US 4,901,249 A · Printing apparatus which can specify a font memory irrespective of a mounting position thereof, and a method of specifying a font memory

Abstract

In a printing apparatus which can specify a font memory irrespective of its mounting position, signals supplied from an external apparatus are received by an interface section. A controller section checks whether the received signals are a font specifying command for specifying a font memory or are character data to be printed. When the received signals are character data, character pattern data corresponding thereto is generated using a font memory in pattern generation section corresponding to a font specifying number currently specified by the controller section, and is printed by a printer driver section. When the received signals are a font specifying command, the controller section temporarily stores a font name specified by the font specifying command and searches the specified font memory by sequentially referring the font memories in a pattern generator section to determine the font specifying number. However, when the specified font memory is not mounted, an alarm signal is generated from an alarm section.

Claims13

Dependent claims

A printing apparatus comprising:

means for receiving externally generated signals including input character code data, a font-specifying instruction, and a printing instruction;
character pattern memory means for generating character pattern data corresponding to said input character code data, including:
a plurality of font memories each of the font memories storing character pattern data and an identifying font name,
means for generating and corresponding character pattern data in accordance with said font memory,
means for detachably mounting a plurality of font memories;
a fixed font memory including one of the plurality of font memories, and
a detachable cartridge including one of the plurality of font memories;
font memory specifying means for sequentially searching each font memory of said character pattern memory means for the font memory to be used in a printing operation in accordance with said font-specifying instruction;
output means for outputting character code data to said character pattern memory means in response to said printing instruction;
and
printing means for printing the character pattern data from said character pattern memory means.

8 more elements

A method of specifying a font memory having a corresponding specified font name without having a mounting address for the specified font memory, comprising:

detachably mounting at least one font memory in a character pattern memory means;
sequentially inquiring of each detachably mounted font memory to search for the specified font memory, and to determine the font number corresponding to the physical mounting position of the specified font memory, including the substeps of
loading a minimum font number corresponding to a physical mounting position of a font memory as a font specifying number;
first checking if the font memory corresponding to the loaded font specifying number is mounted;
incrementing the loaded font specifying number by one and repeating the first checking substep when the specified font memory is not mounted;
accessing the font memory corresponding to the font specifying number and loading a font name therefrom when the specified font memory is mounted;
checking if the loaded font name coincides with the specified font name;
incrementing the loaded font specifying number by one and repeating the substeps of first checking if the font memory corresponding to the loaded font specifying number is mounted when no coincidence is found between the loaded font name and the specified font name;
and
determining the font specifying number corresponding to the specified font and completing the sequentially inquiring step when a coincidence is found between the loaded font name and the specified font name;
and
performing a printing operation to print out character patterns in accordance with the font memory specified by the corresponding font number.

9 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Printing apparatus which can specify a font memory irrespective of a mounting position thereof, and a method of specifying a font memory

Life of this patent

Printing apparatus which can specify a font memory irrespective of a mounting position thereof, and a method of specifying a font memory

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims13