Stencil printing apparatus

A stencil printing apparatus comprising:

• a plate cylinder having a peripheral surface on which a master is wound and an open part formed for supplying ink to the wound master;
• a plate preparation mechanism for preparation, conveying, and cutting of said master;
• a pressing mechanism for contacting/separating a pressing member onto/from said plate cylinder on which said master is wound with interposition of a printing paper;
• reception/recognition means for receiving a plate preparation image data from an external apparatus and converting said plate preparation image data to a raster image, and for recognizing whether a continuous next plate preparation image data is present or not during a plate preparation operation or before said plate preparation operation, and transmitting said plate preparation image data to a control means;
• wherein said control means has a conversion function to convert said plate preparation image data which said reception/recognition means receives from said external apparatus to a signal to be used for preparation of said master and a mode switching function to switch a mode so that any one of a first plate preparation printing mode and a second plate preparation printing mode is selected as said plate preparation printing mode, and
• wherein said control means prepares said master with a length which is sufficient for substantially covering an entire open part of said plate cylinder and controls said plate preparation mechanism so as to wind said master on said peripheral surface of said plate cylinder when said first plate preparation printing mode is selected, and even though said master is cut to a size of said paper said master has a length shorter than that of the open part and controls said plate preparation mechanism so as to wind said master on said peripheral surface of said plate cylinder when said second plate preparation printing mode is selected, controls a contact range on said peripheral surface pressed by said pressing mechanism correspondingly to said length of the cut master, and controls so as to switch said plate preparation printing mode to said first plate preparation printing mode when said reception/recognition means recognizes that no continuous next plate preparation image data is present.

A computer readable memory medium for storing a computer program which is installed in a computer for controlling a stencil printing apparatus having a plate cylinder with a peripheral surface on which a master is wound and an open part formed for supplying ink to a wound master, a plate preparation mechanism for preparation, conveying, and cutting of said master, a pressing mechanism for contacting/separating a pressing member onto/from said plate cylinder on which said master is wound with interposition of a printing paper, wherein said computer program executes:

• a reception recognition function for receiving a plate preparation image data from an external apparatus and converting said plate preparation image data to a raster image, and for recognizing whether a continuous next plate preparation image data is present or not during a plate preparation operation or before said plate preparation operation and transmitting said plate preparation image data to a control function;
• wherein said control function controllably drives said plate preparation mechanism so that when a reception/recognition means recognizes that no continuous next plate preparation image data is present, said master is cut into a length which is sufficient for covering a circumferential length area of the open part of said plate cylinder and so that said master is wound on said plate cylinder, and when said reception/recognition means recognizes that a continuous next plate preparation image data is present, even though said master is cut to a size of said paper, said master is cut into a length which is shorter than said circumferential length of said open part of said plate cylinder and so that said master is wound on said plate cylinder.