JP2000033730A - Printer, control thereof and printing system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To register a font even if printing of designated resolving power is impossible to perform printing by using the font. SOLUTION: A printer receives a resolving power designating command from a host and, if the operation thereof in this resolving power is impossible, operable resolving power is preset. Next, if resolving power is altered from designated resolving power (S6010) when the printer receives a font registering command, font data to be registered is converted to the data fitted to the set resolving power (S6011) and, thereafter, a font is registered (S6003).

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing apparatus for performing printing based on, for example, an input command, a control method thereof, and a printing system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a font is registered in a printing apparatus, bitmap font data suitable for a printing resolution supported by the printing apparatus is transmitted from an information processing apparatus connected to the printing apparatus to the printing apparatus. Is generally transferred.

[0003]

However, in some cases, the printing device does not support a printing resolution suitable for the bitmap font data transferred from the information processing device, or a resolution other than the supported printing resolution. In some cases, the data constituted by the above is transferred, and the capacity of the registration memory for storing the same data in the printing apparatus cannot be obtained.

[0004] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional example, and when registering fonts in a printing apparatus, printing is not possible at a specified print resolution or when the capacity of a registration memory is insufficient. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus, a control method thereof, and a printing system which enable printing processing using a registered font.

[0005]

To achieve the above object, the present invention has the following arrangement. That is, it is possible to set the printing resolution to a plurality of types, and to perform printing using the registered font data, and determine whether the resolution of the font data to be registered matches the currently set resolution. If it is determined that the font data does not match, the size of the font data is converted into a size compatible with the currently set resolution and registered.

[0006] Alternatively, a printing apparatus capable of setting a plurality of printing resolutions and printing using the registered font data, and an information processing apparatus for designating the resolution for the printing apparatus and registering the font data. And a printing system, wherein the printing device has a resolution of font data to be registered from the information processing device,
It is determined whether or not the current resolution is compatible. If not, the size of the font data is converted into a size that is compatible with the currently set resolution and registered.

Alternatively, it is possible to set a plurality of print resolutions, and to perform a print control using the registered font data, wherein the resolution of the font data to be registered is currently set. It is determined whether or not the resolution matches the current resolution. If the resolution does not match, the size of the font data is converted into a size that matches the currently set resolution and registered.

Alternatively, a storage medium for storing a computer program for registering and printing font data in a printing apparatus capable of setting a plurality of print resolutions, wherein the program stores the resolution of the font data to be registered Determines whether the resolution is compatible with the currently set resolution, and if not, converts the size of the font data into a size compatible with the currently set resolution and then registers the font data.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [First Embodiment] Before describing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, a configuration of a laser beam printer suitable for applying the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This will be described with reference to FIG.

The printer to which the embodiment of the present invention is applied is not limited to a laser beam printer, but may be a printer of another printing system such as an ink jet printer.

<Laser Beam Printer> FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the structure of a laser beam printer (LBP). In the figure, an LBP main body 1000 inputs and stores print information (character codes and the like), form information, macro instructions, and the like supplied from an externally connected host computer, and also stores a corresponding character pattern according to the information. And a form pattern or the like, and form an image on a recording medium such as recording paper.

The operation panel 1012 is provided with switches for operation, an LED display, and the like. The printer control unit 1001 controls the entire LBP main body 1000 and analyzes character information and the like supplied from the host computer. The printer control unit 1001 mainly converts character information into a video signal of a corresponding character pattern and outputs the video signal to a laser driver 1002. The laser driver 1002 is a circuit for driving the semiconductor laser 1003, and operates in accordance with the input video signal.
The laser beam 1004 emitted from 003 is switched on and off. The laser beam 1004 is oscillated in the left-right direction by the rotary polygon mirror 1005 to scan and expose the electrostatic drum 1006. As a result, an electrostatic latent image of a character pattern is formed on the electrostatic drum 1006. This latent image is
Developing unit 10 arranged around electrostatic drum 1006
After being developed by 07, it is transferred to recording paper. This recording paper uses a cut sheet, and the cut sheet recording paper is L
The sheet is stored in a sheet cassette 1008 mounted on the BP 1000, is taken into the apparatus by a sheet feeding roller 1009, a conveying roller 1010 and a conveying roller 1011, and is supplied to the electrostatic drum 1006. In addition, LBP body 1000
Is provided with at least one or more card slots (not shown) so that an optional card, a control card (emulation card) having a different language system, and the like can be connected in addition to the built-in font.

<Configuration of Printing System> FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a printing system configured by connecting a host computer and a printer. Here, a laser beam printer (FIG. 1) will be described as an example.

Referring to FIG. 2, a host computer 210
0 includes a CPU 2001 for executing document processing in which graphics, images, characters, tables (including spreadsheets and the like) are mixed based on a program ROM of the ROM 2003 or a document processing program or the like stored in the RAM 2002;
Each device connected to the system device 2004 is represented by C
The PU 2001 performs overall control.

Further, the RAM 2002 or the ROM 20
The program ROM 03 stores a control program of the CPU 2001 and the like.
The font ROM 003 stores font data and the like used in the document processing. RAM 2002 is
It functions as a main memory, a work area, and the like of the CPU 2001. When storing programs, fonts, etc., they are usually loaded from the external memory 2011.

Keyboard controller (KBC) 200
Reference numeral 5 controls key input from the keyboard 2009 or a pointing device (not shown). The CRT controller (CRTC) 2006 has a CRT display (CR
T) The display of 2010 is controlled. A memory controller (MC) 2007 controls access to an external memory 2011 such as a hard disk (HD) or a floppy disk (FD) that stores a boot program, various applications, font data, user files, edited files, and the like. Printer controller (PRTC) 20
08 is connected to the printer 1000 via a predetermined bidirectional interface (interface) 2021;
A communication control process with the printer 1000 is executed. In addition,
The CPU 2001 executes, for example, a process of developing (rasterizing) the outline font in the display information RAM set on the RAM 2002, and matches the image displayed on the CRT 2010 with the image to be printed out.
G is possible. Also, the CPU 2001 is a CRT
Various windows registered based on a command instructed by a mouse cursor or the like (not shown) on 2010 are opened,
Perform various data processing.

In the printer 1000, the printer CP
U2012 is a control program or the like stored in the program ROM of the ROM 2013 or the external memory 2014.
, Which controls access to various devices connected to the system bus 2015 based on a control program or the like stored in the print unit (printer engine) 2017 connected via the print unit interface 2016. As an image signal. Also, this ROM2
013 program ROM or external memory 2014
CPU 2 as shown in the flowchart of FIG.
012 and the like are stored. ROM 2013
The font ROM used for storing the above information is used to store font data and the like. The data ROM of the ROM 2013 is used on the host computer in the case of a printer without an external memory 2014 such as a hard disk. Information and the like are stored. The CPU 2012 can perform communication processing with the host computer via the input unit 2018 and can notify the host computer 2100 of information in the printer and the like. Reference numeral 2019 denotes a RAM that functions as a main memory, a work area, and the like of the CPU 2012, and is configured so that the memory capacity can be expanded by an optional RAM connected to an unillustrated expansion port. The RAM 2019 is used for an output information development area (frame buffer 2024), an environment data storage area, and the like. In addition, the RAM 2019
Part of it is also used as a registration memory 2022 for registering fonts and the like.

An external registration memory 2023 is an external memory for registering fonts and the like.
D), a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory, and access is controlled by a memory controller (MC) 2020.

The access to the external memory 2014 such as a hard disk (HD) and an IC card is controlled by a memory controller (MC) 2020. The external memory 2014 is connected as an option, and stores font data, an emulation program, form data, and the like. The operation panel 2018 includes switches for operation, an LED display, and the like.

The number of the external memory 2014 is not limited to one, and may be two or more. In addition to the built-in fonts, an optional font card, a program for interpreting printer control codes (page description languages) of different languages, etc. May be configured to be able to connect a plurality of external memories in which is stored. Further, an NVRAM (not shown) may be provided to store the printer mode setting information from the operation panel 1012.

The document data created by the application software on the host is converted into a printer control code and then sent to a printer for printing.

Here, the created document data is a document file managed as a file, and the document file is stored in the RAM 2002 and the external memory 2011 on the host.
Created and stored above.

<Document File on Host and Registration Management Table> FIG. 3 shows a document file 40 stored on the host.
It is a figure explaining the structure of 00.

The document file 4000 includes a header 400
1 and an arrangement of character data 4002. The header section 4001 is configured with information common to all character data. The character data 4002 includes a character set for identifying a character type, a character code 4003, a character size, a print position (XY coordinates), a data size 4004, and the like.

The host generates a printer control code 3000 while analyzing the document file 4000 created by the application, and transfers the printer control code 3000 to the printer 1000. At that time, as an analysis result of the document file 4000,
The registration management table 5000 shown in FIG. 4 is created on the host.

The registration management table 5000 has a RAM
It is created on the external memory 2002 or the external memory 2011 and is deleted from the memory as soon as the printing process is completed. The registration management table 5000 will be described with reference to FIG.

