JP3481799B2 - Character assignment method and device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a character allocating method and apparatus for allocating each character of a character string within a rectangular contour having a specified width in a reading direction such as a stamp printing surface or a label printing surface. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Character allocation to each line of one line or a plurality of lines is often used evenly in a word processor or the like. The even allocation in this case is, for example, as shown in FIG.
As shown in 3, when allocating 5 characters of “equal allocation” to an allocation area having a width of the number of dots A = 70, “uniform” and “ke” of the first and last characters are allocated to both ends, The value A−C = 60 obtained by subtracting one character of the character width of the number C = 10 from the width of the allocation area is divided by the remaining number of characters 5-1 = 4, which is 60/4 = 15. Since the value of the width + the inter-character margin B + C, the inter-character margin B = 5 is determined and allocated as shown in the figure.

[0003]

When such a layout method is applied to the stamp characters of the seal or the printed characters of the label, when the number of characters is small on the stamp surface or the printed surface, the inter-character space becomes too wide and becomes heavy. Poor or blank parts result in poor seals or labels (see FIG. 25A).

The present invention has been made in view of the peculiarities of characters of a seal or a label, and a character allocating method capable of appropriately allocating each character of a seal or a label to a stamp surface or a printing surface. And its device.

[0005]

A first character allocating method of the present invention is a character allocating method for allocating each character of a character string of one line or a plurality of lines in a rectangular outline having a specified width in a reading direction. , The end margin between the edge of the contour and the character at the end is D, and the inter-character margin between adjacent characters is B.
And the width of the contour is A, and one character of each character
When the width is C and the number of characters is F , dot matrix
On the basis of the number of dots on the line, each character is assigned so that B>D> 0, and (A−C × F) / F
The quotient of the above is defined as the space B between the characters and the dot
The number of characters is the space between the characters at the front according to the reading direction of the characters.
It is characterized by allocating each dot from white .

The first character layout device of the present invention is
In a character allocating device that allocates each character of a character string of one line or a plurality of lines in a rectangular contour having a specified width in the reading direction, an end margin dimension between the edge of the contour and the character at the end is D And a character allocating means for allocating each of the characters so that B>D> 0, where B is the inter-character space dimension between adjacent characters, and the character, the end margin size and
And the dots on the dot matrix with the space between the characters
Allocated based on the number, the character allocating means
Is the width of the contour is A, and the character width of one of the characters is
When C and the number of characters is F, (A-CxF) / F
Is calculated and the quotient is the quotient
Number calculation means and the number of dots corresponding to the remainder of the above calculation
Is the space between the characters at the forefront according to the reading direction of the characters.
And the remaining dot number allocating means that allocates 1 dot at a time
It is characterized by having .

In this character allocating method and its apparatus, the end margins can be made to have an appropriate size, so that even if the number of characters is small with respect to the seal face of the seal or the print face of the label, the space between the characters at the center is small. Without becoming too wide,
The letters are arranged in a well-balanced manner.

The second character allocation method of the present invention is
How to read each character of the character string of each line of multiple lines for each line
Characters to be allocated in the rectangular outline of the specified width
In the allocation method, the width of the contour is A, and the character
When C is the width of one character and F is the number of characters,
Of the multiple rows, the row with the smallest quotient G of (A-CxF) / F
Characters that are long lines and adjacent to the longest line
Standard inter-character margin size B that serves as the standard for inter-character space dimensions
Of the longest line and thereafter.
Characterized by allocating characters to other lines outside
It

The second character allocating device of the present invention is
How to read each character of the character string of each line of multiple lines for each line
Characters to be allocated in the rectangular outline of the specified width
In the layout device, the width of the contour is A, and the width of the character is
When C is the width of one character and F is the number of characters,
Of the multiple rows, the row with the smallest quotient G of (A-CxF) / F
The longest line discriminating means for discriminating the long line and the longest line
Is the standard for the inter-character margin size between adjacent characters.
Standard for determining character-to-character margin size B
Based on the column and the reference character spacing B,
Longest line character allocating means for allocating characters to long lines,
Based on the reference character space B, the longest line
Other line character allocating means for allocating characters to other lines outside
And are provided.

In this character allocating method and apparatus,
Determine the longest line based on the width of the rectangular contour to which the letters are assigned
Therefore, for example, the number of characters is small, but before the character string
There is a decoration on the back and so on, and the actual character allocation area is small.
If there are lines, each character is shaded, emphasized, italic,
Character decorations such as ki and inversion are given, and substantial margins
Even if there are few lines, the line with the smallest margin is
You can easily calculate and determine that line as the longest line
It In other words, when the longest line is simply determined from the number of characters,
In comparison, the more appropriate longest line can be selected. Well
Also, by using that line as a standard for allocating margins, etc.
The printing surface of a seal or label that has multiple lines.
This makes it possible to allocate well-balanced characters.

In addition, in the above-mentioned character allocation method,
The longest line is the margin between the edge of the contour and the character at the end.
When the dimension is D, it is
Allocate each of the above characters so that the relationship is B>D> 0
Is preferred.

In the character allocating device described above,
The space between the reference characters is determined by the edge of the contour and the longest
The end margin size with the character at the end of the line is the reference end margin size
When D, the relationship with the reference character margin size B
So that B>D> 0,
Determine the standard end margin size D, and assign the longest line character
The step is based on the reference character margin dimension B, and
The margin dimension of the end portion is set to be the reference margin dimension D.
It is preferable to allocate each of the characters in the longest line.

In this character allocation method and its apparatus,
You can make the end margins of long lines of text an appropriate size.
However, even if the number of characters is small, only the center character space is
With a well-balanced layout of characters without becoming too wide
Become. Also, use that line as a standard for allocating margins, etc.
Depending on the print side of a seal or label with multiple lines
In the whole of the
Can be attached.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocation method, the line width other than the longest line above is the character width.
J, the space between characters is K, and the number of characters is H
Sometimes, the same character string size as the character string of the longest line E = J
× H + K × (H-1) = C × F + B × (F-1) characters
Characters on either side of the column should be
Split so that the character on the one end and the one end are aligned.
It is preferable to attach them.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocating device, the other line character allocating means is
Let J be the character width of the line and K be the space between characters,
When the number is H, the same sentence as the character string of the longest line
Character size E = J × H + K × (H-1) = C × F + B ×
An allocated character string generation means for generating a character string of (F-1),
The character at the end of either the front or back is the one in the longest line.
Allocate so that the letters on one end are aligned with one end
And a uniform character string allocating means.

In this character allocation method and device,
For the stamp surface with several lines, the character string dimensions are
That is, the edges of each line are aligned and look stable.
You can make good allocations.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocation method, the number of characters is
When H (H ≦ F), the space between adjacent characters
Is the same as the reference character space B
= C × H + B × (H-1) character string,
The character is divided so that the leading edge is aligned with the character at the front of the longest line.
It is preferable to attach it.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocating device, the other line character allocating means is
When the number of characters in the line is H (H ≦ F), they are adjacent
Make the space between characters the same as the standard space B between characters.
The character string size E = C × H + B × (H-1) is generated.
The assigned character string generating means to be formed, and the sentence at the front of the character string
The character is divided so that the leading edge is aligned with the character at the front of the longest line.
It is preferable to have a front-aligned character string allocating means for
Yes.

In this character allocating method and device,
For stamps and prints that have several lines, the leading edge of each line and the text
Make orderly and well-designed layouts with uniform space between characters
be able to.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocation method, the number of characters is
When H (H ≦ F), the space between adjacent characters
Is the same as the reference character space B
= C × H + B × (H-1), the center position is
Allocating so that it is aligned with the center position of the longest line,
preferable.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocating device, the other line character allocating means is
When the number of characters in the line is H (H ≦ F), they are adjacent
Make the space between characters the same as the standard space B between characters.
The character string size E = C × H + B × (H-1) is generated.
And the central position of the character string
Centered sentence to be aligned in the center position of the longest line
And a character string allocating means.

In this character allocating method and its apparatus,
The center position of each line is aligned with respect to the stamp surface, which has several lines.
In addition, stable and good-looking allocation can be performed.
It

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocation method, the number of characters is
When H (H ≦ F), the space between adjacent characters
Is the same as the reference character space B
= C × H + B × (H-1) character string, the sentence at the end
The character is divided so that the rear end is aligned with the character at the end of the longest line.
It is preferable to attach it.

Further , each sentence described above for discriminating the longest line
In the character allocating device, the other line character allocating means is
When the number of characters in the line is H (H ≦ F), they are adjacent
Make the space between characters the same as the standard space B between characters.
The character string size E = C × H + B × (H-1) is generated.
The assigned character string generation means to be formed, and the sentence at the end of the character string
The character is divided so that the rear end is aligned with the character at the end of the longest line.
It is preferable to have a trailing character string allocating means for
Yes.

In this character allocating method and its apparatus,
For stamps with several lines, the end of each line and the space between characters
It is possible to make an orderly and attractive layout with white
it can.

The third character allocation method of the present invention is
One or more lines within a rectangular contour with a specified width in the reading direction
In the character allocation method that allocates each character of the character string of each line of
And the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion in the contour
When is less than a certain value, each character is expanded horizontally.
It is characterized by allocating afterwards.

The third character allocating device of the present invention is
One or more lines within a rectangular contour with a specified width in the reading direction
To the character allocating device that allocates each character of the character string in each line of
And the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion in the contour
Area ratio calculation means for calculating
Based on the calculation result, when the area ratio is less than a certain value,
Character expansion allocation that allocates each character after expanding it horizontally
Means and are provided.

In this character allocation method and apparatus,
The void in the outline does not cause discomfort in the character font.
It is possible to reduce the white part, and the characters have a profound feeling.
It can be

In addition, in the above-mentioned character allocation method,
The character part and the blank part are on the dot matrix.
The area is allocated based on the number of dots
The ratio is the number of dots forming the character portion and the blank portion.
And the number of dots of

Further , in the above-mentioned character allocating device,
The character part and the blank part are on the dot matrix.
The area is allocated based on the number of dots
The ratio calculation means calculates the number of dots forming the character portion and
Calculate the area ratio from the ratio of the number of dots in the blank area
It is preferable.

In this character allocation method and device,
Easily calculate the area ratio of the character part to the blank part in the area
Yes, and properly proportion each character horizontally
Can be stretched.

In the above character allocation method,
Before the expansion of each character, the allocation width in the contour is E
Character width is C1, the number of characters is F, and the constant value is M
Then, by calculation of the area ratio, ((C1 ×
When (F) / (E−C1 × F)) ≦ M, ((C2 ×
F) / (E-C2 × F))> M
It is preferable to set the character width of each character after the expansion.

Further , in the above-mentioned character allocating device, the sentence
The character expansion allocating means sets the allocation width in the contour to E, and
Let C1 be the character width before expansion of each character and F be the number of characters.
And the constant value is M, the area ratio is calculated.
Therefore, ((C1 × F) / (E−C1 × F)) ≦ M
In case of (C2 × F) / (E−C2 × F))> M,
Let the character width C2 to be the character width of each character after the expansion.
It is preferable.

