JP2014188841A - Display process program of print tape and tape printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make visibility of print text of a printing tape well after pasting to a box body.SOLUTION: A display process program of a print tape includes: a step S10 for acquiring a mode specification that specifies, for CPU12 of an operation terminal 2, a pasting mode of a print tape T pasted across at least two flat surfaces of a box body P; a step S20 for acquiring external dimension of the box body P; a step S40 for acquiring text data representing print content of each of a plurality of blocks arrayed in tape length direction at the print tape T; a step S50 which determines, for each block, orientation of a print text of a block formed based on the text data, according to the pasting mode that is specified; and a step S60 in which an apparent image of the box body P and an apparent image of the print tape T, in a state in which acquired text data is printed for each block in a determined orientation for pasting, are virtually drawn in three-dimension, which is displayed on a display part 17.

Description

  The present invention relates to a display processing program and a tape printing apparatus for a printing tape that can be attached to a box and that can execute an editing operation of printing contents of the printing tape.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a tape printing apparatus (tag label producing apparatus) that forms a printing tape (tag label) that can be printed on a print-receiving tape (tag tape) and can be attached to an object is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ). In this tape printer, the print head is controlled to be switchable to perform printing in a forward direction or in a rotational direction that is upside down with respect to the forward direction with respect to a predetermined print area of the tape to be printed.

JP 2006-309557 A

  In the above-described conventional tape printer, it is possible to print a character obtained by rotating a predetermined character by 180 ° in the rotation direction, but either vertical (vertical writing) or horizontal (horizontal writing) over the entire printing tape. The printed text is formed in the direction of, and these cannot be mixed.

  Here, when the produced printing tape is affixed to a substantially rectangular parallelepiped box such as a cardboard box, it may be desired to affix it across a plurality of planes. In such a case, the tape surface (parallel to the one plane) when the printing tape is affixed on a certain plane, and when it is affixed on the next adjacent plane beyond the boundary from that plane The tape surface (parallel to the next plane) differs by approximately 90 °. That is, in the pasted state, the printing tape is bent at a substantially right angle on the way. As a result, if the printed text is formed in the same orientation (landscape or portrait) throughout the entire printing tape, some of the printed text may not be visually visible after being pasted. There was room for further improvement.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a display processing program for a print tape and a tape printer that can improve the visibility of the printed text on the print tape after being attached to a box.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a set of first planes parallel to each other, a set of second planes parallel to each other substantially orthogonal to the first plane, and the first plane and the first plane. And a configuration that is capable of performing an editing operation on the print content of the print tape that is attached to a box having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape including a pair of third planes that are substantially parallel to each other and two planes; Affixed across the at least two planes of the first plane, the second plane, and the third plane of the box to the calculation means of the operation terminal including a display means and a calculation means. A mode specification acquisition procedure for acquiring a mode specification for specifying a single printing tape affixing mode, an outer dimension acquisition procedure for acquiring an outer dimension of the box, and a tape length direction in the printing tape Multiple blocks arranged Corresponding to the text data acquisition procedure for acquiring text data representing the print content of each of the prints and the pasting mode specified by the mode specification acquired in the mode specification acquisition procedure, based on the text data A text direction determining procedure for determining the orientation of the printed text of the block for each block; an external appearance image of the box constructed with the external dimensions acquired in the external dimension acquisition procedure; and the text Appearance image of the printing tape in a state where the text data acquired in the data acquisition procedure is printed for each block in the direction determined in the text orientation determination procedure and pasted on the at least two planes And a pasted image display procedure for virtually displaying the image on the display means. To.

  In the present invention, the printing content of the printing tape to be pasted on the box to be pasted is edited. At this time, the box has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape, and has a first plane, a second plane, and a third plane that are substantially orthogonal to each other. When a printing tape is affixed to a box having such an outer shape, it may be desired to affix the printing tape across two planes. In such a case, the tape surface (parallel to the one plane) when the printing tape is affixed on a certain plane, and when it is affixed on the next adjacent plane beyond the boundary from that plane The tape surface (parallel to the next plane) differs by approximately 90 °. That is, in the pasted state, the printing tape is bent at a substantially right angle on the way. As a result, when the print text is formed in the same direction over the entire print tape, it may be difficult to visually view a part of the print text after being pasted. Therefore, in the present invention, in consideration of the above, when the printing tape is pasted across a plurality of planes of the box, the direction of the text is determined for each plane and the visual tape after the pasting is pasted. Appearance is virtually drawn and displayed.

