JPH03183572A - printer - 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] [Field of Industrial Application] This invention relates to a printer, and particularly to a WYS of a host machine.
The present invention relates to a printer that can support IWYG functions.

[Conventional technology]

Document creation device or DT that can be connected to any printer
In microcomputers running application software such as P, word processors, etc.,
I WY G (What You 5eeIs W
The "hat you get" function, ie, the ability to display exactly the same content as the printer's output on the editing work screen of a CRT or the like, is becoming more and more important.

Does the document processing device or microcomputer software that is the host machine accurately know the type, size, format, etc. of the character font of the connected printer, or does the host machine have the same font as the printer's font? This feature was relatively easy to implement in some cases.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, since there are many printers on the market and each printer has a variety of fonts, the host machine (including its software) must use the same font (or its information) as the font of all printers. ), and as a practical matter, only some printers have fonts, so the WYSIWYG function can only be achieved in combination with some of these printers.

Moreover, even when combined with some of these printers, the printer can download fonts (from external memory to RAM).
When using a different font that the printer does not originally have, such as a font read in above) or a font car (removable font ROM), the host machine often cannot cover it.

Furthermore, for new fonts announced after the document creation device or application software was released, it is necessary to replace the system or develop additional software in order to add the font (or information), which is extremely difficult to do. It was difficult.

This invention has been made in view of the above points, and is a printer that assists the host machine or its software to always perform its WYSIWYG function even if it does not have the font or information of the connected printer. The purpose is to provide

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a printer equipped with a font for printing characters and a bidirectional communication means for communicating with a host machine. Screen font creation means for creating a screen font for the host machine to display, on its work screen, characters in the same font as the font of characters printed by the printer in response to a command;
A screen font sending means is provided for sending the screen font created by the screen font creating means to the host machine via the two-way communication means 48.

[For production]

According to the printer configured in this way, in response to an instruction from the host machine, the screen font creation means uses the font of the characters printed by the printer to create a screen font for the host machine to display characters of the same font on its work screen. Create a screen font.

Next, the screen font sending means sends the created screen font to the host machine through the bidirectional communication means.

Therefore, by storing the input screen font in RAM and using it as a download font, the host machine can print characters of the same font on the work screen even if the printer does not have the font or information for the character to be printed. It can be displayed.

〔Example〕

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

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

The printer 1 includes a font 2, a screen font creation means 3, a screen font sending means 5, and a bidirectional communication means 6, and the bidirectional communication means 6 communicates with the host machine 1.
It is connected to CPU II of 0.

The CPU II is connected to the RAM 12 in the host machine 10, and is connected to a keyboard 13 as an external input device and a CRTL 4 as an output device having a work screen.

The printer 1 may have only 11 fonts 2, but high-performance printers may have several fonts, such as Courier, p, Roman, etc.
Since fonts such as Gothic are available, you need to specify the name of the font you want to print.

When a font sending command specifying a font name, size, etc. is input from the CPUI Q via the bidirectional communication means 8, the screen font creation means 3 selects the specified font from the fonts 2 and converts it to the specified size. After the creation of the screen font 4 is completed, the screen font sending means 5 creates the screen font 4 that has been created.
is sent to the host machine 10 via the two-way communication means 6.

Since the CPU 11 of the host machine 10 stores input data to the screen phone 1 in the RAM 12 and uses it as a download font, the host machine 10 always has the same font as the printer 1 when necessary.

Therefore, the character code input from the keyboard 13 is treated as the same character as the character printed by the printer 1, depending on the downloaded font stored in the RAM 12.
Displayed on RT14.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram mainly showing a configuration example of the controller portion of this printer 1. As shown in FIG.

The controller 20 includes a CPU 2 l and a program.

R that stores tables, font 2 (Figure 1), constant data, etc.
Various devices are connected to the OM 22, a RAM 25 for temporarily storing data, which has a screen font area, a bitmap area, a download font area, etc. as needed, and an expansion RAM 24 that can be expanded as needed. Host I/F 25, which is an I/F (interface) having a bidirectional communication function. Engine I/F2
B.

Options:, tl/F27. Disk I/F28. It consists of a panel I/F 29 and is connected to each other by a pass line.

