Patent Application
20070081842
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to print heads for use with media printers capable of printing indicia on printable media, and more particularly to a removable print head that includes a memory component capable of storing and/or receiving information.
2. Description of the Related Art
The majority of commonly available printing and copying devices, including media printers capable of printing indicia (such as text, graphics, and the like) on printable media, include an electronic controlling device that, in addition to processing the print data to create the desired indicia, also controls various print parameters of the printing device. For example, commonly available media printers capable of printing indicia on printable media include ink jet and thermal printers that are capable of printing indicia on printable media such as paper, labels, substrates and the like, including lined and linerless media. Print heads for use with these printers are typically removable and replaceable, and thus a single printer may receive several print heads over its lifetime. Additionally, flexibility in media handling provided by commonly available printing and copying devices means that a single printer may be used with a variety of different types of printable media, such as those described above.
In general, thermal printers print indicia on printable media using either direct thermal printing, thermal transfer printing, or both, depending on the type of printable media used in the printer. A thermal print head includes a multitude of printing elements generally disposed in an array across the length of the print head body, perpendicular to the path of the media. The element array may be thermally activated in groups, or each element may be thermally activated individually. Direct thermal printing typically requires media that has a temperature-sensitive surface coating. The printable media is biased against the print head by a backing roller, sometimes referred to as a platen roller. In the case of direct thermal printing, indicia is created on the printable media by heating up an area of the printable media directly beneath the activated elements. The temperature-sensitive coating of the media reacts to the increase in temperature and the indicia is created on the printable media.
A similar print head configuration is generally used with regard to thermal transfer printing, however the printable media used in conjunction with a thermal transfer printer does not typically include a temperature-sensitive surface coating. Instead, thermal transfer printing includes a ribbon containing dye thereon. In such a case, the ribbon is placed between the thermal print head and the printable media. Indicia is created on the printable media by heating up an area of the transfer ribbon beneath the activated elements of the print head. The heat from the print head transfers dye from the ribbon to the printable media.
As noted above, although a single thermal print head may be used for direct thermal printing or for thermal transfer printing, operating parameters relating to the two methods of printing may be different, and such differences may be advantageous in order to provide a user with optimal print performance. For example, the operating temperature of the print head elements, the pressure between the print head and the platen roller, and the feeding rate of the media may be different in order to provide optimal results for the two different methods of thermal printing. Thus, a particular temperature-sensitive ribbon may require a different operating print head temperature than media with a temperature-sensitive coating, and different brands of temperature-sensitive coated media may operate optimally at different print head temperatures.
Moreover, print head information, such as information about the print head itself, or printer information, such as information about the printer, may be advantageous in order to provide a user with optimal print performance. As such, for example, print heads produced by different manufacturers or print heads produced during different production runs may have different performance characteristics. Thus, print head information that identifies the print head, such as various manufacture and identification information, may be useful in order to control printing parameters to optimize print performance when using various print heads. Furthermore, specialized applications often require specialized printing parameters. For example, a printer used in a food processing application, that prints labels from a weigh-scale, is exposed to an exceptionally corrosive environment and may benefit from a printhead incorporating specialized protective coatings that, in turn, require printing parameters different from those of the standard model printhead.
Print heads currently exist that include memory modules for storing various usage and calibration data. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,523,926 to Mitsuzawa describes the use of head identification information that is characteristic of the print head so that positional deviation can be avoided during printing. A driver integrated circuit of the print head unit includes a non-volatile memory such as a programmable ROM, for storing the print head identification information. However, many of these prior art print heads include memory modules that utilize read-only memory, do not provide secure memory, and/or require additional communication connections through which the usage and calibration data is transmitted.
Thus, there is a need for an efficient and inexpensive apparatus, system and method for communicating printer and print head information between a printer and a print head. The apparatus, system and method should provide flexibility for the printer and the print head, should provide non-secure and secure memory, and should be capable of storing and receiving a variety of information.
