JP3880575B2 - Print setting method and computer - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a print setting technique in a printing system including a plurality of printers, a print server device, and a computer.

  Conventionally, in a Windows (registered trademark) printing system or the like, it is known that a printer set in an information processing apparatus connected to be communicable on a network is set to be shared. A technique is known in which a printer driver, port information, and the like are automatically installed in its own device when an instruction is given through the device.

  On the other hand, in recent years, network devices are generally used, and a large number of personal computers (hereinafter referred to as PCs) and printers can be connected to the network. In such a network environment, when printing, for a document with a large number of pages or a document with a large number of copies, in order to shorten the printing time, the print job is temporarily spooled, and each page or the number of copies is printed on a plurality of printers. There is known a system (distributed printing system) that outputs data in a distributed manner. In addition, a system in which color pages in one document are distributed to a color printer and a monochrome page is output to a monochrome printer (color / monochrome distributed system). An output system in which one document is simultaneously printed by a plurality of printers (same as above). Information printing system) or a system (automatic proxy printing system) that automatically outputs to another printer when a printer error occurs is known.

In addition, when distributed printing is performed on a plurality of these devices, a technique for issuing a print instruction to a representative printer driver (group printer driver) that collects printer drivers (member printer drivers) corresponding to the devices. Is known (Patent Document 1).
JP2003-162388

  However, since it is determined whether the setting of the printer driver corresponding to the plurality of printer devices associated with the group printer driver can be set depending on the environment of the print server on which the printing operation is actually performed. For example, if the operating system (OS) is different between the PC that performs setting of the printer driver corresponding to the group printer driver and the plurality of printer devices associated with the group printer driver and the print server, the user sets Nevertheless, there were some setting items that did not actually become effective.

The present invention is a print setting method in a printing system composed of a plurality of printers, a print server device, and a computer, and print settings relating to the printing function of the plurality of printers are made for each printer or a plurality of printers as members. environment information collecting and screen control step of controlling the display of a user interface screen, the ability inquiry step for inquiring the capability of the printer driver corresponding to the plurality of printers, the environment of the print server device for setting a user as a group and a collection step, and in the screen control process, and the ability of the printer driver according to the capability inquiry step, wherein by environment information collecting step in accordance with the print server environment, items of settable print setting to determine, can be configured by the user print setting of the item is not valid In odd in the gray-out display or non-display and controls the display of the user interface screen.

  The present invention also relates to a print setting method in a printing system comprising a computer that can communicate with a server that generates print data and a server that can communicate with a printer, and is compatible with the environment between the server and the computer. A print setting method, comprising: a screen control step for causing a print setting screen to perform display reflecting a corresponding function item.

The present invention is also a computer in a printing system including a plurality of printers, a print server device, and a computer, and print settings relating to the printing function of the plurality of printers are made for each printer or a plurality of printers as members. environment information collected and the screen control means for controlling the display of a user interface screen, the ability inquiry means for inquiring the capability of the printer driver corresponding to the plurality of printers, the environment of the print server device for setting a user as a group Collecting means, and the screen control means can be set according to each capability of the printer driver inquired by the capability inquiry means and the environment of the print server device collected by the environment information collecting means to determine the item of print settings, the print settings of the item is not valid Chromatography The is in the gray-out display or non-display so that they can not set and controls the display of the user interface screen.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer in a printing system comprising a computer capable of communicating with a server that generates print data and a server capable of communicating with a printer, in accordance with environmental compatibility between the server and the computer. The image processing apparatus includes screen control means for causing the print setting screen to display the function item.

According to the present invention, the print setting items that can be set are determined according to the capabilities of the printer driver and the environment of the print server device, and grayed out or hidden so that the user cannot set the print settings of the invalid items. By displaying the user interface screen , it is possible to provide the user with a user interface screen that allows easy print setting .

  The best mode for carrying out the invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the information processing system in the present embodiment. In FIG. 1, reference numerals 102, 103, and 104 denote information processing apparatuses, which function as clients of a client / server system. Each client is connected to the network 106 by a network cable such as Ethernet (registered trademark), and can execute various programs such as an application program. Note that the client in this system is a personal computer, and one or a plurality of clients are connected. Each client is also referred to as a “client PC”.

  The client PC is equipped with a printer driver having a function of converting print data into a printer language corresponding to the printer. Note that the printer driver supports a plurality of printer drivers.

  An information processing apparatus 101 functions as a server of a client / server system. The server 101 is connected to the network 106 via a network cable, accumulates files used by clients on the network 106, and monitors the use state of the network 106. The server 101 also functions as a print server that manages a plurality of printers connected to the network 106.

  The client PCs 102 to 104 and the print server 101 according to the present embodiment are general information processing apparatuses, and a print control program for performing different controls is stored in the client PC and the print server so as to be executable. The print server 101 can also have the functions of the client PCs 102 to 104 at the same time.

  The print server 101 according to the present embodiment further includes a function for storing and printing a print job including print data for which a print request has been issued from each client PC 102, 103, 104, or includes print data from the client PC 102, 103, 104. A function that receives only unacknowledged job information, manages the print order of the client PCs 102, 103, and 104, and notifies the client PCs in the print order of permission to send a print job including print data, or a network printer status described later And a function of acquiring various information of the print job and notifying the client PCs 102, 103, and 104.

