JPH0512053Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a control device for automatically positioning a printer head to a printing position in a serial printer when the power is turned on or when the printer is reset.

Prior Art Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram of a method for positioning the printer head at the printing position (hereinafter referred to as the home position) when the power is turned on or reset in a conventional printer, and Figure 6 is the operational processing flow at that time. It's a chat. In Fig. 5, LS is the left end stopper, RS is the right end stopper, L is the movable range of the printer head, and S is the home sensor consisting of a photo sensor attached to the control board, which detects the metal piece attached to the printer head. It is something to detect. The left end of the home sensor S is positioned at the same position as the left end stopper LS, and a point moved to the left by a distance n from the right end of the home sensor S is determined as the home position HP.

In such a configuration, the printer head is set to the home position HP when the power is turned on or reset.
To do this, a microprocessor (hereinafter referred to as CPU), which is a control device of the printer, performs the processing shown in the operational flowchart of FIG.

First, it is determined whether the home sensor S detects a metal piece attached to the printer head and is turned on (step 200). If it is turned on, the home sensor S acts as a driving means for the printer head until it is turned off. The pulse motor is moved per unit pulse, and the printer head is moved to the right (step 201,
202), proceed to step S203. Also, step
200 and the home sensor S is off, the printer head moves from the right end of the home sensor S to the right end stopper.
Since this means that the home sensor S is located between RS, the process moves directly to step 203, moves the printer head to the left in unit pulses, and determines whether or not the home sensor S is turned on (step 204). Move the printer head to the left until the When the home sensor S is turned on and the printer head reaches the right end position of the home sensor S, the printer head is moved leftward from this position by a set distance n and then stopped (step 205). This allows the printer head to connect to the home page.
This means that it has been positioned.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the conventional printer that operates as described above, the home sensor S must be placed at the left end of the printer head's movable range L, that is, in contact with the left end stopper LS. That is, unless the home sensor S is turned on when the power is turned on or reset.
This is because control is performed on the assumption that the printer head is always positioned to the right of the home sensor S.

On the other hand, printers have a maximum number of characters that can be printed on one line.
There are different types such as 136 characters and 80 characters, and some have a long movable range L of the printer head, while others have a short range. In order to standardize these various printers, standardize the parts that can be made common, and standardize the control board's external shape, layout, etc. in order to reduce manufacturing costs, the position of the home sensor S should be changed to the left end stopper LS as in the past. In the position placement method, the control board must be placed so that the home sensor S is located at the left end stopper LS, and its position is regulated, which affects other mechanical configurations and arrangements of the printer. However, it is not possible to standardize other parts, and the standard work required to assemble the printer is reduced, resulting in poor efficiency. For example, in two or more types of printers that differ in the maximum number of characters that can be printed in one line (with different movable ranges L of the printer head), it is possible to use a common base for mounting the printer's various mechanical devices and control boards. If the position of the control board attached to the base is restricted to a fixed position, the mounting position of the mechanical devices attached to the base will also be restricted, resulting in a disadvantage that optimal arrangement will not be possible. In particular, if the position of the control board is not regulated, it is possible to determine the optimal mechanical device placement for both printers for different types of printers, and to place common machines and devices in the common position. By restricting the location, it becomes impossible to share and standardize these arrangements.

Therefore, the purpose of this invention is to improve the conventional problems,
The object of the present invention is to enable the mounting position of a printed circuit board to be arbitrarily selected by making it possible to arrange a home sensor at an arbitrary position.

Means for Solving the Problems The printer head printing position control device according to the present invention has a home sensor located at any position other than both ends of the printer head's movable range, and
positioning start position detection means for detecting a positioning start position that is one end of a detection area of the home sensor predetermined based on the moving direction of the printer head and the rise or fall of the detection output from the home sensor; When the home sensor detects the printer head when the power is turned on or reset, the printer head is moved in a predetermined direction and the positioning start position is detected by the positioning start position detection means. When the home sensor does not detect the printer head, move the printer head a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction and cause the positioning start position detection means to detect the positioning start position;
If the positioning start position is not detected, move the printer head in the opposite direction so that the positioning start position is detected by the positioning start position detection means, and then move the printer head from the positioning start position by a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction to move the printer head to the print ejection position. It has a configuration characterized in that it is equipped with a control means for positioning.

Operation When the power is turned on or a reset operation is performed, the control means is activated and determines whether or not the home sensor is detecting the printer head.

When the home sensor is detecting the printer head, the printer head is located on the home sensor, so the printer head is moved in a predetermined direction and the positioning start position detection means detects the rise of the detection output from the home sensor. Alternatively, by detecting the falling edge, the positioning start position, which is one end of the detection area of the home sensor, can be detected. Therefore, in this case, the control means moves the printer head in a predetermined direction and causes the positioning start position detection means to detect the positioning start position.

Also, if the home sensor is not detecting the printer head, the printer head is not located on the home sensor, and the printer is located on either side of the printer head's movable range, which is divided into two by the detection area of the home sensor. It means that the head is located. Therefore, the control means first moves the printer head by a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction so that the positioning start position detection means detects the positioning start position which is one end of the detection area of the home sensor. If the predetermined moving direction of the printer head is opposite to the position of the printer head with respect to the home sensor at the time of power-on or reset, positioning is performed while the printer head is moved a predetermined amount in the predetermined direction. A start position detection means detects a positioning start position.