The present invention addresses the above needs and achieves other advantages by providing a print head for use with a printer. The print head includes an input that receives data or commands associated with printing from the printer. A memory component of the print head is connected in communication with the input and is configured to bi-directionally communicate information to the printer via the input. For example, the memory component may be soldered to a circuit of a print head and connected to a data line normally used to communicate print data to the print head. In this manner, the print head may hold configuration information in the memory module for easy upgrades without an additional dedicated communication line. Also, printers may be upgraded, and print heads retrofit, with the memory component without installation of a dedicated input or communication line. The memory component may contain print head information or printer information for improving the function of the print head or printer.
In one embodiment, the present invention includes a print head for use with a printer. The print head includes at least one input for receiving data or commands associated with printing from a printer. The print head may also include a memory component in communication with the input. The memory component is configured to allow communication of information bi-directionally between the memory component and the printer via the input.
The input may receive the data or commands associated with printing while the printer is printing, and then use the input for bi-directional communication of information when not printing. For example, configuration information for the print head may be communicated upon start up and initialization of the printer, but not during printing.
In another aspect, a print head having a previously dedicated (unidirectional) input for printing data may be converted by attachment of the memory component to the input. Similarly, previously unidirectional connections to the printer, such as a connection of the printer to the input of the print head, may be converted or used for bi-directional communication from the memory component.
In another aspect, the memory component may include secure and non-secure portions. The secure portion may contain information facilitating improved operation of the print head or printer, but require a data key for security against viruses and incorrect written printer or print head information.
The print head may include its own dedicated circuit that is physically associated with the print head, e.g., such as by being supported by or connected to the print head. In turn, the memory component may be physically associated with the circuit, such as by being wired or soldered to the circuit. This facilitates connection of, or replacement with, a single unit print head.
The present invention has many advantages, including providing an additional option for the storage of upgrade information on a single consumable component (i.e., the print head) that automatically and securely upgrades printer operation upon replacement. This eliminates or reduces the need for dedicated firmware upgrade procedures. In addition, since communication is performed over existing or previously dedicated inputs and communication lines, the memory component may be used on existing print head configurations and without adding additional communication lines or inputs to the printer or print head.
The objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings, wherein:
The present invention now will be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments of the invention are shown. Indeed, the present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal requirements. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.
In a conventional printer, shown by block diagram in
Turning now to embodiments of the present invention,
The present specification describes embodiments of the present invention that include a label printer that receives a removable thermal transfer print head having a secure memory component. However, although the present invention is effective for improving print quality in thermal transfer printing through the use of information available on the print head memory component, the present invention may also be employed in other types of printers. For example, the present invention could also be used for direct thermal printers or inkjet printers.
It should also be noted that for purposes of the current specification and appended claims, the term “connection” is defined as that which permits the transmission of electronic signals, and thus the term may include physical connections such as soldered connections, plug-type connections, etc., and may also include other types connections such as wireless connections including radio frequency identification technology, optical, Bluetooth®, etc. The print data transmitted through these signals allows the printer to control and/or provide power to the print head.
For purposes of the current specification and appended claims, the term “print data” represents any command, data, data stream, and/or other signal that allows the printer to control, communicate with and/or provide power to the print head.
The printer system 10 of the depicted embodiment produces peelable barcode labels. Therefore, the printable media 32 of the depicted embodiment comprises peelable label units that are carried by a backing liner 36. The printable media 32 follows a printable media path that originates at a printable media supply 38 located upstream from the print head 20 and platen roller 28 interface. At the print head 20 and platen roller 28 interface, the printable media 32 passes underneath the print head 20 and the transfer ribbon 42 and above the platen roller 28. A peel bar 30 for separating a media unit 34 from the backing liner 36 is disposed proximate and downstream from the print head 20 and platen roller 28 interface. The backing liner 36 is collected at a liner take-up 40. A print head bias assembly 26 provides sufficient pressure between the print head 20 and the platen roller 28 to effect thermal printing onto the printable media 32. Electronic signals are received by the print head 20 via an electrical connection between the print head 20 and the printer 12. For example, the print head 20 of the depicted embodiment includes a plug-type print head connector 22 that electrically connects the print head 20 with a similar plug-type printer connector 24 of the printer 12.
