Patent Application
20060224271
This application claims priority from Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-093689, filed Mar. 29, 2005, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference thereto.
The present disclosure relates to an embroidery data editor for editing a user-selected embroidery pattern based on embroidery data corresponding to the embroidery pattern, and particularly to an embroidery data editor that displays appropriate embroidery frames for use when sewing the embroidery pattern after the pattern has been edited.
Conventional embroidery sewing machines used to sew embroidery patterns on a cloth workpiece employ embroidery frames. The workpiece is mounted in the embroidery frame, and the embroidery frame is mounted on the embroidery sewing machine. Obviously, the embroidery frame must be sufficiently larger than the embroidery pattern to be sewed. However, when a plurality of embroidery frames having different sizes is employed, the user may become confused in determining which frame to use.
If the user mistakenly selects an embroidery frame that is smaller in size than the pattern to be sewn, the sewing needle will strike the embroidery frame and become damaged. Therefore, embroidery data editors have been proposed with a function to display appropriate embroidery frames for sewing an embroidery pattern selected and edited by the user.
For example, the embroidery data editor disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,986 (corresponding to Japanese Patent Application Publication No. HEI-9-164282) is configured to display a plurality of embroidery patterns on a display device based on embroidery data corresponding to the embroidery patterns, enabling the user to select a desired embroidery pattern from among those displayed. Further, the embroidery data editor displays usable embroidery frames for the selected embroidery pattern, or alternatively deletes all unusable embroidery patterns, after the user has arranged the selected embroidery pattern in a desired position and orientation. The embroidery data editor having this configuration facilitates the user in determining a suitable embroidery frame and prevents the user from mistakenly selecting an unusable frame.
One such embroidery data editor disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,986 displays on a display device embroidery frames that can be used for sewing a selected embroidery pattern or deletes unusable embroidery frames. At this time, if the user performs a desired editing process on the selected embroidery pattern in order to enlarge the pattern size, rotate the pattern, or shift the position of the pattern, for example, the usable embroidery frames displayed in the display device are changed.
However, users inexperienced with the sewing operations often do not notice when the usable embroidery frames displayed in the display window have changed or do not check the display to verify whether the usable frames have changed and, consequently, begin the sewing operation after mounting an incorrect embroidery frame in the embroidery sewing machine. Especially when the display device has a small size or has a monochrome display, it is even more difficult to detect changes in the display. Therefore, users are more apt to miss changes in the usable embroidery frames.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present disclosure to provide an embroidery data editor and a method of displaying embroidery frames, capable of preventing the user from mistakenly using an inappropriate embroidery frame.
In order to attain the above and other objects, according to one aspect, the present disclosure provides an embroidery data editor. The embroidery data editor includes a display, a pattern selecting portion, a display controlling portion, a pattern editing portion, a first determining portion, a second determining portion, and a reporting portion. The pattern selecting portion selects a desired embroidery pattern from a plurality of embroidery patterns. The display controlling portion controls the display to display the embroidery pattern selected by the pattern selecting portion. The pattern editing portion edits the embroidery pattern displayed on the display. The first determining portion determines, before the selected embroidery pattern is edited by the pattern editing portion, whether each of a plurality of embroidery frames is usable for sewing the selected embroidery pattern based on embroidery data for the selected embroidery pattern. The second determining portion determines, after the selected embroidery pattern is edited by the pattern editing portion, whether each of the plurality of embroidery frames is usable for sewing the edited embroidery pattern based on embroidery data for the edited embroidery pattern. The reporting portion reports when at least one embroidery frame determined to be usable by the second determining portion is different from at least one embroidery frame determined to be usable by the first determining portion.
According to another aspect, the present disclosure provides a method of displaying each embroidery frame usable for a selected embroidery pattern. The method includes selecting a desired embroidery pattern from a plurality of embroidery patterns, controlling a display to display the embroidery pattern selected in the selecting step, editing the embroidery pattern displayed on the display, determining, before the embroidery pattern selected in the selecting step is edited in the editing step, whether each of a plurality of embroidery frames is usable for sewing the selected embroidery pattern based on embroidery data for the selected embroidery pattern, determining, after the embroidery pattern selected in the selecting step is edited in the editing step, whether each of the plurality of embroidery frames is usable for sewing the edited embroidery pattern based on embroidery data for the edited embroidery pattern, and reporting when at least one embroidery frame determined to be usable in the determining step after editing is different from at least one embroidery frame determined to be usable in the determining step before editing.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the disclosure will become more apparent from reading the following description of the exemplary embodiments taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:
An embroidery data editor according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described while referring to the accompanying drawings.
