JPS6096289A - Electronic sewing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical Field The present invention relates to an electronic sewing machine that automatically forms a desired pattern selected from among a large number of pre-stored patterns on a workpiece cloth, and particularly relates to an electronic sewing machine that automatically forms a desired pattern selected from a large number of pre-stored patterns on a workpiece cloth, and particularly relates to an electronic sewing machine that automatically forms a desired pattern selected from among a large number of pre-stored patterns on a workpiece cloth, and in particular, relates to an electronic sewing machine that automatically forms a desired pattern selected from among a large number of pre-stored patterns. The present invention relates to a technique that allows patterns representing each character to be selected from among a plurality of kana characters while minimizing the number of types of shapes.

BACKGROUND ART In an electronic sewing machine that automatically forms a desired pattern selected from a plurality of pre-stored patterns on a work cloth,
Generally, images of these patterns are displayed on the front of the sewing machine.
A desired pattern can be selected quickly and accurately based on the displayed pattern image.

By the way, in recent years, the types of patterns that can be sewn by such electronic sewing machines have been expanded to over 100 types, and the number of patterns is increasing further. On the other hand, because the display area of the pattern shapes on the front of the sewing machine is limited, the size of the individual pattern shapes displayed tends to gradually become smaller as the number of pattern shapes increases. This has become a problem with this type of electronic sewing machine.

In order to quickly and accurately select a desired pattern based on the image of the pattern displayed on the front of the sewing machine, it is necessary to display the image of the pattern in a reasonably large and easy-to-see manner so that it can be easily distinguished. However, as the number of types of patterns to be displayed increases in recent years, the size of each pattern has to become significantly smaller, and as a result, it becomes difficult to distinguish between each pattern. As a result, it has become difficult to select a pattern quickly and accurately, and there is a risk that the operability of selecting a pattern quickly and accurately may be impaired.

On the other hand, despite these circumstances, there is a demand for selectively forming character patterns representing each of a plurality of alpha bent characters and kana characters, together with various other patterns. However, in order to meet such requirements, the number of types of patterns that can be sewn becomes extremely large, and the number of types of pattern shapes that must be displayed on the front of the sewing machine increases significantly. The size of the pattern becomes extremely small, making it extremely difficult to distinguish the pattern shape, and the operability of selecting the pattern is reduced.

Purpose of the Invention The present invention has been made against the background of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to select on a processed cloth a character pattern representing at least each character in alpha-het characters and kana characters. By making it possible to select and specify each character without displaying the image of the pattern representing each character in the sewing machine on the front of the sewing machine, an electronic sewing machine that can be used to create To provide an electronic sewing machine in which a pattern is displayed in a larger size to make it easier to distinguish, thereby allowing a desired pattern selection operation based on the pattern to be performed more quickly and reliably.

Structure of the Invention In order to achieve this object, the electronic sewing machine according to the present invention has the following features: (a) Selectively stitch data groups related to character patterns representing each character among a plurality of types of alphabento characters and a plurality of types of kana characters. (b) a character designator having an operating body for designating each of the plurality of types of alpha bent characters, and generating a character code signal corresponding to the designated alpha bent character; (C1) a first mode for selecting a character pattern representing an alpha-bento character designated by the operating body; mode switching means for switching a pattern selection mode between a second mode for selecting a character pattern to represent; converts the character code signal generated by the character code signal into a pattern code signal indicating the pattern of the corresponding alpha bent character, and when the pattern selection mode is switched to the second mode, at least one character code signal generated from the character designation means a signal converting means for converting a character code signal into a pattern code signal indicating a pattern of a kana character in Roman alphabet format using the corresponding alpha bent character, and a stitch data generating means according to the pattern code signal from the signal converting means. selecting means for selecting one stitch data group to be generated from the stitch data group, and is configured to perform stitch formation according to each stitch data in the selected stitch data group.

Effects of the Invention With this method, by operating the operating body for specifying an alpha-bento character in the first mode, the alpha-het character can be specified, and the operating body can be used in the Roman alphabet format in the second mode. Through operation, character patterns representing kana characters can be selected, and the selected character patterns can be reliably formed on the work cloth.

