JPH0698790B2 - Serial donut tomato printer - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial field of application] The present invention is used for an apparatus which is connected to an information processing apparatus to print characters and graphics. The present invention relates to a serial dot matrix printer. In particular, the present invention relates to a serial dot matrix printer that receives print data of different dot pits and prints at its own basic dot pitch.

〔Overview〕

In a serial dot matrix printer that stores print data in the memory for one line and prints it, edit the character code of the same line and the graphic data corresponding to the dot sent from the host device in another line buffer memory Minute data is printed with different dot pitches for the character buffer and the dot-compatible graphic buffer, improving printing efficiency and compatibility with printers with different dot pitches without unnatural print results. Is to improve.

[Conventional technology]

Conventional serial dot matrix printers include printers that can change the horizontal basic dot pitch. For example, even a printer with a horizontal basic dot pitch of 1/180 inch / dot has a horizontal width of 1/120 inch / dot and 1 / 1
There are printers that can print at a basic dot pitch of 60 inches / dot. This is for maintaining compatibility between printers of the same model but different in basic dot pitch.

In a word processor or the like that is normally used, the line format is managed at the basic dot pitch of each printer, and a format dedicated to that printer is created. For example, in a printer with a basic dot pitch of 1/180 inch / dot, when using a word processor made for a 1/160 inch / dot printer,
In order to take advantage of the character font of the printer itself, it is necessary to print characters at a dot pitch of 1/180 inch / dot. However, since the graphic data corresponding to dots other than characters is 1/160 inch / dot, 1
There will be different dot pitches within a row. Therefore, the printer performs the following processing.

When print data with different dot pitches is received, the data being edited is printed, the absolute position is calculated again, and
Edit the print data for the next dot pitch and print.
With this method, the data in one line can be printed at each dot pitch. However, the printer generally uses a motor to move the head, and performs slow-up / slow-down control when starting / stopping the motor. In this case, since the printing is started each time the dot pitch is different, there are many processes for repeating the start / stop of the motor, which lowers the effective printing efficiency.

In addition, a method of periodically correcting the absolute positions of dot data having a different basic dot pitch other than characters while managing how many dots the dot row data is. For example, to configure 1/160 inch / dot with 1/180 inch / dot, a method of adding 1 dot row data at 1/180 inch / dot every 8 dot row period and performing absolute position correction Is used. With this method, one line of data can be managed with 1/180 inch / dot, but when image data is printed, it is 1/160 inch / dot.
When dots are used for printing, the dots printed at equal intervals are periodically uneven. In particular, in the case of a K-line font or the like, the printed result may be thick or thin, and irregular intervals may be noticeable.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

As described above, in the conventional serial dot printer, if the dot pitches of the print data are basically matched, the printing efficiency is lowered because the printing is started each time the dot pitch is different, and the dot pitch is converted. If the correction is made, the printing efficiency is improved, but there is a drawback that the printing results are not uniform.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks, and is a serial dot matrix printer that has good printing efficiency, has no unnatural printing results, and can maintain compatibility between printers of the same model but different dot pitches. The purpose is to provide.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention relates to a serial dot matrix printer provided with a buffer memory means for editing and storing one line of received print data and a print means for printing the print data read from the buffer memory means. Is a line buffer memory means for character data for editing character data of one line of the received print data at the original basic dot pitch of the printer, and one line of the received print data at the dot pitch of the graphic data corresponding to the received dots. A dot-corresponding graphic line buffer memory means for editing the dot-corresponding graphic data, and the printing means separately prints the print data from the two buffer memory means with different print timing signals. Is characterized by.

