JP3278174B2 - Printing apparatus and initialization method - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing apparatus and an initialization method.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a printing apparatus, initial processing such as moving a carriage to a home position has been performed when a power supply is turned on.

[0003]

For this reason, in an information processing apparatus with a built-in printing apparatus, even when the printing apparatus is not used at all, the printing apparatus is initialized when the power is turned on, resulting in waste.

[0004] In particular, a battery-operated laptop computer has a major drawback in that the initial operation of the printing apparatus shortens the life of the battery.

In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a printing apparatus and an initialization method that can prevent useless initialization and efficiently initialize a printer drive system.

In order to achieve the above object, a printing apparatus according to the present invention, when performing an initialization process, supplies information indicating that a printer drive system has not been initialized to a drive system initialization flag. Determining means for determining whether or not, upon receiving a print command, information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in a drive system initialization flag; and When it is determined that the information indicating that the printer drive system has not been initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, the printer drive system is initialized, and the printer drive system is set in the drive system initialization flag. The information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set, the received print command is executed, and the drive system initialization flag is set in the drive system initialization flag by the determination unit. There When it is determined to be set, without performing the initialization of the printer driving system, and having a processing means for executing a printing command received. Further, the initialization method of the present invention, when performing the initialization process, the step of setting information indicating that the printer drive system has not been initialized in the drive system initialization flag, when receiving a print command A determination step of determining whether or not information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag;
If it is determined in the determining step that the information indicating that the printer drive system has not been initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, the printer drive system is initialized, and the drive system initialization flag is set in the drive system initialization flag. The information indicating that the drive system is initialized is set, the received print command is executed, and the information indicating that the printer drive system is initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag in the determination step. And processing steps for executing the received print command without initializing the printer drive system when it is determined that the print command has been executed.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a printer-integrated personal computer as an information processing apparatus according to the present invention.
The main body 101 includes a keyboard 102, an upper cover 104 having a display unit 103, and the printer 2. The upper cover 104 is rotatably attached to the apparatus main body 101 via hinges 104a provided at both ends of the rear edge. Thus, when the present apparatus is used, the upper cover 104 can be opened to a position where the display unit 103 can be easily seen by its rotation, and can be closed when not in use to function as a cover.
As a display element of the display unit 103, a liquid crystal display element is used because the display unit can be thin.

A printer unit 2 using an ink jet recording head is disposed in front of a display unit 103,
It is stored in the apparatus main body 101. The printer unit 2 has an opening (not shown) that can be opened and closed by an operator so that the recording head can be replaced.

The recording paper 3 is inserted from a paper feed port 101a provided below the keyboard 102, is conveyed in a conveyance path penetrating the inside of the apparatus main body 101, and is discharged from a paper discharge port (not shown) at the rear of the apparatus. You. The keyboard 102 is the device body 1
01 is rotatably mounted via hinges 102a provided on both sides. Thus, even when a relatively short recording paper such as an envelope or a postcard is used, the keyboard 102 can be opened upward and the recording paper 3 can be inserted deep into the transport path. As described above, since the transport path of the recording paper 3 is provided below the keyboard 102, even when the recording paper is set, the keyboard 102 and the display unit 103 are provided.
Various operations using are possible.

In this embodiment, a portion excluding the printer unit 2, a so-called computer unit, will be referred to as a host computer.

[Schematic Block Diagram of Host-Printer] FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a host computer and a printer.

First, in the host computer, the central control unit (CPU) controls the main control, and the BIOS ROM instructs the basic control.
(Basic Input Output System
m ROM). From floppy disk (FDD) and hard disk (HDD) to floppy disk controller (FDC) and hard disk controller (H
DC) to read the application program and execute the program using the system memory (RAM). At this time, the display method of the screen is VG
Characters and the like are displayed on a liquid crystal (LCD) using an A (Video Graphic Array) controller (VGAC), and key input from a keyboard (KB) is performed via a keyboard controller (KBC). Here, the numerical calculation processor (FPU) is a CPU.
To support arithmetic processing. or,
The real-time clock (RTC) indicates the current elapsed time, and the operation is performed by the dedicated battery even when the power of the entire system is turned off. A DMA controller (DMAC) performs data transfer without a CPU in order to perform high-speed data transfer between memory and memory, between memory and I / O, and between I / O and I / O. An interrupt controller (IRQC) receives an interrupt from each I / O and performs processing according to the priority. The timer (TIMER) has a free running timer of several channels and performs various time managements. In addition, serial interface (SI
O), an expansion port (PORT), and an LED that informs the user of the operation status. The printer is connected to the host computer by a general-purpose parallel interface, transmits and receives data at the register level of the I / O port, and the connection image is the same as when an external printer is exchanged.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view for explaining the internal configuration of the printer unit 2 using the ink jet recording system to which the present invention is applied or applied. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 5001 denotes an ink tank, and reference numeral 5012 denotes a recording head coupled to the ink tank. The ink tank 5001 and the print head 5012 form an integral replaceable cartridge. Reference numeral 5014 denotes a carriage for attaching the cartridge to the printer body, and reference numeral 5003 denotes a guide for scanning the carriage in the sub-scanning direction.

