JPH01204777A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable printing to be surely performed within a set range and avoid wasting a paper, by printing by ignoring an output from a paper end sensor after a printing range is set. CONSTITUTION:Where a TOF length for a cut paper having an arbitrary size is set to a value corresponding to, for example, 66 lines, if a printing range is not set, a printing operation is stopped when the trailing end of the paper is detected by a paper end(PE) sensor 1 upon printing about 60 lines, and the paper is forcibly discharged. On the other hand, when a printing range is set to 63 lines by a console-display panel 16 or a host computer 18, an output from the PE sensor 1 is ignored even if the trailing end of the paper is detected by the sensor 1 upon printing 60 lines. When printing of the remaining three lines in the set range is finished, the paper is fed by a predetermined amount, and is then forcibly discharged. Where the same setting as above is made in use of a long-sheet paper, the setting of the printing range is cleared when the paper is fed by a predetermined amount after printing of 63 lines is finished. Therefore, the subsequent control of printing range is carried out based on the output from the PE sensor 1, thereby preventing needless paper feeding.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a printing device used in a word processor or the like.

[Prior Art] A conventional printing device is provided with a paper end sensor (hereinafter abbreviated as PE sensor) for optically detecting the end of paper, for example, near the platen. When the end of the paper conveyed along the surface is detected, the printing operation is stopped, and the paper is fed by a predetermined amount and then ejected. Additionally, some printers allow the printing range to be set using a host computer or operation panel. In this case, when the printing range is set, the printing operation is stopped when the printing of the set range bones is completed, the paper is fed by a predetermined amount, and the paper is ejected when the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor. However, if the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor before the printing of the set range bone is completed, the printing operation is stopped at that point and the paper is ejected. Therefore, it is possible to set up to the number of lines that can be printed on one page of paper (this number of lines is called the TOF length) calculated from the specified paper size and print line pitch, but it is possible to set the number of lines that can be printed on one page of paper (this number of lines is called the TOF length), but it is possible to set the number of lines that can be printed on one page of paper (this number of lines is called the TOF length). If this is set, the printing operation may be stopped and the paper may be ejected when the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] As described above, in conventional printing devices of this type, even if the printing range is set, the printing operation is stopped due to the PE sensor detecting the end of the paper, and printing is not performed according to the settings. There were times when this was not done.

Such a problem occurs when a single sheet is used as the paper, and when a long sheet is used, the PE sensor does not work, so printing within the set range is possible. However, when the printing range is set, the paper is fed a predetermined amount after printing within the set range is completed. For this reason, when a printing range is set over a plurality of pages, if a long sheet is used as the paper, a predetermined amount of feeding is performed each time printing within the set range is completed, resulting in wasted paper.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing device that can ignore the PE sensor output once the printing range is set and can reliably print within the set range. The present invention aims to provide a printing device that cancels the setting of the printing range when the paper is turned off, thereby eliminating waste of paper.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention provides a printing device having a PE sensor that detects the end of a sheet, including a printing range setting means for setting a printing range, and whether or not the printing range is set by the setting means. a setting presence/absence determining means for determining whether the printing range is set; a first printing range setting means for determining the setting range as a printable range when the determining means determines that the printing range is set; and a second print range setting means that sets the printable range up to the end detection output of the sensor.

Further, a paper feeding unit feeds the paper by a predetermined amount in response to the end of printing within the printable range controlled by the first printing range setting unit, and a sensor output that determines whether the end of the PE sensor is detected after the feeding unit executes paper feeding. It is preferable to include a determining means and a set range canceling means for canceling the printing range setting by the printing range setting means when the determining means determines that no end detection has been performed.

[Operation] When the printing range is set in the printing device configured as above, even if the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor, if printing within the setting range is not completed, the printing operation will continue, and the printing will continue until the setting range is reached. Printing is performed. Then, when printing within the set range is completed, the paper is fed by a predetermined amount.

At this point, if the paper is a single sheet, it is ejected, but if it is a long sheet, the print range setting is canceled and from now on, printing is performed continuously to avoid waste of paper.

