the print buffer controller 17 is automatically added by the controller 17.

In emulation printing when a monochrome head is used, a character code is received from the host computer. The CPU 1 reads out font data corresponding to the received character code from the ROM 2 and writes the font data into the print buffer. When the print buffer data for one line is completed, the CPU 1 starts scanning of the print head and performs printing.

In emulation printing when a color head is used, a character code is received from the host computer. Here, in the color head employed in this embodiment, each color is offset in the vertical direction. On the other hand, the printer prints the image data of 16 dots each of yellow, magenta, and cyan at a time, so the received data is stored in the memory in the printer until the bottom dot of the print head, that is, the cyan data is received. Must be stored. For this reason, the CPU 1 cannot directly store the font data corresponding to the received character code in the print buffer. Therefore, in this embodiment, the processing of the expansion of the code data and the offset of the head are performed using the edit buffer and the scroll buffer.

Next, fine mode printing used in native printing will be described. Fine mode printing refers to terminating the printing of one band (width of the print head) complementarily by multiple scans using different areas of the print head in order to reduce the banding of the serial scan. Means a method of printing a high quality image.

The concept of the printing method in the fine mode will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A, 7B and 7C. To facilitate understanding, the number of nozzles in the head is eight.

In the fine mode, as shown in FIGS. 7A, 7B and 7C, printing is performed in a plurality of passes while thinning out print data complementarily. For example, in the case of two passes, the paper feed amount is set to の of the width of the head, and the print data is decimated to で in one scan (staggered and inverted staggered pattern), and printing is completed by two scans.

FIG. 3 illustrates how a recording in a certain area is completed when the staggered and inverted staggered patterns are used, using a multi-head having eight nozzles. First, in the first scan, a staggered pattern (hatched circles) is printed using the lower four nozzles (see FIG. 7A). Next, in the second scan, the paper is fed by four pixels (1/2 of the head length), and the inverted zigzag pattern (white circles) is printed (FIG. 7B). Further, in the third scan, the paper is fed again by only four pixels, and the staggered pattern is printed again (FIG. 7C).

In this manner, by sequentially performing paper feed in units of four pixels and printing in a zigzag or inverted zigzag pattern,
A recording area in units of four pixels is completed for each scan. As described above, a high-quality image without density unevenness can be obtained by completing printing by using two different types of nozzles in the same area.

In the actual fine mode, a monochrome head divides 64 nozzles into four parts, and a color head performs printing by dividing sixteen nozzles for each of three colors into two parts. Regarding the thinning pattern, simple patterns such as zigzag and inverted zigzag are synchronized with the pattern of the original image, and the effect of the fine mode may not be obtained. Use patterns.

As described above, in the native printing, the print data for one line is shifted (offset) plural times.
Must be read. In native printing, since print data is supplied from the host computer in a raster format, it is necessary to perform HV conversion. Therefore, in the present embodiment, native printing processing is performed using a raster buffer and a scroll buffer.

Next, the structure of the above-mentioned scroll buffer and its address arrangement will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 5, each frame with a numerical value indicates 1-byte data, and the numerical value in the frame indicates an address. In the scroll buffer, the bit data is arranged in the vertical direction (nozzle arrangement direction), and the addresses are also continuous in the vertical direction. Although the address starts from 0, it is a numerical value provided for convenience and can actually start from an arbitrary value. 20 bytes are secured as the height of the scroll buffer. Since the print head has 64 nozzles, the height required for one scan is 8 bytes. Therefore, this scroll buffer has a capacity for 2.5 scans. A characteristic point of the scroll buffer is that the vertical addresses corresponding to the plurality of scans are continuous as 0 to 19 and 20 to 39.

In FIG. 5, the width of the scroll buffer is 3000 dots, but in practice, it can be set freely according to the width of the printing paper. Although the height of the scroll buffer is also 40 bytes in FIG. 5, it can be set freely according to the capacity that can be secured as a scroll buffer in the RAM.

In FIG. 5, reference numeral 51 denotes a print area for printing in the first head scan, and reference numeral 52 denotes a print area for printing in the second head scan. The printer creates image data based on the data received from the host computer and stores it in the scroll buffer. If the image data is prepared in the scroll buffer and the print buffer is empty, the printer operates the print area 51 of the scroll buffer.
Is transferred to the print buffer.

