Printer and its control method

Abstract

This invention provides a printer and its control method that prevent deterioration of print quality and shorten the product lifespan when resuming printing after a power outage (loss). [Solution] The printer (100) according to this disclosure comprises a transport unit (10) that transports a printing medium (S) in a predetermined direction, a storage unit (120) that stores printing information and control information related to printing, a printing unit (60) that prints the printing information on the printing medium (S) in block units, a detection unit (150) that detects a power interruption of the external power supply, and a control unit (110) that controls them. When a power interruption is detected during printing, the control unit (110) stores information in the storage unit (120) as reprint information that identifies the first block to start printing when printing resumes after power is restored.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a printer and a control method thereof.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, various control methods and configurations have been proposed for appropriately operating a printer after power is restored even if the power is cut off due to an erroneous operation, power outage, or the like during printing by the printer. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a control method that retains print data spooled on a hard disk when power is cut off in the middle of printing, and constantly stores printed copy count information and page count information in a memory to prevent duplicate reprinting of already printed data when the power is turned on again. Further, Patent Document 2 describes a printer configured such that when the power is turned off in the middle of printing and then turned on again, printing can be resumed from the already printed state based on information stored in a memory.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problem to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In printing on tubular components such as tubes and sleeves, printing is often done in units of 1,000 blocks at a time. However, applying the method described in Patent Document 1 to such printing would require repeatedly writing and reading the printed block information from memory after each block is printed. In this case, since the write cycle life of typical non-volatile memory is around 0.1 to 10,000 times, this limit would be reached in a short period, resulting in a significant reduction in the printer's product lifespan. On the other hand, applying the printer configuration described in Patent Document 2 to printing on tubular components and resuming printing from a partially printed line (a state where printing is in progress) after power is restored (power is restored after a power outage) could lead to a deterioration in print quality, such as the occurrence of white spots (see Figure 7 described later) and a decrease in distance accuracy.

[0005] Therefore, this disclosure is made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a printer and a control method thereof that prevents deterioration of print quality and does not shorten the product life when resuming printing after a power outage (loss) occurs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] [1] To achieve the above objective, the printer according to this disclosure comprises a transport unit that transports a printing medium in a predetermined direction, a storage unit that stores print information and control information related to printing, a printing unit that prints the print information on the printing medium in block units, a detection unit that detects a power interruption of the external power supply, and a control unit that controls the transport unit, the storage unit, and the printing unit based on the print information and control information. The control unit, when it detects a power interruption of the external power supply during printing (due to a malfunction or power outage, etc.), stores information that identifies the first block to start printing when printing resumes after power is restored, as reprint information in the storage unit. Note that "power interruption" is a concept that includes not only cases where the power supply from the external power supply is interrupted due to a malfunction or localized power outage, but also broader power loss (large-scale power supply interruption). In addition, in this disclosure, "printing" is a concept that includes "printing".

[0007] In a printer with this configuration, if an external power interruption due to a malfunction or power outage is detected during printing, information identifying the starting block to be printed when printing resumes after power is restored (print resume position information) is stored (written) in the memory as reprint information, along with the normal print information and control information. This control eliminates the need to repeatedly write and read printed block information for each block printed. Therefore, even if non-volatile memory is used in the memory, it will not reach its write lifespan in a short period of time, thus preventing the risk of shortening the printer's product lifespan. Furthermore, based on the reprint information, printing can be resumed from the beginning of the block being printed, rather than from the middle of the already printed line, after power is restored, which prevents deterioration of print quality such as white spots and reduced distance accuracy.

