JP2006312255A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To temporarily store a plurality of pieces of data to be printed which are correlated with each other, and then to collectively print them by an adequate sequence. <P>SOLUTION: A memory controller 15 allows a file name analysis section 14 to analyze identification information (file name) of data to be printed received from a personal computer 2 through a network 25, identifies a group of the correlated data to be printed, forms individual folders by each document, and stores the data to be printed forming the identical document to the identical folder. When the document is printed, the group of the data to be printed in the identical folder is collectively printed by a printing section 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus such as a printer device connected to a plurality of computers via a network.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, image forming apparatuses such as network printer apparatuses that are connected to a plurality of computers, workstations, and the like via a network and that can print in accordance with a print command from the computers on the network are widely used.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a printer device connected to a plurality of computers over a network, there is a case where it is desired to integrate and output data stored in a distributed manner in each computer or the like into a single material. For example, there are cases in which a plurality of users create documents (manuals, etc.) by sharing them on their personal computers (PCs) and print them together as one document.

  In such a case, the representative prints out the documents of a plurality of users on one PC as one document file (electronic data), or prints out each document portion from each PC. These are arranged in a predetermined order into a single document. Alternatively, a method has been adopted in which data is temporarily stored in the printer device and printed at a later time.

  In the conventional integrated output of a plurality of print target data as described above, the operation is more troublesome than necessary. In particular, in a method in which data is once stored in the printer device and printed out at a later time, it is difficult to select document portions constituting the same document, and erroneous data may be extracted.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of temporarily storing a plurality of print target data associated with each other and printing them out in a correct order.

  Another object of the present invention is to form an image in a printer that can automatically perform classification in the storage device for each print target data group associated with each other based on the received identification information of the print target data. To provide an apparatus.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a data receiving unit that receives print target data, a data storage unit that temporarily stores print target data received by the data receiving unit, and a print received by the data receiving unit. A data identification information analysis unit that analyzes identification information of target data and identifies print target data groups associated with each other, a print unit that prints print target data, and a print unit data group that is associated with each other. And a control means for collectively printing out.

  As described above, the data identification information analysis unit identifies the print target data group associated with each other based on the received identification information of the print target data, so that the user can use a predetermined rule as the identification information of the created print target data. By assigning a name created according to the above, it is possible to automatically process a group of print target data on the image forming apparatus side without requiring a special operation for integrating the data to be printed in a predetermined order. It becomes.

  Specifically, for each of a plurality of print target data associated with each other, the identification information of the print target data includes order information indicating the order of each print target data, and the data identification information analysis unit is associated with each other. In addition, the print output order of each print target data can be determined according to the order of the plurality of print target data.

  The data identification information is, for example, a file name assigned to each print target data file, and the file name has a hierarchical structure including at least a high-order part and a low-order part, and is associated with each other in the high-order part. The print target data group is specified, and the order of each print target data is specified in the lower part. The file name may include a middle part in addition to the upper part and the lower part, and the print target data may be specified in the middle part. The control unit can continuously execute print output of all print target data associated with each other specified by the upper part in accordance with a print instruction specifying the upper part by the user. That is, the user does not need to specify individual print target data in order to collectively output a group of print target data.

  The control unit generates a folder having the same name as the upper part when receiving new print target data, if a folder having the same name as the upper part of the file name does not exist in the data storage unit. If the folder having the same name as the upper part already exists, the print target data is stored in this folder. Thus, the image forming apparatus can automatically classify and store the received group of print target data according to the file name.

  The printing unit may include a first operation mode in which the print target data group associated with each other is collectively printed out by the printing unit, and a second operation mode in which individual print target data is printed out individually. . In this case, the control means stores the received print target data in the storage device until a print instruction is issued in the first operation mode, and immediately prints out in the second operation mode.

  In the first operation mode, the control unit may receive an instruction to print out a part of the print target data of all the print target data constituting the print target data group associated with each other. . This is useful when it is desired to print and confirm the print target data once saved.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to automatically recognize print target data associated with each other based on the identification information of the print target data, and to print out collectively. As a result, it is possible to save time and effort for editing by the user, and there is no possibility of erroneous selection by the user.

  Also, when printing, it is possible to print out the data to be printed, which has been edited separately, as a single document arranged in order by simply specifying the common upper part of the identification information.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows a system configuration including a printer apparatus 1 as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention and a personal computer 2 as one or more external apparatuses sharing the printer apparatus 1.

  The printer device 1 includes a CPU 11, an operation panel 12, a network interface unit 13, a storage control unit 15, a print control unit 16, a hard disk device (HDD) 17, a memory 18, a ROM 19, and a printing unit 20.

