JPS5957772A - Printing-controlling system for heat-sensitive printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable to arbitrarily select printing speed and printed quality in accordance with use, by providing an operation-setting part for arbitrarily setting a signal-generating period of a printing timing generator and a selecting part for changing a printing parameter in accordance with a value set by the setting part. CONSTITUTION:Periods of a CRMP signal 102 and a DPR signal 103 outputted from the timing signal generator 10 are changed by a TC signal 101 outputted from a timing adjustor 11, whereby printing speed is changed. Further, by the TC signal 101 outputted from the timing adjustor 11, a printing parameter suitable for the printing speed is supplied from a printing parameter selector 40 to a head-driving circuit 31. By operating a switch on the timing adjustor 11, it is possible to select between high-speed printing and low-speed printing. For example, high-speed printing is adopted in the case of a rough copy, and low-speed printing (high-quality printing) is adopted in the case of a fair copy.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Technical field of invention] The present invention relates to a printing control method for a thermal printer.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

A thermal printer has a head having one or more rows of heating elements (pixels), and prints on paper by applying power to each heating element in accordance with recording pixel data to generate heat locally.

Therefore, the printing process is relatively slow, and generally speaking, if the printing speed is increased, the printing quality may deteriorate.

On the other hand, from the user's point of view, there are cases where they want to print quickly even if the print quality is somewhat poor because of the bottom-line format.
Since it is a fair copy, there are cases where you want to print clearly even if it is a little slow.

However, since conventional thermal printers must ensure a reasonably high printing quality, the printing speed is slow and fixed. cannot respond to

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances.
An object of the present invention is to provide a printing control method for a thermal printer that allows printing quality to be arbitrarily selected depending on the application.

[Summary of the invention]

The present invention has a configuration in which the signal generation cycle of a timing generator that generates data print signals supplied to the data pad, 77a, and head drive circuit, and a carriage motor drive signal supplied to the carriage motor drive circuit can be arbitrarily varied. , the printing speed can be selected arbitrarily.This allows the user to easily select the desired printing quality and printing speed according to the purpose of use, expanding the uses of thermal printers and increasing efficiency. All operations can be measured.

[Embodiments of the invention]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1st
The figure is a block diagram showing one embodiment of the present invention. In the figure,
10 is a timing generator that generates a carry, a horn motor drive signal (hereinafter referred to as CRMD signal) 102, a data print signal (hereinafter referred to as DPR (hereinafter referred to as g) 103, etc.; 11 is a timing generator that generates the signal generation timing of the timing generator 10; This is a timing adjuster that outputs a /ξ-th timing control signal (hereinafter referred to as TC signal) 101 based on a preset /ξ state.2
0 is CRM output from timing generator 10
A CR motor drive circuit that drives and controls two caliper motors (hereinafter referred to as C11 motors) in accordance with D No. 1 (2);
22 is the CR motor 2 drive color and goes to 1. 32 to 1
It is a carrier and a horn that transports it in a fixed direction.

30 is data for storing data to be printed/Z sofa;
3 is this data. Sofa 30 read data 10.
040, which is a head drive circuit that drives the thermal head 32, adjusts the print speed according to TC46 No. 101 output from the timing controller 11 in order to output print according to the 4t DPR signal and print speed. Printing/Grameter (Here, PULS 1/PULS
2) f: Printing node j supplied to the head 0 drive circuit 31
is a parameter selector.

Figure 2 shows timing generator 1 in Figure 1 above.
0. Timing adjuster 11. 2 is a circuit block diagram specifically showing the configuration of a printing parameter selector 40. FIG. In the figure, 200 is a printing speed selection switch (sw), 20 is an oscillator (O8C), 202.203 is a flip-flop, 204° 2051d is a monostable multivibrator, 206 is an inverter, 207 to 210 are AND gates, 211, 212 is an oak base.

Here, the printing speed is selected by switching between high-speed and low-speed inclination using the switch 200, and the pressure (Vll) applied to the heat generating element of the printhead, head, and 92 is constant, and the application/releasing ( The 11 ducks (PULS) are made into a 47g configuration that can be switched according to the setting state of the switch 200.