The registration management table 5000 is a table for storing information such as character codes and data sizes registered in the printer. The registration management table 5000 includes a header section 5001, a pointer section 5002, and a data section 500.
3

The header section 5001 has a registered memory size of 5
004 and compression information 5005. The registration memory size 5004 includes the registration memory 2022 of the printer consumed by the font registration process or the external registration memory 20.
23 are stored. The registration memory size 5004 is calculated by the calculation formula in FIG. The compression information 5005 stores information for managing the compression method, such as the compression method used when the character data is compressed and transferred and the parameters thereof.

However, when the same compression method is used for all character data, compression information is stored in the compression information field 5005, and when different compression is performed for each character, the compression information is stored for each character. Compression information field 5008
To be stored.

The pointer section 5002 stores a pointer to an area storing each registered character data.
If the pointer section 5002 is not of a fixed length, information indicating the rear end is included in the header section 5001.

A character data portion 5003 stores each character data, is assigned to each character data, and is used as a substitute for a character code at the time of printing. Printing is also possible), data size 5007, compression information 500
8. The data size 5007 stores the bitmap data size when not compressed, and stores the compressed data size when compressed.

The compression information 5008 stores information on the used compression method.

<Processing of Document File in Host> Here, a procedure in which the host computer generates the registration management table 5000 and the printer control code from the document file 4000 will be described with reference to FIG.

(Creation of Print Control Code and Font Registration) First, the character data 40
02 is read (step 3001), and it is determined whether or not each character is registered for the read target character data based on a character code, a character size, a character data size, and the like (step 3003). In the registration determination in step 3003, registration conditions are set in advance on the host side, and registration is performed when these conditions are satisfied. As an example of the registration condition, the upper limit of the character size to be registered is 30 points, the character codes to be registered are only non-Kanji characters and the first-level kanji characters, and the upper limit of each data size to be registered is 10 Kbytes. Further, the registration condition can be set freely by the user in the host 2100.

If it is determined in step 3003 that registration is not to be performed, an image drawing command and character pattern data of a target character are transferred to the printer 1000 in order to print only without performing registration (step 3).
004). Since the above image drawing command does not perform font registration, the registration memory 2022 or the external registration memory 2023 is not consumed. However, if the same character is used twice and printing is performed, the character pattern data is rewritten. This is inefficient because it is necessary to transfer and perform drawing processing.

If it is determined in step 3003 that registration is to be performed, the registration management table 5000 is searched (step S3005), and it is determined whether or not the character data of interest already exists in the registration management table 5000 (step 3006). As a result, when it is determined that the registered character has been registered, a print command which is a command for printing the registered character is transferred to the printer 1000 (step 300).
7).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 3006 that the character data has not been registered, compression processing of the character data of interest is performed (step 3015). The data size after compression calculated by the data compression in step 3015 (in some cases, data compression may not be performed. Details will be described later) is set to the registered memory size 5004.
Is added to. However, the value to be added to the registered memory size 5004 is the character pattern after compression (the pattern unit 7 described later).
005) as well as information on the character data (a pattern header section 7004 described later).
0). This value is stored in the data size 5007 in the corresponding character data 5003 when the registration management table 5000 described later is updated (step 3012).

The printer 1000 determines an upper limit of the memory size used for font registration in advance, and the host is informed of the upper limit in advance. If it is determined that the registered memory size 5004 has exceeded the upper limit (step 3009), a delete command is transferred (step 3010) and registered in the registered memory 2022 of the printer 1000 or the external registered memory 2023. Delete character data and secure free memory.
After that, the host registration management table 5000 is updated (step 3011).

In the updating operation, the data size 5007 of the deleted character data portion 5003 is subtracted from the registered memory size 5004, and the character data portion 50 of the character to be deleted is obtained.
03 is deleted from the registration management table 5000. Thereafter, steps 3008 to 3011 are repeated to delete registered characters until it is determined that the value of the registered memory size 5004 does not exceed the upper limit value.

Here, when deleting a character, a delete command may be transferred for each character, or a plurality of characters may be deleted at one time.

As a method of setting the upper limit, a value can be set in advance as a fixed value, or the user can set it freely in the host 2100. Further, the upper limit value may be arbitrarily changed according to the print resolution. In this case, for example, it can be changed to 2 Mbytes for high resolution and 1 Mbytes for low resolution.

In step 3009, when the registered memory size 5004 becomes smaller than the upper limit value and registration becomes possible,
The registration management table is updated (step 3012), the registration command is transferred (step 3013), and the print command is transferred (step 3014).

When the registration management table is updated in step 3012, each character data 5006 to 50 in the character data portion 5003 on the registration management table is updated from the character data 4002.
08 is set.

As described above, the above-described processing until the reading of all the character data is completed in step 3002 is repeated.

(Compression of Character Data) Next, step 30
The compression process at 15 will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the host registration management table 5000
The compression information 5005 in the header section 5001 is read (step 4001), and a compression method is selected from the compression information 5005 (step 4002).

