JPH09143856A - Embroidery data processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To increase the setting freedom of an embroidery pattern by determining a pattern arrangement in a sewing area according to an arbitrary linear form inputted by a user. SOLUTION: When the formation of a pattern T in a sewing area A set on a working cloth is commanded by an inputting means such as a key board, the selection of the pattern T is demanded by a cpu, the information is stored in a RAM, the size of the pattern T is settled on a setting screen and the size is stored as the vertical dimension V and the horizontal dimension H of an imaginary rectangle RS defined by the user to include the pattern T. The pattern distance is set and stored by the user on a pattern distance setting screen, a reference line RL to define the pattern arrangement is drawn on the screen, attributes for sewing are set, a reference point RP is set at the upper left corner of the rectangle RS on the pattern T, the arrangement of the pattern T is defined according to the above preset items and the position of a needle location point NP in the sewing area is calculated according to the arrangement to obtain the objective embroidery data.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an embroidery data processing device having a function of setting a needle drop point so that a desired pattern is formed in a sewing area filled with seams.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An embroidery data processing device for creating embroidery data for filling the inside of a contour line of an embroidery body with seams is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-197289. Some devices of this type have a plurality of needle drop points set in a region filled with seams according to a certain rule, and a set of needle drop points can form a certain repeating pattern. The needle drop point refers to a point at which a threaded needle penetrates the work cloth.

[0003]

In the conventional apparatus, the user cannot freely set the pattern arrangement, and the needle drop point is determined according to a uniform arrangement prepared in advance in the apparatus. Therefore, the degree of freedom in setting the embroidery shape is limited.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an embroidery data processing device capable of freely arranging a desired pattern in a sewing area.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided input means capable of inputting information defining an arbitrary shape, and pattern designating means for designating a pattern to be formed in a sewing area of a work cloth. , Selecting means for selecting a specific linear shape from shapes defined by the input information from the input means, and forming positions of the patterns in the sewing area by the selecting means. Embroidery provided with setting means for setting a plurality of lines following the line shape, and needle drop point calculation means for calculating needle drop points required to form the pattern at a plurality of positions set by the setting means. The above-mentioned object is achieved by the data processing device. According to the present invention, a plurality of pattern forming positions are set in the sewing area according to an arbitrary line shape defined by the input information from the input means, and needle drop point data corresponding to each set position is created. it can.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the embroidery data processing apparatus according to the first aspect, reference point setting means for setting a reference point with respect to the pattern and the reference points are regularly arranged along the line shape. As described above, the setting means is provided with the reference point arrangement means for setting a plurality of pattern formation positions. Therefore, the plurality of patterns can be arranged such that the respective reference points are regularly arranged along an arbitrary line shape.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the embroidery data processing device according to the second aspect, the reference point arranging means forms a plurality of pattern forming positions so that the reference points are arranged at equal intervals on the linear shape. Set. Therefore, the patterns can be arranged at equal intervals following an arbitrary linear shape.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 shows the relationship between the embroidery data processing device and the embroidery sewing machine according to the present embodiment, where 1 is an embroidery data processing device and 2 is an embroidery sewing machine. Embroidery sewing machine 2
A control device (not shown) equipped with a microcomputer and various peripheral circuits necessary for its operation is built-in, and the operation of the work cloth and the sewing needle is controlled based on the embroidery data given to the control device. Apply predetermined embroidery to. The embroidery data includes, for example, information on the position of the needle drop point for each needle with respect to the work cloth, the color and type of the embroidery thread, and the like. The embroidery data processing device 1 creates embroidery data based on an embroidery shape given by a user (user of the device), and transfers the data to the embroidery sewing machine 2 via the communication line 3. Of the embroidery data creation processing, processing for arranging a predetermined pattern in the sewing area will be described later, and details of other processing will be omitted. Note that, in addition to the embroidery data provided from the embroidery data processing device 1, some predetermined embroidery pattern data may be provided to the embroidery sewing machine 2 in advance.