Fig. 3(a) e (b+ is each application outputted by the printing parameter selector 40) 9 puls
PULS2) is a waveform diagram. Here, when the switch 200 is in the OFF state (high-speed printing), the seal 3 outputted by the mono-staple multivibrator 204 (
a) Is the applied pulse (PUI, Sl) of a faint width the print A? It is supplied to the head drive circuit 3 as a parameter,
When the switch 200 is on (low speed printing; high print quality), the monostable multivibrator 205 applies IL pulses (PULS 2) with a width as shown in FIG. 3 (+).5. It can be supplied to Mid 4rb M path 3.

The operation of one embodiment will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. From the timing generator 10, CIζMD
(No. g) When 02 is output, CR motor drive circuit 2
0 operates, the CR motor 21 rotates, and the carrier 22 to which the head 32 is attached moves.

On the other hand, the DPR signal 10 from the timing generator 10
3 is output, successive data 104 is read out from the data buffer 30 in which print data is stored in advance and transferred to the head drive circuit 3.

The head drive circuit 31 receives the DPR signal 103 output from the timing generator 10 and the data buffer sofa 30.
The head 32 having a plurality of pixels is driven to perform printing based on the data 104 read from the print head.

The above is the general operation of a thermal serial printer.

In this example, the timing generator 1 receives the TC signal 101 output from the timing controller 1.
The cycles of the CRMD signal 102 and the DPR signal 103 output from 0 change. Therefore, the printing speed will change. Further, in response to the TC signal 101 outputted from the timing controller 1, the printing parameter selector 40 supplies printing parameters suitable for the printing speed to the RAD drive circuit 31. Here, Figures 2 and 3 (a
), (as shown in bl, the voltage (VH) applied to the heating element of the head 32 is fixed, and the application/l pulse width is switched. That is, the switch (S
W) If 200 is turned off, 5EL = 1, 5
EL=0 and the print cycle (CLK) is CLK.
1 is selected and I as the printing pulse width (PULS).
) ULS 1 is selected. Also, switch (SW)
When 200 is turned on, 5EL=0°5EL=1, and CLK 2 and PULS 2 are selected.

In this way, the switch (SW
),? By operating Oof, you can select between high-speed printing and low-speed printing.For example, for a draft, you can select ``high-speed printing'' + ``6''? for a ``high-quality printing'', depending on the purpose. You can use it differently depending on your needs.

The above has described a serial printer using a head with one row of heating elements or multiple rows of heating elements, but a line printer using a head with one horizontal row or several rows of heating elements or an IK It can also be applied to printing devices that use heads with heating elements. In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, for convenience of explanation, the printing speed is set using an on/off switch (S
W), it is configured to simply switch between two stages of "high speed printing" and "low speed printing", but it is also possible to switch the printing speed continuously or in multiple stages using, for example, a variable resistor, a multi-contact changeover switch, etc. It is easily achievable.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a printing control system in a thermal printer in which printing speed and printed items can be arbitrarily selected depending on the application.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The figure shows an embodiment of the present invention in 1996. 6" 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a circuit block diagram showing the configuration of the main parts shown in Fig. 1 above. Figure 3-(a)
, (b) are signal waveform diagrams showing signals selectively output from the printing parameter selector shown in FIG. 2 above. 10... Timing generator, 1... Timing adjuster, 20... CR motor drive circuit, 2...
・CR motor (caritsuno motor), 22...caritsuno, 30...r-tanoku, 7hua, 3no...to,
Radar drive circuit, 32... to Radar (thermal head), 40... printing parameter selector.

Claims (1)

[Claims] In a thermal printer that drives and controls a thermal head based on a print control signal υ generated by a timing generator, a print parameter l that defines a print drive condition, and print data, the 4iT generation cycle of the timing generator is It has an operation setting section for arbitrarily setting, and a printing parameter selection section for selecting the printing/parameter km according to the setting state of this operation setting section, and selects the printing speed according to the number of operations and prints the selected printing. A printing system for thermal printers that is characterized by variable printing parameters depending on the speed of use.