Printing apparatus

• US 8,049,770 B2
• Filed: 06/05/2009
• Issued: 11/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/12/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Tec Corporation (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Matsuda, Okiharu, Yoshikoshi, Kazuyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, HUAN HUU
• Application Number:
  US12/479,011
• Publication Number:
  US 20090309948A1
• Time in Patent Office: 879 Days
• Field of Search: 347/19, 347/20, 347/171, 347/218
• US Class Current: 347/171
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 19/202 Drive control means for carriage movement
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/355 Control circuits for heating-element selection

Abstract

A printing apparatus includes a pulse motor which operates to carry a recording medium, a thermal head to print on the recording medium, a pulse motor control unit which controls the pulse motor so that the pulse motor is operated at a carrying velocity based on a print ratio of input print data, a head control unit which controls the thermal head in a first or second head control mode, a head detection unit which detects the type of thermal head attached in the printing apparatus and a judgment unit which judges on the basis of the type of head detected by the head detection unit whether to control the thermal head by the first head control mode or the second head control mode.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus comprising:

a pulse motor which operates to carry a recording medium;

a thermal head which prints on the recording medium;

a pulse motor control unit which controls the pulse motor so that the pulse motor is operated at a carrying velocity based on a print ratio of input print data;

a head control unit which controls the thermal head in a first or second head control mode;

a head detection unit which detects whether the thermal head attached in the printing apparatus is a first thermal head having a first resolution or a second thermal head having a second resolution; and

a judgment unit which judges whether to control the thermal head by the first head control mode or the second head control mode according to the thermal head detected by the head detection unit being the first thermal head having the first resolution or the second thermal head having the second resolution.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the head control unit controls the thermal head by the first or second head control mode, the first head control mode being adapted to control the thermal head so that the thermal head performs printing one time while the pulse motor is operated one step by the pulse motor control unit, the second head control mode being adapted to control the thermal head so that the thermal head performs printing two times while the pulse motor is operated three steps by the pulse motor control unit.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein:

when the head control unit controls the thermal head in the second head control mode, the pulse motor control unit controls a carrying velocity for three steps on the basis of a print ratio of the print data for two lines.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein:

the head detection unit includes a clock signal transmitting unit which transmits a clock signal after transmitting a low clock signal for a predetermined number of dots to the thermal head, the former clock signal being alternately high and low at given periods;

a data signal transmitting unit which transmits a data input signal to one end of the plurality of heating elements simultaneously with the transmission of a first high to the thermal head by the clock signal transmitting unit, the data input signal being high for the first dot and low for the rest of the dots;

a data signal receiving unit which receives the data input signal from the other end of the plurality of heating elements, the data input signal being shifted one dot by the rising of the alternately high and low clock signal; and

a judgment unit which judges that a particular thermal head is attached in the case where the data signal receiving unit receives the data input signal synchronously with the clock signal of the order corresponding to the number of dots equivalent to the heating elements arranged in the particular thermal head.

4. A method of controlling a printing apparatus equipped with a pulse motor used to carry a recording medium and with a thermal head which prints on the recording medium, the method comprising:

controlling the pulse motor so that the pulse motor is operated at a carrying velocity based on a print ratio of input print data;

detecting whether the thermal head attached in the printing apparatus is a first thermal head having a first resolution or a second thermal head having a second resolution; and

judging whether to control the thermal head by a first head control mode or a second head control mode according to the detecting result, the first head control mode being adapted to control the thermal head so that the thermal head performs printing one time while the pulse motor is operated one step, the second head control mode being adapted to control the thermal head so that the thermal head performs printing two times while the pulse motor is operated three steps.