JP4908053B2 - Printing system, printing method and printing processing program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system, a printing method, and a printing processing program for directly printing file data described in a page description language PDL (Page Description Language).

  With the recent development of electrophotographic page printers that are suitable for digital printing, which has been reduced in size and speed, the same handling of rasters, graphics, characters, etc., which has evolved from conventional character-centered printing, and graphics, characters, etc. Printing processing apparatuses using a description language in which enlargement, rotation, deformation, etc. can be freely controlled have become widespread.

  This kind of description language is represented by Acrobat (trademark of Adobe Systems), PDF (Portable Document Format) represented by GDI (GraphicsDevice Interface: Trademark of Microsoft), or PostScript (trademark of Adobe Systems). There is a page description language (PDL).

  For example, a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”) can print a document file stored in a hard disk by transmitting it to a printer via a network such as a LAN.

  In this case, the document file is usually stored in print data described in PDL (Page Description Language) such as PostScript (trademark of Adobe Systems) that can be analyzed by a printer by a printer driver installed on a PC. It is sent after being converted.

  On the other hand, as a document file distributed on the Internet, a PDF file that can reproduce the same appearance as the original document regardless of the type of hardware or application has become widespread. This PDF file includes an object that can be arranged in the file in an order different from the page order, and reference information indicating the position of the object in the file, and defines a page composed of predetermined objects.

  By the way, a PDF file may have data of several hundred pages, for example. When such a PDF file having a particularly large data size is converted to print data on a PC, the conversion takes time, the processing becomes complicated, and the data size increases due to the conversion, resulting in an increase in data transfer time. For this reason, the load on the PC increases. In order to reduce the load on the PC, there has been proposed a printer capable of directly printing a PDF file transmitted from the PC to the printer without being converted to print data (hereinafter referred to as “PDF direct print”). .

  However, since an object related to data to be printed can be arranged in the file regardless of the page order in the PDF file, and reference information indicating the position of the object in the file is arranged at the end of the file, The printer can print only after receiving the entire PDF file. For this reason, the printer may not be able to receive the entire PDF file due to insufficient memory capacity (usable capacity or free capacity) and cannot execute printing.

  In relation to this problem, there is known an apparatus for reconfiguring the contents of a PDF file so that it can be displayed on the display in order from the received data without receiving the entire PDF file. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In addition, there is a print layout application in which various original documents created by an application program are collected as one document, and management of the document itself and output management are facilitated (see Patent Document 2, etc.).

  In the print layout application, after the original document to be printed is captured as the text, the captured text is usually fixed and the text of the original document cannot be edited. With the print layout application, it was possible to perform only editing related to the appearance of the document, such as layout setting, finishing information addition, annotation data addition, etc., with the body text fixed.

Japanese National Patent Publication No. 11-502954 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-091518

  By the way, when printing an electronic document created by PDF, a dedicated utility is used, and the utility actually transmits the PDF file to the printing machine to perform printing.

  At that time, when the user designates an option depending on drawing such as “background pattern” and “water mark” for the utility, the utility generally takes two methods.

  Method 1: The PDF document is not directly changed, but is realized by adding function ON information of the functions of the printing press called “background pattern printing” and “watermark” to a part of job information other than the PDF file.

  In this method 1, there is a restriction that a picture other than the function of the printing machine cannot be displayed, and the function does not work unless the printing machine main body supports “background pattern printing” or “water mark”.

  Method 2: The utility analyzes the PDF document, changes the PDF with the pattern, characters, “background pattern”, and “watermark” desired by the user as a part of the PDF document, and transmits the data to the printing press.

  In Method 2, various options can be added to the utility, so it is considered a good system that can be expanded in the future.

  However, if the PDF file is changed and a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern or a water mark is added, for example, if the layout is changed, the size of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern or the water mark differs. Here, the layout change means N-UP (2UP, 4UP, etc., where there are multiple pages in one sheet) or catalog printing (when 8 pages of PDF, 1 page and 8 pages are the same page, 2 or 3 pages, 4 or 5 pages, 6 or 7 pages become the same page, and the booklet print (page sort method that becomes a book) or booklet printing (if 8 pages PDF, 1, 8 pages) , 7, 2 pages, 3, 6 pages, 5 pages, 4 pages, and so on.

  When the layout is changed and when a background pattern and a water mark are added, the background pattern is reduced to a small size, and the water mark is attached to each page, which is not the result intended by the user.

