JP4765477B2 - Printing apparatus and printing method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus equipped with a font and a font printing method.

  Normally, a printer reads a font from a font ROM in accordance with print data transmitted from a host computer, develops it in a print buffer, and executes printing. Some printers store a plurality of font sets with different sizes such as 12 × 24, 10 × 24, and 8 × 16 (all of which are width × height) in the font ROM. Depending on the case, an appropriate font size can be selected and printing can be executed.

  For example, in the case of a printer capable of executing printing for 512 dots per line, when a 12 × 24 font is used, a maximum of 42 characters can be printed per line. Here, when it is desired to increase the number of characters printed on one line, a font set having a smaller size is used. For example, if 10 × 24 font is used, 51 characters are used, and if 8 × 16 font is used, 64 characters are displayed on one line. Can be printed on.

Some printers can perform justification. When the number of characters printed on one line is less than the maximum number of characters that can be printed on one line, the width of one line is adjusted by adjusting the space between each character without providing a space on the right side of the line where no characters are printed Refers to the function that assigns print characters to match. When evenly allocating print characters in the printer, calculate the number of extra dots from the total number of dots in the width direction of the print area and the total number of dots used by the print data characters, and use the calculated number of dots In other words, complicated control is performed such that printing is performed by obtaining the amount of space and the amount of space at the right and left ends (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 11-99707 A

  However, in a printer having only one type of font, since the number of dots in the width direction of one font cannot be changed, the number of printed characters per line is also determined (for example, only a 12 × 24 font set). If not, 42 characters at maximum). Therefore, even when it is desired to print more characters than specified in one line, the request has not been fulfilled.

  On the other hand, even a label printer having a plurality of types of fonts has a problem of cost increase due to an increase in ROM capacity in order to secure a ROM area for storing a plurality of fonts in addition to the cost of purchasing the fonts.

  Even if a plurality of types of fonts are provided, it is not possible to print more characters on a line than the number of characters that can be printed on a line using the smallest font.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a printing apparatus and a printing method capable of increasing the number of printed characters per line.

The above problem is solved by the following means.
(1) a data receiving unit for receiving print data;
A font storage unit storing font data;
A font selection unit for selecting font data corresponding to the print data from the font storage unit;
A stuffing amount storage unit in which the stuffing amount between adjacent font data is stored in advance;
It is determined whether or not a development start position change command is included in the print data. If it is determined that the development start position change command is included, the padding amount stored in the padding amount storage unit is determined. A rewriting start position determining unit that rewrites the expansion start position indicated by the expansion start position change command and determines the expansion start position for expanding the adjacent font data based on the expansion amount indicated by the expansion start position change command;
A print image storage unit;
A print image generation unit that develops the font data selected by the font selection unit according to the development start position determined by the development start position determination unit in the print image storage unit, and generates a print image;
A recording unit for recording an image based on the print image ,
The padding amount storage unit further stores the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line,
The print image generation unit develops the font data for each line in the print image storage unit,
The development start position determining unit determines whether or not the development start position change command is included in the print data for each line of recording,
The expansion start position determination unit rewrites the font digit number stored in the padding amount storage unit with the font digit number that can be recorded in one line corresponding to the padding amount indicated by the expansion start position determination command. A printing device.
(2) The printing apparatus according to (1), wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in a portion where adjacent font data partially overlaps.
(3) The printing apparatus according to (1), wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in the interval between adjacent font data and adjacent font data .
(4 ) a data receiving step for receiving print data;
A font selection step of selecting font data corresponding to the print data from a font storage unit;
A padding amount storing step for storing in advance a padding amount between adjacent font data;
It is determined whether or not a development start position change command is included in the print data. When it is determined that the development start position change command is included, the pre-stored stuffing amount is determined as the development start position. A rewriting start position determining step for rewriting with the padding amount indicated by the change command, and determining a development start position for expanding the adjacent font data based on the padding amount indicated by the development start position change command;
A print image generation step of expanding the font data selected by the font selection step according to the expansion start position determined by the expansion start position determination step to generate a print image;
A recording step of performing image recording based on the print image ,
The padding amount storing step further stores in advance the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line,
In the print image generation step, the print image is generated by expanding font data corresponding to each character for each line;
The development start position determining step determines whether or not the development start position change command is included in the print data for each line of recording,
The printing further comprises a font digit number rewriting step of rewriting the font digit number stored in advance with the font digit number that can be recorded in one line corresponding to the filling amount indicated by the development start position determination command. Method.
( 5 ) The printing method according to ( 4 ), wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in a portion where adjacent font data partially overlaps.
( 6 ) The printing method according to ( 4 ), wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in the interval between adjacent font data .