On the other hand, if the predetermined moving direction of the printer head is the same as the position of the printer head relative to the home sensor when the power is turned on or reset, the printer head is moved in the predetermined direction. In this case, the positioning start position detecting means does not detect the positioning start position. Therefore, in this case, the control means moves the printer head in a direction opposite to the predetermined moving direction of the printer head, and causes the positioning start position detecting means to detect the positioning start position.

When the positioning start position detecting means detects the positioning start position, the control means moves the printer head by a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction from the positioning start position to position the printer head at the print embossing position.

Embodiment Figure 1 is a block diagram of the main parts of an embodiment of the present invention, in which 1 is a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as CPU) that controls a serial printer, 2 is a ROM that stores a printer control program, and 3 is a temporary data storage. RAM is used for storage etc. 4 is for various commands,
A manual data input device 5 for inputting data is connected to the home sensor S by an input circuit. Reference numeral 6 denotes an output circuit, and a driver 7 is connected to the output circuit 6 for driving a pulse motor 8 for moving the printer head in the left and right directions with respect to the platen. Further, the CPU 1 and elements 2 to 5 are connected by a bus.

A dark-on type home sensor S with a light emitting element and a light receiving element facing each other and mounted on the control board.
As shown in Figure 2, the control board is located at a certain position within the printer head's movable range (excluding both ends of the movable range), which is determined by the position where the control board is attached to the printer's base. This position is a fixed position depending on the type of printer, and as a result, the position of the home position HP of the printer head is a certain fixed distance from the position of this home sensor S for each type of printer. In this embodiment, the home position is set at a position n from the right end of the home sensor S.
It is assumed that there is HP.

In such a printer, when the power is turned on or reset, the CPU 1 performs the operations shown in the operational processing flowchart of FIG.

First, check whether the light receiving element of the home sensor S is blocked by the light shielding plate attached to the printer head and its detection output is turned on. If it is on, the pulse motor 8 is driven by a unit pulse to move the printer head to the right (step 101). The rightward direction here refers to a predetermined first direction of movement of the printer head.

Then, it is determined whether or not the home sensor S has turned off (step 102), and the printer head is sequentially moved to the right by a unit pulse amount until the home sensor S is turned off.
Move to 103.

Furthermore, if it is determined that the home sensor S is off in the process of step 100 immediately after the power is turned on or reset, the printer head may be This means that the printer head is located at either one of the movable ranges of the printer head, that is, to the left or right of the home sensor S.

In this case, in this embodiment, the counter K provided in the RAM 3 is reset (step 103), and the pulse motor is driven to move the printer head unit by unit toward the left, which is the second predetermined direction of movement. Move by the amount of pulses (step 104), counter K
is incremented (step 105), and it is determined whether the value of the counter K has reached the number of pulses L of the pulse motor 7 corresponding to the movable range L of the printer head, that is, in a predetermined second movement direction. It is determined whether the value of the counter K has reached a value L of the number of pulses corresponding to a predetermined movement amount L for detecting the positioning start position by movement of the counter K (step 106).

That is, it is determined whether the printer head has moved beyond the movable range L or above a certain set value, and if the set value has not been reached, it is determined whether the home sensor S is turned on (step 107), and the printer head is turned on. If not, repeat the process from step 104 onwards.
Thus, when the printer head moves to the left, which is the second predetermined movement direction, the printer head contacts the left stopper LS or the home sensor S is turned on. If the home sensor S is turned on first, it means that the printer head was initially located on the right side of the home sensor S, that is, in the opposite direction to the predetermined second movement direction with the home sensor S as a reference. This means that the positioning start position is detected in the process of step 107 as described above.

Also, if the value of the counter K first becomes equal to or greater than the pulse amount L in the movable range L, the printer head is moved to the left side of the home sensor S, that is, at the predetermined second
This means that the printer head is positioned in the same direction as the moving direction of the printer head, and by moving by the predetermined amount, the printer head comes into contact with the left stopper LS, and the positioning start position cannot be detected as it is.

Therefore, at this time, the printer head is moved in the right direction, which is opposite to the predetermined second movement direction, every unit pulse until the home sensor S is turned on (steps 108 and 109). Through the processing in steps 104 to 107, the printer head moves to the left stopper LS.
Although the pulse motor 8 is driven by the movable range L even though it is unable to move to the left due to contact with the printer head, the pulse motor 8 is out of phase and out of step. By reversing the pulse motor 8, the out-of-step state is eliminated and accurate positioning becomes possible. In this way, when the printer head moves to the right, which is opposite to the predetermined second movement direction, and the home sensor S is turned on and the positioning start position is detected, the process moves to step 101 and processes from step 101 onwards are performed. .

When the home sensor S is turned on in step 107, it means that the printer head is at the right end position of the home sensor S, so move the printer head a set distance n from this position to the home position HP position. Move it to the left and stop it (step 110). In this way the printer head is positioned at the home position.

