JPH10181160A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To judge accurately whether or not an inputted character can be printed. SOLUTION: Classification of cassettes in which a plurality of kinds of tapes are respectively stored and residual amounts of a tapes of the cassettes are stored in a RAM 24. A tape cassette detection part 22 detects the classification of a tape cassette detachably attached to an apparatus body. A print part 26 prints an inputted character data on the tape of the tape cassette attached to the apparatus body. A key input part 1 sets a parameter for a print interval of the inputted character data. A CPU 21 computes a length of the tape to be printed with the print part 26 based on the number of the inputted character data and the set parameter, and stores a data of the tape residual amount obtained based on the computed result in the RAM 24. A dispaly part 2 dispalys the residual amount of the tape stored in the RAM 24.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printing apparatus for printing characters and the like on a tape stored in a cassette.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As such a printing apparatus, there is, for example, a label printer. In a conventional label printer,
When a character is input, the type of the character is displayed on the display unit, and when a print format is set, a print image is displayed.
Then, when a tape cassette is mounted and a print command is input, label printing is performed on the tape with the displayed print image.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned printing apparatus such as a conventional label printer, the state of the input characters, that is, the number of characters and the size of the characters are known, but the tape of the tape cassette is known. Since the use progress information is not known, there is a problem that the tape runs short during printing, and the input characters cannot be printed, or conversely, there is a problem that the tape is replaced with a new tape cassette as soon as there is enough tape remaining. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to accurately determine whether or not input characters can be printed.

[0004]

According to the present invention, there is provided a data storage means for storing a type of a cassette in which a plurality of types of tapes are stored and tape use progress information of the cassette, and a detachably mounted to a main body of the apparatus. Cassette detecting means for detecting the type of cassette to be input, printing means for printing input character data on a tape of the cassette mounted on the apparatus main body, and parameters for setting parameters of a printing interval of the input character data. Setting means; calculating means for calculating the length of the tape to be printed by the printing means based on the number of input character data and the parameters set by the parameter setting means; Storage control means for storing the used tape use progress information in the data storage means, and tape use progress information stored in the storage means It has a configuration which includes display means for displaying, a. Therefore, according to the present invention, tape use progress information, for example, information indicating the remaining amount of the tape is displayed based on the number of input character data and the parameters of the printing interval. Can be accurately determined.

[0005]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. A key input unit 1 for inputting information such as character data, printing interval parameters (print format), print commands, etc., a display unit 2 including a liquid crystal display device for displaying the input information, etc. A cassette storage unit 4 to which the tape cassette 3 is detachably mounted, and an opening / closing lid 5 for opening and closing the cassette storage unit 4
Is provided.

In the case 6 of the tape cassette 3, 5
m, 10 m, etc., a tape supply reel (not shown) around which a tape 7 of a predetermined length is wound, a ribbon supply reel (not shown) around which an ink ribbon 8 is wound, and a take-up of the ink ribbon 8. A ribbon take-up reel (not shown) is provided. The tape 7 has a three-layer structure in which a tape to be printed and a release tape are adhered with an adhesive. Then, the tape 7 fed from the tape supply reel is the case 6
And is sent out from one end of the case 6 to the outside. The ink ribbon 8 fed from the ribbon supply reel is supplied to the cutout portion 10 of the case 6 so as to overlap the tape 7, and is wound on the ribbon take-up reel.

On the other hand, a print head 10 for transferring the ink of an ink ribbon 8 to a tape 7 and a print head 10 in a state where the tape 7 and the ink ribbon 8 are superimposed are provided in a cassette storage section 4 for storing the tape cassette 3. Platen device 11 for pressing against tape, tape rewinding shaft 1 for rewinding tape 7
2. A ribbon winding shaft 13 for winding the ink ribbon 8, a cutter device 14 for cutting the tape 7 printed by the print head 10, and a motor (not shown) and a motor driven by a platen. A drive transmission mechanism for transmitting to the device 11 or the like is provided.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the printing apparatus. The CPU 21 is control means for controlling the entire printing apparatus. Tape cassette detector 22
Indicates that the tape cassette 3 is mounted in the cassette storage section 4 shown in FIG. 1, and whether the tape cassette 3 is for color or monochrome, and the type of the mounted tape cassette 3. Upon detection, a cassette detection signal is input to the CPU 21. The ROM 23 is a CPU 21
And the data on the tape cassette 3 are stored. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, data of tape width and total length for various cassette types is stored. When the CPU 21 receives a cassette detection signal corresponding to the type of the mounted tape cassette from the tape cassette detection unit 22, the CPU 21 stores data of the tape width and the total length corresponding to the cassette type in the ROM 2.
Read from 3.

In the RAM 24 serving as data storage means, data obtained from the key input unit 1, data read from the ROM 23, data of calculation results, and the like are stored in accordance with a command from the CPU 21 as storage control means. The print drive circuit 25 drives a tape supply reel, a ribbon supply reel, a ribbon take-up reel, and the like in accordance with a print drive signal from the CPU 21, and synchronizes with the print drive signal.
6 to output the print data. The print data includes print interval parameters and the like in addition to the character data. The printing unit 26 prints the print data on a tape by the print head 10. The display drive circuit 27 outputs a display drive signal to the display unit 2 in response to a display command from the CPU 21,
A screen corresponding to the display drive signal is displayed.

Next, the operation of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of the CPU 21 and the display unit 2.
This will be described with reference to the display screen of FIG. FIG. 4 is a flow of a main routine of the printing process. In FIG. 4, the type of the mounted tape cassette 3 and the type of the tape width are determined (step S1), and a selection screen as to whether or not to replace the tape cassette 3 with a new tape cassette of the same type is displayed (step S2). ). Then, an instruction as to whether or not to exchange is determined (step S3). When an instruction to exchange is received, processing (eject processing, mounting processing, etc.) accompanying the exchange operation is performed (step S4), and the exchange is performed. The data of the entire length of the new tape cassette is read from the ROM 23 and stored in the RAM 24 (step S5).

When it is determined whether or not the replaced tape cassette is new, the fact that the replacement is new may be input from the key input unit 1. For example, in FIG. A reflection plate may be affixed to the portion, and a photo sensor may be provided in the cassette storage section 4 corresponding to the cutout section 9 to determine whether or not the cassette is new. In this case, it is necessary to wind the ink ribbon 8 by the length to which the reflection plate is attached so that the ink ribbon 8 can be printed by the initialization process.

Next, character key input processing is performed according to the input from the key input section 1 (step S6). Then, it is determined whether or not the tape remaining amount display key is turned on (step S7), and if not, it is determined whether or not the print key is turned on (step S8). If none of the keys is turned on, the flow shifts to step S6 to wait for an input of a character key. If the tape remaining amount key is turned on in step S7, the remaining tape amount is converted into a percentage (step S9). If the print key is turned on in step S8, a print instruction flag is set,
The process proceeds to step S9 to convert the remaining tape amount into a percentage. Specifically, the calculation result obtained by subtracting the used tape amount from the total tape length is divided by the total tape length and multiplied by 100 to convert the result to a percentage.

Next, the converted percentage value is displayed on the display unit 2 as the remaining tape amount (step S10).
In the flow of the tape remaining amount display subroutine in FIG. 5, a percentage calculation process is performed (step S101), and a graph process is performed on the obtained percentage value (step S101).
102) In addition to displaying the color / monochrome state of the tape cassette, the obtained percentage value is displayed as a graph (step S103), and the process proceeds to step S11 in FIG. FIG. 6 shows an example of the display screen. In this example, the tape type is 18 mm, the tape type is color, the used tape amount is 70%, and the remaining tape amount is 30%.

In step S11 of FIG. 4, a calculation process is performed to determine the amount of tape used for the input characters. For example, when the character size is set to two-byte, the character interval is set to 1.5 mm, and the left and right margins are both set to 3 mm, the calculation process for calculating the tape usage when five characters are input is described. I do. Full-width characters are 24 × 24 dots, half-width characters are 24 × 12 dots, double-width characters are 48 ×
There are 48 dots, and one dot is 0.125 mm.
In this calculation, the registers a, b, c, d,
Use e.

First, the number of dots in the tape length direction of one full-width character, that is, the length of one character, is calculated by an expression of 24 × 0.125.
= 3 and set in register a. And
The length of the number of five characters is calculated by equation 3 (data in register a)
X5 = 15 and set in register b. Next, the character spacing is obtained by the arithmetic expression 1.5 × 4 = 6 and set in the register c. In addition, the left and right margins are calculated by 3 ×
It is obtained from 2 = 6 and set in the register d. Next, a tape use amount e is calculated by an arithmetic expression b + c + d = e. In this case, since e = 15 + 6 + 6 = 27, the tape usage amount of five characters is 27 mm.

Next, in step S13 in FIG. 4, the remaining amount of the tape is compared with the amount of tape used by the input characters.
It is determined whether the tape runs out (step S1).
3). If not enough, as shown in FIG. 7, a warning is displayed to the effect that there is not enough tape, and a message urging the user to change the number of characters or replace the tape cassette is displayed (step S14). Then, a tape cassette replacement check and replacement process are performed (step S15).

In this process, as shown in FIG. 8, the display of tape cassette replacement is displayed (step S151), and a process corresponding to the replacement operation is performed (step S152). next,
It is determined whether or not the tape cassette has been replaced (step S153). If the tape cassette has been replaced, the type of the tape cassette and the type of the tape width are determined (step S154). Then, it is determined whether or not the replaced tape cassette is of the same type (color type or monochrome type) (step S155). In the case of the same type, if the tape cassette is not a new tape cassette, the data obtained when the tape cassette was previously used is R
AM24. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the remaining tape amount is held for each type of tape cassette. Therefore, although not shown in FIG. 2, the RAM in this data area is constituted by a different device from the RAM in the other data area, and the data is backed up and held even after the power is turned off.