[0008] [2] In addition, the above configuration may include a backup power supply (charge / discharge circuit, etc.) separate from the external power supply, and the control unit may be configured to save (write) the reprint information to the storage unit by supplying power from the backup power supply when the external power supply is interrupted. With this method, even if the external power supply (main power supply) is interrupted, the power from the backup power supply can be used to save the reprint information necessary to resume printing to the storage unit without loss, so that printing can be resumed reliably and quickly after power is restored. Furthermore, this configuration has the advantage that when printing is resumed after power is restored, work can be resumed smoothly without impairing print quality or processing speed. In addition, since the power supply from the backup power supply can be kept to the minimum power necessary to store the reprint information, there is no need to prepare a new alternative power supply with the same output as the external power supply, which can contribute to reducing the overall cost of the device. The backup power supply may be provided inside or outside the printer, but providing it inside is useful because it does not require additional equipment or cables outside the printer, so the overall device configuration can be made more compact and maintenance management is easier.

[0009] [3] In the above configuration, the control unit may store in the storage unit the print target block that was being printed (incomplete) by the printing unit at the time of the external power supply interruption as reprint information with the first block. This allows printing to be resumed from the beginning of the print target block that was being printed (i.e., printing is not resumed from where it left off). This ensures that the deterioration of print quality, such as the occurrence of white spots and a decrease in print distance accuracy, which are concerns with conventional devices, can be reliably prevented. In addition, since the target print block that was being printed is reprinted from the beginning, it is possible to smoothly restore the printer's operation in order to resume the printing work that was interrupted by the power outage.

[0010] [4] Alternatively, if the print target block that the printer was printing at the time of the power outage was already printed (completed), the control unit may store the next block after the said print target block as reprint information in the storage unit. In this case, printing can be resumed from the next block without reprinting the already printed print target block, thus preventing duplication of print content and suppressing increases in ink usage and material costs. In this case as well, it is possible to smoothly restore the printer's operation to resume printing work that was interrupted by a power outage.

[0011] [5] Furthermore, the control unit may be able to set whether or not to perform a power restoration process to save reprint information in the memory when an external power supply is interrupted. This configuration allows for the appropriate determination and flexible setting of cases in which power restoration is necessary and unnecessary, depending on the circumstances of the power interruption. As a result, it becomes possible to eliminate the waste of saving reprint information in the memory even when power restoration is unnecessary, further improving the efficiency of memory management and suppressing the wear on memory life due to unnecessary writes. Furthermore, optimizing the power restoration process can also reduce the processing load on the entire printer system.

[0012] More specifically, [6] the reprint information may include, for example, a reprint flag indicating that power restoration processing is (necessary), a printed block number indicating a block that has been printed, and a starting block number for reprinting indicating a block to be reprinted.

[0013] [7] The printer control method according to the present disclosure is a printer control method comprising a transport unit, a storage unit, a printing unit, a detection unit, and a control unit that controls the transport unit, the storage unit, and the printing unit based on print information and control information related to printing. The transport unit transports the printing medium in a predetermined direction, the storage unit stores the print information and control information, the printing unit prints the print information on the printing medium in block units, the detection unit detects a power interruption of the external power supply, and the control unit, if a power interruption is detected during printing, stores (writes) the information to the storage unit as reprint information that identifies the first block to start printing when printing resumes after power is restored. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view showing an example of the external configuration of the printer 100 according to this embodiment, and shows the printer as viewed from slightly to the left when facing its front. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing an example of the external configuration of the printer 100 according to this embodiment, and shows the printer as viewed from slightly to the left of its rear. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view showing the printer 100 with its lid open, viewed from a slightly angled frontal position above, with the consumables S installed. [Figure 4] This is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware and functional configuration of printer 100. [Figure 5] This is a plan view (top view) showing a part of the consumables S. [Figure 6] This flowchart shows an example of an operating procedure, including control processing when the printer 100's power is cut off. [Figure 7](A) and (B) are plan views showing an example of the state of consumable S when the printing process of the print information shown in Figure 5 is interrupted due to a power outage. [Figure 8] This is a plan view showing the white areas that may occur in consumables S when printing is resumed on a conventional printer. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0015] The embodiments described below will be explained with reference to the attached drawings. To facilitate understanding of the explanation, the same reference numerals are used for identical components in each drawing whenever possible, and redundant explanations are omitted. However, the embodiments described below are merely illustrative and are not intended to exclude various modifications or applications of techniques not explicitly stated below. In other words, one example of this disclosure can be implemented with various modifications without departing from its spirit. Also, the drawings are schematic and do not necessarily correspond to actual dimensions or proportions. Furthermore, there may be parts where the dimensional relationships and proportions differ between drawings. It goes without saying that the embodiments described below are only some embodiments of this disclosure, not all embodiments. Furthermore, any other embodiments that a person skilled in the art could obtain based on the embodiments of this disclosure without requiring any creative work are all included within the scope of this disclosure.

