Printing – Stenciling – Stencils
Reexamination Certificate
2001-07-17
2003-10-28
Tran, Huan (Department: 2853)
Printing
Stenciling
Stencils
C101S129000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06637325
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a computer interface for a stencil printer and a method of rewriting a program for the interface.
2. Description of the Related Art
When inputting data into a stencil printer in which a stencil making system is integrated with a printing system for mass-printing (such a stencil printer will be referred to as “a stencil printer with stencil making system” or sometimes referred to simply as “a stencil printer”, hereinbelow), a data take-up method in which a stand-alone data take-up device integrated with a stencil printer such as an image scanner is employed has been conventionally mainly employed. Accordingly, conventionally even printing data made by a computer must be once printed out and the printing data must be taken in the stencil printer by reading the print-out by the image scanner or the like. Since almost all the printing data is recently made by a computer and since the data take-up method using a stand-alone data take-up device is not high in efficiency, a computer interface for a stencil printer which processes printing data from the computer to convert it into stencil making data and outputs the stencil making data directly to the stencil printer with stencil making system has been developed.
The computer interface generally comprise a data receiving section which receives data from a computer, a data processing section which converts the data from the computer into stencil making data, and a video data output section which outputs the stencil making data to a stencil printer with stencil making system. The data processing section comprises a control program storage section which stores a control program and a RAM which stores various pieces of data and a running program.
The “running program” is a printing data processing program for converting the printing data into stencil making data and is not preserved together with other pieces of data when power is turned off.
The control program includes various initialization programs which control the computer interface, a program having a copying function for copying programs to a RAM or a judging function to judge whether jump to the RAM is to be caused, a main program on the basis of which the running program in the RAM is made, and the like, and is stored in the control program storage section.
When the printing data sent from the data receiving section is to be converted into a stencil making data, the data processing section copies in the RAM a main program for data processing out of main programs stored in the control program storage section, and converts the printing data into a stencil making data, and sends the stencil making data to the video data output section.
The control program storage section comprises a nonvolatile memory (a ROM or a flash memory) and the control programs stored in the control program storage section are preserved even when power is turned off.
Though the control programs are input into the control program storage section when the computer interface is shipped from the factory, version-up frequently becomes necessary after shipment for the purpose of eliminating the bugs, enhancing functions or changing the specifications.
When the control program storage section comprises a ROM, in order to make version-up of the control programs, power of the computer interface and devices related to the computer interface must be turned off and the ROM must be replaced by a ROM into which a new control program has been input or the control program stored in the ROM must be rewritten.
To the contrast, when the control program storage section comprises a flash memory, version-up of the control programs can be made without changing the hardware. However, the flash memory must be shifted to a program rewriting mode by a special operation. Though varying depending upon the maker, the flash memory is generally shifted to the program rewriting mode by turning on power of the computer interface while depressing one or more switches on the computer interface or by shifting the computer interface to an engineer development mode, which is not known by those other than the developers of the maker, and carrying out command processing. Since a slight mistake in this operation can result in a failure of the computer interface, this operation is not generally executed by the end user but executed by a maker side, e.g, a serviceperson of the maker or a maintenance engineer.
The control program storage section of a flash memory is advantageous over that of a ROM in that version-up of the control programs can be made without changing the hardware.
However in the case of control program storage section of a flash memory, there is a problem that a special operation is required to rewrite the control programs and a skilled operator is required to rewrite the control programs since the special operation can result in a failure of the computer interface.
Further, when an error occurs during rewriting of the control programs or during erasure of the blocks, or when accidental destruction of the control programs occurs, for instance, by accidental power turning off during rewriting of the control programs, the flash memory must be forced into the program rewriting mode. Further depending upon the severity of destruction of the control programs, even rewriting of the control programs sometimes becomes unfeasible.
Since version-up of the control programs is not executed only for debug, preserving both the old and new control programs so that one of the old and new control programs may be used depending on the environment has been required. The environment as used here means the whole printing system including the computer and the stencil printer. For example, the control programs for the computer interface corresponding to Windows 98 (Microsoft) are also applicable to Windows 95 (Microsoft). However since the control programs corresponding to Windows 95 less loads the CPU of the computer interface, the control programs of Windows 95-corresponding version are preferable to those of Windows 98-corresponding version. When computers of different operating systems use the same computer interface and the same stencil printer through a network such as a LAN (local area network) or a WAN (wide area network) or through remote access using, for instance, a modem, it is preferred in view of efficiency that a plurality of control programs coexist in a computer interface for a stencil printer and one of control programs is selected depending on the operating system of the computer which drives the stencil printer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing observations and description, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a computer interface for a stencil printer the control programs for which can be rewrote without a special operation and in which a plurality of control programs for different versions are selectively used.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of rewriting the control programs in such a computer interface.
In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer interface comprising a data receiving means which receives printing data and/or program rewriting data from a computer, a data processing means which converts the printing data from the computer into stencil making data according to a running program, and a video data output means which outputs the stencil making data to a stencil printer with stencil making system, wherein the improvement comprises that
the data processing means is provided with a nonvolatile memory consisting of a main program block which is rewritable and stores a main program and a start-up program block which is not rewritable and stores a start-up program, and
a main program rewriting means rewrites a main program in the main program block when the main program which has been stored in the main program block is invalid or when the data receiving means receives program rewriting data from the computer.
The “nonvolatile
Dudding Alfred
Nixon & Peabody LLP
Riso Kagaku Corporation
Studebaker Donald R.
Tran Huan
LandOfFree
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