- [Example] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of this embodiment. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a PE sensor, which is installed near the platen 2 and detects the end of the paper 3 being conveyed on the circumferential surface of the platen 2. 1o is a control unit, and C as a main body of the control unit.
ROMI that stores programs etc. for PUII
2. RAMI that temporarily stores print data, etc. 3. Non-volatile RAM backed up by a battery 1.
4. Input boat 1 that reads the signal from the PE sensor 1
5. Panel controller 17 that controls the operation/display panel 16, host computer 18 connected online
Interfaces 19 for performing data communication with each other are connected via path lines 20, respectively.

The operation/display panel 16 is provided, for example, on the front surface of the printer housing, and on the panel surface, as shown in FIG. In addition to a print range specification section 22 for specifying the paper size, a paper size specification section 23 for specifying the paper size, a print line pitch specification section 24 for specifying the print line pitch, etc., there is also an LE for indicating paper out.
Status display L such as D25a and LED25b for display during printing
An ED group 25 is incorporated.

The host computer 18 is used to edit print data, etc., and also edits the print range and paper size.

It also has functions to specify things like print line pitch.

As shown in FIG. 3, the RAM 13 includes a print buffer 31 that stores print data edited by the host computer 18 and sent via the interface 19, and a print buffer 31 that stores print data that has been edited by the host computer 18 and sent via the interface 19. “
A TOF length memory 32 that stores the number of lines that can be printed on one page of paper, so-called TOF length, and a print range memory 33.1 that stores the print range specified by the print range designation section 22 of the operation/display panel 16 or the host computer 18. A print line counter 34 that counts the number of print lines on a page, a flag memory 35 that stores a PE flag that is set to "1" when there is a paper end detection output from the PE sensor 1, and a print range specification on the operation/display panel 16. A flag memory 36 for storing a print range setting flag which is set to "1" when a print range designation is input from the unit 22 or the host computer 18 is formed.

Further, the non-volatile RAM 14 is for storing and retaining the printing range data set in the printing range memory 33 even when the power is turned off.

When the start button 21 of the operation/display panel 16 is pressed, the CPU 1 confirms that the print data is stored in the print buffer 31 and that the PE flag is not set to "1". After confirming this, start the printing operation. Then, each time one line is printed, the print line number counter 34 is updated, and the process shown in FIG. 4 is executed. That is, in step (ST) 1, it is determined whether the printing range setting flag in the flag memory 36 is "1", that is, whether the printing range has been set by the operation panel 16 or the host computer 18. If the setting flag is not set to "1" here, the printing range has not been set, so
In ST2, it is determined whether the PE flag is set to "1". If the PE flag is "0", it means that the paper has not run out, so the surface water LED 25b is displayed during printing.
is turned on, and the paper out indicator LE 25a is turned off to continue the printing operation. On the other hand, if the PE flag is "1" in ST2, the end of printing has been detected by the PE sensor 1, so the LED 25b for surface water during printing is turned off and the LED 25a for indicating paper out is turned on. Further, when the PE sensor 1 is attached, the paper is fed by a certain amount determined by the position, etc., the paper 1 is forcibly ejected, and the printing operation is stopped.

On the other hand, if the printing range setting flag is set to "1" in ST1, the printing range has been set, so
In ST3, the count value of the print line number counter 34 and the set value in the print range memory 33 are compared. Then, if the count value has not reached the set value, printing within the set range has not been completed, so the surface water LED 25b is turned on during printing, the paper out display LED 25a is turned off, and the printing operation is continued. On the other hand, if the count value has reached the set value in ST3, printing within the set range has been completed, and the paper is fed in ST4 until the count value reaches the TOF length stored in the TOF length memory 32. . Next, in ST5, it is determined whether the PE flag is "1" or not. Here, if the PE flag is "1", the end of the paper has been detected, so the LED 25b for surface water during printing is turned off, and the LED 25a for indicating paper out is turned on. Also P
When the E-sensor 1 is installed, the paper is fed by a certain amount determined by the position, etc., the paper 1 is forcibly ejected, and the printing operation is stopped. On the other hand, the PE flag is “11” in Sr1.
If so, even if the paper is fed until it reaches the TOF length, it will not reach the end of the paper, so the paper will be recognized as a long sheet, the print range setting memory 33 will be cleared, the print range setting flag will be reset to "0", and the print range will be set. Cancel the settings.

