Information processing device, information processing method, printer, and program

Abstract

To adjust an eye mark sensor at an appropriate initial position with simple operation.SOLUTION: A conveyance control part starts splice detection of a splice detection part and paper feeding of a roll sheet. The conveyance control part performs paper feeding to a scanner while measuring a paper feeding amount when the splice detection part detects a splice tape. A scanner control part reads the roll sheet by only prescribed distance by using the scanner, and acquires a read image for the prescribed distance. The scanner control part performs image analysis for detecting an eye mark to read image read by using the scanner, determines whether the eye mark is detected from the read image, and calculates distance on a scale showing the position of the eye mark sensor for performing sensor alignment to be displayed on an operation panel in the case of detecting the eye mark.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing technique for assisting in the setting of a printing device. [Background technology]

[0002] Some printers that print on roll paper are capable of adjusting the print position so that the position of a positioning mark (hereafter referred to as an eye mark) pre-printed on the roll paper becomes the reference position for the beginning of the page.The technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 detects the edge position of the roll paper and corrects the position of a detection sensor (hereafter referred to as an eye mark sensor) based on the detection results, making it possible to stably detect the eye mark even if the roll paper meanders. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-175216 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the technology in Patent Document 1 requires the user to feed the roll paper to align the eye mark with the eye mark sensor in order to determine the initial position of the eye mark sensor in the paper width direction according to the print position of the eye mark, which is a time-consuming process. To determine the initial position of the eye mark sensor in the paper width direction, the paper is first fed to align the sensing position of the eye mark sensor in the paper transport direction with the position of the eye mark, and then the positioning of these in the paper width direction is performed. This alignment must be performed visually by the user, but it is not easy to do so quickly and accurately, especially when feeding heavy roll paper, making it a labor-intensive task for the user. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The present invention is an information processing device comprising: an acquisition means for acquiring a read image obtained by reading a recording medium on which a mark indicating a printing position is printed using a reading means provided in a printing device; a determination means for using the read image to determine a position in the paper width direction at which the detection means can detect the mark based on the distance in the paper width direction of the recording medium between a reference position of a detection means for detecting the mark provided in the printing device and a reference position of the reading means; and an output means for outputting position information indicating the position determined by the determination means. The present invention is characterized by the following. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] In the present invention, the eye mark sensor can be adjusted to an appropriate initial position with a simple operation. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] A simplified diagram of the transport path when the printing device is in standby mode [Figure 2] Simplified diagram of eye mark sensor and eye mark [Figure 3] Schematic diagram of the control configuration of the printing device [Figure 4] Diagram showing the state before sensor alignment [Figure 5] Figure showing the state after step 1 of sensor alignment [Figure 6] Figure showing the state after step 2 of sensor alignment [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing an eye mark position reading process according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] Diagram showing the distance between the eye mark, eye mark sensor, and scanner [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the paper feed amount in each step of the eye mark position reading process in the first embodiment. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a sliding guide equipped with a moving device that drives an eye mark sensor in the paper width direction in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] FIG. 1 is a simplified side view of the transport path when the printing device used in this embodiment is in standby mode. In FIG. 1, the transport path is simplified and depicted as a straight line, but in reality, the roll paper, which is the recording medium, is transported along a path that forms a large S-shape. Between the paper feeder 10 and the main transport unit 12, and between the sub-transport unit 15 and the winding device 17, slack is provided in the roll paper, and dancer rollers (not shown) are also provided to prevent these from affecting each other. The main transport unit 12 is equipped with an encoder (not shown) that can measure the amount of roller rotation. The paper feeder 10 is located on the right side of the device, and the roll paper is attached there.

[0009] A splice table 11 and a splice detection unit 30 are provided downstream of the paper feeder 10. When a user replaces roll paper, the roll paper is cut on this splice table 11, the roll paper attached to the paper feeder 10 is replaced, and the rear end of the cut roll paper remaining in the printing device is spliced ​​together with splice tape on the splice table 11. This makes it possible to replace roll paper simply by passing the new roll paper from the paper feeder 10 to the splice table 11. The splice detection unit 30 detects the spliced ​​portion of the roll paper where the splice tape is attached. The roll paper is transported by the portion nipped by rollers between the main transport unit 12 and the sub-transport unit 15. A meandering correction device 40 is provided downstream of the main transport unit 12 to stabilize the widthwise position of the roll paper as it is transported and correct any meandering of the roll paper.