  That is, when the display processing program of the present invention is executed by the computing means of the operation terminal, first, in the mode designation acquisition procedure, at least one of the first plane, the second plane, and the third plane based on the designation of the operator. The mode designation of one printing tape for two is acquired. Further, in the outer dimension acquisition procedure, the outer dimension of the box is acquired based on the operator's designation as described above. Further, in the text data acquisition procedure, the text data to be printed on the print tape is acquired based on the operation input by the operator as described above. In this case, as described above, the print tape is pasted over at least two planes, and the orientation of the print text is adjusted for each plane. Therefore, the text data is divided into two in the tape length direction. Or it is acquired by the content divided into three blocks.

  Then, in the text orientation determination procedure, the pasting state specified by the above-described mode designation (for example, pasting on three planes so as to be substantially U-shaped when viewed from the side, and approximately L-shaped when viewed from the side) For each block, the orientation of the print text in the block is determined for each block, and so on. .

  Thereafter, in the pasted image display procedure, the appearance of the box and the appearance of the print tape attached to at least two planes of the box are virtually drawn and displayed three-dimensionally. The external appearance image of the box at this time is drawn using the external dimensions acquired in the external dimension acquisition procedure.

  In addition, in the appearance image of the print tape, the text data acquired in the text data acquisition procedure is drawn in a state in which each block is printed and formed in the orientation determined in the text orientation determination procedure. For example, a print text is formed as a horizontal character string in which the tape longitudinal direction is the left-right direction at a portion of the print tape that is attached to the upper surface of the box (the tape surface is substantially horizontal). In addition, a printed text is formed as a vertical character string whose vertical direction is the longitudinal direction of the tape on a portion that is affixed to the side surface in the vertical direction adjacent to the upper surface (with the tape surface being substantially vertical).

  As a result of the above, according to the present invention, the above-described adverse effects as in the case where the printed text is formed in the same direction throughout the entire printing tape are avoided, and the visibility of the printed text on the printing tape is improved after pasting. be able to. In addition, since the visibility can be confirmed by virtual three-dimensional drawing before actually forming the print on the print tape, the convenience for the operator can be improved.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the visibility of the printing text of a printing tape can be made favorable after sticking to a box.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram schematically showing an overall configuration of a printing tape production system including a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of an operation terminal and a printing apparatus. It is explanatory drawing showing the example of the external appearance of the printing tape in the case of the comparative example whose direction of all printed text is the same direction, and the box which is a sticking object of a printing tape. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating three types of sticking aspects of a printing tape. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 1st sticking aspect. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 2nd sticking aspect. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 3rd sticking aspect. It is a flowchart showing the control procedure which CPU of an operating terminal performs. 6 is a flowchart showing a detailed procedure of print creation processing executed by a control circuit of the printing apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 1st sticking aspect when printing is an English character. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 3rd sticking aspect when printing is an English character. In the modification which forms the printing of a plurality of blocks on the same plane, it is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the external appearance of the printing tape produced corresponding to a 1st sticking aspect.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<Overall configuration of printing tape production system>
First, an overall configuration of a printing tape production system including a tape printing apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printing tape production system 1 has an operation terminal 2 and a printing device 3 (tape printing device). The operation terminal 2 and the printing device 3 are connected to be able to communicate with each other.

  The operation terminal 2 is configured to be able to execute an editing operation on the print contents of a print tape created by the printing device 3. The operation terminal 2 is not particularly limited as long as it is a terminal that can be operated by an operator. For example, a general-purpose PC, a tablet PC, a PDA, a multi-function mobile phone, or the like can be used. In the example shown in FIG. 1, a general-purpose PC is used as the operation terminal 2.

  The printing device 3 creates a printing tape having a desired print R based on an appropriate operation by the operator via the operation terminal 2. The created printing tape is affixed to a box which will be described later.

<Functional configuration of operation terminal and printing device>
Next, the configuration of the operation terminal 2 and the printing device 3 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the operation terminal 2 includes a CPU 12, a memory 13 including, for example, a ROM or a RAM, an operation unit 14 that can perform various operations, a display unit 17 (display unit) that performs various displays, and various types. A storage device 16 that stores information and a communication control unit 15 that controls transmission / reception of various information / instruction signals between the printing device 3 are provided. The operation terminal 2 executes an editing operation for the print R content of the print tape T, which will be described later.

  The CPU 12 (calculation means) performs signal processing according to a program (such as a display processing program for executing a flow shown in FIG. 8 described later) stored in advance in the ROM or the storage device 16 while using the temporary storage function of the RAM. The entire operation terminal 2 is controlled. For example, the CPU 12 transmits / receives various information / instruction signals to / from the printing apparatus 3 via the communication control unit 15.

  The printing device 3 stores a tape roll holder unit 210, a transport device 209, a print head 205, a control circuit 202, an operation unit 206 capable of various operations, a display unit 211 that performs various displays, and various types of information. And a communication control unit 208 that controls transmission / reception of various information / instruction signals between the operation terminal 2 and the storage device 201.

  The tape roll holder unit 210 can detachably attach the tape roll 204 wound with the print-receiving tape 203 (which is originally spiral but simplified and shown in a concentric circle) (or a cartridge equipped with the tape roll 204 can be attached and detached). It has become.

  The transport device 209 transports the print-receiving tape 203 wound around the tape roll 204.

  The print head 205 is provided so as to face the transport device 209, and continuously performs a desired print R on the print-receiving tape 203 that is fed from the tape roll 204 and transported by the transport device 209. Is wound around the tape roll 204A.

  The control circuit 202 performs signal processing according to a program (such as a program for executing a flow shown in FIG. 9 described later) stored in advance in a ROM or storage device 201 (not shown) while using a temporary storage function of a RAM (not shown). The entire printing apparatus 3 is controlled. For example, the control circuit 202 transmits / receives various information / instruction signals to / from the operation terminal 2 via the communication control unit 208.

<Problem when pasting to a box>
As described above, the printed tape 203A wound around the tape roll 204A is used as the printing tape T which is cut to a predetermined length after being removed from the printing apparatus 3 together with the tape roll 204A. An example of the appearance of the printing tape T is shown in FIGS. 3 (a) and 3 (b). FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are comparative examples. In the comparative example shown in FIG. 3A, a print R (“printer” in this example) arranged on the print tape T as two blocks BL1 and BL2 in the tape longitudinal direction is formed. The direction of the print text of these two blocks BL1 and BL2 is the same (landscape). Similarly, in the comparative example shown in FIG. 3B, a print R arranged as three blocks BL1, BL2, and BL3 in the tape longitudinal direction is formed on the print tape T. The direction of the print text of these three blocks BL1, BL2, BL3 is the same direction (landscape).

  As shown in FIG. 3C, the printing tape T includes, for example, a left surface Pl and a right surface Pr (a set of first planes) that are parallel to each other, and an upper surface Pu that is substantially parallel to the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr. And a substantially rectangular parallelepiped including a lower surface Pd (a set of second planes) and a front surface Pf and a rear surface Pb (a set of third planes) that are substantially parallel to the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr and the upper and lower surfaces Pu and Pd. It is affixed on the box P having the outer shape. Note that the front, rear, left, right, upper, and lower sides of the box P indicate the directions shown in FIGS. 3 to 10.

  By the way, when the printing tape T is affixed to the box P having the above-described outer shape, it may be desired to affix the printing tape T across two planes.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4A, from the left surface Pl (one of the first set of first planes) of the box P to the right surface Pr (the other of the first set of first planes) through the upper surface Pu. There is a first pasting mode that is substantially U-shaped in a side view (front-rear direction view).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4B, each of two planes adjacent to each other of the box body P, for example, in this example, the upper surface Pu and the left surface Pl, right surface Pr, front surface Pf, and rear surface Pb adjacent to the upper surface Pu. There exists a 2nd sticking aspect which becomes a substantially L shape by the side view straddling a surface.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4 (c), in the vicinity of any one vertex of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped formed by the box P, two mutually orthogonal sides near the vertex of the upper surface Pu (second plane) are slanted. While crossing, bend at one side of the two sides and straddle the left surface Pl or the right surface Pr (first plane) adjacent to the upper surface Pu, and at the other one of the two sides There is a third pasting mode that is bent and straddles the front surface Pf or the rear surface Pb (third plane) adjacent to the upper surface Pu.