The embroidery data processing device 1 has a device body 10. As shown in detail in FIG. 3, the apparatus main body 10 includes a CPU 11 including a microprocessor unit.
And a ROM 12, a RAM 13, an external storage device (for example, a magnetic disk storage device) 14, an input interface 15, and an output interface 16 connected thereto. The ROM 12 stores programs and data necessary for control of the basic operation of the apparatus 1 by the CPU 11 (typically, various controls at the time of turning on the power). External storage device 14
Stores programs and data necessary for creating embroidery data, and these are written in the RAM 13 as needed. The input interface 15 is connected with a keyboard 17 and a mouse 18 as input means for inputting embroidery shapes and the like. In addition to the communication line 3 described above, the output interface 16 has a CR as an information display means for the user.
T19 is connected. The above configuration is similar to that of the personal computer. In other words, the present embodiment assumes that the embroidery data processing device 1 is configured by combining software for creating embroidery data with a general-purpose personal computer. However, hardware dedicated to embroidery data processing may be configured. For example, a dedicated embroidery data processing device may be provided inside the sewing machine 2.

In the above-described apparatus 1, a sewing area (area filled with seams) for the work cloth is set, and when the user instructs the formation of a pattern in the sewing area via the keyboard 17 and the mouse 18, the sewing area is set. , CPU1
1 executes the processing shown in FIG. In the process of FIG. 4, first, in step S1, selection of a pattern is requested. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 5A, some prepared patterns are displayed on the CRT 19 and the user is allowed to select one of the patterns as a pattern to be formed in the sewing area. In the example of FIG. 5A, four types of patterns, heart-shaped, diamond-shaped, star-shaped, and trefoil-shaped, can be selected.

When the user selects a pattern, the selection contents are stored in the RAM 13 and the process proceeds to step S2 in FIG. In step S2, a pattern size setting screen G
2 (see FIG. 5B) is displayed on the CRT 19 and the user is requested to input the set value. The size of the pattern is defined by a vertical dimension V and a horizontal dimension H thereof, for example, assuming a rectangle RS that encloses the pattern T as shown by an imaginary line in FIG. When the user sets the size of the pattern T, the set value is stored in the RAM 13 and the process proceeds to step S3 in FIG. In step S3, the pattern interval setting screen G3 (see FIG. 5C) is displayed on the CRT 19 and the user is requested to input the setting value. When the user sets the pattern interval, the set value is stored in the RAM 13 and the process proceeds to step S4. In step S4, a reference line input screen G4 (FIG. 5) necessary for determining the arrangement of the patterns is displayed.
(See (d)) is displayed on the CRT 19. When the user draws the reference line RL on the input screen G4 using the mouse 18 or the like, the reference line RL is RA in a two-dimensional image data format.
Store in M13 and proceed to step S5. The reference line RL is
Not limited to the illustrated example, various modifications such as an arc shape and a spiral shape can be made.

In step S5, the user is requested to set the attribute for sewing the sewing area. When the user sets attributes such as color and thread density of the thread to be sewn on the attribute setting screen (not shown), the process proceeds to step S6.

In step S6, an array reference point is set for the pattern selected in step S1. For example, the reference point RP is set at the upper left corner of the rectangle RS with respect to the pattern T of FIG. The reference point RP may be set at other positions such as other corners of the rectangle RS, midpoints of upper, lower, left and right sides. The reference point RP may be set by the user. When the reference point RP is set, the process proceeds to step S7 of FIG. 4, and the pattern arrangement is determined according to the setting contents of steps S1 to S4 and S6. For example, when the reference line RL shown in FIG. 5D is given, the reference lines RL are first arranged in the sewing area A at appropriate intervals as shown in FIG. 1B. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 1C, a plurality of formation positions of the pattern T are set so that the reference points RP are regularly arranged on each reference line RL. As an example of the arrangement rule of the reference points RP, the reference line R from one reference point RP to the adjacent reference point RP is used.
The distance D when tracing over L is determined to be equal to the interval set in step S3 of FIG.

