B–2
6400 Line Matrix Printers Setup Guide, Cabinet and Pedestal Models
Character Formation
The IBM 6400 is an impact printer: it creates characters by printing ink dots
on paper. Dots overlap to produce a solid-appearing character of uniform
density. The dots are made by an assembly of steel hammers mounted on a
rapidly oscillating shuttle. The hammers strike the paper through a moving
ink ribbon. The dot patterns of characters are mapped in printer memory on
invisible matrices, as shown in Figure B–1.
Matrix visible only to
the printer
Dot Column
Dot Row
Ink dots formed by
hammer tips Character Row
Character Column
Figure B–1. Typical Character Formation
Serial matrix printers use a moving printhead with pins to form single
characters sequentially along the printed line. Unlike serial matrix printers,
line matrix printers divide every printable line into horizontal dot rows, then
print a dot row of the entire line at every lateral sweep of the shuttle. The
IBM 6400 is a line matrix printer.
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