text:
|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|Sep 30, 1997
|Filing date
|Mar 19, 1996
|Priority date
|Dec 28, 1992
|Fee status
|Also published as
|Publication number
|Stephan B. J. Koopman, Abraham Nico Abbekerk
|Original Assignee
|Oce-Nederland B.V.
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (18), Non-Patent Citations (4), Referenced by (72), Classifications (12), Legal Events (4)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
This application is a continuation, of application Ser. No. 08/172,189 filed on Dec. 23, 1993, now abandoned.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the printing of text information, and more specifically, to modifying the fatness of characters to be output on a raster output device.
1. Discussion of Related Art
When text information is to be printed or displayed on a raster output device, for example a laser printer or a CRT tube, a bitmap representation of each character of the text is needed, which indicates for each pixel whether it belongs to the filled portion of the character or to the background. When a plurality of fonts is to be used, a large number of different bitmap representations may be needed for each character, because the bitmap representation is dependent on the font, the font size and on the pixel size with which the printer operates. In order to reduce the required amount of storage capacity and to improve the portability of the fonts among different output devices, it is convenient to define the shapes of the character of a font by giving mathematical descriptions of the outlines of the characters. The outline consists of one or more non-intersecting closed paths which represent the borders of the filled parts of the characters. Each path is an oriented curve which is passed through in a specific direction and, by convention, the filled (black) part of the character is found on the left side of the curve when passed-through in this direction. The mathematical description of each path may consist of coordinates of the end points of straight line segments and of support points of Bezier curves, as is disclosed in DE-A-38 11 396 and EP-A-0 393 680.
The bitmap representation can be derived from the outline by overlaying the pixel raster onto the outline and filling the area enclosed in the outline with black pixels. In this context, "black" means the color in which the characters are to be printed. Since the outlines can easily be scaled, only a single outline description is needed for each font character, and different font sizes can be obtained by scaling the outline. Thus, only little storage capacity is needed for storing the fonts in the printer. When a given piece of text is to be printed, bitmap representations need to be generated only for those fonts and font sizes which actually appear in the text. On the other hand, it is of course possible to generate and store bitmap representations of those fonts which are used most frequently. Since the outline representation is independent of the properties of the printer, the printable characters of a given font have a similar appearance, irrespective of the output device used for printing. Nevertheless, the properties of the printer may often have some effect on the appearance of the text, so that it is necessary or at least desirable to compensate these effects.
For example, laser printers may be divided into two major groups which are called "black writer" and "white writer", respectively. In a black writer, only those portions of the printed image are developed with black toner which have been exposed by the laser beam. In white writers, only those portions are developed which have not been exposed by the laser beam. In any case, the exposure spot created by the laser beam does not have an ideal square shape of the size of one pixel, but rather it has an approximately circular shape. As a consequence, the size of the exposure spot must be slightly larger than one pixel in order to provide a certain overlap for producing continuous white areas in a white writer and continuous black areas in a black writer, respectively. Due to this over-size of the exposure spot, black characters printed with a white writer appear more faint than black characters printed on a black writer. To compensate for this effect, the characters, more specifically the bitmap representations thereof, should be made fatter in a white writer. To this end, the bitmap representations may be hand-optimized by adding more black pixels at specific locations. However, this procedure would have to be carried out individually for each font, font size and type of printer engine and would therefore be very time consuming and costly and would cancel most of the advantages achieved by using outline descriptions. Accordingly, there is a need for efficient fattening methods which can be performed automatically.
One approach of automatic fattening will be described below in conjunction with FIGS. 13 and 14. FIG. 13 shows the outline 10 of a character "k", as well as its bitmap representation overlaid on the outline. The black pixels of the bitmap are represented by gray squares 12. In order to fatten this character, the bitmap is first shifted by one pixel towards the right and the shifted bitmap is combined with the original one by logic OR. Then, the resulting bitmap is shifted by one pixel towards the top and this shifted bitmap is combined with the bitmap resulting from the first shift operation by logic OR. The result is shown in FIG. 14. It is noted that the vertical stem 14 of the character has been fattened by adding one pixel on the right edge. This is equivalent to the result which would have been obtained by shifting both the left and right borders of the stem 14 outward by 1/2 pixel. Since the fattening distance (f) is defined as the distance by which the borders of the filled part of the character are shifted outward, the fattening operation illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14 corresponds to a fattening distance of 1/2 pixel. Similarly, the substantially horizontal borderlines at the top edges of the serifs 16 have been shifted upward by one pixel, which is equivalent to shifting the upper borders upward by one half pixel and shifting the lower borders downward by one half pixel. Thus, horizontal portions or stems of the character are also fattened, with f=1/2 pixel. However, it will be noted that in FIG. 14 the upwards inclined stem 18 and the downwards inclined stem 20 of the character have been fattened too much. Thus, the fattening achieved by this process is not uniform, and the appearance of the character is degraded.
Another drawback to this approach is that no smaller fattening distances than f=1/2 pixel can be obtained. In many cases, this fattening distance is too large for compensating the over-size of the exposure spot in white writers. It should be noted that fattening distances of less than 1/2 pixel are significant even though the spacial resolution of the printer is limited to one pixel. Due to this limited resolution, the width of vertical and horizontal lines or stems in the printed image can only be varied in steps of one pixel. However, the effective width of inclined lines or stems can be varied in steps which are considerably smaller than one pixel, and the appearance and readability of the printed text could be remarkably improved if it were possible to fatten such inclined portions of characters with an appropriate fattening distance.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,222 discloses another approach for automatic fattening of character bitmaps in a printing machine. According to this approach, gray pixels are added to the bitmap at specific locations at the border between black and white areas, so that the characters appear somewhat unsharp. The visual effect achieved by this measure is similar to a fattening with a fattening distance of less than 1/2 pixel. However, this approach is limited to printers which are capable of reproducing gray levels, and the improvements achieved in readability of the printed text are limited, because the human visual perception depends particularly on sharp contrasts between black and white areas, and the addition of gray pixels to the character means a loss of contrast.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,287 relates to the field of computer generated graphic arts and is concerned with the problem of changing the line weight of curved lines. This problem has some analogy with the problem of fattening characters. According to the approach disclosed in this patent, a curved line is approximated by a sequence of straight line segments and, in order to obtain larger line weights, these line segments are replaced by elongated rectangles with a width corresponding to the desired line width. With this method it is possible to achieve a uniform fattening with arbitrarily small fattening distances, but in order to preserve a smooth appearance of curved lines, the curve must be divided into a large number of segments and rectangles, respectively, so that the calculations and graphic operations to be performed by the computer become very time consuming.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of modifying the fatness of characters to be output on a raster output device which will overcome the above noted disadvantages.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method by which the fatness of characters can be finely and efficiently adjusted by an arbitrary amount.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a printer whereby the fatness of characters to be output by a raster output device can be adjusted by an arbitrary amount.
The foregoing objects and others are accomplished in accordance with the present invention, generally speaking, by providing a method whereby font data which mathematically defines the shape of each individual font character as an outline consisting of straight and curved line segments is transformed into bitmap representations of the individual font characters, such that fatness of the respective characters in the bitmap representation differs from the original font character by a predetermined fattening distance (f). A modified outline of each original character is calculated on the basis of the original character font data and the predetermined fattening distance (f) and the bitmap representation determined by filling the modified outline with discrete pixels. Whereas, the previously discussed methods of fattening characters are performed at the bitmap level, it is an important feature of the present invention that the fattening is performed with the character outline before this outline is transformed into the bitmap representation. The modified outline is obtained by an outward shifting of the original outline by the fattening distance (f). A circle having a radius equal to the fattening distance (f) is drawn around each point of the original outline. The modified outline is the outer envelope of all these circles. It is also possible to admit negative fattening distances corresponding to a reduced fatness of the characters. If (f) is negative, then the modified outline is defined by the inner envelope of the circles.
In a preferred embodiment of the method according to the present invention, the mathematical description of the modified outline has the same format as the description of the original outline. For example, if the original outline is defined by end points of straight line segments and control points of Bezier curves, then the modified outline is also defined by the coordinates of the end points of straight line segments and control points of Bezier curves which approximate the ideal shape of the modified outline. This embodiment has the advantage that the fattening distance can be selected as desired, and a uniform fattening of the characters is achieved. Further, this method is compatible with the conventional technique of character generation, because the modified outline is described in the same format as the original outline and consequently the usual methods and systems for filling the bitmap may remain unchanged.