[Action]

The present invention, in a serial dot matrix printer that receives print data of different dot pitches and prints at its own basic dot pitch, edits one line of the received print data. Character data line buffer memory signal and dot corresponding graphic line Two buffer memories of the buffer memory means are provided, the character data line buffer memory means edits at the basic dot pitch of the printer, and the dot corresponding graphic line buffer memory means edits at the dot pitch of the received dot corresponding graphic data. That is, in the character data row buffer memory means, the character code sets the dot row data of the basic dot pitch,
The dot-corresponding graphic data sets dummy dot row data for correcting the absolute position of the printed character at a predetermined cycle while converting it to the basic dot pitch. In the dot-corresponding graphic line buffer memory means, the character code sets the dummy dot string data adjusted to the dot pitch of the received dot-corresponding graphic, and the dot corresponding graphic data sets the received dot string as it is. When printing, the print data is printed from the two buffer memories by the print timing signal of the dot pitch when the print data is edited in the two buffer memories by the printing means. Due to the above, printing efficiency is good,
In addition, the printing result is not unnatural, and the printers of the same model can maintain compatibility between printers having different dot pitches.

〔Example〕

 Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a serial dot matrix printer according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, received print data is input to the reception control port 1 from outside the drawing.

Here, the feature of the present invention is the print data editing portion surrounded by the alternate long and short dash line. That is, reception control port 1
Is connected to the central processing unit 2 which controls the entire printer.

When the received print data is a character code, a print font for the character code from the character generator 3 is connected to the central processing unit 2, and the print font from the central processing unit 2 is connected to the line buffer memory 4 for character data and set. . Further, the number of dot rows converted to the dot pitch of the dot-corresponding graphic is connected to the central processing unit 2 from the read-only memory 5 in which a table of the number of dot rows with respect to the character pitch at each dot pitch is stored, and the central processing unit 2 Dummy dot row data is connected to the dot corresponding graphic buffer memory 6 and set.

When the received data is dot-corresponding graphic data, the dot-corresponding graphic line data is connected to the dot-corresponding graphic row buffer memory 6 without being corrected by the central processing unit 2 for the horizontal dot row. Also, the dot-corresponding graphic data is connected from the central processing unit 2 to the character data line buffer memory 4, and the number of dot columns of the dot-corresponding graphic data is counted by the counter provided in the character data line buffer memory 4 to make dot correspondence. While converting the number of graphic data dot rows to the basic dot pitch of the printer, the absolute position of the print character is adjusted by increasing or decreasing the basic dot row at a predetermined cycle of the counter, and the dot row of the dot-corresponding graphic data is adjusted. Dummy dot row data of the basic dot row for the number is set.

When one line of print data is edited in the character data line buffer memory 4 and the dot corresponding graphic line buffer memory 6, a control signal from the central processing unit 2 is connected to the print timing generation unit 7. When the print data from the character data line buffer memory 4 is connected to the port 8 under the control of the central processing unit 2, the print timing signal from the print timing generator 7 to the dot pitch of the character data line buffer memory 4 is input to the typing unit. -Connected to the head 9 and the output of the port 8 is connected to the typing unit head 9 and printed. Similarly, when the print data from the dot corresponding graphic line buffer memory 6 is connected to the port 8 under the control of the central processing unit 2, the print timing generator 7 outputs the print timing corresponding to the dot pitch of the dot corresponding graphic line buffer memory 6. The signal is connected to the typing unit head 9 and the output of port 8 is the typing unit head 9
Is connected to and printed. Further, a program for controlling the printer is connected from the read-only memory 5 to the work random access memory 10 for controlling the printer.

The operation of the serial dot matrix printer having such a configuration will be described. In FIG. 1, the central processing unit 1 for controlling the entire printer loads the received print data from the reception control port 1, and if it is a character code, loads the print font corresponding to the character code from the character generator 3 for character data. Set in the row buffer memory 4. At the same time, the dot-corresponding graphic line buffer memory 6 has the same character pitch with respect to the character code even if the basic dot pitch is different.
When the character pitch is converted into the dot pitch of each dot-corresponding graphic data, pitch-to-dot row number data indicating how many dot rows the size becomes, is stored in the read-only memory 5, and the value is stored. The dummy dot row data is set by referring to the dot pitch of the dot corresponding graphic and adjusting it.