Reference numeral 5000 denotes a platen roller for scanning the recording paper 3 in the main scanning direction. Reference numeral 5024 denotes a paper feed motor for rotating the platen roller. The carriage 5014 includes a flexible cable (not shown) for supplying a signal pulse current for driving and a current for controlling the head temperature to the recording head 5012, a print cable having an electric circuit for controlling the printer. It is connected to a plate (not shown).

Further, the printer unit 2 having the above configuration will be described in detail. The carriage 5014 that engages with the spiral groove 5005 of the lead screw 5004 that rotates through the driving force transmission gears 5011 and 5009 in conjunction with the forward and reverse rotation of the drive motor 5013 has a pin (not shown).
It is reciprocated in the directions of arrows a and b. Reference numeral 5002 denotes a paper holding plate, which applies paper to the platen 5
000. Reference numerals 5007 and 5008 denote home position detecting means for confirming the presence of the lever 5006 of the carriage 5014 in this area by photocouplers and switching the rotation direction of the motor 5013. 5016
Denotes a cap member 502 for capping the front surface of the recording head.
Reference numeral 5015 denotes a suction unit for sucking the inside of the cap, and performs suction recovery of the recording head 5012 through the opening 5023 in the cap.

Reference numeral 5017 denotes a cleaning blade.
Reference numeral 019 denotes a member that enables the blade 5017 to move in the front-rear direction, and these members are supported by the main body support plate 5018. It goes without saying that the blade is not limited to this form, and a well-known cleaning blade can be applied to this embodiment. Reference numeral 5021 denotes a lever for starting suction for suction recovery, and a cam 502 which engages with the carriage 5014.
It moves with the movement of 0, and the driving force from the drive motor is controlled by known transmission means such as clutch switching.

That is, by reversely rotating the drive motor 5013 from the home position of the carriage 5014, the power transmission gear 5011 is switched to 5010 (not shown), and the drive force from the drive motor 5013 is applied to the cam 5020.
To the lever 5021 via the
It is configured so that capping, cleaning, and suction recovery can be performed.

[Block Diagram of Printer] FIG.
FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a printer.

The printer has a CPU # for controlling the printer.
2. ROM # 2 with printer control program, printer emulation and print fonts, RAM # to store development data for printing and data received from the host
2. It is composed of a printer driver for driving a print head and a motor of the printer, a controller for controlling access to a memory, exchanging data with a host, and transmitting a control signal to the printer driver.

[Structure of Printer Driver] FIG. 5 shows the structure of a print head and a head driver.

Here, in the present embodiment, the discharge unit has 64 discharge ports, and # 1 to # 64 indicate numbers corresponding to the positions of the discharge ports provided in the discharge unit. R1 to R64 are heating resistors as ejection energy generating elements provided corresponding to the ejection ports # 1 to # 64, respectively. The heating resistors R1 to R64 are divided into blocks each having eight units, and the switching transistors Q1 to Q8 of the common side driver circuit are commonly used for each block.
Is connected. The transistors Q1 to Q8 turn on / off the energization paths in accordance with on / off of the control signals COM1 to COM8, respectively. In addition, D1 to D64 arranged on the current supply path to each of the heating resistors R1 to R64 are diodes for preventing backflow.

The on / off transistors Q9 to Q16 of the segment side driver circuit are connected to the heating resistors located at the corresponding positions between the blocks. The transistors Q1 to Q16 control signals SEG1 to SEG, respectively.
The power supply path to the heating resistor is turned on / off according to the on / off operation of 8.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart for driving the head according to the above configuration. At a certain position in the head scanning direction, the common-side control signals COM8 to COM1 are sequentially turned on. When the switch is turned on, one block is selected and becomes energized. Therefore, in the selected block, the segment-side control signal S according to the recorded image is selected.
By turning on or off each of EG8 to SEG1, the heating resistor is selectively energized, and the ink is ejected according to the heat generation to perform dot recording.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of the carriage motor and the motor driver.

FIG. 8 shows the drive timing.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, a stepping motor having coils .PHI.1 to .PHI.4 is used as a carriage motor, and switching transistors TR1 to TR4 connected to the respective coils by drive signals CM1 to CM4.
By turning on / off appropriately, 2 as shown in FIG.
Drive by phase excitation method.

The feed motor has the same configuration.
Driven by the drive signals FM1 to FM4.

[Configuration of Printer Controller] FIG. 9 shows a configuration diagram of the printer controller.

The functional blocks of the controller include an I / O data register for exchanging data at the command level with the host, a reception buffer controller for directly writing received data from the register to the RAM # 2, and recording of the RAM # 2. The print data is read out from the data buffer, and COM1 to COM8 are sent to the head driver.
A print buffer controller for transmitting control signals / SEG1 to SEG8, and a memory controller for controlling memory access to RAM # 2 from three directions (that is, CPU # 2, reception buffer controller, print buffer controller). It is composed of four blocks.

FIG. 10 shows a map of the I / O data register (shown in FIG. 9) of the printer.

Among them, the motor control port controls the port by directly rewriting the value of the register to drive each motor (CM1 to CM4, FM
1 to FM4).

The print buffer area is for setting a data area required for printing, and includes a start address (PB STA).
RT) and the end address (PB END), the print buffer controller reads the print data in order from the start address within that range, reads the print data from RAM # 2 until the end address, and sends it to the head driver. Send a control signal. At this time, the print data address pointer (PB POINT) indicates the data address at which data is currently being transmitted.

Similarly, the reception data buffer area sets a data area necessary for reception, and includes a start address (IB START) and an end address (IB END).
Is set, the reception buffer controller writes the reception data in order from the start address within the range, and writes the reception data to the RAM # 2 until the end address. At this time, the received data address pointer (IB POINT) indicates the data address at which data has been received.

FIG. 11 shows the address areas of the print buffer (PB) and the reception buffer (IB) on the RAM # 2 in the above operation. Each address is shown in FIG.
As indicated by 0, it is indicated in the printer I / O register. The interface area is a common I / O area between the host computer and the printer. The interface area is an area for exchanging data with the host computer, and corresponds to a port of the parallel interface in the host computer.

FIG. 12 shows the interface area.
Will be described with reference to a diagram showing the correlation in the interface area between the host computer and the printer.

The I / F data, I / F status, and I / F control registers on the host side indicate the same addresses as the I / F data, I / F status, and I / F control registers on the printer side. The address map is set so that the address (n, n + 1, n + 2) seen from the host side can correspond to the address (m, m + 1, m + 2) seen from the printer side.

That is, the address of this portion is a register that can be read and written in both directions.

The host computer also has an I / O register for controlling peripheral devices, and is used for I / O control in the host computer. That is, it has the I / O area of each block shown in FIG.
Only the control area of the interface in it,
The configuration is such that it is common to the interface area of the I / O register on the printer side. FIG.
This shows the relationship.

Hereinafter, each process after the power supply of the host computer is turned on will be described.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart when the power is turned on.
First, the process proceeds to step S10. The soft reset process using the keyboard also enters step S10 in the same manner as when the power is turned on. POST processing is performed in step S10,
POST processing is poweron self-test
Then, a test and initialization of each hardware are executed. Next, the process proceeds to step S11, where a boot program is loaded for starting the system program. The boot program is stored in a floppy disk (FD) or a hard disk (HD).
It is located in sector 1. The boot program is loaded by reading track 0 and sector 1 into the memory. Steps S10 to S11 are ROM
Exists in the BIOS. Next, the process proceeds to step S12, where the loaded boot program is executed. The boot program is a program that loads a program for loading an OS program from the FD or the HD.
Next, the process proceeds to step S13 to load the OS load program. Next, the process proceeds to step S14, where the OS load program is executed. The OS load program is a program for loading the OS into the memory, and first loads the I / O driver in step S15. An I / O driver is a program for controlling I / O.
With the / O driver, the OS exchanges data with various I / Os. Next, the process proceeds to step S16, where an I / O test and initialization are performed. Next, proceed to step S17
Load S into memory. When it is ready to execute the OS in the steps so far, the process proceeds to step S18, where the OS is executed. The OS processes input from the keyboard, displays various messages on a display, and exchanges with the operator. The OS executes various command processes according to the input of various commands by the operator.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining the POST of S10 in FIG. 13 in detail. The CPU (FPU in FIG. 2)
(Numerical processor, coprocessor) is tested (step S20). Next, the ROM is tested (step S21). Next, the power and battery are checked (step S22). Next, the LCD and the LCD adapter for testing and initializing the LCD adapter have R
Checks including AM and ROM are also performed (step S23). Next, a test and initialization of the interrupt controller are performed (step S24). Next, a timer test is performed (step S25). Next, a test of the DMA controller is performed (step S26). Then the keyboard,
Test the keyboard controller (step S
27). Next, a test and initialization of the serial / parallel port are performed (step S28). Next, it is checked whether it is a soft reset (step S29). If it is a soft reset, the process skips the RAM test and initialization process in step S30 and proceeds to step S31. If it is not a soft reset, the flow advances to step S30 to test and initialize the RAM. Next, an FD (floppy disk) test is performed (step S31). Next, an HD (hard disk) test is performed (step S32). Next, a test of the real-time clock is performed (step S33).
Next, a printer test is performed (step S34). The printer test checks various printer ports and printer connection. Next, an LED test is performed (step S35). Then come back. By the above processing, the POST processing shown in S10 of FIG. 13 is performed.
If there is an error or the like in each device, it notifies them.

Next, keyboard interrupt processing and key code acquisition processing will be described. In the keyboard interrupt processing, an interrupt is generated from the keyboard controller in accordance with the depression of a key on the keyboard, is processed by the interrupt controller, and the keyboard interrupt processing is executed. In the key code acquisition process, the key code stored by the keyboard interrupt is extracted from the key buffer, and the key code is returned to the necessary process. Although not shown, the key buffer is provided in the BIOS common area on the RAM in FIG. Keyboard interrupt processing is performed for each I / O
Is assigned to a hardware interrupt entry or the like on the interrupt map (not shown), and the key code acquisition process is assigned to a software interrupt entry or the like. Execution is started by calling an interrupt or software interrupt from the keyboard, respectively.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a process performed when a keyboard interrupt occurs. In the figure, when a keyboard interrupt occurs, a key scan code is read from a port assigned to the I / O keyboard in S40. The read code is S41
In step S42, it is determined whether or not the code corresponds to a soft reset. If the answer is Yes, a print buffer clear command is transmitted in S42, and after the execution, the actual soft reset operation is started. If the read code is not a soft reset, it is checked in S43 whether the keyboard buffer is full. If it is full, a beep sound is generated for warning in S44, and the process is terminated. If it is not full, the key scan code is converted into a key code corresponding to the character code in S45, and the converted key code is set in the key buffer in S46, and the process is terminated.

As described above, the buffer clear command is transmitted to the printer when the software reset is executed in the keyboard interrupt processing, and the buffer clear processing of the printer is performed.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing a key code acquisition process.

In the figure, when the key code acquisition is started, it is first checked in step S50 whether or not there is a key code in the keyboard buffer. If not, the process repeats S50, and waits for a key code to be stored in the keyboard buffer. If a key code exists, it is checked in step S51 whether the key code needs to be converted. If necessary, the key code is converted in step S52 (key code conversion occurs mainly when the keyboard differs from country to country. I do.)

When conversion of the key code is not necessary or necessary and after conversion is performed in S52, the key code is set in the register for returning the key code in S53, and the process is terminated.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a flow of a command analysis process performed by the host in response to a key input.

When the command analysis processing is executed, S60
In step S61, a command input from a keyboard or the like by an operator is received, and it is checked in step S61 whether the received command is a country switching command. YE
If the answer is S, a country switching print command transmission process is executed in S62 and the command input is again waited.

If NO, it is checked in S63 if there is another command. If YES, the corresponding process is executed in S64 and the command input is waited again.

In S61 to S64, similar processes are expanded by the number of necessary commands, but they will not be described in detail here.

Next, a case where a country switching command is executed will be described. The OS executes the following country switching processing according to the designation of the country switching command from the operator.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a flow of the country switching print command transmission processing on the host side in S62 of FIG.

When the country switching print command transmission processing is executed, in S70, the current country mode setting on the host side is changed to the desired country mode setting in accordance with the command input from the key. The information is stored in the RAM of FIG.
Is stored in When the change is completed, in S71, a country switching print command is transmitted to the peripheral device to perform the same country switching, and the process ends.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a flow of the country switching print command transmission processing of S81 in FIG.

When the country switching print command transmission process is executed, the changed country mode is checked in S80 based on the country information stored in the RAM of the main unit (host) in FIG. , Corresponding country No. To determine.

In S81, the country No. In order to switch the printer to the country corresponding to the above, the print command for country switching is transmitted, and the process is terminated.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing a flow of a country switching print command transmission process (emulation switching) as another embodiment.

When the country switching print command transmission processing is executed, the changed country information stored in the RAM of FIG. 2 on the main body (host) side is checked in S90, and the emulation No. corresponding to the changed country information is checked. To determine. The emulation No. Are stored in a table format in the RAM of FIG. 2 corresponding to the country information.

In step S91, an emulation switch print command is transmitted to the printer in order to switch the printer to the determined emulation, and the process ends.

As described above, by issuing the country switching command, it is possible to switch the country mode of the host and, at the same time, switch the country of the printer or the emulation of the printer. The control on the printer side will be described later with reference to FIG.

