Strange formatting commands in .comp file

At the risk (certainty) of showing my ignorance of HAL workings, I wonder if someone could explain the context of the //fB, //fI, //fR etc elements in this excerpt. It was written by Karl Cunningham to control an ATC. It seems likely to be turning on and off bold and italic but makes reading the comments very challenging.

www.wallacecompany.com/machine_shop/Shizuoka/qdtoolchange.comp

/* Pins to control the Quickdraw hardware */

pin out bit tool_in_command "\\fITool-In\\fR command to the tool changer. This should \
be connected to the Orange wire of the M-Function cable (pin\\ 5 of connector \
J7). Asserting this output causes the tool-changer hardware to grab a \
tool from the carousel and place it in the spindle. The \\fIreset\\fR output from the tool changer is \
pulsed when the operation is complete.";

Admittedly it only occurs within the comments section but perhaps someone could suggest if it indicates a particular editor that would recognise the formatting commands. The comments are littered with these things which really makes understanding the (obviously very well structured and commented code) rather challenging for me.

I have an identical ATC and am hoping to learn from those who went before me.

Thanks!

I've butchered (found and deleted) most of them but obviously will have lost some of the formatting in the process.

It's formatting commands for man pages.

in a terminal:
man gdtoolchange

should show you the MANual page.

Chris M