US4070680A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Thermal printer-plotter system for multi-directional printing and plotting
Assignee: HP Inc
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Filing: 1976-08-20
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Granted: 1978-01-24
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Expires: 1996-08-20
Abstract
Abstract A printer-plotter system is provided having a single horizontally movable, print-plot head comprising geometrically arranged thermal resistor elements which are processor-controlled for plotting continuous multi-directional line segments and for printing, while plotting, upper and lower case alphanumeric characters and punctuation characters in four orthogonal directions. Characters are printed in 5-columns-by-7-rows dot matrix form, with neighboring dots partly overlapping each other in order to impart a continuous or drawn appearance rather than a discontinuous dot appearance to the printed characters. The geometric arrangement of the head elements also provides for varying the width of line segments plotted along selected orthogonal directions.
Inventors
- 👤 David J. Shelley
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 08:35
CPC Classifications
G; G01; G01D; G01D15/00; G01D15/10; B; B41; B41J; B41J2/00; B41J2/315; B41J2/32; B41J2/345; B41J3/00; B41J3/44; G01D9/00; G01D9/38
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 25
Claim 1
Independent Claim
165 words
A system for forming visual output manifestations on a web, comprising: head means having a plurality of print elements engaging said web, each element being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions in the head, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position; drive means coupled to at least one of the web and the head means for providing relative motion of the head means with respect to the web along two orthogonal coordinates; and logic means disposed to receive data and coupled to the drive means and to the head means for forming visual output manifestations on the web in one of four directions along the two orthogonal coordinates by causing the drive means to move at least one of the web and head means to a selected position and energizing selected elements of the head means to form selected portions of the visual output manifestations in response to said data.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
165 words
A system for forming visual output manifestations on a web, comprising: head means having a plurality of print elements engaging said web, each element being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions in the head, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position; drive means coupled to at least one of the web and the head means for providing relative motion of the head means with respect to the web along two orthogonal coordinates; and logic means disposed to receive data and coupled to the drive means and to the head means for forming visual output manifestations on the web in one of four directions along the two orthogonal coordinates by causing the drive means to move at least one of the web and head means to a selected position and energizing selected elements of the head means to form selected portions of the visual output manifestations in response to said data.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
41 words
The system as in claim 1 wherein each first coordinate of the print elements is a row coordinate and each second coordinate is a column coordinate, the print elements being symmetrically located about at least one of two substantially 45° diagonals.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
35 words
The system as in claim 1 wherein the logic means includes a stored routine for producing alphanumeric characters, the web is thermally sensitive paper, and the print elements comprise at least nine thermal resistive elements.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
20 words
The system as in claim 1 wherein the head means includes a plot element for plotting lines on the web.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
30 words
The system as in claim 2 wherein the print elements are aligned in overlapping contiguity along the coordinates, this arrangement being effective for producing contiguous partly-overlapping marks on the web.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
72 words
The system as in claim 5 wherein the drive means includes a web drive means and a head drive means, and the logic means controls the head means, the head drive means, the web drive means and controls the energizing of selected numbers of those elements contiguously aligned along a selected coordinate, to produce line segments in the direction of the selected coordinate having thickness related to the number of elements energized.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
129 words
A method of forming output manifestations on a web using a movable head with a plurality of print elements to form portions of each output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a number of elements to be energized; positioning one of the head and web with the selected elements located over selected portions of the output manifestation to be formed in such a manner that at each positioning no more than one element is located over a column of the output manifestation to be printed, and no more than one element is located over a row of the output manifestation to be printed; and energizing the selected elements to form portions of the output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
129 words
A method of forming output manifestations on a web using a movable head with a plurality of print elements to form portions of each output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a number of elements to be energized; positioning one of the head and web with the selected elements located over selected portions of the output manifestation to be formed in such a manner that at each positioning no more than one element is located over a column of the output manifestation to be printed, and no more than one element is located over a row of the output manifestation to be printed; and energizing the selected elements to form portions of the output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
47 words
The method of claim 7 where the step of positioning includes the steps of moving the head in a first direction to produce output manifestations oriented in said first direction, and moving the head in a second direction to produce output manifestations oriented in said second direction.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
53 words
The method of claim 7 where the step of positioning further includes the steps of moving the web in a third direction to produce output manifestations oriented in a fourth direction opposite to said third direction, and moving the web in a fourth direction to produce output manifestations oriented in the third direction.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
74 words