  Reference numeral 105 denotes a network printer as a printing apparatus, which is connected to the network 106 via a network interface (not shown), analyzes a print job including print data transmitted from a client PC, and converts it into a dot image page by page. Print one page at a time. Reference numeral 106 denotes a network to which a server 101, client PCs 102, 103, and 104, a network printer 105, and the like are connected.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. Note that the print server 101 and the client PCs 102, 103, and 104, which are the information processing apparatuses described above, have the same or equivalent hardware configuration. Therefore, it demonstrates as a block diagram which shows the structure of a client and a server.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 200 denotes a CPU which is a control means of the information processing apparatus, and executes an application program, a printer driver program, an operating system (OS), a network printer control program, and the like stored in a hard disk (HD) described later. The RAM 202 is controlled to temporarily store information, files, etc. necessary for program execution.

  Reference numeral 201 denotes a ROM as storage means, which stores programs such as basic I / O programs, various data such as font data and template data used in document processing. Reference numeral 202 denotes a RAM which is temporary storage means, and functions as a main memory, work area, and the like of the CPU 200.

  Reference numeral 203 denotes a flexible disk (FD) drive as a recording medium reading means, and a program or the like recorded on the FD 204 as a recording medium can be loaded into the computer system through the FD drive 203. The recording medium is not limited to the FD, and may be any CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, PC card, DVD, IC memory card, MO, memory stick, and the like. The loading from the FD will be further described later with reference to FIG.

  Reference numeral 204 denotes a flexible disk (FD) that is a recording medium, which is a recording medium that stores a computer-readable program. Reference numeral 205 denotes one of external storage means, which is a hard disk (HD) that functions as a large-capacity memory, and stores an application program, a printer driver program, an OS, a network printer control program, related programs, and the like.

  A spooler as a spool means is secured here. The spool means is a client spooler in the client PC, and a server spooler in the print server 101. In the print server 101, job information received from each client PC is stored, and various tables for performing order control are also generated and stored in the external storage means.

  Reference numeral 206 denotes a keyboard which is an instruction input unit. The user inputs an instruction of a device control command to the client PC, or an operator or an administrator inputs to the print server 101.

  A display 207 is a display unit that displays commands input from the keyboard 206, the status of the printer, and the like.

  A system bus 208 controls the data flow in the information processing apparatus, which is a client PC or a print server. Reference numeral 209 denotes an interface which is an input / output unit, and exchanges data with an external apparatus via the interface 209.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a memory map of the RAM 202 shown in FIG. 2, and is a memory map in a state where the above-described network printer control program loaded from the FD 204 is loaded into the RAM 202 and becomes executable. .

  In this embodiment, the network printer control program and related data are loaded directly from the FD 204 into the RAM 202 and executed. However, every time the network printer control program is operated from the FD 204, the network printer control program is already executed. May be loaded into the RAM 202 from the HD 205 in which is installed.

  In addition to the FD, the medium storing the network printer control program may be a CD-ROM, CD-R, PC card, DVD, or IC memory card. Further, the network printer control program can be stored in the ROM 201 so as to be a part of the memory map, and can be directly executed by the CPU 200.

  Moreover, it can also be comprised as an alternative of a hardware apparatus with the software which implement | achieves a function equivalent to the above each apparatus.

  In addition, this network printer control program may be simply called a print control program. The print control program includes a program for instructing the client PC to change the print destination of the print job or instructing to change the print order. The print server 101 performs the print job order control. Or a program for notifying the end of printing of a print job or a request for changing the printing destination.

  In addition, the print control program for performing such control may separately divide a module installed in the client PC and a module installed in the print server 101, or one print control program is executed. It may function as a client PC or a print server depending on the environment. Alternatively, a configuration in which a module having a function for a client PC and a module functioning for a print server are installed together in one computer, and the pseudo parallel operation can be performed simultaneously or in a time division manner.

  A basic I / O program 301 has an IPL (Initial Program Loading) function for reading the OS from the HD 205 into the RAM 202 and starting the operation of the OS when the information processing apparatus is turned on. This is the area that contains the program.

  Reference numeral 302 denotes an OS, and 303 denotes a network printer control program, which is stored in an area secured on the RAM 202. Reference numeral 304 denotes related data, which is stored in an area secured on the RAM 202. Reference numeral 305 denotes a work area in which an area for the CPU 200 to execute the printer control program is secured.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a memory map of the FD 204 illustrated in FIG. In FIG. 4, 400 is the data content of the FD 204, 401 is volume information indicating data information, 402 is directory information, 403 is a network printer control program which is a print control program described in this embodiment, and 404 is The related data. The network printer control program 403 is a program based on the flowchart described in the embodiment. In this embodiment, the client PC and the server have the same configuration.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the relationship of the FD 204 inserted into the FD drive 203 shown in FIG. 2, and the same components as those in FIG. In FIG. 5, the FD 204 stores a network printer control program and related data described in this embodiment.

  Next, the configuration of a general-purpose print file handled by a printer driver installed in the information processing apparatus according to this embodiment will be described. In this embodiment, a printer that virtually bundles a plurality of printers as one printer is called a group printer, and a printer that can be bundled is called a member printer. Corresponding printer drivers are called a group printer driver and a member printer driver, respectively.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the general-purpose print file in the present embodiment. Note that the general-purpose print file used in the present embodiment is generated in the course of issuing a print instruction to the group printer driver described later from the print application of each client PC, and stores the print instruction unit 6-a and the contents of the document. A document data section 6-b.

