JP2001253124A - Printer controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that an application requiring to output a plurality of developed pages while synthesizing, is not dealt with when the pages developed by an emulator are larger than the pages outputted from an output control section, for example. SOLUTION: The printer controller performing printing in units of page and comprising an input control section for controlling a host interface, an emulation for analyzing data transferred from the input control section and developing it into a bit map image, and an output control section for reading out the bit map image and delivering it to a printer engine is provided with a page memory pool for holding a plurality of continuous page memories, a work development memory for developing a bit map image, and a page memory control section for controlling them.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer control device for controlling a printer that performs printing in page units.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional print control method in a printer control device will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the hardware configuration of a printer 10 that performs printing in page units. The printer hardware is a printer engine 12 that executes printing.
And a printer control device 11 for controlling the printing operation. The printer controller 11 includes a host interface 13 for receiving print data sent from the host, an engine interface 14 for interfacing with the printer engine 12, a CPU 15 for executing software of the printer controller, and software for the printer controller. And a memory 16 for storing various information managed by software.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a software configuration of the printer control device 11. The software of the printer control device analyzes an input control unit 1 for controlling the host interface, analyzes host data transferred from the input control unit 1 and develops it into a bitmap image, and converts the bitmap image developed by the emulation 2 into one. Upon receiving notification from the first page memory 20, the second page memory 21, and the emulation 2 that the bitmap image for one page has been developed in units of pages, the engine interface is controlled and the corresponding page memory receives the notification. , An output control unit 6 that reads out a bitmap image and sends it to the printer engine. First page memory 20 and second page memory 2
1 is large enough to store a bitmap image of the maximum page size, and is generated at an arbitrary location in the memory. When the development to the first page memory 20 is completed, the emulation unit 2 notifies the output control unit 6 of the completion, and starts to develop the next page to the second page memory 21. Then, when the development to the second page memory 21 is completed, the fact is notified to the output control unit 6, and when the output of the bitmap image of the first page memory 20 is completed, the development of the next page is started. If the output is not completed, the output of the next page is started after the completion of the output, and thereafter, this is repeated. FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a sheet, a page unit on which emulation is developed, and a page unit by the output control unit when the printer control device controls a printer engine that performs printing on continuous paper in page units. The page developed by the emulation is output by the output control unit.
Pages that are sent out sequentially in the paper feed direction and are expanded by emulation and pages output by the output control unit have a one-to-one correspondence.

[0005]

Problems to be solved by the prior art will be described below with reference to FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a sheet, a page unit developed by the emulation, and a page unit created by the output control unit when the page developed by the emulation and the page output by the output control unit do not have a one-to-one correspondence. An example,
This is for the case where the page developed by the emulation is larger than the page output by the output control unit.

The prior art has a problem that it does not correspond to an application which is required to combine and output the plurality of expanded pages.

An object of the present invention is to enable printing even when a page developed by emulation and a page output by an output control unit do not have a one-to-one correspondence.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, in a print control method according to the present invention, a page memory pool for holding a plurality of continuous page memories, a work development memory for developing a bitmap image, And a page memory management unit for managing each of them.

[0010]

1 and 2 show an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the printer control device software and the memory managed by the printer control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The printer control device software analyzes an input control unit 1 for controlling a host interface, analyzes host data transferred from the input control unit, develops the data into a bitmap image, and converts a bitmap image developed by the emulation 2 into a bitmap image. An output control unit 4 for reading and sending the data to the printer engine, and a page memory management unit 4 which is located between the emulation 2 and the output control unit 6 and manages a memory required for each of them. The page memory management unit 4 is a page memory pool 5 that is a continuous memory space that can develop a plurality of bitmap images of a multiple of the output page size by the output control unit 6 and the maximum page size generated by the emulation 2, and the emulation 2 Manages the work development memory 3 that can develop a bitmap image of the maximum page size generated by the. Page memory management unit 4
Obtains the maximum page size from the emulation 2 and the output page size from the output control unit 6, respectively, generates a page memory pool 5 and a work development memory 3, and waits. The emulation 2 notifies the page memory management unit 4 of the size of the bitmap image to be developed and the number of copies thereof, and acquires a memory for development as a response. When the development to the acquired memory is completed, the page memory management unit 4 is notified to that effect. Thereafter, emulation 2 repeats this. On the other hand, the output control unit 6
Every time the size of the expanded bitmap image memory exceeds the output page size, the page memory management unit 4 notifies a bitmap image area corresponding to the output page size. The output control unit 6 sends it to the printer engine, and notifies the page memory management unit 4 when the sending is completed. Thereafter, the output control unit 6 repeats this.

FIG. 2 shows an example of use of the page memory pool and the work development memory in the embodiment according to the present invention. In this example, the size of the page memory pool is a continuous memory space that is four times the output page size and can develop three pages of the maximum page size bitmap image generated by emulation. The bitmap image size by emulation is larger than the output page size for one page and smaller than the output page size for two pages, and the number of copies is one. On the first page, since a memory for the bitmap image size can be secured as a continuous memory area (development 1) from the page memory pool, it is secured and communicated to the emulation as a response. The emulation notifies the completion of the development, and since it exceeds the output page size, the bit map area (output 1) corresponding to the output page size is communicated to the output control unit and output.
On the second page, since a memory for the bitmap image size can be secured as a continuous memory area (development 2) from the page memory pool after development 1, it is secured and communicated to the emulation as a response. Since the emulation notifies the completion of the development and the area obtained by adding the part to the part of the development 1 exceeds the output page size, the bit map area (output 2) corresponding to the corresponding output page size is notified to the output control unit. Is output. The third page is 2
As in the case of the page, the memory for the bitmap image size can be secured as a continuous memory area (development 3) from the page memory pool after development 2 and is secured and communicated to the emulation as a response. Since the emulation notifies the completion of development and the area obtained by adding a part of the development 2 exceeds the output page size, the bit map area (output 3) corresponding to the output page size is notified to the output control unit. Is output. On the fourth page, since a memory for the bitmap image size cannot be secured as a continuous memory area from the page memory pool after development 3, a corresponding memory area (development 4) is secured from the work development memory and emulation is performed. Contact as a response. When the development completion notification is sent from the emulation, a bitmap image corresponding to the size from development 3 and beyond to the end of the page memory pool is read from development 4 and transferred to the page memory pool after development 3. As a result, a bitmap image (output 4) corresponding to the output page size is generated, which is communicated to the output control unit and output. The rest of the development 4 on the work development memory is transferred to the head of the page memory pool, but is not output because it does not exceed the output page size. On the fifth page, a memory corresponding to the bitmap image size can be secured as a continuous memory area (development 5) from the page memory pool after the rest of development 4 transferred, and it is secured and communicated to the emulation as a response. . Since the emulation notifies the completion of the development and the area obtained by adding the remainder of the development 4 exceeds the output page size, the bit map area (output 5) corresponding to the corresponding output page size is notified to the output control unit.
Is output. Thereafter, the above processing is repeated.

When the number of copies is two or more,
The page memory management unit secures a corresponding memory area from the work development memory, and notifies it to the emulation as a response. When the development completion notification is sent from the emulation, the printing is performed by transferring the data to a continuous area of the page memory pool in the same manner as in the case where the number of copies is one page for each page.

[0015]

According to the present invention, the page developed by the emulation and the page output by the output control unit are one-to-one.
Printing is possible even in cases where it is not supported.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of printer control device software according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of use of a page memory pool and a work development memory.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a page unit by an output control unit.

FIG. 4 is a hardware configuration diagram of a conventional printer.

FIG. 5 is a software configuration diagram of a conventional printer control device.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a page unit by an output control unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Input control part, 2 ... Emulation, 3 ... Work development memory, 4 ... Page memory management part, 5 ... Page memory pool, 6 ... Output control part.

Claims (1)

[Claims] An input control unit for controlling a host interface, an emulation for analyzing data transferred from the input control unit and developing it into a bitmap image, and an output control unit for reading out the bitmap image and sending it to a printer engine. In the printer control device that performs printing in page units, a page memory pool that holds a plurality of continuous page memories, a work development memory for developing bitmap images, and a page memory management unit that manages each are provided. A printer control device characterized by the above-mentioned.