JPH07129149A - Character plotting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a character plotting device by which character rows inputted beforehand by a character input means can be plotted in an inputted optional coordinate position by using a coordinate input device such as a pen or a mouse. CONSTITUTION:When a coordinate value is inputted from a coordinate input means 105, the inputted coordinate value is read by a coordinate reading means 106, and the read coordinate value is temporarily stored in a coordinate value storage means 107. Next, when a coordinate data calculating means 108 calculates a coordinate interval and the moving direction by reading out the stored coordinate value, a character data calculating means 109 can calculate the character size and the character direction according to the coordinate interval and the moving direction. Since a plotting data creating means 110 creates character rows read out in order from a character row storage means 102 by a reading-out means 103 into plotting data according to the character size and the character direction calculated by the character data calculating means 109, a plotting position control means 111 plots the created plotting data at a prescribed character interval according to the inputted coordinate value, and outputs it to a display means 104.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a character drawing device for drawing a character string corresponding to a coordinate position input by a coordinate input means such as a pen or a mouse.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a character processing device such as a word processor or a personal computer capable of document processing has a character input direction which is usually a vertical direction or a straight line direction of horizontal writing. When changing the character size, the character rotation, the character position, etc., the function keys and the cursor keys were operated in character units. Further, as an example of inputting characters other than vertical writing and horizontal writing, for example, a character processing device has been proposed which is capable of inputting a character string in a diagonal direction by specifying a cursor or a window (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-18632). See the bulletin).

[0003]

However, the characters that are generally used in advertisements and posters include characters that are written diagonally, characters that have different sizes, character strings that have different directions for each character, etc. There are many layouts of character strings due to non-existent character sizes and arrangements, and when inputting such characters with a conventional character processing device, etc., they must be processed in character units, resulting in very poor operability. JP-A-4-186
According to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 32, the direction designation can be processed in character string units, but when changing the character direction, character spacing, or character size for each character, processing must be performed in character units, which is poor in operability.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances. For example, a character string previously input by the character input means is associated with a coordinate position input by the coordinate input means such as a pen or a mouse. Provided is a character drawing device capable of arbitrary drawing while changing the character direction, character spacing, character size, and the like.

[0005]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the present invention includes a character input means 101 for inputting a character string, a character string storage means 102 for storing the input character string, a reading means 103 for sequentially reading the stored character strings, and a read means 103. In the character drawing device including the display means 104 for displaying the character string, the coordinate input means 105 for inputting the coordinate value for arranging the character string at a desired coordinate position, and the coordinate value input from the coordinate input means 105. The coordinate reading means 106 for reading, the coordinate value storage means 107 for storing the read coordinate values, the coordinate data calculation means 108 for reading the coordinate values from the coordinate value storage means 107 and calculating the coordinate interval and the moving direction. The character data calculation means 109 for calculating the character size and the character direction based on the coordinate interval and the moving direction, and the reading means 103 in order from the character string storage means 102. Drawing data generating means 110 for generating the read character string into drawing data based on the character size and the character direction calculated by the character data calculating means 109, and a predetermined value corresponding to the input coordinate values of the generated drawing data. The drawing control means 111 is provided for drawing at character intervals and output by the display means 104.
Reference numeral 11 is a character drawing device characterized in that, when coordinate values are continuously input by the coordinate input means 105, a character string is drawn at regular intervals corresponding to the continuous coordinate values.

[0006] It is preferable that the drawing control means 111 is constructed so that, when the coordinate value is intermittently input by the coordinate input means 105, the character string is sequentially drawn corresponding to the intermittent coordinate value.

The drawing control means 111 can also be configured to rotate in the character direction calculated by the coordinate data calculation means 108 and the character data calculation means 109 to perform drawing.

The drawing control means 111 can also be configured to draw the character data generated based on the character size calculated by the character data calculation means 109 at predetermined character intervals corresponding to the coordinate values.

