I am a student in Australia doing research on enabling plotter functionalities in printers. I have written HPGL command for my printer as it understands HPGL commands. I want to be able to take the paper back in the printer after printing
once. This is to avoid having to re-feed the paper and getting it misaligned.

I have used the following commands.
Pen Up
Pen Down
Pen Absolute
Pen Relative

I have also use pen movement commands. I want to know whether these Pen commands are the right ones to use for rolling the paper to the beginning or are there any other commands that I should use. I have a PCL manual and I was wondering whether there are 'HPGL only' manual which give commands for rolling the paper backwards.

I look forward to your reply.

Yours sincerely
Kumar Krishna

 

Hewlett Packard published a book called the "PCL 5 Printer Language Technical Reference Manual' for their LaserJet printers. This manual has an excellent description of HPGL.

I did a quick look through the manual, but could find no odvious command to roll paper back in a roll plotter. The 'Advance Page' (PG) and 'Replot' (RP) commands don't appear to do what you want.

Unfortunately, most of my experience with HPGL was on flatbed plotters only, so I can't be truly helpful.

Good Luck

 

Here is a box 4x4" and the plotter goes back to
origin after it is done with the plotting.

IN;PU;PA0,0;
PU;PA0,0;PR ;VS30;
SP1;
PU5064,1021;
PD0,4064;
PD-4048,0;
PD0,-4064;
PD4048,0;
PU-5064,-1021;
PU0,0;
SP0;

In order to go back to origin you have to keep
track of where is the plotter head, so you can
send it back at the end.

Make two variables XTotal, YTotal and every time
you have a PU or PD command add the X to XTotal
(respectively, add the Y to YTotal). Send a
PU -XTotal,-YTotal; at the end.

Happy plotting!
Nadia