  First, the print instruction unit 6-a is a part describing document information and a print instruction. The document data section 6-b is obtained by converting application document data into general-purpose data, and has a data format independent of the printer language.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the print instruction section 6-a includes a header section, a page information section, a print format instruction section, an output method designation section, a group printer driver setting information section, the number of member printers, a member printer driver name, and a member printer. It consists of a driver setting information section.

  The header part is a part for storing information such as version identification and file information of this file. The page information part is a part for storing information such as the number of pages of document data in the document data part 6-b and the size of each page. The print format instruction unit is a part that stores information related to the output format such as a print page range, the number of copies, document data imposition information (N-UP, bookbinding printing, etc.), a staple command, a punch command, and the like.

  The output method designating unit is a part that stores information such as distributed printing, color / monochrome distributed printing, proxy printing, and broadcast printing as an output method. The group printer driver setting information part is a part for storing setting information of a user interface (UI) of the group printer driver described later. The number of member printers is a part for storing the number of member printers associated with the group printer driver. The member printer driver name is a part for storing the printer driver name of the member printer.

  The member printer driver setting information part is a part that stores, for example, DEVMODE information as setting information of the driver UI of the member printer.

  The member printer driver name and member printer driver setting information section have as many storage areas as the number of member printers described above.

  The file described above may be a file in which the print instruction unit 6-a and the document data unit 6-b are different. In that case, the print instruction section 6-a exists as a print instruction file and the document data section 6-b exists as a document data file, and these are treated as one file in the same archive format. Is also possible.

  Next, a print setting UI displayed by the group printer driver according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a group printer driver UI according to this embodiment, and is a screen showing a page setting sheet. In this example, setting information such as the document size, output paper size, number of copies, printing orientation, page layout, and the like is described in the page information section or the print format instruction section shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a group printer driver UI in this embodiment, and is a screen showing a sheet of an output method. In FIG. 8, reference numeral 801 denotes a combo box for selecting and specifying an output method such as ratio distribution, color / monochrome distribution, broadcast, automatic substitution, and the like. Reference numeral 802 denotes a button for opening a UI for registering member printers. The UI opened here will be described later.

  Reference numeral 803 denotes a list box for displaying a list of member printers after registering the member printers. The contents of this list display are also changed in accordance with the output method specified in 801 described above. Among them, reference numeral 807 denotes a check box for temporarily removing or adding a member printer from the output target printer. If this check box is checked, the member printer is regarded as the target printer, and if not checked, the member printer is temporarily removed from the target printer. That is, for the member printer registered on the UI displayed by pressing the above-described button 802, it becomes possible to temporarily exclude the selected target member printer with this check box. .

  Reference numeral 806 denotes a device information display field that displays preset member printer information together with the name of the member printer driver. Reference numeral 804 denotes a button for opening a UI for performing detailed designation of an output method. The contents of this detailed setting are also changed in accordance with the output method specified in 801 described above.

  Reference numeral 805 denotes a button for opening the UI of the member printer driver. The target member printer is selected by selecting it from the list 803 described above. That is, it is possible to open the member printer driver UI for the member printer currently selected on 803.

  Further, display control when opening the UI of the member printer will be described later.

  As shown in this example, by opening the UI, it is possible to select the output method of proportion distribution, color / black and white distribution, broadcast, automatic substitution, and by specifying and setting the member printer driver for each, 1 Multiple print instructions can be made with one printer driver.

  Next, setup of a DOMS (Document Output Management Service) shared printer will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the setup of the group printer driver and member printer driver in the server. First, in step S901, setup is started. The setup mentioned here refers to processing including module installation and various settings on the server side, and various settings may be performed after module installation. Next, in step S902, the configuration module is installed. The component modules are various modules necessary for the server in the system described later.

  In step S903, a printer port is set. Although the details will be described later, the system receives a print job via the printer port set here and realizes a desired operation. In step S904, the member printer is set. Here, a printer driver that can be a member printer is selected, and the connection port of each printer driver is made to correspond to the printer port set in step S903 described above.

  In step S905, the group printer is set. In this setting process, the member printer designation of each group printer and the connection port of the group printer driver are made to correspond to the printer port set in step S903 described above from the group printer output method and the member printer set in step S904.

  In step S906, the setting contents are registered as printer management information, and this process ends. The printer management information will be further described later.

  Next, a method for installing and setting a shared printer on the client PC side will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing installation of the shared printer on the client PC. First, in step S1001, setup is started. The setup mentioned here refers to processing including module installation and various settings on the client PC side, and various settings may be performed after module installation. Next, in step S1002, the configuration module is installed. The component modules are various modules necessary for the client PC in the system described later.

  In step S1003, the server set in FIG. 9 described above is searched from the network. In step S1004, a share setting destination server is selected from the searched servers. That is, when a plurality of servers are searched in step S1004, one is selected from them. At this time, it is assumed that the client acquires the OS of the server and the OS type (including differences in type and version).

  In step S1005, printer drivers that can be shared among the printer drivers installed on the server side selected in step S1004 are checked. Whether or not sharing is possible can be realized by a function provided in the present system. Here, the printer management information registered in the server in step S906 described above is read, and the relationship and information between the group printer driver and member printer driver registered in the server are acquired. This printer management information will be described later. In addition, when acquiring this information, version information of each member printer driver is also acquired.

  In step S1006, a group printer driver to be shared is selected from the sharable printer drivers checked in step S1005. When the selection is completed, the process advances to step S1007 to install the group printer driver designated in step S1006 as a shared printer driver. In step S1008, the member printer driver is installed.

