JP2005212373A - Identification code verifying machine and identification code verifying method of printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an identification code verifying machine of a printing device having a reduced load in the verifying control of an identification code by providing a readout start time to the specific identification code which performs scanning and readout by a readout means and to provide an identification code verifying method of the printing device. <P>SOLUTION: The identification code verifying machine of the printing device includes a printing means 5 which prints at least one predetermined identification code according to a predetermined command, a readout means 2 to read the information expressed by the identification code by scanning a predetermined time the identification code printed by the printing means 5, a readout management means 23 by which the readout start time is set to the specific identification code performing scanning and reading by the readout means 2 among the identification codes, a collation means 22 to scan and read by the readout means 2 for the predetermined time from the start time set by the readout management means 23 and to collate the identification code printed according to the command with the information of the readout specific identification code, and an output means 27 to output the collation result by the collation means 22. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, and more particularly, to an identification code verifier and an identification code verification method for a printing apparatus that prints an identification code such as a barcode, reads the collated identification code, and verifies it.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is known a printing apparatus with a verification device that prints a barcode as an identification code on a label and the like, reads the barcode printed on the label by a reading unit such as a scanner, and confirms whether or not the printing has been performed normally. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
This verifier operates and scans (scans) the scanner and the like from the point when printing on the label is started in the printing apparatus, stops the verifier's scanner when printing is completed, and reads the barcode data It was to verify.
However, since a verifier such as a barcode in a conventional printing apparatus performs scanning (scanning) by a reading unit (scanner) from the start of printing to the end of printing on a label as described above, reading control is delayed. There was a problem. That is, when a plurality of identification codes (barcodes) are printed on the label by the printing device, the identification code (barcode) to be actually verified is downstream in the transport direction from the intermediate portion of the layout. In such a case, since reading is not necessary even when the scanner is operated from the start of printing, it is a cause of delay in reading control.

The scanner, which is an example of the reading unit, has a type corresponding to a target identification code. When a plurality of types of identification codes are printed on one label, verification of the identification code for the label 12 immediately after printing is completed. Therefore, it is difficult to provide a plurality of scanners in terms of space, and even though there are a plurality of types of identification codes that cannot be read, the scanners for all the identification codes from the point when printing on the label is started. Since reading by scanning is performed, there is a problem that a delay occurs in reading control.
JP 2000-238390 A

The present invention has been made paying attention to the above problems, and by providing a reading start time for a specific identification code to be scanned and read by the reading means, the load in verification control of the identification code is reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide an identification code verifier and an identification code verification method for a printing apparatus.

An identification code verifier of a printing apparatus according to claim 1 prints at least one predetermined identification code in accordance with a predetermined command, scans the identification code printed by the printing unit for a predetermined time, and performs the identification A reading means for reading information represented by a code; a reading management means in which a reading start time is set for a specific identification code to be scanned and read by the reading means among the identification codes; and the reading management means Scanning and reading by the reading means for the predetermined time from the set start time, and collation means for collating the read information of the specific identification code with the identification code printed according to the command, And an output means for outputting a collation result by the collation means.
The reading management means is provided with a type of the identification code, a reading ID of the identification code added to the specific identification code, and a reading end time, and only the identification code provided with the reading ID is read. Scanning by means can be performed.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing apparatus identification code verification method that prints at least one predetermined identification code in a printing step according to a predetermined command and scans the identification code printed in the printing step for a predetermined time. The information represented by the identification code is read in the reading step, and the reading start time for the specific identification code that requires scanning / reading in the reading step is set in the reading management step. Scanning and reading in the reading step for the predetermined time from the start time set in the reading management step, and information on the specific identification code read and an identification code printed in accordance with the command Verify at the verification step and output the verification result from the verification step Be characterized in that the output in step.

According to the present invention, the reading start time of a specific identification code to be scanned / read by the reading means is set, and only the set specific identification code is scanned / read for a predetermined time from the start time. Therefore, there is an effect that the load in the verification control of the identification code can be reduced.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an embodiment of a printing apparatus with an identification code verifier according to the present invention, and shows an internal structure of a label printer to which a barcode printing apparatus as an identification code is applied. . As shown in the figure, a plaberita as a printing apparatus includes a printer main body 1 and a scanner 2 as an identification code verifier.
The printer main body 1 includes a control unit 3 that controls each unit, and a thermal head (hereinafter simply referred to as a head as appropriate) as a printing unit that performs printing on a label continuous body 4 in which labels 12 are temporarily attached to a mount 11 at regular intervals. 5), a stepping motor (hereinafter simply described as a motor) 6 driven by the control of the control unit 3, and a timing belt (hereinafter simply described as a belt as appropriate) 7 are transmitted. A platen roller that rotates by the rotational driving force of the motor 7 and conveys the label continuum 4 mounted on a supply shaft 8 to be described later and presses the label continuum 4 against the head 5 (hereinafter simply referred to as a platen as appropriate). ) 9, a supply shaft 8 that rotatably supports the label continuous body 4, a light emitting unit that emits predetermined light, and reflected light from the label continuous body 4 of the light emitted from the light emitting unit It comprises a light receiving section that receives and outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the intensity of the received light (the amount of light received per unit time). A light emitting section and a light receiving section are arranged on the back surface of the label continuous body 4, and the label continuous body 4 And a position detection sensor (hereinafter simply referred to as a sensor as appropriate) 10 for detecting an identification mark (black rectangular mark) (not shown) formed on the back surface of the light receiving portion based on the amount of light received by the light receiving portion. ing.
The scanner 2 as a reading unit is provided in the vicinity of the downstream side of the head 5 and can read a barcode as an identification code described later printed by the head 5.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the embodiment of FIG. As shown in the figure, the control unit 3 includes a ROM (read only memory) 21 that stores a predetermined control program, and a CPU (central processing unit) that operates according to the control program stored in the ROM 21 and controls each unit. 22, a RAM (random access memory) 23 for storing various data necessary for the operation of the CPU 22, a card 24 for storing a format such as a barcode to be printed, and an operating state and a stopped state. A light emitting diode (LED) 25, an input unit 26 for inputting various operations using a numeric keypad, a keyboard, and the like, and an LCD (Liquid crystal) for displaying various information input from the input unit 26 An interface unit capable of transmitting and receiving various data and commands between the display unit 27 as an output means such as a display and an externally connected device such as a host computer (not shown). 28 and a scanner 2 as an identification code verifier. The head 5, motor 6, and sensor 10 are also connected to the CPU 22.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a barcode printed on the label 12 of the label continuous body 4 by the printer main body 1.
The label 12 shown in the figure shows an example in which three barcodes B1, B2, and B3 are printed. The barcode B1 is a serial number as an ID, the barcode B2 is a supplier company code, and the barcode B3 is Each order number is printed.

FIG. 4 shows an example of print data when printing on the label 12. This print data is transmitted from a host computer (not shown) via the interface unit 28 and indicates the state stored in the RAM 23. As shown in the figure, the print data stored in the RAM 23 as the read management means is a data print position comprising a print data ID 31, a barcode type 32, a verification flag 33, data 34, a data start position 35a and a data end position 35b. 35, and items of the print control 36 including a print start time 36a and an end time 36b.
The item of the print data ID 31 is an ID indicating whether it is a bar code or normal character data. In this embodiment, the print data ID of the bar codes B1, B2, and B3 to be printed on the label 12 is stored. .
The bar code type 32 is an item for setting a bar code type such as JAN, code 128, or NW-7. In this embodiment, different types of bar codes are set and stored.
The verification flag 33 is set only when the print data is a barcode, and is an item indicating whether or not to perform later-described verification by the scanner 2. In the present embodiment, the flags B1 and B3 of the print data ID 31 are set. Is ON (verify) and the bar code B2 is OFF (not verified). The flag 33 is provided because there is a barcode type that cannot be read depending on the type of the scanner 2, and when the barcode data can be referred from other than the barcode, the flag 33 is set to OFF. By omitting without selecting verification, the printing speed for the label 12 can be prioritized.
The data 34 stores data to be printed on the label 12. In the present embodiment, the barcode B1 is “200401098” indicating the manufacturing number, and the barcode B2 is the supplier company. “123456789” indicating the code is stored, and “R040122” indicating the order number is stored in the barcode B3.
The data print position 35 is a print position setting item composed of a print data start position 35a and an end position 35b, and is represented by a position in the transport direction (y-axis direction) and the width direction (x direction) from the base point O, respectively. ing. That is, the barcode B1 is printed from the start position 35a in the x-axis direction “x1S” and the y-axis direction “y1S” to the end position 35b in the x-axis direction “x1E” and the y-axis direction “y1E”. Further, the barcode B2 has data from the start position “x2S, y2S” to the end position “x2E, y2E”, and the barcode B3 has data from the start position “x3S, y3S” to the end position “x3E, y3E”. Is set to be printed.
The item of the print control 36 is an item representing the irradiation time of the scanner 2 in the label transport direction when verification by the scanner 2 described later is performed. In the present embodiment, the barcode B1 is 1.5 seconds after the base point O. An example is shown in which the irradiation is started and the irradiation is terminated at 1.75 seconds after 0.25 seconds from the start. Since the start time 36a and the end time 36b of the print control 36 are not set for the barcode B2, the scanner 2 does not operate, and irradiation starts at the position of the barcode B3 after 2.25 seconds. The irradiation is set to end at 2.50 seconds after 25 seconds have elapsed.
The start time 36 a and the end time 36 b are times converted from the data printing position 35 and the rotation speed of the stepping motor 6. That is, time conversion is performed from the start position y1S and end position y1E in the conveyance direction of the barcode B1 and the rotation speed n per second of the stepping motor 6, and the start time 36a is the start position of the y axis (conveyance direction). The difference between (y1S) and the base point O is expressed by (y1S-0) / n obtained by dividing the stepping motor 6 by the rotation speed n per second n. Similarly, the end time 36b is expressed by (y1E-0) / n obtained by dividing the difference between the end position (y1E) in the y-axis (conveying direction) and the base point O by the rotation speed n of the stepping motor 6 per second. The

