阅读说明：本技术 印刷装置、印刷装置的控制方法以及记录介质 (Printing apparatus, control method of printing apparatus, and recording medium ) 是由 森山智史 于 2021-06-22 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明提供一种印刷装置、印刷装置的控制方法以及记录介质。印刷装置在相对于介质被手动地移动的期间在介质上实施印刷,且具备：印刷任务取得部,其取得用于通过多个行程对印刷图像进行印刷的印刷任务；移动检测部,其对印刷装置相对于介质的移动方向进行检测；第一控制部,其基于印刷任务,在第奇数次的行程中在印刷装置被向第一方向移动的期间使印刷头实施印刷,在第偶数次的行程中在印刷装置被向与第一方向相反的方向移动的期间使印刷头实施印刷,当在多个行程中的最后的行程以外的行程的印刷中途印刷装置被向与印刷中途的行程中的印刷装置的移动方向相反的方向进行了移动的情况下,第一控制部中止由印刷头实施的印刷中途行程以后的印刷。(The invention provides a printing apparatus, a control method of the printing apparatus, and a recording medium. The printing device performs printing on a medium while being manually moved relative to the medium, and includes: a print job acquisition unit that acquires a print job for printing a print image in a plurality of passes; a movement detection unit that detects a movement direction of the printing device with respect to the medium; and a first control unit that causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass, and stops printing after a printing halfway pass by the print head when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device in a pass during printing in addition to a last pass among the plurality of passes, based on the print job.)

1. A printing device, characterized in that printing is performed on a medium while being moved relative to the medium in a manual manner,

the printing device is provided with:

a print job acquisition unit that acquires a print job for printing a print image in a plurality of passes;

a movement detection unit that detects a movement direction of the printing device with respect to the medium;

a control unit that causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a first direction in an odd-numbered pass and causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass based on the print job,

when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to a moving direction of the printing device in a mid-printing pass during printing in a pass other than a last pass among the plurality of passes, the control unit executes a printing suspension process for suspending printing after the mid-printing pass by the printing head.

2. Printing device according to claim 1,

the control unit causes the notification unit to notify an error as part of the print suspension process.

3. Printing device according to claim 2,

the information device is also provided with the notification unit.

4. The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

a storage unit that stores the print job;

a distance measuring unit that detects a distance from the printing device to the medium,

the control unit causes the print head to start printing again from an initial stroke based on the print job stored in the storage unit when the distance detected by the distance measuring unit becomes equal to or less than a second threshold value, which is a threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value, from a state in which the distance exceeds the first threshold value after the print suspension process is executed.

5. A printing unit as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3,

further comprising a distance measuring unit for detecting a distance from the printing device to the medium,

the control unit determines that the printing device has been removed from the medium when the distance detected by the distance measuring unit exceeds a first threshold value, and determines that the printing device has been placed on the medium when the distance is equal to or less than a second threshold value that is a threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value.

6. A method of controlling a printing apparatus,

the printing device performs printing on the medium during movement relative to the medium in a manual manner,

in the control method of the printing apparatus, the following steps are performed:

a print job acquisition step of acquiring a print job for printing a print image by a plurality of passes;

a movement detection step of detecting a movement direction of the printing device with respect to the medium;

a first control step of causing the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass and causing the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass based on the acquired print job,

in the first control step, when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to a moving direction of the printing device in a mid-printing pass during printing in a pass other than a final pass among the plurality of passes, printing after the mid-printing pass by the printing head is stopped.

7. A recording medium having a program recorded thereon,

the program is for causing an information processing apparatus communicably connected to a printing apparatus that performs printing on a medium while manually moving relative to the medium to execute:

a print job generation step of generating a print job for causing the printing apparatus to print a print image through a plurality of passes;

a monitoring step of monitoring a moving direction of the printing device with respect to the medium;

a second control step of causing the printing device to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a first direction in an odd-numbered pass and causing the printing device to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass based on the print job,

in the second control step, when the printing apparatus is moved in a direction opposite to a moving direction of the printing apparatus in a mid-printing pass during printing in a pass other than a final pass among the plurality of passes, printing after the mid-printing pass by the printing apparatus is stopped.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a printing apparatus, a control method of the printing apparatus, and a program.

Background

Conventionally, a hand-held mobile printer is known which performs printing on a medium while manually moving the printer relative to the medium, as disclosed in patent document 1. As shown in fig. 19, the hand-held mobile printer of this type can perform bidirectional printing in which the printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass is performed while being moved in the + X direction, and the printing of the print image PA2 in the second pass is performed while being moved in the-X direction after the printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass is completed and after being moved in the-Y direction.

As shown in fig. 20, the hand-held mobile printer disclosed in patent document 1 performs printing of a print image PA2 in a second pass when the hand-held mobile printer is moved in the-Y direction and then moved in the-X direction even during printing of a print image PA1 in a first pass. That is, even when the conventional hand-held mobile printer does not print the second half area PA1 'of the print image PA1 in the first pass, printing of the first half area PA 2' of the print image PA2 in the second pass is omitted, and printing is started from the middle of the print image PA2 in the second pass. As described above, in the conventional handheld mobile printer, when the printing device is moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the printing device during the printing process, an incomplete printed image is printed, which results in waste of consumables related to printing.

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2018-144338

Disclosure of Invention

A printing apparatus according to the present invention is a printing apparatus that performs printing on a medium while manually moving relative to the medium, the printing apparatus including: a print job acquisition unit that acquires a print job for printing a print image in a plurality of passes; and a control unit that causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, causes the print head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an even-numbered pass, and performs printing suspension processing to suspend printing after a pass in the middle of printing by the print head when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device in a pass in the middle of printing in a pass other than a last pass among the plurality of passes, based on the print job.

A method for controlling a printing apparatus according to the present invention is a method for controlling a printing apparatus that performs printing on a medium while manually moving the printing apparatus relative to the medium, the method comprising: a print job acquisition step of acquiring a print job for printing a print image by a plurality of passes; a movement detection step of detecting a movement direction of the printing device with respect to the medium; and a control step of causing the printing head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass and causing the printing head to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass based on the acquired print job, wherein the control step stops printing after a pass in the middle of printing performed by the printing head when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device in a pass in the middle of printing in a pass other than a last pass among the plurality of passes.