In other words, there is no need to display on the front of the sewing machine the shapes of the character patterns representing each letter in the kana characters. It is now possible to display the shapes of other patterns, including the character patterns representing characters, in a larger size on the front of the sewing machine, making it easier to distinguish between these pattern shapes and selecting the desired pattern based on the pattern shape. This allows for faster and more reliable selection operations.

EXAMPLE Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the external appearance of an electronic sewing machine to which the present invention is applied, in which a pillar part 12 is erected on a bed part 10, and an arm part 14 is horizontally supported by the pillar part 12 at one end. Supported.

A head 16 is formed at the other end of the arm portion 14,
At the lower end of the head 16, there is a needle bar 20 equipped with a sewing needle 18 that is reciprocated in the vertical direction in synchronization with the rotation of a sewing machine main shaft (not shown), and a presser foot that can be moved to a raised position and a lowered position by manual operation. A foot 22 is provided.

On the other hand, near the needle drop point of the sewing needle 18 on the bed section 10,
A feed dog 24 is provided which feeds the work cloth by being reciprocally driven in synchronization with the rotation of the main shaft of the sewing machine.

A pattern display section 26 provided on the front surface of the arm section 14 displays a large number (for example, about 100 types) of patterns consisting of groups A, B, and C together with pattern numbers for two fingers (not shown). Items belonging to Group B include so-called continuous sewing patterns including practical stitches such as straight stitches and zigzag stitches, as well as decorative patterns; Items belonging to Group A include letters such as alphabets and numbers; Items belonging to Group C include a series of stitches. It is a pattern image of a pattern or a letter. The figural patterns belonging to these groups A and C are so-called cycle patterns in which each pattern is sewn individually. Below the pattern display section 26, ten pattern selection switches 28 are provided as operation bodies each having a number engraved thereon for selecting a desired pattern. On the right side of the pattern display section 26, there is a two-finger number display 30 for displaying the pattern number.
A combination designation switch 32 for designating a combination of cycle patterns is provided on the right side of the pattern selection switch 28. And, below the number display 3o, ■
1 cycle designation switch 34 for designating single cycle sewing. When an alphabetic character is specified by operating the pattern selection switch 28, the specified alphabetic character is formed as is on the work cloth, or the specified alphabetic character is expressed in a row-shaped form by the specified alphabetic character. A mode changeover switch 36 as a mode changeover means for selecting whether to form Kana characters is provided together with LEDs 3B and 40 that indicate the operating status of the mode changeover switch 36. Further, below the mode changeover switch 36, Mode changeover switch 3
6, when the mode for forming kana characters is selected, by operating the pattern selection switch 28 subsequent to the operation, the lowercase character designation switch 42 for specifying that the kana character be formed as a lowercase character is activated. It is provided. Note that 44 is a start/stop switch for starting and stopping the sewing machine, and 46 is a sewing machine motor 48 which will be described later.
This is a speed setting device for instructing the speed of the vehicle to be set to a desired value.

The electronic sewing machine configured as described above is equipped with a control circuit shown in FIG. 2.

0 That is, in the encoder 50, when a two-digit pattern number is specified by operating the pattern selection switch 28, the encoder 50 generates a code signal representing the numerical value of the two-digit pattern number, in other words, the pattern specified by the pattern number. is output as pattern designation data SS, and the display drive circuit 52. Signal conversion circuit 54. The signal is supplied to the input port L of the multiplexer 56 and the pattern discriminator 58, respectively. That is, in this embodiment, a character code signal corresponding to an alpha character is outputted from the encoder 50 as pattern designation data SS when an alpha character is designated by the pattern selection switch 28. , this encoder 50 and pattern selection switch 2
8 constitutes a character designation means.

Note that the encoder 50 controls the pattern selection switch 28 when
When inputting a digit pattern number, an operation signal SO is also output, which rises when the designation of the first digit numerical value is completed with the pattern selection switch 28 and falls when the designation of the second digit numerical value is completed. 1 and supplies the operation signal SO to the signal conversion circuit 54.

The display drive circuit 52 supplies a display signal for displaying the two-digit number represented by the pattern designation data SS to the number display 30, and operates the pattern selection switch 28 in the number display 30.
The pattern number specified and input is now displayed. By checking the numerical value displayed on the numerical display 30, the operator can accurately specify the desired pattern number.