  Here, the member printers in each group printer driver designated in step S1006 are automatically investigated and installed based on the relationship information of the group printers and member printers investigated in step S1005 described above. That is, when a group printer driver is designated and a shared installation instruction is issued, the associated member printer driver can also be automatically installed.

  If one member printer is a member of a plurality of group printers, only one member printer driver needs to be shared and installed. Furthermore, during additional installation, member printer drivers that have already been shared and installed may not be installed again.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setup screen when performing shared installation on a client PC. As shown in FIG. 11, a printer listed in the printer list is a list of printers that are set to be shared on the server. “Distributed kun No. 1” represents a group printer, and “Printer-A” to “Printer” The four printers “-D” represent “distributed-kun No. 1” member printers. To supplement the explanation of FIG. 10, when “distribution kun No. 1” which is a group printer driver is selected in step S1006, the printer drivers of “Printer-A” to “Printer-D” which are member printers are also automatically set as clients. Shared installation on PC.

  Next, printer management information registered in step S906 shown in FIG. 9 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the printer management information table in the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 12, the number of registered group printers and information about each group printer are held as printer management information. As each group printer information, a group printer name, whether sharing is set, port information, and output methods such as distributed printing and sibling printing and information necessary for the output method are held as setting information. Further, the number of member printers and the name of each member printer are held as member printer information. In the example shown in FIG. 12, the number of group printers is 2, and the group printer with group printer name 1 has three member printers, and the member printer names are A, B, and C, respectively. Next, the group printer name 2 indicates that there are three corresponding member printers, and the member printer names are A, B, and D, respectively.

  Also, as member printer management information, the total number of member printers and member printer information are held. Each member printer information includes a member printer name, whether sharing is set, information according to port information and an output method. In the example shown in FIG. 12, the total number of member printers is 4, and a state in which A, B, C, and D are held as member printers is shown. The association between group printers and member printers is managed and associated with the member printer names of member printers held as group printer management information. This management information is stored and managed in a file format or a table format on the server in step S906 shown in FIG. 9, and can be referred to from the client PC side in step S1005 described above.

  Accordingly, in step S1008, the member printers belonging to the group printer are automatically determined from this management information, and the shared installation can be performed. The management information may be changeable from the client PC side.

  Next, a print job control system will be described in which a plurality of printers are used to perform the above-described printing processing such as distribution, broadcast, and substitution.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing how a print job issued from an application is processed in the print job control system of the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 13, in the present embodiment, the printing system is composed of a client and a server. The server side includes a printing system provided by the OS and a print job control system, and clients are associated by sharing a printer driver on the server.

  First, the sharing will be described. The group printer driver 2301 and the member printer drivers 2302-1 and 2302-2 on the client are the group printer driver 603 on the server, the spooler in the framework of the printing system provided by the OS. A PDL driver 602, which is a member printer driver, is set as a shared printer driver. In the figure, the shared setting relationship of the group printer driver is indicated by a broken line bidirectional arrow 23-d. As for sharing settings among member printers, the relationship between the shared printers of the PDL driver 2302-1 and the PDL driver 602 is indicated by a broken line 23-e. Similarly, the PDL driver 2302-2 and the PDL driver 602 are indicated by a broken line 23-f.

  As described above, in any case, the shared printer is set in the printing system framework provided by the OS, and has a printing system shared printer function provided by the OS.

  Next, the flow of a print job will be described. Normally, when the user gives a print instruction on the client PC, the application program generates a series of drawing commands, which are passed to the OS spooler via the printer driver. The OS spooler then takes the procedure of passing the print job data to the port monitor selected by the user and sending it to the printer device.

  In this embodiment, the user designates a print job control system port monitor 621 (hereinafter abbreviated as job control port monitor) in advance and instructs printing. The application program on the client generates a series of drawing commands. Upon receiving this drawing command, the group printer driver 2301 generates general-purpose document data and outputs it to the OS spooler 2303 via the route indicated by the arrow 23-b shown in FIG. 13.

  As described above, since the group printer driver 2301 on the client PC side and the group printer driver 603 on the server side are set to be shared in the printing system provided by the OS, the job sent to the spooler 2303 is not shown in FIG. 13 is sent to the spooler 604 on the server side along the route indicated by the arrow 23-c.

  On the other hand, the server-side spooler 604 transmits the received print data as print job data to the job control port monitor 621 instead of the port monitor. The job control port monitor 621 does not transmit print job data to the printer device 650 but transmits it to the print job control system print service 622 (hereinafter abbreviated as job control print service in this embodiment). The job control print service 622 performs print job control processing, which will be described later, on print job data.

  A print manager 623 for the print job control system (hereinafter abbreviated as job control print manager in this embodiment) checks the state of the print job in the job control print service 622 by the user, A program that provides a UI for operating a print job.

  The job control print manager 623 exchanges information and instructions with the job control print service 622 via the software interface (API) of the job control print service 622.

  A server 630 for print job control system (hereinafter abbreviated as “job control server” in this embodiment) performs centralized control (scheduling) the timing at which the job control print service 622 on the server transmits print job data to the printer device 650. To do.

  A management console 633 for print job control system (hereinafter abbreviated as “job control management console” in the present embodiment) is connected to the job control server 630 via an API for accessing software included in the job control server 630. By exchanging, the entire print job control system can be monitored.

  Further, the job control server 630 communicates with each printer device 650 using the device information control module 631 to obtain information about a print job and an operation state in each printer and perform an operation. The acquired information can be transferred to the job control print service 622 on the client side.

  Here, the job control print service 622 generates a general-purpose print file for the print job based on the general-purpose document data described above. The despooler 701 generates a drawing command (c) based on the general-purpose print file, and then the PDL driver 602 converts the drawing command into a PDL file that can be interpreted by the printer device 650.

  In the example illustrated in FIG. 13, the job control print service 622 performs job control that divides a print job into two, such as distributed printing, with respect to the print job. In the example in which two member jobs are generated, two arrows ( c).

  Next, the PDL file generated by the PDL driver 602 passes through the OS spooler 604 and the job control port monitor 621 (d), and is again delivered to the job control print service 622 (e). The job control print service 622 transmits PDL print job data to the printer device 650 in accordance with an instruction from the job control server 630 (f).

  As described above, the job control print service 622 logically divides one general-purpose print file into a plurality of print jobs in accordance with the instructions of the print instruction in the generated general-purpose print file, and transmits them to different printer devices. Or re-send print job data once sent to another printer device. (C) to (f) shown in FIG. 13 are print job data paths in such a case.

  Next, the relationship between the print system provided by the OS and the print job in the print job control system and the processing outline will be described in more detail.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the print job control system 700 indicates the range of the print job control system, and the managed output port (Output Port) 711 is the proxy output port (Proxy Output Port) 712 of the job control print service 622. It is managed in association. In the present embodiment, actual print job data is held in the proxy output port 712. The job control server 630 does not perform the transmission process of the print job data itself, but only instructs the job control print service 622 to transmit the print job. In response to the instruction, the job control print service 622 transmits print job data to the device 650.

  In this processing, in this embodiment, the job control server 630 is installed as the print job control system 700 on the same server as the job control print service 622. However, the job control server 630 is another device as the print job control system. It is also possible to install it and operate like a server. In this case, the OutputPort 711 managed by the actual job control server 630 is associated with the proxy output port 712 of each job control print service 622, and the proxy output on each device associated with one port. All ports will be managed in a unified manner.

  Next, processing when the print job control system 700 performs value-added printing such as proxy printing, distributed printing, and broadcast printing will be described.

  First, when the print job control system 700 performs value-added printing such as proxy printing, distributed printing, and broadcast printing, the user or application prints to a printer to which the group printer driver 2301 is assigned as described above. You must submit a job. Next, the job control print service 622 receives the job data processed by the group printer driver 2301 through the job control port monitor 621 as a series of job data of general-purpose document data and print instruction information. A LogicalPort 710 shown in FIG. 13 is an accepting port for this job.

  Next, the job control print service 622 receives the packetized data job received by the LogicalPort 710 and passes it to the general-purpose print file generation unit 702. The general-purpose print file generation unit 702 regenerates the received data job in the general-purpose print file 703 format and writes it out as a general-purpose print file 703.

  Next, the despooler 701 reads the general-purpose print file 703 and issues a job (member job) to another printer to which the PDL driver is assigned to perform printing. At this time, the despooler 701 interprets the print instruction unit 6-a of the general-purpose print file described above with reference to FIG. Then, the document data of the document data section 6-b is processed and converted into a drawing interface of the OS, in this case, a Windows (registered trademark) series GDI (Graphic Device Interface) which is a Microsoft OS, and is converted into each printer driver. A print instruction is issued and a print job is issued.

  For example, when a 2-UP instruction is recorded in the print format designation section of the print instruction section 6-a, two pages of document data are reduced and laid out on one sheet of paper. In the case of distributed printing or broadcast printing, a job is issued to a plurality of member printers described in the print instruction unit 6-a according to these settings. In the case of proxy printing, a member job is issued in response to a user operation when automatic substitution is performed in advance when conditions for substitution are satisfied, and when manual substitution is performed. FIG. 13 shows a state in which member jobs for distributed printing or the like are divided into two and issued as described above.

  Further, when the despooler 701 issues a job to each member printer, it is necessary to create a DEVMODE for each member printer as a print instruction corresponding to the member printer driver. This DEVMODE is described in the print instruction section 6-a. The generated contents are appropriately reflected in the DEVMODE of each member printer.

  In this way, the job control print service 622 receives the PDL data of each member job rendered by the PDL driver 602 via the job control port monitor 621, informs the server of information regarding the received job, and sets the job data Is temporarily held in its own proxy output queue (Proxy Output Port) 712. Thereafter, after receiving a transmission instruction from the job control server 630, it is transmitted to the print device 650.

  Next, a method for acquiring printer information displayed by the group printer driver 2301 will be described.

  A printer information management unit 704 in the print job control system 700 shown in FIG. 13 acquires and manages the printer information input by the user during setup and the device status from the job control server 630. It also stores information on the OS on the server on which the print job control system 700 operates and its version information, and information on the printer driver version of each member printer that actually generates the print job.

  Information managed by the printer information management unit 704 also exists in the client as the printer information management unit 2304. The printer information management unit 2304 can communicate with the printer information management unit 704 in the server. A solid line 23-j indicates the relationship.

  The group printer driver 2301 calls the API of the printer information management unit 2304 in the client to acquire the printer information. On the other hand, the printer information management unit 2304, which has been called by the API, inquires the printer information management unit 704 on the server via the route 23-j, acquires the printer information, and returns it to the group printer driver.

  The printer information can be updated by the printer information management unit 2304 dynamically inquiring of the job control server 630 according to an instruction from the group printer driver 2301, or the printer information management unit 2304 can perform job control. A method of automatically updating in response to a notification from the server 630 may be used.

  Here, a print job control system 700 that uses a plurality of printer drivers having a printer area having a storage area composed of a common setting area and an extended setting area in this embodiment and performs print processing such as distribution, broadcast, and substitution. The UI control of the printer driver for the above will be described.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing UI control of the group printer driver. First, if there is a UI display request from the application to the group printer driver 2301 at the client, the process proceeds to step S1401, and the ID of the member printer driver constituting the group printer driver is inquired by the API of the print job control system 700, and all The identification ID of the member printer driver is acquired. Similarly, information on the server OS, OS version, and driver version of each member printer is also acquired. Further, the OS and OS version of the own client device and the printer driver version of each member printer driver on the server may be acquired from within the own device.

  In step S1402, the member printer driver capability is acquired from the identification ID of each member printer driver registered for the group printer driver. In other words, for all member printer drivers that make up a group printer, the driver function can be acquired up to the extended area of the driver setting information and the driver UI can be controlled, or a “function-controllable driver”. Reads whether “driver that cannot control the function” other than. At the same time, the server OS / OS version and the printer driver version of each member printer driver on the server are compared with the client OS / OS version and the printer driver version of each member printer driver on the client to set the printer driver. Investigate whether the detailed DEVMODE is compatible with the server / client. The processing in step S1402 can prevent inconvenience caused by a difference in environment in the printing system such as a difference in OS type and printer driver version between the server and the client.

  The server OS, the OS version, and the printer driver version of each member printer driver on the server may be acquired from the server via the communication line before step S1402, or the steps S1004 and step described above may be used. The server OS and OS version acquired in S1005 and the printer driver version of each member printer driver on the server may be used.

  Normally, it can be determined that the client / server is compatible when the same OS is used for the client / server and the printer driver version of all member printer drivers of the server is newer than the printer driver version of each member printer driver of the client.

  On the other hand, it is assumed that there is no compatibility when the OS differs between the server and the client. Further, if any printer driver version in the server is lower than any printer driver version in the client, it can be determined that there is no compatibility. If there is no compatibility, print data with limited print settings is transferred from the client to the server.

  In the following description, compatibility means that the version of each member printer driver on the server is all newer than the version of each member printer driver on the client, and the client instructs the server to perform predetermined processing. This means that free instructions can be given.

  In step S1403, the configuration of the member printer is determined based on the function control availability information read in step S1402 and the driver compatibility between the server and the client. If the driver is composed of only “function-controllable drivers”, the process proceeds to step S1404. Otherwise, the process proceeds to step S1405.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram showing the correspondence between the configuration of member printers and settable items in this embodiment. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating correspondence between common setting items / extended setting items and each setting item.

  In this embodiment, the common setting items are classified and defined as items existing in the common setting area, and the extended setting items are classified as items existing in the extended setting area. However, there is a difference between OSs operating the print job control system. Depending on the type of setting item, the setting item may be different or the settable item may be changed. Needless to say, this UI control is effective.

  Returning to FIG. 14, in step S <b> 1404, UI display is performed when the member printer is configured with only “drivers capable of function control”.

  FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing details of step S1404. In step S1801, the member printer driver is inquired about the capability regarding each common setting item, the function conflict process is performed, and an item to be displayed on the group printer driver UI is selected based on the result.

  Note that the function conflict processing is to check the presence / absence of each setting item (function) for each member printer driver that is the target of the group printer, and when all the target member printer drivers have a function, In the group printer driver UI, the function is handled as a settable item, and if there is one that does not have a function, the item is treated as an unsettable item.

  Here, the above-described UI control will be described using a specific example shown in FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 17, the printer driver A represents a group printer driver, the printer drivers B, C, and D represent member printer drivers that constitute the group printer driver, respectively. This shows whether the member printer driver supports the bookbinding printing function, the staple printing function, and the punching function.

  First, focusing on the bookbinding printing function, the member printer drivers B and D have the bookbinding printing function, but the member printer driver C does not have the function, so the bookbinding printing function of the group printer driver A is “none”. . Next, since all the member printer drivers B, C, and D have the stapling function, the stapling function of the group printer driver A is “present”. Similarly, since all the member printer drivers B, C and D have no punch function, the punch function of the group printer driver A is “none”.

  In step S1802, the printer driver compatibility between the server and the client shown in step S1402 is checked. Based on this check result, it is determined which item (function) of each member printer driver is to be subjected to conflict processing for the extended setting item. In step S1803 or step S1805, conflict processing is performed between the member printer drivers for the function extension setting item determined based on the result of step S1802. If it is determined in step S1802 that there is no driver compatibility between the server and the client, only the items that can be set at any time among the extended setting items are targets, and the other extended setting items are regarded as having no function.

  FIG. 16 shows the relationship between items that can be always set (functions) in the extension setting items and items (functions) that cannot be set when the driver is incompatible.

  Next, in step S1804 or step S1806, items that do not have a function among a plurality of member printer drivers as a result of the above-described conflict are grayed out so that settings cannot be performed on the UI, or UI control such as non-display is performed, and UI control is not performed for items having functions.

  FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating an example in which setting items are grayed out by UI control. In FIG. 21, a dialog box for setting items such as double-sided printing and bookbinding printing is a portion subjected to UI control. Note that the display control is not limited to the gray-out display control, but can be applied to a control for non-display.