Next, the use state of the printing apparatus according to the present invention will be described mainly with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a setting mode of the verification irradiation time by the scanner 2 for the barcode.
In step S01, a start time 36a and an end time 36a of the print control 36 are input from the input unit 26, and it is determined whether an execution key (not shown) is pressed. Step S01 is repeated until the time is input. If the time is input, the input time is stored in the start time 36a and the end time 36b of the print control 36 of the RAM 23 in the next step S02. At this time, since the time is input, the verification flag 33 is set to ON.
In step S03, it is determined whether the setting is completed. If there is still a barcode verification time to be set, the process returns to step S01, and steps S01 and S02 are repeated.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S03 that the setting has been completed, the process ends.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing label issuance / verification processing.
In step S11, one line is printed on the label 12 via the head 5, and the motor 6 is driven one step in step S12.
In step S13, it is determined whether or not the barcode verification start time 36a is reached. If the start time 36a is reached, the scanner 2 is irradiated in step S14 to read the barcode, and the read barcode data is stored in the work area of the RAM 23 (not shown). ).
Then, in step S15, it is determined whether or not the barcode verification end time 36b is reached. If it is determined that the process is finished, the process returns to step S11. If it is determined that the process is not finished, the process returns to step S14 and reaches the end time 36b. Reading by irradiation of the scanner 2 is performed.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S13 that the barcode verification start time 36a is not reached, the process proceeds to step S16.
In step S16, it is determined whether there is next barcode read data. If it is determined that there is no next barcode read data, the process proceeds to step S19. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is the next barcode reading data, the CPU 22 as a collating means verifies the printing barcode data 34 and the read data (not shown) in step S17. In S18, it is determined whether the verification result is OK. If the verification result between the data 34 to be printed and the read data (not shown) is NG in step S18, NG processing is performed in step S20. That is, printing is stopped, or the fact that the corresponding label is a defective label is displayed on the display unit 27, and an alarm means such as a buzzer (not shown) is informed to end the processing.
On the other hand, if the verification result in step S18 is determined to be OK, it is determined in step S19 whether printing / issuance has been completed. If not, the process returns to step S11, where it is determined that the printing has been completed. If so, the issuance / verification process is terminated.