The embroidery data editor according to the embodiment functions to edit an embroidery pattern that the user has selected from a plurality of pattern types and to warn the user through a blinking display when the embroidery frames usable for the selected pattern prior to editing the embroidery pattern differs from the embroidery frames usable for the selected pattern after the pattern has been edited.
The sewing bed 1A is provided with a vertical feed dog moving mechanism (not shown) for moving a feed dog up and down; a horizontal feed dog moving mechanism (not shown) for moving the feed dog forward and rearward; a loop taker, such as a horizontal rotary hook, accommodating a bobbin and working in cooperation with a sewing needle 6; and the like.
The pillar 2 includes a card slot 2a and a disc slot 2b formed therein. The card slot 2a accepts an optionally provided ROM card 40 storing embroidery data for a plurality of embroidery patterns and facilitates connection of the ROM card 40 with an internal card connector 13 (see
The arm 3 includes a needle bar driving mechanism (not shown) for moving a needle bar 5 vertically, the needle bar 5 having the sewing needle 6 mounted in the bottom end thereof; a needle bar swinging mechanism (not shown) for swinging the needle bar 5 in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the workpiece is fed; and a thread take-up driving mechanism (not shown) for driving a thread take-up (not shown) vertically in synchronization with the vertical movement of the needle bar 5. A sewing machine motor 17 (see
The arm 3 includes a head portion 4 on the end farthest from the pillar 2. A start/stop switch 12 is provided on the head portion 4 for starting and stopping sewing operations. A color liquid crystal display (LCD; hereinafter simply referred to as the “display”) 10 is provided on the front surface of the arm 3. The display 10 serves to display various stitching patterns, including utility patterns and embroidery patterns, the pattern names, various function names, and various messages.
Touch keys 11 formed of transparent electrodes are disposed in a matrix arrangement on the front surface of the display 10 at positions corresponding to the displayed positions of the embroidery patterns, pattern names, and function names. Hence, by pressing the touch key 11 corresponding to the desired embroidery pattern, pattern name, or function name, the user can select a desired embroidery pattern or indicate a function.
A free bed portion 1B, commonly called a free arm, is formed on the left end of the sewing bed 1A in
The embroidery frame driving device 30 includes a main case 30a, an embroidery frame 31 in which a cloth workpiece is detachably mounted, a Y-direction driving unit 32, and an X-direction driving mechanism (not shown). The Y-direction driving unit 32 has a built-in Y-direction driving mechanism for moving the embroidery frame 31 mounted in a carriage (not shown) in a Y-direction (front-to-rear direction). The X-direction driving mechanism (not shown) is accommodated in the main case 30a for driving the Y-direction driving unit 32 in an X-direction (left-to-right direction). The embroidery frame driving device 30 also includes a first stepping motor 33 and a second stepping motor 34 (see
When the embroidery frame driving device 30 is mounted on the free bed portion 1B, the first and second stepping motors 33 and 34 are electrically connected to a controller 20 (described later) of the sewing machine 1 via a connector 14 (described later). The controller 20 controls the driving of the first and second stepping motors 33 and 34 so that the embroidery frame 31 in which the workpiece is set can be moved independently in the X- and Y-directions, while the sewing machine motor 17 drives the needle bar 5 up and down to sew an embroidery pattern.
Next, a control system of the sewing machine 1 will be described while referring to
In addition to the data bus 27, the input interface 21 is also connected to the start/stop switch 12, the touch keys 11, a timing signal generator 16 for detecting the rotational phase of a main sewing shaft (not shown), and the like.
In addition to the data bus 27, the output interface 26 is also connected to the sewing machine motor 17, the stepping motor 18, and the stepping motor 19 described above, a display controller (LCDC) 9 for controlling the display 10, a warning buzzer 15 for producing a beeping sound to warn the user, the first and second stepping motors 33 and 34 in the embroidery frame driving device 30 via the connector 14, and the like. The ROM card 40 includes a ROM 41 that is connected to the data bus 27 via the internal card connector 13. The flexible disk controller (FDC) 28 is also connected to the data bus 27.
The ROM 23 stores embroidery frame data corresponding to each of three embroidery frames 31 (a large embroidery frame, medium embroidery frame, and small embroidery frame) described later and the range in which sewing can be performed in each; common control programs for controlling sewing of utility patterns by controlling how the feed dog feeds the workpiece and for controlling the display; an editing program for editing a selected embroidery pattern displayed on the display 10 through such processes as enlargement, reduction, and rotation; a sewing control program for sewing a selected embroidery pattern by controlling the embroidery frame driving device 30 for feeding the embroidery frame; a control program for controlling the editing of embroidery data described later, which is a feature of the present disclosure; and the like.