When a kana character is specified in Roman alphabet format by inputting a pattern number corresponding to an alphabento character by operating the pattern selection switch 28, the signal conversion circuit 54 converts pattern designation data representing a pair of alphabento characters. SS is converted into one code signal (the number of bits equal to the code and do signals of the pattern designation data SS) corresponding to the kana characters expressed in the romaji format using these alpha characters, and the converted code signal is used as a pattern. It is supplied to the input port H of the multiplexer 56 as converted data ST, and has a configuration as shown in FIG. 3, for example.

That is, the pattern designation data SS is sent to the channel selector 6.
0 and is supplied to the first and second latch circuits 62 and 64 via the channel selector 60. In the channel selector 60, these launch circuits 62, 64
The supply of pattern designation data SS to the T-type flip-flop 66 is controlled by a channel switching signal SOD from the T-type flip-flop 66. The operation signal SO is input to this T-type flip-flop 66, and the level of the channel switching signal SOD that is its output changes when the first pattern number is specified by operating the pattern selection switch 28. When the operation signal SO falls based on the specified operation, the L level changes to the H level, and conversely, when the second pattern number is specified, the operation signal SO falls based on that operation and changes from the H level to the L level. They are each inverted. And channel selector 60
Then, when the channel switching signal SOD is at the HI3 level, the pattern designation data SS is sent to the first launch circuit 6.
2, conversely, it is supplied to the second launch circuit 64 when it is at L level. In other words, when a kana character is designated in the Roman alphabet format, a code signal representing an alphahet character on the consonant side that is designated first is supplied to the first latch circuit 62, and a code signal representing the alphabet character on the consonant side that is designated later is supplied to the second latch circuit 62. The signal is supplied to the latch circuit 64.

Further, the channel switching signal SOD is supplied to the first and second one-shot multi-circuits 68, 70, and the one-shot multi-circuits 68, 70 supply the first and second one-shot multi-circuits 68, 70 at the rising and falling edges of the channel switching signal SOD, respectively. Two launch pulses SLI and SL2 are supplied to the latch circuits 62 and 64, and the pattern designation data SS from the channel selector 60 are latched, respectively. The pattern designation data SS latched by the latch circuits 62 and 64 are stored in the conversion memory 72 as first and second latch data DLI and DL2, respectively.
and is supplied to the character discriminator 74. In other words, the code signal representing the alphahet character on the consonant side is the 1st U, 7th data D.
The LI and code signals representing alphabetic characters on the vowel side are supplied as second latch data DL2 to the conversion memory 72 and the character discriminator 74, respectively. The contents of the latch in the launch circuits 62 and 64 are updated at the falling edge of each latch pulse signal SLI and SL2.

On the other hand, the second one-shot multi-circuit 70
The launch pulse signal S L 2 is supplied to the input terminal CK of the D-type Frisopfromp circuit 76 via the delay circuit 78, and while the lowercase letter designation switch 42 is pressed, the H-level lowercase character designation signal SK is supplied to the D-type Frisopfromp circuit. 76 input terminals. In the delay circuit 78, the delay time is set to be at least longer than the time required from the end of the operation of the pattern selection switch 28 until the lowercase letter designation switch 42 is pressed following that operation. When the lowercase letter designation switch 42 is operated subsequent to the operation of , the D-type flip-flop circuit 76 is brought into the cent state in synchronization with the second pulse signal SL2 supplied via the delay circuit 78. Therefore, if the lowercase letter designation switch 42 is operated subsequent to the designation operation of the second pattern number by the pattern selection switch 28, the level signal will be at H level, and if that operation is not performed, the level signal will be at L level. It is output to one input terminal of the AND circuit 80.

On the other hand, the output signal of the character discriminator 74 is supplied to the other input terminal of the AND circuit 80.

The character discriminator 74 includes the first and second launch circuits 62
．． "YA" according to the alpha vent characters represented by the latch data DLI and DL2 from 64.