The applicability of the invention is not limited to the correction of specific features of the raster output devices. It has been found that the legibility of a printed text is greatly influenced by the setting of the fatness of the characters, in particular in case of small font sizes, but that there are great differences in the fatness which is regarded as optimum by different individuals. The invention now offers the possibility to individually adjust the fatness in accordance with the preferences of the user. Accordingly, a text reproduction system, e.g. a printer, according to the invention, may be equipped with a selector switch for adjusting the fatness of the characters to be printed. As an alternative, the fatness may also be set in a host computer from which the text is transmitted to the printer. In this case, if the printer is shared by a plurality of users in a network, each user may set the fatness individually. Optimization of the fatness of the characters is important not only from the viewpoint of legibility but may also be useful for improving optical character recognition (OCR).
The invention further offers the possibility of non-linear scaling, which means that the fatness is increased disproportionately for small font sizes, in order to improve the legibility. This has been common practice in the art of printing with metal types, but has heretofore been difficult to implement in digital printing machines.
Another useful application is the correction of discretization errors. Such errors result from the fact that, in the bitmap consisting of discrete pixels, the line width of diagonal lines or stems can be reproduced with much higher accuracy than the line width of vertical and horizontal lines or stems. For example, if the vertical and diagonal stems of, for example, the character "N" are required to have a width of 3.8 pixels according to the selected font and font size, the width of the vertical stems will be rounded to 4 pixels in the discretization process. However, the average width of the diagonal stem will still be approximately 3.8 pixels, even after discretization. Thus, the discretization produces an undesirable imbalance in stem widths. According to the instant invention, this imbalance can be avoided by selecting a fattening distance of f=0.1 pixel. Then, the width of both the vertical and diagonal stems will uniformly amount to 4.0 pixel before and after discretization.
The invention will now be described in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a laser printer embodying the invention,
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the laser printer,
FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating the general steps of a fattening method according to the invention,
FIG. 4 shows an outline and a bitmap representation of the character "k" fattened in accordance with the invention,
FIGS. 5A & 5B illustrate the process of fattening a character which is bounded by straight line segments,
FIG. 6 illustrates a special case where straight line segments of an outline meet at an acute angle,
FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a method of fattening outline segments which are defined as Bezier curves,
FIGS. 9 to 12 illustrate a method of approximately determining an intersection point between curved line segments,
FIG. 13 illustrates an outline and a bitmap representation of a character "k", and
FIG. 14 illustrates a bitmap representation of the character shown in FIG. 13, fattened according to a method outside the scope of the present invention.
In FIG. 1, a laser printer 22 is shown which comprises a paper supply tablet 24 and a discharge bin 26 for printed copies. On the rear side of the housing of the laser printer 22, there is provided a connector 28 for a cable 30 via which the data to be printed is received from a host computer (not shown). In addition, there is provided a selector switch, for example a slide switch 32, which permits adjustment to the fatness of the characters of printed text.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the electronic control system of the laser printer 22. This control system generally comprises a data processing block 34, a font memory 36, a character bitmap memory 38 and a page size bitmap memory 40. The data processing block 34 includes a character generator 42 which may be part of a main processing unit 44 but is shown separately in the drawing for the sake of clarity.
Font memory 36 stores a plurality of fonts in a predetermined format in which the shape of each character is specified by a mathematical description of its outline. The character generator 42 reads the font data from the font memory 36 and expands the outline description of each character of a selected font into a character bitmap which is then stored in the character bitmap memory 38.
The main processing unit 44 receives the text data which are transmitted via the cable 30 and, in accordance with these data, it fetches the bitmap representations of the individual characters from the character bitmap memory 38 and stores them at the desired position in a page size bitmap memory 40. When a complete page has been mounted in this way, the main processing unit reads the contents of the page size bitmap from memory 40 and sends them as a pixel bit stream to a modulator 46 for modulating the laser beam of a raster output scanner provided in the laser printer 22. When the main processing unit receives data for a new printing job, it checks whether the fonts required in this printing job are available already in the character bitmap memory 38. If the required fonts are not yet available at bitmap level, the main processing unit commands the character generator 42 to expand these fonts into bitmaps before the filing of the page size bitmap begins.
The selector switch 32 is connected to the character generator 42 and supplies a signal indicating a fattening distance (f) by which the fatness of the characters is modified. If f is positive, the bitmap representations are generated in such a manner that each character is fattened by the amount f as compared to the outline stored in the font memory 36. If f is negative, the bitmap representation of the character becomes leaner than the outline in the font memory.
The process performed by the character generator 42 is illustrated in FIG. 3. In step S1, the mathematic description of the outline of each character is read from the font memory 36. In step S2, the character generator 42 reads the fattening distance (f) which has been set by means of selector switch 32. If it is found in step S3 that the fattening distance (f) is not equal to zero, then a mathematical description of a modified outline is calculated in step S4. The modified outline is generally obtained by shifting each point of the original outline outward by the distance (f). The necessary calculations depend on the format in which the mathematical description is stored in the font memory. A specific example will be explained below.
When the modified outline has been established in step S4, the character generator 42 proceeds with step S5 in which the character bitmap is filled. In this step, the printing color (black) is assigned to each pixel in the character bitmap which is located within the contour specified by the modified outline, and the background color (white) is assigned to all remaining pixels of the character bitmap. If it is found in step S3 that f equals zero, no modified outline needs to be calculated, and the step S4 is skipped.
FIG. 4 shows the result of this fattening operation when applied to the character "k" shown in FIG. 13. The original outline 10 has been shifted outward by the fattening distance (f)=0.4 pixel to obtain the modified outline 48. On the basis of an appropriately modified hint, the outline 48 has been positioned in relation to the grid of the bitmap in such a manner that the right border line of the vertical stem 14 is exactly aligned with a column of the grid. Then, in step S5, the modified outline 48 has been filled with black pixels 12, that is to say, each pixel of which the center falls within the outline 48 has been made black.
When comparing the bitmap representations shown in FIGS. 4 and 14, it will be observed that in FIG. 4 a smooth and uniform fattening of the character "k" has been obtained and that the widths of the respective stems 14, 18, and 20 are substantially in the same proportion as in FIG. 13. In case of the vertical stem 14, the difference between the fattening distance of 0.4 pixels used in FIG. 4 and the fattening distance of 0.5 pixels used in FIG. 14 cannot be observed because in the discretization step S5 the stem width is rounded to 6 pixels. However, looking at the borders of the diagonal stems 18 and 20 in FIG. 4, it will be observed that a number of new pixels would have to be added if the fattening distance were increased from 0.4 pixels to 0.5 pixels. Thus, even small variations of the fattening distance (f) in the order of 0.1 pixels have a noticeable effect. If a fattening distance, f=0.2 pixels, had been chosen in FIG. 4, the width of the vertical stem 14 would have been 5 pixels, as in FIG. 13, but a slight fattening effect would nevertheless have been observable at the diagonal stems 18 and 20.
A process of calculating the modified outline 48 in step S4 will now be explained in detail in conjunction with FIGS. 5 to 12.
FIG. 5A shows the outline 10 of a character "b". This outline consists of two closed paths 50 and 52 by which the dark area of the character is bounded and an orientation indicated by arrows 54 and 56, respectively. By convention, the dark area of the character is found on the left side of the path 50 or 52, if viewed in the direction of the associated arrow 54 or 56, respectively. In the shown example, the path 50 consists only of straight line segments 58, and the path 52 consists only of straight line segments 60 and 62. The modified outline 48 which is shown in FIG. 5B is obtained from the original outline 10 by executing the following steps.
In a first step, the straight line segments 58, 60 and 62 are shifted by the fattening distance (f) in a direction normal to the direction of the line segment. If f is positive as in the shown example, the line segments are shifted outward, i.e. to the right side in relation to the arrow 54 or 56, respectively. In this way, new line segments 58' and 60' are obtained. Although some of the original line segments 60 are separated by the small line segments 62, it will be observed that the new line segments 60' intersect each other, so that the small line segments 62 become redundant. This is why no shifted line segments corresponding to the line segments 62 have been shown. Such redundant line segments may generally occur when the original line segments are very small, i.e. in the order of the fattening distance (f).