  Therefore, in view of the conventional situation as described above, the present invention performs printing appropriately by rearranging PDF so that a background pattern is added to the original PDF data in a printing system that directly prints a PDF file. To be able to.

  Other objects of the present invention and specific advantages obtained by the present invention will become more apparent from the description of embodiments described below.

The present invention includes a client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. Additional pattern generation means for generating an additional pattern, print layout selection means for selecting a print layout, and a client that determines whether or not the PDF file to be processed is encrypted, and performs decryption processing when it is encrypted a side decode processing means analyzes the decoded processing object PDF file by processing target PDF file or the client-side decoding section unencrypted, the print layout additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generating means Add according to the print layout selected by the selection means The processing performed to a PDF file recreating means for creating again PDF file, the PDF file that contains the additional pattern matching the selected print layout by the print layout selection means created by the PDF file recreating unit Between an encryption processing means for encrypting with an arbitrary encryption key and a printing machine for decoding the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means and printing the file data described in the PDF The decryption key for decrypting the PDF file containing the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file containing the encrypted additional pattern in accordance with the predetermined rule defined in the above. it and a PDF file sending means for sending to the machine, the printing machine, the client A printing unit side decoding means for decoding the PDF file with the decryption key which includes said encrypted the additional pattern sent from preparative, PDF containing the additional pattern decoded by the printer-side decoding section file, or directly the file data written in the PDF in the PDF file that contains the additional pattern unencrypted sent from the client at a selected print layout by the print layout selection means together with the additional pattern it comprises a printing means for printing, the client sends to the printer a PDF file that contains the additional pattern matching the print layout selected by the print layout selection means is made by the PDF file recreating unit A printing system, wherein the client When the processing target PDF file is encrypted, the processing target PDF file is decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit and decrypted by the PDF file re-creation unit by the client side decryption processing unit. The PDF file including the additional pattern created by the PDF file re-creating unit is encrypted differently from the original encryption key by the above-described encryption processing unit. The decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit is added to the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the PDF file sending unit. Sent to the printing machine, and the printing machine sent from the client. The PDF file containing the encrypted additional pattern is decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means with the decryption key, and the PDF file containing the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means The file data described in the PDF is directly printed by the print processing means together with the additional pattern in the print layout selected by the print layout selection means .

The present invention also includes a client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. The client determines whether an additional pattern generation unit that generates an additional pattern, a print layout selection unit that selects a print layout, and whether or not the processing target PDF file is encrypted. And analyzing the unprocessed PDF file to be processed or the PDF file to be processed decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit, and adding the additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generation unit. It matches the print layout selected by the print layout selection means. A PDF file re-creating unit that re-creates the PDF file by applying the processing to be added, and an additional pattern adapted to the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit created by the PDF file re-creating unit An encryption processing unit that encrypts a PDF file with an arbitrary encryption key, and a printing machine that decrypts the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit and prints the file data described in the PDF And a decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted. And a PDF file sending means for sending to the printing machine. A printer-side decryption processing unit that decrypts the encrypted PDF-containing additional pattern sent from the client with the decryption key, and a PDF that includes the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing unit The file data described in the PDF of the file or the PDF file including the unencrypted additional pattern sent from the client is directly displayed in the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern. The print processing means for printing is provided, and the client creates a PDF file including an additional pattern in accordance with the print layout selected by the print layout selection means by the PDF file re-creation means and sends it to the printing machine. The printing method in the printing system When the processing target PDF file is encrypted in the client, the processing target PDF file is decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit, and the PDF file recreating unit decrypts the processing target PDF file by the client side decryption processing unit. The processed PDF file is analyzed, processed, processed again, a PDF file is generated again, and the PDF file including the additional pattern generated by the PDF file re-creating unit is restored to the original by the encryption processing unit. The additional pattern obtained by encrypting the decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means by the PDF file sending means is encrypted with an encryption key different from the encryption key. Add to the included PDF file and send to the printer to print In the printing machine, the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern sent from the client is decrypted by the printing press side decryption processing means with the decryption key, and the decrypted by the printing press side decryption processing means. The file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the additional pattern is directly printed by the print processing unit with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern .

Furthermore, the present invention includes a client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. The client determines whether an additional pattern generation unit that generates an additional pattern, a print layout selection unit that selects a print layout, and whether or not the processing target PDF file is encrypted. And analyzing the unprocessed PDF file to be processed or the PDF file to be processed decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit, and adding the additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generation unit. Match the print layout selected by the print layout selection means. A PDF file re-creating unit that re-creates a PDF file again, and an additional pattern that matches the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit created by the PDF file re-creating unit. An encryption processing unit that encrypts a PDF file with an arbitrary encryption key, and a printing machine that decrypts the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit and prints the file data described in the PDF And a decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted. And a PDF file sending means for sending to the printing machine. A printer-side decryption processing unit for decrypting the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern sent from the client with the decryption key, and a PDF including the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing unit The file data described in the PDF of the file or the PDF file including the unencrypted additional pattern sent from the client is directly displayed in the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern. The print processing means for printing is provided, and the client creates a PDF file including an additional pattern in accordance with the print layout selected by the print layout selection means by the PDF file re-creation means and sends it to the printing machine. in the printing system, the above-mentioned class The file data described in PDF sent to the printing press from the ant, a printing process program for executing a printing process to print directly in the printing machine file data described in PDF, in the client, processing target PDF When the file is encrypted, the client side decryption processing unit decrypts the processing target PDF file, and the PDF file re-creation unit analyzes the processing target PDF file decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit. The PDF file including the additional pattern created by the PDF file re-creating unit is encrypted with an encryption key different from the original encryption key by the encryption processing unit. And the encryption process is performed by the PDF file sending means. The decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the means is added to the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted and sent to the printing machine. The printing machine sends the decryption key from the client. The PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern is decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means with the decryption key, and the PDF file including the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means The file data described in the PDF is directly printed by the print processing means together with the additional pattern in the print layout selected by the print layout selection means .

Originally, it is a format that does not have a size due to the nature of PDF, so that an image can be enlarged / reduced and printed without affecting the size and layout of the print medium. However, when reconstructing a background pattern and a water mark by using a PDF direct printing function, it is used only for printing purposes, and therefore, an image in consideration of the final shape can be added to the PDF for printing. In the present invention, the size of the background pattern to be output can be fixed regardless of the layout selected by the user, and the size of the background pattern can be accurately established.
In addition, according to the present invention, when the client attaches additional information such as a background pattern or a water mark to the PDF file to be processed and creates a new PDF file with the additional information, the PDF file to be processed is encrypted. If the processing target PDF file is once decrypted, an additional pattern is added, and then a new PDF file is created by encryption, and the printing machine transmits the additional pattern sent from the client. When the included PDF file is encrypted, the PDF file is decrypted with a new decryption key, and the file data described in the PDF is directly printed with an additional pattern. , Can prevent the contents of PDF file printing from being analyzed, and has an engine-specific background pattern Turned into re-PDF the image, the other to the diversion, it is possible to so that it can not be diverted.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the following examples, and can be arbitrarily changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, for example, the present invention is a printing system in which a client 110 for which a user instructs printing and an image forming apparatus (printing machine) 120 are connected via a network 130 such as a LAN so that they can communicate with each other. 100. Note that the image forming apparatus 120 may be directly connected to the client 110 via a USB interface or a parallel interface without via the network 130.

  The client 110 is, for example, a so-called personal computer, and as shown in FIG. 2, a CPU 111 for controlling the entire apparatus and various arithmetic processes, a ROM 112 for storing programs and data, and a program and data temporarily as a work area. RAM 113 for storing various data, a hard disk 114 as an external storage device for storing various programs and data, a display unit 115 such as a liquid crystal display for displaying various information, and a keyboard and mouse for inputting various instructions An input unit 116 including a network interface 117 such as a LAN card for connecting to the network 130 is connected to each other via a bus 118.

  In addition, as shown in the block diagram of FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus 120 includes a CPU 121 that controls the entire apparatus and various arithmetic processes, a ROM 122 that stores programs and data, and temporarily stores programs and data as work areas. A variety of data is printed on a recording material such as a sheet using a RAM 123 for storing, an operation panel unit 124 used for displaying various information and inputting various instructions, and a known image forming process such as an electrophotographic process. The printing unit 125 and the network interface 126 such as a LAN card for connecting to the network 130 are connected to each other via a bus 127.

  In the printing system 100, the client 110 is installed with a PDF direct printing utility 10 having the following functions.