This is to determine whether or not lowercase Kana characters such as "YO", "TU", etc. are being represented, and when such lowercase Kana characters are being represented, the output is H. In other cases, it is set to I level. In other words, the output of the AND circuit 680 indicates that the pattern selection switch 28 has been operated to specify a kana character that can be a lowercase letter, and that the lowercase letter designation switch 42 has been operated following the operation of the pattern selection switch 28. The signal is sometimes supplied to the conversion memory 72 at 11 levels.

The conversion memory 72 stores in advance a large number of kana character data corresponding to each character in the kana characters, and when a kana character is specified in the romaji format by the alpha head character represented by the latch data DLI and DL2. , the kana character data corresponding to the designated kana character is read out, and is output as a code signal that does not represent an alphabetic character and has the same number of bits as the code signal. Moreover, the above-mentioned "YA" is determined by the alpha head characters represented by the latch data DLI and DL2.

When Kana characters, which may be lowercase, such as ``YO'', ``TU'', etc., are represented in Roman alphabet format, the AND circuit 80 is used.
“Ya”, “Yo”, “Tsu” when the signal from
It outputs a code signal corresponding to a capital Kana character such as 7, and conversely, when it is at H level, “
It is designed to output code signals corresponding to lowercase kana characters such as "ya", "yo", and "tsu".The code signals thus converted and output are then subjected to pattern conversion as described above. It is supplied to input port H of multiplexer 56 as data ST.

In addition, in the above explanation, kana characters (vowels) that can be represented by one alphabetic character such as "A", "U", "0", etc.
Although this case was not specifically mentioned, in such a case, for example, by specifying those alpha vent characters twice in succession, code signals corresponding to the alpha vent characters are sent to both latch circuits 62 and 64, respectively. may be supplied and latched, and the conversion memory 72 may be configured to output pattern conversion data ST representing one kana character using code signals of the same two alphabetic characters.

Returning to FIG. 2, the multiplexer 56 has input ports.
Which one of the pattern designation data 88 S and the pattern conversion data ST supplied to 1-L and H selects one, and the selected data is sent to the start address memory 86 and the stitch number data memory 88 as pattern data SM. The selection control is performed based on the operation of the mode selector switch 36 and the output of the pattern discriminator 58. The mode changeover switch 36 supplies a mode changeover signal SC to the T-type flip-flop 82 each time it is pressed, and the T-type flip-flop 82 is brought into the cent state and reset state each time it is pressed, and its output is the mode display signal SME. (H level) is supplied to one input terminal of the AND circuit 84. Further, the pattern discriminator 58 is configured to judge whether the pattern number represented by the pattern designation data SS represents an alphaben character used to designate a kana character in Roman alphabet format. When it is determined that the pattern number represented by the pattern designation data SS represents an alphahet character used to designate kana characters in the romaji format,
(2) Outputs the character determination signal SLJ of Luher and supplies it to the remaining one input terminal of the AND circuit 84; When both the mode display signal SME and the character determination signal SLJ are supplied to the AND circuit 84, the output of the AND circuit 84 becomes the mode designation signal SA (H
level) to the port select terminal of the multiplexer 56, and the input port of the multiplexer 56 is
to H, and the pattern conversion data ST supplied to the input port I (I) is output as pattern data SM.

Note that, as is clear from the above description, in this example,
When the mode display signal SME is not output and when it is output are the first and second modes of the pattern selection mode, respectively, and the state in the second mode is connected to the output of the T-type flip-flop 82. Said LED4
It is displayed when 0 is lit. Also,
In this embodiment, a signal conversion means is constituted by the multiplexer 56 and a signal conversion circuit 54 including the lowercase letter designation switch 42, and the pattern data SM output from the multiplexer 56 corresponds to a pattern code signal. .

The start address memory 86 is a memory that stores the start addresses corresponding to each pattern that can be sewn.

In addition to the pattern data SM, the mode designation signal SA is supplied from the AND circuit 84 to this head address memory 86, and the LED 40 whose pattern selection mode is set to the first mode by the mode changeover switch 36 is disabled. When the light is on, the start address corresponding to each pattern represented by the pattern data SM, that is, a pattern such as an alpha bent character displayed on the pattern display section 26 on the front of the sewing machine, is output, and the mode designation signal SA becomes H level. When setting the second mode, the first address corresponding to the kana character pattern represented by the pattern data SM is the channel selector 90.
Output to.