Here, if the presence or absence of compression and the compression method have already been determined, the processing after step 4003 is performed in accordance with the compression information 5005. On the other hand, if the compression method has not been determined, the compression is performed in step 4002. Choose a method. As a compression method, a generally used compression method for binary data can be used.

In step 4003, step 4002
After the compression method is selected in (5), it is determined whether or not to perform compression.
005, and if it is determined not to compress, the compression process ends.

On the other hand, if it is determined that the data is to be compressed, the character pattern data is compressed in accordance with the data compression method selected in step 4002 (step 4004), and then it is determined whether the data compression is successful (step 4005). .

If the data compression is successful, the compression process ends. If the data compression fails, step 400
The processing after step 2 is repeated.

However, in the selection of the compression method in this repetitive processing (step 4002), it is assumed that the compression method for which data compression has failed is not selected again. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the printer 1000 has a plurality of compression methods and the compression method can be arbitrarily selected. Of course, it is also possible to have no compression method.

<Print Process in Printer> FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the outline of the process of the printer 1000. When the printer control code created on host 2100 is input, printer 1000 exits the data input wait state (step 5000) and performs data input processing (step 5001).

Next, the input printer control code is analyzed (step 5002), and processing according to the command is performed. If the command is a discharge command (step 500
3) The contents of the frame buffer 2042 are converted into a video signal (step 5004), transferred to the print engine and printed (step 5005), and the printed sheet is discharged (step 5006).

In the case of other commands, a drawing process or the like is performed according to each command (step 5007).
A print image is formed on the frame buffer 2024.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart in which the printer 1000 analyzes the data of the printer control code transferred from the host 2100. FIG. 9 shows a printer 1000.
Registration table 700 created by receiving a registration command
FIG. First, the registration table 7000 will be described.

(Registration Table) The registration table 7000 is generated in the registration memory 2022 inside the printer 1000 or on the external registration memory 2023. Registration table 7
000 includes a header section 7001, a pointer section 7002, and a data section 7003. The header section stores the number of registered characters, and the pointer section stores a pointer value to character data. Each character data 7003 includes the size of bitmap data, a registration ID that is a number for identifying a registered character, the width and height of a bitmap pattern, and the width from the designated print position to the upper left position of the bitmap. Offset values (X and Y directions), character pitch, pattern section header 7004 storing compression information 7006 for determining the compression format of each character, pattern section storing bitmap data (binary data) 7005
It is composed of

The above information is given as a parameter of the registration command in the printer control code.

(Processing of Printer Control Code) In the processing steps of FIG. 8, the table of FIG. 9 is used for some commands. In FIG. 8, first, the printer control code 3000 is read (step 6000), and when the reading of the control code is completed, this processing is completed (step 6001).

On the other hand, the commands read in step 6001 are a registration command (step 6002), a print command (step 6004), a delete command (step 6007), and an image drawing command (step 60).
08), and performs the following processing according to the command.

When it is determined in step 6000 that the read command is a registered command (step 6)
002) It is determined whether the currently set resolution is a resolution changed from the resolution designated by the resolution designation command (step 6010). The font data sent by the host corresponds to the resolution specified by the resolution specifying command. Therefore, when the resolution is changed for the sake of the printer, the font data must be made to correspond to the changed resolution. Therefore, if the resolution has been changed from the designated resolution, resolution conversion / compression of the registered font is performed (step 6011). After that, the character data 7003 is added to the registration table 7000 inside the printer based on the character data information specified by the registration command (step 6003).

In step 6011, the font registration may be canceled. In this case, the registration table is not updated in step 6003. Including this point, the determination of presence / absence of resolution change in step 6010 and the resolution conversion / compression processing in step 6011
This will be described in detail later.

When it is determined in step 6000 that the read command is a print command (step 6)
004), searching the registration table 7000 for character data 7003 corresponding to the character code (or registration ID) specified by the command (step 6005), and using the character data 7003, the frame buffer 202
4 is to be printed (step 600).
6).

In the above-described printing process, the compression information 7
After performing the data decompression processing of the bitmap data 7005 based on 006, the drawing processing is performed on the frame buffer 2024.

Note that the above character code (or registration I
If the character data 7003 corresponding to D) does not exist, step 6006 ends without performing the printing process.

When it is determined in step 6000 that the read command is a delete command (step 6)
007), the registration table 7000 is searched based on the character data (or registration ID) specified by the command, and the corresponding character data 7003 is deleted (step 6003).

It is also assumed that when deleting, one character data unit may be deleted, or a plurality of character data may be deleted at one time.

