JPS61211051A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable unprinted data to be printed without fail by allowing the content of one pointer memory to be set in the other pointer memory when a digit shift error has occurred on a carriage. CONSTITUTION:CPU 1 enables one line amount of printing data to be stored into a print buffer 31, and then sets a head data position in a pointer 1 memory 32 and a pointer 2 memory 33. Next, CPU 1 shunts the content of the pointer 1 memory 32 and outputs the head data of the print buffer 31 to a printer drive circuit 8. Then if data is not yet terminated, CPU 1 adds 1 to the content of the pointer 2 memory 33 and advances it stepwise. In addition, if CPU 1 detects a digit shift error on the carriage by a sensor, it stores the content of the shunted pointer 1 memory 32 into the printer 2 memory 33. If data is input by a select switch, printing data of the print buffer 31 is printed starting with its beginning according to a pointer of the pointer 2 memory 33.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a printer in which a print head is mounted on a carriage and the carriage is controlled to perform a printing operation.

[Prior Art] This type of printer is equipped with a print buffer, and one line of data is set in the print buffer to sequentially perform a printing operation. Conventionally, when a carriage misalignment error occurred in this printer, the carriage movement was stopped at that point and the print buffer was opened. There are known methods in which the entire contents of the printer are deleted, or the carriage operation is stopped at that point, and after the error is cleared, the carriage is operated from that point to print only the unprinted data.

[Problems to be solved by the invention] However, the former method clears all the data in the print buffer, so there is a problem that unprinted data is lost without being printed, and the latter method Although the print data is printed, the carriage stops once and then moves again to start the printing operation, so there may be cases where the connection between the already printed data and the unprinted data does not go well, and in such cases, the carriage will not be printed. There was a problem with the data being difficult to view.

This invention was devised to solve such problems, and even if a carriage misalignment error occurs during printing, unprinted data can be reliably printed, and the printed data of that line can be To provide a printer that can always be easily viewed without the risk of connection misalignment.

[Means for solving W4 problem] Is this invention a print buffer? Set one line of data in the print buffer, move the pointer that specifies the print data position set in the print buffer sequentially from the first data position, output the data in the print buffer one character at a time, and move the carriage equipped with the print head. In a printer that performs printing operations by controlling movement, there are two pointer memories that store print buffer pointers, a means for saving the contents of one of the pointer memories in a state where the leading data position is specified, and a means for saving the contents of the other pointer memory. A means for sequentially incrementing as the printing operation progresses, and a means for setting the contents of one pointer memory to the other pointer memory when a carriage misalignment error occurs, and when the error is cleared, the contents of the other pointer memory are set. Based on this, data is printed sequentially from the first data position of the print buffer.

[Operation] In the present invention having such a configuration, when one line of data is set in the print buffer, the start data position of the print buffer is set as a pointer in two pointer memories, and the contents of one of the pointer memories are saved. At the same time, the contents of the other pointer memory are incremented as the printing operation progresses, and if a carriage misalignment error occurs during the printing operation, the contents of one pointer memory, that is, the pointer indicating the first data position, are transferred to the other pointer memory. It is set in the pointer memory, and when the error is cleared, printing is performed sequentially from the beginning of the data in the print buffer according to the contents of the other pointer memory.

[Embodiments of the invention] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In Figure 1, 1 is the CPU (central processing unit), 2 is the RO
M (read-only memory), 3 is RAM (random access memory).

The CPLJ1, ROM2, and RAM3 are connected via an address bus line 4, a data bus line 5, and a control line 6.

7 is an interface, 8 is a printer drive circuit, 9
is an I10 boat. The CPU 1 and the interface 7, printer drive circuit 8, and I10 port 9 are connected via the data bus line 5 and control line 6.

The interface 7 is connected to a host computer, etc., and inputs and processes print data and the like.

The printer drive circuit 8 includes a carriage motor 10 for moving the carriage. A print head 11 mounted on a carriage performs dot printing of data, and a feed motor 12 controls feeding of paper set on a platen. Connected to the I10 boat 9 are various lamps 13 that inform the operating status, various switches 14 such as a select switch for canceling an error and restarting, and various sensors 15 such as a home position sensor, a light position sensor, and a carriage digit shift sensor. has been done.

As shown in FIG. 2, the RAM 3 is provided with a print buffer 31 for storing one line of print data, a pointer 1 memory 32, a pointer 2 memory 33, and the like.