The channel selector 90 is connected to a motor control circuit 92 which will be described later.
The pattern data SM from the start address memory 86 is supplied to the pattern code memory 94 when the start signal 5ST (H level) from The start address is supplied to the stitch data generator 96.

The pattern code memory 94 is a memory for temporarily storing the start address supplied from the start address memory 86 via the channel selector 90, and is set to a writing state when the start signal SST is not supplied. , when the start signal SST is supplied, the continuous state is set. Therefore, in the write state, the supplied start address is stored at an address position corresponding to the count contents of the address counter 98, which will be described later, and in the read state, the start address of the address position specified by the address counter 98 is stored. is read out and the channel selector 90
The stitch data is supplied to the stitch data generator 96 via the stitch data generator 96.

The stitch data generating device 96 constitutes a stitch data generating means, and in addition to being supplied with the start address from the pattern code memory 94 via the channel selector 90, the sewing machine main shaft (not shown) is supplied from the timing signal generating circuit 100 or 2. A timing signal TS synchronized with the rotation of the sewing machine is supplied, and based on these start addresses and timing signal TS, a series (group) of stitch data (signals) corresponding to the start address is sent to the main shaft of the sewing machine. The signal is sequentially supplied to the actuator drive circuit 102 in synchronization with the rotation (timing signal TS). That is, the stitch data generator 96 loads the start address when it is input, and also includes an address counter (not shown) that counts the timing signal TS in addition to the loaded content, and an address counter that corresponds to each pattern that can be sewn. A stitch data memory (not shown) is provided in which a group of stitch data has been stored in advance, and which sequentially outputs stitch data addressed according to the count contents of the address counter as a stitch signal. The stitch signal output from the data memory is supplied to the actuator drive circuit 102. Note that from this stitch data generation device 96,
When a series of stitch signals generated based on the designation of one leading address reaches its end, an end signal SE is generated, and this end signal SR is sent to an OR circuit 104 to be described later. The signal is supplied to the clock terminal CK of the address counter 98 via the address counter 98.

The stitch signal is composed of a needle position signal SH representing the swinging position of the sewing needle 18, and a feed signal SF representing the feed amount and feed direction of the work cloth, and the actuator drive circuit 102 uses these needle position signals SH. The feed signal SF is converted into an analog signal, power amplified, and supplied to the needle swing actuator 106 and the feed actuator 108, respectively. The needle swing actuator 106 moves the needle bar 2 by driving the needle swing mechanism.
The feed actuator 108 changes the feed amount and feed direction of the work cloth by the feed dog 24 by positioning the rotational position of a feed adjuster (not shown). , the individual needle positions on the work cloth are determined one after another according to the magnitude of the needle position signal SH and the feed signal SF, respectively, and four patterns corresponding to the leading address are formed. Note that, as is clear from this, in this embodiment, the head address memory 86 serves as the selection means.

The pattern discriminator 58 receives the character determination signal SL as described above.
J, and also outputs a pattern determination signal SAC, which is supplied to one input terminal of the AND circuit 110. This pattern judgment signal SAC is not output when the pattern specified by the operation of the pattern selection switch 28 is a continuous sewing pattern belonging to group B, and is output at H level when it is a cycle pattern belonging to groups A or C. be done. In addition,
This pattern determination signal SAC is also supplied to an AND circuit 112 (to be described later), and the pattern selection switch 28 selects group A,
When the cycle pattern C is specified, the operation of the 1 cycle designation switch 34 is enabled.

The AND circuit 110 has a combination designation switch 32 connected to the other input terminal, and a pattern selection switch 28.
When the combination designation switch 32 is pressed 5 times while a cycle pattern is selected by the operation of , to the adder 114.

A start signal SST is supplied to a clear terminal CL of the address counter 98 via a one-shot multi-circuit 116, and the counted contents are cleared at the rise of the start signal SST, that is, each time the sewing machine is started. . Therefore, in the address counter 98, when the sewing machine is not operating, the combination designation switch 32 is used when designating a cycle pattern.
This is performed every time the button is pressed, and when the end signal S'E is supplied from the stitch data generator 96 when the stitch data generator 96 is activated. In this case, the start addresses corresponding to the designated cycle pattern are sequentially written in accordance with the count contents of the address counter 98, and the written start addresses are sequentially read out in the writing order when the cycle pattern is formed. Therefore, by sending the first addresses sequentially read in the writing order to the stitch data generator 96 via the channel selector 90, the cycle patterns specified in combination are processed continuously in the specified order. It is designed to be formed on cloth.