The program of the present invention is a program for causing an information processing apparatus communicably connected to a printing apparatus that performs printing on a medium while manually moving relative to the medium to execute: a print job generation step of generating a print job for causing a printing apparatus to print a print image through a plurality of passes; a monitoring step of monitoring a moving direction of the printing apparatus with respect to the medium; and a control step of causing the printing device to perform printing while the printing device is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, and causing the printing device to perform printing while the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass, based on the print job, and in the control step, when the printing device is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device in a pass in the middle of printing in a pass other than a last pass among the plurality of passes, stopping printing after the pass in the middle of printing by the printing device.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a printing system.

Fig. 2 is an external perspective view of the printing apparatus.

Fig. 3 is an external perspective view of the printing apparatus viewed from a different angle from fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which the printing apparatus is moved in the + X direction.

Fig. 5 is an explanatory view of unidirectional printing.

Fig. 6 is an explanatory view of bidirectional printing.

Fig. 7 is a control block diagram of the printing system of the first embodiment.

Fig. 8 is a diagram showing a print instruction screen.

Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a print setting screen.

Fig. 10 is a functional block diagram of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 11 is a diagram showing a state in which printing of a print image is suspended.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in the printing system according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 13 is a flowchart following fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is a view of a printing apparatus provided with a display as viewed from the + Z direction.

Fig. 15 is a diagram showing an error picture.

Fig. 16 is a control block diagram of the printing system according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 17 is a functional block diagram of an information processing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 18 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing in the information processing apparatus according to the second embodiment.

Fig. 19 is an explanatory diagram of a case where a complete print image is printed by a conventional hand-held mobile printer.

Fig. 20 is an explanatory diagram of a case where an incomplete print image is printed by a conventional handheld mobile printer.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a printing apparatus, a control method of the printing apparatus, and a program will be described with reference to the drawings.

First embodiment

Fig. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a printing system SY. The printing system SY includes an information processing apparatus 1 and a printing apparatus 101. The information processing apparatus 1 and the printing apparatus 101 are connected to each other so as to be able to communicate with each other by wire or wirelessly.

The information processing apparatus 1 transmits the print job to the printing apparatus 101. As the information processing apparatus 1, for example, a smart phone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like can be used.

The printing apparatus 101 prints on a medium 201 (see fig. 4) based on the print job received from the information processing apparatus 1. The printing apparatus 101 is a so-called hand-held printer, and performs printing while being manually moved relative to the medium 201. The medium 201 is not limited to a printing sheet, and for example, an envelope, a postcard, a business card, corrugated paper, a notebook, a CD (Compact Disc), or the like can be used.

The external configuration of the printing apparatus 101 will be described with reference to fig. 2 and 3. In addition, although the directions viewed from the printing apparatus 101 will be described below using the directions based on the XYZ rectangular coordinate system shown in each drawing, these directions are merely for convenience of description and do not limit the following embodiments at all.

The printing apparatus 101 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. Of the six outer surfaces of the printing apparatus 101, an outer surface on which a print button 115 described later is provided is referred to as a first outer surface 103, and an outer surface on the side opposite to the first outer surface 103 is referred to as a second outer surface 105. In addition, one of two outer surfaces having a larger area among the four outer surfaces corresponding to the side surfaces when the first outer surface 103 or the second outer surface 105 is taken as the bottom surface is referred to as a third outer surface 107, and the other is referred to as a fourth outer surface 109. One of the two outer surfaces having a smaller area among the four outer surfaces corresponding to the side surfaces is referred to as a fifth outer surface 111, and the other is referred to as a sixth outer surface 113. That is, the first outer surface 103, the second outer surface 105, the third outer surface 107, the fourth outer surface 109, the fifth outer surface 111, and the sixth outer surface 113 are disposed in the + Z direction, -Z direction, + X direction, -X direction, + Y direction, and-Y direction, respectively, when viewed from the printing apparatus 101.

A print button 115 and a power button 116 are provided on the first outer surface 103 of the printing device 101. Print button 115 receives a print start instruction from user 301 (see fig. 4). The print start instruction from the user 301 is executed by, for example, pressing the print button 115 for a short time. The print button 115 is provided at the + Y direction with respect to the central portion of the first outer surface 103. After placing the printing device 101 on the medium 201, the user 301 can cause the printing device 101 to print the print image 203 (see fig. 4) by pressing the print button 115 for a short time and moving the held printing device 101 along the surface of the medium 201 with bare hands.

The print button 115 receives a print end instruction from the user 301. The print end instruction from the user 301 is executed by, for example, long-pressing the print button 115.

Further, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) is incorporated in the print button 115. The printing apparatus 101 notifies an error by blinking an LED incorporated in the print button 115. The print button 115 is an example of "notification section".

The power button 116 receives an instruction to switch power on/off from the user 301. The power button 116 is disposed at the-Y direction with respect to the central portion of the first outer surface 103.

As shown in fig. 3, a plurality of rollers 119, a print head 121, a movement detection sensor 125, and a distance measurement sensor 129 are provided on the second outer surface 105 of the printing device 101.

The plurality of rollers 119 rotate while making sliding contact with the medium 201, thereby guiding the movement of the printing device 101 in the X direction with respect to the medium 201.

The print head 121 is an inkjet head including a nozzle array 127 in which a plurality of nozzles are arranged, and prints a print image 203 on the medium 201 by ejecting ink from each nozzle. The print head 121 is disposed at the + Y direction with respect to the central portion of the second outer surface 105. That is, the print head 121 is disposed in the-Z direction with respect to the print button 115 described above. The nozzle rows 127 are arranged in the Y direction.

While the printing apparatus 101 is moving relative to the medium 201, the movement detection sensor 125 optically reads minute irregularities of the medium 201, and outputs a movement detection signal. The printing apparatus 101 detects the amount of movement in the X direction and the Y direction and the movement direction in the X direction and the Y direction based on the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125. The movement detection sensor 125 is disposed in the-Y direction with respect to the print head 121.

The distance measuring sensor 129 detects the distance between the printing device 101 and the medium 201, and outputs a distance measuring signal. The printing apparatus 101 detects the distance to the medium 201 based on the distance measurement signal output from the distance measurement sensor 129. The distance measuring sensor 129 is disposed in the-Y direction with respect to the movement detecting sensor 125.

