Printer, program, and printing method of printer

Abstract

To enable a lateral direction of a printing start position to be adjusted easily without complicating the structure of a printer.SOLUTION: A printer according to an aspect of the present disclosure is configured to perform printing on a print medium. The printer includes: a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line shape; a data generation unit that generates two-dimensional arrangement data indicating whether or not dots of a two-dimensional arrangement are printed on the basis of an image to be printed; a data transfer unit that sequentially transfers, to the print head, print data indicating whether or not to cause each of the plurality of heating elements to generate heat, on the basis of line data which is data for each line of the two-dimensional arrangement data; and a control unit that controls the data transfer unit such that the print data becomes data obtained by moving corresponding line data in a column direction according to a user request.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a printer.

Background Art

[0002] Printers that continuously issue a large number of printing media such as labels are used at the manufacturing sites of products and the like. As such a printer, a thermal printer is known that includes a thermal head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in the width direction of the printing medium, and performs printing by selectively heating the plurality of heating elements in response to print data (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, when continuously issuing a large number of labels, the characters and patterns printed on the labels may be displaced in the width direction (lateral direction) from the originally printed position due to the labels being displaced in the width direction during conveyance. Regarding this point, the printer described in Patent Document 1 is configured such that the thermal head can be mechanically moved in the width direction manually or by a motor or the like. However, it is difficult to accurately adjust the lateral position of the thermal head by manual movement, and when using a motor or the like, the structure of the printer becomes complicated and the cost increases.

[0005] As a method of adjusting the printing start position horizontally without mechanically moving the thermal head, a method of regenerating dot matrix data can be adopted. This is a method in which the host computer regenerates the image data and sends it to the printer, and the printer generates dot matrix data based on the new image data. However, it is a drawback that it takes time and effort to make the adjustment.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to enable easy adjustment of the horizontal direction of the printing start position without complicating the structure of the printer.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a printer that performs printing on a printing medium, a printing head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, a data generation unit that generates two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed, a data transfer unit that sequentially transfers printing data indicating whether or not each of the plurality of heating elements generates heat to the printing head based on line data that is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data, a control unit that controls the data transfer unit so that the printing data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request, and a printer provided with.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, it is possible to easily adjust the horizontal direction of the printing start position without complicating the structure of the printer.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

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Figure 11

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] The embodiments described below are not limited to the drawings described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] A first aspect of an aspect of the present invention is a printer that performs printing on a printing medium, a printing head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, a data generation unit that generates two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed, a data transfer unit that sequentially transfers printing data indicating whether or not each of the plurality of heating elements is to be heated to the printing head based on line data that is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data, A control unit that controls the data transfer unit so that the printing data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request; It is a printer provided with.

[0012] According to the first aspect of an aspect of the present invention, the horizontal direction of the printing start position can be easily adjusted without complicating the structure of the printer.

[0013] In a second aspect of an aspect of the present invention, the data transfer unit transfers the printing data for each data amount corresponding to a predetermined number of dots in one line, The control unit sets the amount of movement in the column direction of the line data in units of the predetermined number of dots according to a user request. The printer according to the first aspect.

[0014] According to the second aspect of an aspect of the present invention, the amount of movement in the horizontal direction of the printing start position can be set in units of a predetermined number of dots.

[0015] In a third aspect of an aspect of the present invention, the control unit changes the amount of movement in the column direction of the line data according to a user request while the printing head is continuously printing a plurality of the printing media. The printer according to the first or second aspect.

[0016] According to the third aspect of an aspect of the present invention, when the amount of lateral displacement during conveyance of the printing medium changes, the horizontal direction of the printing start position of the printing medium can be adjusted at any time.

[0017] In a fourth aspect of an aspect of the present invention, when the number of heating elements to be heated among the plurality of heating elements becomes smaller than before moving the line data when the control unit moves the line data in the column direction, A printer according to any one of the first to third aspects, which outputs a warning or prohibits movement of the line data in the column direction.