The adder 114 is for calculating the total number of stitches required for one single sewing operation of the sewing machine when forming a cycle pattern on the work cloth, and is for calculating the total number of stitches required for one single sewing operation of the sewing machine.
A signal representing the number of stitches corresponding to each designated pattern is loaded from the stitch number data memory 88 according to the adder load signal SLD supplied from the adder, and when combining cycle patterns, a combination designation signal from the AND circuit 110 is loaded. S
The loaded signals are sequentially added based on B, and the added signal is used as the stitch number signal SN to the motor control circuit 9.
2.

As is clear from FIG. 3, the adder 114 receives the second launch pulse signal S L 2 from the delay circuit 78 via the OR circuit 118 and the output signal of the AND circuit 7 120 as the adder load signal SLD. It is now being supplied. The operation signal SO from the encoder 50 is supplied to one input terminal of the AND circuit 120, and the mode designation signal SA is supplied from the AND circuit 84 to the other input terminal via the inverter 122. When the first mode is set by the mode changeover switch 36, the adder load signal SLD is supplied to the adder 114 each time the pattern selection switch 28 is operated.

On the other hand, the stitch number data memory 88 is a memory in which data representing the number of stitches required to form each cycle pattern is stored, and in addition to the pattern data SM from the multiplexer 56, A mode designation signal SA is supplied from the top address memory 86.
Similarly to the pattern designated by the signals SM and SA, that is, the cycle pattern displayed on the pattern display section 26 on the front of the sewing machine such as alpha vent characters when the first mode is set by the mode selector switch 36, When the 2 mode is set, a signal representing the number of stitches necessary to form a pattern of kana characters represented in Roman alphabet format by alpha bent characters is outputted and supplied to the adder 114.

That is, in the adder 114, the mode changeover switch 36
When the pattern selection mode is set to the first mode by
When a signal representing the number of stitches of the cycle pattern displayed on is loaded and the pattern selection mode is set to the second mode, the signal is represented in Roman alphabet form by the alpha-het character specified by the operation of the pattern selection switch 28. Signals representing the number of stitches of the kana character pattern are loaded, and the signals representing the loaded number of stitches are the combination designation signal S.
It is added each time B is input.

The motor control circuit 92 controls the driving of the motor 48 of the sewing machine 9 via the motor drive circuit 126 based on the operation of the start/stop switch 44 and the one cycle designation switch 34, and is, for example, a T-type flip-flop (not shown). A start signal SST instructs to drive the sewing machine motor 48, and a speed change command signal STO instructs to set the rotation of the sewing machine motor 48 to a predetermined low speed. These signals SST and STO are supplied to the motor drive circuit 126. That is, the output level of the T-type flip-flop is inverted each time the start/stop switch 44 is pressed, and the output level of the T-type flip-flop is inverted each time the start/stop switch 44 is pressed. is supplied to the motor drive circuit 126 as a starting signal SST. In addition, the subtraction counter is ■Cycle designation switch 3
1 cycle designation signal SI of H level based on the operation in step 4.
is being supplied and the start/stop switch 44 is operated, the stitch number signal S from the adder 114 is
At the same time as loading N, the timing signal generation circuit 10
The rotated stitch number signal SN is subtracted and counted by the timing signal TS from 0, and in the motor control circuit 92, the count becomes a predetermined constant value. When the shift command signal STO is supplied to the motor drive amount path 126, the content of the count becomes zero and the needle position detector 1
When the raised position signal SU indicating that the hand position is in the raised position is supplied from 28, the T-type flip-flop is reset and the output of the start signal SST is stopped.

The motor drive circuit 126 supplies driving power to the sewing machine motor 48 to drive it when the start signal SST is supplied from the motor control circuit 92, and controls the sewing machine motor 48 when the start signal SST is stopped. The sewing machine motor 48 is automatically stopped at the raised position of the sewing needle 18 by stopping the power supply, and the speed change command signal S
When TO is being supplied, driving power is supplied so that the sewing machine motor 48 rotates at a predetermined low speed.