In a second step, the new line segments 58' are linked in order to form a new closed path 50', and the new line segments 60' are linked to form a new closed part 52', as is shown in FIG. 5B. In the process of linking the new line segments, two cases may be distinguished. It will be noticed that in FIG. 5A two of the new line segments 58' intersect at an intersection point 64 whereas the other pairs of adjacent line segments 58' do not intersect but form gaps therebetween. In case of the path 52, all of the new line segments 60' intersect at intersection points 66.
A first substep of the linking procedure therefore consists of checking whether the new line segments intersect. This test should be performed not only for all pairs of adjacent line segments 58', but more generally for all pairs of new line segments 58' and 60' for which the distance of two end points is smaller than a certain value (in the order of the fattening distance (f). If it is found that the line segments intersect, the intersection point 64 or 66, respectively, is taken as the new common end point of the two line segments, i.e. the end portions which project beyond the intersection points are cut away from the line segments, and any redundant line segments are removed.
If the shifted images 58' of two adjacent line segments 58 do not intersect, then there are two possibilities for linking the new line segments 58'. One possibility is adding a new (straight or curved) line segment interconnecting the end points of the line segments 58'. Another possibility is extending the line segments 58' until they intersect. This solution has been adopted in FIG. 5B. If this latter approach is used, some special provisions should be made for the case that two line segments 58 meet at a very acute angle, as is shown in FIG. 6. Then, the distance by which the two new line segments 58' had to be extended until they intersect, may become undesirably large. It is therefore preferable to limit the distance by which the line segments 58' are extended to two times the fattening distance (f). If the new line segments 58' still do not intersect after they have been extended by 2f, then the new end points of the extended line segments 58' are interconnected by an additional line segment 68, as is shown in FIG. 6. If the extension is limited to 2f, an additional line segment 68 becomes necessary whenever the angle formed between the two line segments 58 is smaller than 60�.
In most commercially available fonts, the outline description includes not only straight line segments but also curved line segments. As a consequence, there should also be provided an appropriate method for handling curved line segments in the fattening process.
A mathematical description of a curved line segment may be given in various ways. However, a description which is suitable for outline fonts should at least provide the following parameters:
(1) Coordinates of the starting point P0 of the line segment,
(2) Coordinates of the end point P3 of the line segment,
(3) Tangent direction at P0, and
(4) Tangent direction at P3.
Further, there should be provided at least one additional parameter which defines the shape of the curve in its intermediate portion.
A closed path forming part of a character outline will generally consist of a plurality of straight and curved line segments, and frequently this path will be capable of differentiation even in the starting points and end points of the individual line segments. This means that the tangent direction at the starting point is identical with the tangent direction at the end point of the preceding curved line segment or with the direction of the preceding straight line segment, respectively. In order to make sure that his holds true also for the modified outline, the method used for transforming a curved line segment of the original outline into a corresponding line segment of the modified outline should fulfill the following conditions: (1) The starting points and the end points of consecutive line segments should be shifted in the same direction and by the same distance, preferably by the distance (f) and in the direction normal to the tangent line, and (2) The transformation should preserve the tangent directions at the starting point and at the end point.
Then, the above-mentioned additional parameter or parameters should be varied to approximate the ideal shape of the modified outline with a sufficient accuracy. As an example, we will now describe a method of transforming a curved line segment which is given by a third order Bezier curve.
Referring to FIG. 7, a third order Bezier curve 70 can be defined by the coordinates of four control points P0, P1, P2 and P3. The control points P0 and P3 are the starting point and the end point, respectively, of the line segment. The control point P1 defines the direction of the tangent line at P0, and the control point P2 defines the direction of the tangent line at P3. Given the starting point and the end point of the curve and the tangent directions at these points, the description still includes two degrees of freedom which are represented by the positions of the control points P1 and P2 on the straight lines passing through P0 and P1 and through P2 and P3, respectively.
The exact shape of the Bezier curve is given by the vector equation:
P(t)=P0(1-t)3 +3P1(1-t)2 t+3P2(1-t)t2 +P3t3(1)
When (t) is continuously increased from 0 to 1, the point P(t) travels along the Bezier curve 70 from P0 to P3. The orientation of the Bezier curve is given by the direction of increasing t. Thus, the Bezier curve 70 shown in FIG. 7 bounds a convex portion of the filled part of the character. The orientation of the curve is also indicated by the direction of the vectors L0=P1-P0, L1=P2-P1 and L2=P3-P2, which interconnect the control points P0 through P3.
The Bezier curve 70 is transformed into a new Bezier curve 70' as follows. The control points P0 and P1 are shifted by the fattening distance (f) in a direction normal to the vector L0. If (f) is positive, the shifting direction is towards the right side of the vector L0. Thus, new points P0' and P1' and a new vector L0' are obtained. The control points P2 and P3 and the vector L2 are shifted in the same manner to obtain new control points P2' and P3' and a new vector L2'. The point P1' is then moved in the direction of the vector L0' by a certain distance f1, so that a new control point P1" is obtained. The distance f1 is a function of the vectors L0, L1, L2 and the fattening distance (f). The sign of f1 is equal to the sign of the scalar product between the vector L0 and a vector N which is normal to a line connecting P0 and P3 and points to the right if viewed from P0 towards P3. In FIG. 7, N points upwards, and since L0 also has an upward component, f1 is positive, that is, P1' is moved in the positive direction of L0'. Similarly, the point P2' is moved in the direction of the vector L2' by a distance f2. The distance f2 is also a function of L0, L1, L2 and f, and the sign of f2 is equal to the sign of the scalar product between L2 and N. In FIG. 7, L2 and N point in opposite directions, and accordingly the point P2" is obtained by moving the point P2' in the negative direction of the vector L2'.
The absolute value of f1 is obtained as a function of the angle φ0 between the vectors L0 and L1:
|f1|=(4/3)�f�(1- cos (φ0));
cos (φ0)=L0*L1/(|L0|�|L1|)(* means scalar product) (2)
Similarly, the absolute value of f2 is obtained as a function of the angle φ1 between L1 and L2:
|f2|=(4/3)�f�(1- cos (φ1));
cos (φ1)=L1*L2/(|L1|�|L2|)(3)
These formula have been used in the examples shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. In FIG. 8, the Bezier curve 70 bounds a concave portion of a character.
The above described method will provide satisfactory results for most practical cases. However, for certain Bezier curves, better results are obtained with the following formulae:
|f1|=(4/3)�f�(1- cos (φ0/2));
φ0=arc cos (L0*L1/(|L0|�|L1|))(2')
|f2|=(4/3)�f�(1 -cos (φ1/2));
φ1=arc cos (L1*L2/(|L1|�|L2|))(3')
In the following TABLE, the formula giving the best results are indicated in dependance of the values of the angles φ0 and φ1.
In the TABLE, "I" means that the angle is in the first quadrant (0�≦φ<90�), "II" means that the angle is in the second quadrant (90�≦φ<180�), and so forth. In this connection, the angle φ0 between the vectors L0 and L1 is found by counter-clockwise turning L0 until it coincides with L1. The angle φ1 is found in an analogous manner. The angles φ0 and φ1 are indicated in FIGS. 7 and 8.
TABLE______________________________________φ0 φ1 preferred formula______________________________________I I (2) and (3)I II (2) and (3)I III (2) and (3')I IV (2) and (3)II I (2) and (3)II II (2) and (3)II III (2') and (3')II IV (2') and (3)III I (2') and (3)III II (2') and (3')III III (2') and (3')III IV (2) and (3)IV I (2) and (3)IV II (2) and (3')IV III (2) and (3)IV IV (2) and (3)______________________________________
These formula provide also satisfactory results in cases where the Bezier curve has an S-like shape. An alternative approach in these cases is to divide the S-shaped Bezier curve into two Bezier curves with uniform curvature. Then, each of these two Bezier curves can be transformed in the manner described in conjunction with FIGS. 7 and 8.
