JPS63251275A - Method of driving typewriter or similar business equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for driving a typewriter, printer or similar office equipment including a control unit, the control unit comprising at least one microprocessor, containing a control program. A storage device, in particular a ROM storage device, and at least one storage area for storing variable data.
At the beginning of the drive, the RAM memory that holds numerical values in the part, the electric motor that can be driven by the control unit, and especially the mechanical parts,
It consists of a stepper motor acting on an uninfluenced manual mechanical member which performs a movement starting from a reference position configured as a mechanical stop and is again in the reference position at the end of the drive. In this case, the method includes a validity check that checks the validity of the partially stored information holding the numerical value in the RAM memory at each start-up.

In typewriters, printers or similar office equipment of the type mentioned above, it is necessary to ensure that, after start-up, all mechanical parts operated by the electric drive are in a reset position and synchronized with the control unit.

In contrast, a so-called starting procedure (starting routine) has been carried out for some time. In the case of a mechanical component driven by an electric motor, this kind of starting procedure is such that the electric motor is driven in a predetermined manner directly after starting. In this case, the above-mentioned drive is such that the striking member is moved against the mechanical stop irrespective of its starting position, e.g.
Proceeding as known from publication No. 48016 or
Or, by means of a sensor circuit and a corresponding control circuit, it is brought to the reset position as cited in German Patent No. 2817209.

The disadvantages of the above-mentioned method are known, and in the first case, in addition to the relatively long time it takes to get ready for actuation, there is a considerable noise propagation. On the other hand, it must be mentioned that the second method requires extra expenditure for the sensor circuit. The problem is further aggravated by the fact that the above-mentioned equipment usually requires a large number of starting procedures for the various drives, e.g. type wheels, paper supports, color band lifting and moving devices, type slides, etc. There is.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a method for driving a device of the type mentioned in the predominant parts of claims 1 and 2, which method only applies when this is unavoidable. Allows the start-up procedure to be carried out, thereby preventing unnecessary noise propagation and quickly getting the equipment ready for operation.

When solving this problem, the starting point is that the mechanical components mentioned above come to a reset position at a time when a suitable interruption - it should be understood that this interruption is not carried out, for example, during printing. . During this normal state, the start-up procedure is abandoned. Based on this situation, in order to solve the above problem, a "state value J" is defined. This "state value" represents the driving state of the electric motor before turning off the power, and holds the numerical value in the RAM memory. The part that is there is remembered. Therefore,
After restarting, checking the suitability of the contents of the RAM, and interrogating the "status values", it can be determined whether to perform the startup procedure.

Advantages of the method according to the invention according to the features of claims 1 and 2, besides the already mentioned speedup with respect to noise propagation or operational readiness, include additional features of a mechanism of said type. The advantage is that it can be integrated without the expense of circuit technology.

Preferred embodiments of the method of the invention will be explained in detail below with the help of the drawings.

The examples described below are based on the following points. In units driven by electric motors, the problem lies in the color ribbon lifting device driven by a stepping motor. Furthermore, it presupposes a construction of the mechanism as defined in relation to the main part of the invention presented in the upper part of the claims.

First, using the flowchart of FIG. 1, a description will be given of how a state value representing the operating state of the stepping motor is generated and how it is managed.

On the other hand, the items indicated by the arrows are sequentially executed according to the control steps. In this case, it is assumed that the ascending and descending process of the color ribbon is reset and the symbol is printed.

Step 1. The value M is set in the motor step counter. where M is the number of motor steps that must be performed until the color ribbon is in the printing position.

Step 2. The first bit pattern is entered from the control program of the RAM memory (the part that holds numerical values) at storage address A. In this case, the first bit pattern is the state value for the "stepping motor is operating" state.

Step 3. Move the motor forward one step.

Step 4. Decrease the step counter by 1.

Step 5. Call: Motor step counter - 〇? If it is good, proceed to step 6.

If no, proceed to step 3.

Step 6: Print.

Step 7. Set motor step counter to M.

In this case, M is a color ribbon must be executed to set it to its initial position. This is the number of motor steps that must be taken.

Step 8. Reverse the motor step by 1.

Step 9. Decrease the motor step counter by 1.

Step 10. Call: Motor step counter - 〇? If it is good, proceed to step 11.

If no, proceed to step 8.

Step 11. The second bit pattern is entered under storage address A from the control program of the RAM memory (the part that holds numerical values). In this case, the second bit pattern is the state value for the "stepping motor is not operating" state.

The control sequence shown in FIG. 1 presents conditions for determining whether the equipment is performing the startup procedure after startup. As already mentioned above, the device will only start if it is stopped automatically, e.g. during printing, or if the contents of the RAM memory containing the values become invalid, e.g. due to a power failure. Steps need to be taken. Unauthorized shutdown of the device is confirmed past the shutdown point by storing a bit pattern at a predetermined address filed in a numerical storage section of the RAM memory. R
Information stored on the numerical value storage part of the AM memory o) (7) Confirming the effectiveness is done in analog.

The generation and management of state values while the device is operating has been explained in ``-'', but now the control process immediately after the device is started will be explained with reference to the flowchart of FIG. For this, the control steps are carried out again using arrows.

Step 21. Reset the control unit.

Step 22. Call: Are the contents of RAM valid? When it's good, go to step 23.

If no, go to step 26.

To examine the effectiveness, it is usually necessary to use RA File in the numerical value holding section of M memory is stored on a certain address Control bit pattern Compare with bit pattern in gram do. In this case, if they match The validity of the contents of the memory is signaled. It will be done.