FIG. 6 shows the configuration of the scroll buffer after the image data in the print area 11 has been transferred to the print buffer and the print area 11 has been released. Image data to be printed by the third and subsequent head scans is written in the released area. Specifically, in the released area 51, addresses 0 to 7 are not used, and addresses 60000 to 60
007 is newly used. As described above, by making the scroll buffer helical continuous, FIGS.
As shown by, the address of the scroll buffer is
It is always continuous in the vertical direction regardless of the print area printed by the head. It looks as if it is scrolling.

This continuity is maintained until printing of one page is completed. The configuration of the scroll buffer is determined by the print width and the buffer capacity, and is independent of the head configuration. Therefore, the configuration of the scroll buffer can be determined without depending on the number of nozzles of the print head, and the scroll buffer management method is simplified when a plurality of print heads having different nozzle configurations are used. In addition, since all addresses in the vertical direction in the scroll buffer are continuous, any position in the scroll buffer can be set as a print area, and the degree of freedom in determining the print position is increased.

Next, management of the scroll buffer in fine mode printing will be described.

FIG. 8 shows a method of transferring data from the scroll buffer to the print buffer in the fine mode with the monochrome head. In FIG. 8, 21 is RO
The mask pattern in M, 22 and 23 are print areas in the scroll buffer, and 24 and 25 are print buffers. The mask pattern 21 is a pattern for thinning out image data, and it is possible to record all pixels by synthesizing while shifting the head position by １ ／ of the head length. C
The PU 1 reads out the image data from the print area 22, performs a thinning-out process by an AND operation with the mask pattern 21, and then writes it into the print buffer 24. When the print buffer 24 is completed, the print head is scanned and printing for one scan is performed. In the meantime, the CPU reads the image data from the print area 23, performs the thinning process by the AND operation with the mask pattern 21,
Write to. When the printing in the print buffer 24 is completed, the paper is fed by １ ／ of the head length, and the data in the print buffer 25 is printed.

Thus, from the scroll buffer,
The image data is read out while shifting the height by 1/4 of the head length, written into the print buffer while applying a mask, and the head is driven by the data in the print buffer. Recording is completed by head scanning. In this embodiment, the print buffer is 2
Since this is prepared, it is possible to write print data into one while printing is performed on the other, and it is possible to prevent a waiting time from being generated in the operation of the printer for generating print data.

As described above, in the fine mode, the same image data is read a plurality of times to complete the recording of one area. And vertical (nozzle arrangement)
Data will be read continuously from different positions in the direction. If the scroll buffer of this embodiment is used, the read position (address) can be set at an arbitrary position, so that the buffer management becomes easy even in the fine mode.

Next, the structure of a scroll buffer used for color printing will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 9, reference numeral 6b denotes the nozzle configuration of the color head as shown in FIG.
2 is a magenta scroll buffer and 31 is a cyan scroll buffer.

In native printing, the computer decomposes an image to be printed into raster data expanded in the horizontal direction, and transmits the raster data to the printer in order from the raster above. Since the printer prints the image data of 16 dots each of yellow, magenta, and cyan at a time, the received data is stored in the printer until the bottom dot of the print head, that is, the data of the 16th dot of cyan is received. Store it in memory. At this time, for the colors other than cyan, even if the image data required for printing has already been received, the printer sends all color image data together for each raster at the same position. Must be received and stored up to the same position as cyan. That is, image data for 16 dots in the vertical direction, which is the same as the number of dots of the print head, may be stored for cyan, but image data for at least 64 dots for yellow and 40 dots for magenta must be stored. The necessity of holding the image data described above is the same in emulation printing as long as a color head offset in the vertical direction as in this embodiment is employed.

In FIG. 9, in order to prevent a waiting time from occurring in the operation of the printer due to the data transfer processing,
Each buffer has an extra capacity of 2 bytes in height. Therefore, the height of each scroll buffer is 10 bytes for the yellow buffer 31, 7 bytes for the magenta buffer 32, and 4 bytes for the cyan buffer 33. The width of each scroll buffer corresponds to the character width for printing.