In this character allocation method and device,
Calculation and constant of the area ratio of the character part to the blank part in the boundary
The character width C2 obtained by the value M is set to
By setting the character width, each character can be set horizontally based on the area ratio.
Can be stretched properly to length.

[0035]

[0036]

[0037]

[0038]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A case in which a character allocating method and an apparatus thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention are applied to a seal making apparatus for making a seal will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. This stamp making device prints on the ink ribbon on the stamp body whose surface is made of UV-curing resin.
A desired stamp (stamp) is created by exposing it to ultraviolet rays using the stamp character (the stamp image including the pattern) as a mask, and the character allocating method and the device therefor provide information for generating the mask on the ink ribbon. A method and apparatus for creating stamp image data to be used. FIG. 1A is a plan view of the stamp creating apparatus, FIG. 1B is a front view of the stamp creating apparatus, and FIG. 11 is a control block diagram of the stamp creating apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 1, this seal making device 1
The outer shell is formed by the device case 2 which is divided into upper and lower parts, and the electronic device part 3 is arranged in the front part and the mechanical device part 4 is arranged in the rear part. A pocket 6 for mounting the stamp body A, which is a seal-making object, on the apparatus body 5 is formed in the center of the machine unit 4, and the pocket 6 is provided with an opening / closing lid 7 with a window.

On the left side of the mechanical device section 4, the stamp making device 1
A function switch 8 for switching the plate making (printing) operation to the exposure operation and opening the opening / closing lid 7 is provided.
At the operation position of the function switch 8, there are operation displays of “exposure”, “input / platemaking”, “OFF” and “OPEN”, among which “exposure”, “input / platemaking” and “OPEN”. The light emitting element 12 connected to the output interface 305 of the control unit 300 is disposed at the position “”.

Further, on the right side of the machine unit 4, an insertion port 9a and an ejection port 9b are formed in the stamp making device 1 for a plate-making sheet B for making a stamp character label which will be described later. Further, a maintenance cover 10 is detachably provided on the mechanical device section 4 outside the pocket 6, and a ribbon cartridge 11 carrying an ink ribbon C is mounted inside the maintenance cover 10. .

The electronic device section 3 has an operation section 21 formed on the upper surface thereof, and has a control section 300, which will be described later, built therein. The operation unit 21 includes an input interface 304 of the control unit 300.
The push button group 22 and the operation dial 23 connected to the display interface, the display drive circuit 24a (not shown) connected to the output interface 305, and the display drive circuit 2
A display device 24 driven by 4a is provided.

The operation dial 23 includes an execution key 31 arranged in a circular shape at the center and a ring-shaped execution key 31 arranged outside the execution key 31.
It has a triple structure consisting of a split cursor / conversion key 32 and a character input key 33 arranged in a ring on the outside thereof, and a hiragana of Japanese syllabary etc. is printed on the surface of the character input key 33. (Not shown). To input the stamp character, first press the predetermined button 22a of the push button group 22 to confirm the character size, then rotate the character input key 33 to the triangular mark 25 and press the execute key 31 to input hiragana. The hiragana input is appropriately converted into kanji by the cursor / conversion key 32. Then, when a desired stamp character is created on the display 24, this is confirmed.

Here, a series of operations for creating a stamp will be briefly described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.
First, the function switch 8 is rotated from the “OFF” position, which is the standby position, to the “OPEN” position to open the opening / closing lid 7, and the stamp body A is set in the pocket 6. With the setting of the stamp main body A, the type of the stamp main body A is detected by the stamp detecting unit 66 connected to the input interface 304 of the control unit 300.

Next, the function switch 8 is rotated to the "input / plate-making" position to shift the function to the plate-making operation, and the push button group 22 and the operation dial 23 are operated to input a stamp character. After entering the stamp characters, insert the plate-making sheet B with the stamp character label into the insertion slot 9a.
Insert into and set.

Next, a predetermined button 22a of the push button group 22 is operated to perform a plate making operation, that is, printing. This printing is performed on the ink ribbon C and the plate-making sheet B at the same time. When printing is completed, the ink ribbon (printed portion) C is sent forward for exposure, and at the same time, the plate-making sheet B is sent out from the take-out port 9b. Here, if it is confirmed that the stamp characters are correct by the sent plate-making sheet B, then the function switch 8 is rotated to the "exposure" position to shift the function to the exposure operation,
Allow exposure.

When the exposure is completed, the function switch 8 is set to "O".
The opening / closing lid 7 is opened by rotating to the “PEN” position, the stamp body A is taken out from the pocket 6 and washed.
The stamp is completed by this washing. When the stamp is completed, the stamp character label is peeled off from the plate-making sheet B, and the label is attached to the back surface of the stamp.

Next, among the constituent parts of the seal making apparatus 1,
About the site | part relevant to the control part 300 mentioned later, FIG.
This will be described step by step with reference to FIG.

The ribbon cartridge 11 is detachably attached to the apparatus main body 5 and can be replaced together with the case when the ink ribbon C is consumed. As shown in FIG. 2, the ribbon cartridge 11 is provided with a take-up reel 13 at one end and a take-up reel 14 at the other end, respectively, and the ink ribbon C is unwound from the take-up reel 14 and is substantially “L”. It is bent into a letter shape and wound up by the winding reel 13. Ink ribbon C bent in this "L" shape
The printing path 64, which will be described later, faces the short side portion of the traveling route of 1, and the exposure section faces the long side portion. In this case, the printing section 64 includes the ink ribbon C and the plate-making sheet B.
And the exposed ink ribbon C on the exposed portion 65 after printing.
Faces.

The ink ribbon C is composed of a transparent ribbon tape and ink applied to the transparent ribbon tape.
m thickness is used. When printing is performed on the ink ribbon C in the printing unit 64, the ink portion is transferred to the plate-making sheet B. As a result, a negative image is formed on the ribbon tape of the ink ribbon C with the ink characters peeled off, and a positive image is formed on the plate-making sheet B with the ink characters attached. Then, the ink ribbon C is sent to the former exposure section so that it can be used as a mask, while the plate-making sheet B is placed outside the apparatus in order to confirm the stamp characters and to attach it to the stamp that has been created. Sent out.

As shown in FIG. 4, the plate-making sheet B is formed by laminating a base sheet Ba and an adhesive sheet Bb, and is formed in a strip shape as a whole. A square cut line Bc is formed on the pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet Bb, and the square portion of the pressure-sensitive adhesive sheet Bb peeled from the base sheet Ba along the cut line Bc becomes a stamp character label Bd attached to the back surface of the seal. .
The stamp main body A is available in several types having different shapes according to the use as a seal, and the plate making sheet B correspondingly corresponds to the shape of the stamp character label Bd (the shape of the cutting line). ) Are available in different types.

On the other hand, the stamp main body A, as shown in FIG.
A thin sponge (urethane foam) Ab is attached to the tip of the base material (resin in the embodiment) Aa, and the sponge A
A resin base Ac that is not affected by ultraviolet rays is attached to b, and an ultraviolet curable resin that constitutes the imprint surface Ad is attached to the resin base Ac. By exposing the portion of the ultraviolet curable resin (print surface Ad) of the stamp main body A to ultraviolet light using the ink ribbon C as a mask, the portion of the stamp surface Ad corresponding to the stamp character is cured. Seal body A in this state
Is taken out from the pocket 6 and washed to wash out the water-soluble uncured portion to complete the stamp. Reference numeral Ae in the drawing is a resin cap.

Next, the printing section 64 will be described with reference to FIG. The printing unit 64 includes a head drive circuit (not shown) 56a and a motor drive circuit (not shown) 57a connected to the output interface 305 of the control unit 300.
A print head (thermal head) 56 that is driven by a head drive circuit 56a to print a stamp character on the ink ribbon C, and a motor drive circuit 57a.
A platen roller 57 that sends the ink ribbon C in response to the printing operation of the print head 56, and a head temperature sensor 56b (not shown) provided on the head surface of the print head 56.
And are equipped with. Further, a feeding passage 181 into which the plate-making sheet B is fed into the apparatus case 2 toward a contact portion between the print head 56 and the platen roller 57,
A delivery passage 182 through which the plate-making sheet B is delivered is formed. The outlet 9a, which is open to the outside, is formed at the upstream end of the delivery passage 181.
At the downstream end of 2, the above-mentioned outlet 9b opened to the outside is formed.

The platen roller 57 is a driving roller as described above, and the ink ribbon C is unwound from the unwind reel 14, and the plate making sheet B is gripped between the print head 56 and the ink ribbon C and the plate making. The sheet B and the sheet B are overlapped and face the print head 56. Print head 5
A thermal head 6 transfers the ink applied to the ribbon tape of the ink ribbon C to the plate making sheet B by thermal transfer. By this transfer, the portion corresponding to the stamp character is peeled off from the ink ribbon C, and the background of the transparent ribbon tape appears on that portion, while the peeled ink adheres to the plate-making sheet B as the stamp character. The head surface temperature sensor 56b is a temperature sensor such as a thermistor provided in close contact with the head surface of the print head 56 as described above, is connected to the input interface 304 of the control unit 300, and is the surface of the print head 56. Detect and report temperature.

A sensor 183 for detecting the insertion and the feed reference position of the plate-making sheet B faces the feeding path 181, and the plate-making sheet B inserted in the feeding path 181 is exposed.
Is sent by the platen roller 57 according to the detection result of the sensor 183, and printing is started from the position of the leading end of the stamp character label Bd. A separation claw portion 184 is formed at the tip (upstream end) of the left wall of the delivery passage 182, and the separation ribbon claw 184 and the ink ribbon C and the plate-making process sent in a stacked state. The sheet B is separated. Then, the ink ribbon C is sent to the former exposure section, and the plate-making sheet B is sent to the outside of the apparatus through the sending passage 182.

Next, the exposure section 65 will be described with reference to FIG. The exposure unit 65 is provided so as to face the light source drive circuit 191a (not shown) connected to the output interface 305 of the control unit 300 and the stamp face Ad of the stamp main body A set in the pocket 6, and the light source drive circuit 191a.
Ultraviolet light source 191 driven by
Presser plate 58 provided between 91 and stamp surface Ad of stamp body A
It has and. The ultraviolet light source 191 is a self-heating type hot cathode tube called a semi-hot tube, and is supported by a fluorescent tube holder provided on a substrate (not shown). The stamp surface Ad of the stamp main body A, the pressing plate 58, and the ultraviolet light source 191 are disposed in parallel with each other with a gap therebetween, and the ink ribbon C is disposed between the stamp surface Ad and the pressing plate 58. Has been done.

The holding plate 58 is made of a transparent resin or the like,
The ink ribbon C is moved forward and pressed against the printing surface Ad of the stamp body A. That is, at the time of exposure, the ink ribbon C is applied to the printing surface Ad of the stamp body A by the pressing plate 58.
After pressing, the ultraviolet light source 191 is turned on, and exposure is performed using the ink ribbon C as a mask through the pressing plate 58 (see FIG. 5). In addition, the exposure unit 65 includes a control unit 3
00 to the input interface 304, and the exposure unit 6
An ambient temperature sensor 67 (not shown) such as a thermistor that detects and reports the ambient (environmental) temperature of 5 is provided.