  Further, in step S1804 or step S1806, UI control is performed so that a combination that cannot be functionally set, such as punching when “bookbinding printing” is designated, or stapling designation, cannot be set by the user's designation. Inconsistency shall not occur.

  In step S1807, when an item that does not have a setting item on the group printer driver UI is opened and the member printer UI is set in detail, the member printer to be set is specified on the group printer driver UI. In step S1808, the member printer driver UI specified in step S1807 is opened, and detailed settings are made.

  Steps S1807 and S1808 are meaningful only when the settings are compatible between the server and the client. Therefore, if there is no driver compatibility between the server and the client, the member printer is selected in the step S1806. It is displayed so that it cannot be specified and opened.

In addition, when the member printer driver UI is opened, items that can be set by the group printer driver can also be set. If the same function is set for both, the processing is doubled. Display with control.
(1) When a member printer is a “function-controllable driver”, items that conflict with setting items on the group printer driver UI are grayed out so that settings cannot be made on the member printer driver UI. Alternatively, UI control is performed as non-display.
(2) When the member printer is a “driver that cannot control the function”, the common setting items are displayed in the UI with the settings set by the member printer driver. If the item is changed on the member printer driver UI after the UI is displayed, the setting item information set in the group printer driver is overwritten on the common setting item of the corresponding member printer driver when the member printer driver UI is closed. However, the setting change on the member printer driver UI is not allowed.

  Further, when performing the overwriting process, it is possible to display a warning that the setting change on the member printer driver UI is invalid.

  In this step, since all target member printers are “function-controllable drivers”, the UI control (1) is performed.

  Next, detailed UI display processing when the member printer cannot perform function control in step S1405 shown in FIG. 14 will be described.

  FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing detailed processing of step S1405. Here, unlike the case of step S1404, the member printer driver configuration is a mixture of “driver capable of function control” and “driver not capable of function control”. Accordingly, the items that can be set by the group printer driver UI are limited to basic setting items that allow common reading and writing of setting information.

  First, in step S1901, in the same way as in step S1801 described above, an inquiry is made about the capability of each member printer driver regarding each common setting item, function conflict processing is performed, and the items to be displayed on the group printer driver UI are determined based on the result. Make a selection. Next, in step S1902, it is determined based on the printer driver compatibility check result shown in step S1403 described above whether UI display of each member printer driver is possible.

  In step S1903 or step S1904, group printer driver UI display is performed based on the result of the UI conflict processing performed in step S1901. As a result of the conflict processing, items that do not have a function and extended setting items are grayed out or hidden so that settings cannot be performed on the UI.

  Next, in step S1905, the user can open the UI of the member printer for advanced setting items and setting items unique to each member printer, which cannot be set, and perform detailed settings. Here, a member printer to be set is designated on the group printer driver UI. In step S1906, the member printer driver UI designated in step S1905 is opened and detailed settings are made.

  Steps S1905 and S1906 are meaningful only when the settings are compatible between the server and the client. If there is no driver compatibility between the server and the client, the member printer is specified in the step S1904. And display so that it cannot be opened.

  FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing detailed processing of step S1906. In step S2001, the member printer driver type is determined. If the target driver is a “function-controllable driver”, the process proceeds to step S2002. Otherwise, the process proceeds to 2003.

  In step S2002, the common setting item UI of the member printer driver is controlled in accordance with the rule (1) described in step S1808. Specifically, UI display is performed by performing UI grayout control or the like on the common setting items, and detailed setting is performed.

  In step S2003, the common setting item UI of the member printer driver is controlled in accordance with the rule (2) described in step S1808. The UI display with this step is performed and detailed settings are made.

  Returning to FIG. 14, it is determined in step S1406 whether or not the setting has been completed. If the setting has not been completed, the process proceeds to step S1411. If there is, the process returns to step S1403. If all settings are completed on the group printer driver UI and the setting end button is clicked, the process advances to step S1407.

In step S1407, it is checked whether the items set in the group printer are consistent as the setting items of each member printer driver. For example,
In the printer A, the position that can be stapled on the A4 sheet is only the upper left of the sheet. In the printer B, the position that can be stapled on the A4 sheet is only the lower left of the sheet.

  In step S1407, in addition to conflict checking for combinations that cannot be set for each member printer, items set on the group printer driver UI for each member printer driver are reflected as setting items for each member printer driver. The member printer driver is checked to see if it is possible.

  In step S1408, the result of the conflict check in step S1407 is determined. If the setting items set on the group printer driver UI are valid for all the member printers, the group printer driver UI is set. End the display. If it is determined that there is a conflicting item in the setting items, the process advances to step S1409 to “reset the setting item on the group printer driver UI or perform print processing with the current setting item? ”And a reset button and a force button are displayed on the UI. In step S1410, it is determined which of the reset button and the force button has been pressed. If the reset button is pressed, the process proceeds to step S1411. If the member printer configuration is reset, the process returns to step S1402. If the configuration remains unchanged, the process returns to step S1403. When the force button is pressed, the display of the group printer driver UI is terminated.

  Next, the relationship between the recording of information set by the above-described UI and the general-purpose print file shown in FIG. 6 will be described.

  In the present embodiment, for the information set by the UI described above, the group printer driver setting information (DEVMODE) is the print format instruction unit in the general-purpose print file described with reference to FIG. To be recorded. Also, the driver setting information (DEVMODE) of each member printer is recorded in the member printer driver information setting section of the member printer in the general-purpose print file for both the common area and the extended area.

