CN112278927B

CN112278927B - Printing device

Info

Publication number: CN112278927B
Application number: CN202010716477.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 小川秀明
Original assignee: Riso Kagaku Corp
Current assignee: Riso Kagaku Corp
Priority date: 2019-07-24
Filing date: 2020-07-23
Publication date: 2022-08-16
Anticipated expiration: 2040-07-23
Also published as: CN112278927A; JP2021020746A; JP7281358B2

Abstract

The invention provides a printing device, which can reduce the downtime caused by the judgment that the printing setting is not matched and the printing is stopped when a plurality of medium accommodating parts are appointed in the printing operation. The printing apparatus includes a control unit and a supply tray as an example of a plurality of medium storage units for storing media. When a print job in which a plurality of candidate settings for supplying media from two or more designated supply trays among the plurality of supply trays are performed is input and a reject setting that does not accept the plurality of candidate settings has been performed for some of the two or more supply trays designated among the plurality of candidate settings (step S5: no), the control unit performs control for supplying media to a supply tray in which the reject setting is not performed among the two or more supply trays designated among the plurality of candidate settings (step S6).

Description

Printing device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a printing apparatus including a plurality of medium storage units.

Background

Conventionally, the following techniques are known: in an image forming apparatus, a plurality of paper feed accommodating units are grouped, and when the end of paper is detected in any one of the paper feed accommodating units in the group, the paper feed is switched to another paper feed accommodating unit in the group (for example, see patent document 1).

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2009-256077

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In addition, consider, for example, the following: in a print job set by a user terminal, a plurality of candidate settings are performed for designating a plurality of candidates of a medium storing section to be used among a plurality of medium storing sections storing a medium such as paper. In the plurality of candidate settings, by supplying a medium used for printing from any one of the designated plurality of medium accommodating units, even if the medium of one medium accommodating unit is not left, the medium can be supplied from the other medium accommodating unit.

On the other hand, in the printing apparatus, for example, when a medium different from the medium stored in another medium storing section, such as paper or rough paper having a folding line, is stored, it is desirable to perform setting not to accept a plurality of candidate settings for each medium storing section.

However, when a plurality of medium storing sections are designated among a plurality of candidate settings for a print job and a printing apparatus has performed a setting that does not accept the plurality of candidate settings on a part of the designated plurality of medium storing sections, the print job cannot be executed as a printing system, and it is determined that the print settings do not match and printing is stopped. Thus, the user needs to re-designate the medium storage unit or the like in the print job, for example, and the printing apparatus is down.

The invention aims to provide a printing device which can reduce the downtime caused by the judgment that the printing setting is not matched and the printing is stopped when a plurality of medium accommodating parts are appointed in the printing operation.

Means for solving the problems

In one aspect, a printing apparatus includes: a plurality of medium accommodating sections for accommodating a medium; and a control unit configured to, when a print job in which a plurality of candidate settings for supplying the medium from two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of medium accommodating units are input and a reject setting in which the plurality of candidate settings are not accepted has been performed for some of the two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of candidate settings, perform control for causing the medium not subjected to the reject setting to be supplied to the medium among the two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of candidate settings.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the above aspect, when a plurality of media storage units are designated in a print job, it is possible to reduce the downtime caused by the printing stop due to a determination that the print settings do not match.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a printing apparatus according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a main control configuration of a printing apparatus and a user terminal according to an embodiment.

Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a plurality of setting candidates according to an embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart for explaining a process of determining a supply tray to be used in one embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a correspondence relationship between a plurality of candidate settings between print job settings and printing apparatus settings in one embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing the correspondence relationship of a plurality of candidate settings between print job settings and printing apparatus settings in the comparative example.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the correspondence relationship of a plurality of candidate settings between print job settings and printing apparatus settings in a modification of the embodiment.