1 A signal for specifying the rotation speed of the sewing machine motor 48 is input from the speed setting device 46 to the motor drive circuit 126, and a signal representing the actual rotation speed of the sewing machine motor 48 is input from the speed detector 130. is input, and drive power is output so that the rotational speed of the sewing machine motor 48 matches the set rotational speed.

Note that the output signal of the 1 cycle designation switch 34 is as follows:
T-type flip-flop 132 via AND circuit 112
The T-type flip-flop 132 is set or reset each time the one-cycle designation switch 44 is pressed in the presence of the pattern determination signal SAC indicating that a single sewing pattern has been selected. Accordingly, by lighting the LED 3B connected to the output terminal of the T-type flip-flop 132, the status of whether the one-cycle signal S■ is at the H level or not is displayed.

The main operations of this embodiment will be explained below. Said A.

When forming the C group cycle pattern on the work cloth, operate the mode changeover switch 36 to set the pattern selection mode to the first mode while the sewing machine is stopped, and then change the display on the numeric display 30. While confirming the pattern, operate the pattern selection switch 28 to specify the two-digit pattern number corresponding to the desired pattern. In this way, since the pattern selection mode is set to the first mode, the multiplexer 56 outputs the pattern designation data SS of the code signal corresponding to the pattern on the pattern display section 26 designated by the pattern selection switch 28. is output as is as pattern data SM, and in the head address memory 86, based on the pattern data SM and the mode designation signal SA from the AND circuit 84,
The start address corresponding to the pattern specified above is output. And this first address is channel selector 9
0 is stored in the pattern code memory 94. In addition,
When specifying a combination of cycle patterns, the combination specification switch 32 is operated subsequent to the designation operation of the pattern number. In this way, the start addresses corresponding to the designated cycle pattern are sequentially written into the storage locations in the pattern code memory 94 designated by the count contents of the address color counter 98.

After specifying the desired pattern as described above, when the start/stop switch 44 is pressed to start the sewing machine, a start signal SST is output from the motor control circuit 92 and the sewing machine motor 48 is driven. The leading addresses stored in the pattern code memory 94 are read out in the writing order according to the addressing of the address counter 98 which is reset by the activation signal SST. Therefore, this head address is sequentially supplied to the stitch data generator 96 via the channel selector 90, so that the stitch signals corresponding to each cycle pattern are sent to the needle swing actuator via the actuator drive circuit 102 in the specified order. 106 and feed actuator 108,
The desired specified pattern will be formed on the work cloth.

On the other hand, when forming a pattern representing a kana character on the work cloth, the mode changeover switch 36 sets the pattern selection mode '4 mode to the second mode, and the pattern selection switch 28 selects one desired kana character in the Roman alphabet format. Specify two consecutive alphaben characters as shown in . In addition, when selecting a plurality of kana characters, after designating one kana character, the combination designation switch 32 is pressed, and at the same time, the subsequent kana characters are designated in Roman alphabet format.

Here, when specifying a lowercase kana letter, the lowercase letter specification switch 42 is operated subsequent to the pattern selection switch 28.

In this way, the pattern data SM corresponding to the desired kana character represented in the Roman alphabet format by the alpha head character will be output from the multiplexer 56 as described above, and the pattern data SM will be output from the head address memory 86. According to the mode designation signal SA from the AND circuit 84, the leading address corresponding to the desired kana character is output. Then, this start address is stored in the pattern code memory 94, and similarly to the case of the cycle pattern 5 displayed on the pattern display section 26, such as the alpha character, a pattern is formed on the work cloth by operating the start/stop switch 44. It will be done. In other words, in this embodiment, even if the pattern representing the kana characters is removed from the pattern display section 26 on the front of the sewing machine, the desired kana characters can be printed on the work cloth by specifying the kana characters in the Roman alphabet format using the alpha head characters. It is possible to accurately form patterns that represent letters.