[0010] 2, eye mark sensor 50 is an edge sensor that senses eye marks 90 that are pre-printed on the roll paper to determine the printing start position for each page, and has a sensing range 51 that is the detection range within which eye marks 90 can be detected. Eye mark sensor 50 can be manually moved in the roll paper width direction along sliding guide 52, and the position in the roll paper width direction can be measured by indicator needle 53 attached to eye mark sensor 50 and scale 54 with scale origin 55. In this embodiment, the position of scale origin 55 is used as the reference position for scale 54.

[0011] Downstream in the transport direction from the eye mark sensor 50 is the recording unit, which is equipped with one head 13 for each predetermined color. Printing is performed by ejecting ink onto the roll paper transported by the recording unit in a printing direction 18. The printed roll paper is dried in a dryer equipped with a heater and other components provided in the fixing unit 14, and is then cooled by a cooler equipped with a fan. The cooled roll paper passes through the sub-transport unit 15 and is taken up by the winding device 17.

[0012] 3 is a block diagram showing the control configuration of the printing device. The control configuration mainly consists of a controller unit 100 that controls the entire printing device, and a print engine unit 200 that controls the print engine. A print controller 202 controls various mechanisms of the print engine unit 200 in accordance with instructions from a main controller 101 of the controller unit 100 received via a controller I / F 201. The control configuration is described in detail below.

[0013] In the controller unit 100, a main controller 101 configured by a CPU controls the entire printing device using a RAM 105 as a work area in accordance with programs and various parameters stored in a ROM 106. For example, when a print job is input from a host device 300 via a host I / F 102, an image processing unit 107 performs predetermined image processing on the received image data in accordance with instructions from the main controller 101. The main controller 101 then transmits the processed image data to the print engine unit 200 via a print engine I / F 104.

[0014] The printing device may acquire image data from a connected external storage device (such as a USB memory). The operation panel 103 is an input / output device that functions as a display device that is controlled to display information held by the printing device, and also as an input device for the user to input to the printing device. The user can use the operation panel 103 to instruct printing and paper feed operations, set print modes, and view information about the printing device. The operation panel 103 is a touch panel, and a mouse and keyboard can also be connected for input.

[0015] In the print engine unit 200, a print controller 202, which is comprised of a CPU, controls various mechanisms of the printing device in accordance with programs and various parameters stored in a ROM 203, using a RAM 204 as a work area. When various commands and image data are received from the controller unit 100 via a controller I / F 201, the print controller 202 temporarily stores them in the RAM 204. Using an image processing controller 205, the print controller 202 converts the stored image data into print data that the head 13 can use for printing operations. The print controller 202 then causes the head 13 to perform printing operations based on the print data via a head I / F 206. At this time, the print controller 202 drives the paper feed device 10, main transport unit 12, sub-transport unit 15, and take-up device 17 (shown in FIG. 1) via a transport control unit 207 to transport roll paper, which is a printing medium. The transport control unit 207 can also detect the paper feed amount using an encoder attached to the transport roller. The print controller 202 performs printing processing by causing the head 13 to perform a recording operation at a predetermined timing after the eye mark sensor 50 detects the eye mark 90 .

[0016] The head 13 is configured to be movable in the normal direction to the roll paper so that the distance from the roll paper can be changed. When printing, it is positioned close to the roll paper as shown in Figure 1, and can be moved away from the roll paper during maintenance, etc. The head carriage control unit 208 changes the distance between the head 13 and the roll paper depending on the operating state of the printing device, such as the maintenance state or recording state. The ink supply control unit 209 controls the ink supply unit so that the pressure of the ink supplied to the head 13 remains within an appropriate range. When performing maintenance on the head 13, the maintenance control unit 210 moves a maintenance unit (not shown) below the head 13, away from the roll paper, and controls head maintenance operations such as capping and wiping.

[0017] The printing device includes an eye mark sensor 50 that detects eye marks on the roll paper, and a scanner 60 that reads the entire width of the roll paper and generates a read image.

[0018] The scanner control unit 211 controls the scanner 60 and performs image analysis on the image obtained by reading the roll paper. The image analysis detects the position of the eye mark 90 on the paper surface and detects ejection deviation from a specific ejection pattern (registration adjustment pattern) for adjusting the print position.