  In the case of such an affixing mode, the tape surface (parallel to the one plane) when the printing tape T is affixed on one plane and the next plane adjacent to the plane beyond the boundary. The tape surface (in parallel with the next flat surface) when being attached in FIG. That is, in a state where the printing tape T is pasted on both planes beyond the boundary of the box P, the printing tape T is bent at a substantially right angle in the middle. As a result, in the printing tape T according to the comparative example shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B described above, the printed text is formed in the same direction over the entire printing tape. Some printed text may be difficult to see.

  For example, in the case of the first pasting mode shown in FIG. 4A, the text “printer” of the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 (see FIG. 3B) is moved up and down on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr of the box P. Since it becomes sideways in the direction, it may be difficult to see.

  Similarly, in the case of the second pasting mode shown in FIG. 4B, the text “printer” of the print R of the block BL2 (see FIG. 3A) is the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr and the front and rear surfaces Pf of the box P. , Pb, it becomes horizontal in the vertical direction, so it may be difficult to see.

  Similarly, in the case of the third pasting mode shown in FIG. 4C, the text “printer” of the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 (see FIG. 3B) is the left and right surfaces Pl, Pr and Since the front and rear surfaces Pf and Pb are inclined, it may be difficult to see.

<Features of this embodiment>
Therefore, in the present embodiment, each plane when the printing tape T is pasted across a plurality of planes of the box P when executing the editing operation of the contents of the printing R of the printing tape T by the operation terminal 2 is performed. The character direction is changed, that is, the orientation of the printed text can be determined (selected) as appropriate, and the visual appearance image after pasting is virtually drawn in all directions to display the display unit of the operation terminal 2 17 can be displayed. Hereinafter, this detail is demonstrated based on FIGS.

  In FIG. 5, an example of the external appearance of the printing tape T produced corresponding to the said 1st sticking aspect is shown. As shown in FIG. 5, the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a vertical character string (vertical writing) whose vertical direction is the tape longitudinal direction, and the tape longitudinal direction is the horizontal direction for the print R of the block BL2. It becomes a horizontal character string (horizontal writing). Further, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is rotated by 180 ° so that both ends in the longitudinal direction of the printing tape T are on the bottom. Thereby, when the printing tape T is affixed to the box P, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is vertically written on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr of the box P, so that it is easy to see. .

  The print tape T is also printed with a print R that is text and a folding mark L that represents the boundary position between the two planes when the print tape T is pasted across a plurality of planes of the box P. The operator aligns and affixes the printing tape T so that the folding mark L coincides with the plane boundary position of the box P (in this example, the left and right ends of the upper surface Pu). In this example, a broken line is printed as the bending mark L. However, for example, an appropriate symbol or mark may be used.

  In FIG. 6, an example of the external appearance of the printing tape T produced corresponding to the said 2nd sticking aspect is shown. As shown in FIG. 6, the print R of the block BL1 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) with the tape longitudinal direction being the left-right direction, and the print R of the block BL2 has the longitudinal end of the print tape T at the bottom. Thus, a vertical character string (vertical writing) with the longitudinal direction of the tape as the vertical direction is obtained. Thus, when the printing tape T is attached to the box P, the printing R of the block BL2 is vertically written on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr and the front and rear surfaces Pf and Pb of the box P, so that it is easy to see. be able to.

  In FIG. 7, an example of the external appearance of the printing tape T produced corresponding to the said 3rd sticking aspect is shown. As shown in FIG. 7, the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a vertical character string (vertical writing) whose vertical direction is inclined with respect to the tape longitudinal direction, and the print R of the block BL2 is a tape. It becomes a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) whose longitudinal direction is the left-right direction. Further, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is arranged so as to be symmetrical in the left-right direction in FIG. 7 so that both ends in the longitudinal direction of the printing tape T are on the bottom. Thus, when the printing tape T is attached to the box P, the printing R of the blocks BL1 and BL3 is vertically written on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr and the front and rear surfaces Pf and Pb of the box P in the vertical direction. , Can be easy to see.

<Control contents executed by CPU of operation terminal>
Next, a control procedure executed by the CPU 12 of the operation terminal 2 to realize the above will be described with reference to FIG. The processing shown in this flow is executed according to a display processing program stored in advance in the ROM or the storage device 16.

  First, in step S <b> 10, the CPU 12 obtains an application mode designation for the box P of the printing tape T based on an operation input by the operator. As described above, the pasting mode includes the first pasting mode illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 5, the second pasting mode illustrated in FIGS. 4B and 6, and FIGS. 4C and 7. When the operator designates any of these using the operation unit 14, the CPU 12 acquires the designation information. This step S10 corresponds to the mode designation acquisition procedure described in each claim.