In each of the scroll buffers 31 to 33, the addresses are always continuous in the vertical direction, similarly to the monochrome scroll buffers shown in FIGS. Therefore, as in the case of the monochrome scroll buffer, the configuration of the buffer can be determined only by the print width and the buffer capacity irrespective of the head configuration, so that the buffer management method is simplified. Further, an arbitrary position in the scroll buffer can be set as a print area, and the degree of freedom in determining the print position is increased.

FIG. 10 is a view for explaining data transfer from each scroll buffer to the print buffer. FIG.
Reference numerals 31 to 33 denote scroll buffers for yellow, magenta, and cyan, as in FIG. Reference numeral 41 denotes a color print buffer, which is the same as that described with reference to FIG. The CPU transfers the data in the hatched portions of the scroll buffers 31 to 33 to the print buffer 41.
The area where the transfer has been completed is released and used as a storage area for new image data. When the print data in the print buffer 41 is completed, the head is scanned to perform printing for one scan.

Further, in the fine mode printing using the color head, similarly to the monochrome printing, when the print data is transferred from the scroll buffer to the print buffer, the print data is thinned out using a mask pattern prepared in the ROM. This can be done by:

FIG. 11 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the printer. In step S1, it is checked whether or not there is received data in the reception buffer. If there is data, the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, it is determined whether the print head mounted on the printer is a monochrome head or a color head. If the print head is a monochrome head, the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, the received data is analyzed to determine whether the mode is the emulation mode or the native mode. If the mode is the emulation mode, the process proceeds to step S4; if the mode is the native mode, the process proceeds to step S5. In step S4, a buffer setting as the monochrome emulation mode is performed.

In the monochrome emulation mode, the scroll buffer is not used because the data can be written directly to the print buffer as described above. Since the capacity of the RAM 5 becomes free correspondingly, two print buffers are used. Since two print buffers are prepared, it is possible to write print data to one while printing the other, and it is possible to prevent a waiting time from occurring in the operation of the printer for creating print data. . Also, a capacity suitable for the monochrome emulation mode is set for the work area for storing the reception buffer capacity and various variables necessary for managing the printing operation. In emulation printing, the font data of the received character code is read from the ROM, and is directly written into the print buffer as print data. Each time data for one line of the print buffer is completed, the print head is scanned to perform a printing operation.

In step S5, a buffer is set in the monochrome native mode, and native printing is performed. The native printing method will be described later in detail.

If the print head is a color head in step S2, the process proceeds to step S6. In step S6, the received data is analyzed to determine whether the mode is the emulation mode or the native mode. If the mode is the emulation mode, the process proceeds to step S7; if the mode is the native mode, the process proceeds to step S8. In step S7, a buffer is set as a color emulation mode, and emulation printing is performed. The printing method of the color emulation will be described later in detail. In step S8, the buffer is set as the color native mode, and the native printing is performed. The color native printing method is basically the same as the monochrome printing method, but uses three scroll buffers for yellow, magenta, and cyan as described above.

FIG. 12 shows a printing method in the native mode. In step S101, the received data is stored in a reception buffer in the RAM. In step S102, the reception data in the reception buffer is analyzed. If the received data is image data in step S103, raster data is developed in step S104 and stored in a raster buffer.
If the received data is a command or the like in step S103,
Command processing is performed in step S105. For example, if the command is a paper discharge command, a paper discharge operation is executed. In step S106, if the image data stored in the raster buffer does not reach 8 rasters, step S107
Proceed to. In step S107, the raster data expanded in the horizontal direction is stored in the scroll buffer while being converted into data arranged in the vertical direction suitable for printing by the serial printer using the HV converter 15. In the case of color, as described above, three scroll buffers for yellow, magenta, and cyan are used.

In step S108, if one band of print data is stored in the scroll buffer and the print buffer is empty, the flow advances to step S109. In step S109, one band of print data is transferred from the scroll buffer to the print buffer. Here, in the case of color, data at a position corresponding to the offset of the color head is transferred to the print buffer. Then, the scroll buffer area in the RAM that is no longer needed is released.

In step 110, if the print data in the print buffer is not completed, the process returns to step S101. In step S111, the print head is scanned to print one band of data, and then the paper is fed. Also, the print buffer area in the RAM where printing is completed is released. In step S112, if printing for one page has not been completed, the process returns to step S101.