In the above embodiment, when the home sensor S is not on when the power is turned on or reset, the printer head is first moved to the left, that is, toward the left end stopper LS, but it is moved to the right, that is, toward the right end stopper RS. Good too. In this case the home position
The distance of the HP position from the left edge of the home sensor S
If n' is set, in the operation processing flowchart shown in FIG. ’ value.

Further, in the above embodiment, the value to be compared with the value of the counter K in step 106 in FIG. 3 is the number of pulses L corresponding to the movable range L.
The number of pulses may be set to correspond to the distance to the RS.
This means that if the printer head is on the right side of the home sensor S, the distance between the right end stopper RS and the right end of the home sensor S, and the printer head moves to the left, the home sensor S should be turned on during that time. This is because if this is not the case, it means that the printer head is on the left side of the home sensor S.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of another embodiment of the present invention, in which the printer head can be moved within a range of movement to either the left or right when the home sensor does not detect the printer head at power-on or reset. Positioning is performed by moving it by more than L and abutting the left or right stopper, and in this embodiment, the case is shown in which it abuts the right stopper.

When the power is turned on or a reset signal is input,
The CPU 1 determines whether the home sensor S is on or not (step 120), and if it is on, drives the pulse motor 8 every unit pulse until the home sensor S turns off, as in the embodiment shown in FIG. is moved to the right (steps 121, 122), and the process moves to step 127. On the other hand, if the home sensor S is off, the counter K is reset (step
123), the pulse motor 8 is driven by a preset number of pulses greater than the number of pulses corresponding to the movable range L of the printer head to move the printer head to the right (steps 124, 125, 126). As a result, the printer head comes into contact with the right stopper RS. Thus, the printer head is positioned outside the detection area to the right of the detection area of the home sensor S. Next, the printer head is moved to the left by a unit pulse (step 127), it is determined whether the home sensor S is turned on (step 128), and the printer head is moved to the left until it is turned on. When it is turned on, the printer head is moved to the left by a predetermined amount n from the right end of the detection area of the home sensor S and stopped at the home position HP (step 128), and prints. The launch positioning is completed.

In the above embodiment, when the home sensor S is off at power-on or reset, the printer head is moved to the right by the movable range L, but it may be moved to the left by the movable range L. In this case, it is more convenient to set the distance n between the home position HP and the home sensor S to the left end of the detection area of the home position HP and the home sensor S rather than to the right end. (If it is the right end, it is necessary to detect the position where the home sensor turns on and then turns off when moving the printer head toward the home sensor S side.) The operation at this time is shown in steps 121 and 121 in the flowchart of FIG. In step 124, the direction of movement of the printer head is changed to the left, in step 127, the left direction is changed to the right direction, and in step 129, the movement amount n is changed to the distance n' between the home position HP and the left edge of the detection area of the home sensor S. do it.

Furthermore, as another embodiment, when the power is turned on or reset, regardless of whether the home sensor S is on or not, the printer head is driven to the right or left by a set value that is greater than or equal to the movable range L, and then the home sensor S
Detect one end of the detection area, and from the detected position, calculate the distance n between the home position HP and the above one end.
Alternatively, the printing position may be determined by moving the printer head by n' toward the home position HP.

Effects of the invention As described above, the present invention allows the printer head to be positioned at the home position, which is the print ejection position, regardless of the position of the home sensor except at both ends of the printer head's movable range. Therefore, there is no need to specify the location of the control board to which the home sensor is attached. Therefore, when placing mechanical devices and control boards on the printer base, items that are common to various printers can be freely placed in common positions, and standardized work processes can be established for various printers. It can make your work easier.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the main parts of an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the relationship between the movable range of the printer head and the home sensor in one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is an operation flowchart of the same embodiment, and FIG. 4 is another embodiment of the present invention. An example operation flowchart, Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram explaining the relationship between the movable range of the printer head and the home sensor in a conventional printer, and Figure 6 is the print ejection positioning when power is turned on or reset in a conventional printer. This is an operation flowchart for. L...Movable range of printer head, LS...Left side stopper, RS...Right side stopper, S...Home sensor, HP...Home position.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] In a serial printer in which the printer head position is detected by a home sensor when the power is turned on or reset, and the printer head is moved by a head drive means to position it at the print ejection position, the home sensor is used to detect the position of the printer head within the movable range of the printer head. Positioning starts at one end of the detection area of the home sensor, which is placed at any position other than both ends, and is predetermined by the moving direction of the printer head and the rise or fall of the detection output from the home sensor. A positioning start position detection means detects the position, and when the home sensor detects the printer head when the power is turned on or reset, the printer head is moved in a predetermined direction and positioning is started by the positioning start position detection means. The position is detected, and when the home sensor does not detect the printer head when the power is turned on or reset, the printer head is moved by a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction, and the positioning start position is detected by the positioning start position detection means. If the printer head is not detected, the printer head is moved in the opposite direction, the positioning start position is detected by the positioning start position detection means, and the printer head is moved from the positioning start position by a predetermined amount in a predetermined direction to print. 1. A printing embossing position control device for a printer head, comprising: a control means configured to position the printer head at an embossing position.