[0019] Eye marks 90 on the roll paper are formed at specified intervals in the transport direction at any position in the paper width direction for each roll paper. Because eye mark sensor 50 is a spot sensor with a narrow sensing range 51, sensor alignment is required, in which sliding guide 52 is used to move eye mark sensor 50 to an appropriate position in the paper width direction so that eye mark 90 falls within sensing range 51. In sensor alignment in this embodiment, the appropriate position for eye mark sensor 50 is determined to be the position where the center of sensing range 51 and the center of eye mark 90 are aligned in the paper width direction.

[0020] Because the eyemark 90 on the roll paper is formed in a different position for each roll paper, sensor alignment is performed when the roll paper is replaced. Below, we will explain a use case in which sensor alignment is performed as a preparatory operation before starting printing on the new roll paper when the roll paper is replaced.

[0021] <Conventional sensor alignment procedure> The following describes a conventional procedure for aligning the sensor when the sensing range 51 and eye mark 90 are misaligned in the paper width direction, as shown in Figure 4. When aligning the sensor, the eye mark sensor 50 emits visible light onto the paper surface, indicating the reference position of the sensing range 51, and the user can determine the sensing range 51 based on the position of the visible light.

[0022] Step 1: As shown in Figure 5, visually feed the roll paper (paper feed) until the position in the transport direction of the center of one of the eye marks 90 aligns with the center of the sensing range 51, and then stop the paper. This paper feed can be done manually by the user, or by using a paper feed mechanism (not shown) provided in the printing device.

[0023] Step 2: As shown in FIG. 6, the eye mark sensor 50 is moved to a position in the paper width direction so that the center of the sensing range 51 and the center of the eye mark 90 are visually aligned.

[0024] As described above, in the past, both steps 1 and 2 required visual operation by the user. In particular, step 1 requires feeding the roll paper to the desired position and stopping it, and fine-tuning the feeding is generally difficult, especially in large printers. The present invention aims to simplify this visual operation and enable users to easily align the sensor.

[0025] <Embodiment 1> Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of reading the eye mark position in this embodiment, and Figs. 8 to 12 are simplified diagrams of the device. The printing sequence in this embodiment will be described using these figures.

[0026] FIG. 8 shows a state in which the center position of the sensing range 51 of the eye mark sensor 50 in the paper width direction and the position of the eye mark 90 are aligned. The scanner 60 has a scan area 61 that can scan the printed surface of roll paper, and a scan area origin 62 that is the origin and serves as the reference position of the scanner 60. Because the scanner 60 and scale 54 are fixed to the frame of the printing apparatus main body, the distance S in the paper width direction between the scan area origin 62 and the scale origin 55 is a fixed value. Furthermore, because the indicator 53 is fixed relative to the eye mark sensor 50, the distance I in the paper width direction between the center of the sensing range 51 and the tip of the indicator 53 is also a fixed value. These distances S and I are assumed to be stored in ROM 203. Furthermore, distance derivation information, such as the distance between pixels in the paper width direction, used to derive the distance from the scan area origin 62 corresponding to each pixel on the scanned image obtained by the scanner 60 is also assumed to be stored in ROM 203.

[0027] Figure 9(a) shows the state after the roll paper has been replaced and spliced ​​with splice tape 19 on the splice table 11. The following paper 25 is attached to the paper feeder 10, and the leading edge of the following paper 35 is butted against the trailing edge of the preceding paper 20 on the splice table 11, resulting in the splice being performed by applying splice tape 19 to them. SA denotes the distance in the transport direction between the splice detection unit 30 and the trailing edge of the scanner 60, and FD denotes the distance from the trailing edge of the scanner 60 that is equal to or greater than the spacing between adjacent eyemarks 90 on the following paper 25. These distances SA and FD are stored as predetermined fixed values ​​in ROM 203. The reason for setting the distance FD to be equal to or greater than the spacing between adjacent eyemarks 90 is that the positions of the multiple eyemarks 90 formed on the roll paper in the paper width direction are all the same on a roll-by-roll basis, and it is sufficient to detect the position of at least one eyemark 90.

[0028] 7 shows a flowchart explaining the process of aligning the sensor with the eye mark 90 on the subsequent paper 25 when the roll paper is replaced. This process is executed when the user instructs the print engine unit 200 to start this process via the operation panel 103 or the like as needed, such as when the roll paper is replaced.

[0029] In S101, the conveyance control unit 207 starts the splice detection unit 30 to detect a splice.

[0030] In S102, the transport control unit 207 starts meandering control by the meandering correction device 40.

[0031] In S103, the transport control unit 207 drives the main transport unit 12, the sub-transport unit 15, the paper feeder 10, and the winder 17 to start transporting the roll paper, that is, paper feeding.