[0016] <Example of printer exterior configuration> Figures 1 and 2 are perspective views showing an example of the external configuration of the printer 100 according to this embodiment. Figure 1 shows the printer 100 viewed from slightly to the left of its front, and Figure 2 shows the printer 100 viewed from slightly to the left of its rear. As shown in these figures, the printer 100 comprises a main body 1 and a lid 2 attached to the top of the main body 1 so as to be openable and closable. Both the main body 1 and the lid 2 are housings that are, for example, roughly rectangular parallelepipeds, and their boundaries are formed on their front surfaces 1F, 2F and rear surfaces 1B, 2B. The main body 1 and the lid 2 are connected at the boundary between their right sides 1SR, 2SR, and the lid 2 is configured to open and close by pivoting its left side surface 2SL around this boundary.

[0017] Further, on the front surface 1F of the main body 1, there are provided a display / input-output unit 3 for performing various input operations and output displays for the printer 100, and an operation button 4 for full-cutting a consumable S (which corresponds to an example of the "print medium" in the present disclosure) to be described later. On the other hand, on the back surface 1B of the main body 1, there is provided a connector unit 5 including a main power switch connected to an unillustrated external power source, and respective ports for connecting a main power cable and other communication cables and the like. Furthermore, the display / input-output unit 3 has a screen such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, for example, and based on an instruction from a control unit 110 to be described later, displays a plurality of operation buttons such as character buttons, number buttons, and a print start button, a setting screen, notification outputs to the user, and other necessary information and the like. As such, the display of the display / input-output unit 3 also functions as, for example, a touch panel or a touch screen, and receives key inputs pressed by the user (for example, characters, numbers, symbols, patterns, etc. to be printed on the consumable S in block units, a selection request for the type of the consumable S, etc.), generates operation signals corresponding thereto, and outputs the signals to the control unit 110 to be described later.

[0018] Further, on the right side surface 1SR and the left side surface 1SL of the main body 1, there are respectively provided an insertion port SI and a discharge port SO for the consumable S to be described later. On the other hand, on the left side surface 2SL of the lid part 2, there is provided an operation unit 6 for opening and closing the lid part 2.

[0019] <Example of Internal Configuration of Printer> Next, FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state where the lid part 2 of the printer 100 is opened and viewed from above slightly obliquely toward the front, showing a state where the consumable S is set. The properties and shape of the consumable S are not particularly limited, and it is, for example, an elastic member formed of various polymer materials such as resin and elastomer, and examples thereof include those formed as a cylindrical member called a tube or a sleeve, or a sheet-like member such as a plate or a tape.

[0020] As described above, the lid 2 is opened and closed by operating the operating unit 6 (for example, by pulling up a biased handle or button). Specifically, the lid 2 is closed when the locking claw E2 of the lid 2 engages with the locking receiver E1 of the main body 1 shown in Figure 3, and the lid 2 can be opened by disengaging it through operation of the operating unit 6. Also, as shown in Figure 3, the printer 100 mainly contains a platen unit 10 (corresponding to an example of a "transport unit" in this disclosure), a positioning guide 20, an encoder unit 30, and a cutting unit 40, which are provided on the main body 1 side, and an ink ribbon unit 50 and a printer head 60 (corresponding to an example of a "printing unit" in this disclosure), which are provided on the lid 2 side.