The first guide pin 53 and the second guide pin 54 also move in the same direction as the pressing plate 58 moves forward. This movement is performed by the first and second guide pins 53, 5
The tension of the ink ribbon C stretched between the four is relaxed, and the ink ribbon C is pressed against the stamp surface Ad of the stamp main body A in a state in which the tension is reduced, that is, a state in which vertical wrinkles do not occur.

This state will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 5. A strong tension acts on the ink ribbon C running in FIG. 2 by the take-up reel 13, and as described above, the ink ribbon C is moved. Is a very thin tape and has vertical wrinkles. Therefore, the ink ribbon C as it is, the seal body A
When the ink ribbon C is pressed against the print surface Ad, the ink ribbon C is pressed against the print surface Ad with vertical wrinkles, and the stamp characters are distorted and exposed. On the other hand, when the ink ribbon C is loosened,
The stamp characters are misaligned and exposed. Therefore, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the first guide pin 53 and the second guide pin 54 are also advanced with the advance of the pressing plate 58 to loosen the tension of the ink ribbon C, and at that time, the tension pin 55 causes the ink ribbon C to move. Tension is applied with a weak force that does not cause vertical wrinkles.

Further, the ink ribbon C in the exposed state of FIG. 5 is bent backward at both ends of the holding plate 58 by the tension pin 55 and the second path pin 52, and the chamfered portions 207 formed at both ends of the holding plate 58 are formed. By the action
The ink ribbon C is prevented from causing unnecessary wrinkles.

As described above, the positive image formed on the plate-making sheet B by printing and the negative image formed on the ink ribbon C are used as a stamp character label and an exposure mask, respectively. That is, the workability of these images is directly reflected on the workability of the finished product as a seal. In particular, when the ink ribbon C used as the exposure mask is distorted, the stamp characters are distorted and exposed. Therefore, in addition to the mechanical structure for the above tension, an electrical function for the heat amount is obtained. Is devised to prevent unnecessary wrinkles from forming on the ink ribbon C.

Next, the seal detecting section 66 interlocked with the opening / closing of the opening / closing lid 7 will be described. The stamp detection unit 66 detects that the stamp body A is mounted in the pocket 6 and determines the type of the stamp body A. The stamp body A is available in various shapes such as square stamps, name stamps, business stamps, and address stamps. These stamp bodies A have the same length but the same width. And the thickness is different. In order to set such various stamp main bodies A having different widths and thicknesses at fixed positions in the pocket 6 in the width direction and the thickness direction, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. Bottom of 6
Four long and short bosses 251, 251, 251 and 251 are erected on b, and the boss 251 is attached to the stamp main body A correspondingly.
Is formed with a fitting hole Af (see FIG. 7).

Four bosses 251, 251, 251, 25
1 is arranged in a “T” shape, and correspondingly, for example, in the square mark, two fitting holes Af and Af are provided (see FIG. 7).
(A)), the business seal has four fitting holes Af, Af, A
f and Af (FIG. 7B) are formed. As described above, the number and depth of the fitting holes Af of the stamp main body A are different depending on the type of the stamp main body A.
By combining 51, the centers of the stamp surfaces Ad of various stamp bodies A mounted in the pockets 6 are positioned so that they are always at the same position.

Further, the back surface A opposite to the stamp surface Ad of the stamp body A is used.
In g, a plurality of side holes (type detection holes) Ah are formed side by side at an intermediate position in the thickness direction, and in cooperation with the switch array 262 of the seal detection unit 66, which will be described later, the type of the seal body A is classified. Is determined (see FIG. 8). A stamp character label Bd of the plate-making sheet B, which is separated from the ink ribbon C after printing and sent to the outside of the apparatus, is attached to the back surface Ag of the stamp main body A so that the small hole Ah is hidden. ing.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the stamp detection unit 66 is a switch holder (also serving as the wall surface of the pocket 6) arranged so as to face the back surface Ag of the stamp body A.
261 and a switch array 262 composed of six detection switches 263 supported by the switch holder 261. Each detection switch 263 is composed of a switch main body 264 composed of a push switch and the like, and a switch top 265 whose tip faces the inside of the pocket 6. The switch top 265 includes a flat plate portion 266 and a detection protrusion portion 267 extending at a right angle from the flat plate portion 266,
Guided by the guide protrusion 268 formed on the switch holder 261 below the flat plate portion 266, and guided by the guide hole 269 formed on the switch holder 261 by the detection protrusion 267,
Move back and forth.

The switch main body 264 is fixed to the back surface of the substrate 270, and its plunger 271 is attached to the switch top 26.
5 is arranged so as to abut against the flat plate portion 266.
In this case, the plunger 271 biases the switch top 265 toward the pocket 6 side by its spring force, and the bias causes the tip of the detection protrusion 267 to project from the guide hole 269 of the switch holder 261 into the pocket 6. The state in which the detection switch 263 is depressed into the guide hole 269 against the bias corresponds to ON-OFF of the detection switch 263. In this case, when any one of the detection switches 263 in the switch array 262 is turned on, it is detected that the seal body A is attached, and all the detection switches 263 are turned off. Then, it is detected that the seal body A is not attached. Then, each detection switch 263 of the switch array 262 is turned on or off depending on the presence or absence of the small hole Ah of the corresponding stamp main body A. Therefore, the type of the stamp main body A is determined by the ON / OFF pattern of the six detection switches 263.

FIG. 8 shows the relationship between the small hole Ah of the stamp body A and the six detection switches (detection protrusions) 263. From the relationship between the six detection switches 263 and the presence / absence of the small hole Ah, 2 ⁶ −1 types, that is, 63 types of determination patterns are possible. In this case, for the stamp body A having a narrow width such as a square mark, the two detection switches 2 at both outer ends are used.
There are no small holes Ah for 63 and 263, and these two detection switches 263 and 263 project toward the spaces on both sides of the stamp body A. That is, in the stamp main body A having a narrow width such as a square mark, it is recognized as a discrimination pattern in which the fictitious small hole Ah exists at the outermost end of the stamp main body A.

Next, the control unit 300 will be described with reference to FIG. The control unit 300 is composed of, for example, a microcomputer, and includes a CPU 301 and a ROM.
302, a RAM 302, an input interface 304, an output interface 305, and a system bus 306 connecting these.

The ROM 302 stores various programs, kana-kanji conversion dictionary data, font data such as characters and symbols, and fixed data such as predetermined seal frame data. RAM 303 is used as a work area,
It is also used to store fixed data related to user input. The data stored in the RAM 303 is backed up even when the power is turned off.

The input interface 304 includes the function switch 8 described above, the push button group 22 of the operation unit 21, the operation dial 23, and the head surface temperature sensor 5 of the printing unit 64.
6b, ambient temperature sensor 67 of exposure unit 65, seal detection unit 6
An interface for taking in an input signal from the CPU 6 or the like to the CPU 301 or the RAM via the system bus 306 is performed. The output interface 305 is the CPU 301,
Various control signals and various control data from the ROM 302 or the RAM 303 are input via the system bus 306, and the above-described light emitting element 12, the display unit drive circuit 24a of the operation unit 21, the head drive circuit 56a of the printing unit 64, Motor drive circuit 57a, light source drive circuit 191a of exposure unit 65
Interface for outputting to etc.

The CPU 301 is the input interface 30.
RAM based on a processing program in the ROM 302 that is determined according to the input signal from the CPU 4 and the processing content at that time.
Use 303 as a work area, and R when necessary
The fixed data stored in the OM 302 or the RAM 303 is appropriately used for processing.

In the case of this seal making device 1, the CPU 301
Performs the multitasking process described below.

FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram of the multitask processing of this embodiment, in which a plurality of tasks to be processed are given priority R
The tasks are activated by classifying them into DY0 to RDYn (n = 7 in the illustrated case), determining the processing order based on their priority order. In the following description, the highest priority RDY
The tasks classified as 0 are assigned to TCB0i (i = 0, 1, 2,
...), the task classified into the lowest priority order RDY7 is TCB7i, and similarly for other priority orders, the tasks classified into the priority order RDYj (j = 0 to 7) are TCBj.
Denote by i. In addition, the fact that the task is classified into the priority order RDYj and becomes the waiting state in the classification is, for example, the task TC.
It is assumed that Bm0 is registered as TCBj0, and that one or more tasks are registered in the priority order RDYj is expressed as “task present” in RDYj.

Further, as shown in the figure, in this multitasking process, a new event is required due to the occurrence of an event such as the push of one of the push buttons 22 or the operation dial 23 to cause an interrupt. An area for registering a task name (such as TCBm0 shown in the figure) indicating the processing content and a communication between each task (Mail1 shown in the figure: hereinafter abbreviated as "mail") is secured. The area is expressed as a mailbox MBX. Furthermore, a task name indicating the currently executed processing content is expressed as TCBr0, and executing and processing this task is expressed as current task execution processing, or abbreviated as RUN processing. For example, selecting TCB00 When booting,
It is expressed that TCB00 is registered as TCBr0 and activated. The registration in this case is shown as TCBr0 ← TCB00 on a hierarchical processing diagram and a flowchart described later. Task TCBm in mailbox MBX
0 and the like have information such as whether or not the task TCBr0 currently being executed can be forcibly interrupted, or which priority order RDYj is to be registered, and in the MBX processing described later,
The task TCBm0 is processed based on these pieces of information.

FIG. 13 is an attempt to show the processing procedure of the embodiment of the present invention using a normal flowchart. As shown in the figure, when the processing is started by turning on the power, etc., first, the respective parts in the stamp making apparatus 1 are initialized (S01), and then the task monitoring / switching (RD) is performed.
Y) After processing (S02), the mailbox (MB
X) Processing is performed (S03). Next, it is checked whether or not any event has occurred (S04), and if it has occurred, the process corresponding to the event that has occurred is performed (S05), and then the current task is executed (RUN). Processing is performed (S06). Then, the RDY processing (S02) to the RUN processing (S06) are repeated.

However, in the actual processing, the RDY processing and the MBX processing described above are processed only at regularly determined timings, and the processing corresponding to each event is activated in response to the occurrence of that event. Since it is a process and the RUN process is performed at other timings, it is difficult to accurately represent it in the description of this flowchart, and it is difficult to understand the hierarchical structure of the program. Therefore, in the following description, when describing one continuous process, regardless of the actual multitask operation such as starting another task,
A flow chart showing the task processing as a subroutine will be used, and the description method shown in FIG. 14 (hereinafter abbreviated as “hierarchical processing diagram”) will be used to explain the event-driven type, that is, the task activated by the occurrence of an event. ).

Here, in the hierarchical processing diagram, a processing branch with a ⋄ indicates that it is an event-driven task, program, or subroutine, and an event such as an interrupt or task activation from another task occurs. Will be executed when The task monitoring / switching (RDY) process of FIG. 14 is interrupted by a real-time monitor or the like at regular intervals, and is activated only at that timing.
Further, the mailbox (MBX) process is also activated by a timing interrupt at a constant interval different from the RDY process.
As described above, the event generation process is performed by the operation dial 2
This is a process of registering the task activated by various events such as the operation of No. 3 in the mailbox MBX. Actually, each event occurs independently of the mailbox MBX.
Although X is accessed and the task name corresponding to the processing of the event is registered, FIG. 14 shows only one of them as a representative.

As shown in Fig. 14, when the process is started by turning on the power, etc., first, the initialization of the process branch In (hereinafter referred to as "initialization (In)") is performed. Then, a task TCBin of a main task starting process, which will be described later, for determining the flow of the entire process of the seal stamp creating apparatus 1 is registered in the MBX (In1) .Initial setting (In) ends, and at the timing of the RDY process, If there is no timing of MBX processing and there is no event occurrence, then the process proceeds to RUN processing (CT), but here, because nothing has been registered and has not been executed, RDY processing or Waiting for MBX processing start timing.

In this state, at the timing of the RDY processing, the RDY processing (R) is executed, but RDY0 to RDY
The task is not registered in DY7, that is, RD
Since there is no task in Y0 to RDY7 (R1 to R8), the process ends without any processing. On the other hand, at the timing of the MBX processing, the MBX processing (M) is executed and the MB
Since the task TCBin for main task activation processing is registered as TCBm0 in X, the task with (M1) processing is performed in MBX, and the task TCB in MBX is set to R.
Register to DY (M11). That is, for example, if the designated priority of the task TCBin corresponds to RDY4, the task TCBin is registered in the RDY4 as the TCB40.

In this state, when the timing of the RDY processing is reached and the RDY processing (R) is executed, for example, RDY processing is performed.
The process with task (R3) is executed in 4. Here, referring to FIG. 15, there is a task in RDYi (R (i-1)).
The processing of will be described. In this process, roughly, there are a case where a new task is started, a case where the task is not started and the interrupt request mail is sent to the currently executing task, and a case where nothing is processed. To do.

First, when there is no currently executing task, that is, when nothing is registered as TCBr0 and no RUN processing is performed, or the currently executing task TC.
If the priority of Br0 is lower than or equal to RDY (i + 1) and the currently executing task can be interrupted, a new task is started. This interruptable case means that the new task can forcibly interrupt the currently executed task, the content of the reply mail to the below-mentioned interrupt request mail can be interrupted, or it is an end mail indicating that it has already ended. There are some cases. When this condition is met, that is,
(No current execution task) + (Current execution task RDY (i + 1)
Below) & ((Forced interruption possible) + (Reply mail to MBX available)
When the condition & ((interruptible mail) + (end mail)) is satisfied (R (i-1) 1), the new task is activated (R (i-1) 11). Here, + represents a logical sum and & represents a logical product.

The priority of the currently executed task is RDY.
If it is (i + 1) or less, and it is unknown whether it can be interrupted because there is no reply mail from the task, or if it is once interrupted when requested once and re-requested depending on the situation, interrupt A suspend request mail requesting the request is sent to the mailbox MBX. That is, (currently executed task RDY (i + 1) or less) & (forced interruption impossible) &
When the condition of ((no reply mail to MBX) + (non-interruptible mail)) is satisfied (R (i-1) 2), the interruption request mail is transmitted (R (i-1) 21). Then, when neither of these conditions is satisfied, that is, when the priority of the currently executed task is RDYi or higher, no task is processed and the task existence (R (i-1)) is terminated in RDYi. .

In the case of the new task activation (R (i-1) 11), before this processing, for example, the task is suspended to activate another task having a higher priority, or the child task is activated. Then, if there is a task that was suspended while waiting for the processing result of the child task, whether or not the task can be resumed is determined based on the resume information that will be described later. & (Can be restarted) (R (i-
1) The processing of 111) is executed. In this process, the suspended task name is registered as the currently executed task name TCBr0 (R (i-1) 1111), and if there is saved data or the like, they are restored (R (i- 1) 11
12), newly start RUN processing (R (i-1) 1
113). Due to this event occurrence, the new task activation (CT1) processing is activated in the RUN processing (CT) described later.

When there is no task that has been suspended, no suspended task (R (i-1) 112) is processed, and the TCB
After r0 ← new task name (R (i-1) 1121), a new RUN process is started (R (i-1) 1122). For example, in the case of the task TCBin of the main task activation process, in the process of the new task activation (R311), TCBr0 ← TCBin (R3 of no interrupted task (R3112)
After 1121), RUN process activation (R31122) is executed. Then, if there is an interrupted task but it cannot be restarted, the new task activation (R (i-1) 11) is terminated without performing any processing, because it waits until it becomes restartable. Since the child task usually has a higher priority than the parent task, this new task activation (R (i
-1) When (11) is processed, the child task is generally finished and can be restarted.

Next, the mailbox (MBX) processing will be described with reference to FIG. In this process, MB
When there is a task in M (M1), task T in MBX
CBm0 is registered in RDYj of the corresponding priority based on the designated priority of the task (M1
1). When the MBX has a mail (M2), if the mail is an interruption request mail (M21), it is registered as the latest request mail (M211) and sent to the currently executed task TCBr0 (M212), and (Reply mail). When it is + (end mail) (M22), it is registered as a reply mail to the latest request mail (M221) and sent to the reply waiting RDY (M222).

Next, the event generation process (E) will be described. Although the above-mentioned initialization (In) is described as another one for convenience of explanation, it is actually a kind of this event generation processing (E). That is, event processing (E)
Performs a process (E1) of registering a task activated by an event from the outside of the device such as operation of the operation dial 23 or a task generated by a program for internal processing in the MBX. Task TCB for main task activation processing
After being registered in this MBX, it is registered in RDY and is executed as a new task in the RUN process (CT) described below.

Next, the current task execution (RUN) process (CT) will be described with reference to FIG. This processing continuously processes the currently executed task TCBr0 when the above-mentioned other events have not occurred, and the events that occur during this processing include new task activation (CT1) and interruption. When there is a request mail (CT2) and the end of the currently executed task (CT3) and these events do not occur, the currently executed task processing is continued (CT4). When activating a new task (CT1), save the data for the currently executing task (C
T11), if the currently executed task is interrupted (CT12) and the resumption is scheduled to continue (CT13), the resumption information is recorded as the task information (CT131), and the task is rewritten with the original RDY. Re-register to (CT1
32).

When the interruption request mail is present (CT2), it is determined whether or not the state of the currently executing task at that time is interruption, and when it is interruption (CT21), the interruption enable mail is transmitted to the MBX. (CT211), no interruption (CT2)
In the case of 2), an uninterruptible mail is sent (CT22).
1). It should be noted that, even when the RDY process (R), the MBX process (M), or the event occurrence process (E) is switched to during the RUN process (CT), the RUN process is temporarily interrupted. However, unlike the switching with other tasks, since this is a basic process of the real-time monitor, description thereof will be omitted. And the current execution task TC
When the processing of Br0 ends (CT3), the end mail is transmitted to the MBX (CT31), and the process waits until the next new task is activated (CT32).

FIG. 17 shows an example of the main task activation processing. As shown in the figure, when the main task activation processing task TCBin is activated, first, the task of securing a work area (S11) is registered in the mailbox MBX, and subsequently, the display processing (S12) and the unit (main body of the stamp). ) The task of the judgment error processing (S13) is registered, and then the input error judgment processing (S14), the character input processing (S15), the plate making (stamp) image creation processing (S1).
6), sheet processing (S17), and buzzer processing (S1)
8) and other tasks are registered, and then the printing process (S1
After the task of 9) is registered, the task of the exposure process (S16) is registered. These child tasks are classified and registered in the respective priorities RDYj by the MBX process, and RD
It is activated one after another by Y processing. When these child tasks are activated, grandchild tasks are further registered in the mailbox MBX as required, and are activated by RDY processing.

That is, a plurality of tasks including the initial setting task TCBin are each processed until some processing wait state is entered. The internal processing in the seal stamp creating apparatus 1 proceeds to the next processing by the above-mentioned multitask processing when the processing of other tasks that are waiting factors for processing progresses and the waiting state is released, and as a result, Waits for user input and other operations. Conversely speaking, after the user's operation is performed, the processing of each task including error processing is performed one after another until the next operation is waited.

Therefore, as a result, various operations are performed in parallel and at the same time as a real feeling during operation. That is,
In the process of this seal making device 1, various processes required later can be performed in advance, as compared with the case of waiting for the user's operation one by one and then proceeding to the next process. Human waiting time can be reduced as much as possible, and high speed operation can be achieved. It should be noted that parallel processing such as the above-mentioned multitask processing is realized by using all the programs or the above-mentioned task processing as interrupt processing and adopting an interrupt control circuit for controlling the priority of the generated interrupt. You can also

The display of the dotted line in FIG. 17 shows an image of the task processings which are apparently simultaneously processed in parallel. In addition, the character input processing (S15), the input error determination processing (S14), and the plate-making image creation processing (S16) are simultaneously processed. Specifically, there is a problem in the number of characters input in the text between the input of the first character (characters, symbols, figures, etc.) and the input of the next character (S15). It is determined whether there is any (S14), and an image for plate making is created (S1
6). When a character is input in the middle of these processes (S15), the input error determination process (S14) and the plate-making image creating process (S16) are immediately stopped, and each process is restarted from the beginning. Also during these periods, the display process (S12), the buzzer process (S18), and the sheet process (S17) are performed in parallel when the plate-making sheet B is inserted.

In the case of the seal stamp creating apparatus 1, the present invention is implemented by the control unit 300, the operation unit 21, and the seal stamp detecting unit 66, and the feature thereof is mainly in each of the processes in FIG. 17 described above. Since it is in the plate-making image creation process (S16),
In the following, regarding the plate-making image creation process (S16),
This will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. The character allocation method and apparatus of the present invention are mainly applied to the character allocation process (S60) described later.

As described above, the plate-making image creation process (S1
6) is a process for restarting each time a new character or the like is input in the character etc. input process (S15). In addition, the first two processes of FIG. 18, the stamp type determination (S3
0) and stamp image data dot number determination (S31) have already been executed in the unit determination processing (S13) before the start of this processing, and the next style form designation acquisition (S3).
2) is executed in the character etc. input process (S15), and here, only the information obtained by them is referred to, but for the sake of explanation, it is included in the process flow.

As shown in FIG. 18, when the plate-making image creating process (S16) is started, first, the seal detecting unit 66 determines whether or not the seal main body A is set (mounted).
If it is set, its type is determined (S3
0), the number of dots of the stamp image data is determined (S3
After 1), the style form designation is acquired (S31).
In this style form designation acquisition (S31), such as character size, form, vertical / horizontal writing, layout, or outer frame,
The contents specified by the user are read from the RAM 303.

As the stamp form created by the stamp creating apparatus 1, a lot of shapes are prepared in the ROM 302. For example, a name stamp, a large business stamp, a small business stamp, a square stamp, and an address stamp (see FIGS. 21 to 23 and 31 to 31).
(See FIG. 33), etc., and these are also divided into a large number such as vertical writing, horizontal writing, or illustrations.