  Thereafter, the general-purpose print file is used for print processing using the above-described print job control system, and printing in this embodiment can be performed.

  Although the display control in the group printer driver has been described in the present embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a user interface of a single printer driver for causing a predetermined print device to perform print output It is also possible to apply to.

  In other words, the optimum function item according to the compatibility of the environment such as the OS type and print driver version between the server and the client is selected, and the selected function item can be set as a function item that can be set for the single printer driver. By reflecting in the UI display, in a client computer in a printing system comprising a client computer capable of communicating with a server that generates print data and a server capable of communicating with a printer, the type of OS and printer driver of the server and client computer It is realized that an optimum function item corresponding to the compatibility of the environment such as the version is selected and a display reflecting the selected function item is displayed on the print setting screen.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, one virtual processing system controls a print job for a plurality of image input / output devices bundled in one virtual image input / output device. When the printer (group printer) is set as a shared printer and the printer information of each member set on the server can be acquired and displayed on the client side, the print settings that are not actually effective are displayed by the user. It is possible to control the UI so that the group printer driver and the member printer driver can be set more easily.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the user is provided with a printing environment that prevents inconveniences caused by environmental differences in the printing system, such as differences in the type of OS and printer driver between the server and the client. be able to.

  Even if the present invention is applied to a system constituted by a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, an interface device, a reader, a printer, etc.), it is applied to an apparatus (for example, a copying machine, a facsimile machine, etc.) comprising a single device. It may be applied.

  Another object of the present invention is to supply a recording medium recording software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and store the computer (CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus in the recording medium. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by reading and executing the programmed program code.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the recording medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the recording medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

  As a recording medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like is used. be able to.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (operating system) operating on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Further, after the program code read from the recording medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the information processing system in this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the information processing apparatus in this embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the memory map of RAM202 shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a memory map of the FD 204 illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a relationship of an FD 204 inserted into the FD drive 203 shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of 1 structure of the general purpose print file in this embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a group printer driver UI according to the present exemplary embodiment, and is a screen illustrating a page setting sheet. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a group printer driver UI according to the present exemplary embodiment, and is a screen illustrating an output method sheet. 4 is a flowchart illustrating setup of group printer drivers and member printer drivers in a server. 6 is a flowchart showing installation of a shared printer on a client PC. It is a figure which shows an example of the setup screen at the time of performing shared installation in a client PC. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a printer management information table in the present embodiment. FIG. It is a figure which shows how the print job issued from the application is processed in the print job control system of this embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating UI control of a group printer driver. It is a figure which shows the structure of the member printer in this embodiment, and a response | compatibility with a settable item. It is a figure which shows a response | compatibility with a common setting item and an extended setting item, and each setting item. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a method for determining the presence or absence of a group printer driver function based on the presence or absence of a function of each member printer driver. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of step S1404. It is a flowchart which shows the detailed process of step S1405. It is a flowchart which shows the detailed process of step S1906. It is a figure which shows an example which displayed the setting item in gray-out by UI control.

Explanation of symbols

101 Server 102 Client 103 Client 104 Client 105 Network Printer 106 Network 200 CPU
201 ROM
202 RAM
203 FD drive 204 Flexible disk (FD)
205 Hard disk (HD)
206 Keyboard 207 Display 208 System bus 209 Interface

Claims (8)

A print setting method in a printing system including a plurality of printers, a print server device, and a computer,
A screen control step of controlling the display of a user interface screen for setting the print settings for the print function of the plurality of printers to users as a group to or members of the plurality of printers for each printer,
An ability inquiry step for inquiring the ability of a printer driver corresponding to the plurality of printers;
An environment information collecting step for collecting the environment of the print server device,
In the screen control process, and the ability of the printer driver according to the capability inquiry step, depending on the environment of the print server device by said environment information collecting step, and determining the item of settable print settings not valid item A print setting method characterized by controlling the display of the user interface screen by graying out or hiding so that the user cannot set the print settings. The print setting method according to claim 1 , wherein the environment of the print server apparatus is at least operating system version information or printer driver version information. The environmental information aggregating step includes a server environment information collecting step of collecting the environment of the print server on the print server, and a print environment information receiving step of receiving the environment of the print server through a network or memory on the client device The print setting method according to claim 1 , further comprising: A server device communicate with available-computer for generating print data, a print setting method in a printing system consisting of communicable with the server apparatus and the printer,
A print setting method, comprising: a screen control step for causing a print setting screen to perform display reflecting function items according to environmental compatibility between the server device and the computer. A computer in a printing system comprising a plurality of printers, a print server device and a computer,
A screen control means for controlling the display of a user interface screen for setting the user as a group to or members of the plurality of printers for each printer the print settings for the print function of the plurality of printers,
Ability inquiry means for inquiring the ability of a printer driver corresponding to the plurality of printers;
Environmental information collection means for collecting the environment of the print server device,
The screen control means determines print setting items that can be set according to the respective capabilities of the printer driver inquired by the ability inquiry means and the environment of the print server device collected by the environment information collection means. , computer and controlling the display of the user interface screen in the gray-out display or non-display so that the user can not set the print setting items are not valid. A server device communicate with available-computer for generating print data, a computer in a printing system consisting of communicable with the server apparatus and the printer,
A computer comprising screen control means for causing a print setting screen to perform display reflecting function items according to environmental compatibility between the server device and the computer. A program for causing a computer to execute the print setting method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 . A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to claim 7 is recorded.

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