FIG. 13 shows a printing method in the emulation mode when the color head is used. In step S201, the received data is stored in a reception buffer in the RAM.
In step S202, the received data in the reception buffer is analyzed. If the received data reaches one line in step S203, the font data of the character code received in step S204 is read from the ROM and written as print data in the editing buffer. If the edit buffer is completed in step S205 and there is an empty area in the scroll buffer, data transfer from the edit buffer to the scroll buffer is performed in step S206. In step S207,
If print data for one band is stored in the scroll buffer and the print buffer is empty, step S
Proceed to 208.

In step S208, one band of print data is transferred from the scroll buffer to the print buffer. Here, the data at the position corresponding to the offset of the color head is transferred to the print buffer. Also,
Release the scroll buffer area in the RAM that is no longer needed. In step 209, if the print data in the print buffer is not completed, the process returns to step S201. In step S210, the print head is scanned to print one band of data, and then the paper is fed. Also,
The print buffer area in the RAM where printing has been completed is released. In step S211, if printing for one page has not been completed, the process returns to step S201.

As described above, the buffer management method is changed depending on the type of print head and the print mode, the scroll buffer is used at the time of using the color head and at the time of native printing, and the addresses of the scroll buffer are always continuously arranged in the vertical direction. Since the configuration of the scroll buffer can be set independently of the nozzle arrangement of the heads and the number of dots, the management of the buffers for a plurality of print heads having different numbers of dots becomes easy. Also, since the scroll buffer can be set at any position as the print area,
The degree of freedom in setting the printing position is increased, and the management of print data in fine printing is facilitated.

Further, by using the above-described scroll buffer, the difference in the configuration of the head can be absorbed, so that the address configuration of the print buffer can be simply made continuous in the nozzle array direction of the head regardless of the configuration of the head. Thus, in a circuit (print buffer controller) for transferring print data from the print buffer to the print head, the address of the print buffer can be managed by a simple counter, so that the data transfer circuit is simplified. Also,
Since the address management of the print buffer can be performed equally irrespective of the configuration of the head, it is possible to cope with various print heads with a common data transfer circuit.

Further, by setting the capacity of the receiving buffer and the work area in accordance with the type of the print head and the print mode, the RAM can be used efficiently.

The present invention particularly provides an excellent effect in a recording apparatus using an ink jet type recording head which forms flying droplets by utilizing thermal energy and performs recording among ink jet recording methods.

The typical configuration and principle are described in, for example, US Pat. Nos. 4,723,129 and 4,740.
It is preferable to use the basic principle disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent No. 796. This method is a so-called on-demand type,
Although it can be applied to any type of continuous type, in particular, in the case of the on-demand type, it can be applied to a sheet holding liquid (ink) or an electrothermal converter arranged corresponding to the liquid path. By applying at least one drive signal corresponding to recording information and giving a rapid temperature rise exceeding nucleate boiling, heat energy is generated in the electrothermal transducer, and film boiling occurs on the heat acting surface of the recording head. Liquid (ink) corresponding to the drive signal
This is effective because air bubbles in the interior can be formed. By discharging the liquid (ink) through the discharge opening by the growth and contraction of the bubble, at least one droplet is formed. When the drive signal is formed into a pulse shape, the growth and shrinkage of the bubble are performed immediately and appropriately, so that the ejection of a liquid (ink) having particularly excellent responsiveness can be achieved, which is more preferable. As the pulse-shaped drive signal, those described in US Pat. Nos. 4,463,359 and 4,345,262 are suitable. Further, if the conditions described in US Pat. No. 4,313,124 relating to the temperature rise rate of the heat acting surface are adopted, more excellent recording can be performed.

As the configuration of the recording head, other than the combination of the discharge port, the liquid path, and the electrothermal converter (linear liquid flow path or right-angled liquid flow path) as disclosed in the above-mentioned respective specifications, U.S. Pat. No. 4,558,333 and U.S. Pat.
A configuration using the specification of Japanese Patent No. 59600 is also included in the present invention. In addition, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 59-123670 discloses a configuration in which a common slit is used as a discharge portion of an electrothermal converter for a plurality of electrothermal converters, and an aperture for absorbing a pressure wave of thermal energy is provided. The effect of the present invention is effective even if the configuration is based on JP-A-59-138461, which discloses a configuration corresponding to a discharge unit. That is, according to the present invention, recording can be reliably and efficiently performed regardless of the form of the recording head.