In the character input process (S15), when a predetermined button 22a of the push button group 22 is pressed, the above-mentioned style form designation selection branch is displayed on the display unit 24.
Each of the selection branches can be selected by switching the display with the cursor / conversion key 32. In the above-mentioned form designation, when the "form" is displayed on the display unit 24, when the execution key 31 of the operation dial 23 is pressed, "name stamp", "business seal", ... Since one of the selection branches such as "None" and "End designation" is displayed, select the cursor / conversion key 32 and press the execute key 31. , Vertical writing / horizontal writing, allocation method for each input item, etc. are displayed.

Then, of the selection branches, when the contents to be selected are displayed by the operation dial 23 and the execute key 31 is pressed, the selection contents of the selection branch are further displayed. Then, similarly, each designation is set by selecting up to the final layer. When it is desired to return from each layer to a higher layer, the "designated end" option is selected in each layer and the execution key 31 is pressed. The push button group 22 may be provided with a predetermined function key for returning.

When the form designation is set, the input guide corresponding to the form designation is read from the ROM 302 and displayed on the display 24, as shown in FIGS. That is, the input items shown in FIG.
"Last name [" and "First name [" in the case of (a), "Pictogram [", "First line [", "Second line [", etc.] in FIG. 22B)
You can enter text data after the [] input guide,
As a result, it is possible to easily perform input without referring to the operation procedure manual or the like.

In this case, when the guide for inputting the first item is displayed on the display unit 24, a desired stamp character is input by the character input key 33 or the cursor / conversion key 32 and is created on the display unit 24. By confirming, you can enter the text data for the first item, and when the input of the first item is completed, the input guidance for the next item will be displayed. it can. Then, the input text data is R
It is stored in the AM 303 and is used for creating basic image data of a stamp image, which will be described later.

Incidentally, after the "[" in the above input guidance,
For example, there is a form in which the input work is facilitated by displaying the input data accompanied by the previously input text data or an image generally used by default. For example, in the case of FIG. 22 (d), "very well done" is displayed after "[" in the input guide.
When it is used as it is, it can be fixed as it is, or it can be partially modified before use. That is, in this case, the input operation becomes very easy and the working time can be shortened.

When "no form designation" is selected or when "form" is not selected,
In the same hierarchy as "Form", you can select other specifications such as character size, vertical / horizontal writing, layout, or outer frame in a free form. The character size is within a predetermined range displayed on the display unit 24 for each line according to the number of lines to be input depending on the type of the stamp body A or the type of the form (for example,
This can be designated by selecting from the same as the above-mentioned form designation or directly inputting the number of dots from among the "form" (see FIG. 31C). Vertical writing / horizontal writing can be selected and specified in the same manner as the form specification. Allocation is performed in the same manner on the display unit 24 as "forward", "center",
Either “late” or “allocation” can be displayed and designated (see FIGS. 24 to 31). Similarly, the outer frame can be designated from the range according to the type of the seal body A or the type of the form (see FIGS. 32 to 33).

Even when no form is designated, the input guide is displayed on the display 24 when the setting of each designation as described above is completed. Therefore, a desired seal character can be displayed by the character input key 33 or the cursor / conversion key 32. By inputting and confirming when created on the display unit 24, it is possible to input text data of figures such as characters, numbers and illustrations which are the basis of the stamp image.

When the style form designation acquisition (S31) is completed, as shown in FIG. 18, basic image arrangement processing for creating basic image data of the seal image is performed (S50), and then the characters of the seal image are converted into the stamp image. The character allocation process (S60) is performed to appropriately allocate the area of the plate-making image, and finally, the decoration image layout process (S70) is performed to superimpose the outer frame of the seal and the decorative data to create the desired seal image data. Then, the plate-making image creation process is completed (S90). Then, based on the seal image data created here, FIG.
A desired seal is created by performing the processing subsequent to step 7, that is, the printing processing (S19) and the exposure processing (S20). Hereinafter, the basic image layout process (S50), the character layout process (S60), and the decorative image layout process (S70) of the plate-making image creation process (S20) will be described in order.

When the basic image layout process (S50) is started, as shown in FIG. 19, first, it is judged whether or not a form is designated (S501), and when a form is designated (S501:
If Yes, then form designation item area determination processing is performed (S502).

In this form designation item area determination processing (S502), as shown in FIG. 20, first, an input item check is performed (S520). For example, when inputting characters or the like for a plurality of items such as an address, a name, and a telephone number like the address mark shown in FIG. 23, it is possible to leave the items that are not input blank as they are and use them directly as the seal image. The arrangement balance of the image components is deteriorated, and the ratio of the area to be imprinted to the area of the entire stamp, that is, an unbalanced image with a small black ratio is obtained.

Therefore, the input item check of FIG. 20 (S5
20), the above-described character input processing (S in FIG. 17) (S
In 15), when there is an item that has not been input, that is, when the input key of the item is confirmed by the execution key 31 without inputting characters or the like (hereinafter,
It is called "empty input". ), Check which item was empty. For example, in the case of FIG. 23, the five items shown in FIG.
In the same figure (b) in which all of the items of name and telephone number are input, in the same figure (c), the item of address 2 is blank input, and in the same figure (d), the item of telephone number is input. This is applicable when is an empty input. Note that the ruled lines and outer frames between the items in FIG.
Actually, it is created in a decoration image arranging process (S70) which will be described later, and then superimposed as a stamp image.

Then, even when there is a null input, FIG.
In order to arrange the images of the items in a well-balanced manner, as shown in FIG. 20, next, as shown in FIG. Of each table (S52
2 to S526), the prescribed data of the size and position of the arrangement area of each item is obtained, and the form designation item area determination processing is ended (S530). In each of the above tables, not only the size and position of the area of each item when all items are input, but also the size and position when each input item is blank input are specified corresponding to each item. Then, when there is a blank input, the prescribed data of the size and position in which the area of the other item is enlarged is read.

Form designation item area determination processing (S5
When step 02) is completed, next, as shown in FIG. 19, an arrangement area for each item is secured in accordance with the determined size and position of the item area (S504, see FIG. 31), and an input is made in the arrangement area. The font data corresponding to the text data such as the generated characters is read one by one from the ROM 302 (S505) and arranged (S506). This is repeated until the end of each item (S507), and by repeating it for all the items that have been input (S508), basic image data is created and stored in the RAM 302.
The basic image arrangement processing (S50) is ended (S509).

On the other hand, the above-mentioned form designation discrimination (S50
In 1), when it is determined that the form is not designated (S501: No), free form item area determination processing is performed (S503). In this process, the number of lines of the input text data is regarded as the number of items, and the size or position of the item area is determined according to the character size designated for each line. Since the number of dots of the stamp image data is determined by the type of the stamp main body A (see S in FIG. 18).
31), based on the character size of each line, similar to the form designation item area determination processing (S502), the table can be referred to for easy determination. In this case, it may be calculated directly from the character size of each line.

According to the basic image layout process (S50) described above, if the corresponding constituent elements are input for each item and unnecessary items are not input, the item is automatically set. The area of other items is deleted and enlarged.
Then, components input in the area of other items, that is, characters such as addresses, names, telephone numbers, and figures such as illustrations are enlarged, for example, as shown in (c) and (d) of FIG. The image will have a high rate and will be well-balanced as the image of the defined area.

Further, since the table defining the dimensions and positions of the areas of other items when the area of the blank input item is deleted is stored, each of the items that are not deleted can only be read out. The area can be easily determined, and the input characters, figures, etc. are converted into an appropriate size according to this size.

There is a selection branch of "maintain empty input" in the selection branch of the lower hierarchy of each of the above-mentioned form designations. If this is selected and designated, the above blank input items The area of the blank input item is maintained as it is without deleting. Then, if you specify the form at that time next time, the previously entered contents will remain stored in other items, so you can enter only the items that were left blank and finish the input. . In other words, as a measure when it is desired to make a portion in which writing or the like can be performed later, it is possible to prevent the deletion of the blank input item from operating. It is also possible to change only the positional relationship without enlarging the characters.

When the basic image arranging process (S50) is completed, next, as shown in FIG. 18, a character allocating process is performed (S60). When the character allocation process (S60) is started, as shown in FIG. 24, first, basic image data is read from the RAM 302 (S601).

For example, as shown in FIG. 28, when a character such as an input character, that is, data which is a source of an image is "character width normal" on the first line and "normal processing" on the second line. , The text data is as shown in FIG.
It's just a line of two lines. The area for the plate-making image in the stamp image data is determined by the type of the stamp main body A set in the basic image arranging process (S50), the presence / absence of form designation, the presence / absence of a stamp outer frame, and the like (FIG. 31 (a)). ) And (c)).

In the case where no form is designated, if the width of the plate-making possible area is A, it can be expressed by a rectangular contour as shown in FIG. 28 (b). When the stamp has an outer frame, the outer frame data of the stamp as shown in FIG. 7C is arranged around the area for plate-making image of FIG. 9B by the decoration image arrangement process (S70) described later. It In this case, the entire stamp image data has a size surrounding the stamp outer frame data as shown in FIG.

If there is no outer frame, or if there is an outer frame and the characters can be enlarged and the part outside the outer frame can be deleted, the entire area of this stamp image data is designated as the area for the plate-making image. However, in the following description, in order to make the diagram easy to see and to facilitate understanding, it is assumed that they are arranged in the plate-making image area of FIG. 28B, and a case where an outer frame is attached will be described. In addition, it is also shown in the figure with an outer frame. Further, in the basic image layout processing (S50) described above, it is possible to perform layouts such as allocation, center alignment, and post-alignment, which are described later, by default specification. However, here, all lines are exactly as input text data. Will be described as the case where the basic image data of FIG. 6E, which is arranged in the forward direction, has been read (read).

In the case of the form designation, since the arrangement area is secured for each item, each character allocation process described below is performed for each item. However, as shown in FIG. 23, for example, by treating the address 1 and the address 2 in FIG. 23 as multiple lines of the same item, as shown in FIG.
"Sky Heights ..." can be used as a posterior, or a posterior or a posterior.

As shown in FIG. 24, when the basic image data read (S601) is completed, the longest line discrimination / allocation process (S602) is next performed.

First, an allocation method when the text data is one line, that is, when the text data is only the longest line will be described with reference to FIG. The text data of each item in the case of specifying a form also corresponds to the case of this one line in the usual case where the above-mentioned multi-line handling is not performed.

For example, in the case of allocating two characters, as shown in FIG. 9A, the conventional allocation method causes the character-to-character margin B to be too wide and lacking in weight, resulting in a poor seal with a conspicuous blank portion. It becomes a character. On the other hand, in the character allocating process (S60), the end margin D is allocated to the inter-character space B so that B>D> 0 (D = B / 2 in the case shown). As shown in FIG. 7B, only the central inter-character space B is not too wide, and the characters are well-balanced.

Ratio D of end margin D to inter-character margin B
Although / B is set to D / B = 1/2 in the case of FIG. 25 described above, the stamp creation device 1 is not limited to this, and the predetermined button 2 in the character input process (S15) of FIG.
By 2a, predetermined 9/10, ..., 5/6, 4/5, 3
The ratio D / B such as / 4, 2/3, 1/2, 7/10, ..., 2/5 can be selected.