If the starting point and/or the end point of a Bezier curve is a non-differentiable point of the path, i.e. if the Bezier curve forms an angle with an adjacent Bezier curve or an adjacent straight line segment, then the segments of the modified outline must be linked with each other. Like in the case discussed in conjunction with FIGS. 5A and 5B, the new line segments may intersect each other or may form a gap therebetween. If a gap is formed, the Bezier curves may be extended by adding a straight line segment which has the same orientation as the tangent line at the corresponding starting point or end point of the Bezier curve. This procedure corresponds to what has been described in conjunction with FIGS. 5 and 6. If, however, the new Bezier curve intersects an adjacent Bezier curve or an adjacent straight line segment, the problem to be solved is to determine the intersection point. As an example, FIG. 9 illustrates two Bezier curves 70 and 72 which meet at an acute angle. Such a situation is encountered for example in the character "8". When the Bezier curves 70, 72 of the original outline have been transformed into new Bezier curves 70', 72', the redundant sections 74 on one side of the intersection point 76 must be removed. To this end, the intersection point 76 between the two Bezier curves 70' and 72' has to be determined. This intersection point 76 can approximately be determined by means of a recursion which is illustrated in FIGS. 10 to 12. In a first step illustrated in FIG. 10 it is checked whether the bounding boxes 78 of the two Bezier curves 70', 72' overlap. The bounding boxes are the quadrangles which are defined by the control points of the respective Bezier curves. In the shown example, the bounding boxes 78 overlap in the darkly shaded area 80. The test for determining whether or not there exists an overlap 80 between the two bounding boxes 78 is a straightforward algorithm which need not be explained in detail. When it is found that an overlap 80 exists, each Bezier curve 70,72 is bisected at a point PS =P(t=0.5). Thus, the Bezier curve 70' is divided into two smaller Bezier curves 70'a and 70'b, and the Bezier curve 72' is divided into new Bezier curves 72'a and 72'b.
The control points of the Bezier curves 70'a, 70'b can be derived from the control points of the curve 70' pursuant to the DeCasteljau method which is described by P. J. Barry and R. N. Goldman in "Computer Aided Design", Vol. 20, No. 3, April 1988, pages 114 to 116. In brief, if a Bezier curve is to be intersected at an intersection point P(tS), each of the straight line segments connecting the control points P0 and P1, P1 and P2 and P2 and P3, respectively, are divided in accordance with the division ratio tS /(1-tS). Then, the two lines which connect the three division points obtained in this way are again divided pursuant to the same division ratio, and the resulting two division points are again divided pursuant to the same division ratio. It can be shown that the single division point obtained in this way lies on the Bezier curve and is equal to the point P(tS). The division points are the control points of the new segments.
Once the control points for the curves 70'a, etc. have been determined, it is checked whether there exists an overlap between the bounding boxes of the curves 70'a and 72'a or between the curves 70'b and 72'b. Dependent on the result of this test, either the curves 70'a and 72'a or the curves 70'b and 72'b are again bisected in the same manner as described above, so that still smaller sub-curves and bounding boxes are obtained, as is shown in FIG. 12. This procedure is iterated for several times, and as the size of the bounding boxes shrinks, a good approximation of the intersection point 76 is obtained already after a few iteration steps. Normally, no more than 8 steps of iteration are required.
After the intersection point 76 has been determined, it is used as the new starting/end point of the portions of the curves 70' and 72' that are to be retained. The other new control points P1, P2 of these portions are calculated using the DeCasteljau method. If an intersection point between a Bezier curve and a straight line segment needs to be determined, the procedure is analogous to what has been described above, with the only difference that an overlap between the straight line segment and the bounding box of the single Bezier curve is determined.
The above-described method of determining the intersection point provides not only the coordinates of the intersection point 76 but also the corresponding parameters of the Bezier curves 70' and 72', respectively. Thus, the DeCasteljau method can again be used for dividing the Bezier curves 70' and 72' at the intersection point 76 in order to obtain the control points for the remaining curves 70' and 72' without the redundant sections 74.
The invention has been described above in terms of specific embodiments. It will be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to these embodiments. For example, any known method for determining an intersection point of a Bezier curve with another Bezier curve or straight line may be used instead of the procedure described above. Further, the formulae (2), (3) and (2'), (3') for calculating the control points of the Bezier curves in the modified outline may be replaced by any other suitable algorithm for approximating the ideal shape of the modified outline.
At present, the approach described in this specification is deemed preferable because it provides satisfactory results without requiring too much calculation time, and, most important, because it can be proved that this procedure is mathematically stable.
In addition to the information on the shape of the characters, commercially available fonts usually include also pieces of information which are called "hints" and which serve for properly adjusting the position of the characters to the grid of the raster output device. Such hints may for example specify certain reference positions for aligning the characters with the lines and columns of the pixel grid. In these cases, it may also be necessary to modify the hint information in accordance with the selected fattening distance.
The invention is not limited to fonts in which curved line segments of the outline are described by third order Bezier curves or by Bezier curves at all. Whatever description for curved line segments may be used, the transformation for obtaining the modified outline is such that the same kind of description is usable also for the curved line segments in the modified outline.
In the laser printer shown in FIG. 1, the slide switch 32 for inputting the fattening distance (f) is accessible to the user. In a modified embodiment, input means for setting the fattening distance (f) may be provided within the housing of the laser printer so that they are accessible only to a maintenance engineer. Further, a command for setting the fattening distance (f) may be transmitted from the host computer together with the other printing data. In this case, the main processing unit 44 is adapted to decode the command received from the host computer and to supply a corresponding set value for the fattening distance (f) to the character generator 42. If the system is additionally provided with the selector switch 32, the signal received from this selector switch may be treated as a default setting for the fattening distance.
Finally, it should be noted that the method according to the invention can be implemented not only in a printer or more generally, in a raster output device, but can also be implemented in an apparatus which is specifically designed for generating character bitmaps which are then loaded directly into the character bitmap memory 38 of the printer, so that the printer need not be equipped with a font memory 36.
The present invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.
|Cited Patent
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|Dicomed Corporation
|Method and apparatus for representation of a curve of uniform width
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|International Business Machines Corporation
|Interacting print enhancement techniques
|Aug 21, 1990
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|Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
|Document composition apparatus which changes an outline font in accordance with letter magnification
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|Mar 24, 1992
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|Method and apparatus for conversion of outline characters to bitmap characters
|Apr 20, 1990
|Oct 12, 1993
|Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
|Method for fitting third-degree Bezier curves to series of data points
|Dec 24, 1991
|Jan 18, 1994
|Xerox Corporation
|Method of adjusting the weight of a character of an outline font
|Feb 27, 1991
|Oct 11, 1994
|Seiko Epson Corporation
|Method of generating dot signals corresponding to character pattern and the system therefor
|Sep 30, 1991
|Oct 11, 1994
|Destiny Technology Corporation
|Method and apparatus for outline font character generation in dot matrix devices
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|System and method for rendering bezier splines
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|Microsoft Corporation
|System and method of hybrid forward differencing to render Bezier splines
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|Canon Kk
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|Sep 5, 1990
|Hitachi, Ltd.
|Apparatus and method for generating character pattern
|Apr 19, 1990
|Oct 24, 1990
|Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
|Method for fitting third-degree Bezier curves to series of data points
|Mar 7, 1991
|Sep 18, 1991
|Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
|Method and apparatus for generating pattern
|Title not available
|Title not available
|Title not available
|Title not available
|Barry et al., De Casteljau type Subdivision is Peculiar to Bezier Curves, 1988, Butterworth & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., pp. 114 116.
|Barry et al., De Casteljau-type Subdivision is Peculiar to Bezier Curves, 1988, Butterworth & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., pp. 114-116.
|Jin J. Chai, Data Reduction Using Cubic Rational B splines. May 1992 IEEE Computer Graphics vol. 12 Issue 3.
|Jin J. Chai, Data Reduction Using Cubic Rational B-splines. May 1992 IEEE Computer Graphics vol. 12 Issue 3.
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|Jan 26, 1999
|Microsoft Corporation
|System for determining more accurate translation between first and second translator, and providing translated data to second computer if first translator is more accurate
|Dec 7, 1994
|Sep 28, 1999
|Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
|Character generating system employing thickening or narrowing of characters
|Jul 1, 1998
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|Microsoft Corporation
|Method for transmitting text data for shared application between first and second computer asynchronously upon initiation of a session without solicitation from first computer
|Jul 1, 1998
|Oct 16, 2001
|Microsoft Corporation
|Compressing/decompressing bitmap by performing exclusive- or operation setting differential encoding of first and previous row therewith outputting run-length encoding of row
|Mar 27, 1998
|Jan 14, 2003
|Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
|Figure processing apparatus, figure processing method, and storing medium
|Sep 25, 2001
|Apr 22, 2003
|Microsoft Corp.
|Method for authoring hints for a font using a graphical user interface
|May 8, 2000
|Jun 28, 2005
|Microsoft Corporation
|Method and system for transmitting data for a shared application
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|Microsoft Corporation
|Processing occluded windows during application sharing
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|Microsoft Corporation
|Method and system for transmitting data for a shared application
|Feb 12, 2003
|May 22, 2007
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|Digital stamp
|May 22, 2002
|Nov 6, 2007
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing viewer presentation
|Jun 6, 2002
|Apr 8, 2008
|Microsoft Corporation
|Methods of annotating a collaborative application display
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|Jul 22, 2008
|Microsoft Corporation
|Method and system for transmitting and determining the effects of display orders from shared application between a host and shadow computer
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|Aug 19, 2008
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing user interface improvements
|Apr 3, 2002
|Aug 26, 2008
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing single document sharing
|Apr 19, 2007
|Dec 9, 2008
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|Hand operated marking device with printer and movable printhead
|Jan 30, 2006
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|Application sharing single document sharing
|Jan 30, 2006
|May 5, 2009
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|Application sharing single document sharing
|Aug 15, 2006
|Aug 25, 2009
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Glyph outline adjustment while rendering
|Jul 22, 2005
|Sep 29, 2009
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|Oct 6, 2009
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Hinted stem placement on high-resolution pixel grid
|Mar 31, 2004
|Oct 13, 2009
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Edge detection based stroke adjustment
|Sep 24, 2004
|Nov 3, 2009
|Seiko Epson Corporation
|Method of managing the printing of characters and a printing device employing method
|Aug 15, 2006
|Dec 29, 2009
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Winding order test for digital fonts
|Apr 11, 2006
|Jan 12, 2010
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Device dependent rendering
|Jul 9, 2008
|Feb 16, 2010
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand operated marking device employing printer with movable printhead and replaceable cartridge
|Jul 9, 2008
|Mar 23, 2010
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand operated marking device employing printer with movable printhead and retractable shutter
|Aug 15, 2006
|May 18, 2010
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Glyph adjustment in high resolution raster while rendering
|Apr 11, 2006
|May 18, 2010
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing user interface improvements
|Nov 17, 2008
|Sep 7, 2010
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Stamp having with a governor for regulating motion of the A printhead
|Jun 28, 2007
|May 17, 2011
|Apple Inc.
|Adaptive and dynamic text filtering
|Oct 10, 2007
|Dec 20, 2011
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing viewer presentation
|Jun 8, 2007
|Dec 27, 2011
|Apple Inc.
|System and method for dilation for glyph rendering
|May 13, 2011
|Jan 17, 2012
|Apple Inc.
|Adaptive and dynamic text filtering
|Feb 2, 2010
|Feb 14, 2012
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand operated marking device incorporating printer with movable printhead and replaceable cartridge
|Jan 24, 2007
|Sep 3, 2013
|Research In Motion Limited
|Method of displaying labels on maps of wireless communications devices using pre-rendered characters
|Apr 23, 2002
|Jun 17, 2014
|Microsoft Corporation
|Document viewing mechanism for document sharing environment
|Apr 13, 2012
|Jul 28, 2015
|Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.
|Curve rendering device, curve rendering method, curve rendering program, and integrated circuit
|Mar 15, 2013
|Nov 17, 2015
|Google Inc.
|Bezier arc approximation spring system
|Mar 15, 2013
|Apr 25, 2017
|Nvidia Corporation
|Conservative rasterization of primitives using an error term
|Apr 3, 2002
|Oct 9, 2003
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing single document sharing
|Jun 3, 2004
|Feb 3, 2005
|Microsoft Corporation
|Method and system for transmitting data for a shared application
|Jun 3, 2004
|Feb 3, 2005
|Microsoft Corporation
|Method and system for transmitting data for a shared application
|Feb 12, 2003
|Sep 15, 2005
|Kia Silverbrook
|Digital stamp
|Mar 31, 2004
|Oct 6, 2005
|Adobe Systems Incorporated, A Delaware Corporation
|Edge detection based stroke adjustment
|May 29, 2004
|Dec 1, 2005
|Tsung-Mou Yu
|Mechanism for trip-free of the bimetallic plate of a safety switch device
|Sep 24, 2004
|Mar 30, 2006
|Hodder Leonard B
|Method of managing the printing of characters and a printing device employing method
|Nov 17, 2004
|May 18, 2006
|Lexmark International, Inc.
|Method of reducing a consumption of imaging substance when forming an image
|Jan 30, 2006
|Jun 22, 2006
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing single document sharing
|Jan 12, 2006
|Jul 27, 2006
|Park Yong-Jo
|Method and apparatus for to generate a character image
|Apr 11, 2006
|Aug 17, 2006
|Adobe Systems Incorporated, A Delaware Corporation
|Device dependent rendering
|Aug 15, 2006
|Feb 8, 2007
|Dowling Terence S
|Glyph Outline Adjustment While Rendering
|Jun 7, 2006
|Jun 14, 2007
|Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
|Image processing system and image processing method
|Aug 15, 2006
|Aug 16, 2007
|Dowling Terence S
|Glyph Adjustment in High Resolution Raster While Rendering
|Apr 19, 2007
|Aug 16, 2007
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand operated marking device with printer and movable printhead
|Jan 24, 2007
|Oct 4, 2007
|Research In Motion Limited
|Method of displaying labels on maps of wireless communications devices using pre-rendered characters
|Oct 10, 2007
|Feb 7, 2008
|Microsoft Corporation
|Application sharing viewer presentation
|Nov 27, 2006
|Mar 20, 2008
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Rendering and encoding glyphs
|Jul 9, 2008
|Oct 30, 2008
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand operated marking device employing printer with movable printhead and replaceable cartridge
|Jul 9, 2008
|Oct 30, 2008
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand Operated Marking Device Employing Printer with Movable Printhead and Retractable Shutter
|Jun 8, 2007
|Dec 11, 2008
|Derek Clegg
|System and method for dilation for glyph rendering
|Jun 28, 2007
|Dec 25, 2008
|Clegg Derek B
|Adaptive and Dynamic Text Filtering
|Nov 17, 2008
|Mar 12, 2009
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Stamp having with a governor for regulating motion of the a printhead
|Feb 2, 2010
|Jun 3, 2010
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd
|Hand Operated Marking Device Incorporating Printer With Movable Printhead And Replaceable Cartridge
|Feb 28, 2010
|Jun 24, 2010
|Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd.
|Hand operated marking device employing printer with movable printhead and retractable shutter
|May 13, 2011
|Sep 8, 2011
|Clegg Derek B
|Adaptive and dynamic text filtering
|Apr 13, 2012
|Apr 25, 2013
|Takaaki Moriyama
|Curve rendering device, curve rendering method, curve rendering program, and integrated circuit
|Mar 15, 2013
|Sep 18, 2014
|Nvidia Corporation
|Conservative rasterization of primitives using an error term
|May 30, 2014
|Dec 25, 2014
|Adobe Systems Incorporated
|Gravity point drawing method
|Dec 20, 2013
|Jun 25, 2015
|Nvidia Corporation
|System, method, and computer program product for angular subdivision of quadratic bezier curves
|Mar 15, 2013
|Jul 9, 2015
|Google Inc.
|Bezier arc approximation spring system
|Sep 3, 2015
|Mar 17, 2016
|Electronics And Telecommunications Research Institute
|QoE-AWARE SCHEDULING METHOD AND APPARATUS
|U.S. Classification
|358/1.11, 345/467
|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification
|Feb 20, 2001
|Fee payment
Year of fee payment: 4
|Apr 20, 2005
|Maintenance fee reminder mailed
|Sep 30, 2005
|Lapse for failure to pay maintenance fees
|Nov 29, 2005
|Expired due to failure to pay maintenance fee
Effective date: 20050930


text:
F5 Networks Inc., whose products manage and route computer network traffic, said Monday that it appointed Hawkeye Investments LLC president John Chapple to its board of directors.
Chapple has more than 25 years of experience in wireless communications and cable television, it said.