As shown in fig. 4, while being moved in the + X direction with respect to the medium 201, the printing device 101 can print a print image 203 on the medium 201. Further, the printing apparatus 101 can print the print image 203 on the medium 201 while being moved in the-X direction with respect to the medium 201.

In addition, when one print job cannot be executed in one pass, the printing apparatus 101 can execute the job in a plurality of passes. Here, the stroke refers to a printing operation performed while the printing apparatus 101 is moved in one of the + X direction and the-X direction. In this way, when executing one print job by dividing it into a plurality of passes, the user 301 can select one of unidirectional printing and bidirectional printing as the printing direction in the information processing apparatus 1.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a moving path of the printing apparatus 101 in a case where one-direction printing is selected. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing the movement path of the printing apparatus 101 when bidirectional printing is selected. In both figures, a thick line indicates a printing movement path 231 as a movement path of the printing apparatus 101 at the time of printing, and a thin line indicates a line feed movement path 233 as a movement path of the printing apparatus 101 at the time of line feed. Here, the "line feed" refers to a movement of the printing apparatus 101 not accompanied by printing from a movement end position corresponding to one stroke of the printing apparatus 101 to a movement start position corresponding to the next stroke.

As shown in fig. 5, when the unidirectional printing is selected, the printing apparatus 101 repeats an operation of moving in the + X direction, performing printing for one stroke, and then performing line feed in the-X direction and the-Y direction. The line feed in the-X direction and the-Y direction may be a line feed moved in a diagonal direction between the-X direction and the-Y direction, a line feed moved in the-Y direction after being moved in the-X direction, or a line feed moved in the-X direction after being moved in the-Y direction.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 6, when bidirectional printing is selected, the printing apparatus 101 repeats operations of moving in the + X direction, performing printing for one pass, then performing line feed in the-Y direction, moving in the-X direction, and performing line feed in the-Y direction after printing for the next pass. That is, when the bidirectional printing is selected, the printing device 101 performs printing while moving in the + X direction in the odd-numbered passes and performs printing while moving in the-X direction in the even-numbered passes.

The hardware configuration of the printing system SY will be described with reference to fig. 7. The printing system SY includes an information processing apparatus 1 and a printing apparatus 101. The information processing apparatus 1 includes an operation/display unit 11, a processing apparatus side communication unit 13, and a processing apparatus side control unit 15.

The operation/display unit 11 is, for example, a touch panel, and is used for displaying various operations and various information performed by the user 301. The operation/display unit 11 displays, for example, a print instruction screen 21 (see fig. 8) and a print setting screen 31 (see fig. 9).

Here, the print instruction screen 21 and the print setting screen 31 will be described. As shown in fig. 8, the print instruction screen 21 is provided with a print type selection field 23, an information input field 25, a first ok button 27, and a first cancel button 29.

A text option 23a and an image option 23b are selectively displayed in the print type selection field 23. When the text option 23a is selected in the printing type selection field 23, a text is input in the information input field 25. The text is information to which a text code is given, such as characters, numerals, symbols, and pictorial characters, which are input by a software keyboard, not shown. When the image option 23b is selected in the printing type selection field 23, an image is drawn or inserted in the information input field 25. The image is information to which no text code is given.

When the text option 23a is selected in the printing type selection field 23, the input text is displayed in the information input field 25. When the image option 23b is selected in the print type selection field 23, the drawn or inserted image is displayed in the information input field 25. The print instruction screen 21 shown in the same figure shows a case where the image option 23b is selected in the print type selection field 23 and an image is displayed in the information input field 25.

The first determination button 27 receives an operation for determining information input on the print instruction screen 21. When the operation of the first enter button 27 is accepted, the information processing apparatus 1 confirms the information input and displays the print setting screen 31. The first cancel button 29 receives an operation of canceling the information input on the print instruction screen 21. When receiving the operation of the first cancel button 29, the information processing apparatus 1 resets the information input to the print instruction screen 21 and displays an initial screen, not shown.

As shown in fig. 9, the print setting screen 31 is provided with a print preview 33, a print direction selection field 35, a second ok button 37, and a second cancel button 39.

In the print preview 33, a preview of the print image 203 is displayed based on the information input to the information input field 25 of the print instruction screen 21. As shown in fig. 8, when the image option 23b is selected in the print type selection field 23 of the print instruction screen 21, the information processing apparatus 1 displays a preview of the print image 203 based on the image drawn or inserted in the information input field 25 of the print instruction screen 21 as the print preview 33.

When the text option 23a is selected in the print type selection field 23 of the print instruction screen 21, the unidirectional print option 35a and the bidirectional print option 35b are displayed in the print direction selection field 35 in a selectable manner. In addition, when the print image 203 can be executed by one pass, the information processing apparatus 1 may set only the unidirectional print option 35a to be selectable and set the bidirectional print option 35b to be unselectable.

When the image option 23b is selected in the print type selection field 23 of the print instruction screen 21, only the bidirectional print option 35b is selectable and the unidirectional print option 35a is not selectable in the print direction selection field 35. That is, when printing the print image 203 of the image, the printing apparatus 101 performs bidirectional printing.

In addition, when the image option 23b is selected in the print type selection field 23 of the print instruction screen 21, the information processing apparatus 1 may set the lengths of the images in the X direction and the Y direction in the print setting screen 31 to be settable.

The second determination button 37 receives an operation for determining selection on the print setting screen 31. Upon receiving the operation of the second determination button 37, the information processing apparatus 1 generates print data and transmits a print job including the generated print data and information indicating the print type to the printing apparatus 101. When the print type is "text", the information processing apparatus 1 includes information indicating the print direction in the print job and transmits the information to the printing apparatus 101. The second cancel button 39 accepts an operation to cancel the selection on the print setting screen 31. When receiving the operation of the second cancel button 39, the information processing apparatus 1 resets the setting of the print setting screen 31 and displays the print instruction screen 21.

Returning to the description of fig. 7. The processing apparatus side communication unit 13 communicates with the printing apparatus 101 via wireless or the like. For example, the processing apparatus side communication unit 13 transmits a print job to the printing apparatus 101.

The processing apparatus side control unit 15 includes: a Processing apparatus side CPU (Central Processing Unit) 16, a Processing apparatus side ROM (Read Only Memory) 17, and a Processing apparatus side RAM (Random Access Memory) 18.

The processing apparatus side CPU16 performs various controls by developing and executing various control programs stored in the processing apparatus side ROM17 in the processing apparatus side RAM 18. The processing device side control unit 15 may use a hardware Circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) as the processor instead of the processing device side CPU 16. The processor may be configured such that one or more CPUs and a hardware circuit such as an ASIC operate in cooperation with each other.

The processing device ROM17 is a rewritable ROM such as a flash memory, and stores various control programs and various control data. The processing device RAM18 is used as a work area for causing the processing device CPU16 to perform various controls.

The processing apparatus side ROM17 stores a dedicated application program 17a for controlling the printing apparatus 101. The processing apparatus side CPU16 displays the above-described print instruction screen 21 and print setting screen 31 using the dedicated application 17 a.

The processing apparatus CPU16 generates a print job using the dedicated application program 17 a. More specifically, the processing apparatus side CPU16 generates a print job based on the information input on the print instruction screen 21 and the settings on the print setting screen 31.

The printing apparatus 101 includes: a printing apparatus side communication unit 161, a movement detection sensor 125, a printing head 121, a distance measurement sensor 129, and a printing apparatus side control unit 165.

The printing apparatus side communication unit 161 communicates with the information processing apparatus 1 via wireless or the like.

While the printing apparatus 101 is being moved relative to the medium 201, the movement detection sensor 125 optically reads minute irregularities of the medium 201, and outputs a movement detection signal for detecting the movement amount and the movement direction of the printing apparatus 101. The movement detection sensor 125 includes, for example, a Light source that irradiates an LED (Light Emitting Diode) Light onto the medium 201, and a Light receiving sensor that receives a reflected Light of the LED Light from the medium 201 and outputs a movement detection signal.

The print head 121 has a nozzle array 127 in which a plurality of nozzles are arranged. The print head 121 performs printing on the medium 201 by ejecting ink from a plurality of nozzles. The print head 121 may have a plurality of nozzle rows 127. The printing apparatus 101 may be provided with a plurality of print heads 121. In this case, the plurality of printing heads 121 may be configured to eject inks of different colors from the nozzles provided in the respective printing heads 121.

The distance measuring sensor 129 measures the distance between the printing device 101 and the medium 201, and outputs a distance measuring signal as a measurement result thereof. The distance measuring sensor 129 includes, for example, a light source that irradiates the medium 201 with infrared rays and a light receiving sensor that receives infrared rays reflected from the medium 201 and outputs a distance measuring signal. The distance measuring sensor 129 may be a sensor using ultrasonic waves instead of infrared rays.

The printing apparatus side control section 165 includes: a printing apparatus side CPU166, a printing apparatus side ROM167, and a printing apparatus side RAM 168.

The printing apparatus side CPU166 performs various controls by developing and executing various control programs stored in the printing apparatus side ROM167 in the printing apparatus side RAM 168. The printing apparatus side control unit 165 may use a hardware circuit such as an asic (application Specific Integrated circuit) as a processor instead of the printing apparatus side CPU 166. The processor may be configured such that one or more CPUs and a hardware circuit such as an ASIC operate in cooperation with each other.

The printing apparatus ROM167 stores various control programs and various control data. The printing apparatus RAM168 is used as a work area for the printing apparatus CPU166 to perform various controls. The printing apparatus RAM168 has a first task area 168 a. The first task area 168a stores the print job transmitted from the information processing apparatus 1. The first task area 168a is an example of a "storage section".

The printing apparatus side CPU166 detects the amount of movement of the printing apparatus 101 in the X direction and the Y direction based on the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125. The printing apparatus side CPU166 calculates the movement distances in the X direction and the Y direction of the printing apparatus 101 from the detected movement amounts in the X direction and the Y direction, detects the movement direction of the printing apparatus 101 based on the calculated movement distances, and controls the print head 121. More specifically, the printing apparatus side CPU166 discharges ink from each nozzle of the print head 121 at a timing based on the calculated movement distance. Thus, the printing apparatus 101 can print the print image 203 on the medium 201 appropriately regardless of the speed at which the user 301 moves the printing apparatus 101.

Further, in the middle of printing the print image 203, when the printing device 101 is moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 in the middle of printing, the printing device side CPU166 stops printing after the middle of printing by the printing head 121. After the printing is suspended, the printing apparatus 101 is temporarily removed from the medium 201, and when the printing apparatus 101 is mounted on the medium 201 again, the printing apparatus side CPU166 restarts printing from the initial stroke. The printing apparatus side CPU166 determines whether the printing apparatus 101 is removed from the medium 201 or the printing apparatus 101 is placed on the medium 201 based on the distance measurement signal output from the distance measurement sensor 129.

The functional configuration of the printing apparatus 101 will be described with reference to fig. 10. The printing apparatus 101 includes: a print job acquisition unit 181, a movement detection unit 183, a distance measurement unit 185, and a first control unit 187. These functions are realized by the printing apparatus CPU166 executing a control program stored in the printing apparatus ROM 167. The first control section 187 is an example of a "control section".

The print job acquiring unit 181 acquires a print job for printing the print image 203 from the information processing apparatus 1. The process of the print job acquisition unit 181 is an example of a "print job acquisition step".

The movement detection unit 183 detects the movement direction of the printing device 101 with respect to the medium 201 based on the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125. The processing of the movement detection unit 183 is an example of "movement detection step".

The distance measuring unit 185 detects the distance from the printing device 101 to the medium 201 based on the distance measuring signal output from the distance measuring sensor 129.

When the print job is acquired by the print job acquisition unit 181, the first control unit 187 stores the acquired print job in the first job area 168 a. When the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "text" and the print direction is "one-way printing" is acquired by the print job acquisition unit 181, the first control unit 187 causes the print head 121 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the + X direction in all the passes. When the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "text" and the print direction is "bidirectional printing" and the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "image" are acquired by the print job acquisition unit 181, the first control unit 187 causes the print head 121 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the + X direction in the odd-numbered pass and causes the print head 121 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the-X direction in the even-numbered pass.

The first control unit 187 executes a print suspension process for suspending printing after a mid-printing pass by the print head 121, when the printing device 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 during the mid-printing pass of the print image 203, regardless of the information indicating the printing type and the information indicating the printing direction included in the print job.

As shown in fig. 11, for example, when the printing of the print image 203 is performed in four passes, the first control unit 187 causes the printing device 101 to move in the + X direction to perform printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass, and then, when the printing device is moved in the-Y direction during printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass, stops the remaining printing in the first pass and the printing in the second pass and thereafter. Further, when the printing device 101 is not moved in the-Y direction but moved in the-X direction during printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass, the first control unit 187 stops the subsequent printing. In this way, a situation where the printing apparatus 101 is moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the first pass while the printing apparatus 101 is in the middle of printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass occurs when the user 301 mistakenly recognizes that the printing in the first pass has ended in the middle of printing in the first pass, or the like. In this case, if the printing device 101 is assumed to continue printing after the second pass, the incomplete print image 203 is printed, which results in waste of ink and medium 201. Therefore, when the printing of the print image PA1 in the first pass is moved in the-X direction in the middle of printing, the first control unit 187 stops printing of the remaining print image PA1 'in the first pass, the print image PA 2' scheduled to be printed in the second pass, the print image PA3 'scheduled to be printed in the third pass, and the print image PA 4' scheduled to be printed in the fourth pass, as indicated by broken lines.

Further, as part of the print suspension process, the first control section 187 notifies an error. The first control unit 187 notifies an error by blinking an LED incorporated in the print button 115.

After the print suspension process is executed, the first control unit 187 determines that the printing device 101 has been removed from the medium 201 when the distance detected by the distance measuring unit 185 exceeds the first threshold value, and determines that the printing device 101 has been mounted on the medium 201 again when the distance exceeds the first threshold value and becomes equal to or less than a second threshold value, which is a threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value. The first threshold value and the second threshold value may be the same value. Further, the first control section 187 keeps the state in which the print job is stored in the first job area 168a after the execution of the print suspension process, and when the print start signal instruction is received after the printing device 101 is determined to be mounted on the medium 201 again, starts printing from the first pass based on the print job stored in the first job area 168 a. The above processing of the first control section 187 is an example of the "first control step".

The flow of processing of the printing system SY will be described with reference to fig. 12 and 13. The information processing apparatus 1 is set to be in a state in which the dedicated application 17a is started and the print instruction screen 21 is being displayed on the operation/display unit 11.

In step S01, the information processing apparatus 1 receives an input to the print instruction screen 21. The information processing apparatus 1 receives selection of a print type and input of information corresponding to the selected print type on the print instruction screen 21.

In step S02, the information processing apparatus 1 displays the print setting screen 31 on the operation/display unit 11.

In step S03, the information processing apparatus 1 receives the setting of the print setting screen 31. The information processing apparatus 1 receives a selection of a printing direction on the print setting screen 31.

In step S04, the information processing apparatus 1 generates a print job based on the information input to the print instruction screen 21 and the settings of the print setting screen 31.

In step S05, the information processing apparatus 1 transmits the print job generated in step S04 to the printing apparatus 101.

In step S06, the printing apparatus 101 receives the print job transmitted from the information processing apparatus 1.

In step S07, the printing apparatus 101 causes the print job received in step S06 to be stored in the first job area 168 a.

In step S08, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether or not a print start instruction is given. When the print button 115 is pressed for a short time, the printing apparatus 101 determines that the print start instruction is given. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the print start instruction has been given, the process proceeds to step S10. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the print start instruction has not been issued, the process proceeds to step S09.

In step S09, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether or not a print end instruction has been given. When the print button 115 is pressed for a long time, the printing apparatus 101 determines that the print end instruction is given. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing end instruction has been given, it proceeds to step S26 in fig. 13. When determining that the print end instruction has not been given, the printing apparatus 101 returns to step S08.

In step S10, the printing apparatus 101 starts detection of the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 and printing. The printing apparatus 101 detects the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 based on the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125. The printing device 101 performs printing by performing drive control of a not-shown head driver that drives the print head 121.

In step S11, the printing device 101 determines whether or not the printing device 101 has moved in a direction opposite to the stroke movement direction, which is the movement direction of the printing device 101 in a stroke during printing. The stroke movement direction is determined based on information indicating the printing direction or information indicating the printing type included in the print job. For example, when the print job includes information indicating that the print type is "image", the printing apparatus 101 determines that the stroke movement direction is the + X direction if the stroke during printing is an odd-numbered stroke, and determines that the stroke movement direction is the-X direction if the stroke during printing is an even-numbered stroke. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the stroke movement direction, the process proceeds to step S21 in fig. 13. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has not been moved in the direction opposite to the stroke movement direction, that is, when the printing apparatus 101 has been moved in the stroke movement direction, the process proceeds to step S12.

In step S12, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether printing for one pass has ended. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that printing for one pass has ended, the process proceeds to step S13. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing for one pass has not been completed, the process returns to step S11.

In step S13, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether printing for all the strokes has been completed. If the printing apparatus 101 determines that printing for all the strokes has been completed, the process proceeds to step S15. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that printing has not been completed for all the strokes, the process proceeds to step S14.

In step S14, the printing apparatus 101 sets the stroke number of the next stroke to be printed as "stroke number +1 of the stroke for which printing has ended". After executing step S14, the printing apparatus 101 returns to step S08.

In step S15, the printing apparatus 101 deletes the print job from the first job area 168 a.

In step S16, the printing apparatus 101 transmits a print completion notification indicating that printing has been completed to the information processing apparatus 1.

In step S17, the information processing apparatus 1 receives the print completion notification transmitted from the printing apparatus 101.

In step S21 of fig. 13, the printing apparatus 101 notifies an error. The printing apparatus 101 notifies an error by blinking an LED incorporated in the print button 115.

In step S22, the printing apparatus 101 stops printing. The printing apparatus 101 stops printing by stopping driving of a head driver not shown.

In step S23, the printing apparatus 101 sets the stroke number of the stroke to be printed next to "1".

In step S24, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether or not the printing apparatus 101 has been mounted again. After the printing is stopped, the printing device 101 determines that the printing device 101 has been mounted again when it is determined based on the distance measurement signal output from the distance measurement sensor 129 that the distance from the medium 201 has become equal to or less than the second threshold value, which is the threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value from the state in which the distance exceeds the first threshold value. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has been mounted again, the process returns to step S08 in fig. 12. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus 101 is not mounted again, the process proceeds to step S25.

Note that, instead of setting the run number to "1" in step S23, the printing device 101 may set the run number to "1" after determining that the printing device 101 has been mounted again, and return to step S08 in fig. 12.

In step S25, the printing apparatus 101 determines whether or not a print end instruction has been given. When the print button 115 is pressed for a long time, the printing apparatus 101 determines that the print end instruction has been given. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing end instruction has been given, the process proceeds to step S26. When the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing end instruction has not been given, the process proceeds to step S24.

In step S26, the printing apparatus 101 ends printing. Note that the printing is terminated by forcibly terminating the printing based on the printing termination instruction of the user 301, unlike the case where the printing is completed with the termination of the printing of all the strokes.

In step S27, the printing apparatus 101 deletes the print job from the first job area 168 a.

In step S28, the printing apparatus 101 transmits a print end notification indicating that printing has ended to the information processing apparatus 1.

In step S29, the information processing apparatus 1 receives the print end notification transmitted from the printing apparatus 101.

As described above, the printing apparatus 101 according to the present embodiment executes the print suspension processing for suspending printing after a mid-printing pass when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the mid-printing pass during printing of the print image 203. Accordingly, the printing apparatus 101 can suppress waste of consumables related to printing, such as the ink and the medium 201, due to printing of the incomplete print image 203.

Further, as part of the print suspension process, the printing apparatus 101 notifies the user 301 of an error. This allows the user 301 to recognize that printing has been suspended.

After executing the print suspension process, the printing apparatus 101 restarts printing from the first pass when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has been mounted again. Thus, the user 301 can restart printing without performing an operation for taking a print job from the printing apparatus 101 by placing the printing apparatus 101 on the medium 201 again after the printing suspension process is executed.

In the first embodiment, the following modifications can be adopted.

Modification 1-1

Although the printing apparatus 101 of the above-described embodiment notifies an error by blinking an LED incorporated in the print button 115 when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has been moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in a printing process, the printing apparatus 101 may notify an error by lighting the print button 115. The printing apparatus 101 may notify an error by turning on an LED incorporated in the print button 115 during printing and turning off the LED incorporated in the print button 115 when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in a stroke during printing.

As a further modification, the printing apparatus 101 may notify an error by sound or vibration. In this case, the sound generation device and the vibration generation device are one example of the "notification portion".

Modification examples 1 and 2

As shown in fig. 11, the printing apparatus 101 may notify an error using the display 139. In this case, the printing apparatus 101 can notify an error by displaying a message indicating that printing has been stopped and a message urging the printing apparatus 101 to move away from the medium 201 and to perform printing again on the display 139. The display 139 in this case is an example of a "notification portion".

As a further modification, the information processing apparatus 1 may notify an error. In this case, when the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the middle of printing, the error information may be transmitted to the information processing apparatus 1. In contrast, as shown in fig. 15, the information processing apparatus 1 may cause the operation/display unit 11 to display the error screen 41 based on the error information received from the printing apparatus 101. The information processing apparatus 1 can display a message indicating that printing by the printing apparatus 101 has been stopped and a message urging the printing apparatus 101 to move away from the medium 201 and to perform printing again on the error screen 41. The operation/display section 11 of the information processing apparatus 1 in this case is an example of a "notification section".

Modifications 1 to 3

Although the printing apparatus 101 of the above-described embodiment makes only two-way printing selectable as the printing direction and makes one-way printing non-selectable when "image" is selected as the printing type, one-way printing may be selectable. In addition, the printing apparatus 101 may be configured not to stop printing when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in a middle of printing, regardless of whether the printing type is "image" or "text" in the case of unidirectional printing. That is, when the printing apparatus 101 selects one-way printing as the printing direction, if it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the middle of printing, printing may be temporarily interrupted, but when it is determined that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the middle of printing thereafter, printing may be resumed from the position at which printing in the middle of printing was interrupted.

Modifications 1 to 4

Although the printing apparatus 101 according to the above-described embodiment restarts printing from the first pass of the print job when the printing start instruction is received after the printing apparatus 101 is mounted again, printing may be restarted without receiving the printing start instruction. That is, after the print suspension process, when the printing apparatus 101 determines that the printing apparatus has been mounted again, the printing apparatus may read the print job from the first job area 168a and restart printing from the first pass based on the read print job.

As a further modification, the printing apparatus 101 may be configured not to determine whether or not the printing apparatus 101 has been mounted again. In this case, the printing apparatus 101 may determine whether or not a print start instruction has been accepted after the print suspension process, read the print job from the first task area 168a when the print start instruction has been accepted, and restart printing from the initial pass based on the read print job.

Modifications 1 to 5

Although the printing apparatus 101 of the above-described embodiment acquires a print job from the information processing apparatus 1, the print job may be acquired from an external storage medium such as a flash memory. Alternatively, the printing apparatus 101 may generate a print job in the apparatus.

Modifications 1 to 6

The moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 may be detected not only by using the output signal from the movement detection sensor 125 but also by using an output signal from a gyro sensor that detects the angular velocity of the printing apparatus 101.

Modifications 1 to 7

The print head 121 is not limited to an inkjet head, and may be a thermal head that performs printing by a thermal transfer method, for example. In this case, the print head 121 may use a printing material other than ink such as an ink ribbon. The print head 121 may discharge a liquid other than ink. For example, the print head 121 may discharge a liquid such as an adhesive or a coating agent.

As a further modification, the print head 121 may be configured to be detachable from the printing apparatus 101 together with an ink cartridge containing a liquid.

Modifications 1 to 8

Although the printing apparatus 101 of the above-described embodiment acquires a print job for performing printing of a plurality of passes when printing the print image 203 by a plurality of passes, the print job may be acquired for each pass. In this case, the printing apparatus 101 may request the information processing apparatus 1 for a print job of the next pass when the print start instruction is received or when the pass printing is completed.

