Thermal printer and computer-readable storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11001079-B2
Application number	US-201916524652-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 29, 2019
Priority date	Jul 31, 2018
Publication date	May 11, 2021
Grant date	May 11, 2021

Abstract

A thermal printer includes a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged in a line, and a processor that executes a printing process of energizing the thermal head successively a predetermined number of times so at to print a printing data by causing a predetermined voltage to be applied to the thermal head the predetermined number of times in accordance with and in synchronization with strobe pulses in a strobe signal, a strobe width of each strobe pulse in the strobe signal defining a duration during which the thermal head is being applied with the predetermined voltage, wherein among the strobe pulses for the predetermined number of times of energizing the thermal head, a strobe width of at least one predetermined strobe pulse is set to be always shorter than a strobe width of another predetermined one of the strobe pulses.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thermal printer, comprising:
a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged in a line;
a processor configured to execute a printing process of energizing the thermal head successively a predetermined number of times so at to print a printing data by causing a predetermined voltage to be applied to the thermal head the predetermined number of times in accordance with and in synchronization with strobe pulses in a strobe signal, a strobe width of each strobe pulse in the strobe signal defining a duration during which the thermal head is being applied with the predetermined voltage when a corresponding heating element or elements are to be energized in order to print the printing data; and
a stepping motor that conveys a thermal paper,
wherein among the strobe pulses for the predetermined number of times of energizing the thermal head, a strobe width of at least one predetermined strobe pulse is set to be always shorter than a strobe width of another predetermined one of the strobe pulses,
wherein the printing data is printing data for text, and the text includes a prescribed number of dots arranged in a direction in which the stepping motor conveys the thermal paper, and
wherein said printing process of energizing the thermal head successively a predetermined number of times is a process of printing said prescribed number of dots of the text, and the strobe width of strobe pulses for printing a subset of the prescribed number of dots of the text is set to be always shorter than the strobe width of strobe pulses for printing a remaining subset of the prescribed number of dots.

2. The thermal printer according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one predetermined strobe pulse occurs at a time later than a time at which the another predetermined one of the strobe pulses occurs.

3. The thermal printer according to claim 1 , wherein the subset of the prescribed number of dots for which the strobe width is set shorter is a latter half of the dots, and the remaining subset of the prescribed number of dots is a first half of the dots.

4. The thermal printer according to claim 3 , wherein the processor determines the strobe width for printing the first half of the dots on the basis of the printing data for the text.

5. The thermal printer according to claim 1 , wherein with said prescribed number of dots of the text, the strobe width of a strobe pulse in the strobe signal for printing a dot that is being printed later than another dot is equal to or shorter than the strobe width of a strobe pulse for printing said another dot.

6. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program that instructs a processor in a thermal printer that includes, in addition to the processor, a thermal head in which a plurality of heating elements are arranged in a line, to perform a printing process of energizing the thermal head successively a predetermined number of times so at to print a printing data by causing a predetermined voltage to be applied to the thermal head the predetermined number of times in accordance with and in synchronization with strobe pulses in a strobe signal, a strobe width of each strobe pulse in the strobe signal defining a duration during which the thermal head is being applied with the predetermined voltage when a corresponding heating element or elements are to be energized in order to print the printing data,
wherein among the strobe pulses for the predetermined number of times of energizing the thermal head, a strobe width of at least one predetermined strobe pulse is set to be always shorter than a strobe width of another predetermined one of the strobe pulses,
wherein the thermal printer further includes a stepping motor that conveys a thermal paper,
wherein the printing data is printing data for text, and the text includes a prescribed number of dots arranged in a direction in which the stepping motor conveys the thermal paper, and
wherein said printing process of energizing the thermal head successively a predetermined number of times is a process of printing said prescribed number of dots of the text, and the strobe width of strobe pulses for printing a subset of the prescribed number of dots of the text is set to be always shorter than the strobe width of strobe pulses for printing a remaining subset of the prescribed number of dots.

7. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 6 , wherein the at least one predetermined pulses occurs at a time later than a time at which the another predetermined one of the strobe pulses occurs.

8. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 6 , wherein the subset of the prescribed number of dots for which the strobe width is set shorter is a latter half of the dots, and the remaining subset of the prescribed number of dots is a first half of the dots.

9. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 8 , wherein the program instructs the processor to determine the strobe width for printing the first half of the dots on the basis of the printing data for the text.

10. The thermal printer according to claim 6 , wherein with said prescribed number of dots of the text, the strobe width of a strobe pulse in the strobe signal for printing a dot that is being printed later than another dot is equal to or shorter than the strobe width of a strobe pulse for printing said another dot.

Assignees

• Casio Computer Co Ltd

Inventors

• Tominaga Shumpei
• Motoike Katsuhiko

Classifications

• B41J2/3558 Primary

  Voltage control or determination · CPC title

• B41J2/315 Primary

  characterised by selective application of heat to a heat sensitive printing or impression-transfer material (B41J2/385, B41J2/435 take precedence) · CPC title

• B41J29/38

  Drives, motors, controls or automatic cut-off devices for the entire printing mechanism · CPC title

• B41J2/365

  by compensation for variation in temperature · CPC title