According to the present invention, the printing apparatus includes a data receiving unit that receives print data, a font storage unit that stores font data, a font selection unit that selects font data corresponding to the print data from the font storage unit, A filling amount storage unit in which a filling amount between font data to be stored is stored in advance, and whether or not a development start position change command is included in the print data, and it is determined that a development start position change command is included The padding amount stored in the padding amount storage unit is rewritten with the padding amount indicated by the expansion start position change command, and the expansion start position where the expansion start position change command expands adjacent font data is indicated by the expansion start position change command. According to the development start position determined by the development start position determination unit, the print image storage unit, and the development start position determination unit Expand the font data selected by serial font selection unit to print image storage unit includes: a print image generation unit for generating a print image, and a recording unit for recording an image based on print image, wherein the filling amount The storage unit further stores the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line, and the print image generation unit expands the font data in the print image storage unit for each line, and the expansion start position determination unit Determines whether or not the development start position change command is included in the print data for each line of recording, and the development start position determination unit corresponds to the padding amount indicated by the development start position determination command. The number of font digits stored in the padding amount storage unit is rewritten with the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line .

Therefore, even in a printing apparatus having only one type (size) of font, the number of font digits per line can be increased by variously changing the expansion start position of the font data by designating the filling amount. Therefore, it is possible to generate a beautiful printed image with good appearance according to the user's convenience and perform image recording. Further, since the filling amount can be changed for each line, by changing the number of font digits for each line, it is possible to generate a print image rich in variations and perform image recording.

  Further, according to the present invention, the padding amount is the number of dots in a portion where font data arranged adjacent to the selected font data is partially overwritten. Thus, by overwriting a part of the font data with the font data arranged adjacently, the character spacing can be reduced and the number of characters that can be printed on one line can be increased.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of a printing apparatus and a printing method according to the present invention will be described by taking a printer as an example.

(About printer configuration)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the printer of this embodiment.
The printer 10 of the present embodiment is a line thermal type printer capable of printing roll paper on receipt-issued roll paper. The printer 10 includes a main body 11 and a cover 12 that can be opened and closed in accordance with an operation of an open / close lever 13 provided on the front surface of the main body 11.

  A power switch 14 for turning on / off the printer 10 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 11 of the printer 10. Roll paper (not shown) is loaded inside the main body 11. The roll paper is conveyed through a roll paper conveyance path (not shown) provided inside the main body 11 and is printed by a print head. The printed roll paper is discharged from a roll paper discharge port 15 opened in the main body 11.

  Further, the cover 12 is provided with a paper feed switch 16 as a switch that can be operated by the user, and a plurality of LED lamps 17 for notifying the user of the status of the printer.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the control structure of the printer of this embodiment.
The printer 10 of the present embodiment is communicably connected to an external host computer 20, operates according to various commands transmitted from the host computer 20, and executes printing. The printer 10 mainly includes a CPU 31, a RAM 32, a font ROM 33, a flash ROM 34, a communication interface 36, a print head drive mechanism 41, a print medium transport mechanism 42, and sensors 43, which are electrically connected by an internal bus 60. Yes. In FIG. 2, the respective units are schematically described as being connected by a single internal bus 60, but may be connected in other configurations as long as each unit functions.

  The CPU 31 is a control center of the printer 10 and controls the operations of the print head drive mechanism 41, the print medium transport mechanism 42, the sensors 43, and the like while performing data processing by executing firmware written in the flash ROM 34. And a control unit for performing printing.

