Patent BE507400A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
Patent EP0112025A2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0112025A2
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EP
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Dot printers
Assignee: HP Inc
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Filing: 1983-11-09
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2003-11-09
Abstract
Abstract A dot printer is presented having an arrangement of dot emitters which is suitable for producing various line widths in a vector graphics mode as well as producing lines and characters of various sizes in a raster scan mode. The printer has emitters (e.g., 11-17, 110-114) arranged in a pattern having one emitter in each row and in each column of the pattern. The pattern is formed from primitive dot patterns which can be utilized in the vector graphics mode to produce vector of various line widths. The generation of dots is controlled to produce rounded terminations of line segments.
Inventors
- 👤 Dean Allen Anderson
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-04 10:05
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06K; G06K15/00; G06K15/22; G06K15/02; G06K15/10; G06K15/102; B; B41; B41J; B41J2/00; B41J2/005; B41J2/01; B41J2/135; B41J2/14; B41J2002/14475
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
138 words
A dot printer suitable for vector mode plotting and raster mode printing and plotting, the dot printer being characterized by a dot generator which, when stationary, can produce a pattern (Figure 3) of dots each of a selected radius (as defined) and spacing on a recording medium suitably spaced from the dot generator, the pattern of dots being such that when considered as superimposed on a grid of uniform orthogonal rows (X direction) and columns (Y direction), each column contains a single dot and each row contains a single dot, and which, when translated in any one of a plurality of linear directions, can continuously deliver ink to produce one or more lines the thickness of which is related to dot radius and spacing and to the degree of any overlap of ink in the direction of translation.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
138 words
A dot printer suitable for vector mode plotting and raster mode printing and plotting, the dot printer being characterized by a dot generator which, when stationary, can produce a pattern (Figure 3) of dots each of a selected radius (as defined) and spacing on a recording medium suitably spaced from the dot generator, the pattern of dots being such that when considered as superimposed on a grid of uniform orthogonal rows (X direction) and columns (Y direction), each column contains a single dot and each row contains a single dot, and which, when translated in any one of a plurality of linear directions, can continuously deliver ink to produce one or more lines the thickness of which is related to dot radius and spacing and to the degree of any overlap of ink in the direction of translation.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
67 words
A dot printer according to claim 1 characterized in that the spacing of a line in the X direction or the Y direction drawn through any dot center from a line, also drawn in the X direction or the Y direction respectively, through the center of a dot in the next adjacent row or column respectively is less than the sum of the radii of those dots.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
55 words
A dot printer according to either one of the preceding claims characterized in that the dot generator can produce a pattern of dots comprising at least two primitive dot patterns (Figures lA, 1B; 2A,2B), each of which can be utilized to draw lines having a line width greater than the diameter of an individual dot.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
57 words
A dot printer according to claim 3 characterized in that, for each primitive dot pattern (Figures lA; 2A) of the dot pattern, a mirror image (Figures 1B;2B) of that primitive dot pattern, (i.e. the conjugate pattern) is also contained in the dot pattern, the mirror image being with respect to a plane parallel to the Y direction.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
55 words
A dot printer according to claim 4 characterized in that each primitive dot pattern can produce solid lines extending in a set of directions, and each conjugate pattern can produce solid lines extending in a further set of directions, the set and the further set providing the set of all possible directions in two dimensions.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
30 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 3 to 5 characterized in that a plurality of outer dots of each primitive pattern are located on a circle (59).
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
61 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 3 to 6 characterized in that a primitive dot pattern (Figure 1A) comprises a 7-dot arrangement with the dots spatially arranged such that they would be centered on seven points (0,0), (3,-1), (1,-3), (-2,-2), (-3,1), (1,-3), and (2,2) of an X-Y grid as aforesaid with each dot having at least unit radius.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
58 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 3 to 7 characterized in that a primitive dot pattern (Figure 2A) comprises a 4-dot arrangement with the dots spatially arranged such that they would be centered on four points (3,-1), (-1,-3), (-3,1) and (1,3) of an X-Y grid as aforesaid with each dot having at least unit radius.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
61 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 3 to 8 characterized in that a primitive dot pattern (Figure lB) comprises a 7-dot arrangement with dots spatially arranged such that they would be centered on seven points (0,0), (-3, -1), (-1,-3), (2,-2), (3,1), (1,3), and (-2,2) of an X-Y grid as aforesaid with each dot having at least unit radius.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
58 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 3 to 9 characterized in that a primitive dot pattern (Figure 2B) comprises a 4-dot arrangement with the dots spatially arranged such that they would be centered on four points (-3,-1), (1,-3), (3,1) and (-1,3) of an X-Y grid as aforesaid with each dot having at least unit radius.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
55 words
A dot printer according to any one of the preceding claims characterized in that the dot generator comprises a plurality of dot emitters, each dot emitter (11-17; 51-57; 110-114) being arranged in a pattern having the same geometric relationship between dot emitters as exists between dots in the dot pattern produced by the dot generator.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
44 words
A dot printer according to claim 11 characterized in that the dot generator includes a nozzle plate having a plurality of nozzles (11-17; 51-57; 110-114) formed therein, each dot emitter comprising a nozzle and associated means for controllably ejecting droplets of ink through it.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
90 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 11 to 12 characterized in that the dot emitter can be individually activated to produce dots to draw a line having a line width equal to the diameter of a single dot, said dot printer further comprising means for alternating the selection of which dot is utilized to draw different line segments of one dot diameter line width, whereby the amount of use of each dot emitter will be approximately equal, thus to equalize wear on each of the dot emitters.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
111 words
A dot printer according to any one of claims 11 to 13 characterized in that the dot pattern comprises at least two identical primitive dot patterns (32,34; 33,35), each of which can be utilized to draw vectors having a linewidth that -is larger than the diameter of a single dot, said dot printer further comprising means for alternating the selection of which primitive dot pattern is utilized to draw different line segments of the line width produced by these primitive dot patterns, whereby the amount of use of the dot emitters associated with these primitive dot patterns will be approximately equalized, thus to equalize wear on each of these dot emitters.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
28 words
A dot printer according to any one of the preceding claims at the termination of a line, the production of dots is controlled to produce a rounded termination.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
19 words
A dot printer wherein the primitive dot patterns are centered along a diagonal of the dot pattern (Figure 3).
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
19 words
A dot printer wherein the primitive dot patterns are centered along a diagonal of the dot pattern (Figure 3).
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
80 words
A dot printer suitable for vector mode plotting as well as raster mode printing and plotting, said dot printer being characterized by a dot generator comprising means which, when stationary, can produce a pattern of dots on a recording medium plated at a suitable distance from the dot generator, said dots being arranged in a two-dimensional pattern having equal width columns and rows, each column containing one and only one dot and each row containing one and only one dot.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
80 words
A dot printer suitable for vector mode plotting as well as raster mode printing and plotting, said dot printer being characterized by a dot generator comprising means which, when stationary, can produce a pattern of dots on a recording medium plated at a suitable distance from the dot generator, said dots being arranged in a two-dimensional pattern having equal width columns and rows, each column containing one and only one dot and each row containing one and only one dot.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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