JPS60220693A - Color video interface - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the number of memories to be used, by causing a data fetching section to fetch and output video data of one picture amount composed of N-raster number by dividing the video data into plural video sections composed of n-raster number (n<N). CONSTITUTION:Video signals from a computer are inputted in a signal selector 41 and a desired chrominance component is selected out of four-color chrominance components. The selected 1st chrominance component is arranged eight dots by eight dots through the shift register 43 and latch 44 of a data arranging section 42 and video data of eight-dot amount are fetched by a memory 45 and outputted to a hard copy means. When the recording of the first eight-raster amount is completed, data fetching of the next eight-raster amount data is performed. The fetching operation of eight-raster amount data is successively performed in the same way and at, for example, a device whose one picture is equal to 400 rasters the hard copy of one picture is obtained by performing this operation for 50 times.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention monitors images on a CRT using a computer,
The present invention relates to a color video interface that connects a computer and hard copy means for hard copying this image using a raster scan method using a color printer or the like.

[Conventional technology]

Equipped with a CRT, a computer, and a hard copy means,
The image signal from the computer is introduced into the CRT to form a monitor image, and when the desired image is formed on the CRT,
The above-mentioned image signal is introduced into a hard copy means to make a hard copy of the image on the CRT. In this case, the image signal must be converted into an appropriate format and sent out as a hard copy. A color video interface is used for this conversion.

In the conventional color video interface, data for one screen of an image formed on a CRT is first processed in a predetermined manner and then captured into a memory, and then sent to a hard copy means.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

In this way, in conventional devices, when a certain amount of memory is used to store one screen's worth of data, the majority of the data is taken up, so if you want to add other functions, you have to increase the memory. be.

This invention has been made to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks.

[Means for solving problems]

That is, the present invention is characterized in that the above-mentioned image signal is divided into a plurality of video parts, taken into a memory and outputted from the memory, and this operation is sequentially repeated until one screen's worth of data is output. be.

[Effect]

By dividing the image into a plurality of video parts and importing and outputting data in this way, it is possible to save memory. More specifically, this method is particularly effective when a device that involves a relatively large number of mechanical operations, such as a color printer, is used as a hard copy means. This is because the data capture and output speed is very fast compared to the mechanical operation speed of hard copy methods.
There is no reduction in hardcopy speed.

〔Example〕

The present invention will be described below with reference to an embodiment of the drawings.

1 and 2 are configuration explanatory diagrams showing one embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an apparatus related to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a detailed explanatory diagram of a color video interface.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, 1 is a keyboard, 2 is a computer, 3 is a CRT, 4 is a color video interface, and 5 is a hard copy means. In this embodiment, a wire tod type color printer is used. 41 is a signal selector, 42 is a data alignment section, 43 is a shift register, 44 is a latch, and 45 is a memory.

CRT by operating keyboard 1 via computer 2
Form a desired image on a. Once the desired image is obtained on the CRTa, this image signal is output to the color video interface 4. This image signal is a normal video signal,
Contains a video clock signal, a horizontal synchronization signal, and a vertical synchronization signal, the video signal is assigned to the transmission of image data, and the video clock signal, horizontal synchronization signal, and vertical synchronization signal control the timing of capturing and outputting the above image data. are doing.

The color printers used in this embodiment as the hard copy means 5 are Y (yellow), M (magenta), and C (cyan).
, Bk (black), and color recording is performed by switching between the respective ink ribbons. The print head is 8 dots.

The video signal from the computer 2 is normally output as signals of three colors: R (red), G (green), and B (blue). Since the hard copy means 5 of the apparatus of this embodiment has four colors, the above video signal is not shown, but is converted to Y (yellow) by a color conversion circuit.
, M (magenta)-C (cyan), and Bk (black). Therefore, these four color signals are input to the color video interface 4 of this embodiment shown in FIG.

By the way, if one screen of the CRT 3 is considered to have 640 dots on the X axis and 400 dots on the Y axis, the number of rasters will be 400.