  The PDF direct printing utility 10 installed in the client 110 performs user-designated duplex printing, resolution, finish options, etc. on the PDF file designated by the user on the PDF direct printing utility screen 20 shown in FIG. A device information addition function 11 for adding device information is provided. Further, the PDF direct printing utility 10 analyzes a PDF file when a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern print function and a watermark-added print function 12 are specified, adds a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern and a watermark, and creates a PDF file again. 13 is provided. The PDF direct printing utility 10 includes a decryption processing function 14 for decrypting an encrypted PDF file with a decryption key designated by the user, and an encryption processing function 15 for encrypting with an arbitrary encryption key. . Further, the PDF direct printing utility 10 can acquire the printer model to be printed and other information from the connected printer driver. Further, the PDF direct printing utility includes a decryption key selection function 16 that selects a decryption key by public key verification with the image forming apparatus 120. Further, the PDF direct printing utility 10 includes a print layout selection function 17 for selecting a print layout on the print setting screen 25 shown in FIG. There are a plurality of layouts that can be selected on the print setting screen 25 shown in FIG. 5, “same size printing”, “print with paper”, “catalog print right close”, “catalog print left close”, “booklet print right close”, “booklet print” “Close Left” can be selected. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, this PDF file has an N-Up item, and the number of pages of one page can be selected as 1, 2, and 4.

  The PDF direct printing utility 10 performs processing according to the procedure (steps S1 to S8) shown in the flowchart of FIG.

  That is, the PDF direct printing utility 10 first converts various device control information into a device control code of the image forming apparatus 120 and stores it as output data in step S1.

  In the next step S2, the screen status of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing option and the watermark option is checked to determine whether either the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing option or the watermark option is selected.

  If the determination result in step S2 is NO, that is, if neither the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing option nor the water mark option is selected, the process proceeds to step S9 to set a PDF file as output data.

  If the determination result in step S2 is YES, that is, if either the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing option or the water mark option is selected, that is, if it is determined that the PDF file itself needs to be recreated, In step S3, it is determined whether or not the PDF file to be processed specified by the user is encrypted.

  If the determination result in step S3 is NO, that is, if the file is not encrypted, the process proceeds to step S5, and the PDF file itself is recreated by adding a background pattern printing option or a water mark to the PDF file designated by the user. Create a new PDF file.

  If the determination result in step S3 is NO, that is, if encryption is performed, in step S4, the decryption key 1 input on the screen is used to decrypt the FDF file to be processed, and then the above step In S5, a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing option or a water mark is added to the decrypted PDF file to be processed to recreate the PDF file itself, and create a new PDF file.

  In the next step S6, it is determined whether or not the encryption key has been acquired.

  If the determination result in step S6 is YES, that is, if the printer and its PDF file already have a public encryption key in the utility, the process proceeds to step S8, and the key is used to comply with the PDF rules. The PDF file is encrypted, and the decryption key is set as output data in accordance with the original rule exchanged between the image forming apparatus 120 and the utility.

  If the determination result in step S6 is NO, that is, if the encryption key has not been acquired, communication with the image forming apparatus 120 is acquired in step S7, and the encryption key cannot be acquired. After generating a random encryption key, the process proceeds to step S8, where the key is used to encrypt the PDF file according to the PDF rules, and the decryption key is acquired between the image forming apparatus 120 and the utility. Set the output data according to the exchanged original rules. In this case, the new decryption key 2 is used instead of the decryption key 1 used when generating the PDF.

  In the next step S9, a PDF file is set in the output data.

  In the next step S10, the output data is sent to the image forming apparatus 120.

  In step S5, the PDF direct printing utility 10 in the printing system 100 processes the PDF file according to the procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG. 8, for example.

  The flowchart in FIG. 8 is a processing flow of the PDF direct printing utility 10 when performing tint block printing.

  Here, in the normal output, the background pattern is a technique in which a picture or a character drawn with the same darkness as the background as shown in FIG. 9A rises as shown in FIG. 9B when copied. That is.

  When the PDF direct printing utility 10 enters the processing of the PDF file (step S5), first, in step S51, the manufacturer information is read from the internal information of the printer driver connected to the PDF file, and whether or not it is own. Determine whether.

  If the determination result in this step S51 is NO, that is, it is determined that it is not the company's own, the tint block and water mark processing is not performed, and the processing is ended as it is. PDF processing is not performed for other companies' printing machines.

  If the determination result in step S51 is YES, that is, if it can be determined that the printer is in-house, the process proceeds to step S52, and the background information of the background pattern and the character density information are acquired from the information held by the connected driver. Determine if you can.

