System of operating an automatic plotter

Abstract

A system and method of operating an automatic plotter device having marking instruments for drawing images onto a large sheet with the aid of a computer includes providing the computer with data defining the desired images, providing the plotter with a preselected plurality of marking instruments each having a specified stroke width, providing the computer with data corresponding to and representing the stroke width for each of the preselected plurality of marking instruments, calculating in the computer for each marking instrument the coordinates upon which each instrument is to draw onto the sheet based upon the size, shape, and location of the image and the appropriate width, and generating control signals to the plotter for controllably selecting and causing each marking instrument to draw on the sheet at locations according to the calculated stroke coordinates. The sheet may be paper, vellum or other clear plastic utilized for the screen exposure preparation process for purposes of screen printing. The marking instrument is preferably a felt tip pen containing opaque ink. The different size pen tips may be cylindrical and flat.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.