Next, processing on the printer side will be described. The printer has three emulation processes and can switch each program.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing details of a read / write memory including a buffer, a flag and the like in the RAM # 2 shown in FIG. In the figure, a reception buffer is a buffer for receiving print commands and print data transferred from the main body to the printer, and holds data input to an input port of the printer. The drive system initialization flag is a flag indicating whether a print drive system such as a carriage has been initialized. The print data area is a data area including flags and registers necessary for printing, and printing is performed using values held in this area, such as margin information.
The emulation data area is a data area containing flags, registers, and emulation information necessary for emulation. The emulation process performs emulation using the values held in this area. Furthermore, the contents of this emulation data area are shown in FIG.
The details are shown below. The work buffer is a work area temporarily used for printing and emulation, and is used for work such as data processing and change. The print buffers 1 to 3 are areas for holding data to be printed, in which print image data created by emulation is stored, and the data held in the print buffer is transferred to a printing unit to execute printing. Each of the print buffers 1 to 3 can store data of a size required for one-time printing, and has three buffers 1 to 3 in this embodiment. The reason why multiple print buffers are prepared is to allow the print image to be developed in another buffer while one print buffer is actually being printed. You can do it. The download font buffer is an area that stores the font data transferred from the main unit when printing fonts other than the font data stored in the printer.When a font is transferred to this download font, the font stored in this area is used. Printing is performed.

FIG. 22 shows the details of the emulation data area. The emulation flag EMFLA is shown in FIG.
G holds the number of the emulation. EMFL
AG indicates the corresponding NO of emulation using two bits B0 and B1. B0 and B1 can have values from 0 to 3, where 0 indicates emulation 1, 1 indicates emulation 2, and 2 indicates emulation 3. In this embodiment, emulation 1 to 3 are supported, and each emulation corresponds to the value registered in the emulation flag EMFLAG. EMFL
AG is the emulation No. designated at the time of executing the emulation change print command. Is set. The country flag CNTFLAG is a buffer for holding a country code. Is held. B0 to B3 can take a value from 0 to 15, and this value is used as the country No. Can be represented.
In the present embodiment, two countries, Japan and USA, are set, and if the value is 0, it is USA and if it is 1, the value is Japan. It is possible to have individual values for other countries. According to the country switching print command, the country flag is set in the country flag. Is set. The emulation information 1 to 3 are areas that hold emulation information held by each emulation, and are areas represented by 24 bits B0 to B23. Each bit of B0 to B23 is used for designating information required in each emulation, for example, character quality and page length. In addition, it holds the value that is the initial value used for each emulation, and this information can be set and changed by the setting and change commands of each information,
The information corresponding to the emulation currently being executed is rewritten. In this embodiment, the description of the content of each bit is omitted, but necessary emulation information can be provided. The emulation information 1 to 3 have the same format, but the setting for the bit content can be specified by each emulation.

FIG. 23 shows a specific example of the emulation information. In this example, B0 to B2 bits are used to give each bit a function of character quality, reduced character, and character code, and each bit is set to 0 or 1 to indicate the setting of each function in each emulation. Each emulation can be in a similar or separate format. It is also possible to perform classification using a plurality of bits to have several values.

As described above, each emulation is executed according to the value held in the emulation data area.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a table for executing emulation, which is held in the ROM # 2 (printer side) in FIG. The emulation selection table includes a pointer pointing to each emulation control table, and corresponds to each of the first to third tables.
The emulation control tables 1 to 3 are management tables for each emulation of the emulations 1 to 3 and correspond to the respective emulations. The emulation initial information 1 to 3 are tables holding initial values of the respective emulation information, and have initial values corresponding to the respective emulations. This initial value is used as an initial value when a command is specified and when information is not set.
To be set in the areas of the emulation information 1 to 3 of the above. The emulation programs 1 to 3 hold a program for each emulation, and any one of the emulation programs 1 to 3 is executed when each emulation is executed.

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing the structure of the tables shown in FIG. 24. In FIG. 25, → indicates a pointer and holds the address. The emulation selection table has pointers to the emulation control tables a to c. The emulation control table has emulation IDs and EMIDs, which are identifiers of the emulations corresponding to each emulation, and have individual values for each emulation. The emulation name is a character example that indicates the name of the emulation, and can be used when you want to know the name of the emulation. The initial information pointer is a pointer that points to a table containing initial values of the emulation initial information, and points to a table of each initial information in each emulation. The information pointer is a pointer that points to each emulation information (FIG. 22).
With a pointer that points to a table of current emulation information, emulation is performed based on the data that is beyond this pointer. The program pointer is a pointer indicating an emulation program, and is a pointer indicating a program to be executed by each emulation. Using this pointer, an address of each program is used when each emulation is switched.

FIG. 26 is a diagram showing the initial values set in the emulation initial information of FIG. 25 in the ROM # 2 of FIG. 4. This diagram corresponds to the emulation information of FIG. It shows the initial values in the case of the example.
In the case of this emulation, the settings of high-quality, normal, and katakana are initial values, and the contents of this table are initial values of emulation information.

As described above, actual emulation switching and management are performed using the emulation execution table.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing the processing on the printer side according to the present embodiment. First, an initialization processing is performed in step S100. The initialization process performs processes such as clearing the print buffer. Next, the process proceeds to step S101, where emulation selection processing is performed. The details of this selection process are shown in FIG.
It is shown in FIG. Any one of emulations 1 to 3 is selected by the selection processing in step S101, and the process proceeds to execution. One emulation of the three emulations of steps S102 to S104 is performed,
Each emulation moves so as to complete a series of operations. Therefore, when the emulation switching command is executed, each emulation ends, and the process proceeds to the emulation selection processing step S101. Repeat the above.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing the details of step S100 in FIG. 27. First, in S110, the I / O ports of the printer drive system (carriage, paper feed, etc.) are initialized, and in S111, the printing shown in FIG. Initialize the data area. Then, in S112, 0 is set to the drive system initialization flag shown in FIG. 21 to indicate that the drive system has not been initialized.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing details of step S101 in FIG. 27. First, in step S120, the emulation No. set in the emulation flag EMFLAG shown in FIG. Take out. The emulation flag EMFLAG is shown in FIG. 22, and the emulation No. is assigned to B0 to B1. Is set. Next, the process proceeds to step S121, where the emulation No. of the emulation flag EMFLAG is set. Select the corresponding emulation control table from the emulation selection table corresponding to. The emulation program pointer is extracted from the selected emulation control table. Next, the process proceeds to step S122, branches to the program address fetched in step S121, and proceeds to execution of each emulation program. Through the above processing, emulation selection processing is executed, and emulation is selected.

FIG. 30 shows steps S102 to S102 in FIG.
4 is a flowchart for explaining in detail the emulation shown in FIG. 4, showing parts common to each emulation.
First, an initialization process is performed in step S130. The initialization process performs initialization of a data area necessary for each emulation and the like.

Next, the flow advances to step S131 to receive a print command from the transmitted print command and print data. As for print data, data sent from the main body is temporarily stored in a reception buffer, and data is extracted from the reception buffer. If there is no received data, the process waits for received data. Next, the process proceeds to step S132 to check whether the command is an emulation switching command. If the command is an emulation switching command, the process proceeds to step S133 to execute an emulation switching process. FIG. 31 is a detailed flowchart of the emulation switching process. Then come back. If the command is not an emulation switching command, the process advances to step S134 to check whether the command is a country setting command. If the command is a country setting command, the flow advances to step S135 to execute a country setting process. FIG. 32 shows a detailed flowchart of the country setting process. After execution, return to command reception. If the command is not a country setting command, the processing of another command is performed.

Next, it is checked whether the command is a buffer clear command. In the case of a buffer clear command, the process proceeds to step S136, where the buffer is cleared (S137).
Execute After executing the buffer clear processing, the process returns to the command receiving processing. If it is not a buffer clear command, it is checked whether it is a character quality setting command (S138).
If the command is a character quality setting command, the flow advances to step S139 to execute a character quality setting process. Next, the process returns to the command receiving process.

Next, CR (print recovery) and FF (page break)
It is checked whether the print command is such as (step S140). In the case of a print command, the process proceeds to S141,
Execute the printing process. Although a description of the processing of other commands is omitted, a commonly used emulation command can be executed. Step S13 after executing each command
The process proceeds to 1 and the above processing is repeatedly executed.

By the above processing, the processing of the emulation switching command and the country setting command can be executed during the emulation processing.

FIG. 31 is a diagram showing details of the emulation switching process. When a switching command is received,
Be executed. First, in step S150, the switching emulation No. Decide. Switching emulation No.
Is received in addition to the switching command. Next, the emulation No. received in step S151. From the emulation control table. Next, it is checked whether the switching command is a command with initialization (step S152). 2 for the switch command
There are two types of commands. One is with an initialization command and the other is without an initialization command. If it is an initialization command, the flow advances to step S153 to copy the initial information to the emulation information area. Next, step S
Proceed to 154, if not an initialization command, step S1
Proceed to 54. Next, in step S154, the emulation No. switched to the emulation flag EMFLAG is selected.
Is set in the B0 to B1 bits. Then come back.

With the above processing, the emulation switching processing is executed, and preparation for emulation switching can be performed.

FIG. 32 is a diagram showing details of the country setting process, which is executed when a country setting command is received. First, in step S160, the country N is set to the country flag CNTFLAG.
o. Is set. Then come back. Through the above processing, the country setting process is performed, and the country setting can be performed.

FIG. 33 is a diagram showing details of the buffer clear processing, which is executed when a buffer clear command is received. First, the buffer is cleared in step S170. The buffer includes buffers that need to be initialized, such as a print buffer. The buffer clear processing can be performed by the above processing.

FIG. 34 is a diagram showing details of the character quality switching process, which is executed when a character quality switching command is received. First, in step S180, the emulation No. set in the emulation flag EMFLAG is set. Take out. Next, this emulation N
o. , The address of the emulation control table registered in the emulation selection table is determined. Next, in step S181, the address registered in the information pointer in the control table determined in step S180 is extracted. There is emulation information at the point indicated by this address, and this emulation information is held in the RAM. Next, step S1
Proceed to 82 to check whether to set high quality. This is performed by using a value indicating whether the command is high-quality or draft in the command. If high-quality is specified, the process proceeds to step S184, and the B0 bit of the emulation information is set to 0. If the B0 bit is set to 0,
High quality designation. If the high quality is not specified, the flow advances to step S183 to set the B0 bit of the emulation information to 1. When the B0 bit is set to 1, draft is designated. Then come back. By the above processing,
The execution process of the character quality switching command is performed. Thereafter, the quality is selected based on the B0 bit of the emulation information, and printing is performed.

FIG. 35 is a flowchart showing the details of step S141 in FIG. 30. First, in step S190, the drive system initialization flag is tested to determine whether the printer drive system such as the carriage has already been initialized. If the flag is 0
If the initialization has not been performed, the initialization steps of S191 to S194 are executed.

Carriage initialization in step S191 is to move the carriage 5014 shown in FIG. 3 and to confirm the existence of the carriage 5014 with the photocouplers 5007 and 5008 to position the carriage 5014 at the home position. Details are shown in FIG.

Next, capping is performed (S192).
Capping is a cap member 5022 shown in FIG.
This is an operation for capping the front surface of the recording head 5012, and serves to prevent the recording head 5012 from drying. The recording head 5012 must be capped with the cap member 5022 except during printing. FIG. 37 shows details of the capping operation.

Next, paper feed initialization is performed (S193).
The paper feed initialization is the initialization of the paper feed motor 5024, and is performed to determine the print line position. This embodiment will not be described in detail.

Further, a drive system initialization flag 1 is set to indicate that initialization has been performed. Therefore, S191 to S194 are skipped in the subsequent print processing.

In step S195, the cap is opened, and in step S19
In step 6, the carriage, the recording head, and the like are driven, the print data in the print data area is printed, and a command for starting printing is executed. After executing the command, the carriage is returned again in step S197 to perform capping, and the printing process ends.

FIG. 36 is a detailed flowchart of the carriage initialization, which will be described with reference to FIG. A lever 5006 attached to the carriage 5014 is a photocoupler 5007, 50
08 (HP sensor) (HP sensor On)
Accordingly, it can be detected whether the carriage 5014 is in the home position side area, and the HP sensor changes from off to On.
Is the home position (HP) of the carrier.

First, in S201, it is determined whether the carriage 5014 is already in the home position side area. If it is already in the home position side area, the process proceeds to S202, in which the drive motor 5013 is rotated 45 pulses in the forward direction (the carriage 5014 is moved rightward by 45 pulses), and the carriage 5014 is moved out of the home position side area.
If the HP sensor is not On in S201, S203 and S2
In step 04, the drive motor 5013 is rotated one pulse at a time in the reverse direction (the carriage 5014 is moved one pulse at a time to the left) until the carriage 5014 moves to the home position side area. In steps S205 and S206, the carriage 501 is again operated until the HP sensor is turned off.
4 is moved rightward by one pulse, and further moved rightward by 20 pulses in S207. And S208,
In step S209, the carriage 5014 is moved leftward one pulse at a time, and when the HP sensor changes from off to on, the movement of the carriage 5014 is stopped, and the initialization ends.

FIG. 37 is a detailed flowchart of capping. This is control by the CPU # 2 in FIG. By rotating the drive motor 5013 in the reverse direction from the home position of the carriage 5014, the power transmission gear is switched, and the lever 5021 is moved via the cam 5020. In order to move the lever 5021 to the capping position, the following three controls (S211 to S213) are required as a capping flow. First, when the carriage 5014 is at the home position, the drive motor
3 is rotated in the reverse direction by 34 steps, and the drive transmission gear 50 is rotated.
10 and 5011 are switched (S211). Next, the cap member 5022 is further rotated 11 steps in the reverse direction to move the cap member 5022 once away from the recording head 5012 (S212), and further rotated 45 steps in the reverse direction to rotate the cap member 5022.
Is pressed against the surface of the recording head 5012 to complete the capping (S213).