In the present invention, the character input means 10
1, keyboard, pen input tablet device, OC
An R device or the like is used. Character string storage means 102, reading means 103, coordinate reading means 106, coordinate value storage means 10
7, coordinate data calculation means 108, character data calculation means 1
09, drawing data generation means 110, drawing control means 111
It is preferable to use a microcomputer including a CPU, ROM, RAM, and I / O port. In addition, in particular, the character string storage means 102 and the coordinate value storage means 10
As for 4, a RAM therein is usually used. As the display means 104, a CRT display device, LCD
A display device such as a (liquid crystal display) device or an EL display device is used. As the coordinate input means 105,
A pen input tablet device or a coordinate input device such as a mouse is used.

[0010]

According to the present invention, in FIG. 1, the present invention stores the character string input from the character input means 101 in the character string storage means 102, and sequentially reads the stored character string by the reading means 103 to display the means. When a coordinate value is input from the coordinate input unit 105 in the character drawing device displayed on the display unit 104, the input coordinate value is read by the coordinate reading unit 106, and the read coordinate value is temporarily stored in the coordinate value storage unit 107. To be done. Next, when the coordinate data calculation unit 108 reads the stored coordinate values and calculates the coordinate interval and the moving direction, the character data calculating unit 109 can calculate the character size and the character direction based on the coordinate interval and the moving direction. . Then, the drawing data generating means 110 generates the character strings sequentially read from the character string storing means 102 by the reading means 103 into drawing data based on the character size and the character direction calculated by the character data calculating means 109. The drawing control means 111 draws the generated drawing data at predetermined character intervals corresponding to the input coordinate values, and outputs the drawing data to the display means 104. Therefore, the drawing control means 111
When coordinate values are continuously input by the coordinate input means 105, the character string can be drawn at regular intervals corresponding to the continuous coordinate values.

The drawing control means 111 can be constructed so that when the coordinate input means 105 intermittently inputs coordinate values, the character strings are drawn in order in correspondence with the intermittent coordinate values. When a character string is drawn using the coordinate input means 106, the character string can be drawn at any coordinate position.

Since the drawing control means 111 can also be configured to rotate in the character direction calculated by the coordinate data calculation means 108 and the character data calculation means 109 to draw, a character string can be obtained using the coordinate input means 106. When drawing, the character direction can be changed depending on the moving direction.

Since the drawing control means 111 can also be configured to draw the character data developed based on the character size calculated by the character data calculation means 109 at a predetermined character interval corresponding to the coordinate values, When drawing a character string using the coordinate input means 106, the size of the character can be changed according to the interval between the input coordinate values.

A character string to be drawn at a desired coordinate position can be input in advance by the character input means 101 and stored in the character string storage means 103.

[0015]

The present invention will be described in detail below based on the embodiments shown in the drawings. The present invention is not limited to this. Further, the device of the present invention is suitable for being incorporated in, for example, a Japanese word processor with a pen input function, and each component has a function other than achieving the "function of drawing a character string at an arbitrary coordinate position" of the present invention. , Which will be described as having a normal character processing function.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the character drawing apparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 1 is a coordinate input device composed of a pen input tablet, a digitizer, a mouse, etc. Using the coordinate data input from the coordinate input device 1, a character is drawn at an arbitrary position. 2 is a CRT
The display device includes a display device, an LCD (liquid crystal display) device, and the like, and a character string corresponding to the coordinate value input from the coordinate input device 1 is displayed on the display screen. Reference numeral 3 denotes a control device, which is an arithmetic circuit 31 including a CPU for executing control of character processing of the present invention, a ROM storing various programs and character fonts for controlling the present invention, and input coordinate data. , A memory 32 including RAM for storing various data necessary for processing including character data, drawing data, the number of characters, and the like, and an I / O port for connecting to an external device such as the coordinate input device 1 and the display device 2. It is composed of the interface circuit 33 and the like. In some cases, a keyboard 4, an external storage device 5 including a hard disk and a floppy disk, and a printer 6 may be connected to the control device 3. When the display-integrated pen input tablet is used, the coordinate input device 1
Then, the display device 2 is the same device, but these will be described separately in the following description.