The method of claim 7 where the movable head includes a plot element for forming lines on the web in any selected direction and the method includes the steps of: selecting the plot element to be energized; positioning one of the head and web such that the plot element is located over a segment of the line to be formed; and energizing the plot element to form the line segment in the selected direction.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
65 words
A print head comprising a cluster of a selected number of print elements disposed on and about at least two diagonals for forming output manifestations on a web in any of four orthogonal directions, such elements being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
65 words
A print head comprising a cluster of a selected number of print elements disposed on and about at least two diagonals for forming output manifestations on a web in any of four orthogonal directions, such elements being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
27 words
The print head as in claim 11 wherein each first coordinate of the print element is a row coordinate and each second coordinate is a column coordinate
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
28 words
The print head as in claim 11 wherein the print elements are aligned in overlapping contiguity along the coordinates for producing partly-overlapping contiguous output manifestations on the web.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
22 words
The print head as in claim 11 wherein the print elements are disposed having independent conductor leads and a common ground lead.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
57 words
The print head as in claim 11 wherein a first group of the selected number of print elements are used for printing output manifestations in the form of upper case characters, a second group of said elements are used for printing lower case characters, and a third group of said elements are used to print punctuation characters.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
22 words
The print head as in claim 11 including a plot element disposed externally to the cluster of print elements for plotting lines.
Claim 20
Independent Claim
173 words
A system for forming visual output manifestations on a web, comprising: head means having a plurality of print elements and a plot element engaging said web, each element being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions in the head, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position; drive means coupled to at least one of the web and the head means for providing relative motion of the head means with respect to the web along two orthogonal coordinates; and logic means disposed to receive data and coupled to the drive means and to the head means for substantially simultaneously printing and plotting visual output manifestations on the web in one of four directions along the two orthogonal coordinates by causing the drive means to move at least one of the web and head means to a selected position and energizing selected elements of the head means to form selected portions of the visual output manifestations in response to said data.
Claim 21
Independent Claim
173 words
A system for forming visual output manifestations on a web, comprising: head means having a plurality of print elements and a plot element engaging said web, each element being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions in the head, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position; drive means coupled to at least one of the web and the head means for providing relative motion of the head means with respect to the web along two orthogonal coordinates; and logic means disposed to receive data and coupled to the drive means and to the head means for substantially simultaneously printing and plotting visual output manifestations on the web in one of four directions along the two orthogonal coordinates by causing the drive means to move at least one of the web and head means to a selected position and energizing selected elements of the head means to form selected portions of the visual output manifestations in response to said data.
Claim 22
Independent Claim
138 words
A method of substantially simultaneously printing and plotting visual output manifestations on a web using a movable head with a plurality of print elements and a plot element to form portions of each output manifestations in one of four orthogonal directions, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a number of elements to be energized; positioning one of the head and web with the selected elements located over selected portions of the output manifestation to be formed in such a manner that at each positioning no more than one element is located over a column of the output manifestation to be printed, and no more than one element is located over a row of the output manifestation to be printed; and energizing the selected elements to form portions of the output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
138 words
A method of substantially simultaneously printing and plotting visual output manifestations on a web using a movable head with a plurality of print elements and a plot element to form portions of each output manifestations in one of four orthogonal directions, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a number of elements to be energized; positioning one of the head and web with the selected elements located over selected portions of the output manifestation to be formed in such a manner that at each positioning no more than one element is located over a column of the output manifestation to be printed, and no more than one element is located over a row of the output manifestation to be printed; and energizing the selected elements to form portions of the output manifestation in one of four orthogonal directions.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
75 words
A print head comprising a plot element and a cluster of a selected number of print elements disposed on and about at least two diagonals for printing and plotting substantially simultaneously and forming output manifestations on a web in any of four orthogonal directions, such elements being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
75 words
A print head comprising a plot element and a cluster of a selected number of print elements disposed on and about at least two diagonals for printing and plotting substantially simultaneously and forming output manifestations on a web in any of four orthogonal directions, such elements being located at the intersection of first and second coordinate positions, with no element occupying the same first coordinate position and no element occupying the same second coordinate position.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1981-01-23 | 1981-07-25 | 1982-01-24 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1985-01-23 | 1985-07-25 | 1986-01-24 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1989-01-23 | 1989-07-25 | 1990-01-24 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |