JPH03222767A - Dot pattern output controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce a software processing burden to improve a throughput by a method wherein a preceding dot and a succeeding dot that are corresponding to the right and left wire arrangements of a printing head are changed over each other on a hardware on a command of a positive/negative printing direction change-over signal. CONSTITUTION:On a command of a positive/negative printing direction change- over signal SEL1, a preceding/succeeding change-over circuit CH2 selectively outputs a shift signal SIFDTF corresponding to a preceding dot from a preceding dot shift register SIFF1 and a shift signal SIFDTB corresponding to a succeeding dot from a succeeding dot shift register SIFB1 to an OR gate OR1 and an OR gate OR2. The OR gate OR1 is connected to a drive circuit DRV1 driving a right wire arrangement of a printing head, and the OR gate OR2 is connected to a drive circuit DRV2 driving a left wire arrangement of the printing head. In the diamond-shaped wire arrangement printing head HD1, the right wire arrangement precedes and the left wire arrangement succeeds in a positive direction printing, and the left wire arrangement precedes and the right wire arrangement succeeds in a negative direction printing.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a dot matrix type printer, and particularly to a dot pattern output control device suitable for high-speed printing.

[Conventional technology]

As described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 59-41277, the conventional device once latches the left and right dot signals in the respective latch circuits during each print timing and every time in the wires of the print head arranged in a staggered manner. By opening the respective gate circuits provided next to the latch circuit alternately on the left and right sides at each printing timing, left and right dot patterns are outputted and the wires are driven.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In the above-described conventional technology, each gate circuit provided after the latch circuit is opened at each printing timing, so it is still necessary to output the trailing dots with a delay in relation to the leading dots by the distance between the left and right dots of the printing wire. Data editing by software processing is required, and if the printing direction is reversed, the leading and trailing dots corresponding to the left and right dots of the printing wire are swapped, so software processing is also required. Also,
The above-mentioned prior art describes only a staggered wire arrangement for the print head, and does not take into account the summer pattern arrangement, which complicates software processing. As mentioned above, many parts of the conventional technology depend on software processing,
In particular, in the summer layout, software processing is delayed and the print head may stop moving during printing, which poses a problem in improving the throughput of the printer.

An object of the present invention is to reduce the software processing load on a printer and improve throughput.

[Means to solve the problem]

The above purpose is to provide a first switching circuit which inputs both the right dot and left dot signals of printing output by the CPU and outputs them directly or after switching with each other according to the printing direction switching signal of the print head; A leading dot shift circuit receives either the right dot or left dot signal of the print output and shifts the dot in a pattern corresponding to the right wire arrangement of the print head; A shift register circuit has a trailing dot shift circuit which inputs one of the dot signals and shifts it in a pattern corresponding to the left wire arrangement of the print head, and each of the leading dot shift circuit and trailing dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit outputs. A dot pattern output control device comprising a second switching circuit having a circuit for switching the shifted print signal to either a right print head drive circuit or a left print head drive circuit according to the print direction switching signal. This is achieved by providing

The above objects are achieved by providing a dot pattern output control device in which the wires of the printhead are arranged in a summer pattern.

The above object is achieved by providing a dot pattern output control device in which the wires of the print head are arranged in a staggered pattern.

The above purpose is to configure the shift register circuit in two ways so that the wire arrangement of the print head corresponds to a summer pattern arrangement and a staggered arrangement.
This is achieved by providing a dot pattern output control device which is provided with a third switching circuit for switching between the input and output of the dot pattern output control device.

[Effect]

According to the above configuration, in the case of printing in the positive direction, the dots on the right side lead and the dots on the left side follow, and on the other hand, in the case of printing in the negative direction, the dots on the left side lead and the dots on the right side follow.

The first switching circuit inputs both the right dot and left dot signals of the print character output by the CPU, and when the positive/negative print direction switching signal of the print head commands positive direction printing,
The right dot signal for printing is output to the leading dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit, the left dot signal is output to the trailing dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit, and when the positive/negative print direction switching signal of the print head commands negative direction printing, ,
The left side dot signal of printing is outputted to the leading dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit, and the right side dot signal is outputted to the trailing dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit.

The preceding dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit shifts and holds the input right dot or left dot signal of the print in a pattern corresponding to the right wire arrangement of the print head.
The trailing dot shift circuit shifts and holds the inputted right side dot or left side dot signal in a pattern corresponding to the left wire arrangement of the print head.

When the positive/negative printing direction switching signal of the print head commands printing in the positive direction, the second switching circuit uses that signal to drive the right print head since the shifted right dot signal is held in the preceding dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit. Since the shifted left dot signal is held in the trailing dot shift circuit, that signal is output to the left print head drive circuit, and then the positive/negative print direction switching signal of the print head switches to negative direction printing. When a command is issued, the shifted left dot signal is held in the leading dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit, so that signal is output to the left print head drive circuit, and the shifted right dot signal is held in the trailing dot shift circuit. Since the signal is output to the right print head drive circuit.