  The CPU 11 is a central processing unit for controlling the operation of the printer apparatus 1 and constitutes control means in the present invention. The operation panel 12 includes an input unit for inputting instructions and setting information for the printer device 1 by the user, and a display unit for presenting various information to the user. The network interface unit 13 provides an interface for connecting to the personal computer 2 via the network 25. The storage control unit 15 controls reading and writing of data in the HDD 17 and the memory 18 under the control of the CPU 11. In addition, the storage control unit 15 includes a file name analysis unit 14 in the present embodiment. The file name analysis unit 14 can be realized by software processing by the CPU 11.

  The print control unit 16 performs print control on the print unit 20 under the control of the CPU 11. The printing unit 20 is a part that records image data received from the outside on a recording medium such as a sheet by an arbitrary recording method such as an electrophotographic recording method using a laser beam or an ink jet recording method.

  A hard disk device (HDD) 17 is a large-capacity nonvolatile storage device that temporarily stores image data to be printed received from the outside. The memory 18 is a storage device that provides a work area used by the CPU 11 and a temporary storage area for image data. The ROM 19 is a non-volatile memory that stores a program executed by the CPU 11.

  A schematic operation in the system shown in FIG. 1 will be described.

  The user sets an operation mode when transmitting image data to be printed from the personal computer 2 to the printer apparatus 1 via the network 25. The operation modes in the present embodiment include a storage mode for storing image data in the HDD 17 and a direct printing mode for directly printing received image data. This operation mode can be set by the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12 of the printer apparatus 1.

  Under the control of the CPU 11, the printer device 1 prints image data transmitted from the personal computer 2 according to a procedure defined by the control program of the printer device 1 stored in the ROM 19. However, whether or not the received image data is immediately printed out depends on the operation mode described above.

  In the case of the “direct printing mode”, the storage control unit 15 temporarily stores the image data in the memory 18 according to an instruction from the CPU 11 without performing the processing of the file name analysis unit 14 included in the storage control unit 15. Printing is started in the order stored in the memory 18 as soon as the printing preparation is completed by the control of the printing control unit 16.

  In the “save mode”, the file name analysis unit 14 detects the folder name included in the file name from the header portion of the received image data. If the folder name is a folder name that already exists in the HDD 17, the storage control unit 15 stores the file in the folder as the same group as the file in the folder. If the folder name does not exist in D17 according to the instruction from the HDCPU 11, the storage control unit 15 creates a folder with the folder name as a new folder, and stores the image data in the folder.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the image data includes a header part 51 including header information and an image part 52 including image information. The header portion 51 includes header information such as a print mode, a file name (identification information in the present invention), and a file size. The print mode in this example includes the direct print mode and the save mode described above. There may be a case where the print mode is not included in the header section 51. In this case, the setting of the operation mode in the printer apparatus 1 is prioritized. The configuration of the file name will be described later.

  There are two methods for printing image data stored in each folder of the HDD 17. The first is to specify individual files in the folder, and the second is to specify the folder itself.

  In the first method, the file name of the image data in the folder is individually selected by the user from the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12, and the storage control unit 15 selects the selected file name. The image data can be transferred to the print controller 16 in order and printing can be started.

  In the second method, by selecting a folder itself according to a user's instruction from the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12, the management number included in the file names of a plurality of image data included in the folder is selected. The printing order is analyzed, the image data is transferred to the printing control unit 16 by the storage control unit 15 in the order of young numbers, and printing is started.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the folder structure and file names in the HDD 17 according to the present embodiment.

  In the illustrated example, the HDD 17 includes a folder 171 called “File1” and a folder called “File2”. In the File1 folder 171, there are three image data files 171a, 171b, and 171c having names “File1_Index_001”, “File1_main_002”, and “File1_sub_003”. In the File2 folder 172, there are three image data files 172a, 172b, and 172c having names “File2_Index_001”, “File2_main_002”, and “File2_sub_003”.

  In this example, the configuration of the file name is “folder name as upper part (for example, File1) _individual name (for example, Index) as middle part_management number (for example, 001) as lower part”. . In the present embodiment, folder names, individual names, and management numbers are separated by underscores “_”, but the characters and symbols to be classified are not limited to underscores. Also, the management number is not limited to numbers, and any notation can be used as long as the order can be determined, such as alphabets or combinations of alphabets and numbers.

  The display format of the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 and the image file selection screen on the operation panel 12 is configured so that it can be understood that folders and files belonging to each folder are hierarchical. Preferably, a plurality of files included in the same folder are arranged in the order of their management numbers.

  When selecting a print target from the print setting screen of the operation panel or PC, display the folder hierarchically as described above, or display only the folder name on the operation panel or monitor, or the file names in the folder It may be possible for the user to switch whether to display only.

  Further, all folder names in the HDD or all file names included in the folder designated by the user may be printed out in accordance with a user instruction from the print setting screen of the operation panel or the personal computer.

  Next, the printing process of the printer apparatus 1 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is realized by the CPU 11 in FIG. 1 reading and executing the program in the ROM 19.