The RAM 24 is also provided with an embroidery data memory 24a for storing embroidery data for selected embroidery patterns; and an embroidery frame memory 24b for storing kinds of the embroidery frames 31 determined to be currently usable each time an editing process is executed. The RAM 24 is also provided with other memory areas necessary for performing the various control processes described above, such as memory areas for flags, pointers, counters, and the like, as well as registers and buffers.
Next, a routine executed by the controller 20 to control embroidery data editing will be described with reference to the flowchart in
The controller 20 begins executing the control process when the user turns on the power to the sewing machine 1. After performing an initialization process to clear all areas in the RAM 24, the controller 20 displays a Pattern Type Selection window (see
In S14 the controller 20 determines whether the user has pressed the Return key. If the Return key has been operated (S14: YES), then the controller 20 returns to S11 and re-displays the Pattern Type Selection window. However, if the Return key has not been pressed (S14: NO), then in S15 the controller 20 waits until the user has selected a pattern. When the user has selected an embroidery pattern from the plurality of patterns displayed in the Pattern Selection window (S15: YES), then in S16 the controller 20 displays the selected embroidery pattern on the display 10. In this example, the user selects the elephant indicated by reference numeral 10b in
In S17 the controller 20 again determines whether the user has pressed the Return key. If the Return key has been pressed (S17: YES, then the controller 20 returns to S13 and re-displays the Pattern Selection window. By repeatedly executing S13-S17, the user can select a plurality of patterns. In S18 the controller 20 determines whether the start/stop switch 12 has been operated. If the start/stop switch 12 has been operated (S18: YES), then in S26 the controller 20 executes an operation to begin sewing. However, if the start/stop switch 12 has not been operated (S18: NO), then in S19 the controller 20 determines whether a Layout key 10e has been pressed while the selected embroidery pattern shown in
As shown in
Immediately after the user has selected an embroidery pattern (that is, before the directional keys 11a are operated), the selected embroidery pattern is positioned centrally in the sewing range 10c, both top-to-bottom and left-to-right. Hence, after the embroidery pattern is selected in S15 and the Layout key 10e is pressed, the rectangular frame 10d for the selected embroidery pattern is displayed in the center of the sewing range 10c, as shown in
The directional keys 11a function to move the rectangular frame 10d for the selected embroidery pattern within the sewing range 10c, moving incrementally by 0.1 mm each time the key is operated. The Mirror key 11b flips the rectangular frame 10d with the selected embroidery pattern left-to-right, producing its mirror image. The Rotate 90° key 11c functions to rotate the rectangular frame 10d with the selected embroidery pattern by 90 degrees in a predetermined direction. Hereafter, the directional keys 11a, Mirror key 11b, Rotate 90° key 11c, and the like will be referred to collectively as editing keys.
In S21 the controller 20 executes a control process for detecting embroidery frames. In this process, shown in the flowchart of
At the beginning of this control process in
Hence, the controller 20 determines which embroidery frames have a large enough sewing region to contain the embroidery pattern selected by the user before the pattern has been subjected to such editing processes as moving, flipping, and rotating. In this example, the controller 20 determines that all embroidery frames LK, MK, and SK can be used for sewing the selected embroidery pattern before the pattern has been edited. Therefore, the controller 20 displays all of the embroidery patterns as being valid (solid line display).
However, if the controller 20 determines in S32 that the selected embroidery pattern does not fit in the sewing range of the small embroidery frame SK (i.e., the small embroidery frame SK cannot be used; S32: NO), then in S33 the controller 20 determines whether the width W of the selected embroidery pattern is less than or equal to a width MKw indicating the maximum width in which sewing can be performed in the medium embroidery frame MK and whether the height H of the embroidery pattern is less than or equal to a height MKh indicating the maximum height in which sewing can be performed in the medium embroidery frame MK. If the width W and height H of the selected embroidery pattern are less than or equal to the width MKw and height MKh respectively (S33: YES), then in S35 the controller 20 displays the embroidery frames LK and MK as being valid (solid line display shown in
In other words, since the controller 20 determines that the embroidery pattern selected by the user and not yet subjected to an editing process does not fit within the sewing range of the small embroidery frame SK but does fit within the sewing ranges of the large embroidery frame LK and medium embroidery frame MK, the controller 20 determines that the embroidery frame LK and MK can be used for sewing the unedited embroidery pattern. Therefore, the controller 20 displays the usable embroidery frames LK and MK as being valid (solid line display) and the unusable embroidery frame SK in gray to indicate the frame is invalid.
However, if the controller 20 determines in S33 that the width W and the height H of the selected embroidery pattern are not less than or equal to the width MKw and height MKh (i.e., the embroidery pattern does not fit within the sewing region of the medium embroidery frame MK; S33: NO), then in S34 the controller 20 displays only the large embroidery frame LK as being valid (solid line display shown in
Specifically, since the controller 20 determines that the selected embroidery pattern prior to editing only fits within the sewing region of the large embroidery frame LK, the controller 20 determines that only the large embroidery frame LK is usable for sewing the selected embroidery pattern. Therefore, the controller 20 displays the usable embroidery frame LK as being valid (solid line display) and displays the unusable embroidery frames MK and SK in gray to differentiate the invalid frames from the valid frame.
Note that, in the present embodiment, embroidery patterns larger than the large embroidery frame LK are not displayed on the display 10. Accordingly, the large embroidery frame LK is always usable. In other words, at least one embroidery frame is always usable.
In S37 the controller 20 stores the usable embroidery frames displayed as being valid in S34, S35, or S36 in the embroidery frame memory 24b. In S38 the controller 20 determines whether the usable embroidery frames differ from those prior to editing. Since the usable frames stored in the embroidery frame memory 24b at this time have not been edited (S38: NO), the controller 20 skips S39 and returns to the control process for editing embroidery data in
In S22 of
This time when the control process begins in
However, if the embroidery pattern after the moving process cannot be sewed in the small embroidery frame SK (S41: NO), then in S42 the controller 20 determines whether one half of the width W of the selected embroidery pattern plus the amount of movement in the X-direction x is less than or equal to one half of the width MKw (W/2+x≦MKw/2) and whether one half of the height H of the selected embroidery pattern plus the amount of movement in the Y-direction y is less than or equal to one half of the height MKh (H/2+y≦MKh/2). If so (S42: YES), then the controller 20 executes the process in S35.
In this case, the controller 20 determines that the medium embroidery frame MK and the large embroidery frame LK can be used for sewing the embroidery pattern after the movement process, while the small embroidery frame SK is unusable, and displays the embroidery frames MK and LK as valid (solid line display) in the display 10, while displaying the small embroidery frame SK in gray. In this way, usable embroidery frames for the moved embroidery pattern can be displayed so as to be distinguishable from the unusable embroidery frames.
However, if the determination in S42 is “no”, then the controller 20 executes the process in S34. Specifically, the controller 20 determines that only the large embroidery frame LK is usable for sewing the embroidery pattern after movement, and that the embroidery frames SK and MK are unusable, and the controller 20 displays the large embroidery frame LK as valid (solid line display) on the display 10, while displaying the embroidery frames SK and MK in gray. In this way, the usable embroidery frame for the embroidery pattern after movement can be displayed so as to be distinguishable from the unusable embroidery frames.
On the other hand, if the process determined in S40 is a rotating process, then in S43 the controller 20 determines whether a width Wr of the selected embroidery pattern after rotation is less than or equal to the width SKw (Wr≦SKw) and whether a height Hr of the selected embroidery pattern after rotation is less than or equal to the height SKh (Hr≦SKh). If so (S43: YES), then the controller 20 executes the process in S36. In other words, the controller 20 detects usable embroidery frames for the embroidery pattern after a rotating process and displays these usable frames on the display 10, as described above. In this case, all embroidery frames are displayed as being valid.
However, if the embroidery pattern after the rotating process cannot be sewed in the small embroidery frame SK (S43: NO), then in S44 the controller 20 determines whether the width Wr of the selected embroidery pattern after rotation is less than or equal to the width MKw (Wr≦MKw) and whether the height Hr of the selected embroidery pattern after rotation is less than or equal to the height MKh (Hr≦MKh). If so (S44: YES), then the controller 20 executes the process in S35.
In this case, the controller 20 determines that the medium embroidery frame MK and the large embroidery frame LK can be used for sewing the embroidery pattern after the rotating process, while the small embroidery frame SK is unusable, and displays the embroidery frames MK and LK as valid (solid line display) on the display 10, while displaying the small embroidery frame SK in gray. In this way, usable embroidery frames for the rotated embroidery pattern can be displayed so as to be distinguishable from the unusable embroidery frames.
However, if the determination in S44 is “no”, then the controller 20 executes the process in S34. Specifically, the controller 20 determines that only the large embroidery frame LK is usable for sewing the embroidery pattern after rotation, and that the embroidery frames SK and MK are unusable, and the controller 20 displays the large embroidery frame LK as valid (solid line display) on the display 10, while displaying the embroidery frames SK and MK in gray. In this way, the usable embroidery frame for the embroidery pattern after rotation can be displayed so as to be distinguishable from the unusable embroidery frames.
Next, the controller 20 stores the usable embroidery frames displayed as valid in S34, S35, or S36 in the embroidery frame memory 24b. Note that the embroidery frame memory 24b includes two memory areas for storing both the usable frames prior to editing and the usable frames after editing. In S38 the controller 20 determines whether the embroidery frame data prior to editing and the embroidery frame data after editing, both stored in the embroidery frame memory 24b, are different from each other.
If the data for embroidery frames determined to be usable for sewing the embroidery pattern after editing and displayed as valid on the display 10 in S34, S35, or S36 differs from the data for embroidery frames determined to be usable prior to editing (S38: YES), then in S39 the controller 20 blinks the embroidery frames determined to be usable after the editing process and displayed as valid in S34, S35, or S36 and outputs a warning sound via the warning buzzer 15. In this way, the controller 20 notifies the user that the usable embroidery frames have changed after the editing process. Subsequently, the control process ends and the controller 20 returns to the control process for editing embroidery data in
When the start/stop switch 12 is eventually pressed (S18: YES), in S26 the controller 20 begins the sewing operation. The controller 20 executes the sewing operation by driving the needle bar 5 (sewing machine motor 17) and the embroidery frame driving device 30 based on embroidery data for the embroidery pattern that has been edited with the editing keys.
Therefore, if all three embroidery frames LK, MK, and SK are found to be usable for sewing the embroidery pattern prior to editing, all three embroidery frames LK, MK, and SK are displayed as valid, as shown in
Further, when the embroidery frames MK and LK are determined to be usable for sewing the embroidery pattern prior to the editing process, the embroidery frames MK and LK are displayed as valid and the small embroidery frame SK in gray, as shown in
While the disclosure has been described in detail with reference to the specific embodiment thereof, it would be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the disclosure.
1) As shown in
2) The control process for detecting embroidery frames described above may also be partially modified as shown in
In other words, when all three embroidery frames LK, MK, and SK are found to be usable prior to an editing process being performed, all embroidery frames LK, MK, and SK are displayed as valid, as shown in
3) The control process for detecting embroidery frames described above may also be modified by blinking the embroidery frames determined usable prior to an editing process and also determined to be usable after the editing process. Specifically, if the embroidery frames LK and MK are found to be usable prior to the editing process, both the embroidery frames LK and MK are displayed as valid, as shown in
Of these two embroidery frames LK and MK, if only the large embroidery frame LK is found to be usable after an editing process is performed, then the usable large embroidery frame LK is displayed as valid and the unusable medium embroidery frame MK is displayed in gray, as shown in
4) The control process for detecting embroidery frames described above may also be modified by blinking embroidery frames determined usable prior to an editing process but determined unusable after the editing process. Specifically, if the embroidery frames LK and MK are found to be usable prior to the editing process, both the embroidery frames LK and MK are displayed as valid, as shown in
Of these two embroidery frames LK and MK, if only the large embroidery frame LK is found to be usable after an editing process is performed, then the usable large embroidery frame LK is displayed as valid and the unusable medium embroidery frame MK is displayed in gray, as shown in
5) According to another modification, in S39 (
6) Further, a process for moving or rotating the embroidery pattern was given as an example of an editing process in the embodiment described above. However, the editing process is not limited to a moving process and rotating process, but may be a process to reverse the embroidery pattern left-to-right, and enlarge or reduce the pattern. As in the example of the embodiment described above, in any other editing process as well, the controller 20 reports changes in the embroidery frames determined to be usable after the editing process has been performed.
7) In the embodiment described above, the control process for detecting embroidery frames prior to an editing process (S21) is performed after the Layout key 10e is pressed (S19). However, the control process for detecting embroidery frames prior to an editing process (S21) may be performed after an embroidery pattern is selected in S15 and before the selected pattern is displayed in S16. In this modification, in S16 the usable embroidery frames are displayed in the window displaying the selected patterns shown in
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005-093689 | Mar 2005 | JP | national |