When the pattern arrangement is determined, the process proceeds to step S8 in FIG. 4, and the needle drop point in the sewing area is calculated according to the determined arrangement. For example, when a zigzag stitch is formed from the points A1 to A2 in the sewing area A as shown by the solid line in FIG. 1D, a desired heart-shaped pattern T is drawn in the stitch. Needle drop point NP
Is calculated. At this time, steps S1 to S of FIG.
The needle drop point NP corresponding to each pattern T is obtained by referring to the pattern types, the sizes V and H, and the thread density set in S3 and S5. Although only a single pattern T is shown in FIG. 1D, the needle drop point is similarly determined when a plurality of patterns T are formed. After determining the needle drop point, the process proceeds to step S9, and embroidery data is created according to the obtained needle drop point. The embroidery data may refer to data other than the needle drop point, such as sewing order and thread change instruction. The created embroidery data is sent to the embroidery sewing machine 2 in step S10, and the process is completed.

As is clear from the above description, in the apparatus of this embodiment, the arrangement of patterns is determined according to the arbitrary line shape input by the user. Therefore, the degree of freedom in setting embroidery shapes is increased, and the types of embroidery shapes that can be created are significantly increased.

In the above embodiment, step S1 is the pattern designating means and step S4 is the selecting means.
Steps S6 and S7 function as setting means, step S8 functions as needle drop point calculating means, step S6 functions as reference point setting means, and step S7 functions as reference point arranging means. The present invention is not limited to an example in which a single pattern is repeatedly arranged in a sewing area, but can be applied to a case where a plurality of patterns are arranged according to a certain rule. The user may also select the pitch when arranging a plurality of reference lines RL for arrangement as shown in FIG.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the arrangement of the patterns in the sewing area can be determined according to the arbitrary line shape input by the user, the degree of freedom in setting the embroidery shape is increased, and the types of embroidery shapes that can be created are significantly increased. According to the invention of claim 2, a desired pattern is regularly arranged in an arbitrary direction in the sewing area based on a reference point set for the pattern and an arbitrary reference line designated by the user. You can According to the third aspect of the invention, desired patterns can be arranged in the sewing area at equal intervals in any direction.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a procedure for setting a pattern forming position and determining a needle drop point according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is an example of a pattern formed in a sewing area, and FIG. The state in which a plurality of reference lines for arranging are arranged is (c)
Shows a state where patterns are arranged with respect to a plurality of set reference lines, and (d) shows a state where needle drop points are determined for one pattern.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an embroidery data processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a block diagram of the apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a process of arranging a plurality of patterns in a sewing area in the embroidery data creation process executed by the CPU of FIG.

5A and 5B are diagrams showing examples of screens displayed on the CRT during the processing of FIG. 4, where FIG. 5A is a pattern selection screen, FIG. 5B is a pattern size setting screen, and FIG. And (d) shows the input screen of the reference line for arrangement.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 ... Embroidery data processing device 2 ... Embroidery sewing machine 3 ... Communication line 10 ... Device body 11 ... CPU 13 ... RAM 17 ... Keyboard 18 ... Mouse 19 ... CRT A ... Sewing area NP ... Needle drop point RL ... Reference line RP ... Reference point T ... pattern

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An input unit capable of inputting information for defining an arbitrary shape, a pattern designating unit for designating a pattern to be formed in a sewing area of a work cloth, and the input information from the input unit. Selecting means for selecting a specific linear shape from among the shapes to be formed, and setting means for setting a plurality of formation positions of the pattern in the sewing region in accordance with the linear shape selected by the selecting means. An embroidery data processing device comprising: a needle drop point calculation unit that calculates a needle drop point required to form the pattern at a plurality of positions set by the setting unit. 2. A reference point setting means for setting a reference point for the pattern, and a reference point arrangement means for setting a plurality of formation positions of the pattern so that the reference points are regularly arranged along the line shape. 2. The embroidery data processing device according to claim 1, wherein the setting means includes: 3. The embroidery data processing according to claim 2, wherein the reference point arrangement means sets a plurality of formation positions of the pattern so that the reference points are arranged on the line shape at equal intervals. apparatus.