The host machine 10 is connected to the host I/F 25, which is the bidirectional communication means 6 (Fig. 1), the printer engine 31, which is the main mechanism of the printer 1, is connected to the engine I/F 2B, and the panel I/F 29 is connected to the operator. Various switches (not shown) are input/output devices.

Operation panels 32 each having a display section are connected.

The option I/F 27 includes removable card-type RAM cards 33. The ROM card '54 is installed.

In general, the RAM card 33 is backed up by a battery, and the ROM card 34 can be used as an easily replaceable optional font. Often used.

The disk I/F 28 includes a hard disk (HD) driver 35, which is a large-capacity external storage device and is not replaceable but takes a short access time, and a floppy disk that uses a floppy disk that takes a long access time but is replaceable. (FD) The driver 36 is connected.

CPU2 l is connected from host machine 10 to host I/F2
5 and input mode from the operator through the operation panel 32. The entire printer 1 is controlled according to the program stored in ROM>2 according to the mode instructed via the panel I/F 29, and the engine I/F 2B
The printer engine 31 is commanded via the printer engine 31, and the information is inputted to display necessary data on the operation panel 32.

The CPU 21 also has the function of a sub-CPU that uses the CPU Ull of the host machine 10 as the main CPU, and inputs original image data such as character codes and graphic data from the host machine 10 and stores the single character code in the ROM 22. The graphics data is developed into a bitmap using a specified font in the font 2 that is currently available, and graphic data with two black and white gradations is developed into a bitmap as is, and graphic data with multiple gradations is developed into a bitmap by dither processing or the like.

The image data developed into a bitmap in this way is
M23. It is edited and stored in a bitmap area provided on the extension 24, and outputted to the printer engine 31 as a video signal synchronized with the image clock according to the image clock and request signal from the printer engine 31 to be printed.

Furthermore, the CPU 21 executes the host machine 10 prior to printing.
C: In response to a font sending command input from PUll, a specified font is selected from font 2, a screen font of a specified size is created, and the screen font is sent to the host machine 10.

Hereinafter, this screen font creation and withdrawal will be explained in detail with reference to FIG. 3 and subsequent figures.

As shown in FIG. 3, the structure (an example) of a general command signal input from the host machine 10 is an escape character (hereinafter referred to as rEscJ, 1-byte long IB in ASCII: I-code). The format starts with ), followed by a command word, followed by five or fewer parameters, and finally ends with a semicolon r;J (38H).

Depending on the type of instruction, the length of the instruction, the contents of the parameters,
The number and length are different, and there is a comma r between command words, parameters, and parameters,'' (2cr-x)
separated by.

However, if one parameter consists of multiple elements, such as a parameter (x, y) indicating a position, each element is separated by a colon r:J (3AII).

Also, all spaces following the comma "," and colon ":", that is, the spaces before each parameter, are ignored.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a main routine in which the CPU 21 of the controller 1-roller 20 processes commands or data signals input from the host machine 10. - is a flow diagram showing a subroutine that jumps from the main routine to process related instructions;

The main routine shown in Figure 4 is suspended.

When a signal from the host machine 10 is received via the host I/F 25, it is determined whether the signal is Esc.

In the following explanation, it is assumed that the 5-person power belief is limited to commands or character data (character codes), and graphic data is not input. Screen fonts are also called rS FJ.

If the manually input signal is not Esc, it is determined that it is character data to be printed, and it is printed, converted into a bitmap using the specified font, and stored in the RAM 23 or additional R.
After expanding to the bitmap area on A and M 24 and performing editing processing such as moving the print position, the process returns to receiving the next signal.

If it is Esc, it is interpreted that the command starts from the next command, and the signals up to the input of ", J" indicating the break are received as command words.

Next, the type of command is determined, and four types of commands related to screen font (SF) are determined by successive four determinations, namely, SF data size transmission, SF common data transmission, SF specific data transmission, and built-in font information. When it is determined to be sent, the respective subroutines are executed and the process returns to the next signal amount Io.

If all of the four judgments are negative, it is interpreted as a normal command, and after processing each routine, the next command is executed.
Return to reception.

For example, if the command is a start/end command for bold printing or underline printing. Turn on or off the bold flag or underline flag to set or cancel their printing.

Further, if the command is a page output command, the image data in the bitmap area in the RAM 23 and the additional RAM 24 is output to the printer engine 31 as bidet No. 4'B via the engine I/F 2B. is printed on media such as paper or film.

These normal command routines are similar to conventional printers.

The subroutine shown in FIG. 5 executes an SF data size sending command.

This command is followed by the font name indicating the name of the font, and the numerical values indicating the pixel density in the horizontal and vertical directions (hereinafter referred to as rH-dpiJ and rV-dpiJ, respectively) in dots per inch. .

Set the screen font size to points (1/7
The font size in units of 2 inches) follows each as a parameter.

For example, the font is Fourier, and the H-dpi is 50°V-d.
pi 60. When specifying the font size as 12, the parameters following the command word are Courier, 5
It is expressed as 0:60.12;

Therefore, when jumping to this subroutine, after reading the parameters of the phono L-name, H-dpi, and V-dpL font size (F size) that are included in the command word, the calculation of the data size (SF data size) is executed. do.

In other words, use a screen font that can display all characters of the font specified by the font name parameter on the work screen with the pixel density specified by both the H and V pixel density parameters, and at the size specified by the font size parameter. Calculate the data size of the created screen font bitmap in bytes using the following formula.

(Data size) = (Number of bytes per font) x (Number of font characters) + (Length of font header) Here, the cell size is in pixels (bits).

Assuming that the length unit of each header is by1-, the number of bytes per character is (number of bytes per character) = (cell size H) x (cell size V) ÷ 8 + (length of character header ).

The character header contains information that differs for each character other than the font bitmap, such as standard horizontal movement amount, width and height of characters in a cell, among the information sent by the printer when commanding to send SF-specific data, which will be described later. It includes.

Therefore, with the specification by the parameters above.

The cell size is 95 characters both horizontally and vertically, and the header length is 1.
6 bytes, the number of characters in the font is 220, and the length of the font header is 64 bytes, (number of bytes per character) = 9 x 9 ÷ 8 + 16 = 26.125 → 27 (data size) = 27 x 220 + 64 = 6004, i.e. , the number of bytes per character is rounded up to 27 bytes, so the data size is calculated as 6004 bytes.

After calculating this data size, each parameter is sent to the host machine for confirmation, and then
The calculated data size is sent from the printer to the Courier, 50: 60. 12.6004
; data is sent to the host 1-machine, and the process returns to the main routine.

The host machine sets an area for a screen font to be a downloaded font according to the SF data size sent by this command.

The subroutine shown in FIG. 6 executes an SF common data sending command.

The parameters following this command word are the same as the SF data size sending command, so their explanation will be omitted.

When jumping to this subroutine, as in the SF data size sending subroutine (FIG. 5), first, after reading each parameter, parameters are sent for confirmation immediately.

Next, all characters of the font specified by the line I/name parameter can be displayed in the size specified by the font size parameter on the work screen with the pixel density specified by the H, v - pixel Vi degree parameter. 11 information in a screen font.

That is, the number of characters in the font, the cell size (width and height), the reference position of the characters in the cell, that is, the origin coordinates, the distance between the characters (of the L'X point coordinates), that is, the default 1 - horizontal movement amount, Information such as the amount of line feed, that is, the amount of default vertical movement, etc. is sent to the host machine as data in the same format as in the case of sending the SF data size, and the process returns to the main routine.

The subroutine shown in FIG. 7 executes an SF-specific data sending command.

The parameters following this command are also the same as the SF data size sending command.

When jumping to this subroutine, as in the SF data size sending subroutine (FIG. 5), after each parameter has been read, the parameters are immediately sent for confirmation.

Next, information that differs depending on each character for all characters of the font specified by the font name parameter, that is, H
, V A screen font for one character that can be displayed in the font size specified by the line 1-size parameter on the work screen with the pixel density specified by the pixel density parameters is created using the specified font.

The created screen phone h for one character is sent as an ASCII code for that character, then as a bitmap, and finally the horizontal movement amount unique to that character is sent out.
■The transmission of the character-specific data is completed.