  The RAM 32 is a volatile storage area in the printer 10. In FIG. 2, one RAM 32 is schematically depicted, but a plurality of RAM chips may be provided depending on the application. The RAM 32 is provided with a reception buffer 51 for temporarily storing data received from the host computer, a line buffer 52 for expanding and temporarily storing character data. These will be described in detail later.

  The font ROM 33 is a non-volatile memory and is an area in which fonts of various typefaces are stored. In the present embodiment, when print data is transmitted from the host computer 20, a font of a code corresponding to the print data is selected by a font selection unit 55 described later.

The flash ROM 34 is a rewritable nonvolatile memory that electrically erases data in batches in predetermined sector units, and has printer control firmware written therein.
Further, in the present embodiment, the number of font digits n that can be printed in one line in the flash ROM 34 and the number of dots that partially overwrite the font data arranged adjacent to the font data selected by the font selection unit 55 are packed. Stored as quantity d. The font digit number n and the padding amount d are rewritten in accordance with a development start position change command from the host computer 20, and various print results can be obtained by rewriting them.

  The area for storing the font digit number n and the padding amount d is not limited to the flash ROM 34 and may be stored in the RAM 32.

  The communication interface 36 is an external input / output interface that communicates with the external host computer 20. Data received from the host computer 20 and data transmitted to the host computer 20 are all transmitted / received via the communication interface 36.

  The print head drive mechanism 41 has a heating element composed of a plurality of heating elements that function as a heating part for simultaneously printing character data for one dot line. The heating elements are arranged in a print head extending along the width direction of the thermal paper, and by selectively heating the heating elements, printing pixels for one dot line are formed on the thermal paper. A plurality of drive circuits that function as heat generation drive units for independently heating and driving the heat generating elements are connected to the heat generating element. Further, by selectively driving the driving circuit, the corresponding heat generating element connected is heated, and the region on the thermal paper that is in contact with the heat generating element is colored. As described above, the printer 10 in this embodiment includes a thermal printing mechanism having a thermal head.

  The print medium transport mechanism 42 includes a motor, a motor drive circuit, and a belt that transmits the power of the motor to various rollers such as a transport roller and a feed roller, and controls the transport of roll paper and slip paper.

  The sensors 43 include a roll paper near end / end sensor that detects the near end / end of the roll paper, a paper detection sensor that detects the roll paper in the conveyance path, a cover open sensor that detects opening and closing of the cover 12, and the like. .

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating functional blocks of the printer according to the present embodiment.
The printer 10 implements a plurality of functional units such as a data receiving unit 53, a font selection unit 55, a development start position determination unit 56, and a print image generation unit 57 by executing the firmware in the flash ROM 34. The RAM 32 is provided with a reception buffer 51 and a row buffer 52 as areas for storing data necessary for realizing each function.

  The data receiving unit 53 stores print data such as print commands and character data received from the host computer 20 via the communication interface 36 in the reception buffer 51.

  The font selection unit 55 selects a font corresponding to the print data from the font ROM 33.

  The development start position determination unit 56 determines a development start position when the font selected by the font selection unit 55 is developed in the line buffer 52 in accordance with the development start position change command received from the host computer 20. In this embodiment, the number of dots that partially overwrite the font data arranged adjacent to the selected font data is set as the filling amount d, and the development start position of the font data is determined.

  The print image generation unit 57 generates a print image by expanding the font selected by the font selection unit 55 in the line buffer 52 according to the expansion start position determined by the expansion start position determination unit 56.

Next, the flow of processing until the print image is printed will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a flow until the print image is printed, and FIG. 5 is a diagram in which the print image is developed according to a predetermined print start position.

  First, when the data reception unit 53 receives print data transmitted from the host computer 20 (step S1), the print data is temporarily stored in the reception buffer 51. The printer 10 determines whether or not the print data stored in the reception buffer 51 is a development start position change command (step S2). If it is determined that the command is a development start position change command (step S2: Yes), the development start position determination unit 56 rewrites the font digit number n and the padding amount d in the flash ROM 34 in accordance with the development start position change command. Thereby, the development start position when the font data is developed in the line buffer 52 is determined (step S3).

