Abstract: A ticket issuing apparatus includes a printing section constituted by a printing control circuit and a printing head, a communication interface connected to a desired host computer through a communication channel, and a card connector to which an IC card for storing a printing format is detachably connected. The ticket issuing apparatus also includes a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM which constitute a control circuit for causing the printing section to print ticket data received from the communication interface on ticket paper in accordance with the printing format stored in the IC card, thereby issuing the ticket paper as a ticket.

Abstract: A thermal dot type printing apparatus includes a thermal head having N heating elements arranged in a line, a head driver which allows a current to selectively flow through the heating elements in accordance with N-bit dot data, and a control circuit for sequentially supplying a plurality of N-bit dot data constituting the character data to be printed to the head driver. This printing apparatus further has a counter for counting the total number of heating elements energized by the head driver in a unit time. The control circuit supplies a control signal in accordance with a count data of the counter to the head driver, thereby reducing the current which is supplied to the heating elements upon printing operation.