More specifically, this good-looking ratio D / B varies depending on the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion of the plate-making possible area, as shown in FIG. That is, as shown in FIG. 10A, the character height F and the character width C are large, and the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion is the same as that of the character string “medium character”, so that D / B = 1/2. When the character string "minimum" having a small area ratio is arranged, as shown in FIG. 6B, a blank portion is more conspicuous, and the central portion becomes quiet. On the other hand, in the seal making device 1,
As described above, the ratio D / B can be freely set. For example, by setting the ratio D / B = 5/6, a good balance can be obtained even if the area ratio is small as shown in FIG. It will be arranged.

The above is the same in the case of a large number of lines. For example, as shown in FIG. 27, when arranging a character string of three lines, the character height F becomes small, so that the character height F becomes small. If the character width C is set to be well balanced with F, the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion becomes small, especially when the number of characters in one line is small. In such a case, in the conventional layout method, the central portion becomes dull as shown in FIG. 4A, whereas in the character layout processing (S60), the end margin D should be set appropriately. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7B, the end margin D can be adjusted to an appropriate dimension according to the area ratio, so that only the central inter-character margin is not too wide, and it feels dull. It is possible to make a well-balanced arrangement of characters without giving.

In addition to the above setting method, for example, by directly inputting the intercharacter space B and the end margin D by the number of dots, or by inputting an arbitrary ratio D / B less than 1 by a numerical value, B The ratio D / B which seems to be good in the range of>D> 0 may be freely set. Also,
A reference table based on the result data may be prepared and stored, and the table may be referred to according to the type of the stamp main body A, the character size, the number of characters, etc., and automatically set to a good-looking ratio.

The above-mentioned setting of the ratio D / B can be similarly applied to various character strings used in the following description. However, each characteristic point of each allocation method described below is clarified and In order to help understanding, the ratio D / B = 1 in the following.
/ 2, that is, as in FIG. 25, description will be made assuming that D = B / 2 is set.

Specifically, when the five characters of "character width normal" in the first line of FIG. 28 (e) are assigned by the above-mentioned assignment method, as shown in FIG. 25 (c), for example, When the width A of the possible area is A = 40 and the width C of the character is C = 6,
The inter-character margin B = 2, whereas the end margin D = B / 2 = 1. The relationship between the size of the actual allocation area E and the type of the stamp main body A when this allocation method is applied is as shown in FIGS. 31B and 31C when the image data is represented by a dot matrix. It is based on the number of dots.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 25 (c), for example, when the plate-making possible area width A = 41 (dots), the number of characters F = 5 and (A−C × F) / F = ( 41-6
The quotient 2 of (× 5) / 5 = 11/5 is set as the inter-character space B = 2, and the remaining 1 (dot) is allocated to the front inter-character space. As a result, the inter-character margin B from the reading direction of the stamp character becomes 3, 2, 2 and 2 (dot). Similarly, when the plate-making possible width A = 42, the space B between characters B
Be 3, 3, 2 and 2. Actually, FIG. 31 (c)
As shown in FIG. 25, since the actual allocation area E is much larger than that in the example of FIG. 25C, the difference of 1 dot is
It is a small value that can be ignored. Therefore, according to this allocation method, it is possible to easily allocate the seal characters and to allocate each character without making the difference in the margin size between characters noticeable.

Next, as shown in FIG. 28E, the longest line discrimination / allocation processing (S602) when a plurality of lines (two lines in the case of the same figure) of text data are input will be described. . For the determination of the longest line, for each line, the formula in the case of the above-described one line, that is, (A−C × F) / F, where A is the plateable area width, C is the character width, and F is the number of characters The quotient G is obtained, and the row with the smallest quotient G is determined to be the longest row.
Then, the quotient G of the longest line is set as the reference character space B,
As in the case of the above-described one line, the longest line allocation process is performed as shown in FIG.

In the case of FIG. 28 (e), since the shape of the stamp outer frame is simple and the whole plate-making area for a plurality of lines has one rectangular outline, the longest line can be simply obtained by the number of characters. Can be determined. However, in the case of the seal creating apparatus 1, various seal outer frames are prepared according to the type of the seal main body A, as shown in FIGS. There is a small number of characters because there is decoration, but there are cases where there is a substantial area for allocating characters because there is decoration before and after the character string. Further, in the seal making device 1, since each character can be subjected to character decoration such as shading, emphasis, italics, middle marks, and inversion, like a normal word processor, even if the number of characters is small, Due to the decoration, the actual margin may be small.

In these cases, for example, 2 in FIG.
Even if the first line is 4 characters of "normal processing", 5 characters of "normal between characters" are assigned.
May be smaller. That is, there may be a case in which the longest line is determined only by the number of characters, and the inter-character space of the longest line is set as the reference inter-character space B and cannot be applied to other lines. On the other hand, if the line with the smallest quotient G is determined to be the longest line, a more appropriate longest line can be selected as compared with the case where the line is simply determined from the number of characters, and the line is assigned a margin. By using such criteria as described above, it becomes possible to allocate well-balanced characters to a stamp image having a plurality of lines, and thus to a stamp surface having a plurality of lines.

As shown in FIG. 24, when the longest line discrimination / allocation process (S602) is completed, it is next discriminated whether or not the advance alignment is designated (S603), and when the advance alignment is designated (S60).
If 3 :, Yes, the advance process (S604) is performed. In addition, when it is not the advance designation (S603: No),
Next, it is determined whether or not the centering is designated (S605), and when the centering is designated (S605: Yes), the centering process (S606) is performed. If the centering is not specified (S605: No), it is next determined whether the latter is specified (S607). If the latter is specified (S607 :).
If the answer is Yes, the post-alignment process (S608) is performed. Also,
When it is not designated as late (S607: No), the allocation process (S609) is performed and the allocation type-specific process (S6) is performed.
0) is ended (S610).

As shown in FIG. 28 (g), in the advance process (S604) of FIG. 24, for example, the characters of the "normal process" in the second line of FIG. In the character string in which the inter-character space is adjusted to the first line, that is, the standard character space B which is the inter-character space of 5 characters of "character width normal" in the longest line, the character "Pr" at the forefront is the longest line. Allocate the character "sentence" at the forefront so that the front edge is aligned. The inter-character space of the character string "normal processing" at this time is, for example, when the platemaking possible area width A = 40 of the "character width normal" in the first line is as shown in FIG. When the margin B is set to 2, 2 and 2 from the front and the same width A = 41,
From the front, it will be 3, 2 and 2.

When A = 41, as described above,
Since 1 dot is a small value that can be ignored, actually, even if the inter-character margin B is set to 2, no discomfort occurs. FIG. 2 showing another example after the allocation by the advance process (S604).
As can be seen from 9 (b), advance processing (S604)
By carrying out, it is possible to perform orderly and good-looking layout in which the front end of each line and the inter-character space are aligned with respect to the stamp image having a plurality of lines, and thus the stamp face having a plurality of lines.

Further, as shown in FIG. 28 (g), as shown in FIG.
In the centering process (S606), the character string "normal process", in which the inter-character space is the same as the reference inter-character space B of the longest line as in the above case, the center position of the "character width normal" Allocate so that they are aligned in the central position. FIG. 29C shows another example of the same allocation method. As can be seen from both FIGS. 28G and 29C, the centering process (S6) is performed.
06), it is possible to perform a stable and good-looking layout in which the central positions of the lines are aligned with respect to the stamp images of a plurality of lines (print face having a plurality of lines).

Further, as shown in FIG.
In the fourth post-alignment process (S608), the character "Ri" at the end of the character string "normal process" similar to that described above is allocated so that its trailing end is aligned with the character "normal" at the end of the longest line. FIG. 29
(D) shows another example of the same allocation method.
As can be seen from both FIG. 8 (g) and FIG. 29 (d), the trailing edge and the character string margins of each line are applied to the stamp image of multiple lines (print face having multiple lines) by the post-alignment process (S608). It is possible to make an orderly, well-designed layout that has all the items.

Then, as shown in FIG.
In the allocation process (S609) of 4, the "normal process" in the second line
For the four characters of No. 4, the actual allocation area width E (see FIG. 25 (c)) obtained for the five characters of "character width normal" on the first line is regarded as the conventional plate-making possible area A, and is the same as the conventional one. Is evenly allocated (see FIG. 25A). That is, the character string "normal processing" is used so that the character string dimension E is the same as the character string "character width normal" of the longest line and both ends are aligned.
Assign FIG. 29 (a) shows another example of the same allocation method. As can be seen from both FIGS. 28 (g) and 29 (a), the allocation process (S609) causes the stamp images ( Even for a stamp surface having a plurality of lines, it is possible to perform stable and attractive layout in which the character string dimensions are uniform, that is, the positions of both ends of each line are uniform.

In this allocation process (S609), the optimum character width expansion process, which is not executed by the other processes, is also executed. Therefore, next, this character width optimum expansion processing will be described below with reference to FIG. 25A is the same as FIG. 25A.
An example of the plate making possible area width A = 41 of the allocation method described in FIG. 4 is shown, and FIG. 7B shows an example of a seal character as a result of enlargement processing described below. There is. Further, FIG. 7C shows the entire stamp surface of the stamp when the enlargement processing is not performed, and FIG. 7D shows the entire stamp surface when the enlargement processing is performed.

In this character width optimum expansion processing, first, the ratio of the character portion to the blank portion in the outer frame is obtained. Here, the end area margin D is left as it is and the actual allocation area width E is set.
The enlargement processing for the range of = 39 will be described. For example, in the case of the example of FIG. 30A, the total number of dots in the character portion is 6 × 5 = 30 dots, whereas the total number of dots in the intercharacter space portion is (39-30 =) 3 + 2 + 2 +
2 = 9 dots, so the ratio is 30/9 = 10
/3=3.333 ... Here, if the constant value is assumed to be 4, the current ratio becomes equal to or less than the constant value, and therefore, the enlargement ratio is determined next.

Since the number of dots in the current character portion is 30 with respect to 39 as a whole, it should be possible to enlarge to 39/30 = 1.3 times, but since there is no inter-character space, the inter-character space B must be at least Assuming a total of 4 dots, 1 dot, (39-
4) /30=35/30=7/6=1.166 ... From this, the result of allocation with the character width C = 7 is shown in FIG.
It becomes like (b). It should be noted that, in this character width optimum expansion processing, the constant value of the conditions included in the above expansion processing and the conditions for determining whether or not to expand can be set according to the type and actual condition of the seal body, and the automatic expansion with the default value It is possible to devise various means such as having a selection means for determining a ratio in advance and automatically enlarging it when it can be enlarged, and a mode for arbitrarily inputting an enlargement value.

The advantages of the above-described optimum character width expansion processing are obvious when comparing FIGS. The blank portion of the stamp can be reduced, and the stamp characters can be made more profound. Further, as described above, by performing the enlargement process based on the number of dots, it is possible to easily calculate the ratio of the character portion to the blank portion, and based on this ratio, each character is appropriately expanded horizontally. be able to.

When the character allocating process (S60) is completed, as shown in FIG. 18, next, a decoration image arranging process is performed (S).
70). When the decoration image arranging process (S70) starts, as shown in FIG. 34, first, a seal outer frame data creating process is performed (S701).

This seal outer frame data creation processing (S701)
Then, as shown in FIG. 35, first, the type of the seal outer frame specified in the character input processing (S15) of FIG. 17 is acquired, and the type of ruled line for forming the seal outer frame is acquired. It is determined (S711). That is,
In the seal making device 1, a wide variety of ruled line data is stored in the ROM as line element parts that form an image of the seal outer frame so that various seal outer frames shown in FIGS. 32 to 33 can be formed.
Since it is stored in 303, first, the type of the designated stamp outer frame and the type of ruled line corresponding to the stamp outer frame are determined (S711).

When the outer frame type acquisition (S711) is completed,
Next, the above-mentioned stamp image data area (Fig. 28 (a)-
Image data at both ends of the stamp outer frame is arranged in an area having the same size as (d) and FIG. 31) (S712). That is, the ruled line data forming the images on both ends of the stamp outer frame is read out and arranged (S712). An example (in the case of an address mark) of the image data created by this arrangement processing is the image data C712 on the right side of FIG. It should be noted that, unless the image data C712 corresponds to the image data arrangement at both ends of the outer frame (S712), the processing (Sxx
x) and the image data Cxxx are associated with each other.

When the outer frame both-side image data arrangement (S712) is completed, the outer frames are formed by connecting the images on both sides with ruled line data, and then the remaining ruled line data are arranged (S713). ), The stamp outer frame data creation processing ends (S714). Note that FIG. 39 shows an example in the case of a square mark, so refer to them simultaneously below.

The stamp creating apparatus 1 prepares and stores in the ROM 302 various ruled line data which are parts of ruled lines as shown in FIG. In the figure (a),
Ruled line data that is a part for solid lines and 3 for broken lines, similarly, is ruled line data for parts such as a dotted line, a one-dot chain line, a broken line 1, a broken line 2, and the like. The stamp outer frame data can be created by sequentially arranging these on the image data. For example, a normal solid line can be created by connecting a plurality of, a dotted line can be formed by connecting a plurality of, and a chain line can be formed by connecting a plurality of. Also,
The discontinuity line for the production unique to the seal is, for example, as shown in FIG.
, ..., etc. can be randomly selected and connected.

As described above, in the stamp creating apparatus 1, since the ruled lines for forming the stamp outer frame are stored as line element parts, not as the entire outer frame, the user (user)
Can read out various required ruled line data and freely connect these ruled lines to create various outer frames. In addition, since the stamp outer frame data is created in an area of the same size as the above-mentioned stamp image data area, that is, in accordance with the type of the stamp main body A to be plate-making target, the size of each stamp portion is adapted. In order to create the seals, various seals rich in variety can be created according to the type of each seal body A, for example, the features such as a square mark, a circle mark, a portrait mark, and a landscape mark.

When the stamp outer frame data creation process (S701) is completed, next, as shown in FIG. 34, an addition image data creation process is performed (S702).

This addition image data creation processing (S702)
Then, as shown in FIG. 37, first, the character allocation processing (S60) of FIG. 18 described above is completed (end of FIG. 24 (S6).
The basic image data C721 (at the time of 10) is read (S7).
21). Then, next, the seal outer frame data C722 (C7 created in the seal outer frame data creating process (S701) described above.
(Corresponding to 13) is read (S722), and the logical sum operation of the corresponding dots is performed (S723) to create the added image data, and the added image data creation process ends (S724).

That is, in this logical sum operation (S723), the image of the basic image data C721 is represented by the positive dots corresponding to the convex portions, and the blank portion of the image is represented by the negative dots corresponding to the concave portions. Basic image data C721 when the image of the stamp outer frame of the stamp outer frame data C722 is represented by positive dots, and the inner and outer sides of the stamp outer frame are represented by negative dots.
By calculating the logical sum of the dots corresponding to each other and the stamp outer frame data C722, the addition image data C723 in which the images of both data are superimposed with priority on the positive dot is created. As a result, a seal image with an outer frame can be easily created, which in turn makes it possible to easily create a seal with an outer frame.

When the addition image data creation process (S702) is completed, next, as shown in FIG. 34, outer frame outer data deletion process is performed (S703).

This outer frame outer side data deletion processing (S703)
Then, as shown in FIG. 38, first, the stamp outer frame data C7
13. Seal outer frame outer shape data C731 in which the outer seal frame and its inside are represented by positive dots and the outer side of the seal outer frame is represented by negative dots are created (S731). Then, the added image data C732 (corresponding to C723) created by the above-described added image data creation process (S702) is read out (S).
732), AND operation of corresponding dots is performed (S
723), the image portion (corresponding to the image portion g in FIG. 39) protruding from the seal outer frame is deleted, the seal image data C733 is created, and the outer frame outer side data deletion processing ends (S734).

That is, in this logical product operation (S733), when the image of the added image data C732 is represented by a positive dot and other blank portions are represented by a negative dot, the image data and the outline data of the stamp outer frame are mutually interrelated. By computing the logical product of the dots corresponding to, the images of both data are overlaid with priority on the negative dots, and the image portion that extends beyond the outer frame of the seal is deleted. As a result, it is possible to easily create a seal image in which a desired image does not run out of the outer frame.

When the outer frame outer side data deletion processing (S703) is completed, as shown in FIG. 34, the created seal image data (seal image data C73 in FIGS. 38 and 39) is next generated.
(Corresponding to 4) is written and stored in the RAM 302 (S70
4), the decoration image arrangement processing (S70) is ended (S70).
5). Then, as described above, as shown in FIG. 18, the plate-making image creating process (S16) is completed (S90), and based on the stamp image data created here, the next process of FIG. 17, that is, the printing process (S19). ) And exposure processing (S2
By performing 0), a desired seal is created.

As described above, in the seal stamp creating apparatus 1, the stamp image data corresponding to the entire plate making area of the stamp image is created and then the plate is stamped to arrange each image in the stamp image in a well-balanced manner or to make a black image. It is possible to make adjustments to increase the rate and to make complex seal images. Also, when this stamp image data is taken out and a stamp is created, batch printing processing can be performed, so not only high-speed processing is possible, but plate making at a constant speed is also possible.
The running of the ink ribbon C, which serves as a screen, is stable, and the occurrence of wrinkles can be prevented.

Further, by creating the seal image data including the seal outer frame, it is possible to arrange each image in the seal outer frame in a well-balanced manner and to increase the size of each image to the limit of the seal outer frame. Further, since it is possible to make a work such as deleting a part of a large image so as to fit it in an outer frame, it is possible to create a seal having a high black ratio, an image that is easy to see, and a good-looking seal.

In the decoration image arranging process (S70) shown in FIG. 34, the seal outer frame data is created (S7).
02), but the basic image data was overlaid (S70
2) It is also possible to create additional image data by arranging ruled line data of a stamp outer frame on the basic image data in an overlapping manner. In addition, in the process of FIG. 34, after the addition image data is created (S702), the image portion protruding from the seal outer frame is deleted (S703), but the basic image data is previously stored so as not to protrude from the seal outer frame. The seal image data with the outer frame can be created by deleting the protruding image portion and then superimposing it on the seal outer frame data.
Either of these may be adopted, or both may be adopted.

40 to 42 show examples in which both of the above are adopted. As shown in FIGS. 40 to 42, in the decoration image arrangement process (S70) in this case, first, similar to the basic image data read (S721) of FIG. 37, the basic image data read is performed (S751), Next, FIG.
Similar to the outer frame type acquisition (S711), whether or not the basic image data C751 before the decoration such as the addition of the outer frame is outside the decorative outer frame after the outer frame type is acquired (S752). A determination is made (S753). This determination is based on the basic image data C7 in the portion corresponding to the outside of the designated seal outer frame.
Whether or not there are 51 positive dots can be easily determined, for example, by calculating the logical sum of all the dots in that portion.

When it does not protrude from the outer frame (S753: N
In o), at both ends of the area of the basic image data C751,
Ruled-line data is arranged (S756) in the same manner as the image data arrangement on both ends of the outer frame of FIG. 35 (S712). Then first,
By connecting the images on both sides with ruled line data (Fig.
1 image C757s), an outer frame is formed, the remaining ruled line data is then arranged (S757), and the decoration image arrangement process (S70) is ended.

On the other hand, when it extends out of the outer frame (S753:
Yes), as in the case of creating the seal outer frame outer shape data (S731) of FIG. 38, next, the seal outer frame outer shape data C of FIG.
754 is created (S754), and basic image data C751 is created.
An image part predicted to be out of the seal outer frame by performing a logical product operation with (corresponding to the image part g in FIG. 42)
Is deleted from the basic image data C751 to create outer deleted image data C755 (S755). Then, the ruled line data is arranged at both ends of the area of the outer deleted image data (S756), the ruled line data is then arranged (S757), and the decoration image arrangement process (S70) is finished.

As described above, according to the decoration image arrangement processing (S70) of FIG. 40, the decoration image arrangement processing (S7) of FIG.
Similar to 0), it is possible to easily create a seal image with an outer frame in which the desired image does not stick out of the outer frame. This makes it possible to create a seal that has a high black ratio, is easy to see, and looks good. It is possible to obtain such effects.

[0162]

As described above, according to the character allocating method and the apparatus thereof of the present invention, it is possible to appropriately allocate each character of the stamp character or the label to the stamp surface or the printing surface. is there.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view of a stamp creating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an internal structural diagram of a mechanical device unit of the stamp creating device.

FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of a stamp main body.

FIG. 4 is a structural diagram of a plate-making sheet.

FIG. 5 is a plan view around the exposure device of the mechanical device section.

FIG. 6 is a plan view around the pocket with the opening / closing lid removed.

FIG. 7 is a structural explanatory view showing a mounting state of various stamp main bodies in a pocket.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining discrimination patterns of various stamp main bodies.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the detection operation of the seal detection unit.

FIG. 10 is a plan view around a pocket and a seal detection unit.

FIG. 11 is a control block diagram of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram of multitasking processing of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart in which an attempt is made to show a processing procedure of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 14 is a hierarchical processing diagram showing the main processing of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 15 is a hierarchical processing diagram showing task monitoring / switching processing of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 16 is a hierarchical processing diagram of current task execution processing of the seal stamp creating device.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an example of main task activation processing of the seal stamp creating apparatus.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of plate-making image creation processing of the main tasks of FIG. 17;

19 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of basic image arrangement processing of the plate-making image creation processing of FIG.

20 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of form designation item area determination processing in the basic image layout processing of FIG.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an example of a seal image of a name stamp and input items when a form is designated.

FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a seal image of a business mark and a square mark and input items when a form is designated.

FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a specific example of processing when there is an image of an address stamp and an item that is not input when a form is designated.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of character allocation processing of the plate-making image creation processing of FIG. 18;

FIG. 25 is a diagram showing a method of allocating one line of a stamp character.

