Method and apparatus for rendering large patterns in a small memory printer

A method of performing a pattern fill operation of a pattern into a clipping region comprising the steps of:

• for each tiling of the pattern to the clipping region aligning the pattern data to a current tiling of the pattern to the clipping region;
• clipping the current tiling of the pattern to the clipping region;
• and
• rendering the band as bit map into a page bit map.

A printer comprising:

• a transceiver adapted for bidirectional communication with a communications channel;
• a memory;
• a print engine adapted for placing color dots on a printed page according to received page bit map data and control signals;
• and
• a programmable data processor connected to said transceiver, said memory and said print engine, said programmable data processor programmed to:
• receive print data corresponding to pages to be printed from the communications channel via said transceiver;
• convert said print data into page bit map data and control signals for supply to said print engine for printing a corresponding page, said conversion including executing a pattern fill operation by
• dividing the pattern into a plurality of bands;
• for each band:
• rendering the band as a bit map into a band cache;
• and
• for each tiling of the pattern into the clipping region clipping the bit map of a current band to the clipping region and copying the clipped bit map into a corresponding location of a page bit map;
• until all tilings of all bands of the pattern are rendered to the page bit map.

A printer comprising:

• a transceiver adapted for bidirectional communication with a communications channel;
• a memory;
• a print engine adapted for placing color dots on a printed page according to received page bit map data and control signals;
• and
• a programmable data processor connected to said transceiver, said memory and said print engine, said programmable data processor programmed to:
• for each tiling of the pattern to the clipping region
• aligning the pattern data to a current tiling of the pattern to the clipping region;
• clipping the current tiling of the pattern to the clipping region;
• and
• rendering the band as bit map into a page bit map.