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2 that the print data is not a development start position change command (step S2: No), the font digit number n and the padding amount d in the flash ROM 34 are set to initial setting values (n = 42, d = 0). Based on this, the font data is developed in the line buffer 52 and the print image is printed (steps S4 to S10).

  For example, consider a case where the initial setting values in the flash ROM 34 are set to the number of font digits n = 42 and the padding amount d = 0. This is because the thermal head of the printer 10 is composed of 512 heating elements, so when printing a font consisting of 12 dots per font data, the number of font digits that can be printed in one line is 42 digits. is there. If this is, for example, the filling amount d = 1, the development start position determination unit 56 determines the 12th dot of the previously developed font data as the development start position. In this case, the number of font digits n that can be printed in one line is 46 digits.

  Next, the printer 10 determines whether the print data stored in the reception buffer 51 is character data (step S4). If it is determined that it is character data (step S4: Yes), it is determined whether or not the character data is a character at the head of the line to be printed (step S5). If it is determined in step S5 that it is the first character (step S5: Yes), a line buffer is secured as an area for expanding character data (step S6).

  In step S7, the font selection unit 55 selects a font corresponding to the character data from the font ROM 33 (step S7). The font data selected in step S7 is developed in the line buffer 52 by the print image generation unit 57 to generate a print image (step S8). FIG. 5 shows a state in which “A” is selected as the character at the head of the line and is expanded in the line buffer 52.

  If it is not the first character in the line in step S5 (step S5: No), the font to be developed next is selected from the font ROM 33 by the font selection unit 55 (step S7). FIG. 5 shows a state in which “B” is selected as the next developed font and developed in the line buffer 52. Here, the print image generation unit 57 expands the font data of the font “B” according to the expansion start position determined by the expansion start position determination unit 56 (step S8). That is, the font data of the font “B” is expanded so as to be overwritten from the 12th dot column of the font data of the font “A” previously expanded.

  As shown in FIG. 5, by expanding the font data of the first character “A” in the line so that the leftmost one dot string of the next developed font “B” is overwritten on the rightmost one dot string, “A ”And“ B ”can be narrowed to increase the number of font digits in one line.

  The expansion method that expands the font data of the next character by partially overlapping the font data of the previous character as described above causes character overlap when a font that does not have character data on the right side of the font data is used. It is preferable. As such a font, an ANK character can be illustrated, for example.

  As described above, after each character data for one line is expanded with the character interval narrowed so as to overwrite the rightmost one dot row, it is determined that the next print data to be read is a print command (step S4: No, Step S9: Yes), the print image developed in the row buffer is sent to the print head and printed (Step S10). When the printing of the line buffer is completed, the process returns to step S2, and when the expansion start change command is read again, the expansion start position is determined.

  Thus, the printer 10 according to the present embodiment can change the character spacing for each line. Therefore, even if a printer has only one type (size) of fonts, the number of font digits per line can be changed easily, and a wide variety of print images can be generated without having to install multiple fonts. Is possible. That is, it is possible to suppress an increase in ROM capacity due to the mounting of a plurality of fonts, and to reduce costs by reducing the ROM size.

  On the other hand, if the print data from the host computer is not the development start position change command, the character data, and the print command, processing according to the instruction is performed (step S11).

  In the present embodiment, the padding amount d is a setting value when the character spacing is expanded so as to overwrite one dot row. Conversely, in order to widen the character spacing, the number of dots between the font data is set as the spacing. The number of dots e may be set. When the interval dot number e is set, the dot row that is separated by the interval dot number e from the rightmost one dot row of the previously developed font data is the “development start position”.

  In the present embodiment, if the filling amount d or the number of interval dots e is set for each font, the development start position can be changed for each font.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the printer 10 includes the data receiving unit 53 that receives print data, the font ROM 33 that stores a plurality of fonts, and the font selection that selects the font corresponding to the print data from the font ROM 33. Section 55, a flash ROM 34 in which a filling amount d between font data selected by the font selection section 55 and font data arranged adjacent to each other is stored, and development that expands font data arranged adjacent from the filling amount d An expansion start position determination unit 56 that determines a start position, a line buffer that expands font data, a print image generation unit 57 that generates a print image from font data according to the expansion start position, and image recording based on the print image And a print head for performing.