When the printing direction is switched in this way, the leading and trailing dots corresponding to the left and right wire arrangement of the print head can be swapped on the hardware using the command of the positive/negative printing direction switching signal, reducing the software processing load and increasing the throughput. can be improved.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a circuit configuration for controlling the summer type wire array print head used in the first embodiment. The CPU of the computer or word processor outputs a right dot signal and a left dot signal corresponding to the characters to be printed. The leading/trailing shift register switching circuit CHI switches the right dot signal and the left dot signal to the diamond-shaped corresponding shift register circuit 5 according to the command of the positive/negative printing direction switching signal 5ELL.
Select whether to output to the leading dot shift register 5IFFI or the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI of IF1. The leading dot shift register 5IFFI is a shift register circuit corresponding to the leading dot of the summer wire arrangement, and the trailing dot shift register SI FB
1 is a shift register circuit corresponding to the trailing dot.

The leading/following switching circuit CH2 receives the positive/negative printing direction switching signal 5E.
The preceding dot shift register 5IFFI is activated by the command of LL.
Shift signal S I FDT corresponding to the preceding dot from
P and the shift signal SIFDTB corresponding to the trailing dot from the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI are selected and output to the OR gates OR1 and OR2. The OR gate ORI is connected to the drive circuit DRVI which drives the right wire array of the print head, and the OR gate OR2 is connected to the drive circuit DRV2 which drives the left wire array of the print head.
It is connected to the. The summer type wire array print head HDI consists of a right wire array and a left wire array, and when printing in the forward direction, the right wire array takes the lead and the left wire array follows.
When printing in the negative direction, the left wire array takes the lead and the right wire array follows.

Next, the printing operation will be explained in more detail.

First, when printing in the forward direction, the dot signals of the characters to be printed from the CPUI are separated into right dot signals printed by the right wire array of the diamond-shaped wire array print head MDI and left dot signals printed by the left wire array. Output. Leading/following shift register switching circuit CHI
inputs the right dot signal and the left dot signal, and when printing in the positive direction, the positive/negative printing direction switching signal 5ELL becomes H, and the right dot signal is output to the leading dot shift register 5IFFI and the left dot signal to the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI. . Here, every time one character is printed, the right dot signal and the left dot signal are sent to each preceding dot shift register 5I.
It is shifted into a summer pattern by FFI and the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI. In the case of forward printing, the leading dot shift register 5IFFI shifts the right dot signal in a shape corresponding to the right wire arrangement of the rhombic wire arrangement print head HDI, and the shifted right dot signal is sent to the leading/following switching circuit CH2, It is output via the OR gate OR1 and the drive circuit DRVI to the right wire of the diamond-shaped wire array print head HDI, where it prints the portion of the preceding dot. For example, as shown on the right side of the diamond-shaped wire array print head HDI in FIG.

For T8, the wire is activated at the beginning of printing, and for DOT2, the wire is activated for the fourth time. That is, in the preceding dot shift register 5IFFI, the right dot signal DOT8 is arranged so that its shift amount is small, and DOT2 is arranged so that its shift amount is larger than that of DOT8. The trailing dot shift register S I FB1 shifts the left dot signal in a rectangular shape corresponding to the left wire array of the rhombic wire array print head HDI, and the shifted left dot signal is sent to the leading/trailing switching circuit CH2 and the OR gate. It is output via OR2 and drive circuit DRV2 to the left wire of the diamond-shaped wire array print head MDI, where it prints the trailing dot portion. For example, DOTl shown on the left side of the diamond-shaped wire array print head HDI in Figure 1.
For DOT9, the wire is driven at the 5th time of printing, and for DOT9, the wire is driven at the 9th time. That is, in the trailing dot shift register 5IFB1, the left side dot signal DOTl is arranged so that its shift amount is small, and the shift amount of DOTl is larger than that of I)OT9.