As described above, of the barcodes B1, B2, and B3 as identification codes, the barcode that is scanned by the laser irradiation by the scanner 2 as the reading means and specified for reading is specified by the verification flag 33, and the laser is scanned. Since the irradiation time is set from the start time 36a to the end time 36b set in the printing control 36, the load is reduced compared with the case where reading is always performed by laser irradiation from the base point O until the printing is completed as in the prior art. As a result, the printing speed increases and the scanner 2 also lasts longer.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining another embodiment of print data corresponding to FIG. 4 stored in the RAM 23.
In the following description, the same parts as those in the previous embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.
The print data stored in the RAM 23 is a print control in which a print data ID 31, a barcode type 32, data 34, a data print position 35 including a data start position 35a and a data end position 35b, and a print start time 40a are set. There are 40 items.
Compared to the previous embodiment, there is no verification flag 33, the setting of the print control 40 is only the start time 40a, and when the print data ID 31 corresponds to the label 12 in FIG. On the other hand, the reverse order is characteristic.
Even if the verification flag 33 is not provided, the irradiation by the scanner 2 can be started if the start time 40a is set, so that the software step for determining the verification flag 33 can be omitted.
Although the end time 36b according to the previous embodiment is omitted, since the end time 36b is converted from the data end position 35b of the barcode in the transport direction, the barcode is a short predetermined time in units of μ (micro) seconds. This is because even when reading is performed by irradiation, it is necessary to read until the end time 36b. By detecting the reading OK of the scanner 2, the irradiation time can be shorter than that of the previous embodiment.
When the length of the label 12 in the transport direction is short, the distance (length) between the position of the head 5 in FIG. 1 and the scanner 2 as the verification machine may be longer than the length of the label 12. In this case, priority is given to the printing of the next label, and the barcode of the label printed earlier is to be verified at the time of positioning in the transport reverse direction to the head 5 position. B3, B2, and B1 are opposite to the barcodes B1, B2, and B3, which are printing orders in the transport direction.
As described above, since the verification for the barcodes B1, B2, and B3 of the print data ID 31 is the start time 40a of the print control 40, it is troublesome even when verification is performed in the reverse direction of conveyance as in the present embodiment. Therefore, step-converting control is unnecessary, and printing can be prioritized for the next label, so that the control is simple and the printing processing time is shortened.
Other configurations, operations, and effects are substantially the same as those of the previous embodiment, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

It should be noted that the configuration and operation of the above-described embodiment are examples, and it goes without saying that they can be changed as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, a barcode has been described as an example of the identification code, but the present invention is not limited to this, and verification can also be performed using a two-dimensional code.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of one Embodiment of the printing apparatus with an identification code verification machine of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structural example of embodiment of FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the label which printed the barcode. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of memory | storage in RAM of the print data which prints on a label. It is a flowchart which shows the setting mode of the irradiation time of a verification machine. It is a flowchart which shows the issuing / verification process of a label. It is explanatory drawing explaining other embodiment of the print data memorize | stored in RAM.

Explanation of symbols

B1, B2, B3 Bar code 1 Printer body 2 Scanner (identification code verifier)
3 Control unit 4 Label continuum 5 Thermal head (head)
6 Stepping motor (motor)
7 Timing belt (belt)
8 Supply shaft 9 Platen roller (platen)
10 Position detection sensor (sensor)
11 Mount 12 Label 13-20 Missing 21 ROM
22 CPU
23 RAM
24 Card 25 LED
26 Input unit 27 Display unit 28 Interface unit 31 Print data ID
32 Barcode type 33 Verification flag 34 Data 35 Data printing position 35a Start position 35b End position 36 Print control 36a Start time 36b End time 40 Print control 40a Start time

Claims (3)

Printing means for printing at least one predetermined identification code in accordance with a predetermined command;
Scanning means for scanning the identification code printed by the printing means for a predetermined time and reading information represented by the identification code;
Reading management means in which a reading start time is set for a specific identification code that is scanned and read by the reading means among the identification codes;
Scanning / reading by the reading means is performed for the predetermined time from the start time set by the reading management means, and the information of the specific identification code read and the identification code printed in accordance with the command are collated. Matching means;
Output means for outputting a collation result by the collation means;
An identification code verification machine for a printing apparatus, comprising:   The reading management means is provided with a type of the identification code, a reading ID of the identification code added to the specific identification code, and a reading end time, and only the identification code provided with the reading ID is the reading means. The identification code verifier of the printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein scanning is performed according to the above. In accordance with a predetermined command, at least one predetermined identification code is printed in the printing step, the identification code printed in the printing step is scanned for a predetermined time, and the information represented by the identification code is read in the reading step. ,
Among the identification codes, a reading start time for a specific identification code that requires scanning / reading by the reading step is set in the reading management step,
Scanning and reading by the reading step is performed for the predetermined time from the start time set in the reading management step, and the information of the specific identification code read is compared with the identification code printed according to the command Match in steps,
An identification code verification method for a printing apparatus, characterized in that the collation result in the collation step is output in an output step.

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