[0021] The platen unit 10 is a component used when printing consumables S and is replaceably attached to the main body 1 of the printer 100. More specifically, the platen unit 10 is rotatably and detachably supported on a bearing J located downstream in the forward transport direction of the consumables S (direction from the right side 1SR to the left side 1SL of the main body 1). In this state, the platen unit 10 is driven to rotate (forward or reverse) via a platen gear PG by a transport motor (e.g., a stepping motor) not shown, which is driven based on a drive signal from a control unit 110, which will be described later. As a result, during normal transport, the consumables S are transported along the forward transport direction, and, if necessary, during reverse transport, the consumables S are transported along the reverse transport direction (direction from the left side 1SL to the right side 1SR of the main body 1).

[0022] The positioning guide 20 is provided along the transport direction of the consumable S and has two pairs of guides 21 and 22 for guiding the consumable S to the printing position on the platen unit 10 while positioning it from both sides. These guides 21 and 22 are arranged on the upstream and downstream sides, respectively, in the forward transport direction of the consumable S.

[0023] The encoder unit 30 is a component that enables printing on the same transport path even if the type of consumable S is different. For example, if the consumable S is a sheet-like material, it has a feed amount detection roller (not shown) for detecting the amount it is fed (traveled). However, if the consumable S is a cylindrical material, the feed amount detection roller is not used, so the encoder unit 30 is housed in the lower part of the main body 1 so as to be retracted from the transport path of the consumable S (Figure 3 shows this state).

[0024] The cutting unit 40 is located downstream of the platen unit 10 and the printer head 60 in the forward transport direction of the consumables S, and includes a half-cutter (not shown) and a support stand for half-cutting the upper surface of the consumables S, and a pair of full-cutters (not shown) located further downstream for fully cutting the consumables S. The cutting unit 40 is driven by a cutting motor (not shown) based on a drive signal from the control unit 110 (described later), and half-cuts or fully cuts the consumables S at a predetermined position.

[0025] The ink ribbon unit 50 includes an ink ribbon R, a bobbin 51 and a cassette 52 that are detachably attached to both sides of the printer head 60 and house the ink ribbon R in a wound state. In this ink ribbon unit 50, for example, a suitable rotary motor (not shown) rotates the cassette 52, and during the sequential transport of consumables S, the ink ribbon R is fed from a feed reel (not shown) of the bobbin 51 and collected in the cassette 52.

[0026] The printer head 60 is positioned opposite the platen unit 10 and prints predetermined characters, numbers, symbols, designs, etc., on the printing surface of the consumable S by applying recording energy supplied from a head drive circuit (not shown) to the ink ribbon R. The printer head 60 moves closer to or away from the platen unit 10 by an appropriate head movement mechanism (not shown). Furthermore, during transport and printing of the consumable S in the forward transport direction, the printer head 60 is pressed against the platen unit 10 with a predetermined pressure by a head pressing mechanism (not shown) and is configured to come into contact with the ink ribbon R.

[0027] <Example of Printer 100 Block Configuration> Figure 4 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware and functional configuration of printer 100. As shown in the figure, printer 100 is equipped with a control unit 110 for controlling the operation of the entire device. The control unit 110 (processor) includes, for example, one or more CPUs, MPUs, GPUs, etc., and executes processes, functions, or methods realized by code or instructions contained in information processing programs stored in the memory 120 or storage 130 described later. This control unit 110 controls each part of printer 100 to implement control processing when a power interruption is detected during printing of consumables S.

[0028] Furthermore, the control unit 110 is connected to the display / input / output unit 3, platen unit 10, encoder unit 30, cut unit 40, ink ribbon unit 50, printer head 60, memory 120, storage 130, and interface 140 via an appropriate communication bus. Examples of communication buses include parallel buses, serial buses, memory buses, input / output buses, high-performance buses that integrate these, or buses based on communication standards similar to or conforming to these.