It should be noted that, for the purposes of the current specification and appended claims, the terms “electronic,” “electric,” “electrically,” and/or all other forms thereof, are meant to be defined as relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or other similar capabilities.
Thus, it should be noted that although the connection between the print head 20 and the printer 12 is shown as a physical plug-type connection, different types of male or female pluggable interfaces or other types of direct and indirect connections could be employed for electronic communication between the print head 20 and the printer 12, including physical interfaces, such as conventional and specialized interfaces including serial, parallel, digital, analog, USB, Firewire®, RS-232 connections, etc. Additionally, wireless communications may be employed, including radio frequency identification technology, optical, Bluetooth®, etc.
As shown in
As shown in one embodiment in
The print head circuit 52 of the depicted embodiment is a flexible circuit board, however in various embodiments, the print head circuit 52 may be any type of circuit, including but not limited to a printed circuit board.
In the illustrated embodiment, the memory component 70 is a CryptoMemorye® memory module available from Atmel® Corporation and includes the family of memory modules listed under model numbers AT88SC0104C to AT88SC25616C. It should be noted however, that in other embodiments, various other memory components 70 may be used for storing, sending, and/or receiving information, including secure and non-secure memory modules.
As noted above, the memory component 70 of the depicted embodiment is shown soldered directly to the circuit 52 of the print head 20. However, in other embodiments, the memory component 70 may be otherwise associated with the print head 20 through direct or indirect attachment to the circuit 52 and/or the print head 20, including but not limited to mounting the memory component 70 in a socket, or wire bonding the memory component to the circuit 52 and/or the print head 20, so as to establish bi-directional communication via the print head connector 22, or other connection, connecting the print head 20 and circuit 52 with the remaining components of the printer 10, such as the printer electronics 50 or the computer 48.
As similarly described with respect to
In various embodiments of the present invention, a variety of “information” may be stored by the memory module 70 in either or both of the secure portion 71 of the memory component 70 and the non-secure portion 73 of the memory component 70. It should be noted that for the purpose of the current specification and appended claims, “information” may take the form of any single electronic data bit, or any combination of electronic data bits of a form as is known in the art to be of the type typically stored on such a memory component. The content of the information may include various information such as printer information and/or print head information.
For example, printer information may include the number of media units that have been processed by a particular printer at a particular time, or during a particular period of time. Printer information may also include manufacturing information pertaining to the printer, such as the current version of firmware loaded on the printer, an identifier that identifies the printer manufacturer, and the serial number of a particular printer.
Print head information may include, for example, identifying information that identifies a particular print head, such as print head manufacturer information, identification numbers, production run dates, serial numbers, and the like. Print head information may also include performance information, such as operating printer parameter adjustments that have been empirically determined and that have been associated with a particular print head or group of print heads in order to produce optimum print quality.
In current practice, information used to control the operating conditions of a printer, such as the operating parameters discussed above, is typically coded into the firmware architecture of the media printer. Updating the information often requires releasing a new version of firmware that must be uploaded into the printer. Thus, once a particular printer model has been released into the market, it is difficult to later introduce a new and improved print head (or, for that matter, a specialized or customized print head) without first providing a new (or specialized) version of the firmware. This limits the flexibility of a printer and a print head. Additionally, different printing applications may involve different operating parameters designed to optimize the printing conditions for each particular application. As above, in current practice, a parameter of this type is coded into the printer's firmware architecture, thus, further limiting the flexibility of a printer and a print head.
However, with respect to the present invention and in various embodiments thereof, print head information communicated to and from the printer 12 and the memory component 70 may include firmware, software, or other operating data that can be used to control a printer for specialized applications that require specialized printing parameters. For example, the secure portion 71 of the memory component 70 may include a firmware update that, because of the bi-directional communication, may be uploaded into the printer electronics 50 from the print head 20 itself, rather than requiring replacement of the printer electronics 50 or an external download of the firmware into the printer 12. In this manner, printer firmware/software updates and customization information may be provided within the print head itself, thus providing increased flexibility and ease of use advantages for the user.
In various embodiments, the information contained in the memory component 70 may be located in either or both the secure portion 71 and the non-secure portion 73. The information may be encoded in the memory component 70 of the print head 20 during manufacture or it may be written into the memory component 70 of the print head 20 before, during, or after operation of the printer.
Two of the many possible embodiments of the present invention are depicted in
In the depicted embodiment, the data, clock, and power inputs 72, 74, 76 are soldered to electrical leads that transmit the data, clock, and power signals 58, 60, 66 respectively. However, it should be noted that for the purposes of the current specification and appended claims, electrical communication may be produced through a variety of methods including physical plug-type connections, different types of male or female pluggable interfaces or other types of connections including physical interfaces, such as conventional and specialized interfaces including serial, parallel, digital, analog, USB, Firewire®, RS-232 connections, etc, as well as wireless connections, including radio frequency identification technology, optical, Bluetooth®, etc.
In another embodiment of the present invention, depicted in
Although in various embodiments, any one input, or any combination of inputs 75 of the memory component 70 may be configured to electrically communicate with any one connection or any combination of connections 54, the embodiments depicted in
Electrical communication is also established between the clock input 74 and the latch connection 60, and between the power input 76 and the power connection 66, as described above and as depicted in
As noted above, a variety of information may be stored by the memory module 70 in either or both of the secure portion 71 of the memory component 70 and the non-secure portion 73 of the memory component 70. Although any type of information may be considered secure and/or non-secure print head information as best suits the needs of the printer manufacturer, the print head manufacturer, and/or the user, in the depicted embodiment, non-secure print head information includes, but is not limited to, that information that relates to the print head manufacturing information, such what is reflected by the print head manufacturers data sheet. Also, in the depicted embodiment, secure print head data includes, but is not limited to, specific optimization and/or customization information such as optimization data and/or customized firmware.
With regard to the embodiments of the invention depicted in
As stated above, the memory component 70 may also receive and/or store information such as printer information from the printer 12. This information may be received and/or stored in either or both the secure portion 71 of the memory component and the non-secure portion 73 of the memory component 70. Thus, for example, in one embodiment of the present invention, communications with the memory component 70 are performed according to the flowchart depicted in
It should be noted that although
These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the flowchart step(s). The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart.
Accordingly, steps of the flowchart support combinations of means for performing the specified functions, combinations of steps for performing the specified functions and program instruction means for performing the specified functions. It will also be understood that each step of the flowchart, and combinations of steps in the flowchart can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based computer systems which perform the specified functions or steps, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions.
Referring again to
For example, when determining the presence of the memory component, information may be communicated between the printer and either or both of the secure portion and the non-secure portion of the memory component of the print head and a response thereto, or result thereof, compared to an expected response. The secure portion of the memory component can, for example, be accessed by sending an appropriate data key, access register, key register, and/or other key or code predetermined to gain access to the secure portion of the memory component. As such, various information may be read out of or written into either or both the secure portion and the non-secure portion of the memory component.
Returning to the embodiment depicted in
If a memory component is not present, the printer firmware (block 126) defaults to interrogation of the print head via interface signals. This is an attempt to determine electrical characteristics of the print head and which set of configuration parameters, e.g., burn tables, should be used to operate the print head.
If the writing of printer information is successful, the memory component is read at block 132. As noted above, the memory component may have residing thereon various print head information, such as the exemplary print head information described above. The entire block of information from the non-secure memory component is preferably read (block 134) into a memory device located on the printer's main logic board, thereby equipping the printer for improved operation.
If writing of printer information at block 128 is unsuccessful, the flow turns to block 126 for determination of the print head characteristics by interrogation via a hardware interface signal. Alternatively, one or more retries of block 134 may also be attempted.
It should be noted that in various embodiments, all data transfers may be protected by CRC integrity checks. The initializing test of
Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.
