Method for aligning text to baseline grids and to CJK character grids

• US 20040268255A1
• Filed: 02/12/2001
• Published: 12/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Adobe Inc.
• Original Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated (Adobe Inc.)
• Inventors: McCully, Nathaniel M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,305,617 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/245
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/109 Font handling; Temporal or kinetic typography

Abstract

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, implementing and using techniques for controlling forced grid line spacing. The height of text consisting of a plurality of characters to be arranged within a current line in a grid displayed on a display device is determined. If the height of the text is larger than a specified dimension for the grid, an arrangement region that includes the current line and at least one subsequent line is demarcated. A coordination line within the arrangement region according to a selected coordination mode is set and the plurality of characters is arranged within the arrangement region while coordinating the plurality of characters with the coordination line. This provides an electronic typesetting technology that can automatically and swiftly perform forced grid line spacing without requiring complicated manual operations by the user.

Claims

1. A computer program product, stored on a machine-readable medium, comprising instructions operable to cause a programmable processor to:

determine the height of text consisting of a plurality of characters to be arranged within a current line in a grid displayed on a display device;

demarcate an arrangement region that includes the current line and at least one subsequent line if the height of the text is larger than a specified dimension for the grid;

set a coordination line within the arrangement region according to a selected coordination mode; and

arrange the plurality of characters within the arrangement region while coordinating the plurality of characters with the coordination line.

2. The product of claim 1, wherein the grid is a frame grid that is movable to a desired position on a page of an electronic document displayed on the display device in order to arrange data to be typeset on the page, the grid having a plurality of lines, each line comprising a plurality of cells.

3. The product of claim 2, wherein the grid is a CJK character grid.

4. The product of claim 1, wherein the specified dimension of the grid is a font point dimension selected when the grid is created by the user on the display device.

5. The product of claim 1, wherein the coordination mode comprises a top coordination mode, a midpoint coordination mode, a baseline coordination mode, and a bottom coordination mode.

6. The product of claim 1, wherein each character in the plurality of characters has an associated embox and the maximum dimension of the current line is the dimension of the largest embox associated with the plurality of characters.

7. The product of claim 6, wherein the embox vertically and horizontally delimits the point dimensions of each character and is an essentially square frame surrounding the character glyph.

8. A method for controlling forced grid line spacing, comprising:

determining the height of text that includes a plurality of characters to be arranged within a current line in a grid displayed on a display device;

demarcating an arrangement region that includes the current line and at least one subsequent line if the height of the text is larger than a specified dimension for the grid;

setting a coordination line within the arrangement region according to a selected coordination mode; and

arranging the plurality of characters within the arrangement region while coordinating the plurality of characters with the coordination line.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the grid is a frame grid that is movable to a desired position on a page of an electronic document displayed on the display device in order to arrange data to be typeset on the page, the grid having a plurality of lines, each line comprising a plurality of cells.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the grid is a CJK character grid.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the specified dimension of the grid is a font point dimension selected when the grid is created by the user on the display device.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the coordination mode comprises a top coordination mode, a midpoint coordination mode, a baseline coordination mode, and a bottom coordination mode.

13. The method of claim 8, wherein each character in the plurality of characters has an associated embox and the maximum dimension of the current line is the dimension of the largest embox associated with the plurality of characters.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the embox vertically and horizontally delimits the point dimensions of each character and is a substantially square frame surrounding the character glyph.

15. A desktop publishing system for controlling forced grid line spacing, comprising:

a desktop publishing processing control device provided with a font file, the font file storing character font information for performing typesetting, and with typesetting control means having a control means for forced grid line spacing;

a display device displaying data being typeset; and

input means for user input;

the control means for forced grid line spacing being arranged to;

determine whether a maximum dimension of a plurality of characters to be arranged according to a selected coordination mode within a current line of a grid displayed on the display device exceeds a specified dimension of the grid;

select a current line and at least one subsequent line; and

arrange the plurality of characters within an arrangement space demarcated by the selected plurality of lines, based on the coordination mode.

16. A method for controlling forced grid line spacing, comprising:

determining whether a maximum dimension of a plurality of characters to be arranged according to a selected coordination mode within a current line of a grid displayed on a display device exceeds a specified dimension of the grid;

selecting a current line and at least one subsequent line; and

arranging the plurality of characters within an arrangement space demarcated by the selected current line and at least one subsequent line, based on the selected coordination mode.