Printing device, printing method, and nonvolatile computer-readable recording medium

A printing device, comprising:

• a thermal head comprising heater elements arrayed in a line along an array direction intersecting a conveying direction of a printing medium and an ink ribbon;
• and
• a controller that causes the thermal head to print onto the printing medium based on multiple line print data, each of the multiple line print data being data into which print data is divided along the array direction,
• wherein the controller performs a first energization control to energize the heater elements in an energization-controlled period of one line cycle for printing based on a content of a single line print data among the multiple line print data, a second energization control not to energize the heater elements so that a non-energization period in which the heater elements are not energized is included in the energization-controlled period, and a historical energization control, in accordance with a latch signal corresponding to an end of the non-energization period, to energize the heater elements corresponding to a historical energization data for a certain line based on the single line print data for a preceding line that is printed before the certain line, and
• wherein the second energization control depends on a width of one of the printing medium and the ink ribbon regardless of the content of the single line print data, whereby the non-energization period for one of a first printing medium and a first ink ribbon is set to differ in length of time from the non-energization period for one of a second printing medium and a second ink ribbon whose width is different from a width of the one of the first printing medium and the first ink ribbon.

A printing method executed by a controller of a printing device, wherein the printing device further comprises a thermal head comprising heater elements arrayed in a line along an array direction intersecting a conveying direction of a printing medium and an ink ribbon, and wherein the printing method includes:

• causing the thermal head to print onto the printing medium based on multiple line print data, each of the multiple line print data being data into which print data is divided along the array direction, and
• performing a first energization control to energize the heater elements in an energization-controlled period of one line cycle for printing based on a content of a single line print data among the multiple line print data and a second energization control not to energize the heater elements so that a plurality of non-energization periods in which the heater elements are not energized are intermittently included in the energization-controlled period of one line cycle and so that the plurality of non-energization periods include a first non-energization period and a second non-energization period longer and later than the first non-energization period,
• wherein the second energization control depends on a width of one of the printing medium and the ink ribbon regardless of the content of the single line print data, whereby the plurality of non-energization periods for one of a first printing medium and a first ink ribbon are set to differ in length of time from the plurality of non-energization periods for one of a second printing medium and a second ink ribbon whose width is different from a width of the one of the first printing medium and the first ink ribbon.

A nonvolatile recording medium on which a computer-readable program is stored, the program causing a controller of a printing device to execute processing comprising:

• causing a thermal head provided to the printing device to print onto a printing medium based on multiple line print data, each of the multiple line print data being data into which print data is divided along the array direction, and
• performing a first energization control to energize heater elements in an energization-controlled period of one line cycle for printing based on a content of a single line print data among the multiple line print data and a second energization control not to energize the heater elements so a plurality of non-energization periods in which the heater elements are not energized are intermittently included in the energization-controlled period of one line cycle and so that the plurality of non-energization periods include a first non-energization period and a second non-energization period longer and later than the first non-energization period,
• wherein the second energization control depends on a width of one of the printing medium and an ink ribbon regardless of the content of the single line print data, whereby the plurality of non-energization periods for one of a first printing medium and a first ink ribbon are set to differ in length of time from the plurality of non-energization periods for one of a second printing medium and a second ink ribbon whose width is different from a width of the one of the first printing medium and the first ink ribbon.