In addition, even in the case of the serial type as described above, the recording head fixed to the apparatus main body or the electric connection with the apparatus main body or the ink from the apparatus main body by being attached to the apparatus main body. The present invention is also effective when a replaceable chip-type recording head that can be supplied or a cartridge-type recording head in which an ink tank is provided integrally with the recording head itself is used.

Further, it is preferable to add ejection recovery means for the recording head, preliminary auxiliary means, and the like as the configuration of the recording apparatus of the present invention since the effects of the present invention can be further stabilized. If these are specifically mentioned, the recording head is heated using capping means, cleaning means, pressurizing or suction means, an electrothermal transducer, another heating element or a combination thereof. Pre-heating means for performing the pre-heating and pre-discharging means for performing the discharging other than the recording can be used.

Also, as for the type and number of the recording heads to be mounted, two or more recording heads may be provided corresponding to a plurality of inks having different recording colors and densities. That is, for example, the printing mode of the printing apparatus is not limited to a printing mode of only a mainstream color such as black, but may be any of integrally forming a printing head or a combination of a plurality of printing heads. The present invention is also very effective for an apparatus provided with at least one of the recording modes of full color by color mixture.

In addition, in the embodiments of the present invention described above, the ink is described as a liquid. However, an ink which solidifies at room temperature or lower and which softens or liquefies at room temperature may be used. In general, the ink jet method generally controls the temperature of the ink itself within a range of 30 ° C. or more and 70 ° C. or less to control the temperature so that the viscosity of the ink is in a stable ejection range. Sometimes, the ink may be in a liquid state. In addition, in order to positively prevent temperature rise due to thermal energy by using it as energy for changing the state of the ink from a solid state to a liquid state, or to prevent evaporation of the ink, the ink is solidified in a standing state and heated. May be used. In any case, the application of heat energy causes the ink to be liquefied by the application of the heat energy according to the recording signal and the liquid ink to be ejected, or to start to solidify when reaching the recording medium. The present invention is also applicable to a case where an ink having a property of liquefying for the first time is used. In such a case, the ink
JP-A-54-56847 or JP-A-60-7
As described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1260, a form may be adopted in which the liquid sheet or the solid substance is held as a liquid or solid substance in the concave portion or through hole of the porous sheet and faces the electrothermal converter. In the present invention, the most effective one for each of the above-mentioned inks is to execute the above-mentioned film boiling method.

In addition, the form of the ink jet recording apparatus of the present invention is not limited to those used as image output terminals of information processing equipment such as computers, copying apparatuses combined with readers and the like, and facsimile apparatuses having a transmission / reception function. It may take a form.

[0071]

As described above, according to the present invention, the address structure of the print buffer can be simply made continuous in the nozzle array direction of the head, so that a circuit for transferring print data from the print buffer to the print head is provided. Be concise.

Further, since the address management of the print buffer can be performed equally regardless of the configuration of the head, it is possible to cope with various print heads with a common data transfer circuit.

Further, by providing a buffer in which addresses are always continuous in the vertical direction, separately from the print buffer, the management of the buffer is facilitated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a main circuit configuration of a printer.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a print head.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the configuration of a print buffer and addresses during monochrome printing.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a relationship between a configuration of a printed buffer and an address during color printing.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a configuration of a scroll buffer.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of a scroll buffer after transfer of print data of one band.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an operation in a fine mode.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating data transfer from a scroll buffer to a print buffer in a fine mode.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a scroll buffer during color printing.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating data transfer from a scroll buffer to a print buffer during color printing.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the printer.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of native printing.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of emulation printing when a color head is used.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of a printer control IC.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 CPU 2 ROM 3 Interface 4 Printer Control IC 5 RAM 6 Print Head 6a Monochrome Head 6b Color Head