Therefore, even if the number of patterns that can be sewn is significantly increased by making it possible to form a pattern representing the kana character, the shape of the pattern in the pattern display section 26 is reduced by making it possible to sew the kana character #a. This is not necessary, and the sizes of other patterns can be maintained at a size that is easy to distinguish. In addition, when forming a cycle pattern on the work cloth as described above, when one cycle sewing is designated by the l cycle designation switch 34, the activation signal output from the motor control circuit 92 determines the pattern to be sewn. The timing signal is supplied for the number of stitches, and the output is stopped when the raised position signal SU is supplied, so that the sewing machine motor 48 is automatically stopped when the sewing needle 18 is at the raised position.

When forming the continuous sewing pattern of Group B on the pattern display section 26 on the workpiece cloth, set the pattern selection mode to the first mode and simply select the pattern corresponding to the desired continuous sewing pattern using the pattern selection switch 28. All you have to do is specify the number. In this case, a series of stitch signals for forming a specified pattern are repeatedly read out in the stitch data generator 96 based on the start address loaded into the address counter in the stitch data generator 96. The specified continuous sewing pattern is repeatedly formed on the work cloth. Note that when forming this continuous sewing pattern, the pattern determination signal SAC is not output from the pattern discriminator 58, so the combination designation switch 32
, and the operation of the 1 cycle designation switch 34 are both invalid.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this is literally an illustration, and the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited to this embodiment.

7. For example, in the block diagram of FIG. 2, part or all of the circuit surrounded by the dashed line may be configured by a microcomputer.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, so-called 10 numeric keys are used as operating objects, and by operating the numeric keys to designate a two-digit number, an alphabento character is designated, and an alphabetic character so designated is By specifying two Kana characters in the Roman alphabet format, a pattern corresponding to the desired Kana character can be formed on the processed cloth, but such a numeric key is not always suitable for such operations. It is not necessary to use alphabet keys, which can directly specify alpha-bento characters.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the stitch data group corresponding to each pattern was simply stored in advance in the stitch data generating device 96, but stitches of patterns corresponding to hiragana characters and/or katakana characters The stitch data group is stored in a separate removable memory, such as a so-called ROM puncture, from the stitch data groups of other patterns, and by adding or removing such memory, it is possible to form patterns representing kana characters. It is desirable to configure the system to determine whether or not it is possible. By doing this, it becomes possible to easily and economically classify electronic sewing machines based on the same base into those that can form kana characters and those that cannot, and when sewing machines are organized into series by class. In this way, productivity can be improved.

Further, in the above embodiment, in order to clear the address counter 98, the one-shot multi-circuit 116 that supplies a signal to its clear terminal CL is operated based on the start signal SST, but the start/stop switch 44 The device may be activated based on the output signal of the device.

Although not listed here, it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented with various modifications and improvements within the scope of the spirit thereof.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

9. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external appearance of a sewing machine to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the circuit configuration of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. This figure is a block diagram showing an example of the signal conversion circuit shown in FIG. 2. 26: Pattern display section (character designation means) 36: Mode changeover switch (mode changeover means) 54: Signal conversion circuit (signal conversion means) 56: Multiplexer 86: Start address memory (selection means) 96: Stitch data generation device ( Stitch data generation means) Pattern specification data SS (character code signal) Pattern data SM
(Pattern code signal) Applicant: Brother Industries, Ltd. 0

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] Stitch data generating means capable of selectively generating a stitch data group related to a character pattern representing each character among a plurality of types of alpha bent characters and a plurality of types of kana characters; character designation means having an operating body for specifying each of the bent characters, and generating a character code signal corresponding to the designated alpha bent character; and selecting a character pattern representing the alphabetic character designated by the operating body. a mode for switching a pattern selection mode between a first mode for selecting a character pattern representing a kana character in a romaji format using at least one alphaben character specified by the operating body; a switching means; when the pattern selection mode is switched to the first mode, converting the character code signal generated from the character specifying means into a pattern code signal indicating the pattern of the corresponding alpha head character; The pattern selection mode is
a signal converting means for converting at least one character code signal generated from the character specifying means into a pattern code signal indicating a pattern of a kana character in a romaji format of the corresponding alphabetic character; , ``selection means for selecting one stitch data group to be generated from the stitch data generation means in accordance with the pattern code signal from the signal conversion means; An electronic sewing machine that forms stitches according to each stitch data.