Technique for controlling the position of a driving motor and a print head

• US 6,000,869 A
• Filed: 06/19/1997
• Issued: 12/14/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Funai Electric Co., Ltd., Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Sung-Hee
• Primary Examiner(s): Burr, Edgar
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nolan, Jr., Charles H.
• Application Number:
  US08/879,194
• Time in Patent Office: 908 Days
• Field of Search: 400/174, 400/175, 400/279, 400/320, 400/322, 400/323, 400/903
• US Class Current: 400/279
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 19/202 Drive control means for carriage movement

Abstract

A device for accurately controlling the positions of a driving motor and a print head and enhancing print quality by sensing the position of the driving motor by occurring pulses from a timer at shorter intervals than predetermined step units and synchronously driving the print head with control of the driving motor, includes a synchronizing pulse generator for generating high speed synchronizing pulses for controlling the position of the driving motor and the print head, a position controller for synchronously controlling the position of the driving motor with divided generated pulses, a print head controller for synchronously controlling the position of the print head with the divided generated pulse, an interrupt controller for receiving interrupt signals generated in the position controller during the acceleration and deceleration of the driving motor and for generating interrupt in the priority order, and a CPU (central processing unit) for generating interrupts according to interrupt request signals, setting time in the generator, outputting signals for controlling the driving motor according to the set time during the acceleration and deceleration periods and governing all the component blocks.

Claims

1. A device for controlling the position of a driving motor and a print head comprising:

a synchronizing pulse generator for generating synchronizing pulses to control the position of the driving motor and the print head;

a position controller for generating first divided synchronizing pulses by dividing said synchronizing pulses generated by said synchronizing pulse generator, and synchronously controlling the position of the driving motor with said first divided synchronizing pulses;

a print head controller for generating second divided synchronizing pulses by dividing said synchronizing pulses generated by said synchronizing pulse generator, and synchronously controlling the position of the print head with said second divided synchronizing pulses;

a control circuit for generating interrupt signals in a priority order corresponding to interrupt requiring request signals which are generated by said position controller while the driving motor accelerates or decelerates in its rotation; and

a central processing unit for setting time values corresponding to said interrupt signals from said control circuit, outputting signals for driving the driving motor corresponding to said time values while the driving motor accelerates or decelerates its rotation, and controlling said components.

2. The device of claim 1, said position controller comprising:

a first scaler for generating pulse signals to drive the driving motor by dividing the pulses generated in said synchronizing pulse generator;

an interrupt signal generator for generating signals to drive the driving motor while the driving motor rotates at a uniform speed, and generating step interrupt signals while the driving motor accelerates or decelerates in its rotation;

a driving motor setting means in which said central processing unit sets a value corresponding to an excitation mode of the driving motor;

a pulse generator for generating pulses to drive the driving motor according to said signals from said interrupt signal generator and said signals from said driving motor setting means; and

a first control circuit for driving the driving motor according to the pulse signals from said pulse generator.

3. The device of claim 1, said print head controller comprising:

a voltage generator for generating pulse signals by dividing the pulses from said synchronizing pulse generator, and for generating a voltage for driving the print head; and

a voltage controller for controlling the voltage generator by synchronizing with the pulses from said synchronizing pulse generator.

4. The device of claim 3, said voltage controller comprising:

a sensor for synchronously counting the position of the driving motor with the pulse signals from said synchronizing pulse generator;

a comparator for comparing the position of the driving motor sensed by said sensor and the position to be printed; and

a print mode controller for controlling said voltage generator according to the result from said comparator.

5. The device of claim 3, said voltage generator comprising:

a second scaler for generating voltage for driving nozzle according to the print mode set by said print mode controller by dividing the pulse signals from said synchronizing pulse generator;

a means for setting pulse intervals for synchronously driving the nozzle with said pulse signals from said second scaler;

a counter for synchronously counting the columns to be printed with the pulse signals from said second scaler and disabling the signals for driving the nozzle by sending signals indicating the completion of printing job to said print mode controller; and

a second drive circuit for driving the nozzle of the print head for the amount of the time determined by said means for setting pulse intervals.

6. The device of claim 1, said control circuit generating interrupt signals only during the acceleration/deceleration of the driving motor.

7. The device of claim 1, said synchronizing pulse generator generating pulses having a higher frequency than that of the pulses for driving the driving motor and the pulses for driving the print head.

8. The device of claim 1, said driving motor being a step motor.

17. The device of claim 2, said driving motor being a step motor.

18. The device of claim 3, said driving motor being a step motor.

19. The device of claim 4, said driving motor being a step motor.

20. The device of claim 5, said driving motor being a step motor.

21. The device of claim 6, said driving motor being a step motor.

22. The device of claim 7, said driving motor being a step motor.

9. A method of controlling the position of a driving motor and a print head comprising the steps of:

setting a control value in a means for setting a number of pulses and a pulse generator according to an excitation mode of the driving motor;

setting a time value for driving said pulse generator and a first scaler;

moving a counter up or down relative to a rotating direction of the driving motor; and

controlling the driving motor and the print head.

10. The method of claim 9, said control value setting step comprising the steps of:

setting said means for setting a number of pulses and said pulse generator in a 2 phase excitation mode when the driving motor is in a 2 phase excitation mode; and

setting said means for setting a number of pulses and said pulse generator in a 1-2 phase excitation mode when the driving motor is in a 1-2 phase excitation mode.

11. The method of claim 9, said time value setting step comprising the steps of:

setting the time value in said pulse generator, said first scaler and a second scaler for moving one step; and

driving said pulse generator and said first scaler after setting the position value for the driving motor and for performing a printing job.

12. The method of claim 9, said counter moving step comprising the steps of:

operating a sensor in an up-counter mode when the driving motor rotates in a positive direction; and

operating said sensor in a down-counter mode when the driving motor rotates in a negative direction.

13. The method of claim 9, said controlling step comprising the steps of:

controlling the drive of the driving motor according to the operation of a counter; and

synchronously controlling the print head with the drive of the driving motor.

14. The method of claim 13, said driving motor controlling step comprising the steps of:

driving the driving motor according to an interrupt occurrence during acceleration and deceleration periods of the driving motor; and

driving the driving motor according to the operation of said pulse generator during a uniform speed period of the driving motor.

15. The method of claim 13, said print head controlling step comprising the steps of:

driving said print mode controller and said second scaler when a position of the driving motor and a position to be printed correspond;

performing printing a job by generating voltage for driving a nozzle according to the operation of said print mode controller and said second scaler;

counting a line to be printed according to the process of the printing job; and

stopping the operation of said print mode controller and said second scaler upon completion of printing the line.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

23. The method of claim 10, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

24. The method of claim 11, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

25. The method of claim 12, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

26. The method of claim 13, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

27. The method of claim 14, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.

28. The method of claim 15, further comprising providing a step motor as said driving motor.