FIG. 26 is a diagram similar to FIG. 25 in the case where the area ratio of the character portion to the blank portion is different.

FIG. 27 is a diagram similar to FIG. 26 in the case of multiple rows.

FIG. 28 is a diagram showing an example of the positional relationship of a series of image data in the seal-making device, such as a plate-making image area, seal outer frame data, seal image data area, text data, basic image data, and position after character allocation. Is.

FIG. 29 is a diagram showing an example of a stamp image after character allocation.

[Fig. 30] Fig. 30 is a diagram showing an allocation method of the character width optimum expansion process.

FIG. 31 is a diagram showing a dimensional relationship between the character allocation area and the type of stamp body.

FIG. 32 is a diagram showing an example of a stamp outer frame for each type of stamp body that can be used in the stamp creating apparatus.

FIG. 33 is a view similar to FIG. 32.

FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of decoration image arrangement processing in the plate-making image creation processing of FIG. 18;

FIG. 35 is a diagram showing an example of image data corresponding to the flowchart showing the processing procedure of the seal outer frame data creation processing of the decoration image arrangement processing of FIG. 34.

FIG. 36 is a diagram showing an example of ruled line data that is a ruled line component.

FIG. 37 is a diagram showing an example of image data corresponding to the flowchart showing the processing procedure of the addition image data creation process of the decoration image arrangement process of FIG. 34.

FIG. 38 is a diagram showing an example of image data corresponding to a flowchart showing a processing procedure of outer frame outer data deletion processing in the decoration image arrangement processing of FIG. 34;

FIG. 39 is a diagram showing another example of image data corresponding to the flowcharts of FIGS. 35 to 38.

FIG. 40 is a flowchart similar to FIG. 34, showing another processing procedure.

41 is a diagram showing an example of image data corresponding to the flowchart in FIG. 40. FIG.

FIG. 42 is a view similar to FIG. 41, showing another example.

FIG. 43 is a diagram showing a conventional character allocation method.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Seal making device 6 pockets 12 Light emitting element 21 Operation part 22 push buttons 23 Operation dial 24 display 31 Enter key 32 Cursor / Conversion key 33-character input key 56 print head 57 Platen Roller 64 printing section 65 Exposure unit 66 Seal detection unit 67 Ambient temperature sensor 191 UV light source 300 control unit 301 CPU 302 ROM 303 RAM 304 input interface 305 output interface 306 system bus A seal body B Plate-making sheet C ink ribbon

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Toshino Kameda 2-10-18 Higashi-Kanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Inside King Jim Co., Ltd. (72) Tomoyuki Shinmura 2-10-18 Higashi-Kanda, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo King Jim Co., Ltd. (56) References Hitoshi Takeuchi, “All about Word Processors”, Newton Separate Volume 1, Kyoikusha Co., Ltd., May 20, 1982, p. 151, P. 168, P.I. 201 (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B41B 27/00 G06F 3/12 G09G 5/22 G09G 5/32

Claims (20)

(57) [Claims] 1. Within a rectangular contour having a specified width in the reading direction, 1
In a character allocating method for allocating each character of a character string of each line or a plurality of lines, an end margin dimension between the edge of the contour and the character at the end is D, and an inter-character margin dimension between adjacent characters is B. And the wheel
The width of the frame is A, and the width of one character of each character is C,
When the number of characters is F , the dots on the dot matrix
Based on the number, the characters are assigned so that B>D> 0, and the quotient of (A−C × F) / F is added to the sentence.
The space between letters is B, and the number of dots corresponding to the remainder is
In accordance with the reading direction of the
Character allocation method characterized by allocating each character. 2. A character allocating method for allocating each character of a character string of each line of a plurality of lines into a rectangular contour of a specified width in the reading direction of each line, wherein the width of the contour is A and the character is When the character width of one of the lines is C and the number of characters is F, (A-
The row with the smallest quotient G of C × F) / F is the longest row, and
With respect to the longest line, a reference inter-character space dimension B, which serves as a reference for the inter-character space size between adjacent characters, is determined. Character allocation method characterized by allocating. 3. The longest line has a relationship between the reference character-to-character margin dimension B and B when the edge margin dimension between the edge of the contour and the character at the edge is D.
The character allocation method according to claim 2 , wherein the characters are allocated so that D> 0. 4. In the lines other than the longest line, the character width is J, the inter-character space size is K, and the number of characters is H.
When the number of characters is the same, the same character string size E = J × H + K as the character string of the longest line.
X (H-1) = C * F + B * (F-1), a character at one of the front and rear ends is a character at the one end of the longest line, and one end thereof is The character allocating method according to claim 2 or 3 , wherein the characters are allocated so that they are aligned. 5. In a line other than the longest line, when the number of characters is H (H.ltoreq.F), a character string size E = where the adjacent character space size is the same as the reference character space size B = strings C × H + B × (H -1), the character of the foremost characterized in that the allocated as characters and the front end of the foremost part of the longest row are aligned, claim 2 or <br/> is Character allocation method described in 3 . 6. A line other than the longest line, where the number of characters is H (H.ltoreq.F), the character string size E = where the adjacent character space size is the same as the reference character space size B. strings C × H + B × (H -1), the center position is characterized in that allocated to align the center of the longest line, a character assignment method according to claim 2 or 3. 7. A line other than the longest line, where the number of characters is H (H.ltoreq.F), a character string dimension E = where the adjacent inter-character space dimension is the same as the reference inter-character space dimension B. strings C × H + B × (H -1), character of the last portion, characterized in that the allocated as characters and the rear end of the last part of the longest row are aligned, claim 2 or <br/> Is the character allocation method described in 3 . 8. Within the rectangular contour of a specified width in the reading direction, 1
In a character allocating device for allocating each character of a character string of each line or a plurality of lines, the end margin size between the edge of the contour and the endmost character is D, and the inter-character margin size between adjacent characters is B. And a character allocating means for allocating each of the characters so that B>D> 0 , the character, the end margin dimension, and the inter-character margin dimension.
Of, with a split on the basis of the dot number of the dot matrix
The character allocating means sets the width of the contour to A and the character width of one of the characters to C.
Then, when the number of characters is F, (A-C x F) / F is calculated.
And the quotient is the quotient and the quotient is the space B between the characters
The calculation means and the number of dots corresponding to the remainder of the above calculation are used as the reading direction of the character.
1 dot is divided from the space between the characters at the forefront according to
A character allocating device, characterized in that it has means for allocating a surplus dot number . 9. A character allocating device for allocating each character of a character string of each line of a plurality of lines into a rectangular outline having a specified width in the reading direction of each line, wherein the width of the outline is A, and the character is When the character width of one of the lines is C and the number of characters is F, (A-
And the longest line determination means C × F) / F quotient G to determine the minimum row and the longest line, with respect to the longest line, the reference character between the margin as a reference for inter-character margin size between adjacent text A reference character margin size determining means for determining the dimension B, a longest line character allocating means for allocating a character to the longest line with the reference character margin size B as a reference, and the reference character margin size B as a reference. And a character allocating means for allocating characters to a line other than the longest line, the character allocating device comprising: 10. The reference character spacing margin dimension determining means determines the reference character spacing when the end margin dimension between the edge of the contour and the character at the end of the longest line is defined as a reference edge margin dimension D. The reference margin dimension B and the reference end margin dimension D are determined so that the relationship with the margin dimension B is B>D> 0, and the longest line character allocating means determines the reference character margin dimension B. was the reference, and is characterized by allocating each letter of the longest line as the edge margin size becomes the reference margin dimension D, claim 9
Character allocation device described in. 11. The other-line character allocating means, when the character width of the other line is J, the inter-character margin size is K, and the number of characters is H, it is the same as the character string of the longest line. Character string size E = J × H + K
Allocated character string generation means for generating a character string of × (H-1) = C × F + B × (F-1), and a character at either one of the front and rear ends of the character string at the one end of the longest line. The character allocating device according to claim 9 or 10 , further comprising: a character and a uniform character string allocating means for allocating the character so that one ends thereof are aligned. 12. The other-line character allocating means sets the adjacent inter-character margin size to be the same as the reference inter-character margin size B when the number of characters in the other line is H (H ≦ F). Allocated character string generation means for generating a character string having a character string size E = C × H + B × (H-1), and a front end character of the character string is aligned with a front end character of the longest line. The character allocating device according to claim 9 or 10 , further comprising: an advance character string allocating means for allocating. 13. The other-line character allocating means sets an adjacent character margin size to be the same as the reference character margin size B when the number of characters in the other line is H (H ≦ F). Allocation character string generation means for generating a character string having a character string dimension E = C × H + B × (H−1), and centered character string allocation for arranging so that the central position of the character string is aligned with the central position of the longest line. The character allocating device according to claim 9 or 10 , further comprising: 14. The other-line character allocating means sets an adjacent character margin size to be the same as the reference character margin size B when the number of characters in the other line is H (H ≦ F). Allocated character string generation means for generating a character string having a character string size E = C × H + B × (H-1), and the rearmost character of the character string is aligned with the rearmost character of the last character of the longest line. The character allocating device according to claim 9 or 10 , characterized in that the character allocating means further comprises: 15. Within a rectangular contour having a specified width in the reading direction,
In a character allocation method for allocating each character of a character string of each line of one line or a plurality of lines, when the area ratio of the character part to the blank part in the outline is a certain value or less, after expanding each character horizontally Character allocation method characterized by allocating. 16. The character portion and the blank portion are
Allocated based on the number of dots on the dot matrix, the area ratio is calculated by the number of dots forming the character portion and the number of dots of the blank portion,
The character allocation method according to claim 15 . 17. The allocation width in the contour is E, and
Let C1 be the character width before the expansion of the characters and F be the number of characters.
Then, when the fixed value is M, the area ratio is calculated.
Therefore, ((C1 × F) / (E−C1 × F)) ≦ M
In the case, ((C2 × F) / (E−C2 × F))> M
Let the character width C2 be the character width of each character after the expansion.
The character allocation method according to claim 16, wherein: 18. Within a rectangular contour of specified width in the reading direction,
In a character allocating device for allocating each character of a character string of each line of one line or a plurality of lines, an area ratio calculating unit for calculating an area ratio of a character portion to a blank portion in the contour, and a calculation result of the area ratio calculating unit, Based on the above, when the area ratio is less than or equal to a predetermined value, a character expansion allocating means for allocating the characters after expanding them horizontally and allocating the characters. 19. The character portion and the blank portion are
The area ratio is calculated based on the number of dots on the dot matrix, and the area ratio calculation unit calculates the area ratio from the ratio of the number of dots forming the character portion and the number of dots in the blank portion. The character allocating device according to claim 18 . 20. The character expansion allocating means is an allocation within the contour.
The width is E, and the character width of each character before the expansion is C
When 1, the number of characters is F, and the constant value is M
Then, by the calculation of the area ratio, ((C1 × F) / (E-
When (C1 × F)) ≦ M, ((C2 × F) / (E−
The character width C2 such that C2 × F))> M is
20. The character width of each character is set in claim 19.
Character allocation device described.