  In step S20, the CPU 12 acquires a width dimension W, a height dimension H, and a depth dimension D (see FIG. 5) corresponding to the outer shape of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped of the box body P based on the operation input by the operator. Note that step S20 corresponds to the outer dimension obtaining procedure described in each claim.

  In step S30, the CPU 12 determines the tape length of the print tape T to be created based on the width dimension W, the height dimension H, and the depth dimension D of the box P acquired in step S20. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, in the first pasting mode, the sum of the length of the width dimension W of the box P and twice the length of one third of the height H of the box P is The printing tape T is set so as to be the entire length. Further, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, in the second pasting mode, the length of one third of the width dimension W of the box P and the length of one third of the height H of the box P The total is set to be the total length of the printing tape T. The tape length is not limited to this, and can be appropriately set and changed by the user.

  In step S <b> 40, the CPU 12 acquires text data (for example, text characters “printer”) representing the print contents of the print R formed on the print tape T based on the operation input of the operator. In this case, the text data is acquired with contents corresponding to each of a plurality of blocks arranged in the tape length direction. Step S40 corresponds to the text data acquisition procedure described in each claim.

  In step S50, the CPU 12 changes the orientation of the print text of each block (BL1, BL2 or BL1, BL2, BL3) formed based on the text data corresponding to the pasting mode specified in step 10 above. Decide for each block. At this time, the CPU 12 determines that the plurality of blocks to be pasted on different planes are different in the direction of the print text from each other and are pasted on the same plane according to the pasting mode specified in step 10 above. The block determines the orientation of the printed text so that the orientation of the printed text is aligned. Step S50 corresponds to the text orientation determination procedure described in each claim.

  Specifically, as described above, in the case of the first pasting mode, as shown in FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 5, for the printing R of the block BL <b> 1 and the block BL <b> 3, The printing R of the block BL2 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) with the tape longitudinal direction as the left-right direction. In the case of the second pasting mode, as shown in FIG. 6, the printing R of the block BL1 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) whose longitudinal direction is the tape longitudinal direction, and the printing R of the block BL2 is text. Is the vertical character string (vertical writing) with the longitudinal direction of the tape as the vertical direction. In the case of the third pasting mode, as shown in FIG. 7, the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a vertical character string (vertical writing) whose vertical direction is the direction inclined in the tape longitudinal direction, The print R of the block BL2 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) in which the tape longitudinal direction is the left-right direction. The inclination angle of the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is appropriately set according to the tape length, the amount of text data, and the like.

  In step S60, the CPU 12 determines the appearance image of the box P constructed with the outer dimensions acquired in step S20 and the text data acquired in step S40 in the direction determined in step S50. The appearance image of the printing tape T, which is printed for each time and is affixed to the box P in the affixing mode specified in step S10, is virtually three-dimensionally drawn on the display unit 17 in three dimensions. Display (see FIGS. 5 to 7). At this time, the appearance image of the box P can be rotated on the display unit 17 by operating the operation unit 14 or the like, for example, and the image to be attached to the print tape T can be viewed from all directions up, down, left, and right. This step S60 corresponds to the pasted image display procedure described in each claim.

  In step S <b> 70, the CPU 12 determines whether there is an instruction to start printing based on a predetermined operation instruction input by the operator. If there is no instruction to start printing, the determination in step S70 is not satisfied (S70: NO), and the loop waits until the determination in step S70 is satisfied. On the other hand, if there is an instruction to start printing, the determination in step S70 is satisfied (S70: YES), and the process proceeds to step S80.

  In step S80, the CPU 12 generates print data based on the pasted image of the print tape T displayed in step S60. This print data includes the first print data (text character “printer”) for printing the displayed text data, and 2 when the print tape T is pasted across a plurality of planes of the box P. Second print data for printing and forming the folding mark L representing the boundary position between two planes, and a cut line (third print data) (not shown) for the operator to cut the print tape T at an appropriate length Including.

  In step S90, the CPU 12 outputs the print data generated in step S80 to the printing apparatus 3. Step S80 functions as a print data output procedure described in each claim. Thereafter, this flow is terminated.

