Abstract: A printing apparatus comprises: a print head comprising an array having an N (N=positive integer) number of dot forming elements arrayed at fixed pitches having a lower end and an upper end; a horizontal scan driver for moving the print head above and along a print medium in a horizontal scan direction; a vertical scan driver for moving the print medium in a vertical scan direction perpendicular to the horizontal scan direction, wherein a vertical scan distance that the print medium is vertically moved when the vertical scan driver is driven one time is selected such that the position of at least one dot forming element, counted from the lower end of the array of the print head in the drive of a horizontal scan is coincident with the position at least one dot forming element, counted from the upper end of the array of the print head in the drive of the horizontal scan drive after a given number of horizontal scan drives; and a head driver for performing a printing operation by intermittently driving the dot f

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a dot matrix printer capable of recording character strings with a high quality at high speeds. The dot matrix printer includes an output processor for obtaining the numbers of effective dots of character patterns in a character string with respect to a character string reference line designating a print position of font of the character string according to information of the font and information of the character string reference line, comparing the numbers of effective dots with the number of printable dots of the print head, determining whether or not another character string in addition to the character string is admitted within the width of the print head if a maximum value of the numbers of effective dots is smaller than the width of the print head, and setting a print position of at least one of the character strings admitted within the width of the print head.

Abstract: A recording apparatus for performing recording on a recording medium includes a feed roller for feeding a recording medium, a recording head reciprocally movable along a feed path of the recording medium conveyed by the feed roller, the recording head being arranged to perform recording on the recording medium, a motor rotatable in a forward and a reverse direction, a first driving force transmitting unit for driving the feed roller upon rotation of the motor, and a second driving force transmitting unit capable of not receiving the driving force when the driving force is transmitted from the motor to the first driving force transmitting unit. The second driving force transmitting unit is arranged to reciprocate the recording head upon reversible rotation of the motor. A particularly configured drive belt with toothed and non-toothed portions accomplishes this operation.

Abstract: In a printer assembly including a printhead which moves in a first direction for printing on a sheet of paper, roller means having an outer cylindrical periphery that engages the sheet of paper at successive tangent points on the periphery for moving the paper in a second perpendicular direction, and driving means for rotating the roller means, an apparatus for correcting certain pre-established errors in the positioning of the sheet of paper by the roller means is described. The apparatus comprises means for controlling the driving means such that the driving means rotates the roller means in order to move the sheet of paper in a way which eliminates the pre-established errors. An arrangement for determining certain pre-established errors in the positioning of the sheet of paper by the roller means is also described.

Abstract: A thermal printer has a memory for storing printing patterns; a printer unit on which a thermal printing head having one line of dot print elements is replaceably mounted, the printer unit driving the printing head to print a printing pattern stored in the memory in a unit of one line; and a paper feed unit for feeding paper in a direction perpendicular to a direction of a print element line of the printing head. A first timer is provided for setting a print cycle for the printing head; and a second timer is provided for setting a feed cycle for feeding paper to the printing head at a selected speed. A controller concurrently drives the printer unit in the print cycle and the paper feed unit in the feed cycle, the controller driving the printer unit to cause the printing head to print in a print cycle while the paper feed unit is driven to continuously feed paper to the printer unit at the selected speed determined by the feed cycle set by the second timer.

Abstract: In a controller for use in a printer, when line pitch information is set in a printer status storage unit by way of a line pitch setter, a distance setter determines a cursor/base line distance on the basis of the line pitch information, and a character pattern expander determines a base line from the cursor/base line distance, expands a dot pattern of a printing character in reference to the base line position and stores the expanded dot pattern in a buffer memory.

Abstract: A printing device for a continuous strip of tags prints a plurality of lines on each of the tags. The device allows free selection and easy changing of line spacing. The device for a continuous strip of tags has a feed mechanism for feeding the strip of tags, a printing mechanism for printing a plurality of lines on each tag of the continuous strip of tags and a data memory circuit for storing input printing data. The printing data input to the data memory circuit is required to consist of character data corresponding to contents of the plurality of lines, followed by line spacing data for each line, followed by data indicating the number of tags.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for printing multiple lines of characters simultaneously on a dot matrix printer and making available to the user a choice of alternate line spacings without physical or mechanical alteration of the printhead. The printhead includes an uninterrupted array of print elements having a total height greater than the combined total height of the multiple lines that are simultaneously printed plus the combined height of the intervening line spaces. By directing columnar character data to selected sets of print elements, the printhead can produce characters of a constant height with selected variations in interline spacing.

Abstract: A process for controlling line spacing, including the steps of clearing or setting line pitch variable mode in a first state; checking keyboard input in a second stage; determining whether the keyboard input indicates line pitch variable mode, and performing a function corresponding to keyboard input in a third stage if the keyboard input does not indicate line pitch variable mode; setting the length specified in a fourth stage if the keyboard indicates a specified length of line spacing; in a fifth stage, if the keyboard does not indicate a specified length in the fourth stage, returning the carriage through feeding by the length of the variable line pitch and returning to the first stage when the keyboard input in the fifth stage does not indicate a return function, line feeding by the length of the variable line pitch and returning to the first stage when the keyboard input indicates an index key; in a seventh stage, if the keyboard input in the sixth stage does not indicate an index key, performing a reve

Abstract: The present invention relates to a printing apparatus such as a typewriter which prints data from an inputting means on a printing medium.In the case of the normal printing apparatus, a feed amount setting means is installed which sets the amount of feed of line feeding or space feeding for relatively moving a printing head and the printing medium, and for the line feeding or for the space feeding, a desired one among about four kinds of amounts of feed is required to be selected.This printing apparatus comprises a unit feed amount selecting means for selecting a unit amount of feed, a feed amount setting means which selects a coefficient to multiply the unit amount of feed selected by this unit feed amount selecting means and sets the actual amount of feed, and a controlling means controlling a feeding mechanism so that the amount of feed of the relative movement is the amount of feed set by the feed amount setting means. Lamps are lit to indicate the feed amount.

Abstract: A printer having a first memory for storing character data representative of lines of characters to be printed on a recording medium, a second memory for storing line-space data representative of a line spacing between the lines of characters, and a control device for activating a print head according to the character data stored in the first memory, and controlling the print head and a paper feed device according to the line-space data stored in the second memory, to underscore at least one of the characters of the printed lines. The position of the underscore is controlled such that a distance between the underscore and the underscored characters is varied depending upon the line spacing represented by the line-space data.

Abstract: A thermal printer having a mechanism for alleviating the pressure between the print head and the resilient roller when the printer is not operational is provided. The printer includes a cam member for camming the print head and resilient roller apart during non-printing in order to prevent a permanent or semi-permanent flat from being formed on the roller because of pressure exerted thereon by the print head.

Abstract: A line spacing mechanism for printing machines comprises an electric motor which is operable to rotate selectively in either direction. A worm on the shaft of the motor meshes with a helicoidally toothed wheel to cause a platen roller to rotate in the clockwise direction or the anticlockwise direction. The motor is support pivotally by trunions and urged by a spring to eliminate radial play between the worm and toothed wheel. Another spring, lever and ball apply thrust to the motor shaft to take up axial play in its bearing, i.e. between the worm and the motor.

Abstract: A device is disclosed for index and exponent impression printing in typewriters. An exponent or index switching key has associated with it an edge detector, and parallel thereto, a state detector. A time function element which triggers a gate circuit for the triggering of the drive motor for the roller is connected behind the edge detector. A rotational direction reversal switching device is connected behind the state detector. The device is useful in office typewriters, data printers or telex machines not equipped with their own exponent or index printing symbols.