If it is determined in step 6000 that the read command is an image drawing command (step 6008), drawing is performed on the frame buffer 2024 using the data specified by the command (step 6009). .

If it is determined in step 6000 that the read command is a resolution designation command (step 6012), the designated resolution is set if the printer is operable at the designated resolution, and if not, the printer is operable. The resolution is changed to an operable resolution as described later, and information indicating that the resolution has been changed is stored in a predetermined storage area (step 6013).

Thereafter, the processing of step 6000 and thereafter is repeated until the reading of the printer control code is completed.

(Printing Process Using Registered Font) Here, the functional effects of the font registration will be described with reference to FIG.

If the font is not registered, the host 210
0, a print image 9000 is created on the RAM 2002. The print image 9000 is actually a file having a format as shown in the document file 4000 of FIG. 3, and describes which font is to be printed at which position on paper and in which size. Font data 9001 actually used for printing is stored in the RAM 2002.

When the registration is not used, the document file 400
The font data (bitmap data) 9001 is combined with an image drawing command and transferred to the printer 1000 while referring to “0”. The printer 1000 develops the transferred font data 9001 on a frame buffer 2024 in the RAM 2019.

When the registration is used, the print image 9000 inside the host 2100 and the font data 9001 on the RAM 2002 are the same as those when the above-mentioned registration is not used. When registration is used, the host 2100 combines the font data 9001 with the registration command and
When printing the character, only the character code (or registration ID) is transferred as a print command.

The printer 1000 has font data 900
1 is stored in the registration memory 2022 and the external registration memory 2023, and the frame buffer 2024 is referred to by referring to the pattern portion 7005 in the registration table 7000 in the registration memory.
Therefore, when printing the same character, only the print command is transferred, and it is not necessary to transfer the font data 9001 again. Therefore, especially when printing a document or the like in which the same character is repeatedly used, the size of data transferred from the host 2100 to the printer 1000 can be significantly reduced, and time loss due to data transfer can be reduced.

The above is an outline of the processing for performing high-speed printing using font registration.

(Setting of Printer Resolution) Next, when the print resolution specified by the printer control code is different from the print resolution of the printer 1000, the resolution is changed (step 6010), and the resolution conversion / compression processing is performed (step 6011). ) And the resolution determination process (step 6013) will be described.

Generally, the printer 1000 is 300/600
Many printers support a plurality of print resolutions ranging from low resolution to high resolution such as / 1200 dpi.
However, using a font having a character size equivalent to 300 dpi bitmap font data at 600 dpi requires four times the data size,
To use at 0 dpi, a data size four times larger is required. (FIG. 12) Therefore, in order to store the bitmap data in the registration memory 2022 and the external registration memory 2023 inside the printer 1000, a memory having a larger capacity is required as the resolution becomes higher. Therefore, the operable print resolution and the above-described upper limit value are changed in accordance with the capacity of the RAM 2019 mounted on the printer 1000.

FIG. 13 is an example showing the resolution that can be operated according to the capacity of the RAM 2019 and the fluctuation of the upper limit value that can be registered.

If the capacity of the RAM 2019 is less than 2 Mbytes, it operates only at 300 dpi, and the upper limit is set to 500 Kbytes.

If the RAM capacity is 2 Mbytes or more and less than 8 Mbytes, 300/600 dpi, and the upper limit is 1 Mbyte.
Bytes if the RAM capacity is 8 Mbytes or more.
It operates at 00/600/1200 dpi and an upper limit of 2 Mbytes. Of course, the RAM shown in FIG.
The relationship between 2019, the print resolution, and the upper limit can be set arbitrarily.

Although there is no memory shortage as long as font registration is performed in accordance with the relationship between the RAM, print resolution, and upper limit described in FIG. 13, the above relationship may not be maintained in some cases. The selection of the print resolution is performed by the host
In some cases, the printing is performed without considering AM2019. The selected printing resolution is transferred to the printer 1000 by the printer control code, and the printing resolution of the printer is set. In such a case, there is no guarantee that the RAM 2019 having a memory capacity sufficient to operate the designated print resolution is installed in the printer 1000. If the memory capacity is insufficient, the operation cannot be performed at the designated resolution.

For example, on the host 2100, 1200d
pi was selected, but the printer 1000
In the case where 19 has only 4 Mbytes, print processing at the resolution of 1200 dpi selected on the host cannot be performed.

The RAM 2019 of the printer 1000
Is 8 Mbytes, the host sets the upper limit to 2 from FIG.
Font registration is performed as M bytes. However, if only 1 Mbyte of the registration memory 2022 and the external registration memory 2023 is secured in the printer, the upper limit exceeds the capacity.

As a result, the printing process is interrupted or stopped due to a failure in font registration due to a difference in printing resolution or insufficient memory.

In the present embodiment, in order to prevent such a phenomenon, when printing at the designated print resolution is impossible,
The printing resolution of the printer 1000 is changed to a low resolution, and the printing process is continued.

FIG. 14 shows a processing procedure when the printer 1000 determines the print resolution.
It is a detail of the process in 013.

The printing resolution selected by the host 2100 is converted into a printer control code by the host and transferred to the printer 1000. Here, the printer control code for specifying the printing resolution is called a resolution specifying command.

Printer 1 that has received the resolution designation command
000 determines whether or not operation is possible at the designated print resolution (step 8000). Here, the determination as to whether or not operation is possible is made based on the RAM installed in the printer 1000.
It shall be performed based on the capacity of 2019.

If it is determined that operation is possible, the operation determination processing is terminated, and registration commands / print commands / deletion commands / image drawing commands transferred after the resolution designation command are processed based on FIG. In this case, since the printer 1000 operates at the print resolution designated by the resolution designation command, the font data received from the host corresponds to the resolution of the printer. Therefore, when the font registration command is received, it is determined in step 6010 in FIG. 8 that it is not necessary to make the font data correspond to the changed resolution.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 8001 that operation is not possible at the designated resolution,
The print resolution is changed to an operable print resolution based on the capacity of AM2019 (step 8002), and the printer control code transferred after the resolution designation command is printed at the changed resolution.

In the above example, 1200 dpi is designated by the resolution designation command.
If only a 4 Mbyte RAM is mounted on the 00, it cannot be operated at the specified resolution, and therefore, the operable resolution of 300 dpi or 600 dpi
Change the resolution of the printer to i. However, if there are a plurality of operable resolutions, the resolution closest to the print resolution designated by the resolution designation command may be selected (600 dpi in the above example) or the memory consumption rate may be reduced. The lowest low resolution (30 in the above example)
0 dpi) may be selected.

After the print resolution has been changed from the designated resolution in step 8002, the registered command / print command / delete command / image drawing command, etc., transferred after the resolution designated command are displayed using the changed resolution. Process according to 8. In this case, the host attempts to register font data corresponding to the resolution specified by the resolution specifying command. However, since the resolution of the printer is not set as specified, it is necessary to convert the font data according to the resolution. Therefore, FIG.
If the print resolution is changed in step 8002, it is determined in step 6010 in FIG. 8 that the resolution has been changed, and the resolution conversion / compression processing in step 6011 is performed.

(Resolution Conversion / Compression Processing) Step 601
The resolution conversion / compression processing of No. 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

First, in step 9000, the bitmap data to be registered is subjected to resolution conversion according to the print resolution changed in step 8002 in FIG. The resolution conversion here means, for example, a printing resolution of 1200 dp before the change.
This means that the data is converted into the changed print resolution of 600 dpi for i. In the resolution conversion (step 9000), the vertical and horizontal sizes (the number of dots) of the bitmap data are respectively scaled to the ratio of “after resolution conversion / before resolution conversion”. In addition, there is a method of extracting an outline vector of the dot data to be registered, smoothing the extracted outline vector, and converting it into outline vector data. In this case, the data amount does not change even if the resolution changes.

Next, before the bitmap data whose resolution has been converted in step 9000 is stored in the registration memory 2022 or the external registration memory 2023, the conditional expression 10000 shown in FIG. Is determined (step 9001).

The conditional expression 10000 shown in FIG. 16 is obtained from the registration memory 2022 after the resolution change or the external registration memory 202.
3 shows a conditional expression necessary to store all the registered data before the resolution change. In the equation, “upper limit after resolution change” ÷ “upper limit before resolution change” indicates the compression rate, and is the original data size (data size before resolution conversion is 50).
07) multiplied by the same compression ratio is the allowable range of the resolution-converted data size.

For example, before changing the resolution (1200 dpi)
Upper limit of 2M bytes, after changing resolution (600dpi)
Assuming that the upper limit is 1 Mbyte and the original data size is 200 bytes, 1 Mbyte ÷ 2 Mbytes × 200 bytes = 1
00 bytes, and the data size after resolution conversion is 10
If 0 or less, conditional expression 10000 is satisfied.

If the above expression is satisfied, the registration information is changed in step 9002. The change operation is a process of changing information (data size, pattern width, and pattern height) of the data whose resolution has been converted in step 9000. The value changed by the process is referred to as step 60 in FIG.
This is used when generating the pattern header section 7004 of the printer management table of FIG. 9 in the update processing of the registration table 03.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 9001 in FIG. 15 that the conditional expression 10000 is not satisfied, data compression processing is performed on the original data to satisfy the conditional expression. (Step 9003) By performing data compression, the value of “data size after resolution conversion” of conditional expression 10000 is reduced, and it is easy to satisfy the conditional expression. It should be noted that the data compression here is called reversible compression, and is a data compression method such that when decompressing compressed data, exactly the same data as the bitmap data before compression is obtained. The purpose is to maintain the character quality of the original data after compression by using lossless compression.

After performing lossless compression in step 9003, it is determined again in step 9004 whether or not conditional expression 10000 is satisfied.

If the conditional expression is satisfied, step 9002
To change the registration information. At this time, when data compression is performed, information on the used compression method is set in the compression information 7006 in the pattern header section 7004 of the printer management table in FIG. Various known methods can be used for the reversible compression method, but a specific description is omitted here.

On the other hand, in step 9004, conditional expression 100
If 00 is not satisfied, lossy compression is applied to the original data in step 9005. Irreversible compression usually increases the compression ratio significantly compared to lossless compression. By the irreversible compression in step 9005, the data size after resolution conversion is reduced, and the conditional expression 10000 is easily satisfied. Although the same data as the bitmap data before compression cannot be obtained by expanding the lossy-compressed data, it is possible to increase the data compression rate as compared with the lossless compression (step 9003). Various methods can be adopted for the irreversible compression, but a specific description is omitted here.

After performing irreversible compression in step 9005, it is determined in step 9006 whether or not the conditional expression 10000 is satisfied again.

If the conditional expression is satisfied, step 900
In step 2, the registration information is changed. At this time, when data compression is performed, information on the used compression method is set in the compression information 7006 in the pattern header section 7004 of the printer management table in FIG.

On the other hand, in step 9004, conditional expression 100
If 00 is not satisfied, steps 9004 to 9006 are repeated until the conditional expression is satisfied. Here, it is possible to try a plurality of lossy compression methods.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step 9006 that further compression is impossible, the registration information is updated to stop the font registration of the same character (step 9007). When this update processing is performed, it is assumed that the registration table is not updated in step 6003 of FIG.

By performing the above series of compression processing,
A large amount of registration data before resolution conversion can be stored in the registration memory after resolution conversion. Thus, when printing at the designated print resolution is not possible, the print operation after converting the print resolution to low resolution can be guaranteed.

[Second Embodiment] In the first embodiment, the RAM 2019 installed in the printer 1000
Although the case where the print resolution is determined based on the capacity of the printer has been described, in the present embodiment, regardless of whether or not the print resolution is changed, the print resolution is registered in the free space of the registration memory 2022 and the external registration memory 2023 on the printer 1000. A method for controlling data to be contained will be described.

For example, if the printer 1000 has a 6 Mbyte RAM and the host 2100 selects 600 dpi as the print resolution, the host
According to 3, font registration is performed with the upper limit value set to 1 Mbyte. However, in the printer, overlays and the like are registered in addition to characters, and the registration memory 202
There may be a case where there is only a free memory of less than 1 Mbyte on the second or external registration memory 2023. In such a case, a memory overflow occurs during font registration. The printing system of the present embodiment prevents such a memory overflow.

The printing system of this embodiment has almost the same configuration as that of the first embodiment, but the processing when receiving the resolution designation command is changed from the procedure of FIG.
Is replaced by the following procedure.

In FIG. 17, steps 8000 to 8002 are the same as those in FIG.

The difference from FIG. 14 is that the registration memory 2022 or the external registration memory 20
It is determined whether or not the free memory size is larger than the upper limit. If the free memory size is larger than the upper limit, the upper limit is not changed.
Set the free memory size to the upper limit in.

By changing the upper limit to a value that can be secured by the processing in steps 8003 to 8004, the registered data can be reliably stored in the registered memory 2022 or the external registered memory 2023.

The other processing steps when performing font registration are the same as those in the first embodiment.

By satisfying the above-described series of processes, it is possible to prevent a memory overflow due to a shortage of free memory and to guarantee a printing operation when the memory is short.

[0116]

[Other Embodiments] Even if the present invention is applied to a system including a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), an apparatus (for example, a copying machine) Machine, facsimile machine, etc.).

Further, an object of the present invention is to provide a storage medium storing a program code of a procedure as shown in FIGS. It is also achieved by supplying the program code to a device and causing a computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or the device to read and execute the program code stored in the storage medium.

In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium implements the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy disk, hard disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD
-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like can be used.

When the computer executes the readout program code, not only the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized, but also the OS (Operating System) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. ) Performs part or all of the actual processing, and the processing realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments.

Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, based on the instruction of the program code, The case where the CPU of the function expansion board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing, and the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by the processing.