<Control contents executed by control circuit of printing device>
Next, with reference to FIG. 9, a detailed procedure of the print creation process executed by the control circuit 202 of the printing apparatus 3 will be described. In FIG. 9, the processing shown in this flow is started when the power of the printing apparatus 3 is turned on, for example.

  First, in step S <b> 200, the control circuit 202 determines whether print data has been received from the operation terminal 2. If not received, the determination in step S200 is not satisfied (S200: NO), and the loop waits until the determination in step S200 is satisfied. On the other hand, if it is received, the determination in step S200 is satisfied (S200: YES), and the process proceeds to step S210. The received print data is temporarily stored in a RAM or storage device 201 (not shown).

  In step S <b> 210, the control circuit 202 outputs a control signal to the transport device 209 to start transporting the tape 203.

  Thereafter, the process proceeds to step S220, and the control circuit 202 determines whether or not the transport direction position of the tape 203 has reached a predetermined print start position by a known method. Until the print start position is reached, the determination in step S220 is not satisfied (S220: NO), and the same procedure is repeated by returning to step S210. When the print start position is reached, the determination at Step S220 is satisfied (S220: YES), and the routine goes to Step S230.

  In step S230, the control circuit 202 outputs a control signal to the print head 205, and starts printing the print data received in step S200 on the tape 203.

  In step S240, the control circuit 202 determines whether the transport direction position of the tape 203 has reached a predetermined print end position by a known method. Until the print end position is reached, the determination in step S240 is not satisfied (S240: NO), and a loop waits. When the print end position is reached, the determination at Step S240 is satisfied (S240: YES), and the routine goes to Step S250.

  In step S250, the control circuit 202 outputs a control signal to the print head 205, and finishes printing on the tape 203.

  In step S <b> 270, the control circuit 202 outputs a control signal to the transport device 209 and stops transport of the tape 203. Thereafter, the processing shown in this flow is terminated.

<Effect of this embodiment>
As described above, in the present embodiment, when the print text is formed in the same direction over the entire print tape T as in the comparative example shown in FIG. 3, a part of the print text is displayed as shown in FIG. It is possible to avoid the adverse effect of being difficult to see and to improve the visibility of the printed text on the printing tape T after being attached to the box P. In addition, since the visibility can be confirmed by virtual three-dimensional drawing before the print R is actually formed on the print tape T, the convenience of the operator can be improved.

  In the present embodiment, in particular, in step S50, the print text is set so that the plurality of blocks (BL1 and BL2, BL2 and BL3) attached to different (adjacent) planes have different print text directions. Is determined. Thereby, visibility can be improved reliably.

  In the present embodiment, in particular, the width dimension W, the height dimension H, and the depth dimension D of the box P are acquired in step S20. Thereby, according to an operator's use and needs, box P of arbitrary sizes is made into a candidate for pasting, and the appearance image of box P concerned and the appearance image of printing tape T stuck on this are displayed with sufficient accuracy. be able to.

  In the present embodiment, in particular, three typical pasting modes for a plurality of surfaces of the rectangular parallelepiped box P are prepared in advance, and one is selected for the operator in step S10. I will let you. As a result, it is possible to reduce the time and effort required for the operator's operation, and this can also improve the convenience.

  In the present embodiment, in particular, the first print data and the second print data are output to the printing device 3 in step S90. Thus, when the printing tape T on which the printing R is formed is actually attached to the box P, the operator can set the folding mark L printed on the basis of the second printing data to the plane boundary position of the actual box P. Can be pasted while matching. Thereby, the operator can reliably execute the pasting mode as displayed in the image.

<Modification>
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and technical idea thereof. Various modifications will be described below.

(1) When the printing R is English characters (first and second pasting modes)
In the above embodiment, since the text data of the print R is Japanese characters, for example, in the case of the first pasting mode, for the print R of the blocks BL1 and BL3, a vertical character string whose vertical direction is the longitudinal direction of the tape. However, when the text data of the print R is, for example, an English character, it may be a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) in which the tape width direction is the left-right direction. FIG. 10 shows an example of this case.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of the appearance of the printing tape T created corresponding to the first pasting mode. In this example, the printing R is the English character “Printer”. As shown in FIG. 10, the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) whose horizontal direction is the tape width direction, and the tape longitudinal direction is the horizontal direction of the print R of the block BL2. Horizontal character string (horizontal writing). Further, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is rotated by 180 ° so that both ends in the longitudinal direction of the printing tape T are on the bottom. Thereby, when the printing tape T is affixed to the box P, the printing R of the blocks BL1 and BL3 is horizontally written in the left and right directions on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr of the box P. Even in the case of “Printer”, the visibility can be reliably improved.

