JP2011096194A - Variable data generation method, variable data creation device, and variable printing system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method of creating variable data which allows variable printing by extracting trimming information with photo data arranged by a user on a template for each edit data of a photobook. <P>SOLUTION: The method is provided to create the variable data for variable printing of printed matter every user, wherein the user can specify content to be posted. Each user selects layout data of printed matter for every user, and information for arrangement of image data with the image data arranged in the layout data is extracted. The method is used to create the variable data for variable printing by using the arrangement information extracted, the name of the image data, and the identifier of the layout data employed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a variable data generation method for variable printing of a printed material that allows a user to specify content to be posted.

  Conventionally, as variable printing, there is one in which a personal address and name as variable data are printed at a predetermined position by using a standard design such as direct mail. Furthermore, several types of templates are prepared according to the age group and sex of the destination, and direct mail is created by selecting advertisement data for each individual. In recent years, photo books have become widespread, and services for producing digital data photographed by individuals with digital cameras as books have been provided.

Japanese Patent No. 3918251

  As a service for creating photobooks on the Internet, multiple layouts with fixed image layouts and character positions are prepared as templates, and the user selects a desired template and places it in the image area in the template. There is one that creates a photo book while arranging and editing photos. When the user finishes editing the photo book, the user places an order on the home page of the photo book, and the photo book service provider prints the data of the received photo book and delivers it to the user by mail, courier, etc. ing. In the future, there may be an increase in the number of personally edited printed materials such as photo books, and there is a need for a mechanism for efficiently creating printed materials. Conventionally, when printing a printed matter using software that is edited on a network, it is possible to perform printing by converting the edited data into a file such as a PDF. The PDF file format can be printed regardless of the printer model, but there are cases where problems such as a broken layout appearance occur when an edited material created with editing software on the network is converted to PDF data. . In addition, there is a variable printing mechanism for printing printed matter for each individual. However, when a photo book is to be printed using a variable printing mechanism, information set by the user, such as trimming information when the user places the photo on the layout data, is stored in the individual layout data. There is a problem that it cannot be reflected in the printed matter.

  The present invention provides a method for creating variable data that can be printed by variable printing by extracting trimming information in which photo data is arranged on a template for each editing data of a photobook. Furthermore, by generating layout data to be edited by the user from the layout data for printing, it is possible to create a photo book with various editing software while maintaining the quality of the print data.

In order to solve the above-described problem, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of creating variable data for performing variable printing of a printed matter for each user who can specify content to be posted by the user. The layout data of the printed matter is selected, the step of arranging the image data in the layout data, the step of extracting the arrangement information of the arranged image data, the extracted arrangement information and the image data name of the image data are used. And a step of creating variable data for variable printing using an identifier of layout data.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the arrangement information when the user arranges the image data in the layout is extracted, and the variable data for variable printing is obtained using the arrangement information, the used image data name and the layout identifier. Therefore, the variable printing can be performed using the information on the arrangement of the image by the user.

In the second aspect of the present invention, the step of extracting the arrangement information includes variable data according to the first aspect of the present invention, including trimming information of an image when an image is arranged in the image area of the layout data. It is a creation method.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is possible to create the trimming information included in the variable data when the user arranges the image data in the layout data.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the variable data creation method according to claim 2, the step of arranging the image data in the layout data is performed by a user with editing software on the Internet.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printing method comprising a step of printing using the variable data created in the first to fifth aspects of the present invention, the printing layout data and the image data used. .

  According to the present invention, it is possible to print a photo book ordered by a user as variable printing. .

1 is a configuration diagram of a variable printing system according to the present invention. It is a figure which shows a layout editing system. It is a figure which shows the appearance of a layout. It is a figure which shows an editing apparatus. It is a figure which shows an output device. It is a figure which shows trimming (movement). It is a figure which shows trimming data (movement). It is a figure which shows trimming (rotation, scaling). It is a figure which shows trimming data (rotation, scaling). It is a figure which shows edit software. It is a figure which shows variable data.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(1. Device configuration)
First, the configuration of the variable printing system according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a variable print system according to the present invention. The variable printing system includes a layout editing apparatus 100, an editing apparatus 200, and an output apparatus 300, and is a system that prints photobook data edited by a user by variable printing.

The layout editing apparatus 100 is an apparatus that creates layout data used for a photobook. An image area and a character area are set in the layout data, and layout data for the editing apparatus 200 and layout data for the output apparatus 300 are created. The layout data for the editing apparatus 200 uses data in a general XML format. The layout data for the output 300 has a data format determined in accordance with the printing machine, and here, VIPP format DBM data is used. VIPP is a variable data intelligent post.
Script (registered trademark of Adobe Systems) Abbreviation for Printware, which is a data format for variable printing based on the page description language PostScript. VIPP data is composed of a DBM file and a DBF file. The DBM file includes printer control data, and the DBF file includes data to be printed in accordance with the DBM control code.
The editing apparatus 200 has a function for the user to edit the photo data. The user uses the editing unit 210 to arrange the photo data in the photo area of the layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100, and to create the photo book create. Specifically, the editing apparatus 200 is a function realized by a homepage for creating a photo album on the Internet, and a user uploads photo data for creating a photo album to the homepage and stores it in the storage area 230. The photo data stored in the storage area 230 is arranged in the layout data using the editing unit 210, and the photo book data is edited. The editing information output means 220 extracts editing information from photobook data created by the user. Editing information includes the layout data number used when the user edited the photobook data, page information, photo data trimming information, photo data rotation angle, scaling factor, entered text information, page information, photo data name It is included. Using the editing information and the used photo data, the output device 300 can perform variable printing of the photo book.

  The layout editing apparatus 100 in FIG. 2 will be described. The layout editing system 100 includes a layout design unit 110 and a layout information output unit 120. The layout editing unit 100 generates layout data for printing style, and converts the generated layout data for the editing device 200 and the output device 300. Have. The layout design unit 110 is a unit that creates layout data for a photo book print format. The layout design means 110 is provided with a user interface for the operator to create layout data. The operator uses this user interface to determine the size of the layout and set the image area and character area. Layout data can be created.

The layout information output unit 120 converts the layout size, the image area arrangement information, the character area arrangement information, and the like created by the layout data design unit 110 into a data format usable by the editing apparatus 200 as layout information. In the present invention, layout data is converted into XML data. The editing unit 210 of the editing system 200 may read XML data and prepare a function capable of displaying / editing layout data on the editing system 200. The layout data design means 110 can use commercially available layout software such as InDesign, and can generate XML data by creating layout data with InDesign.

The converter 125 is a means for converting the XML data converted by the layout information output means 120 into a DBM file. A DBM file is data including layout information in the VIPP format, and image data can be expanded and printed by passing it to a VIPP-compatible RIP.

As the layout information 150, two types of information, that is, XML data to be passed to the editing apparatus 200 and a DBM file to be passed to the output apparatus 300 are generated, and the layout editing apparatus 100 and the editing apparatus 200 may be connected via a network and distributed by communication. Alternatively, the data may be stored in a storage medium such as an MO or a CD and transferred to the editing device 200 or the output device 300.

FIG. 3 shows an example of layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100. (a) The layout data 1 has one character area and one image area. (B) In the layout data 2, two image areas are arranged. The character area is an area for inputting a comment or the like that the user wants to attach to the photo data, and the image area is an area for arranging the user's photo data.

The editing apparatus 200 in FIG. 4 will be described. The editing apparatus 200 is realized on a homepage for creating a photo book on a network. A user who wants to create a photo book can register as a user on the home page for creating a photo book and create a photo book on the home page. The user can upload a photo, create photobook data, place a photobook order (not shown), and receive a printed photobook.

The editing unit 210 is editing software that allows a user to create photobook data. FIG. 10 shows the user interface of the editing software. The layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100 converted into XML data is registered in the storage means 230 as layout information 238 so that the user can use it. The layout data 1030, 1040, 1050, and 1060 are obtained by reading the layout information 238 by the editing unit 210 and displaying it. The photograph data 1050 to 1130 are captured and displayed by the user uploaded to the storage unit 238. The user selects the photo data 1050 to 1130, arranges them in the image area of the layout data, and edits the photo book data.

The user interface in FIG. 10 will be described. The user reads out layout data and photo data necessary for creating a photo book from the storage unit 230 by the editing unit 210 and displays them on the user interface of the editing unit 210. In FIG. 10, eight pieces of photo data and four pages of layout data are displayed. The user selects photograph data from the photograph data 1050 to 1130 and arranges them in the image areas 1014, 1024, 1034, and 1044 of the layout data. The image area is fixed to the layout data, and the user arranges the photo data by adjusting the position, angle, magnification, etc. of the selected photo. The character areas 1012, 1022, 1032, and 1042 are also fixed to the layout data, and the user inputs character information as a photo comment.