In this embodiment with such a configuration, it is assumed that the TOF length of a cut sheet of any size is 66 lines, and in this case, the end of the sheet is detected by the PE sensor 1 after approximately 60 lines of printing. At this time, if a printing range is not set, the printing operation ends when the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor 1, and the paper is forcibly ejected. In other words, the printable range is approximately 60 lines.

On the other hand, if the printing range is set to 63 lines using the operation/display panel 16 or the host computer 18, 63 lines will be printed.
Even if the end of the paper is detected by the PE sensor 1 at the time when line 0 is printed, the output of the PE sensor 1 is ignored. Then, when printing of the remaining three lines within the set range is completed, the paper is fed by a predetermined amount and then forcibly ejected. In other words, the printable range is 63 lines.

Further, if a similar setting is made when a long sheet is used as the paper, the setting of the printing range is canceled when the printing is completed and fed by a predetermined amount to the 63rd line. Therefore, from then on, the printing range is controlled by the PE sensor 1, and wasteful paper feeding is not performed.

The printing range data set in the printing range memory 33 can be stored and retained in the nonvolatile RAM 14, so even if the power is turned off, the printing range setting data remains, and when the power is turned on again, the printing range setting data remains. The printing range is controlled according to the content.

As described above, according to this embodiment, when a printing range is set, the paper end detection output from the PE sensor 1 can be ignored, and printing within the set range can be reliably performed. Therefore, in the past, even if the print range was set, the printable range was limited by the output of the PE sensor 1, so the installation of the PE sensor 1 was difficult due to variations in the position and the beginning of the paper, etc. However, in this embodiment, by setting the printing range within the TOF length, the number of lines printed on one page can be managed reliably.

Further, when the paper is a long sheet, the printing range setting is automatically canceled, so that unnecessary paper feeding is no longer performed, and the paper can be used efficiently.

In the above embodiment, the printing range is set within the TOF length, but this range is not limited and may be set beyond the TOF length.

[Effects of the Invention] As described in detail above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a printing device that can ignore the PE sensor output once the printing range is set and can reliably print within the set range.

Further, when a long sheet is used as the paper, the setting of the printing range can be canceled to avoid waste of paper.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 4 are diagrams showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which Figure 1 is a block diagram showing the schematic configuration of the entire device, and Figure 2 shows the knob surface of the operation/display panel. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the memory configuration of the RAM, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the main program processing of the CPU. 1...PE sensor, 11...CPU, 13...R
A.M. 14...Nonvolatile memory, 16...Operation/display channel, 18...Host computer, 32...TO
F length memory, 33...Print range memory, 35...P
E flag memory, 36...Print range setting flag memory. Applicant's agent Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue Figure 12

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) In a printing device having a paper end sensor that detects the end of paper, a printing range setting means for setting a printing range, and a setting presence/absence determination means for determining whether or not the printing range is set by the setting means. , a first printing range control means that sets the set range as a printable range when the judgment means determines that the printing range is set; and a first printing range control means that sets the setting range as a printable range when the judgment means determines that the printing range is not set; 1. A printing device comprising: second printing range control means for setting a printable range up to the detection output. (2) In a printing device having a paper end sensor that detects the end of paper, a printing range setting means for setting a printing range, and a setting presence/absence determining means for determining whether or not the printing range is set by the setting means. , a first printing range control means that sets the set range as a printable range when the judgment means determines that the printing range is set; and a first printing range control means that sets the setting range as a printable range when the judgment means determines that the printing range is not set; a second print range control means for setting the printable range up to the detection output; a paper feed means for feeding the paper by a predetermined amount in response to completion of printing within the printable range controlled by the first print range control means; sensor output determining means for determining whether or not the end of the paper end sensor is detected after paper feeding by the feeding means; and setting range cancellation for canceling the printing range setting by the printing range setting means when the determining means determines that the end is not detected. A printing device characterized by comprising means.