[0029] Furthermore, among these parts, the memory 120 (corresponding to an example of a "storage unit" in this disclosure) is configured to include, for example, memory semiconductor memory (non-volatile memory and volatile memory) such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, NVMe, MRAM, FRAM (registered trademark), and temporarily stores various data such as information processing and printing programs loaded from the storage 130, shape information including the dimensions of consumables S, printing information, control information related to printing operations, information to identify the starting block when printing resumes after power is restored if a power interruption is detected (printing resume position information), a reprint flag indicating that power restoration processing is (necessary), printed block numbers indicating blocks that have been printed, the starting block number at the time of reprinting indicating blocks to be reprinted, half-cut block numbers, etc., theoretical transport amount and actual transport amount of consumables S, correction amount calculated from them, and other calculation results, and provides a work area to the control unit 110.

[0030] The storage 130 stores the above-mentioned information processing program and various data. Examples of the storage 130 include one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, and other non-volatile solid-state storage devices.

[0031] Interface 140 mediates various operations on the printer 100 and data communication with other parts, and may also include, as necessary, information output devices such as displays, speakers, and projectors other than the display / input / output unit 3, information input devices such as keyboards, mice, microphones, cameras, sensors, barcode readers, and scanners, and devices that serve as both input and output devices.

[0032] The power outage detection unit 150 (corresponding to an example of the "detection unit" in this disclosure) is for detecting a power interruption to the printer 100 and is configured as a circuit or module that has the function of detecting when the power supply from an external power source has stopped (power outage) and notifying the control unit 110. Such a power outage detection unit 150 can employ a voltage monitoring method that monitors the voltage of the main power cable and determines that there is a power outage when it falls below a predetermined threshold, a zero-cross detection method that detects the zero-crossing (point where the voltage becomes zero) of the AC power supply and recognizes a power outage when there is an abnormal change, a power relay method that detects a power outage by the operation of a relay when the power supply from an external power source is interrupted, or a microcontroller monitoring method that analyzes voltage fluctuations using an appropriate processor or microcontroller to determine that there is a power outage.

[0033] The backup internal power supply 160 (corresponding to an example of a "backup power supply" in this disclosure) is, for example, a charge / discharge circuit provided inside the printer 100 separately from the external power supply, and can be switched ON / OFF by the control unit 110 when the external power supply is interrupted (when the power interruption is detected by the power failure detection unit 150), or it can be a system that supplies power stored in a power storage device. As the backup internal power supply 160, for example, a capacitor system (such as a supercapacitor) that is capable of high-speed charging and discharging and has a long lifespan and can supply instantaneous power suitable for short-term data storage, a small secondary battery system (such as a lithium-ion battery or nickel-metal hydride battery) that can supply power for a certain period of time, a battery-less power supply system that utilizes external energy harvesting for low power consumption applications, or a DC uninterruptible power supply system suitable for long-term backup can be adopted.

[0034] <Overview of the composition of consumables S> Figure 5 is a plan view (top view) showing a part of the consumable S. As mentioned above, the consumable S is an elastic member formed from various polymer materials such as resin and elastomer, and is a long body formed as a tubular member such as a tube or sleeve, or a sheet member such as a plate or tape, extending in a predetermined direction. The content (print information) to be printed on the consumable S is divided into multiple blocks B1 to B3 based on the ruled lines K. The control unit 110 is configured to control the platen unit 10 and the printer head 60 based on the print information for each of these blocks B1 to B3, and to print on the print surface (top surface) of the consumable S in block units. Figure 5 shows examples of block B1 on which the alphanumeric characters "A123" are printed, block B2 on which the alphanumeric characters "B4" are printed, and block B3 on which the alphanumeric characters "C56" are printed. Thus, the multiple blocks B1 to B3 may have a variable size (length) or a fixed predetermined size (length). Note that the ruled line K indicates the boundary of each block, and printing it is not mandatory. Also, when cutting consumables S in half, the cut will occur at the position of the ruled line K indicating the boundary.