  Accordingly, even in the printer 10 having only one type (size) font, the number of font digits per line can be increased by variously changing the development start position of the font data by designating the filling amount. It is possible to generate a beautiful printed image with good appearance and record the image.

  In the present embodiment, it is also possible to set the number of dots between the selected font data and the adjacently arranged font data as the number of interval dots e. Therefore, when the number of interval dots e is set, layout printing can be performed by reducing the number of font digits per line.

  In the present embodiment, the stuffing amount d can be changed for each row. Therefore, by changing the number of font digits for each line, it is possible to generate a print image rich in variations and record an image.

  In this embodiment, since the printer 10 has only one type (size) of font, it is possible to reduce the cost of purchasing the font and reduce the cost by reducing the ROM capacity.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a printer according to an embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the control structure of the printer of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the functional block of the printer of this embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the flow until printing a printing image. It is the figure which expanded the printing image based on the predetermined printing start position.

Explanation of symbols

10 Printer 31 CPU
32 RAM
33 Font ROM
34 Flash ROM
36 Communication interface 37 Host computer 51 Reception buffer 52 Line buffer 53 Data reception unit 55 Font selection unit 56 Development start position determination unit 57 Print image generation unit

Claims (6)

A data receiver for receiving print data;
A font storage unit storing font data;
A font selection unit for selecting font data corresponding to the print data from the font storage unit;
A stuffing amount storage unit in which the stuffing amount between adjacent font data is stored in advance;
It is determined whether or not a development start position change command is included in the print data. If it is determined that the development start position change command is included, the padding amount stored in the padding amount storage unit is determined. A rewriting start position determining unit that rewrites the expansion start position indicated by the expansion start position change command and determines the expansion start position for expanding the adjacent font data based on the expansion amount indicated by the expansion start position change command;
A print image storage unit;
A print image generation unit that develops the font data selected by the font selection unit according to the development start position determined by the development start position determination unit in the print image storage unit, and generates a print image;
A recording unit for recording an image based on the print image ,
The padding amount storage unit further stores the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line,
The print image generation unit develops the font data for each line in the print image storage unit,
The development start position determining unit determines whether or not the development start position change command is included in the print data for each line of recording,
The expansion start position determination unit rewrites the font digit number stored in the padding amount storage unit with the font digit number that can be recorded in one line corresponding to the padding amount indicated by the expansion start position determination command. A printing device.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in a portion where adjacent font data partially overlaps.   The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in an interval between adjacent font data.   A data receiving step for receiving print data;
  A font selection step of selecting font data corresponding to the print data from a font storage unit;
  A padding amount storing step for storing in advance a padding amount between adjacent font data;
  It is determined whether or not a development start position change command is included in the print data. When it is determined that the development start position change command is included, the pre-stored stuffing amount is determined as the development start position. A rewriting start position determining step for rewriting with the padding amount indicated by the change command, and determining a development start position for expanding the adjacent font data based on the padding amount indicated by the development start position change command;
  A print image generation step of expanding the font data selected by the font selection step according to the expansion start position determined by the expansion start position determination step to generate a print image;
  A recording step of performing image recording based on the print image,
  The padding amount storing step further stores in advance the number of font digits that can be recorded in one line,
  In the print image generation step, the print image is generated by expanding font data corresponding to each character for each line;
  The development start position determining step determines whether or not the development start position change command is included in the print data for each line of recording,
  The printing further comprises a font digit number rewriting step of rewriting the font digit number stored in advance with the font digit number that can be recorded in one line corresponding to the filling amount indicated by the development start position determination command. Method. The printing method according to claim 4, wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in a portion where adjacent font data partially overlaps . The printing method according to claim 4 , wherein the padding amount is the number of dots in an interval between adjacent font data.

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