JPS63260466A - Self-traveling small-sized printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To print a sentence input to supply means on an arbitrary sheet by storing data fed from print data supply means in a memory circuit of a printer, traveling the printer on a desired sheet by control means at a predetermined speed when a start/stop switch is pressed, and printing data on the sheet by printing means. CONSTITUTION:When a print command key is pressed, a memory circuit 91 edits and stores data to be printed, displayed on a word processor 11 with one row having X characters. Then, a small-sized printer is carried and placed on a desired sheet, such as a notebook, and a start/stop switch 5 is depressed. A drive motor 8 and printing means 7 are driven by a command from a central processing unit 92, one character is printed on the sheet, and the printer is moved at a distance corresponding to one character. Then, whether the switch 5 is pressed or not, whether the number of printed characters arrive at X or not, and whether the printing of the data is finished or not are sequentially judged in this order. If it is NO, one character is again printed. When the number of the characters arrive at X and YES is judged, a command for stopping the motor is delivered to stop the motor 8.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention uses a signal sent from a print data supply means such as a word processor, so that it cannot be applied to a printer attached to a word processor or the like, such as a notebook, large paper, or thick paper. This invention relates to a self-propelled small printer that prints on paper.

(Prior Art) In the prior art, there is no printer that prints directly onto one's notebook or the like using a signal from a word processor.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) When printing text input into a word processor on a desired paper such as a notebook or cardboard that cannot be printed on a conventional printer, there is no such printer available in the past. Therefore, it must be done by hand, etc.
It was time consuming and really inconvenient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a small-sized printer that can print text input to print data supply means on any paper.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention is characterized in that the bottom of the case is equipped with a printing means and a running wheel, and inside the case is a drive motor for the running wheel and a control for controlling the drive motor and the printing means. A part of the case is provided with an externally operable switch for generating a start/stop signal.

The control means is capable of communicating with the print data supply means, and includes a memory circuit that stores data sent from the print data supply means, and receives a start/stop signal and drives the drive motor and the print means based on the data. It consists of a central processing unit that controls the

(Function) Data to be printed is sent from the print data supply means,
This is stored in the memory circuit of the small printer. When a small printer is placed on a desired paper such as a notebook and the start/stop switch is pressed while the user's hand is lightly placed on the printer, the drive motor and printing means are controlled by the control means.

That is, the drive motor rotates the traveling wheels, and the small printer runs over a desired sheet of paper at a constant speed, and data is printed on the sheet of paper by the printing means. Printing is stopped when the start/stop switch is pressed.

(Example) An embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

As shown in the first diagram, the case 1 of the main body is sandwiched and fixed between the rear cover 2 and the front cover 3, and running wheels 4 are mounted at the four corners of the bottom slightly downward from the double force bar 1.2. It is exposed to the A switch 5 for generating a start/stop signal is provided in the case 1 and can be operated from the outside. Further, a cable 6 is connected to the case 1 for communicating with a word processor 11 (shown in the third figure) as print data supply means.

The second illustration shows a state in which the front cover 3 has been removed, and the above-mentioned running wheels 4 . . . and the printing means 7 are provided at the bottom of the case 1. At the top of the case 1, there are running wheels 4...
A drive motor 8 for driving the printing means 7 and a control means 9 for the drive motor 8 are provided.

Further, a ribbon cassette 10 for supplying an ink ribbon to the printing means 7 is provided in the center of the case 1.

The third illustration is a circuit block diagram for controlling a self-propelled small printer, in which data in the word processor 11 is sent out through the cable 6 and stored in the storage circuit 91 via the input/output control device 93. . A start/stop signal is supplied from the switch 5 to the input/output control device 93, and the number of characters to be printed for one line (X) is set by the DIP code switch 94. 92 is a central processing unit,
A head driver 7 for controlling a motor driver 81 that drives the drive motor 8 via an input/output control device 93 and for supplying data in the memory circuit 91 to the printing means 7.
Control 1. By driving the drive motor 8,
The running wheels 4 rotate at a predetermined rotational speed to move the small printer, and the ribbon cassette 10 is driven to supply the ink ribbon to a printing position device by the printing means 7. 12 is a power source.

When connected to processor 11 with cable 6, power supply 1
2 may not be provided on the small printer side, but the power source of the word processor 11 may be used.

When transferring data entered into the word processor 11 to a small printer, first display the data on the word processor's display, enter the necessary text, make corrections, etc., and then print the page on the word processor side. By pressing a print command key such as the
The displayed data is transferred to the small printer.

Memory circuit 91 is word processor 11 in this embodiment.
It has a storage capacity for one screen.

The printing operation of the word processor will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Prior to the data transfer from the word processor 11 as described above, the small printer side uses the DIP
The code switch 94 is used to set the number of characters (X) to be printed in one line. When the print command key is then pressed, the data to be printed displayed on the word processor 11 is stored in the memory circuit 91 with each line edited into X characters. Then, the user takes the small printer, places it on a desired paper such as a notebook, supports it lightly with his hand, and presses the start switch 5. The drive motor 8 and printing means 7 are driven by a command from the central processing unit 92 to print one character on the paper, and the small printer moves by one character. Next, it is determined whether the stop switch 5 has been pressed, and if no, it is determined whether the number of prints has reached Characters are printed, and the above operations are continuously repeated until X characters have been printed, and the small printer moves at a constant speed over one line of paper. When the number of prints reaches X and it is judged as YES, a command to stop the motor is issued and the drive motor 8 is stopped. Then, the user manually moves the small printer to the next line position and presses the start switch 5 again. Then, the same operation as above is performed, and continuous printing for one line is completed. In this way, when all the lines have been printed and on the last line, even if it is judged as no because it does not reach the X character, it is judged whether or not the data printing has finished.
If this is YES, a command to stop the motor is issued, the drive motor 8 is stopped, and the data printing operation on the notebook is completed. If the stop switch 5 is pressed during printing, a command to stop the motor is immediately issued and the drive motor 8 is stopped.

The connection between the small printer and the word processor 11 is as follows.
This is not limited to the method performed using the cable 6, and may be performed wirelessly. When connected to the word processor 11 by the cable 6, the power source 12 may not be provided on the small printer side, and the power source of the word processor 11 may be used.

It is also possible to provide a data transfer key as an additional mechanism on the word processor 11 side as a print command key.

In this case, when the data transfer key is pressed, the user is asked "from where to where," and the user specifies the transfer area using the cursor. Then, by pressing the data transfer key again, the data in the designated area is transferred to the small printer side. Either an impact type or a non-impact type can be adopted as the printing method.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, data input into a word processor can be easily printed on any paper such as a notebook or a notebook, and it is easy to operate and has a configuration. It is simple, compact, and can be provided at a low price, making it extremely useful.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view, FIG. 2 is a front view with the front cover removed, FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram, and FIG. 4 is a flow chart. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Case, 4... Running wheel, 5... Switch, 7... Printing means, 8... Drive motor, 9...
. . . Control means, 91 . . . Storage circuit, 92 . . . Central processing unit, 11 . . . Print data supply means.゛(
Word processor) Figure 3 Figure 4

Claims (1)

[Claims] A printing means and a running wheel are disposed at the bottom of the case, a drive motor for the running wheel and a control means for controlling the drive motor and the printing means are disposed inside the case, and a part of the case is disposed externally. The control means is capable of communicating with an external print data supply means, and the control means is capable of communicating with an external print data supply means, and is configured to control the data sent from the print data supply means. and a central processing unit that receives the start/stop signal and controls the drive of the drive motor and the printing means based on the data. printer.