[0035] <Example of printer operation> Figure 6 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation procedure including control processing when the printer 100 is powered off. In step S1, the printer 100 starts printing onto the consumables S. As printing progresses, in step S10, the power outage detection unit 150 detects a power outage or other interruption of the external power supply, and the printer 100 stops printing (step S2). The power outage detection unit 150 transmits a power outage detection signal to the control unit 110, and this signal switches the power system. In step S20, the backup internal power supply 160 is turned ON, and the control unit 110 proceeds to the next process.

[0036] Next, in step S30, the control unit 110 determines whether or not a power outage event requires a power restoration process. If a power restoration process is not required (No in step S30), the control unit 110 proceeds to step S60 and turns off the backup internal power supply 160. On the other hand, if a power restoration process is required (Yes in step S30), in step S40, the control unit 110 identifies the most recent print target block that was being printed at the time of the power outage and stores reprint information, including information that identifies the starting block when printing resumes after power is restored (print resume position information), in the memory 120 using power supplied from the backup internal power supply 160, based on its attributes.

[0037] In other words, if a block to be printed that is in the process of being printed is still being printed (incomplete), in step S50, the control unit 110 stores reprint information (reprint data) in the memory 120, designating that block as the first block when printing is resumed (process P1). On the other hand, if a block to be printed that is in the process of being printed is already printed (completed), in step S50, the control unit 110 stores reprint information (reprint data) in the memory 120, designating the block following that block as the first block when printing is resumed (process P2). Furthermore, when performing a half-cut of consumables S, a block to be printed that has been printed but has not been half-cut may be considered a block to be printed that is still being printed (incomplete), and identified as the first block when printing is resumed. In this case, the half-cut block to be printed may be treated as already printed (completed), and the next block may be identified as the first block when printing is resumed.

[0038] For example, Figures 7(A) and 7(B) are plan views showing an example of the state of consumable S when the printing process of the print information shown in Figure 5 is interrupted due to a power outage of the external power supply. In Figure 7(A), printing is interrupted while the letter "B" in block B2 is being printed. Therefore, the control unit 110 determines that the block to be printed at the time of the power outage is block B2, which was being printed, and writes reprint information to the memory 120, setting block B2 as the first block when printing is resumed. On the other hand, in Figure 7(B), printing is completed up to block B2, including the ruled line K, so the control unit 110 determines that block B2, the block to be printed at the time of the power outage of the external power supply, has been printed, and writes reprint information to the memory 120, setting the next block B3 as the first block when printing is resumed. After these processes are completed, in step S60, the control unit 110 turns off the auxiliary internal power supply 160.

[0039] After the external power supply is restored, the control unit 110 resumes printing in step S3. In this case, the control unit 110 reads the reprint information stored in the memory 120 and resumes printing from the first position of the identified first block. For example, in Figure 7(A), the partially printed letter "B" is discarded, the platen unit 10 advances the transport a little, and then reprints from the beginning of block B2, which is identified as the first block, and continues printing of the subsequent blocks. In Figure 7(B), since block B2 has already been printed, "C56" is printed from the beginning of block B3, which is identified as the first block, and then continues printing of the subsequent blocks. After the reprint information has been read from the memory 120, or after the reprint process is completed, the control unit 110 may erase the reprint information from the memory 120 in step S70. After the series of printing processes is completed, the control unit 110 terminates printing in step S4. Furthermore, even if the power outage detection unit 150 does not detect a power interruption (No in step S10), the print termination process will be performed in step S4 after the series of printing processes are completed.

[0040] With the printer 100 and its control method configured as described above, when a power outage is detected by the power failure detection unit 150, reprint information, including information that identifies the first block to be printed when printing resumes after power is restored (print resume position information), is temporarily stored in the memory 120. In this way, the printer 100 does not need to repeatedly write / read the printed block information to and from the memory 120 for each block B printed. As a result, even if non-volatile memory is used in the memory 120, its write cycle lifespan will not be reached in a short period of time, and consequently, the product lifespan of the printer 100 can be prevented from being shortened.