The editing information output unit 220 is a unit that extracts editing information 236 from the editing data 234 created by the editing unit 210. The editing information 236 is DBF file format information including the number of used layout data, the name of used photo data, trimming information, the rotation angle of photo data, the magnification of photo data, and character information. The DBF file contains CVS format data, and the DBM file name of the layout data used for the header is recorded. If the editing device 200 and the output device 300 are connected via a network, the editing information output means 220 can pass the editing information and used photo data to the output device 300 by communication. If the editing device 200 and the output device 300 are not connected via a network, the photo data and the editing information may be transferred via a medium such as an MO or a CD.

The storage unit 230 stores photo data 232, editing data 234, editing information 236, and edition layout information 238. Photo data 232 is photo data uploaded to the editing apparatus 200 by a user who wants to create a photo book, and is stored for each user. The editing data 234 is photobook data edited by the user using the editing unit 210 and is generated for each user or each photobook. The editing information 236 is data for performing variable printing by the output device 300, and is information obtained by using the editing information output means 220 and extracting information from the editing data 234 into a DBF format file. The layout information 238 is data obtained by converting layout data into XML format data by the layout information output unit 120, and includes DBM file name, layout No., layout size, image area arrangement information, character area arrangement information, and the like. ing. The editing unit 210 is editing software that allows a user to edit a photo book. The editing unit 210 is software that can read layout information 238, display a layout, and perform editing. Data edited by the user is stored as edited data 234.

The output device 300 in FIG. 5 will be described. The output device 300 is a device that prints photobook editing data 234 edited by the user. Specifically, the DBM format layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100 is registered in the storage unit 330 as layout information 332, and the editing information 236 of the editing data 234 edited by the user with the editing apparatus 200 is stored in the DBF format. The received information is printed using the layout information 332, the editing information 236, and the photo data.

The storage unit 330 stores layout information 332, editing information 334, and photo data 336. The layout information 332 is a DBM format file created by converting layout data with the converter 125 of the layout editing apparatus 100. The editing information 334 is editing information 236 extracted from editing data 234 edited by the user with the editing apparatus 200. The editing information 236 is a DBF including a DBM file name, layout data No, page number, used photo data name, image area trimming information, photo data rotation angle, photo data scaling factor, and text information attached to the photo data. Format data.

The data transfer unit 310 is a unit that passes the editing information 330 and the layout information 332 and the photo data 336 described in the editing information 330 to the RIP. FIG. 11 shows an example of the editing information 330. The editing information 330 is data in the DBF format compatible with VIPP. Here, the editing information 334 is paraphrased as general variable data. Before describing the variable data 1100, layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100 will be described. Assume that two types of layout data created by the layout editing apparatus 100 are prepared as shown in FIGS. The layout data 1 in FIG. 3A is set as layout data No1, and the layout data 2 in FIG. 3B is set as layout data No2. The layout information output means 120 of the editing apparatus 100 generates XML format layout data No1 and layout data No2. When the converter 125 converts the layout data into a DBM file, the converter 125 generates information on the layout data No1 and the layout data No2 as one DBM file.

(Image area and text area)
The image area 320 of the layout data No1 is set as the image area 1. The image area 350 of the layout data No. 2 is the image area 1 and the image area 360 is the image area 2. The character area of the layout data No1 is made to correspond to the character area 1128.

The DBM file name is recorded in the header of the variable data 1100, and the data is recorded in CSV format. The data item is generated from the layout information 238, and the value of the item is acquired from the edit data 234. Alternatively, a file in which data items are described in the storage unit 230 can be registered and acquired from the file. Explain the data items. The photobook ID 1102 is an ID for uniquely specifying the editing information 236 created by the editing apparatus 200 and is given when the user creates editing data 234 by the editing unit 220. No. 1104 is a layout number of layout data used by the user. The layout No. is an identifier for associating with the layout information 238 and the layout information 332. The page number 1106 is the number of pages in which the layout data of No. 1104 is used. GazoName 1108 is the name of the photograph data used, scale 1110 is the magnification of the photograph data, rotate 1112 is the rotation angle of the photograph data, and offset_x1114 and offset_y 1116 are the offset values of the image area and the photograph data. GazoName 1108 to offset # y1116 are arrangement information when the user arranges photographic data in the image area 1, and include trimming values. Similarly, GazoName 1118, scale 1120, rotate 1122, offset # x 1124, and offset # y1126 are arrangement information when the user arranges photo data in the image area 2, and include trimming information. The character area 1128 reflects the character information input by the user in the character area of the layout data 1. When No1104 is 1, trimming information and character information data for image area 1 are input. When No1104 is 2, trimming information for image area 1 and image area 2 is input.
The RIP 325 converts the VIPP data into image data and transmits it to the printing unit 340 to perform printing.