  Although illustration is omitted, also in the case of the second pasting mode, in the same manner as described above, for the printing R of the block BL2, the tape width direction is set so that the longitudinal end portion side of the printing tape T faces down. Visibility can be improved by setting it as the horizontal character string (horizontal writing) made into the left-right direction.

(2) When the printing R is English characters (third pasting mode)
FIG. 11 shows an example of the appearance of the printing tape T created in correspondence with the third pasting mode. In this example, the printing R is the English character “Printer”. As shown in FIG. 11, the print R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) in which the direction inclined by a predetermined angle with respect to the tape width direction is horizontal, and the print R of the block BL2 is , A horizontal character string (horizontal writing) with the longitudinal direction of the tape as the horizontal direction. Further, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is arranged so as to be bilaterally symmetric so that both ends in the longitudinal direction of the printing tape T are on the lower side. Thereby, when the printing tape T is affixed to the box P, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is horizontally written in the front-rear and left-right directions on the left and right surfaces Pl and Pr and the front and rear surfaces Pf and Pb of the box P. Therefore, even when the print R is the English character “Printer”, the visibility can be improved reliably.

(3) When printing a plurality of blocks on the same plane In the above embodiment, the case where only one block is printed on the same plane of the box P has been described, but a plurality of blocks are printed on the same plane. May be. FIG. 12 shows an example of the appearance of the printing tape T created in this case corresponding to the first pasting mode.

  In the example shown in FIG. 12, in the first pasting mode, each print R (Japanese character “printer”) of four blocks BL1, BL2a, BL2b, BL3 is formed in the tape longitudinal direction of the print tape T. . As in FIG. 5 described above, the printing R of the block BL1 and the block BL3 is a vertical character string (vertical writing) with the tape longitudinal direction as the vertical direction. On the other hand, the plurality of blocks BL2a and BL2b pasted on the same plane (in this example, the upper surface Pu of the box P) is a horizontal character string (horizontal writing) in which the direction of the print text is the horizontal direction of the tape longitudinal direction The prints R of the “printer” on one side (block BL2a in this example) are rotated 180 ° in the front-rear direction. As a result, the display of the print R when the box P is viewed from the left and right side directions is easy to see, and at the same time, the two blocks located on the upper surface Pu of the box P can be viewed from either the front or back direction. The printing R of either BL2a or BL2b can be easily read, and the visibility can be reliably improved.

(4) Others In the above, the operation terminal 2 is connected to the printing device 3 for creating the printing tape T via a wired or wireless communication line, and the above-described editing processing (processing procedure shown in FIG. 8) is performed. The functions to be executed are collectively executed on the operation terminal 2 side. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the printing device 3 is a so-called stand-alone type printing device 3 that incorporates a configuration that performs the same function as the operation terminal 2, and the editing process described above is performed. The printing device 3 may execute the function to be executed. In this case, the control circuit 202 of the printing apparatus 3 executes the control contents shown in the flow of FIG. 8, and step S10 functions as the mode designation acquisition unit described in each claim, and step S20 functions as the external dimension acquisition unit. Step S40 functions as a text data acquisition unit, step S50 functions as a text direction determination unit, and step S60 functions as a pasted image display unit. This stand-alone type printing apparatus 3 also has the same effects as the above-described embodiment.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the printing apparatus 3 creates the printed tape 203A having the desired print R and the tape 203A is wound around the tape roll 204A has been described as an example. Not limited. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a case where a printed label is created by being cut to a desired length by a cutter mechanism incorporating a printed tape 203A. Visual recognition when the printed label is attached to the box P It is possible to improve the property.

  The arrows shown in FIG. 2 show an example of the signal flow, and do not limit the signal flow direction.

  Further, the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 are not intended to limit the present invention to the illustrated procedure, and the procedures may be added / deleted or the order may be changed without departing from the spirit and technical idea of the present invention. May be.

  In addition to those already described above, the methods according to the above-described embodiments and modifications may be used in appropriate combination.

  In addition, although not illustrated one by one, the present invention is implemented with various modifications within a range not departing from the gist thereof.