Further, as the function of the control device 3, for example,
The RAM of the memory 32 functions as a character string storage unit that stores a character string and a coordinate value storage unit that stores coordinate values.
The CPU of the arithmetic circuit 31 cooperates with the memory 32 to read coordinate values input from the coordinate input device 1, coordinate reading means for calculating a coordinate value interval and moving direction, and calculated coordinates. Character data calculation means for calculating the character size and character direction from the interval and movement direction, reading means for sequentially reading character strings from the character string storage means, character size and character direction for the input character string calculated by the character data calculation means The drawing data generating means for generating the drawing data and the drawing control means for drawing the generated drawing data at a predetermined character interval corresponding to the input coordinate value.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a display example (No. 1) by the character drawing processing of the present invention. In FIG. 3, in advance,
As shown in FIG. 3A, the character string input from the keyboard 3 is sequentially drawn (arranged) at the coordinate values (coordinate points) continuously designated by the coordinate input device 1 so that the character string shown in FIG.
It is possible to freely draw characters like b. Further, it is possible to arrange characters having different character directions as shown in FIG. 3c from the moving direction of the inputted coordinates, and it is possible to easily input characters having different sizes as shown in FIG. 3d from the coordinate interval. Is. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a display example (No. 2) by the character drawing processing of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, this coordinate point is not only continuous but also intermittent, and a character arrangement is possible.

The processing procedure of the character drawing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. The following processing procedure is programmed in advance and stored in the ROM of the memory 32, and is executed by the control device 3 in accordance with this program in cooperation with peripheral devices.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the processing procedure (No. 1) of the character drawing apparatus of the present invention. Also, FIG.
Is a processing procedure when there is no processing for changing the character direction and character size. Step 201: The user inputs a character string S from the keyboard 4 or the coordinate input device 1 such as a pen or a mouse and stores it in the memory 32. At this time, since the number of characters input is also obtained at the same time, this is also stored in the memory 32 as the number of characters N. Step 202: Set the size W of the character to be drawn and the character selection register R. In this example, the character size W is 1
6 (dots), 1 in register R (first character of character string S)
Is stored in the memory 32. Step 203: Point P for drawing a character from the coordinate input device 1
1 is input and stored in the memory 32. Step 204: The register Rth character of the character string S is
A size W is drawn at the point P1. Step 205: The process of advancing the register R to the next character and drawing the first character is completed.

Next, the character drawing process for the second and subsequent characters is performed. Step 206: Compare the register R with the number of characters N. If the register R is larger than the number of characters N, it means that all the characters have been output, and the process is terminated. If the number of characters N is larger than the register R, all the characters have not been output yet, so the process proceeds to the next step. Step 207: Check whether there is a next coordinate input. If the coordinate input is interrupted, the process is ended, and if the coordinate input is performed, the process proceeds to the next process. Step 208: Input the coordinate point P2 and store it in the memory 32. Step 209: When the distance between the input coordinate points P1 and P2 is smaller than the drawn character size W, processing is performed to prevent characters from overlapping. Here, the space between the points P1 and P2 is compared with the character size W. If the character size W is larger, the process returns to step 207 to newly input the coordinate point P2.

Next, in steps 210 to 213, processing is performed to prevent the character spacing from becoming too wide. FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the coordinate interval and the character interval in the character drawing process of the present invention. Step 210: Make a point Q by copying the point P1. Point Q is a temporary variable until the point for drawing a character is searched (see FIG. 7a). Step 211: Check whether the distance between the point Q and the point P1 is equal to the size W (see FIG. 7b). Step 212: The point Q is moved closer to the point P2 dot by dot until the distance between the point Q and the point P1 becomes equal to the size W.

Step 213: When the interval between point P1 and point Q and the size W become equal, point Q is substituted for point P1 and point P
1 is updated (see FIG. 7c). Step 214: Draw the Rth character of the register of the character string S at the point P1 in the size of the character size W. Step 215: Advance register R to the next character. Step 216: Compared with the number of characters N, if all the characters have been drawn (the register R was large), the process is ended, otherwise, the process returns to the step 209, between the point P1 and the point P2. If the character can be drawn, the character is drawn (see FIG. 7d).