  If the decision result in this step S52 is YES, that is, if the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern information can be acquired from the printing press driver, the process proceeds to step S55, and the background of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern and the character density are determined from the information held by the connected driver. To generate a tint block pattern.

  If the determination result in step S52 is NO, that is, if the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern information cannot be acquired from the printer driver, the process proceeds to step S53, and whether or not there is copy-forgery-inhibited pattern and character density information in the utility as model information. Determine whether.

  If the determination result in this step S53 is YES, that is, if there is copy-forgery-inhibited pattern information in the utility, the process proceeds to step S55, and the background of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern and the character density are determined from the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern information in the utility. Is generated.

  If the determination result in step S53 is NO, that is, if there is no copy-forgery-inhibited pattern information in the utility, basic device information is read in step S54, and the process proceeds to step S55, based on the basic device information. The background pattern of the background pattern and the character density are determined to generate a background pattern.

  In the next step S56, a background pattern or a water mark of each page is given in consideration of the final layout.

  In the next step S57, the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern pattern generated in step S55 is added to the PDF file to be processed specified by the user as a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern print option, and the PDF file itself is recreated to create a new PDF file.

  That is, in this printing system 100, the direct printing utility 10 installed in the client 110 checks the target printing machine 120, acquires it from the connected printing machine driver information, and obtains the appropriate “background pattern”, “ The density of “Watermark” printing is automatically selected. Appropriate “background pattern” and “watermark” print images selected by the above process are taken into the PDF file to be processed selected by the user. Specifically, the PDF file itself to be printed selected by the user is directly analyzed and developed by the print utility 10, converted into an image with “background pattern” and “watermark”, and converted to PDF again.

  When the direct printing utility 10 converts the PDF file again, the PDF file is encrypted. The decryption key at that time is selected by some means and does not require user input. The user is not informed of the decryption key. By using this method, the user can obtain the best “background pattern” and “water mark” printing results without being aware of the printing press.

  In the printing system 100, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10, a new PDF file created by the direct printing utility 10 is selected in various attachment methods based on the final layout information in step S56.

  That is, in step S56, it is first determined what the final layout is (step S60), and based on the determination result, the background pattern and the water mark to be added are changed according to the final layout.

  When the final layout is the same size printing (step S61), the same background pattern or water mark is given to all pages. The print image is shown in FIG.

  If the final layout is enlargement / reduction printing according to the paper (step S62), the current paper size is inquired of the printing press, and a background pattern and a water mark are assigned according to the size. The print image is shown in FIG. If big, tiling. If it is small, only a part is finished.

  If the final layout is right-closed for catalog printing (step S63), the first page and the final even page are assigned 100% background pattern / watermark. The second page to the last -1 page are paired by two pages, and the left side of the double-colored background pattern / watermark is assigned to the odd page, and the right side is assigned to the even page. The print image is shown in FIG.

  If the final layout is a catalog print left-closed (step S64), the first page and the final even page are assigned 100% background pattern / watermark. The second page to the last -1 page are paired by two pages, and the right side of the double-colored copy-forgery-inhibited pattern / watermark is assigned to the odd page and the left side is assigned to the even page. The print image is shown in FIG.

  If the final layout is a booklet left-closed (step S64), the last even page and the first page are paired, and the second page and the final -1 are used for right-closed bookbinding printing. As shown, the left and right sides of the same background pattern / water mark with the same printed area are attached. The print image is shown in FIG.

  If the final layout is the booklet right-closed (step S64), the first page and the final even-numbered page are paired, and the final -1 and the second page are left-closed for bookbinding printing. As shown, the left and right sides of the same background pattern / water mark with the same printed area are attached. The print image is shown in FIG.

  Further, when the final layout is N-UP printing (step S64), a fragment is added to each page so that the background pattern and the water mark can be properly viewed in the N-Up spread state. The print image is shown in FIG.

  Here, FIG. 18A shows the data structure of normal PDF transfer, and FIG. 18B shows the data structure of encrypted PDF transfer. That is, in the case of normal PDF transfer in which nothing is performed, the transfer data 30 is composed of device setting data 31, a PDF start command 32, and PDF data 33 as shown in FIG. On the other hand, in the case of encrypted PDF transfer, as shown in FIG. 18B, the transfer data 40 includes device setting data 41, a decryption key 42, a PDF start command 43, and PDF data 44. Composed.

  In the printing system 100, the PDF data is encrypted using a PDF file function.

  Here, the structure and interpretation method of the PDF file will be described.