Next, during negative direction printing, the dot signals of the characters to be printed from the CPUI are separated into the right dot signal printed by the right wire array of the rhombic wire array print head MDI and the left dot signal printed by the left wire array. and output. Leading/following shift register switching circuit CH
I inputs the right dot signal and the left dot signal, and when printing in the negative direction, the positive/negative printing direction switching signal 5ELL becomes L, and the left dot signal is output to the leading dot shift register 5IFFI, and the right dot signal is output to the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI. Ru. Here, every time one character is printed, the left dot signal and right dot signal are sent to each preceding dot shift register 5.
IFFI and trailing dot shift register S I FB
1 shifts to a summer pattern. In the case of negative direction printing, the leading dot shift register 5IFFI shifts the left dot signal in a shape corresponding to the left wire arrangement of the rhombic wire arrangement print head HDI, and the shifted left dot signal is sent to the leading/following switching circuit CH2, It is outputted via the OR gate OR2 and the drive circuit DRV2 to the left wire of the diamond-shaped wire array print head MDI, where it prints the portion of the preceding dot. For example, the diamond-shaped wire array print head H in Fig. 1
The wire of DOT9 shown on the left side of DI is driven first in printing, and the wire of DOTl is driven fourth. That is, in the preceding dot shift register 5IFFI, the left side dot signal DOT9 has a small shift amount, and DOTl is smaller than DOT9.
It is arranged so that the amount of shift becomes larger. The trailing dot shift register S I FB1 shifts the right dot signal in a shape corresponding to the right wire array of the diamond wire array print head MDI, and the shifted right dot signal is sent to the leading/trailing switching circuit CH2 and the OR gate. Diamond wire array print head MD via OR1 and drive circuit DRV1
It is output to the right wire of I, and the trailing dot part is printed there. For example, the diamond-shaped wire array print head HDI shown in FIG.
The wire of DOT2 shown on the right side is driven in the fifth printing, and the wire of DOT8 is driven in the ninth printing. That is, in the trailing dot shift register 5IFBI, the right side dot signal DOT2 is arranged so that its shift amount is small, and DOT8 is arranged so that its shift amount is larger than that of DOT2.

In this way, even if the printing direction of the rhombic wire array print head HD1 changes to positive or negative, the right dot signal and the left dot signal, which serve as leading and trailing dots, are switched by the positive/negative printing direction switching signal 5ELL, and the rhombic wire A leading dot shift register 5IFF1 and a trailing dot shift register 5IFB correspond to the wire printing order of the array print head MDI.
At I, the output order of the dot signals is switched between the right side dot signal and the left side dot signal, making it possible to change the dot patterns on the hardware as the printing direction is switched.

FIG. 2 shows a circuit configuration for controlling the staggered wire array print head used in the second embodiment. Basically, it has the same configuration as the first embodiment, but the print head has a staggered wire arrangement, and the leading dot shift register 5IFF2 and the trailing dot shift register 5IFB2.
The difference is that the registers are arranged in a shift pattern corresponding to the staggered wire arrangement of the print head, but there is no difference in operation and effect.

Two shift register circuits, a summer pattern compatible shift register circuit 5IFI and a staggered pattern compatible shift register circuit 5IF2, are provided in the same printer so that the wire arrangement of the print head corresponds to the summer pattern arrangement and the staggered pattern. By providing the third switching circuit CH3, the wire arrangement of the print head can be used interchangeably with either the summer pattern arrangement or the staggered arrangement.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, when the printing direction is switched, the replacement of the right dot signal or the left dot signal, which becomes the leading dot and trailing dot corresponding to the left and right wire arrangement of the print head, can be processed on hardware, reducing the software processing burden. This has the effect of improving throughput.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration for controlling a summer type wire array print head according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing a configuration for controlling a summer type wire array print head according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. CHI... Leading/following shift register switching circuit, 5I
FI...Summer type shift register circuit, 5IF2...
- Staggered shift register circuit, 5IFFI... Leading dot shift register, 5IFBI... Trailing dot shift register, CH2... Leading/following switching circuit. OR1-OR gate, OR2-OR gate, DRVI-
...Drive circuit, DRV2...Drive circuit, HDI...
Rhombic wire array print head, HD2...Staggered wire array print head, 5ELL...Positive/negative printing direction switching signal

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A first switching circuit which inputs both the right dot and left dot signals of the print output by the CPU and outputs them directly or after switching with each other according to the print direction switching signal of the print head; a preceding dot shift circuit which inputs either the right dot or left dot signal of the print output by the first switching circuit and shifts it in a pattern corresponding to the right wire arrangement of the print head; and the print output by the first switching circuit. A shift register circuit has a trailing dot shift circuit which inputs either the right dot signal or the left dot signal and shifts the dot signal in a pattern corresponding to the left wire arrangement of the print head, and a leading dot shift circuit and trailing dot shift circuit of the shift register circuit. A second switching circuit has a circuit that switches the shifted print signal outputted by each of the dot shift circuits to either the right print head drive circuit or the left print head drive circuit according to the print direction switching signal. Dot pattern output control device. 2. The dot pattern output control device according to claim 1, wherein the wires of the print head form a diamond-shaped arrangement. 3. The dot pattern output control device according to claim 1, wherein the wires of the print head form a staggered arrangement. 4. Claim 1, wherein two of the shift register circuits are provided so that the wire arrangement of the print head corresponds to a rhombic arrangement and a staggered arrangement, and a third switching circuit is provided for switching the input and output thereof. The dot pattern output control device described in .