On the other hand, in the case of dot-corresponding graphic data, it can be set in the dot-corresponding graphic row buffer memory 6 without any correction for the horizontal dot columns. Further, the character data row buffer memory 4 is provided with a counter for counting the number of dot columns of the dot corresponding graphic data, and the number of dot columns of each dot corresponding graphic data is converted into the basic dot pitch of the printer. However, the absolute position of the printed character is corrected by increasing or decreasing the basic dot row at a predetermined cycle of the counter, and the dummy data of the basic dot row corresponding to the number of dot rows of the dot corresponding graphic data is set.

When one line of data is edited and printed in the two buffer memories as described above, the print timing generation unit 7
The print timing signals for the dot rows of the two buffers are separately generated, and the print data for one line is printed twice.

Next, a method of editing data created for a basic dot pitch of 1/160 inch / dot by a printer having a basic dot pitch of 1/180 inch / dot in a memory buffer will be described. The table is a character pitch vs. dot row number table for each dot pitch of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows the line format of the received print data of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. The character code is "Kan", and the basic dot pitch is 1/160 inch / dot. The following shows an example in which the character code “character” is received twice.

FIG. 3 is a line format of a line buffer memory for character data of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a row format of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. 3 and 4, first, when the character code Kanji full-width 6.66 CPI (character / inch, character per inch) data "Kan" is received,
The character data line buffer memory 4 shown in FIG.
The 27-dot string print font is expanded. At the same time, 24 values are loaded into the dot-corresponding graphic line buffer memory 6 from the table showing the number of dot columns for the character pitch at each dot pitch shown in the table, and 24
Expand the dummy data for the dot row.

Next, when a graphic corresponding to 12 dots in the horizontal direction is received for the key line, the character data row buffer memory 4 stores one dot row each time the number of dot row counters for absolute position correction becomes a multiple of eight. Add minute data and set it as dummy data. In the dot-corresponding graphic row buffer memory 6, the received dot string data is set as it is. This process is repeated, and finally, in the column shown in FIG. 2, print data is set in the character data line buffer memory 4 and the dot corresponding graphic line buffer memory 5 as shown in FIGS.

This line of print data is printed in the character data line buffer memory 4 at 1/180 inch / dot pitch, and in the dot-compatible graphic line buffer memory 5 at 1/160 inch / dot.
If the dot pitch is used for printing, the print result is almost the same as that obtained by printing with a printer having a basic dot pitch of 1/160 inch / dot.

〔The invention's effect〕

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY As described above, the present invention has an excellent effect that printing results are almost unnatural, printing efficiency can be improved, and compatibility between printers having the same model but different dot pitches can be maintained. There is.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a serial dot matrix printer according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a line format of received print data of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a line format of a line buffer memory for character data of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows a line format of a dot buffer graphic line buffer memory of the serial dot matrix printer of the present invention. 1 ... Reception control port, 2 ... Central processing unit, 3 ... Character generator, 4 ... Character data line buffer memory, 5 ... Read-only memory, 6 ... Dot-compatible graphic line buffer memory, 7 ... ... Printing timing generator, 8 ... Port, 9 ... Typing unit / head, 10 ... Work random access memory.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A serial dot matrix printer comprising: buffer memory means for editing and storing one line of received print data; and printing means for printing the print data read from the buffer memory means. The means sets the character data for one line of the received print data at the basic dot pitch of the printer, and sets the dot corresponding graphic data to the basic dot pitch to correct the absolute position of the printed character. The character data buffer memory means for setting the dummy dot string data, and the dot corresponding graphic data for one line of the received print data at the dot pitch of the received dot corresponding graphic data are set as they are, and the character data is the received dot corresponding graphic. Data dot And a dot-corresponding graphic line buffer memory means to be set as the dummy dot row data adjusted to each other, and the printing means prints the print data from the two buffer memory means separately with different print timing signals. A serial dot matrix printer characterized in that