[0032] In S104, the conveyance control unit 207 continues detection until the splice detection unit 30 detects the splice tape 19. When the splice tape 19 reaches the detection range of the splice detection unit 30 (FIG. 9(b)) and the splice tape 19 is detected, the process proceeds to S105.

[0033] In S105, the conveyance control unit 207 feeds the paper by a predetermined distance SA while measuring the paper feed amount after detecting the splice (FIG. 9(c)).

[0034] In S106, the scanner control unit 211 reads the roll paper over the distance FD using the scanner 60, and acquires a read image for the distance FD (FIG. 9(d)).

[0035] In S107, the conveyance control unit 207 stops the main conveyance unit 12, the sub-conveyance unit 15, the paper feeder 10, and the winder 17, thereby stopping paper feeding.

[0036] In S108, the transport control unit 207 ends the meandering control by the meandering correction device 40.

[0037] In S109, the conveyance control unit 207 causes the splice detection unit 30 to end splice detection.

[0038] In S110, the scanner control unit 211 performs image analysis on the image read using the scanner 60 to detect the eyemark 90.

[0039] In S111, the scanner control unit 211 determines whether or not the eyemark 90 is detected from the read image. If the eyemark 90 is detected, the process proceeds to S112, and if the eyemark 90 is not detected, the process proceeds to S115.

[0040] In S112, the scanner control unit 211 calculates the distance M between the position in the paper width direction of the pixel corresponding to the center of the eye mark 90 on the read image and the scan area origin 62, which is the reference position of the scanner 60, and stores it in RAM 204.

[0041] In S113, the print controller 202 calculates the distance D on the scale 54 that indicates the position of the eye mark sensor 50 for sensor alignment, based on the distance M stored in the RAM 204 and the distances S and I stored in the ROM 203. Since the distances M, S, I, and D have the relationship shown in Fig. 8, the distance D can be calculated as follows.

[0042] D=E+I (1) M=S+E (2) Transforming equation (2) E=MS (2′) From equation (1) and equation (2'), D = M - S + I (3) In S114, the print controller 202 displays position information indicating the distance D on the operation panel 103, and ends the series of processes.

[0043] In S115, the scanner control unit 211 displays an error message on the operation panel 103 indicating that the eye mark 90 could not be detected, and ends the series of processes.

[0044] By the above processing, position information indicating the distance D can be displayed on a UI such as the operation panel 103, so the user can complete sensor alignment simply by moving the eye mark sensor 50 so that the indicator needle 53 is at the distance D on the scale 54. In other words, sensor alignment is now possible without the need for the user to visually align the paper transport direction position in step 1, which was required for conventional sensor alignment, and sensor alignment can be achieved with simpler user operations.

[0045] In this embodiment, the scanner control unit 211 is configured to perform the process of analyzing the read image and detecting the eye mark 90, but this process may be performed in an external information processing device connected to the print engine unit 200. Similarly, in this embodiment, the print controller 202 is configured to perform the process of calculating the distance D, but this process may also be performed in an external information processing device connected to the print engine unit 200.

[0046] In addition, in this embodiment, the recording medium is read at once for a distance FD, and image analysis is performed on one read image, but the recording medium is read at multiple times for a distance FD, and image analysis is performed on each of the multiple read images.

[0047] Furthermore, if the next splice is detected between S105 and S106, the process of S110 to S115 is performed for the scanned image corresponding to the previously detected splice, omitting S107 to S109, while the process of the next splice is performed from S105.

[0048] <Embodiment 2> In the first embodiment, the user manually aligns the sensor by looking at the distance D displayed on the operation panel 103, but in this embodiment, a drive mechanism is provided for moving the eye mark sensor 50 or sliding guide 52 in the paper width direction, and sensor alignment is performed by the drive mechanism. The drive mechanism may be, for example, one in which the eye mark sensor 50 is driven by a motor 80 via a drive belt 81, thereby enabling movement in the paper width direction of the roll paper. By controlling this drive mechanism based on the relative positions of the indicator needle 53 and scale 54 detected by a position sensor (not shown), it is possible to move the indicator needle 53, i.e., the eye mark sensor 50, to a specified position on the scale 54.

[0049] As described above, in this embodiment, sensor alignment of the eye mark sensor 50 can be completed automatically without user operation. In other words, sensor alignment can be performed without the user operations of steps 1 and 2 that were required for conventional sensor alignment, thereby improving operability.