Step 23, Interrogation: Does the bit pattern stored on RAM address A (numerical storage section of RAM memory) match the first bit pattern of the control program? When it's good, go to step 26.

If no, go to step 24.

Step 24. Question: Does the bit pattern stored at RAM address A (numerical storage section of RAM memory) match the second bit pattern of the control program? When it's good, go to step 25.

If no, go to step 26.

Step 25. A stepping motor is operated according to an operation program pattern given to a control program.

Step 26. Perform the startup procedure shown in Figure 3.

Step 27. Perform other control flows, such as printing.

The control sequence previously shown in connection with the flowchart of FIG. 2 makes it possible to abandon performance of a start-up procedure in the vast majority of cases - usually due to an inappropriate interruption of the equipment.

The start-up procedure, as described in step 26 above, is then broken down into single steps with the aid of the flowchart of FIG. 3, which will now be described in detail. The figure is again shown as an arrow.

Step 30. The steering motor is operated according to the operation program pattern given to the control program.

Step 31. Set the motor step counter to N. In this case, N is the number of motor steps required to raise the color ribbon from its stable position to its highest position.

Step 32. Operate the motor in one step forward direction.

　　.

Step 33. Decrease the motor step counter by 1.

Step 34. Call: Motor step counter = 0? When it's good, go to step 35.

If no, go to step 32.

Step 35. Set the motor step counter to N.

Step 36. Move the motor one step in the opposite direction.

Step 37. Decrease the motor step counter by 1.

Step 38. Call: Is the motor step count 420? When it's good, go to step 27.

If no, go to step 36.

The startup procedure is as explained in the control sequence above.
The device described herein, or modified versions thereof, may be used in a variety of ways.

Regarding the control sequences shown in connection with the flowcharts of Figures 1 to 3, it should be noted that the individual control steps are self-evident, but also consist of control sequences, the content of which depends on the microprocessor used. Must. The description of the control sequences set forth herein is well known to those skilled in the art and requires no further explanation.

In addition, as a modification of the example described, the "state value" is first set to R
It can be seen that only at the moment when a value occurs in a part of the AM memory which does not hold a value, is managed and shut off can it be stored at a predetermined address in the value holding part of the RAM memory by means of a so-called protection routine.

It is obvious that the control principle shown in connection with the stepping motor in the embodiments also makes it easy to think of using, for example, a DC motor as the drive motor. This is because it has nothing to do with the type of motor being used.

Furthermore, it should be noted that the method of the present invention is not limited to the color ribbon lifting mechanism, but can be used with other drive units as long as they meet the conditions stated at the beginning of this volume.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart showing the control flow for generating and managing state values; FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the control flow for determining whether a start-up procedure should be performed; FIG. is a flowchart diagram of the startup procedure.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) At least one microprocessor, a memory storing a control program, in particular a ROM memory, and a RAM storing variable data and holding numerical values in at least one storage area. a control unit consisting of a memory and a mechanical element which is not affected by the manual actuation from a stationary position which is formed as a mechanical key at the beginning of the drive;
an electric motor, in particular a stepper motor, driven by the control unit, which acts on the mechanical member so that it is in its stationary position again at the end of the drive; In a method for driving a typewriter, printer, or similar office equipment, in which a validity test is performed to check the validity of the information stored, the control unit, at the beginning of driving the electric motor, preliminarily stores the information in the numerical value storage of the RAM memory. Under at least one address of a given control program, a first bit pattern in this control program is applied, and at the end of the drive, the control unit applies the first bit pattern stored at the address. is copied in the second bit pattern similarly held in the control program, and the control unit stores the data in the RAM each time the device is started.
After confirming the validity of the information stored in the numerical value storage section of the memory device, the starting procedure was activated, and the control unit confirmed the information stored in the numerical value storage section of the RAM storage device each time the device was started. After that, the bit pattern stored at a predetermined address in the control program is compared with a predetermined first bit pattern in the control program and/or a predetermined second bit pattern in the control program, and the control unit activates a start-up procedure if the first bit pattern matches and/or if the second bit pattern does not match; A driving method characterized in that a starting procedure is suppressed when a pattern is matched. 2) A control consisting of at least one microprocessor, a memory containing a control program, in particular a ROM memory, and a RAM memory containing variable data and holding numerical values in at least one memory area. the unit and the mechanical parts which are not affected by the hand carry out the movement from a stationary position which is formed as a mechanical key at the beginning of the drive;
an electric motor, in particular a stepper motor, driven by the control unit, which acts on the mechanical member so that it is in its stationary position again at the end of the drive; In a method for driving a typewriter, printer, or similar office equipment, in which a validity test is performed to check the validity of the information stored, the control unit, at the beginning of driving the electric motor, preliminarily stores the information in the numerical value storage of the RAM memory. Under at least one address of a given control program, a first bit pattern in this control program is applied, and at the end of the drive, the control unit applies the first bit pattern stored at the address. is copied with a second bit pattern that is also held in the control program, and when the control unit turns off the power to the device, the control unit copies the bit pattern stored at the above address to the RAM previously given in the control program using a protection routine. Each time the device is started, the control unit stores it in an address in another numerical value storage section of the memory device, and stores it in the RAM.
After confirming the validity of the information stored in the numerical value storage section of the memory device, the starting procedure was activated, and the control unit confirmed the information stored in the numerical value storage section of the RAM storage device each time the device was started. After that, the bit pattern stored at a predetermined address in the control program is compared with a predetermined first bit pattern in the control program and/or a predetermined second bit pattern in the control program, and the control unit activates a start-up procedure if the first bit pattern matches and/or if the second bit pattern does not match; A driving method characterized in that a starting procedure is suppressed when a pattern is matched.