The embodiment of the present invention using this CRT is divided into video parts of 8 rasters each.

Now, the video signal from the computer 2 is sent to the signal selector 41.
A desired color signal is selected from among the four color signals described above.

The selected first color signal is arranged into 8-dot units via the shift register 43 and latch 44 of the data alignment section 42, and the video data of 8 rasters (1st to 8th rasters) is stored in the memory 45. It is captured. The captured video data is output to hard copy means 5. Note that these 8 dots correspond to the 8 dots on the print head of the hard copy means 5.
Compatible with dots. Next, the second color signal is selected by the signal selector 41, similarly arranged by the data alignment section 42, and the video signals for 8 rasters of the 1st to 8th rasters are taken into a predetermined part of the memory 45, and the hard copy is One means 5
is output to.

Similarly, the third and fourth color signals are sequentially selected and taken into the memory 45, and output to the hard copy means 5.
A video signal for one minute of eight rasters is recorded. Since the print head of the hard copy means 5 according to the embodiment of the present invention has 8 dots, it is possible to record 8 rusks in one head scan.

Therefore, for four-color recording, the above-mentioned operation may be repeated four times.

When the recording of the first 8 rasters is completed, data for the next 8 rasters is captured. This time 9th to 16th
The target is the raster video part.

The import method is the same as that for the first eight rasters, and the output to the hard copy means 5 is also the same.

Thereafter, video signals of 8 rasters and 1 minute each are sequentially input and output in the same manner. For example, in a device with 400 rasters per screen, by performing this operation 50 times, a hard copy of one screen can be obtained.

Next, a timing operation for controlling the timing of these repeated operations will be explained.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of this timing operation, showing one data capture and output operation to the hard copy means 5.

In FIG. 3, the vertical synchronization signal sets the start and end of data capture and output. In response to this, the horizontal synchronization signal controls the timing of data capture and output. The video signal is thereby captured into the memory 45 and output to the hard copy means 5.

From the start to the end of the vertical synchronization signal, the video signal is captured and output four times by the horizontal synchronization signal. this is,
This means taking in and outputting the first, second, third, and fourth color signal data.

An enlarged view of the timing operation of the portion indicated by the symbol A of this video signal is shown in the lower part of FIG. This video signal shows the timing of each dot. A video signal is introduced into each element according to a video clock signal. The symbol B in the figure indicates a video signal for one dot.

Therefore, in a device with 640 dots on the X axis, the video signal B
640 are introduced per raster.

The timing for outputting the image data to the hard copy means 5 is shown in the hard copy output in FIG.

Further, at the time indicated by reference numeral C in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, the color switching operation of the ink ribbon of the color printer of the hard copy means 5 is performed. Since this switching operation is a mechanical operation, even if the video signal is divided and sent, there is substantially no delay in the video signal caused by the division.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of these repeated operations.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the video signal is divided and taken into the memory, and is also output to the hard copy means 5, so that the memory can be saved. Therefore, there is an advantage that it can be constructed at low cost. Additionally, additional functions can be added when using the same amount of memory.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1, 2nd FI! J is a configuration explanatory diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram explaining the timing of the operation of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation flow.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] ill A color image forming apparatus that has a data acquisition section that takes in a color video signal of the Lascous scan method, and outputs the color video signal data from the data acquisition section to a hard copy device to obtain a color image. In the video interface, the data acquisition unit divides one screen worth of video data consisting of N rasters into a plurality of video parts consisting of n (n<N) rasters, and captures and outputs the divided video data. Color video interface. (2) The data acquisition section has a memory for temporarily storing video data, and a data alignment section for storing the video data in this memory. Color video interface. (3) The color video interface according to claim 2, wherein the data alignment section includes the following components. (a) A signal selector that selects the video signal to be loaded into the memory from among the color-separated video signals. (b) The video data selected by the signal selector is
An arrangement means for arranging n rasters for each dot. (c) Timing control means for controlling the timing of the signal selector and data alignment section.