[0122]

As described above, when a font is registered in a printing apparatus, even if printing at a specified printing resolution is not possible or the capacity of the registration memory is insufficient,
An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus, a method, and a printing system which register a font and enable a printing process using the font.

[0123]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a laser beam printer.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a printing system.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a document file of a host.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a registration management table of a host;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a printer control coding process of the host.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing compression processing before font registration by the host.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an outline of processing of the printer.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a process when the printer receives a printer control code.

FIG. 9 is a structural diagram of a registration table of the printer.

FIG. 10 is a calculation formula of a registered memory size of a host.

FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram of font registration between a host and a printer.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of a registered font.

FIG. 13 is a correlation diagram between a RAM mounted on a printer and a registered memory size.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating setting of a print resolution of a printer.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating resolution conversion / compression processing of a registered font of the printer.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a registration determination condition expression of a host.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a process of determining a registered memory size of a printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2012 CPU 2013 Program ROM, font ROM 2014 External memory 2015 System bus 2016 Printing unit I / F 2017 Printing unit 2018 Input unit 2019 RAM 2020 MC 2021 Bidirectional I / F cable 2022 Registration memory 2023 External registration memory 2100 Host computer 1000 Printer 1001 Printer control unit 1012 Operation unit

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2C087 AA19 AC01 AC08 BA09 BA11 BC07 BD24 BD43 BD46 BD53 EA05 2C362 CB02 CB74 CB75 CB77 5B009 NB14 RA05 RA12 RA14 RA15 RC01 RC11 TA11 5B057 CA16 CB17 CB18 CD05 CG01 CH11

Claims (14)

[Claims] A printing apparatus that can set a plurality of printing resolutions and performs printing using registered font data, wherein the resolution of the font data to be registered is set to a currently set resolution. A printing apparatus characterized in that it determines whether or not the font data matches, and if not, converts the size of the font data into a size that matches a currently set resolution and then registers the font data. 2. Prior to registration of the font data, it is determined whether operation is possible at a designated resolution designated, and if possible, the resolution is set to the designated resolution. The apparatus further comprises setting means for setting a resolution, and when the resolution is set to an unspecified resolution by the setting means, it is determined that the resolution of the font data to be registered does not match the currently set resolution. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 3. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the setting unit determines whether or not the printer can operate at the designated resolution based on a memory capacity of the printer. 4. If it is determined that the font data to be registered cannot be operated even if the font data is converted into a size compatible with the currently set resolution, the font data whose size has been converted is compressed. The printing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the registration is performed after the registration. 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the compression of the font data is performed by first performing lossless compression, and if it is still determined that the operation is not possible, performing lossy compression. 6. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein outline data of an image represented by the font data is generated from the font data as the conversion to a size suitable for the current resolution. 7. A printing apparatus which can be set to a plurality of printing resolutions and prints using registered font data, and an information processing apparatus which designates a resolution for the printing apparatus and registers the font data The printing apparatus determines whether the resolution of the font data to be registered from the information processing apparatus conforms to the currently set resolution. A printing system wherein the size of the font data is converted to a size compatible with a currently set resolution and then registered. 8. A print control method capable of setting a plurality of print resolutions and performing printing using registered font data, wherein the resolution of the font data to be registered is currently set. A print control method for determining whether or not the font data is compatible with the current resolution and, if not, converting the size of the font data into a size that is compatible with a currently set resolution and then registering the converted font data. 9. Prior to the registration of the font data, it is determined whether operation is possible at a designated resolution designated, and if possible, the resolution is set to the designated resolution. The method further comprises a setting step of setting the resolution, and when the resolution is set to a non-designated resolution by the setting step, it is determined that the resolution of the font data to be registered does not match the currently set resolution. The print control method according to claim 8, wherein: 10. The print control method according to claim 9, wherein in the setting step, the determination as to whether or not operation is possible at the designated resolution is made based on a mounted memory capacity. 11. If it is determined that the font data to be registered cannot be operated even if the font data is converted into a size compatible with the currently set resolution, the font data whose size has been converted is compressed. The print control method according to claim 9, wherein the registration is performed after the registration. 12. The print control method according to claim 11, wherein the compression of the font data is performed by first performing lossless compression, and performing irreversible compression if it is still determined that the font data cannot be operated. 13. The print control method according to claim 8, wherein outline data of an image represented by the font data is generated from the font data as the conversion to a size suitable for the current resolution. 14. A storage medium for storing a computer program for registering font data in a printing apparatus and printing the font data, wherein said program can be set to a plurality of print resolutions, said program comprising: Determining whether or not the currently set resolution is compatible, and if not, converting the size of the font data to a size that is compatible with the currently set resolution and then registering the font data. Characteristic storage medium.