When performing the above processing, if the character string S and the number of characters N have already been stored instead of the character string input by the user, the processing of step 201 may be omitted. In step 207, after the processing is completed,
When the process is restarted, it is possible to omit the processes of steps 201 and 202 and start the process from step 203 to input the continuation of the character string drawn halfway. Therefore, by interrupting the coordinate input for each character, it is possible to easily input character strings with different character intervals.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure (No. 2) of the character drawing apparatus of the present invention. In addition, FIG.
Is a processing procedure for changing the character direction and character size. Here, two coordinate points are input, and the character size and the character rotation angle are determined from the distance between the two points and the relative coordinates. Step 301: The user inputs a character string S from the keyboard 4 or the coordinate input device 1 such as a pen or a mouse and stores it in the memory 32. At this time, since the number of characters input is also obtained at the same time, this is also stored in the memory 32 as the number of characters N. Step 302: Substitute 1 (the first character) into the character selection register R and store it in the memory 32. Step 303: Input the coordinate point P1 from the coordinate input device 1 and store it in the memory 32.

Step 304: The coordinate point P2 is input from the coordinate input device 1 and stored in the memory 32. Step 305: Obtain the distance L and the moving directions Tx and Ty from the points P1 and P2. The formulas for calculating the distance L and the moving directions Tx and Ty are as follows. Tx = P2x−P1x Ty = P2y−P1y L = [(Tx) ² + (Ty) ² ] ^1/2 where P1x is the x coordinate of the point P1 and P1y is the y of the point P1.
Coordinates P2x: x coordinate of point P2, P2y: y coordinate of point P2

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a coordinate movement direction and a character rotation angle calculation table in the character drawing process. For the character rotation angle U, the moving directions Tx and Ty are applied to a character rotation angle calculation table as shown in, for example, FIGS. Step 306: Character size W from spacing L, moving direction T
The character rotation angle U is obtained from x and Ty (see FIG. 8). As the character size W, here, a value of 1/2 of the interval L is used. Step 307: The character R-th character of the character string S is drawn at the point P1 with the size W and the character rotation angle U.

Step 308: Advance register R to the next character. Step 309: Compared with the number of characters N, if the register R is larger, all characters have been drawn, so the processing ends. If not, there are still undrawn characters, so the process returns to step 303 and is repeated. By the above processing, it is possible to input character strings having different character sizes and character directions. Steps 306, 30
In the processing of No. 7, if either the character size or the character direction is not necessary, only one processing can be performed.

[0029]

According to the present invention, for example, characters used for posters, advertisements, etc., in which the character spacing, character direction, and character size change for each character, are input by a coordinate input device such as a pen or a mouse. It is possible to draw arbitrarily according to the position.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a character drawing device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a display example (part 1) by the character drawing processing of the present invention.
FIG.

FIG. 4 is a display example (2) of the character drawing processing of the present invention.
FIG.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure (No. 1) of the character drawing device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure (No. 2) of the character drawing device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between coordinate values and character spacing in the character drawing process of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a coordinate movement direction and a character rotation angle calculation table in the character drawing processing of the present invention. .

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 coordinate input device 2 display device 3 control device 31 arithmetic circuit 32 memory 33 interface circuit 4 keyboard 5 external storage device 6 printer

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A character input means for inputting a character string, a character string storage means for storing the input character string, a reading means for sequentially reading the stored character strings, and a display for the read character strings. In a character drawing device provided with a display means, coordinate input means for inputting coordinate values for arranging a character string at desired coordinate positions, coordinate reading means for reading coordinate values input from the coordinate input means, and Coordinate value storage means for storing the coordinate values, coordinate data calculation means for reading the coordinate values from the coordinate value storage means and calculating the coordinate interval and the moving direction, and the character size and the character direction based on the calculated coordinate interval and the moving direction. Based on the character size and the character direction calculated by the character data calculating means, and the character string obtained by sequentially reading the character string from the character string storing means by the reading means. And a drawing control unit for drawing the generated drawing data at predetermined character intervals corresponding to the input coordinate values and outputting the display unit. A character drawing device, which draws a character string at regular intervals corresponding to continuous coordinate values when coordinate values continuously input by the coordinate input means are input. 2. The drawing control means, when the coordinate value is intermittently input by the coordinate input means, sequentially draws a character string corresponding to the intermittent coordinate value. 1. The character drawing device according to 1. 3. The character drawing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drawing control means draws by rotating in the character direction calculated by the coordinate data calculation means and the character data calculation means. 4. The drawing control means draws the character data generated based on the character size calculated by the character data calculation means at predetermined character intervals corresponding to the coordinate values. The described character drawing device.