  The printer apparatus 1 receives image data from the personal computer 2 via the network 25 (S11). Next, it is determined whether the operation mode designated from the personal computer 2 or the operation mode set on the operation panel 12 of the printer apparatus 1 is the direct print mode or the storage mode (S12).

  If it is the save mode, it is determined whether the folder name included in the file name matches the folder name already in the HDD 17 (S13). If there is a matching folder name, the image data is stored in the folder (S14). If there is no matching folder name, a new folder is created with the folder name, and image data is stored in the folder (S15).

  If it is the direct printing mode, the image data is temporarily stored in the memory 18 (S16). The print control unit 16 determines whether the print preparation is OK (S17), and if OK, the image data stored in the memory 18 is printed in the stored order (S18). If printing preparation is not complete, the printer waits until it is ready, and starts printing as soon as it is ready.

  Next, the flow until printing of image data stored in the HDD 17 in the storage mode will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This process is started based on a user instruction from the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12 of the printer apparatus 1.

  First, it is determined whether the user has individually designated image data files stored in the HDD 17 or the folder itself (S21). If the files are individually specified, and there is a print command (S22) from the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12, the storage control unit 15 stores the specified individual image data in the specified order. The image data is transferred to 16 and printing is started (S23).

  When the folder itself is designated, if there is a print command (S24) from the print setting screen of the personal computer 2 or the operation panel 12, the CPU 11 analyzes the management numbers of all the files in the designated folder (S25), The storage control unit 15 transfers the image data to the print control unit 16 in ascending order of the analyzed management number and starts printing (S26).

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, but various modifications and changes other than those mentioned above can be made.

  For example, when transmitting image data from a personal computer, header information for specifying a storage mode is transmitted, but instead of specifying “storage mode”, a file name is always converted to a file name analysis unit 14. The image data having the file name described in accordance with a predetermined rule may be interpreted as the “save mode” being designated.

  When new image data is received in the storage mode in the printer device, if image data having the same file name as that file name is stored in the HDD, a warning message is issued from the printer device to the personal computer that transmitted the image data. You may do it. Thereby, the user can instruct to cancel the print instruction of the image data or to overwrite the existing image data. When the document content is updated or corrected, the document file can be replaced by overwriting before the previously transmitted image data is printed out.

  In the save mode, when a part of a plurality of files in a folder is specified and printed out, the user can specify whether or not to delete the output file from the folder each time or in advance by the initial setting. You may do it.

  When a plurality of print target data corresponding to a plurality of document portions are printed out collectively, a function of assigning a series of page numbers over the plurality of document portions may be provided.

  The storage device for storing image data in a non-volatile manner is exemplified by the HDD. However, any non-volatile mass storage device may be used, and the storage device is not limited to the HDD.

1 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration that includes a printer device as an image forming device and a personal computer as one or more external devices that share the printer device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is the figure which showed the example of the structure and file name of the folder in HDD in embodiment of this invention. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a printing process of the printer device according to the embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart showing a flow until printing of image data stored in the HDD in the storage mode according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the structure of the image data in embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printer apparatus 2 ... Personal computer 11 ... CPU
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 ... Operation panel 13 ... Network interface part 14 ... File name analysis part 15 ... Storage control part 16 ... Print control part 17 ... HDD (nonvolatile storage device)
18 ... Memory 19 ... ROM (non-volatile memory)

Claims (8)

A data receiving unit for receiving data to be printed;
A data storage unit for temporarily storing print target data received by the data receiving unit;
Analyzing the identification information of the print target data received in the data receiving unit, and identifying the print target data group associated with each other;
A printing section for printing the print target data;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a control unit that collectively prints out the print target data groups associated with each other in the printing unit.   For each of a plurality of print target data associated with each other, the identification information of the print target data includes order information indicating the order of each print target data, and the data identification information analysis unit includes the plurality of print target data associated with each other. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print output order of each print target data is determined according to the data order.   The data identification information is a file name assigned to each print target data file, and the file name has a hierarchical structure including at least a high-order part and a low-order part, and is associated with each other in the high-order part. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the identification is performed and the order of each print target data is identified in the lower part.   4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the file name includes a middle part in addition to the upper part and the lower part, and the print target data is specified in the middle part.   4. The control means, according to a print instruction designating the upper part by a user, continuously executes print output of all print target data specified by the upper part and associated with each other. Or the image forming apparatus according to 4.   The control unit generates a folder having the same name as the upper part when receiving new print target data, if a folder having the same name as the upper part of the file name does not exist in the data storage unit. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the print target data is stored in the folder, and when the folder having the same name as the upper part already exists, the print target data is stored in the folder.   A first operation mode for collectively printing out the print target data groups associated with each other in the printing unit; and a second operation mode for individually printing out the individual print target data. The means stores the received print target data in the storage device until a print instruction is issued in the first operation mode, and immediately prints out in the second operation mode. The image forming apparatus described.   In the first operation mode, the control unit receives an instruction to print out a part of print target data of all print target data constituting the print target data group associated with each other. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7.

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