The cap can be opened by reversing this flow.

(Other Embodiments) In another embodiment, welfare elements (carriage system, capping system, paper feed system) of a printing apparatus are used.
More detailed initialization control is performed with an initialization flag every time, but details are omitted since they are the same as in the first embodiment.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to omit the initialization of the printing apparatus when the power is turned on or when the emulation mode is changed, and a smooth operation can be performed.

Further, when the present invention is applied to a battery-driven information processing apparatus built in a printing apparatus, there is an excellent effect that the life of the battery can be extended.

[0097]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
Useless initialization can be prevented, and the initialization of the printer drive system can be performed efficiently.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a printer-integrated personal computer of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a host computer and a printer.

FIG. 3 is an internal configuration of the printer unit of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a printer.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a recording head and a head driver.

FIG. 6 is a timing chart of head driving.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of a carriage motor and a motor driver.

FIG. 8 is a driving timing of the driver in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of a printer controller.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a map of a printer I / O register.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing address areas of a recording data buffer and a reception buffer.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a correlation in an I / O area between a host computer and a printer.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart when power is turned on.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of POST.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a keyboard interrupt process.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a key code acquisition process.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart of a command analysis process.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of a host-side country switching process.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart of a printer-side country switching process.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart of printer-side country switching processing when emulation is executed.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing a configuration of a RAM # 2.

FIG. 22 is a detailed view of an emulation data area.

FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a specific example of emulation information.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a table at the time of emulation execution.

FIG. 25 is a view showing the configuration of the table shown in FIG. 24;

FIG. 26 is a diagram showing initial values of emulation information.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart of printer control according to the embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart of printer unit initialization control.

FIG. 29 is a detailed flowchart of step S101 in FIG. 27;

FIG. 30 is a detailed flowchart of steps S102 to S104 in FIG. 27;

FIG. 31 is a detailed diagram of an emulation switching process.

FIG. 32 is a detailed view of a country setting process.

FIG. 33 is a detailed view of a buffer clear process.

FIG. 34 is a detailed diagram of a character quality switching process.

FIG. 35 is a detailed flowchart of step S141 in FIG. 30;

FIG. 36 is a detailed flowchart of carriage initialization.

FIG. 37 is a detailed flowchart of capping.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Hisashi Naito 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Within Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Koji Fukunaga 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Non-corporation (72) Inventor Naohisa Suzuki 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Jiro Tateyama 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon (72) Inventor Susumu Takase 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Inside Canon Inc. (56) References JP-A-57-189871 (JP, A) JP-A-2-92548 (JP, A) JP-A-2-177977 (JP, A) JP-A-3-19872 (JP, A) JP-A-2-74353 (JP, A) JP-A-1-196348 (JP, A) JP-A-3-73354 (JP, A) Hei 3-83672 (JP, A)

Claims (10)

(57) [Claims] A means for setting information indicating that a printer drive system has not been initialized to a drive system initialization flag when performing an initialization process; Determining means for determining whether or not information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in the flag; and determining that the printer drive system has not been initialized in the drive system initialization flag by the determination means. If the information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is determined to be set, information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, and the received print command is set. When the determination unit determines that the information indicating that the printer drive system is initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, the printer drive system is initialized. Without performing the printing apparatus characterized by having a processing means for executing a printing command received. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the initialization process includes a process of clearing a print buffer. 3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the initialization of the printer drive system includes initialization of a carriage, capping, and paper feeding. 4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing apparatus is integrated with a computer that transmits a print command. 5. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the printing device includes an ink jet printer. 6. A step of setting information indicating that a printer drive system has not been initialized in a drive system initialization flag when performing an initialization process, and a step of performing drive system initialization when a print command is received. A determination step of determining whether or not information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in the flag; and that the printer drive system has not been initialized in the drive system initialization flag by the determination step. If the information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is determined to be set, information indicating that the printer drive system has been initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, and the received print command is set. If it is determined in the determination step that the information indicating that the printer drive system is initialized is set in the drive system initialization flag, Without performing the initialization of the motor drive system, the initialization method characterized by having a process step of executing a printing command received. 7. The initialization method according to claim 6, wherein the initialization processing includes a print buffer clear processing. 8. The initialization method according to claim 6, wherein the initialization of the printer driving system includes initialization of a carriage, capping, and paper feeding. 9. The initialization method according to claim 6, wherein the initialization method is performed by a printer integrated with a computer that transmits a print command. 10. The initialization method according to claim 6, wherein said initialization method is performed by an ink jet printer.