Chapple has served as president, CEO and chairman of Nextel Partners prior to its acquisition by Sprint Communications in 2006. He was also executive vice president of operations at AT&T Wireless Services.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Dave Franco, Fred Armisen, Olivia Munn, and more show off their characters' action figures at LEGOLAND®.
Actress/singer/dancer discusses her favorite holiday backstage at "So You Think You Can Dance".
Star of the hit Nickelodeon show, Kel Mitchell, gives us an exclusive behind the scenes set tour.
The 18-year-old actress/singer abandoned the final dates of her South American tour with ex-boyfriend Joe Jonas and the Jonas Brothers and checked into an undisclosed treatment center to address "emotional and physical issues".
The family has yet to address the specific issues that sparked her decision to enter rehab.
However, Lovato's mother Dianna De La Garza and her stepfather Eddie De La Garza have thanked their daughter's dedicated fans for being understanding as she seeks help.
A joint statement reads: "Our entire family appreciates the outpouring of support we have received from Demi's fans. We are touched by their kindness."
Lovato's worried biological father, Patrick, spoke out on Tuesday (02Nov10), blaming his daughter's troubles on the pressures of fame.


text:
THERMOSEAL Cements, Moldables and Coatings are used for a wide variety of applications including furnace and oven door repair, furnace lining repair, and for use in any high temperature sealing application with fluctuating heat conditions. Manufactured from refractory fibers, our Thermoseal products have low shrinkage, excellent thermal properties, high strength, and can withstand thermal expansion and contraction.
posted on October 30, 2013 by


text:
Hurricane Maria Batters Puerto Rico; Leaves Homes Damaged, Streets Flooded, Power OutThe National Weather Service is forecasting catastrophic damage as Puerto Rico deals with a direct hit from Hurricane Maria Wednesday morning.
Teens Are Growing Up More Slowly Than Past Generations, Study SaysA new study says teenagers are taking longer to stop being kids and take on the responsibilities of adulthood.
Hurricane Jose Expected To Bring Rough Seas, Rip Currents To Area CoastlinesCBS2's Elise Finch breaks down the National Weather Center's latest models, as of 11 p.m. Saturday.
High-Tech Toys On Display At Second Annual 'Kids And Family Tech Expo'CBS2's Elise Finch got an inside look at some of the newest tech toys, some of which aren't even on the market yet.
'Suits' Actress Meghan Markle Opens Up About Royal Romance With Prince HarryThe American actress tells Vanity Fair the couple is "really happy and in love."
Pop Star Pink Gives Inspirational Speech Against Bullying At MTV VMA'sThe singer relayed a heartfelt story about her daughter during the awards show Sunday night.
Make The Most Of National Relaxation Day To Lower Stress, Improve Overall HealthAre you feeling relaxed? Hopefully you are, because Tuesday is National Relaxation Day!
Making The Most Of Next Week's Historic Total Solar EclipseOn Monday, scientists talked about how you can make sure you have a great viewing experience right here in the Tri-State Area.
Brooklyn Basketball Court Named To Honor Rapper Biggie SmallsTwo communities came together to honor one of hip-hops biggest stars; Christopher Wallace, better known as Biggie Smalls.
Coastal Classroom Teaches NYC Students About Boating, Fishing & Aquatic WildlifeThe Coastal Classroom is a free, five-week summer intensive that introduces children to New York City's marine environment and maritime industry.
Advancing Storms Prompt Flash Flood Watch, Snag Air TrafficA new round of storms was targeting the Tri-State Area late Sunday, prompting a flash flood watch and major delays at area airports.
Westchester's 'Camp Morty' Gives Kids In Need A Break From Serious ChallengesIt's summer camp season across the Tri-State area, but one camp in northern Westchester is hosting campers who wouldn't ordinarily be able to afford it.


text:
Is Five Games Enough?
We don't need to commission an independent investigator to find out what went wrong in the Jets' QB competition.
The answer here is simple: Rex Ryan made a mistake. A bad one. And he left the Jets' quarterback situation in disarray.
Ryan, you might remember, inserted Mark Sanchez into the fourth quarter of a meaningless preseason game Saturday. Sanchez, predictably, got hurt. Now, his availability for the season opener is in question.
Had Ryan not elected to play Sanchez in the fourth quarter Saturday against the Giants, the quarterback situation would be settled right now.
Geno Smith threw three picks in the first half and stepped out of bounds for a safety. That kind of performance was unsettling, but not totally surprising.
Smith, after all, was making the first start of his NFL career. What he revealed in that first half against the Giants was that he isn't ready to start in the NFL.
Ryan, Woody Johnson and everyone else who watched Smith play on Saturday had to come to that conclusion. And there's nothing wrong with that, because the Jets had a healthy Sanchez available to start Week 1.
Why put Sanchez's health in jeopardy? Ryan said he played Sanchez because he wanted to win the game, but in the process he lost his presumptive Week 1 starter.
Granted, neither Smith nor Sanchez is going to light the world on fire, but it didn't have to be this hard for the Jets -- or for Ryan -- to figure out their QB conundrum.
If Ryan just kept Sanchez on the bench Saturday night, everything would be settled. Instead, we get chaos. Typical Jets.
What is the going rate for multimillionaire pitchers to take a free shot at Alex Rodriguez?
Apparently it's $2,500 and no missed starts.
Well, that should deter opponents who have issues with A-Rod, right?
I don't think so.
By setting the precedent that -- to use baseball's official language from its press release -- "intentionally throwing at and hitting Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees" won't cost a pitcher a start and means only the loss of some pocket change, other players could be encouraged to go for some frontier justice of their own.
MLB has set the bar and it is not a high one.
When a player is suspended for an on-the-field issue, he essentially receives a paid vacation.
Ryan Dempster will not lose anything from the $13.25 million salary he receives in twice-monthly checks. Just a measly $2,500, which bought him a standing ovation from misguided Boston fans as he left what would be a seven-earned-run performance on Sunday.
A-Rod might not be targeted again, but there is not much of a deterrent to prevent it, at least based on MLB's Tuesday ruling.
Use a Facebook account to add a comment, subject to Facebook's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your Facebook name, photo & other personal information you make public on Facebook will appear with your comment, and may be used on ESPN's media platforms. Learn more.


text:
Our Easy Requirements:
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text:
Being a Golden Hawk means more than just cheering on our (really good) varsity teams – it means being a student who cares about your community, who works hard in the classroom, and who takes advantage of all the learning opportunities that can happen outside the classroom, too.
STEPS TO APPLYUndergraduate Admissions Toolkit International Admissions Toolkit Graduate Admissions Toolkit
Mark your calendars for our Music Open Houses on Friday, Nov. 3, 2017 and Friday, March 9, 2018.
Our Music Open Houses give you the chance to sit in on current student classes to get a feel for what it is like to be a Laurier student. You'll also be able to meet and mingle with our students and faculty plus hear them perform in a showcase concert. On top of attending real student classes we'll host a number of academic presentations on our programs and will also help prepare you for the audition process.
On November 22 from 7 to 8 p.m. you'll have the chance to have your questions answered in real-time by our Faculty of Music staff. We will talk about admission requirements to our Faculty of Music programs including audition processes, theory test questions and suggestions for interview preparation.
At the same time, we will focus on what our Music programs can offer you as a student including double majoring, minoring, performance experiences, Residence Learning Communities and how to get involved on campus. Not sure what questions to ask? Listen in to what other prospective students and their families are asking
If you can't make it to our open house, you can book a campus tour. Our tours take about 1.5 hours and covers many areas of campus, including:
Tours depart from the Welcome Centre, located in the Bricker Academic Building. One of our Laurier Student Ambassador tour guides will meet you in the Welcome Centre before the tour. Please arrive 10 minutes before the scheduled start of the tour. Directions to our Waterloo campus will be sent to you via email (some online map directions are not accurate).
Tours scheduled Monday-Friday can be accompanied with a Faculty of Music building tour and advising session with Faculty of Music staff. Contact email@example.com for further details.
Parking on campus is strictly enforced, so please ensure you park in designated visitor parking only.
We'd love to meet you in person, but we understand that might not be feasible for everyone. If you can't make it to us, why not take a look at our virtual tours? Check out the Waterloo campus.
Upcoming Events
Faculty of Music Open House Ontario Universities' Fair at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Faculty of Music Open House
Ontario Universities' Fair at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Contact Us:
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text:
I worked at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time (More than a year)
Can earn extra money with overtime and on-call. Co-workers are hardworking and friendly. Work is not too stressful.