If the printer's built-in phono 1- is a vector phon 1- that extracts and stores the characteristics of each character, it can be enlarged or reduced (or transformed) in any way without degrading the quality of the characters. It is already known that even bitmap fonts can be enlarged or reduced, although the quality of the characters will deteriorate to some extent.

The amount of horizontal movement is unique data that varies depending on the character,
Larger for wide characters, smaller for narrower characters. Enlargement/reduction can be easily obtained by multiplying the horizontal movement amount of the original font by the enlargement/reduction ratio.

The routine for each character is repeated as many times as the number of characters, and when the transmission of unique data for all characters is completed, the process returns to the main routine.

The subroutine shown in FIG. 8 executes a command to send built-in font information.

Unlike other instructions related to screen fonts, this command does not have any parameters following the command word. Therefore, when jumping to this subroutine, the printer's RO
M22 (Figure 2), RAM23 and additional RRAM downloaded from the host machine 10 or floppy disk
24. The types of all printer built-in fonts stored in the installed ROM card 34, phono 1-cartridge, hard disk, etc. are sent as font numbers.

Next, the font name, font size, and font storage location are sent for each of the fonts, and when the sending is completed, the process returns to the main routine.

Here, the font size is expressed in points, 1
If the phono i- can be used in multiple sizes, all the sizes are sent, and if the font is a vector font and can be used in any size, the font size is indicated as "0".

Furthermore, since the phono 1 storage location (code or address indicating the storage location) is sent, the host machine can always know whether or not it can be used depending on the storage location.

For example, fonts stored in the ROM22 can always be used, but fonts stored in other Mj5 storage devices are treated as built-in in the printer if a built-in font information sending command is issued. Since the phono 1- is not necessarily built-in when actually printing is executed, it is necessary to check whether the phono 1- is ready for use immediately before outputting the print 1- command.

In most cases, the font 1- is built-in, so you can start printing right away, but if it is not built-in and you know where the font is stored, you can use the Display an error message such as "Please install the ROM card containing the B font" or "Please insert the floppy disk containing the B font into the FD driver" and ask the operator to set the font. I can do it.

As explained above, according to this embodiment, WYSIW
In response to a command from a host machine with a YG function, the printer selects a designated font from among the fonts it has in its ROM or fonts installed as an option, and prints characters in the font size specified by that font. Creates a screen font that can be displayed on the work screen and sends it to the host machine.

By using the sent screen font as a downloaded font, the host machine can display characters on the work screen in the same font and size as the characters output by the printer.

Even if the specified font is not built into the printer because a different font option is installed or the downloaded font has been deleted by mistake, if it is in the host machine's phono 1~ repertoire, the printer will print it. If the font is not installed in the host machine, it will prompt the operator to install the ROM card, font cartridge, floppy disk, etc. containing the font, and then execute the above process. It can call for attention.

Therefore, a host machine with a built-in fixed program such as a document creation device or application software for a microcomputer can have WYSIWYG functions even if it does not have all the information about the built-in phono and optional fonts of all printers. Because it can be fully utilized, development becomes easier without the need for extra research or effort.
Costs can also be kept low.

Furthermore, even if the font was released after the host machine or application software was released, the printer's support allows it to perform the WYSI W Y 0 function.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, even if the host machine or its software does not have the font or information of the connected printer, it always
It is possible to provide a printer that supports the YSIWYG function by issuing and receiving a single message.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the controller, and FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration of the command signal. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a main routine for processing the instruction and data No. 43, and FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a subroutine used by the main routine. 1...Printer 2...Font 3...
-Screen font creation means 4...Screen font 5...Screen font sending means 6...Two-way communication means 10...Host machine 14...CRT (work screen display device) 20...Controller 21 ... CPU (Screen font creation means. Screen font sending means) 25 ... Host hI/F (two-way communication means) Fig. 5 Fig. 8

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A printer equipped with a font for printing characters and a bidirectional communication means with a host machine, in response to a command received from the host machine via the bidirectional communication means. a screen font creation means for creating a screen font for the host machine to display on its work screen characters in the same font as the characters printed by the printer; and a screen font created by the screen font creation means. and screen font sending means for sending screen fonts to the host machine via the two-way communication means.