HP PCL/PJL reference (PCL 5 Printer Language) - Technical Reference Manual Part II

EN AA, Arc Absolute 20-11
z For a specific chord angle, a circle or arc always has the same
number of chords, regardless of its size. For example, for the
default chord angle, a circle is always composed of 72 chords
(360°/5° per chord = 72 chords). This results in larger circles
appearing less smooth than smaller circles with the same chord
angle; setting the chord angle to a smaller number will help large
circles or arcs appear more smooth (see Figure 20-8).
Figure 20-8 Changing Arc Smoothness with the Chord Angle
Table 20-6 Example: Varying the Chord Angle
E
C
E Reset the printer.
E
C
%ØB Enter HP-GL/2 mode.
IN; Initialize HP-GL/2 mode.
SP1; Select pen number 1. Even though there is no
physical pen, the SP command must be used to
enable printing.
PA2000,0; Specify (2000,0) as the starting point.
PD;AA0,0,45,25; With the pen down, draw a 45° arc (positive
angle) with center coordinates of (0,0) and a
chord angle of 25°.
PU1050,1060; Lift the pen and move to (1050,1060).
PD;AA0,0,-45,10; With the pen down, draw a 45° arc (negative
angle) using the same center point as the first
arc, but with a 10° chord angle.