Apparatus for selectable font printing

Apparatus for selectively printing graphic information in accordance with a desired horizontal format comprising:

• a print head assembly movable across the paper document and having a plurality M of print wire driving means, each of said characters formed within a predetermined dot matrix of N dot columns having M dots in each column, said apparatus comprising:
• a registration assembly having a plurality of arrays each having uniformly spaced indicia;
• one of said arrays having groups of indicia arranged end-to-end and extending at spaced intervals at least partially across the paper document;
• the regions between adjacent groups being devoid of any indicia;
• a plurality of sensing means mounted on said head assembly for respectively sensing the indicia in each of said arrays for respectively generating registration pulses;
• an output line;
• switching means for selectively coupling the registration pulses generated by one of said sensing means to said output line;
• means responsive to the registration pulses coupled to said output line for cyclically generating a succession of groups of dot column selection signals;
• character generator means;
• means for storing character codes representing each character and symbol to be printed;
• means responsive to each completed group of said dot column selection signals for applying the next character code to said character generator means;
• said character generator means generating print signals representing a dot column pattern determined by the character code in said storing means and by the dot column selection signal coupled thereto;
• said print wire driving means being adapted to receive said print signals for printing the dot column pattern outputted by said character generator means.

Apparatus for printing a line of characters on a paper document in a selected one of a plurality of character widths for use in a dot-matrix printer having a print head assembly movable across the paper document and having a plurality M of print wire driving means, each of said characters formed within a predetermined dot matrix of N dot columns having M dots in each column, said apparatus comprising:

• a registration assembly having a plurality of arrays of spaced indicia, the spacing between and among indicia in each of said arrays being different from the spacing between and among indicia in every other array;
• a plurality of means each respectively sensing the indicia in an associated one of said arrays upon movement of said head assembly for respectively generating registration pulses whereby relative movement between said sensing means and said arrays causes generation of the registration pulses during movement of the head assembly;
• an output line;
• switching means for selectively coupling the registration pulses generated by one of said sensing means to said output line;
• means responsive to those registration pulses coupled to said output line for cyclically generating a succession of groups of dot column selection signals;
• character generator means;
• means for storing character codes representing each character and symbol to be printed;
• means responsive to each completed group of said dot column selection signals for applying the next character code to said character generator means;
• said character generator means generating print signals representing a dot column pattern determined by the character code in said storing means and by the dot column selection signal coupled thereto;
• said print wire driving means being adapted to receive said print signals for printing the dot column pattern outputted by said generator means.