JPH01118464A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To automatically change a page even if a page change command is not received by automatically change the page when a detecting mechanism detects the lower end of a print sheet, and counting the number of print sheets by a sheet counting mechanism. CONSTITUTION:A printer 1 has an automatic sheet feeding mechanism 2 having a sheet lower end detecting mechanism 3 and a printer body 4. In case of printing, when a host device 8 generates a print sheet counter reset command and a print sheet count command, a sheet counting mechanism 6 is set to a state capable of counting detection signals after the mechanism 3. Then, the device 8 feeds a print command to the body 4 until data to be printed are all output. A printing unit 5 continues printing during this period, the mechanism 6 detects the generation of a page eject by the detection signal of the mechanism 3, and counts the number of prints. Accordingly, even in case of a program which contains no page change command, it can accurately detect the number of printed pages.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a printer device, and particularly to a page printer device having an automatic page switching function.

[Conventional technology]

2. Description of the Related Art As a conventional technique related to a page control method in a printer device, a technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-20127 is known. This type of conventional technology is capable of printing multiple logical pages defined by a user program onto actual physical pages, and when a physical page is to be changed, a page changing command is output from the program. . Therefore, when trying to count the number of printed pages, this conventional technology counts the number of times a page change command is output.
You can count the number of pages. However, the above publication does not mention anything about the page number counting function.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

In the prior art, in order to count the number of pages, it is necessary that the page change command and the actual page change operation of the printer device match. The conventional technology described above executes a page break based on a page change command, and has the problem that a page change cannot be performed unless a page change command is received; However, if it is possible to perform page breaks even when the page number is changed, there is a problem in that it is not possible to accurately count the number of pages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a printer device that can automatically change pages without receiving a page change command, and that accurately counts printed pages and sends the counted value to a host device. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a printer device that can perform the following functions.

[Means for solving problems]

According to the present invention, the object is to provide a printer device having an automatic paper feeding mechanism, which includes a paper bottom edge detection mechanism and a paper counting mechanism, and receives a page change command when printing is performed on printing paper. Even if the paper bottom edge detection mechanism detects the bottom edge of the printing paper, a page break is automatically performed, and the paper counting mechanism counts the number of printing paper sheets, and responds to a print paper count transmission request from the host device. This is achieved by transmitting the print paper count number to the host device accordingly.

[For production]

When the paper lower end detection mechanism detects the lower end, that is, the terminal end, of the printing paper, it causes the automatic paper feeding mechanism to feed the printing paper, and causes the paper counting mechanism to count the number of printing papers. The count value of the sheet counting mechanism is reset to an initial value, for example, ``0'' by a command from a host device.

If the host device wants to know how many sheets of printing paper were used during one job, it can do so by issuing a counter initial value setting command at the beginning of the job and a printing paper count transmission command at the end of the job. Knowing the number of printing sheets used in the job will be explained in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating commands from a host device in an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 1 is a printer device, 2 is an automatic paper feed mechanism, 3 is a paper bottom edge detection mechanism,
4 is a printer main unit, 5 is a printing unit, 6 is a paper counting mechanism, 7 is an interface control unit, 8 is a host device,
9 is an interface line.

A printer device 1 according to the present invention, as shown in FIG.
It is composed of an automatic paper feeding mechanism 2 having a paper bottom edge detection mechanism 3 and a printer main body 4, and the printer main body 4 is composed of a printing unit 5, a paper counting mechanism 6, and an interface control section 7. ing.

In the above-described configuration, the automatic paper feeding mechanism 2 stacks the printing paper, sequentially supplies the printing paper to the printer main body to perform page breaks based on the printing paper bottom edge detection signal of the paper bottom edge detection mechanism, and A signal 12 is sent to the paper counting mechanism 6. The host device 8 and the interface control section 7 in the printer body 4 are connected via an interface line 9, and necessary information is transmitted and received between the host device 7 and the printer body 4 via the interface line 9. , is carried out. That is, the host device 8 issues a print command.

Sends print data, print paper count command, print paper counter reset command, etc. to the printer main unit 4,
The printer main unit 4 sends the count value counted by the paper counting mechanism 6 to the host device 8 in response to a print paper count value request command from the host device 8 .

The interface control unit 7 in the printer main unit 4 controls the transmission and reception of the above-mentioned information with the host device 8, and
It controls the printing operation of the printing unit 5 and the paper counting mechanism 6 based on commands from the host device. The paper counting mechanism 6 is initialized by a reset signal 11 issued by the interface control unit 7 in response to a print paper counter reset command from the host device 8, and then receives the print paper count command and detects the bottom edge of paper in the automatic paper feed mechanism 2. By counting the paper bottom edge detection signal 12 detected by the mechanism 3, the number of sheets of printing paper used is counted. Further, the paper counting mechanism 6 calculates the count value 1 in response to the count value request signal 1'3 issued by the interface control section 7 based on the print paper count value request command from the host device 8.
0 to the interface control unit 7, the interface I! i!
9 to the host device 8.

Instructions from the host device in the above-described operations are shown as a flowchart in FIG. 2, which will be explained below.

(1) When printing is performed by the printer device (*), the host device 8 first issues a print paper counter reset command and a print paper count command (Flow 21.
22). As a result, in the printer main body 4, the paper counting mechanism 6 is cleared to zero, and the paper counting mechanism 6 is set to a state in which it can count subsequent detection signals from the paper bottom edge detection mechanism 3.

(2) Next, the host device 8 sends the print command and the data to be printed according to the print command to the printer main unit 4 until there is no more data to print (
(repetition of flows 23 to 25).

During this time, the printing unit 5 in the printer main body 4 continues the printing operation, and the paper counting mechanism 6 detects the occurrence of a page break based on the detection signal of the paper bottom edge detection mechanism 3, and by counting this, the print page is counted. Count the numbers.

(3) When the host device 8 runs out of data to be printed, it issues a print paper count request command (Flows 25 and 26). Thereby, the paper counting mechanism 6 sends the current count value to the host device.

Through the above-described operation, the host device 8 can finish the printing operation of one job and know the number of pages of print paper used in that job.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, the number of pages required for printing is counted by counting the actual page feed operations, so printing operations can be executed by programs that do not include page feed commands. Even when printing, the number of printed pages can be accurately detected, and the number of sheets of printing paper used for each user or job can be accurately counted.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating commands from a host device in an embodiment of the present invention. 1...Printer device, 2...Automatic paper feeding mechanism, 3...Paper bottom edge detection mechanism, 4...
・Printer main unit, 5... Printing unit, 6.
... Paper counting mechanism, 7 ... Interface control unit, 8 ... Host device, 9 ...
・Interface line. Agent: Patent attorney Katsuo Ogawa (1 other person)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A printer device having an automatic paper feeding mechanism is equipped with a paper bottom edge detection mechanism and a paper counting mechanism, and when printing on printing paper, the paper bottom edge detection mechanism detects the bottom edge of the printing paper, thereby automatically In addition to changing pages,
A printer device characterized in that a paper counting mechanism counts the number of printing papers and transmits the printing paper count value to a host device in response to a request for a printing paper count value from the host device.