Second embodiment

Next, a second embodiment will be explained. In the first embodiment, the printing apparatus 101 itself determines whether or not the printing apparatus 101 has moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in a pass during printing, and in the second embodiment, this determination is performed on the information processing apparatus 1 side. Hereinafter, only the differences from the first embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. Further, the same modifications as those of the first embodiment to the same components are also applied to the present embodiment.

Fig. 16 is a control block diagram of the printing system SY of the second embodiment. Compared with the configuration of the first embodiment (see fig. 7), the printing system SY of the second embodiment is configured such that the first task area 168a is omitted from the printing apparatus RAM168 of the printing apparatus 101 and the second task area 18a is added to the processing apparatus RAM18 of the information processing apparatus 1. The second job area 18a stores the print job generated by the information processing apparatus 1. The dedicated application program 17a stored in the processing device ROM17 of the present embodiment is an example of a "program".

Further, the printing apparatus 101 of the present embodiment starts printing when the print button 115 is pressed for a short time, and transmits a print start signal to the information processing apparatus 1. Further, the printing apparatus 101 of the present embodiment continues to periodically transmit the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125 to the information processing apparatus 1 after the print button 115 is pressed for a short time until printing is suspended, ended, or completed. Further, the printing apparatus 101 of the present embodiment ends printing when the print button 115 is pressed for a long time, and transmits a print end signal to the information processing apparatus 1. Further, the printing device 101 of the present embodiment transmits the reload signal to the information processing device 1 when it is determined that the printing device 101 has been reloaded based on the detection result of the distance measuring sensor 129. The printing apparatus 101 of the present embodiment stops printing when receiving a print stop command from the information processing apparatus 1.

Fig. 17 is a functional block diagram of the information processing apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment. The information processing apparatus 1 includes a print job generating unit 191, a monitoring unit 193, and a second control unit 195. These functions are realized by the processing device-side CPU16 executing the dedicated application program 17a stored in the processing device-side ROM 17.

The print job generating unit 191 generates a print job for causing the printing apparatus 101 to print the print image 203. The process of the print job generating unit 191 is an example of a "print job generating step".

The monitoring unit 193 periodically receives the movement detection signal from the printing apparatus 101, thereby monitoring the movement direction of the printing apparatus 101 with respect to the medium 201. The process of the monitoring unit 193 is an example of "monitoring step".

When the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "text" and the print direction is "one-way printing" is generated by the print job generating unit 191, the second control unit 195 causes the printing device 101 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the + X direction in all the passes. When the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "text" and the print direction is "bidirectional printing" and the print job including the information indicating that the print type is "image" are generated by the print job generating unit 191, the second control unit 195 causes the printing device 101 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the + X direction in the odd-numbered pass and causes the printing device 101 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the-X direction in the even-numbered pass. In addition, "causing the printing apparatus 101 to perform printing" means that the second control section 195 transmits a print job including information indicating the type of printing and the printing direction to the printing apparatus 101.

Further, regardless of the information indicating the type of printing and the information indicating the printing direction included in the print job, the second control unit 195 stops printing in the middle of the printing process by the printing device 101 when it is determined that the printing device 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 during the middle of the printing process of the print image 203 by the printing device 101 based on the movement detection signal transmitted from the printing device 101.

Further, the second control unit 195 notifies an error when the printing apparatus 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in a middle of printing of the print image 203 by the printing apparatus 101. The second control unit 195 notifies the error by causing the operation/display unit 11 to display the error screen 41 (see fig. 15).

Further, when the second control unit 195 receives the reload signal from the printing apparatus 101 after printing is suspended, the printing apparatus 101 is caused to resume printing from the first stroke based on the print job stored in the second job area 18 a. That is, the second control unit 195 stores the print job in the second job area 18a even after the printing is suspended, and when the print start signal is received from the printing apparatus 101 after the reload signal is received from the printing apparatus 101, the printing apparatus 101 starts printing from the first stroke based on the print job stored in the second job area 18 a. The above processing of the second control unit 195 is an example of the "second control procedure".

A flow of processing in the information processing apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 18. The information processing apparatus 1 is set to be in a state in which the dedicated application 17a is started and after step S01 to step S05 shown in fig. 12 are executed. After the print job is generated in step S01, the information processing apparatus 1 stores the generated print job in the second job region 18a in the processing apparatus RAM 18.

In step S41, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether or not a print start signal has been received from the printing apparatus 101. When determining that the print start signal has been received, the information processing apparatus 1 proceeds to S44. When determining that the print start signal has not been received, the information processing apparatus 1 proceeds to S42.

In step S42, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether or not a print end signal has been received from the printing apparatus 101. When determining that the print end signal has been received, the information processing apparatus 1 proceeds to S43. When determining that the print end signal has not been received, the information processing apparatus 1 returns to S41.

In step S43, the information processing apparatus 1 deletes the print job from the second job area 18 a.

In step S44, the information processing apparatus 1 starts receiving the movement detection signal from the printing apparatus 101.

In step S45, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether or not the printing apparatus 101 has been moved in a direction opposite to the stroke moving direction, which is the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the stroke during printing. When the information processing apparatus 1 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has moved in the direction opposite to the stroke movement direction, the process proceeds to S46. When the information processing apparatus 1 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has not been moved in the direction opposite to the stroke movement direction, the process proceeds to S50.

In step S46, the information processing apparatus 1 notifies of an error. The information processing apparatus 1 notifies an error by causing the operation/display unit 11 to display an error screen 41 (see fig. 15).

In step S47, the information processing apparatus 1 transmits a print stop command to the printing apparatus 101.

In step S48, the information processing device 1 sets the stroke number of the stroke to be printed next to "1".

In step S49, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether or not the reload position signal has been received from the printing apparatus 101. When determining that the reload signal has been received, the information processing apparatus 1 returns to S41. When determining that the reload signal has not been received, the information processing apparatus 1 proceeds to S50.

In step S50, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether or not a print end signal has been received from the printing apparatus 101. When determining that the print end signal has been received, the information processing apparatus 1 proceeds to S54. When determining that the print end signal has not been received, the information processing apparatus 1 returns to S49.