[0018] According to a fourth aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, when adjusting the horizontal direction of the printing start position, it is possible to prevent a part of the printed content from being missing, or the user can recognize that a part of the printed content is missing.

[0019] According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, when installed in a printer that performs printing on a printing medium using a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, the computer is caused to generate two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed; transfer print data indicating whether or not to heat each of the plurality of heating elements to the print head sequentially based on line data which is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data; control such that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request; and is a program for causing the above to be executed.

[0020] According to a fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to easily adjust the horizontal direction of the printing start position without complicating the structure of the printer.

[0021] A sixth aspect of an embodiment of the present invention is a printing method for a printer that performs printing on a printing medium using a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, the method comprising: generating two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed; transferring print data indicating whether or not to heat each of the plurality of heating elements to the print head sequentially based on line data which is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data; controlling such that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request; and includes a printing method for a printer.

[0022] According to a sixth aspect of an embodiment of the present invention, the horizontal direction of the printing start position can be easily adjusted without complicating the structure of the printer.

[0023] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the appearance of a printer 1 according to an embodiment. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, as shown in FIG. 1, XYZ coordinates are defined. That is, +X and -X indicate the left - right direction of the printer 1, +Y and -Y indicate the front - rear direction of the printer 1, and +Z and -Z indicate the up - down direction of the printer 1, respectively. On the front surface of the printer 1, an input button 13, a display panel 14, and an issuing port 5 for issuing (discharging) a label (an example of a printing medium) are provided.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the printer 1 with its interior visible. Inside the printer 1, a roll paper R is loaded on a paper supply shaft 40. The roll paper R is a continuous paper CP wound in a roll shape. The continuous paper CP includes a belt - like base paper PM and a plurality of labels PL detachably attached to the base paper PM at intervals. On the surface of the base paper PM where the adhesive surface of the label PL comes into contact, a release agent such as silicone is coated, enabling the label PL to be easily peeled off. Further, on the surface (back surface) of the base paper PM where the label PL is not attached, position detection marks IM indicating the positions of the labels may be formed at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction. The label PL may be a thermal paper or a plain paper. In the case of thermal paper, a thermal coloring layer that colors to a specific color (black, red, etc.) when reaching a predetermined temperature range is formed on its surface. Although not shown, the paper supply shaft 40 can also be loaded with a roll paper in which a label without a base paper having an adhesive surface coated with an adhesive on the back side of the printing surface is wound in a roll shape.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 2, in the printer 1, as the platen roller 16 rotates, the continuous paper CP is drawn out from the roll paper R, and after printing on each label PL of the continuous paper CP, the labels PL are sequentially discharged from the issuing port 5. A damper 43 is provided on the conveyance path of the continuous paper CP. The damper 43 has a swing shaft 431 and is installed in a swingable state about the swing shaft 431 so as to be able to apply tension to the continuous paper CP.

[0026] The platen roller 16 is installed so as to be rotatable in both forward and reverse directions, and rotates while sandwiching the continuous paper CP together with the thermal head 15 (an example of a printing head) during printing. When the continuous paper CP is plain paper, the platen roller 16 rotates while sandwiching the continuous paper CP and the ink ribbon RB coated with printing ink together with the thermal head 15 during printing. In this case, the ink ribbon RB is conveyed from the ribbon supply unit 41 via the ribbon rollers 411 and 421 and wound up by the ribbon take-up unit 42.

[0027] As will be described later, the thermal head 15 includes a plurality of heating resistors (heating elements) that generate heat when energized, and prints on the label PL of the continuous paper CP. The plurality of heating resistors are arranged side by side along the width direction of the continuous paper CP (the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the continuous paper CP). The width direction of the continuous paper CP coincides with the lateral direction (X direction in FIG. 2) of the printer 1.