Not many chances for advancement, tasks become repetitive.
Advice to Management
Have more chances to prove skills. Regular meetings with employees would help.
Great overall experience and gained useful experience.
Lack of communication between managers.
I worked at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time
I worked in IT for about 1.5 years. It was an interesting place to work while I was there.
The good things are that there wasn't a lot of pressure and most people were nice, but there were a few bad apples in the bunch.
Flexible time, lots of work from home or working from a remote location like Renton or Bellevue. Benefits were so-so.
If you want to park your butt in low stress job, with lower than average pay then go for it! Many of the managers had worked there for many years so there is little room to move up. Much of the technology is a few generations old. They were always trying to do projects with no money. Resources were limited. Several of my co-workers had been working there for decades and had little incentive get anything done. Lots of turf wars between different groups. FDA oversight makes it almost unbearable in terms of the "education" you need to get on a constant basis. But like I said, little is asked of you ...
Advice to Management
I don't think there is anything they can do. The CEO seems to be there for the rest of his life and they are a non-profit that seems to be hanging on by a thread most years...
Great company, I did lots of volunteer work
There were no cons, I was just a volunteer
I worked at Puget Sound Blood Center (Less than a year)
Hours work flexible with what I needed at the time and loved the benefits, and flex spending accounts. Thank you
Not much in the way of pay and also crowded parking and some slow operating programs...thank you for listening ,
Advice to Management
I worked at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time (More than 3 years)
The job depends on who your supervisor is. I got lucky because my supervisor had a lot of trust in her technologists and was a great mentor to me.
Older research labs. Not many career advancement opportunities.
I have been working at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time (More than a year)
Bloodworks NW saves lives, literally. The work that we do is so incredibly important, and I am proud to work for this organization.
As with any job, there are downsides, but the pros vastly outweigh the cons.
Great mission! Community involvement. Close relationships
Don't expect a promotion! Too many politics
Advice to Management
Listen to your reps! They bring in most your revenue
Helpful (1)
I have been working at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time (More than 8 years)
Excellent PTO and retirement benefits. Employees really care about the work at we do and the patients that we serve. Trying to grow and innovate.
At that management level, there is a lot of struggle for work-life balance. There are just too many priorities and projects and not enough resources to get everything done. This in turn has really affected staff morale since management puts the staff last while they try to get everything else done. Its a vicious cycle of being too busy, because we don't have enough staff, which makes people want to leave, which creates more work. The senior management is also not very in touch with the staff working directly with our donors and customers. They make a lot of decisions without finding out how it will affect this group of people.
Advice to Management
Slow down or hire more staff. Be concerned about retaining the staff you have - make this a priority.
I have been working at Puget Sound Blood Center full-time
Leadership is evolving to a more customer-service and quality driven organization, expanding services and where the voice of the customer, including the employee is being heard more often. It is exciting to see the changes in a 70 year old institution which has a great reputation, with the challenges keeping up with the constant changes in our health care arena, and meeting the continuous demands for life-saving blood components.
Staff works hard in the field of blood collections with variable schedules. Changes are continually part of the industry, derived from FDA and AABB guidance as well as new management and QA practices and procedures, all in a highly regulated environment. Keeps the workplace in constant change, and challenging.
Advice to Management
Communicate the changes and expectations through a common mode of communication, posted in hard copy for those in the field of blood collections and electronically for the masses.
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text:
Dodge Repair Questions? Ask a Mechanic for Answers ASAP
Good afternoon and welcome to JustAnswer!!
When you press down do you hear the motor straining or trying to move the seat?
Thanks for the reply!!!
I have attached the seat wiring to herlp you diagnose it.. I would check for 12v on the vertical motors and moving the switch.. If it's good then remove the motor and see if it will move. If not replace the motor, if it will move you will need to replace the seat adjuster...
I hope this helps,
Well if the seat adjuster is fine then yes you can remove the motor and turn the shaft by hand to lower the seat.. But if it will not turn then you will need a new seat adjuster...
Glad I could help and thank you for the positive rating,


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In her acceptance speech, the pop star spent ten minutes criticizing her Christian upbringing while championing "sexual fluidity." And, predictably, the feminist media loved it.
"There is no other community who has done more to shape who I am today and there is no other community that I believe in more than you," the liberal icon expressed to an audience of LGBT supporters.
"I'm just a singer/songwriter honestly," she continued. "I speak my truths and I paint my fantasies into these little bite sized pop songs, for instance 'I Kissed a Girl and I Liked It.'"
Perry elaborated on her hit song released nine years ago.
"Truth be told, A. I did more than that," the singer explained of her lyrics. "B. How was I going to reconcile that with the gospel-singing girl raised in youth groups that were pro-conversion camps?"
"What I did know," she proceeded, "was that I was curious and even then I knew sexuality wasn't as black and white as this dress… But in 2008, when that song came out, I knew that I started a conversation and a lot of the world seemed curious enough to sing along too.Read more at NewsBusters


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On 11 October we held the first of our new Dominican Forum sessions, led by Fr Nicholas Crowe OP. Here is his summary of the talk he gave on how Christians should approach their daily work.
A Christian Attitude to Work
When we were planning this series we asked people to suggest subjects that they would be interested in hearing a friar speak about. We received a number of suggestions but this question particularly caught my eye: what is a thoroughly Christian attitude to work? How does all this time we spend doing our jobs fit in to the bigger story of our Christian life as a whole? There is so much we could say in response to this question, but given our time constraints I just want to make three points.
First, as Christians we need to keep our work in perspective. As important as our job might be, and it is indeed important, it does not define us. More important than what we do is who we are and what God has done for us through the missions of the Son and the Spirit. True freedom is found when our union with God through our Lord Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit is at the core of our self-understanding. There is a divine horizon to our lives: God created us, He holds us in being, and He summons us to enjoy eternal happiness with Him in heaven. The successes or failures that we might have at work are indeed part of the story of our lives, but they are not the whole story.
Dignity and Value
Second, the perspective offered on our work by this divine horizon allows us to see a new and often unnoticed dignity and value in what we do on a day-to-day level and – just as importantly – a new dignity and value in what other people do. God, the primary cause of all that is, cares for his children through secondary causes, that is, the things that he himself has created – which of course means all of us and what we do day to day. Through our work, then, we can be instruments of God's provi¬dence: the food we eat, the clothes we wear, the entertainment we enjoy, all the good things in life are gifts of God that are so often given through the labour of men and women going about their lives doing the work necessary for the well-being of society. Good work, then, is a co-operation in God's Providence: we need to recognize with gratitude God's providential care for us in the labour of others, and strive to ensure that we are a gift of God to our neighbour and society in return.
Finally, I want to note that if our work is indeed a co-operation in God's Providential care for his creation, then how we do this work matters. We need to try to do our work well for the sake of others and for the sake of ourselves. The world of work, like every other aspect of our lives, is a sphere of moral and spiritual development. Through an attentiveness to the demands of charity and justice in the choices that we make, we can contribute to the building up of the Kingdom here on Earth, and be formed in the habit of co-operating with God's plan for our own lives and His plan for the whole world.
The 'Dominican Forum' is a series of lunchtime talks in the City of London, aimed at busy professionals and offering them a convenient forum to reflect on the Christian message and discuss the challenges they face.
This first series of meetings has been kindly hosted by Smith & Williamson. A second series will be held in 2017.
All are welcome. For details, visit the Dominican Forum webpage, or email us to receive notifications of future events.


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Here Is The Meaning Behind April The Giraffe's Baby Name
Inside Edition CBS•
The results are in! Following a nationwide vote, April the giraffe's baby boy finally has a name: Tajiri. The Animal Adventure Park in New York announced the name following two rounds of votes. The public ultimately decided the baby's caretaker, Allysa, should make the final choice. "Tajiri was really what spoke to us," she explained in a Facebook Live video, adding that the name "is Swahili for both hope and confidence." InsideEdition.com's Leigh Scheps (http://twitter.com/leightvreporter) has more.