  FIG. 19 is a conceptual diagram showing the structure of a standard PDF file.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the standard PDF file 200 includes a header part 210, a body part 220, a mutual compatibility table 230, and a trailer part 240.

  In the header part 210, a comment starting with “%” is described. From this header section 210, it can be seen that the file format is PDF and the version of the PDF specification to which it conforms.

  The body part 220 is composed of a plurality of objects. An object is an individual element constituting a document. A conceptual diagram of the body portion 220 is shown in FIG. Each object has an object number and its contents, and the contents are actual drawing data. Other objects are numbered from the contents. The first object 221 is defined by the description from “10obj” to “endobj”, and the other objects 222, 223,. Examples of the object include a page object, a page list object, a catalog object, a data object, and a font object.

  As shown in FIG. 21, the cross-reference table 230 is a collection of drawing indices (pointers) that are positions of objects that are data groups each holding a unit. In the cross reference table 230, the position of each object is represented by an offset. Here, the offset refers to the number of bytes from the beginning of the file to the beginning of the data of interest. Thereby, it is possible to randomly access the objects arranged in the body part 220. The cross-reference table 230 starts with a line containing the keyword “xref” in the file.

  The trailer unit 240 is information to be accessed at the start of file analysis. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 22, the trailer unit 240 describes information indicating the position of the cross-reference table 230 in the file and the number of the object to be referred to first. The number shown next to the “startxref” flag is an offset of the cross-reference table 230. This trailer 240 exists at the end of the file and begins with a line containing the keyword “trailer”.

  When interpreting a PDF file, first, the trailer unit 240 existing at the end of the data is always referred to and where the intercompatible table 230 exists in this data is checked.

  That is, when interpreting a PDF file, as shown in FIG. 23, first, the inter-compatible table 230 is searched from the trailer unit 240, the necessary object pointer is determined therein, and the actual state of the object is searched from the pointer. To do.

  Here, FIG. 23 shows a flow of drawing object data search in the data structure of the PDF file shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 22, the trailer unit 240 includes a “startxref” flag indicating where the mutual compatibility table 230 is in the entire data, and uses the value as an index (pointer) from the beginning of the entire data. The data of the intercompatible table 230 can be searched. At this time, a character string “Encrypt” exists in the encrypted PDF file, and the character string does not exist in the non-encrypted PDF file. The encrypted PDF file is actually encrypted in two types: “character string” and “stream” such as an image. The decryption key is common and does not exist in the PDF file. The image forming apparatus 120 uses a decryption key given from the outside. The outside of the image forming apparatus 120 indicates a platform that controls a PDF file printing routine.

  The inter-compatible table 230 includes used object information on each page, and when the target page is printed, the pointer of the target object is known, so the search is performed from the beginning of the entire data.

  As shown in a conceptual diagram of the body portion 220 in FIG. 20, each object has an object number and its contents, and the contents are actual drawing data. When the other object is numbered from the contents, the operation of returning to the mutual compatibility table 230 and searching for the target object is repeated.

  In this way, it is possible to search the intercompatible table 230 from the trailer unit 240, determine a necessary object pointer in the table, and search the actual state of the object from the pointer.

  In this printing system 100, in the case of an in-house driver, since the background shade information on the background pattern and the shade information on the character on the background pattern are stored in accordance with the actual engine as the background pattern correspondence in the driver, it is installed in the client 110. The PDF direct printing utility 10 also has a mechanism for sharing the information. If the background information of the background in the background pattern and the density information of the characters above it cannot be obtained from the printer driver, the fixed information table of the past model owned by itself is used. By doing so, it is possible to print at least the tint pattern of the shade information possessed by the engine characteristics.

  In the printing system 100, when the PDF direct printing utility 10 changes the contents of the PDF file, the PDF file is encrypted and transferred to the image forming apparatus 120. The encryption key and the decryption key for encryption and decryption can be understood only by the image forming apparatus 120 and the PDF direct printing utility 10. When the PDF direct printing utility 10 transmits a modified PDF file to the image forming apparatus 120, the PDF file is always encrypted and transferred, and the decryption key is transferred by a manufacturer's original method, thereby forming an image of another company. The device 120 cannot print. In addition, even if the data can be stolen by monitoring the transfer route, data cannot be printed by other companies. Even if you can print on your own machine and get a printed matter, you cannot know the additional work added by a utility such as a watermark because the PDF file is encrypted. If the PDF file to be printed has already been encrypted, the decryption key input by the user to the PDF direct printing utility 10 is required when the PDF file is recreated. The decryption key used when the PDF direct printing utility 10 re-encrypts is completely different from the one input by the user. Thus, it is possible to prevent other manufacturers from analyzing the contents of the PDF file printing of the PDF direct printing utility 10 by analyzing the tool. That is, an image having an engine-specific copy-forgery-inhibited pattern is converted to PDF, and at that time, a PDF encryption method is used so that it cannot be diverted or diverted. By performing encryption at the time of re-PDF conversion, it is possible to prevent information leakage of PDF on the transfer path, and it is possible to prevent in-house technology from being analyzed by analysts of other companies.