The CPU constitutes various means together with the ROM 2, and controls the RAM 3, interface 7, printer drive circuit 8, and I10 port 9 based on the program data in the ROM 2.

After the CPU 1 stores one line of print data in the print buffer 31, it performs the control shown in FIG.

Is this control a print buffer? The first data position of the print data stored in 31 is set in pointer 1 memory 32 and pointer 2 memory 33. Next, the contents of pointer 1 memory 32 are saved. Print buffer in this state? The first data of No. 31 is output to the printer drive circuit 8. If the data is not completed, the contents of the pointer 2 memory 33 are incremented by 1. Thereafter, in this manner, the data in the print buffer 31 is controlled to be output character by character while sequentially incrementing the contents of the pointer 2 memory 33 until the data is completed.

Further, when the CPU 1 detects a digit shift error of the carriage by a sensor, it performs the control shown in FIG. 4. This control stores the saved contents of the pointer 1 memory 32 into the pointer 2 memory 33. Then, it waits for input of the select switch.

If there is a select switch input in this state, the third
The routine jumps to rAJ in the figure, and the print data in the print buffer 31 is printed from the beginning according to the pointer in the pointer 2 memory 33.

In the embodiment of the present invention having such a configuration, when printing a certain line, the data for that line is set in the print buffer 31, and the data in the pointer 1 memory 32 and pointer 2 memory 33 are stored as shown in FIG. 5(a). A pointer that specifies the first data position is set in . In this case each memory 3
2.33 are both set to "1". As data printing in the print buffer 31 progresses, the contents of the pointer 2 memory 33 are sequentially incremented.

The contents of the pointer 2 memory 33 are now shown in FIG. 5(b).
If the carriage makes a digit shift error while specifying "5" as shown in the figure, the error is detected by the sensor and the carriage is stopped on the spot. Subsequently, the contents of pointer 1 memory 32, ie, "1", are stored in pointer 2 memory 33. If the select switch is operated in this state, the error will be canceled, the carriage will be returned to the first data position 1, and the print head 11 will overlay the data that has already been printed and re-enter the print buffer 3.
1 data will be printed from the beginning. Therefore, until printing of unprinted data starts, overprinting is performed, and after that, unprinted data is printed.

In this way, when a carriage misalignment error occurs midway through, printing is performed again from the beginning of that line, so
Although the already printed portion will be overprinted, the printed portion and the unprinted portion will be printed in the same printing operation, so there is no risk of misalignment of the connection portion. Of course, unprinted data will also be reliably printed.

In the above embodiment, when there is a column misalignment error in the carriage, the data is already printed from the beginning of that line and is overprinted, but this is not necessarily the case; for example, when reprinting The paper may be automatically fed for 10 lines to change the line, and in this state, the line where the error has occurred may be printed from the beginning. In this way, there will be no overprinting, making the data easier to see.

[Effects of the Invention] As detailed above, according to the present invention, even if a carriage misalignment error occurs during printing, unprinted data can be reliably printed, and moreover, it can be connected to the print data of that line. It is possible to provide a printer that can always be easily viewed without the risk of misalignment.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The figures show an embodiment of the present invention, in which Figure 1 is a block diagram, Figure 2 is a diagram showing the main memory configuration of RAM, and Figure 31 is a diagram showing the main memory configuration of RAM.
! l is a flowchart showing print control by the CPU, and Figure 4 is C.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the control performed by the PU when a carriage misalignment error occurs, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the movement of the pointer. 1...cpu <central processing unit), 2...ROM(
Read-only memory), 8... Printer drive circuit, 10... Carriage motor, 11... To print. Rad, 31...Print buffer? , 32... Pointer 1 memory, 33... Pointer 2 memory. Figure 1 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5

Claims (1)

[Claims] One line of data is set in the print buffer, and a pointer that specifies the print data position set in the print buffer is sequentially moved from the first data position to sequentially output the data in the print buffer one character at a time, and a print head is installed. In a printer that performs printing operations by controlling the movement of a carriage, the printer includes two pointer memories for storing pointers of the print buffer, a means for saving the contents of one of the pointer memories in a state in which a leading data position is specified, and a means for saving the contents of one of the pointer memories in a state where a leading data position is specified, and a pointer for the other pointer memory. Means for sequentially incrementing the contents of the memory as the printing operation progresses, and means for setting the contents of the one pointer memory in the other pointer memory when the carriage misalignment error occurs, and the error is canceled. The printer is characterized in that data is printed sequentially from the first data position of the print buffer based on the contents of the other pointer memory.