[0050] (Other Examples) The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and having one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program.The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0051] The present disclosure includes the following configurations and methods. [Configuration 1] an acquisition means for acquiring a read image obtained by reading a recording medium on which a mark indicating a printing position is printed using a reading means provided in the printing device; a determining means for determining a position in the paper width direction at which the detecting means can detect the mark, based on a distance in the paper width direction of the recording medium between a reference position of the detecting means for detecting the mark provided in the printing device and a reference position of the reading means, using the read image; an output means for outputting position information indicating the position determined by the determination means; An information processing device comprising: [Configuration 2] the determining means determines the position of the detecting means so that the mark falls within the detection range based on the distance in the paper width direction between the center position of the detection range of the detecting means and the reference position of the reading means, and the distance in the paper width direction between the reference position of the reading means and the position of a pixel in the read image that corresponds to the mark. 2. The information processing device according to configuration 1, [Configuration 3] The recording medium is roll paper. 3. The information processing device according to configuration 1 or 2. [Configuration 4] The reading range of the reading means is wider than the detection range of the detection means. 4. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 3. [Configuration 5] the read image is a read image obtained by reading the entire paper width of the recording medium; 5. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 4. [Configuration 6] the output means outputs the position information to a display control means of a display device. 6. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 5. [Configuration 7] the output means outputs the position information to a moving means that moves the detection means in the paper width direction. 7. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 6. [Configuration 8] the determining means makes the determination when a seam is detected in the recording medium. 8. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 7. [Configuration 9] the printing device starts printing for each page based on the timing at which the mark is detected by the detection means; 9. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 8. [Configuration 10] The reading means can measure a registration pattern for adjusting a printing position. 10. The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 9. [Configuration 11] The information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 10, the detection means; The reading means; A printing device comprising: [Configuration 12] a moving means for moving the detecting means in the paper width direction based on the position information output from the output means; 12. The printing device according to claim 11, further comprising: [Configuration 13] a display means for displaying the position information output from the output means; 13. The printing device according to configuration 11 or 12, further comprising: [Configuration 14] A step of acquiring a read image obtained by reading a recording medium on which a mark indicating a printing position is printed using a reading means provided in the printing device; using the read image, based on the distance in the paper width direction of the recording medium between a reference position of a detection means for detecting the mark provided in the printing device and a reference position of the reading means, determining a position in the paper width direction at which the detection means can detect the mark; outputting position information indicating the position determined by the determining means; An information processing device comprising: [Configuration 15] A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 10.

Claims

1. an acquisition means for acquiring a read image obtained by reading a recording medium on which a mark indicating a printing position is printed using a reading means provided in the printing device; a determining means for determining a position in the paper width direction at which the detecting means can detect the mark, based on a distance in the paper width direction of the recording medium between a reference position of the detecting means for detecting the mark provided in the printing device and a reference position of the reading means, using the read image; an output means for outputting position information indicating the position determined by the determination means; An information processing device comprising:

2. the determining means determines the position of the detecting means so that the mark falls within the detection range based on the distance in the paper width direction between the center position of the detection range of the detecting means and the reference position of the reading means, and the distance in the paper width direction between the reference position of the reading means and the position of a pixel in the read image that corresponds to the mark.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

3. The recording medium is roll paper.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

4. The reading range of the reading means is wider than the detection range of the detection means.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

5. the read image is a read image obtained by reading the entire paper width of the recording medium; 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

6. the output means outputs the position information to a display control means of a display device.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

7. the output means outputs the position information to a moving means that moves the detection means in the paper width direction.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

8. the determining means makes the determination when a seam is detected in the recording medium.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

9. the printing device starts printing for each page based on the timing at which the mark is detected by the detection means; 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

10. The reading means can measure a registration pattern for adjusting a printing position.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is a computer.

11. The information processing device according to claim 1 ; the detection means; The reading means; A printing device comprising:

12. a moving means for moving the detecting means in the paper width direction based on the position information output from the output means; The printing device of claim 11 further comprising:

13. a display means for displaying the position information output from the output means; The printing device of claim 11 further comprising:

14. A step of acquiring a read image obtained by reading a recording medium on which a mark indicating a printing position is printed using a reading means provided in the printing device; using the read image, based on the distance in the paper width direction of the recording medium between a reference position of a detection means for detecting the mark provided in the printing device and a reference position of the reading means, determining a position in the paper width direction at which the detection means can detect the mark; outputting position information indicating the position determined by the determining means; An information processing device comprising:

15. A program for causing a computer to function as the information processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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