[0028] A label position detection sensor 17 is installed in the conveyance path of the continuous paper CP. In one embodiment, the label position detection sensor 17 includes a light emitting element disposed on one of the upper and lower sides of the conveyance path of the continuous paper CP, and a light receiving element disposed on the other of the upper and lower sides of the conveyance path. The label position detection sensor 17 is disposed upstream of the thermal head 15 and is capable of detecting the label PL. When the light emitting element emits light and the light receiving element receives the light, the label position detection sensor 17 detects the end portions of the respective labels PL in the conveyance direction of the continuous paper CP based on the difference in the received light intensity between the light transmitted through the label PL and the backing paper PM and the light transmitted through only the backing paper PM. The detection result (output signal) of the label position detection sensor 17 is used for the conveyance control of the continuous paper CP.

[0029] As shown in FIG. 2, a label presence / absence detection sensor 18 is installed near the issuing port 5 of the printer 1. The label presence / absence detection sensor 18 is disposed downstream of the thermal head 15 and is capable of detecting the label PL issued (discharged) from the issuing port 5. The label presence / absence detection sensor 18 is a light reflection type sensor, but can also be configured as a light transmission type sensor. The detection result (output signal) of the label presence / absence detection sensor 18 is used for the conveyance control of the continuous paper CP.

[0030] FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of the printer 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 11 of the printer 1 includes a CPU 111, a head controller 112, a memory 113, a motor controller 114, an input interface (I / F) 115, a display controller 116, a sensor interface (I / F) 117, and a communication bus 118. The memory 113 includes a volatile memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a non-volatile memory such as a flash memory.

[0031] The CPU 111 executes the firmware stored in the memory 113 to implement various functions of the printer 1. The input interface 115 is an interface that receives operation inputs for the input button 13 (see FIG. 1) and transmits them to the CPU 111. The display control unit 116 causes the display panel 14 (see FIG. 1) to display an image based on the display data received from the CPU 111. The display panel 14 has a touch panel input function, and the input interface 115 receives operation inputs for the display panel 14. Various setting values of the printer 1 are stored in the non-volatile memory of the memory 113. These setting values can be changed according to touch panel inputs to the display panel 14.

[0032] The motor controller 114 includes a drive circuit that drives the motor 19 based on a control signal sent from the firmware. The control signal includes, for example, information regarding the conveyance amount of the continuous paper CP. The head controller 112 controls a plurality of heating elements included in the thermal head 15 so that current selectively flows based on a control signal (such as a strobe signal, etc.) sent from the firmware. The sensor interface 117 receives the detection values of the sensors of the label position detection sensor 17 and the label presence / absence detection sensor 18, converts them into digital values, and transmits them to the CPU 111.

[0033] Next, with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, the printing mechanism of the printer 1 will be described. FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram focusing on the control unit 11 and the thermal head 15 in the printer 1 of one embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic circuit diagram of the thermal head 15 of one embodiment.

[0034] In FIG. 4, the head controller 112 supplies various signals for performing printing on the thermal head 15 under the control of the CPU 111. The signals supplied to the thermal head 15 by the head controller 112 include a clock pulse CLK, a latch pulse LATCH, a data signal DATA, and a strobe signal STB.

[0035] The memory 113 has a matrix data buffer and a line data buffer. The CPU 111 functions as a data generation unit that generates dot matrix data (hereinafter, simply referred to as "matrix data" as appropriate) indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on the image data to be printed, and stores the generated matrix data in the matrix data buffer. In other words, the matrix data is data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots at each position of the dot matrix, and is an example of two-dimensional array data. Note that the printer 1 acquires image data from a host computer (not shown). FIG. 6 shows exemplary image data IMG (printing image) when printing an exemplary character ("E") and matrix data MD corresponding to the printing image. In this matrix data MD, the printing image is represented by a dot matrix of 10 rows and 9 columns. The CPU 111 sequentially stores line data (see the example in FIG. 6), which is data for each line of the matrix data stored in the matrix data buffer, in the line data buffer.

[0036] The head controller 112 functions as a data transfer unit that transfers a data signal DATA (an example of printing data) to the thermal head 15 based on the line data sequentially transferred from the line data buffer. The data signal DATA is data indicating whether or not to heat each of a plurality of heating elements of the thermal head 15 (that is, whether or not to conduct). As will be described later, in the printer 1, when changing the printing start position in the horizontal direction in response to a user request, the data signal DATA is controlled to be data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction. When the printing start position is not changed in the horizontal direction, the data signal DATA is the same bit string as the corresponding line data. Further, the head controller 112 generates a strobe signal STB at a predetermined timing and supplies it to the thermal head 15. Note that the transfer of line data from the line data buffer to the head controller 112 is performed by, for example, DMA (Direct Memory Access).

[0037] As shown in FIG. 4, the thermal head 15 includes a drive circuit 2 and a heating element group 3. The heating element group 3 is composed of a plurality of heating elements (heating resistors) arranged on a line. The drive circuit 2 selectively passes a current through each heating element of the heating element group 3 based on various signals supplied from the head controller 112 to generate heat. FIG. 5 shows a configuration example of the drive circuit 2 and the heating element group 3.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 5, the exemplary drive circuit 2 includes at least a shift register (S / R) 21 for temporarily storing data signals DATA for one line, a latch circuit (L) 22, a gate circuit group 23, and a transistor group 24. The heating element group 3 includes heating elements (heating resistors) 31_1 to 31_M.

[0039] The drive circuit 2 operates based on the data signal DATA, the clock pulse CLK, the latch pulse LATCH, and the strobe signal STB. These data and signals are input or transferred from the head controller 112. In one embodiment, one data signal DATA is sent to the drive circuit 2 of the thermal head 15 once during the printing cycle for one line of line data, but this is not the limit. When performing print history control, a plurality of data signals DATA may be sent to the drive circuit 2 of the thermal head 15 during the printing cycle.

[0040] Note that in the drive circuit 2 of FIG. 5, the strobe signal STB is of positive logic (current flows through the heating element and generates heat when at a high level). In another embodiment, the strobe signal STB may be of negative logic (current flows through the heating element and generates heat when at a low level).

[0041] In the shift register 21, a data signal DATA for one line is input and held in synchronization with the clock pulse CLK. The data signal DATA is composed of a bit string where the high level (e.g., digital value "1") represents the "energized" case (when generating heat), and the low level (e.g., digital value "0") represents the "non-energized" case (when not generating heat). The latch circuit 22 is connected in parallel to the shift register 21 and transfers and holds the bit string on the shift register 21 simultaneously and in parallel. The transfer timing of data from the shift register 21 to the latch circuit 22 is controlled by the latch pulse LATCH.

[0042] The gate circuit group 23 includes gate circuits (AND circuits) 23_1, 23_2, …, 23_M corresponding to the first to M-th dots of one line respectively. One input terminal of each gate circuit is supplied with the strobe signal STB, and the other input terminal of each gate circuit is connected to the output of the latch circuit 22. Each gate circuit of the gate circuit group 23 outputs the logical product of the corresponding data signal DATA and the strobe signal STB. The transistor group 24 includes MOS transistors 24_1 to 24_M. Each MOS transistor turns on / off according to the output of the corresponding gate circuit.

[0043] While the strobe signal STB is at the high level, the logical level of the output terminal of each gate circuit of the gate circuit group 23 coincides with the output level of the latch circuit 22. For example, when the output level of the latch circuit 22 is the high level indicating "energized", the output of the corresponding gate circuit becomes high level, so the corresponding MOS transistor turns on and current flows through the heating element 31. Conversely, when the output level of the latch circuit 22 is the low level indicating "non-energized", the output of the corresponding gate circuit becomes low level, so the corresponding MOS transistor turns off and no current flows through the heating element 31.

[0044] Note that when the strobe signal STB is of negative logic, it may be configured as follows. That is, in FIG. 5, each gate circuit of the gate circuit group 23 is a NAND circuit, and the inverted signal of the strobe signal STB is input to the NAND circuit. As a result, when the strobe signal STB is at a low level, the NAND circuit outputs the inverted signal of the output of the latch circuit 22. The corresponding MOS transistor is configured to turn on when the output of the NAND circuit is at a low level so that current flows through the heating element.

[0045] The printer 1 is configured to be able to change the printing start position in the horizontal direction according to a user request. This feature will be described below. As described above, the head controller 112 transfers the data signal DATA to the thermal head 15 based on the line data in the line data buffer. At this time, in order to change the printing start position in the horizontal direction (that is, the column direction of the dot matrix), the head controller 112 functions as a control unit that controls the data signal DATA to be data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction according to a user request. The set value of the moving amount in the column direction of the line data is stored in the memory 113 (see FIG. 4). Note that the movement in the column direction is the column direction of the dot matrix (that is, the direction in which a plurality of heating elements of the thermal head 15 are arranged), and the movement can be either to the right or to the left in the label conveyance direction.

[0046] In the head controller 112, the data transfer start position (address) in the line data buffer is specified by a pointer. When the line data is not moved in the column direction, the first address of the line data buffer is specified by the pointer as the data transfer start address. The head controller 112 changes the data transfer start address by moving the pointer according to the set value of the moving amount in the column direction. The line data stored in the line data buffer according to the data transfer start address indicated by the pointer is transferred to the thermal head 15 as the data signal DATA. In the following description, changing the printing start position horizontally is referred to as "horizontal position correction" as appropriate. In the following description, the set value of the movement amount in the column direction of line data is also denoted as the "correction amount". The set value of the movement amount, or the correction amount, is the movement amount of a pointer indicating the address of the data transfer start position in the line data buffer.

[0047] Fig. 7 shows the printing results when no horizontal position correction is performed (no correction) on the matrix data illustrated in Fig. 6, and when horizontal position correction is performed across the entire line (correction amount: +1 dot, -1 dot). The printing result in the case of no correction is the same as the matrix data shown in Fig. 6. At this time, the data signal DATA transferred to the thermal head 15 has the same bit sequence as the corresponding line data. The printing result when horizontal position correction is performed with a correction amount of +1 dot is shifted 1 dot to the left with respect to the matrix data shown in Fig. 6. The correction amount of "+1 dot" means that when transferring the data signal, the data transfer start position in the line data buffer is moved backward by an amount corresponding to 1 dot. At this time, the data signal DATA transferred to the thermal head 15 has a bit sequence shifted -1 dot in the column direction with respect to the corresponding line data. The printing result when horizontal position correction is performed with a correction amount of -1 dot is shifted 1 dot to the right with respect to the matrix data shown in Fig. 6. The correction amount of "-1 dot" means that when transferring the data signal, the data transfer start position in the line data buffer is moved forward by an amount corresponding to 1 dot. If there is no data at the data transfer start position, the data at that position is transferred as a low level (for example, the digital value "0") in the data signal. At this time, the data signal DATA transferred to the thermal head 15 has a bit sequence shifted +1 dot in the column direction with respect to the corresponding line data.

[0048] In one embodiment, a user interface for setting the correction amount of horizontal position correction is provided for the user of the printer 1. FIG. 8 shows an example of the screen transition of the display panel 14 (FIG. 1) according to the interface. In FIG. 8, screen G1 is a screen for making settings for various adjustments to the printer 1. When the item of "base point correction" is selected and operated from the list included in this screen, screen G2 is displayed. On screen G2, each item of "vertical position correction" and "horizontal position correction" can be selected. "Vertical position correction" is an item for adjusting the print start position in the conveyance direction of the continuous paper CP. Here, when the item of "horizontal position correction" is selected and operated, screen G3 is displayed, and the correction amount of horizontal position correction can be set. The user can set the correction amount to a desired value by operating a numeric key or an arrow key (not shown here). The correction amount set here is written into the memory 113 (FIG. 3).

[0049] Next, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 9, the printing process in the printer 1 will be described. It is assumed that the printer 1 receives a print image from a host computer (not shown) when printing and stores it in the memory 113. The control unit 11 of the printer 1 creates matrix data based on the print image to be printed (step S2). The matrix data is data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array as exemplified in FIG. 6. Based on the matrix data, the control unit 11 repeats steps S4 to S10 until all printing is completed for the number of labels instructed by the user (step S12: NO). The control unit 11 first reads and checks the correction amount of horizontal position correction stored in the memory 113 (step S4), and executes steps S6 and S8 with all rows as the processing targets. In step S6, the control unit 11 stores the line data to be processed in the line data buffer from among the matrix data created in step S2. In step S8, the control unit 11 transfers the data signal to the thermal head 15 while changing the data transfer start address of the line buffer by the correction amount. By repeating the processes of step S6 and step S8, a printing result in which the printing start position has moved by the correction amount in all lines is obtained.

[0050] As described above, when transferring the data signal corresponding to the line data to the thermal head 15, the printer 1 described above controls the data signal to be data in which the corresponding line data is moved in the column direction by the correction amount set by the user. Therefore, when the characters or patterns printed on the label are shifted in the width direction (lateral direction) from the position where they are originally printed due to the label being shifted in the width direction during conveyance, the user can adjust the lateral printing start position by setting the desired correction amount and executing the horizontal position correction. At this time, since it is not necessary to correct the already created matrix data, it does not take time and effort to adjust the printing start position.

[0051] In one embodiment, the head controller 112 changes the movement amount of the line data in response to a user request while the thermal head 15 is continuously printing a plurality of labels PL. The user can change the correction amount by resetting the correction amount of the horizontal position correction according to the procedure shown in FIG. 8 while the printer 1 is continuously issuing a plurality of labels. When the correction amount is changed, the head controller 112 performs horizontal position correction based on the new set value, so that the lateral printing start position of the label is adjusted again. Therefore, when the user recognizes that the lateral shift amount during label conveyance has changed, the lateral direction of the printing start position of the label can be adjusted at any time by changing the correction amount.

[0052] In one embodiment, the head controller 112 transfers the data signal DATA to the thermal head 15 for each amount of data corresponding to a predetermined number of dots in one line. For example, when the line data and the data signal DATA are each composed of a bit string of 8 bits × M (predetermined number) for one line, data transfer is performed in 8-bit units. In that case, the CPU 111 sets the movement amount of the data signal DATA corresponding to the line data for each line in 8-dot units according to the user request. In the screen G3 of FIG. 8, the case where the user sets the correction amount to a desired value by operating numeric keys or arrow keys (not shown) is shown. However, when setting in 8-dot units, the screen is configured so that the correction amount can be set in 8-dot units. When setting the lateral movement amount of the printing start position in units of a predetermined number of dots, it is easier to set by making it possible to set the correction amount in units of a predetermined number of dots rather than having the user input an arbitrary correction amount as in the screen G3 of FIG. 8.

[0053] FIG. 10 shows an example of the case where the data signal DATA is transferred to the thermal head 15 in 8-dot units. In FIG. 10, line data for 6 lines (4-byte data per line) is sequentially stored in the line data buffer, and it is assumed that data transfer is performed in 1-byte units (corresponding to 8-dot units here). The address position indicating the transfer start byte of the line data buffer is specified by a pointer. In FIG. 10, the data transfer T1 indicates the data signal DATA (hexadecimal format) transferred when the address position indicating the transfer start byte is the initial value (the address position corresponding to the first byte of the line data buffer). In FIG. 10, the data transfer T2 indicates the data signal DATA (hexadecimal format) transferred when the address position indicating the transfer start byte is set to the position one byte behind (plus side as the correction amount). In FIG. 10, the data transfer T3 indicates the data signal DATA (hexadecimal format) transferred when the address position indicating the transfer start byte is set to the position one byte ahead (minus side as the correction amount).

[0054] As described above, by moving the data transfer start position of the line data buffer according to the correction amount set by the user, the printing start position corresponding to the line data can be moved in the column direction (that is, substantially move the line data). In one embodiment, when the number of heating elements to be heated among the plurality of heating elements of the thermal head 15 becomes smaller than before moving the line data by transferring a data signal, the control unit 11 performs a warning output or prohibits the movement of the line data in the column direction.

[0055] As described above, when the correction amount is too large on the minus side or the plus side, a part of the printing result is missing compared to the case without correction, and the printing quality deteriorates. For example, FIG. 11 illustrates a state in which a part of the printing result is missing when the correction amount is too large on the minus side and when the correction amount is too large on the plus side, compared to the case without correction in FIG. 7. In the case of horizontal position correction accompanied by such deterioration of printing quality, the printer 1 may be configured to perform a warning output or prohibit horizontal position correction. Thereby, when adjusting the horizontal direction of the printing start position, it is possible to prevent a part of the printed content from being missing, or the user can recognize that a part of the printed content is missing.

[0056] In one embodiment, a printing method of a printer 1 that performs printing on a label PL using a thermal head 15 is disclosed, and a method including the following steps is disclosed. (I) Generating matrix data based on an image to be printed (II) Sequentially transferring print data indicating whether or not each of the plurality of heating elements of the thermal head 15 is to be heated, based on the line data which is the data for each line of the matrix data, to the thermal head 15 (III) Controlling so that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction, in response to a user request

[0057] In one embodiment, a program for causing a computer to execute each of the above steps (I) to (III) is disclosed. Such a program is implemented, for example, as firmware executed by the CPU 111 of the printer 1.

[0058] As described above, embodiments of the printer, program, and printing method of the printer of the present invention have been described, but the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Further, various improvements and modifications can be made to the above embodiments without departing from the gist of the present invention.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0059] 1... Printer 5... Discharge port 11... Control unit 111... CPU, 112... Head controller, 113... Memory, 114... Motor controller, 115... Input interface, 116... Display control unit, 117... Sensor interface, 118... Bus 13... Input button 14... Display panel 15... Thermal head 2... Drive circuit 21... Shift register, 22... Latch circuit, 23... Gate circuit group, 23_1 to 23_M... AND circuits, 24... Transistor group, 24_1 to 24_M... MOS transistors 3... Heating element group 31_1 to 31_M... Heating elements 16... Platen roller 17... Label position detection sensor 18... Label presence / absence detection sensor 19... Motor 40... Paper supply shaft 41... Ribbon supply unit 42... Ribbon take-up unit, 411, 421... Ribbon rollers 43... Damper, 431... Oscillation shaft CP... Continuous paper, PM... Mounting paper, PL... Label, IM... Position detection mark, RB... Ink ribbon, R... Roll paper

Claims

1. A printer that performs printing on a printing medium, a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, a data generation unit that generates two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed, a data transfer unit that sequentially transfers print data indicating whether or not each of the plurality of heating elements generates heat, based on line data that is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data, to the print head, a control unit that controls the data transfer unit so that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request, A printer comprising:

2. The data transfer unit transfers the print data in units of a data amount corresponding to a predetermined number of dots in one line, The control unit sets the amount of movement of the line data in the column direction in units of the predetermined number of dots in response to a user request, The printer according to claim 1.

3. The control unit changes the amount of movement of the line data in the column direction in response to a user request while the print head is continuously printing on a plurality of the printing media, The printer according to claim 1 or 2.

4. When the number of heating elements that generate heat among the plurality of heating elements becomes less than before moving the line data when the control unit moves the line data in the column direction, the control unit outputs a warning or prohibits the movement of the line data in the column direction, The printer according to claim 1 or 2.

5. When installed in a printer that performs printing on a printing medium using a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, a program that causes a computer to execute a procedure for generating two-dimensional array data indicating the presence or absence of printing of dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed, execute a procedure for sequentially transferring print data indicating whether or not each of the plurality of heating elements generates heat, based on line data that is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data, to the print head, execute a procedure for controlling so that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request, A program to be executed.

6. A printing method for a printer that performs printing on a printing medium using a print head having a plurality of heating elements arranged in a line, Generating two-dimensional array data indicating whether or not to print dots in a two-dimensional array based on an image to be printed; Sequentially transferring print data indicating whether or not to cause each of the plurality of heating elements to generate heat to the print head based on line data which is data for each line of the two-dimensional array data; Controlling such that the print data becomes data obtained by moving the corresponding line data in the column direction in response to a user request; A printing method for a printer, comprising the above steps.

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