  In this printing system 100, when the utility remodels (reprocesses) the PDF, it is not possible to understand what the user or analyst has done by performing encryption. For this purpose, only an encryption process is used, and the encryption process is not an essential requirement of the present invention.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a printing system including an image forming apparatus and a client to which the present invention is applied. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of the said client. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the image forming apparatus. It is a figure which shows a PDF direct printing utility screen. It is a figure which shows the print setting screen of a PDF direct print utility. It is a figure which shows the selection function of the print layout on the said print setting screen. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of a printing process by the said PDF direct printing utility. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the processing of a PDF file in the case of performing the tint block printing executed by the PDF direct printing utility. It is a figure which shows the result of a background pattern printing typically. 6 is a flowchart showing a procedure for changing an additional pattern in accordance with the final layout of a new PDF file created by a direct printing utility in the printing system. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is equal size printing. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a print image when the final layout is enlargement / reduction printing in accordance with paper. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is catalog printing right closing. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is catalog printing left closing. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is booklet left closing. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is booklet right closing. It is a figure which shows a printing image in case a final layout is N-UP printing. It is a figure which shows the data structure (A) of normal PDF transfer, and the data structure (B) of encryption PDF transfer. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the structure of a standard PDF file. It is a conceptual diagram of the body part in a PDF file. It is a figure which shows the structure of the mutual compatibility table | surface in a PDF file. It is a figure which shows the structure of the trailer part in a PDF file. It is a figure which shows the flow of drawing object data search.

Explanation of symbols

10 PDF direct printing utility,
11 Device information addition function,
12 Water mark added printing function,
13 PDF file re-creation function,
14 Decryption processing function,
15 Encryption processing function
16 Decryption key selection function,
20 PDF direct printing utility screen,
100 printing system,
110 clients,
111 CPU,
112 ROM,
113 RAM,
114 hard disk,
115 display,
116 input section,
120 image forming apparatus,
121 CPU,
122 ROM,
123 RAM,
124 operation panel,
125 printing section,
126 network interface,
127 bus,
130 network,
200 PDF files,
210 header section,
220 body part,
230 Interoperability table,
240 trailer section,
221, 222, 223, object

Claims (3)

A client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. Additional pattern generation means for generating, print layout selection means for selecting a print layout, and client side decryption processing for determining whether or not the PDF file to be processed is encrypted and performing decryption processing when it is encrypted And an unencrypted processing target PDF file or a processing target PDF file decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit , and an additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generation unit is analyzed by the print layout selection unit. Processing to be added according to the selected print layout Subjected to physical, and PDF files recreating means for creating again PDF file, the PDF file a PDF of optionally including an additional pattern matching the print layout selected by created the print layout selection means by recreating unit Specified between an encryption processing unit that encrypts with an encryption key and a printer that decrypts the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit and prints the file data described in the PDF In accordance with the predetermined rule, the decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern and added to the printer. it and a PDF file sending means for sending, the printing press, from the client A printing unit side decode processing means for the PDF file is decrypted with the decryption key is including the encrypted the additional pattern coming, PDF file including the additional pattern decoded by the printer-side decoding unit, or Printing that directly prints the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the unencrypted additional pattern sent from the client with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern A printing system comprising: a processing unit, wherein the client creates a PDF file including an additional pattern in accordance with the print layout selected by the print layout selection unit by the PDF file re-creation unit and sends the PDF file to the printer. There,
When the processing target PDF file is encrypted, the client decrypts the processing target PDF file by the client side decryption processing unit, and decrypts the processing target PDF file by the client side decryption processing unit by the PDF file re-creation unit. The processing target PDF file is analyzed, processed, a PDF file is created again, and the PDF file including the additional pattern created by the PDF file re-creating means is converted into the original encryption key by the encryption processing means. A PDF including the additional pattern obtained by encrypting a decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means by the PDF file sending means. Add it to a file and send it to the printer,
The printing machine decrypts the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern sent from the client with the decryption key by the printing machine side decryption processing means, and decrypts it by the printing machine side decryption processing means. A printing system characterized in that the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the additional pattern is directly printed by the print processing unit with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern . A client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. Additional pattern generation means for generating, print layout selection means for selecting a print layout, and client side decryption processing for determining whether or not the PDF file to be processed is encrypted and performing decryption processing when it is encrypted And an unencrypted processing target PDF file or a processing target PDF file decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit, and an additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generation unit is analyzed by the print layout selection unit. Processing to be added according to the selected print layout A PDF file re-creating unit for re-creating a PDF file by performing processing, and a PDF file including an additional pattern adapted to the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit created by the PDF file re-creating unit Specified between an encryption processing unit that encrypts with an encryption key and a printer that decrypts the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit and prints the file data described in the PDF In accordance with the predetermined rule, the decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern and added to the printer. And a PDF file sending means for sending. A printer-side decryption processing means for decrypting the received PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern with the decryption key, and a PDF file including the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means, or Printing that directly prints the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the unencrypted additional pattern sent from the client with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern A printing system including a processing unit, wherein the client creates a PDF file including an additional pattern in accordance with the print layout selected by the print layout selection unit by the PDF file re-creation unit and sends the PDF file to the printing machine. Printing method,
In the client, when the processing target PDF file is encrypted, the client side decryption processing unit decrypts the processing target PDF file, and the PDF file re-creation unit decrypts the processing target PDF file. The processing target PDF file is analyzed, processed, a PDF file is created again, and the PDF file including the additional pattern created by the PDF file re-creating means is converted into the original encryption key by the encryption processing means. A PDF including the additional pattern obtained by encrypting a decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means by the PDF file sending means. Add it to a file and send it to the printer,
In the printer, the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern sent from the client is decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means with the decryption key, and decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means. A printing method characterized in that the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the additional pattern is directly printed by the print processing unit together with the additional pattern with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit . A client that sends file data described in PDF (Portable Document Format) to a printer, and a printer that directly prints file data described in PDF sent from the client. Additional pattern generation means for generating, print layout selection means for selecting a print layout, and client side decryption processing for determining whether or not the PDF file to be processed is encrypted and performing decryption processing when it is encrypted And an unencrypted processing target PDF file or a processing target PDF file decrypted by the client side decryption processing unit, and an additional pattern generated by the additional pattern generation unit is analyzed by the print layout selection unit. Processing to be added according to the selected print layout A PDF file re-creating unit for re-creating a PDF file by performing processing, and a PDF file including an additional pattern adapted to the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit created by the PDF file re-creating unit Specified between an encryption processing unit that encrypts with an encryption key and a printer that decrypts the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing unit and prints the file data described in the PDF In accordance with the predetermined rule, the decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means is added to the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern and added to the printer. And a PDF file sending means for sending. A printer-side decryption processing means for decrypting the received PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern with the decryption key, and a PDF file including the additional pattern decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means, or Printing that directly prints the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the unencrypted additional pattern sent from the client with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern A printing system comprising processing means, wherein the client creates a PDF file including an additional pattern in accordance with the print layout selected by the print layout selection means by the PDF file re-creation means and sends it to the printing machine. , PDF from the above client A print processing program for executing print processing for sending described file data to a printing machine and printing the file data described in PDF directly on the printing machine,
In the client, when the processing target PDF file is encrypted, the client side decryption processing unit decrypts the processing target PDF file, and the PDF file re-creation unit decrypts the processing target PDF file. The processing target PDF file is analyzed, processed, a PDF file is created again, and the PDF file including the additional pattern created by the PDF file re-creating means is converted into the original encryption key by the encryption processing means. A PDF including the additional pattern obtained by encrypting a decryption key for decrypting the PDF file including the additional pattern encrypted by the encryption processing means by the PDF file sending means. Add it to a file and send it to the printer,
In the printer, the PDF file including the encrypted additional pattern sent from the client is decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means with the decryption key, and decrypted by the printer-side decryption processing means. A print processing program for directly printing the file data described in the PDF of the PDF file including the additional pattern with the print layout selected by the print layout selecting unit together with the additional pattern by the print processing unit. .

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