Therefore, the remaining amount register r of the RAM 24
Is set (step S156), and the routine goes to step S16 in FIG. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S155 that the tape cassettes are not the same type, a screen for selecting whether to forcibly execute printing is displayed (step S157), and it is determined whether the forcible execution key is turned on (step S157). S
158). If the key to force execution is turned on,
The print instruction flag is set, and the routine goes to step S16 in FIG. If the key that is not forcibly executed is turned on, an error is displayed (step S159). If the tape cassette is not replaced in step S153, it is determined whether or not the input character has been changed (step S1).
60) If not changed, the process proceeds to step S16 in FIG. On the other hand, if the input character has been changed, the process proceeds to step S6 in FIG. 4, and a character key input process relating to the change is performed.

In step S16 of FIG. 4, it is determined whether or not a print instruction has been issued, based on a print instruction flag. If a print instruction has been issued, print processing is executed (step S16).
17). Next, the tape remaining amount is updated by subtracting the used amount set in the register e from the current tape remaining amount set in the remaining amount register r (step S18).
The updated tape remaining amount is stored in a corresponding type area of the RAM 24 shown in FIG. Then, this flow ends.

As described above, according to the first embodiment,
Based on the number of input character data and parameters of the print interval, information indicating the tape usage and tape remaining amount, which is tape use progress information, is displayed on the display unit 2, so that the user can print the input characters. Can be accurately determined. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the information indicating the tape usage and the remaining amount of the tape is displayed in a graph, so that the tape use progress information can be further grasped.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The appearance of the printing apparatus, the system configuration, the flow of the main routine of the printing process, the flow of the subroutine of the tape cassette replacement check and the replacement process in the second embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore, the drawings and their explanations will be omitted. Omitted. In the second embodiment, the flow of the subroutine for the remaining tape amount is different from that of the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 shows the flow of a subroutine for the remaining tape amount according to the second embodiment. In this flow, a percentage calculation process is performed (step S111), and it is determined whether or not the mounted tape cassette is for color (step S112). If it is for color, graph processing for color is performed (step S113), and the state for color is displayed (step S114). FIG. 11 shows an example of a color status display. In the band graph indicating the use progress information, the used tape amount is displayed in red, the unused amount, ie, the remaining tape amount, is displayed in blue, and each is displayed as a percentage. Therefore, it is possible to determine at a glance that the tape has been used and that it is a color tape cassette.

In step S112, if the mounted tape cassette is for monochrome, the graph processing for monochrome is performed (step S115), and the status for monochrome is displayed (step S116). FIG. 12 shows an example of a monochrome status display. In the pie chart showing the use progress information, the used tape amount is displayed in black, the unused amount, that is, the remaining tape amount is displayed in white, and each is displayed as a percentage. Therefore, it is possible to determine at a glance that the tape has been used and that it is a monochrome tape cassette.

As described above, according to the second embodiment,
As in the first embodiment, based on the number of input character data and parameters of the print interval, information indicating the tape usage and tape remaining amount, which is tape use progress information, is displayed on the display unit 2. The user can accurately determine whether the input characters can be printed. In this case, the use progress information of the tape can be determined at a glance from the band graph and the pie chart displayed on the display unit 2.

In each of the above embodiments, both the tape usage and the tape remaining are displayed as the tape use progress information. However, only one of the tape usage and the tape remaining is displayed. The configuration may be such that:

[0026]

According to the present invention, tape use progress information, for example, information indicating the remaining amount of the tape is displayed based on the number of input character data and the print interval parameters. It can be accurately determined whether or not it is possible.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a printing apparatus according to first and second embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a system configuration of a printing apparatus according to the first and second embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a view showing data of a tape cassette stored in a ROM in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a main routine of a printing process of a CPU in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a subroutine for displaying a remaining tape amount in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a tape remaining amount display on the display unit 2 in FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 7 is a view showing an example of a warning display on the display unit 2 in FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a subroutine for exchanging a tape cassette and the like in FIG. 4;

9 is a view showing data of a tape type and a remaining tape amount of a tape cassette stored in a RAM in FIG. 2;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a subroutine such as tape cassette replacement in the second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a status display of a color tape cassette according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a status display of a monochrome tape cassette according to the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 key input unit 2 display unit 21 CPU 22 tape cassette 23 ROM 24 RAM 26 printing unit

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A data storage means for storing a type of a cassette in which a plurality of types of tapes are stored and tape use progress information of the cassette, and detecting a type of the cassette removably mounted on an apparatus main body. Cassette detection means for performing the printing, printing means for printing the input character data on a tape of the cassette mounted on the apparatus main body, parameter setting means for setting a printing interval parameter for the input character data, Calculating means for calculating the length of the tape to be printed by the printing means based on the number of input character data and the parameters set by the parameter setting means; and a tape generated based on the calculation result by the calculating means. Storage control means for storing usage history information in the data storage means, and tape usage stored in the storage means A printing device comprising: display means for displaying progress information. 2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the use progress information is information indicating a used amount of the tape. 3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the use progress information is information indicating a remaining amount of the tape. 4. The use progress information according to claim 1, wherein the use progress information is information indicating a used amount and a remaining amount of the tape.
The printing device according to the above. 5. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display unit displays the ratio between the used amount and the remaining amount of the tape in a graph.