A method for creating the variable data 1100 in FIG. 11 will be described. The variable data 1100 includes the DBM file name, layout number, page information, photo data trimming information, input character information, and edit information obtained by extracting the photo data name included in the edit information 236 generated by the edit information output unit 220. Can be used as is. If the editing information output means 220 extracts the editing data 236 and transmits it together with the photo data to the output device 300, the data transfer means 310 extracts the layout information 332 registered in the storage means 330 and sends it. Printing can be performed for each data. If the DBM file created by the layout editing apparatus 100 is registered in advance in the storage means 330 as the layout information 332, information edited by the user by the editing apparatus 200 and material data such as an image are passed to the output apparatus 300, whereby data The transfer means 310 can pass various data to the RIP for processing.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining trimming on the editing apparatus 200 by the user, and shows a state in which the photo data 64 is arranged in the image area 63 of the layout data 62. The image area 63 is arranged at a position (5 mm, 5 mm) from the lower left vertex of the layout data 62. The layout data 66 is a state in which the photograph data 64 is pasted on the image area, and the lower left vertex of the image area 63 is arranged at a position (−20 mm, −15 mm) with respect to the lower left vertex of the photograph data 64.

FIG. 7 shows the trimming information extracted from the layout data 66 of FIG. A data item is shown in the first drop, and LayoutNo indicates the No of the layout data used. GazoName is an image name of the photo data 64 arranged in the image area 63. Scale and rotate indicate the magnification and rotation angle of the photo data 64, respectively. Offset-x and offset-y are photographic data offset values for the image area 63.

FIG. 8 shows an example in which the photographic data is scaled and rotated.
FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining a state in which photo data 84 is rotated 90 degrees by 0.35 times on the editing apparatus 200. Photo data 84 is arranged in the image area 83 of the layout data 82, and the photo data 84 is arranged with a scaling factor of 0.35 and a rotation angle of 90 degrees. FIG. 9 shows the trimming information of FIG.

In the present invention, an example using VIPP format data is shown. However, a layout file may be created in another format. In that case, variable data and photo data are added to the layout data by providing the data processing means 320. You can create the data by pasting and then pass the data to RIP.

The present invention can also be applied to personal calendars, New Year's postcards, marriage and childbirth greeting cards, and variable printing can be performed using individual information when the user edits the data of the printed matter. it can. In the case of a personal calendar, trimming information obtained when a user places a family photo on the calendar can be acquired and applied to variable printing. In the case of a postcard, variable printing can be performed by acquiring trimming information obtained when a personal photograph is pasted on a greeting card for a New Year's card, marriage or childbirth.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Layout editing apparatus 110 ... Layout design means 120 ... Layout information output means 130 ... Storage means 200 ... Editing apparatus 210 ... Editing means 220 ... Editing information 230 ... Storage means 300 ... Output device 310 ... Data transfer means 320 ... Data processing means 325 ... RIP
330 ... Storage means 340 ... Printing means 700, 900 ... Trimming information 1100 ... Variable data

Claims (6)

A method of creating variable data for performing variable printing of a printed material for each user that can specify content posted by the user, wherein each user selects layout data of the printed material for each user and arranges image data in the layout Creating variable data for variable printing using the extracted arrangement information, the extracted arrangement information, the image data name of the image data, and the identifier of the used layout data. And a variable data creation method. 2. The variable data creation method according to claim 1, wherein extracting the arrangement information includes image trimming information when an image is arranged in an image area of the layout data. 3. The variable data creation method according to claim 2, wherein the step of arranging the image data in the layout data is performed by a user using editing software on the Internet. A printing method comprising a step of printing using the created variable data, printing layout data, and used image data. An apparatus for creating variable data for performing variable printing of a printed material for each user that can specify content posted by the user, wherein each user selects layout data of the printed material for each user and arranges the image data in the layout Generating variable data for variable printing using the extracted arrangement information, the means for extracting the arrangement information of the arranged image data, the extracted arrangement information, the image data name of the image data, and the identifier of the used layout data Means for generating variable data. A system for performing variable printing of a printed matter for each user that can specify content posted by the user, wherein each user selects layout data of the printed matter for each user, and arranges image data in the layout;
Means for extracting arrangement information of the arranged image data;
Means for creating variable data for variable printing using the extracted arrangement information, the image data name of the image data and the identifier of the layout data used;
A variable printing system comprising printing means for printing using the image data, the variable data, and print layout data.

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