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-5-16449 (JP, A) JP-A-6-155819 (JP, A) JP-A-58-195365 (JP, A) JP-A-60-1985 100872 (JP, A) JP-A-64-44761 (JP, A) JP-A-57-78253 (JP, A) JP-A-57-81766 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int. ⁷ , DB name) B41J 5/30 B41J 2/21 G06F 3/12 G06F 12/02 580 H04N 1/21

Claims (10)

(57) [Claims] 1. A printer that performs printing using a print head having a plurality of print elements arranged therein, wherein: a scanning unit that scans the print head in a direction different from the arrangement direction of the print elements; First and second storage means for storing the print data, writing means for writing the print data to the first storage means, and transfer means for transferring the print data from the first storage means to the second storage means. , for supplying recording data for one scan which is transferred to the second storage means to the recording head, and a reading reading means in synchronism with scanning of said recording head by said scanning means, said first The storage means is capable of storing print data corresponding to the array direction of the print elements, the print data being larger than the plurality of print elements, in a predetermined number of consecutive addresses.
The print data corresponding to the plurality of print elements among the print data for the scan is stored at consecutive addresses smaller than the predetermined number, and the print data corresponding to the scanning direction is stored for each address offset by the predetermined number, The writing means continuously prints data corresponding to the arrangement direction of the printing elements from the address following the continuous address among print data for one scan following print data for one scan transferred by the transfer means. When the print data for one scan stored in the first storage unit is read out, the address of the first storage unit in which the print data is stored is released and the print data can be written. A printer characterized by the following. 2. A mounting means for recording color arrangements or recording elements of said recording element is mounted interchangeably with different recording heads, and discriminating means for discriminating the type of the recording head mounted on said mounting means, mounted 2. The printer according to claim 1, further comprising setting means for setting whether or not the first storage means is used, the number or the capacity of the first storage means according to the type of the recording head. 3. A recording apparatus comprising: a determination unit for determining a recording mode according to received data; and a setting unit for setting whether to use the first storage unit, the number or the capacity of the first storage unit in accordance with the determined recording mode. The printer according to claim 1, wherein: 4. A received data storage means for storing the received data, and a variable storage means for storing variables required in the recording operation, in accordance with the type or the recording mode of the recording head,
2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a setting unit that sets a capacity of the reception data storage unit or the variable storage unit.
The printer described. 5. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the second storage means has addresses simply continuous in the direction in which the recording elements are arranged. 6. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the recording head discharges ink. 7. A printing method in which a plurality of recording elements using print heads arranged, a scanning step of scanning in a direction different from the said recording head arrangement direction of the recording element, at least one scan First storage capable of storing recorded data of
A write step of writing the recording data to the means, a transfer step of transferring the record data in the second storage means capable of storing recording data for at least one scan from the first storing means is transferred to said second storage means for supplying recording data for one scanning was in the recording head, and a reading reading step in synchronism with the scanning of the recording head by said scanning step, said first storage means, the sequence of the recording element Corresponding to the direction
Recording data which is larger than the number of the plurality of recording elements.
Recorded data can be stored in a predetermined number of consecutive addresses.
Of the scan data corresponding to the plurality of print elements,
Recording data to consecutive addresses less than the predetermined number.
Storage, and the recording data corresponding to the scanning direction by a predetermined
And stored for each address number offset, the write process, 1 run is transferred by the transfer process
The preceding one of the scan data following scan data
The recording data corresponding to the arrangement direction of the recording elements is
The print data for one scan stored continuously from the address following the next address and stored in the first storage unit is
When the data is transferred,
1 Release the address of the storage means and write the recording data
Print method which is characterized in that a. 8. A determination step for determining the type of the recording head mounted on the mounting means for recording color array structure or a recording element of the recording element is mounted interchangeably with different recording heads, of the mounted recording head 8. The printing method according to claim 7, further comprising a setting step of setting whether or not the first storage unit is used, the number, or the capacity according to the type. 9. It has a determining step of determining a recording mode according to received data, and a setting step of setting whether or not to use the first storage means, the number or the capacity according to the determined recording mode. The printing method according to claim 7, wherein: 10. The capacity of a reception data storage unit for storing reception data or a variable storage unit for storing variables required for a recording operation is set according to the type of the recording head or the recording mode. 8. The printing method according to claim 7, further comprising a setting step of performing the setting.