[0041] Furthermore, with conventional technology, printing resumed from the middle of a printed line when power was restored. For example, if printing was resumed in the case shown in Figure 7(B), there was a possibility of white gaps occurring, as shown by the dashed frame in Figure 8. In contrast, printer 100 does not resume printing from the middle of a printed line when power is restored, but resumes printing from the beginning of blocks B2 and B3, which were being printed at the time. This prevents deterioration of print quality, such as the occurrence of white gaps and a decrease in distance accuracy.

[0042] Furthermore, if the control unit 110 resumes printing from the identified first blocks B2 and B3 after power is restored, and then immediately erases the reprint information from the memory 120, the memory area can be freed immediately after printing resumes. This makes it possible to improve the efficiency of memory management while keeping the required capacity of the memory 120 down. In addition, cost reduction is achieved by miniaturizing the memory 120, and the computational processing load on the control unit 110 is also reduced, which can contribute to improving the overall operational efficiency and responsiveness of the printer 100. When erasing the reprint information, only the reprint flag is erased, and the printed block number, the first block number at the time of reprinting, the half-cut block number, etc. are overwritten during the next power restoration process, which can further reduce the number of writes to the memory. In this example, the block number is a number assigned sequentially from the first block of the print information.

[0043] Furthermore, the printer 100 is equipped with a backup internal power supply 160 separate from the external power supply, and the control unit 110 is configured to store (write) reprint information to the memory 120 by supplying power from the backup internal power supply 160 when the external power supply is interrupted. With this method, even if the external power supply (main power supply) is interrupted, the power of the backup internal power supply 160 can be used to store the reprint information necessary to resume printing in the memory 120 without loss, so that printing can be resumed reliably and quickly after power is restored. In addition, this configuration has the advantage that when printing is resumed after power is restored, work can be resumed smoothly without compromising print quality or processing speed. Furthermore, since the power supply from the backup internal power supply 160 can be kept to the minimum power necessary to store the reprint information, there is no need to prepare a new alternative power supply with the same output as the external power supply, which can contribute to reducing the overall cost of the device.

[0044] Furthermore, in Figure 7(A) and process P1, if the print target block (block B2) that was being printed at the time of the power outage is still in progress, reprint information starting with block B2 is written to memory 120 and temporarily saved. This allows printing to resume from the beginning of block B2 (i.e., it does not resume printing from where it left off), thus reliably preventing the deterioration of print quality, such as the occurrence of white gaps (Figure 8) and a decrease in print distance accuracy, which are concerns with conventional devices. In addition, since reprinting starts from the beginning of block B2, which was still in progress, it is possible to smoothly restore the operation of the printer 100 to resume the printing work that was interrupted by the power outage.

[0045] On the other hand, in Figure 7(B) and process P2, if the print target block (block B2) that was being printed at the time of the power outage has already been printed, reprint information starting with the next block B3 is written to memory 120 and temporarily saved. This allows printing to resume from the next block B3 without reprinting the already printed block B2, thus preventing duplicate print content and suppressing increases in ink usage and material costs. In this case as well, it is possible to smoothly restore the operation of the printer 100 to resume the printing work that was interrupted by the power outage.

[0046] In addition, the printer 100 allows setting whether or not a power restoration process is necessary to save reprint information to the memory 120 when an external power supply is interrupted. The control unit 110 then determines whether or not a power restoration process is necessary for the power interruption event, and if a power restoration process is necessary, it performs the power restoration process in the subsequent steps. With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately determine and flexibly set whether a power restoration process is necessary or unnecessary depending on the circumstances of the power interruption. As a result, it is possible to eliminate the waste of saving reprint information to the memory 120 even when a power restoration process is unnecessary, further improving the efficiency of memory management and suppressing the wear of memory life due to unnecessary writes. Furthermore, optimizing the power restoration process can also reduce the overall processing load of the printer 100 system.