2 Operation terminal 3 Printing device (tape printing device)
12 CPU (calculation means)
17 Display section (display means)
BL1, BL2, BL3 Block D Depth dimension H Height dimension L Bending mark P Box body R Printing T Printing tape W Width dimension

Claims (6)

A pair of first planes parallel to each other, a pair of second planes parallel to each other substantially orthogonal to the first plane, and a pair parallel to each other substantially orthogonal to the first plane and the second plane An operation that includes a display unit and a calculation unit, and is configured to be able to perform an editing operation on the printing content of the printing tape that is attached to a box having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape including the third plane. For the computing means of the terminal,
A mode for obtaining a mode designation for designating a single printing tape affixing mode that is affixed across at least two of the first plane, the second plane, and the third plane of the box. Designated acquisition procedure;
An external dimension acquisition procedure for acquiring an external dimension of the box,
A text data acquisition procedure for acquiring text data representing print contents of each of a plurality of blocks arranged in the tape length direction in the print tape;
Text orientation determination for determining the orientation of the printed text of the block formed based on the text data for each block corresponding to the pasting mode specified by the mode specification acquired in the mode specification acquisition procedure Procedure and
The appearance image of the box constructed with the external dimensions acquired in the external dimension acquisition procedure, and the text data acquired in the text data acquisition procedure in the directions determined in the text orientation determination procedure A pasted image display procedure for virtually three-dimensionally drawing and displaying on the display means an appearance image of the print tape that is printed for each block and pasted to the at least two planes; ,
Print tape display processing program to execute In the printing tape display processing program according to claim 1,
The text orientation determination procedure includes:
Depending on the pasting mode specified by the mode designation acquired in the mode designation acquisition procedure, a plurality of blocks pasted on different planes have different print text directions and are pasted on the same plane. A printing tape display processing program for determining a direction of the printed text so that the plurality of blocks are aligned in the direction of the printed text. In the printing tape display processing program according to claim 2,
The external dimension acquisition procedure is:
A printing tape display processing program that acquires a width dimension of the box, a height dimension of the box, and a depth dimension of the box corresponding to the outer shape of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped. In the display tape display processing program according to claim 2 or 3,
The mode designation acquisition procedure includes:
A first pasting mode that is substantially U-shaped in a side view, from one first plane of the one set, through the second plane, to the other first plane of the one set;
A second pasting mode that extends across two planes adjacent to each other among the first to third planes and is substantially L-shaped in a side view;
In the vicinity of any one vertex of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped formed by the box, while crossing two mutually orthogonal sides in the vicinity of the vertex of the second plane diagonally, on one side of the two sides Folded over the first plane adjacent to the second plane, and folded over the other one of the two sides to span the third plane adjacent to the second plane. 3 Affixing modes,
A printing tape display processing program, wherein the mode designation for designating any one of the pasting modes is acquired. In the printing tape display processing program according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
For the computing means,
In the pasted image display procedure, the appearance image of the box and the appearance image of the printing tape are displayed on the display means, and when the predetermined operation instruction is input, the displayed text data is printed. The print data output procedure for outputting the first print data for forming and the second print data representing the boundary position between the two planes when the print tape is pasted to the tape printer is further executed. A print tape display processing program. A pair of first planes parallel to each other, a pair of second planes parallel to each other substantially orthogonal to the first plane, and a pair parallel to each other substantially orthogonal to the first plane and the second plane A tape printing device for performing printing formation of a printing tape, which is affixed to the box having an outer shape of a substantially rectangular parallelepiped including the third plane,
The aspect which acquires the aspect designation | designated which designates the affixing aspect of one printing tape affixed ranging over at least 2 planes among the said 1st plane, the said 2nd plane, and the said 3rd plane of the said box. Designated acquisition means;
An external dimension acquisition means for acquiring an external dimension of the box;
Text data acquisition means for acquiring text data representing the printing contents of each of two or three blocks arranged in the tape length direction on the printing tape;
Text direction determination for determining the direction of the printed text of the block formed based on the text data for each block corresponding to the pasting mode specified by the mode specification acquired by the mode specification acquisition means Means,
The box external appearance image constructed by the external dimensions acquired by the external dimension acquisition means, and the text data acquired by the text data acquisition means in the directions determined by the text orientation determination means Affixed image display means for virtually printing and displaying the appearance image of the print tape in a state of being printed for each block and being affixed to the at least two planes;
A tape printer characterized by comprising:

Images