In step S51, the information processing apparatus 1 determines whether printing for one pass has ended. When the information processing device 1 determines that printing for one pass has ended, the process proceeds to step S52. When the information processing device 1 determines that printing for one pass has not ended, the process returns to step S45.

In step S52, the information processing device 1 determines whether printing for all the strokes has been completed. When the information processing device 1 determines that printing for all the strokes has been completed, the process proceeds to step S54. When the information processing device 1 determines that printing for all the strokes has not been completed, the process proceeds to step S53.

In step S53, the information processing device 1 sets the stroke number of the next stroke to be printed as "stroke number of stroke + 1" at which printing is completed. After executing step S53, the information processing apparatus 1 returns to step S41.

In step S54, the information processing apparatus 1 deletes the print job from the second job area 18 a.

As described above, the information processing apparatus 1 according to the second embodiment stops printing after a middle-of-printing pass when the printing apparatus 101 is moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the middle of printing the print image 203. Thus, the information processing apparatus 1 can suppress waste of consumables related to printing, such as ink and the medium 201, caused by printing of the incomplete print image 203 by the printing apparatus 101.

In the second embodiment, the following modifications can be adopted.

Modification 2-1

Although the information processing device 1 of the above-described embodiment periodically receives the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125 from the printing device 101, information indicating the movement direction of the printing device 101 may be received instead of the movement detection signal. In this case, the printing apparatus 101 may detect the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 based on the movement detection signal output from the movement detection sensor 125, and transmit information indicating the detected moving direction to the information processing apparatus 1.

Supplementary note

Hereinafter, the printing apparatus, the control method of the printing apparatus, and the program will be described.

The printing apparatus 101 is a printing apparatus 101 that performs printing on a medium while manually moving relative to the medium, and the printing apparatus 101 includes: a print job acquisition unit 181 that acquires a print job for printing a print image in a plurality of passes; a movement detection unit 183 that detects a movement direction of the printing device 101 with respect to the medium; and a first control unit 187 for causing the print head to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, causing the print head to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass, and causing the first control unit 187 to perform a printing suspension process for suspending printing after a pass in the middle of printing performed by the print head when the printing device 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 in the pass in the middle of printing in a pass other than the last pass among the plurality of passes, based on the print job.

The control method of the printing apparatus 101 is a control method of the printing apparatus 101 that performs printing on a medium while manually moving the printing apparatus 101 relative to the medium, and the control method of the printing apparatus 101 executes the steps of: a print job acquisition step of acquiring a print job for printing a print image by a plurality of passes; a movement detection step of detecting a movement direction of the printing device 101 with respect to the medium; a first control step of causing the printing head to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, and causing the printing head to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass, based on the acquired print job, and in the first control step, when the printing device 101 is moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 in a pass in the middle of printing in addition to a last pass among the plurality of passes, stopping printing after the pass in the middle of printing by the printing head.

According to this configuration, when the printing device 101 is moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction of the printing device 101 in the middle of printing in a pass other than the last pass among the plurality of passes, the printing device 101 stops printing in the middle of printing and thereafter by the printing head. Thus, the printing apparatus 101 can suppress waste of consumables related to printing due to incomplete printing of a print image.

In the printing apparatus 101 described above, it is preferable that the first control section 187 causes the notification section to notify an error as part of the print suspension process.

With this configuration, the printing apparatus 101 can notify the user 301 of an error as part of the print suspension process.

The printing apparatus 101 described above preferably further includes a notification unit.

With this configuration, the printing apparatus 101 can notify an error by the notification unit provided in the printing apparatus 101.

In the printing apparatus 101, it is preferable that the printing apparatus further includes: a storage unit that stores a print job; and a distance measuring unit 185 that detects a distance from the medium of the printing device 101, wherein the first control unit 187, after executing the printing suspension process, causes the print head to restart printing from the initial stroke based on the print job stored in the storage unit when the distance detected by the distance measuring unit 185 becomes equal to or less than a second threshold value, which is a threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value, from a state in which the distance exceeds the first threshold value.

According to this configuration, the printing apparatus 101 can restart printing by the print head from the first pass when the distance from the medium becomes equal to or less than the second threshold value from the state in which the distance exceeds the first threshold value after the printing suspension process is executed. That is, the user 301 can restart printing without performing an operation for causing the printing apparatus 101 to acquire a print job by lifting the printing apparatus 101 from the medium and placing it on the medium again after the print suspension process has been executed.

In the above-described printing apparatus 101, it is preferable that the distance measuring unit 185 is further provided, the distance measuring unit 185 detects a distance from the printing apparatus 101 to the medium, and the first control unit 187 determines that the printing apparatus 101 has been removed from the medium when the distance detected by the distance measuring unit 185 exceeds a first threshold value, and determines that the printing apparatus 101 has been placed on the medium when the distance is equal to or less than a second threshold value which is a threshold value equal to or less than the first threshold value.

According to this configuration, the printing device 101 can determine that the printing device 101 has been removed from the medium when the distance from the medium exceeds the first threshold value, and determine that the printing device 101 has been placed on the medium when the distance becomes equal to or less than the second threshold value.

The program is for causing an information processing apparatus 1 communicably connected to a printing apparatus 101 that performs printing on a medium while manually moving relative to the medium to execute: a print job generation step of generating a print job for causing the printing apparatus 101 to print a print image through a plurality of passes; a monitoring step of monitoring a moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 with respect to the medium; and a second control step of causing the printing device 101 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in the first direction in an odd-numbered pass, causing the printing device 101 to perform printing while the printing device 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the first direction in an even-numbered pass, and stopping printing after a pass in the middle of printing performed by the printing device 101 when the printing device 101 is moved in a direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing device 101 in a pass in the middle of printing in a pass other than the last pass among the plurality of passes, based on the print job.

According to this configuration, when the printing apparatus 101 is moved in the middle of printing in a run other than the last run of the plurality of runs in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the printing apparatus 101 in the run in the middle of printing, the information processing apparatus 1 stops printing after the run in the middle of printing. Thus, the information processing apparatus can suppress waste of consumables related to printing due to printing of an incomplete print image by the printing apparatus 101.

Description of the symbols

101 … printing device; 181 … print job acquisition unit; 183 … movement detection unit; 185 … distance measuring part; 187 … a first control portion.