[0047] The embodiments described above with reference to specific examples are for the purpose of facilitating understanding of this disclosure and are not intended to limit its interpretation. In other words, this disclosure is not limited to these specific examples, and designs modified by those skilled in the art are also included within the technical scope of this disclosure, as long as they retain the features of this disclosure. Furthermore, the elements, arrangements, materials, conditions, shapes, dimensions, scales, etc., of each of the aforementioned specific examples are not limited to those exemplified unless otherwise specified, and can be modified as appropriate. Moreover, the elements of each of the aforementioned specific examples can be combined in different ways as appropriate, as long as no technical inconsistencies arise.

[0048] In other words, for example, the determination of whether or not power restoration processing is necessary in step S30 may be omitted. Also, instead of or in addition to the auxiliary internal power supply 160, an auxiliary external power supply installed outside the printer 100 may be used. Furthermore, the other printing medium may be a consumable item connected with appropriate gaps between them, for example, a long base on which multiple printing media as printing stickers are arranged at predetermined intervals. In addition, the cut unit 40 may not perform half-cuts as needed, depending on the form of the consumable item S. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0049] 1...Main unit, 1B...Rear, 1F...Front, 1SL...Left side, 1SR...Right side, 2...Lid, 2B...Rear, 2F...Front, 2SL...Left side, 2SR...Right side, 3...Display / Input / Output unit, 4...Operation buttons, 5...Connector unit, 6...Operation unit, 7...Attachment, 10...Platen unit (transport unit), 20, 21, 22...Guide, 30...Encoder unit, 40...Cut unit, 50...Ink ribbon unit, 51...Bobbin, 52...Cassette, 60...Printer head ( Printing section, 100...Printer, 110...Control unit, 120...Memory (storage unit), 130...Storage, 140...Interface, 150...Power failure detection unit (detection unit), 160...Backup internal power supply (backup power supply), B, B1, B2, B3...Block, E1...Locking receiver, E2...Locking claw, K...Score line, J...Bearing section, P1, P2...Processing, PG...Platen gear, R...Ink ribbon, S...Consumables (printing media), S1~S4, S10~S70...Step, SI...Inlet, SO...Outlet

Claims

1. A transport unit that transports the printing medium in a predetermined direction, A storage unit that stores print information and control information related to printing, A printing unit that prints the print information on the printing medium in block units, A detection unit that detects the interruption of power from an external power source, A control unit controls the transport unit, the storage unit, and the printing unit based on the print information and the control information, Equipped with, If the control unit detects a power outage during printing, it stores information in the storage unit as reprint information that identifies the first block to start printing when printing resumes after power is restored. Printer.

2. It is further equipped with a backup power supply separate from the external power supply, The control unit, in the event of a power outage, saves the reprint information to the storage unit by supplying power from the backup power supply. The printer according to claim 1.

3. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stores in the storage unit the print target block that is in the process of being printed by the printing unit at the time the power interruption occurs, as the reprint information with the first block.

4. The printer according to claim 1, wherein if the print target block that was being printed by the printing unit at the time the power outage occurred has already been printed, the control unit stores the next block after the print target block as the reprint information, with the next block being the first block.

5. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the control unit can set whether or not to perform a power restoration process to save the reprint information in the storage unit when the power is interrupted.

6. The printer according to claim 1, wherein the reprint information includes a reprint flag indicating that power restoration processing will be performed, a printed block number indicating a block that has been printed, and a starting block number for reprinting indicating a block to be reprinted.

7. A printer control method comprising a transport unit, a storage unit, a printing unit, a detection unit, and a control unit that controls the transport unit, the storage unit, and the printing unit based on print information and control information related to printing, The transport unit transports the printing medium in a predetermined direction. The storage unit stores the print information and the control information, The printing unit prints the printing information on the printing medium in block units. The detection unit detects that the external power supply has been cut off, If the control unit detects a power outage during printing, it stores information identifying the first block to start printing when printing resumes after power is restored in the storage unit as reprint information. How to control the printer.

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