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|1,750 sq. ft.
|Property type
|Minimum Stay
|3 - 30 nights
Need a relaxing getaway, even if it's just for the weekend? Well I have the perfect place for you. Pine Ridge Beach & Golf Escape is in the best location to enjoy everything that SanDestin, Florida can offer you, including a great view. Just a walk from the condo lies the beautiful beaches of SanDestin. With miles and miles of beach and sea to view, taking a long relaxing walk down the beach will not be an issue. Along with enjoying the beach, you can stop by the bar for your favorite fruity cocktail to enjoy as you soak up the sun.
If you're not the beach type, don't worry, there is still plenty for you to enjoy. With amenities including a swimming pool, golf, tennis, yoga, several restaurants, shops, and a large farmers market for you to take advantage of, you'll have no problem staying active and enjoying all that San Destin offers.
Golfers would have no problem staying for a week or two. There are four golf courses within yards of the condo location. So get out your clubs, grab your caddie, and make your way down to Pine Ridge Beach & Golf Escape for your golfing getaway.
If you are more into the shopping and restaurant scene you could get a little overwhelmed with your choices. Just a walks distance from the condo is the infamous Baytowne Warf. The Warf provides endless restaurant choices, including some wonderful night life for you to enjoy. Just a short car ride out to the right of the condo you'll find several more restaurants and a few shopping favorites. This area also includes a Publix to stock up the condo for your nice long relaxing stay. A mile and a half to the left you'll bump into the premiere shopping in San Destin at the Silver Sands Premium Outlet Mall. There you will find endless shopping choices and a few restaurants to even take a shopping break.
Along with the endless night life choices, if you are not in the mood to go out to the bar or stay in for a relaxing night on the couch you also have the option of a movie at the newly built Carmike Cinema.
With tons to enjoy and do, you will have the best escape of your life. So call up your family members or your best friends, pack up your bathing suits, sunscreen, and make your way down to the beaches of SanDestin where the weather is beautiful all year round.
Our condo includes:
3 Bedrooms- sleeping six
1 King Bed
1 Queen Bed
2 Twin Beds
All beds are fully dressed and have extra sheets
All bedrooms have flat screen televisions
3 Bathrooms- two including Jacuzzi bathtubs
All Bathrooms are stocked with bathroom towels
Kitchen is fully equipped with: Large refrigerator, oven, stove, microwave, toaster, large double sink, blender, coffee maker, coffee cups, plates, silverware, pots, pans, cookie sheets, wine glasses
There are plenty of places to sit and relax, including a fully furnished balcony.
Large screen television in the living area with a DVD player.
The property was spacious, clean, and well stocked! The balcony view was wonderful and I enjoyed having my coffee and reading out there each day! I would highly recommend and would stay again!
My family and in laws stayed 7 total and this place was perfect.
My family and I enjoyed our stay at this condo. It was clean, spacious and the balcony provided a great view of the golf course. I was also impressed with the kitchen cookware and utensils. The beds were very comfortable. The pool is right across the street and the beach is just a golf cart ride away. This was definitely home away from home. We do plan to stay here again.
We recently returned from a girl's trip to Destin and this condo was perfect!!! From 15 years old to 75 years young this area has something for everyone and this condo is right in the middle of it all. The beach, shopping, parasailing, restaurants, movies, and fireworks!!! Our condo was spacious and clean, and the balcony had a perfect view of the nightly fireworks. The owners are super nice and easy to communicate with. We are already planning a trip for next summer!!!
My family of 5 found this condo to be well appointed, clean, modern, very large and it we really enjoyed our stay. I have 3 large teenage sons and we had plenty of space to lounge around after a day of activities in Destin. Owner was great to work with and very responsive with our inquiries. I absolutely recommend this property for families and couples looking to travel to Destin. The walk to the beach isn't too bad. My wife and I walked to the beach and back in the AM for our morning stroll then drove down later with our beach gear with the boys. I have to admit it was fun in the late afternoon watching the golfers approach shots and putts on the 12th green with a beer in my hand. I also found the property to be very quiet and low key while we were there. Baytowne is also walkable if you so choose. We rented Kayaks, rented Tennis court time and dined in that area. Bathrooms are large, Laundry room is enormous. You'll find the Kitchen well stocked with your dining needs. Flat screen TV's in all the rooms. The Large TV in the family room is really nice but the signal wasn't High Def so keep that in mind if it is meaningful for you. I would definitely rent again.
What's not to love about this condo? We had a wonderful vacation at Pine Ridge that far exceeded our expectations! The condominium itself is beautifully decorated, sparkeling clean, modern, bright, spacious, and luxurious - a truly relaxing oasis. A well stocked and exceptionally equipped kitchen and large laundry room were a pleasant surprise! The 3 bathrooms, 2 of which included a jacuzzi, were a nice touch - especially after a full day of golf for the men and an equally full day of shopping for the girls. Sharing the condo with another couple we were both able to enjoy our privacy.
The location is ideal with a pool just across the street, a balcony overlooking the golf course, and the beach within walking distance! The property is well-kept and beautiful, with lots of trails for walking and biking on the resort. Being a gated community with good security, safety was never an issue.
We enjoyed having our coffe in the mornings on the balcony overlooking the golf course! Our days were filled with golfing, biking, shopping, yoga on the beach, and relaxing in the sun by the ocean. The food was amazing! Enjoying a short, scenic drive in the evenings we enjoyed the pleasures that Stinkys Fish Camp, The Red Bar, Travinia Italian Kitchen, and Another Broken Egg Cafe had to offer.
Let me not forget to mention how helpful, friendly, and accomadating the owerns were to deal with. We highly recommend this property for your next getaway. We will definitely be going back!
Inside the SanDestin Resort, with a free shuttle. Park your car when you arrive, everything you need is inside the resort.
|Cleaning Fee
|Damage Deposit
20% Deposit at time of booking. Balance and $500 deposit due 30 days before arrival.


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Tusculum College nurse aide training
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Think about what career is best suited for you, and where you want to study. Request more information now.
Find information about Tusculum College nurse aide training, and registering for elective lectures. Which college degrees give you the best chances of finding employment after graduation? Qualifications for nursing programs vary widely. Learn about the various medical specializations available within technical training programs. Concentrating on Tusculum College nurse aide training, for example, you may gain an advantage in job recruiting on-campus. Check with the CNA department for course registration deadlines, and nursing assistant program requirements. Please use the form above to request admissions info for Tusculum College.
The Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) designation is the first step in becoming a nurse. After Becoming a CNA, you will assist in caring for patients by monitoring vital statistics, bathing, feeding and maintaining personal hygiene. Most CNA and nurse's aide programs can be completed within a few months, allowing you to begin working. As the public ages, nursing care has become a major source of employment for technical program graduates.
The next step in a nursing career is to become a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN). This is a one year long program, in which you'll work under an RN, and be assigned advanced care work. Practice requirements for nurses aides and LPNs vary from state to state, but basic duties include passing meds, wound care, and administering feeding tubes. One year nursing certificate programs train students to pass the licensing test, in order to become an LPN or LVN, and it is common for 90% or more of the graduating class to find nursing jobs within 6 months. You don't have to become a registered nurse to make good money, as a licensed practical nurse with several years of work experience can earn well over $43,500 a year. Beyond major requirements within the CNA department, you may consider Paris Junior College medical programs as a complementary elective to your primary course of study.
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Question about RIM BlackBerry 7130g Smartphone
Posted by moses mbugua on
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Posted on Jan 02, 2017
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PM Nawaz Sharif In Front Of JIT. Viral Comedy Video must watch Now.
Tagged with: JIT NAWAZ SHARIF
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November 28, 2014 Total Views: 4995 Today: 2
Hotel Fresnaye Summer House Cape Town, Located in the Fresnaye suburb of Cape Town, within 500 metres from the Atlantic Ocean, Fresnaye Summer House offers a terrace, outdoor pool and garden. Free Wi-Fi access is available. With views of Signal Hill, this stylish holiday home features a spacious living and dining area, flat-screen satellite TV and 3 bedrooms. It includes a safe. Fresnaye Summer House comes with a fully equipped kitchen containing a stove, oven, microwave, refrigerator and kitchenware. Sea Point boasts a variety of restaurants within 1 km. Nearby attractions include Clifton beach within 4 km, Table Mountain within 7 km and the V & A Waterfront is a 10-minute drive away. The property offers free private parking on site and the Cape Town International Airport is 30 minutes' drive away. (Hotel Fresnaye Summer House Cape Town hotels booking).