An improved method for displaying a character on a raster device at relatively low resolution by identifying regions of the character that improperly touch other regions of the character, and then modifying the display of that character to move or delete pixels which decrease legibility of the character, by (1) enumerating the pixels in an order determined by the path topology, (2) searching for sequences of pixels corresponding to a pointed feature in the character that undesirably touches other parts of the character, and (3) editing the bitmap to remove such contacts.
A system and methods automatically provide access and management of installed and noninstalled fonts in a computer system. Installed fonts are resident in computer memory, whereas the noninstalled fonts are preferably described in a compact database including the computer-accessible location of the physical font. Broadly, the invention provides user applications with the capability of automatic selection of both installed and noninstalled fonts without modifications to the application itself.
A character generating method and apparatus for producing a character from outline font data, wherein the font data stored in a font memory are converted into coordinate values of a coordinate system of a designated size in a character developing circuit, the converted coordinate values are then rounded to integer coordinate values, and the integer coordinate values are adjusted by a hinting process. The integer coordinate values are developed including the adjusted coordinate values to produce a bit map image in the character developing circuit. In one mode of the hinting process, the sum of intervals between a plurality of strokes extending in the same direction are computed from coordinates after the rounding process, the sum is compared with the number of target strokes minus 1, and the integer coordinate values are changed so as to adjust a line width of a desired stroke of the target strokes when the sum is smaller than a value resulting from a subtraction. In another mode of the hinting process, scaling factors of individual intervals are computed from intervals between individual strokes before the rounding and intervals between individual strokes after the rounding, the difference between the largest scaling factor and the smallest scaling factor is computed, and the integer coordinate values of a desired stroke among the strokes are shifted so as to make the difference smaller.
A system and methods automatically provide access and management of installed and noninstalled fonts in a computer system. Installed fonts are resident in computer memory, whereas the noninstalled fonts are preferably described in a compact database including the computer-accessible location of the physical font. Broadly, the invention provides user applications with the capability of automatic selection of both installed and noninstalled fonts without modifications to the application itself.
A font data generator provides bit map font data free from blurs and thickening in character strokes from data expressing outline segments. The font data generator includes an outline data generating unit for providing pixel data representing the entire outline of a character. A selected outline data generating unit generates, from the pixel data representing the entire outline of a character, pixel data representing only some outline segments. In one embodiment, outline segments are seleced if, when the entire outline is traced counter-clockwise, the segments must be traced in either left or down directions. A filling data generating unit generates, from data expressing the outline segments of a character, pixel data to fill in the area surrounded by the outine segments. A data synthesizing means synthesizes the selected outline pixel data and the filling pixel data to form a character. In another embodiment, instead of generating selected outline data, the generator identifies pixel data that represents more than one outline segment of a character. This pixel data is then synthesized with filling pixel data to form a character.
Apparatus and methods for setting intercharacter spacing for display, rendering or other output of strings of adjacent characters utilize character shapes to set final spacing amounts. The invention stores specifications of characters to be rendered adjacently along an axis, the specifications including a font associated with each of the characters, each character having an associated interior portion defined by a contour portion, and adjacent characters having opposed contour segments separated along the axis by at least one intercharacter contour distance at an initial (e.g., default) intercharacter spacing; and sets a final intercharacter spacing between pairs of adjacent characters along the axis based on a portion of the intercharacter contour distances; the invention may further utilize statistical analysis of these distances in setting spacing.