Description of the reference numerals

1: a printing device; 10: a medium supply unit; 20: a first printing section; 21: a conveying roller pair; 22: a print head; 23: an adsorption conveying part; 24. 25: a conveying path switching part; 26: a turning-back roller pair; 27: a discharge supply tray; 28(28a, 28b, 28 c): a medium supply unit; 30: a first intermediate conveyance section; 31: a conveying roller pair; 32: a turning-back roller pair; 40: a second printing section; 41: a conveying roller pair; 42: a print head; 43: an adsorption conveying part; 44: a conveying path switching part; 45: a turning-back roller pair; 46(46a, 46b, 46 c): a medium supply unit; 50: a second intermediate conveyance section; 51: a conveying roller pair; 52: a turning-back roller pair; 60: a medium discharge unit; 61: a discharge supply tray; 62: an upper surface detection sensor; 63: a supply tray lifting drive part; 71: a control unit; 100: a user terminal; HF. T1-T6: a supply tray; m: a medium.

Detailed Description

A printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a printing apparatus 1 according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing a main control configuration of the printing apparatus 1 and the user terminal 100.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the printing apparatus 1 includes a medium supply unit 10, a first printing unit 20, a first intermediate conveyance unit 30, a second printing unit 40, a second intermediate conveyance unit 50, and a medium discharge unit 60. As shown in fig. 2, the printing apparatus 1 further includes a control unit 71, a storage unit 72, an input unit 73, a display unit 74, and an interface unit 75.

As shown in fig. 1, the medium supply unit 10, the first printing unit 20, the first intermediate conveyance unit 30, the second printing unit 40, the second intermediate conveyance unit 50, and the medium discharge unit 60 are arranged in series in the conveyance direction of the medium M as a discrete sheet (paper), for example. The conveyance direction of the medium M is the right direction in fig. 1. In fig. 1, the straight conveyance paths R1, R4-1, R5, R8-1 and the discharge path R9 of the medium M are indicated by solid lines, the circulating conveyance paths R2 and R6 are indicated by two-dot chain lines, and the reversing conveyance paths R3, R4-2, R7 and R8-2 are indicated by broken lines.

In fig. 1, the medium supply unit 10, the first printing unit 20, the first intermediate conveyance unit 30, the second printing unit 40, the second intermediate conveyance unit 50, and the medium discharge unit 60 are each illustrated as having a separate housing, but a plurality of these may be integrally disposed in a common housing.

The medium supply unit 10 has a supply tray HF for stacking the medium M before printing. The supply tray HF is disposed upstream of the first printing section 20 in the conveyance direction of the medium M, and is an example of a medium storage section (first medium storage section) for storing the medium M. Although not shown, a conveyance member such as a roller for taking out and conveying the uppermost medium M among the plurality of media M stacked on the supply tray HF, a supply drive unit (e.g., an actuator) such as a motor for driving the conveyance member, and the like are disposed in the medium supply portion 10.

The first printing unit 20 includes a plurality of pairs of conveying roller pairs 21, a print head 22, an adsorption conveying unit 23, conveying path switching units 24 and 25, a return roller pair 26, a discharge supply tray 27, and three medium supply units 28(28a, 28b, and 28c), and the first printing unit 20 performs printing on the medium M.

The pair of conveyance rollers 21 is arranged in a plurality of pairs in the first printing section 20, and the pair of conveyance rollers 21 conveys the medium M while sandwiching the medium M therebetween.

The print head 22 includes, for example, line-type inkjet heads, not shown, for printing, which are distinguished for each color. The print head 22 prints on the medium M using inks of basic colors such as CMYK and gray (inks of non-magnetic inks). The printing method of the print head 22 may be a printing method other than the inkjet printing method. That is, the print head 22 is only one example of the printing unit, and the printing unit is not limited to the print head 22.

The suction conveying unit 23 is disposed to face the print head 22. The suction conveying unit 23 conveys the medium M by the belt while adsorbing the medium M. The suction conveying unit 23 is an example of a conveying unit that conveys the medium M. The conveying means may be a means that does not perform suction.

One conveyance path switching unit 24 switches the conveyance path of the medium M printed by the print head 22 between a straight conveyance path R1 for continuing conveyance to the first intermediate conveyance unit 30 and a circulating conveyance path R2 for continuing conveyance to the discharge supply tray 27 and the reverse conveyance path R3.

The other conveyance path switching section 25 switches the circulating conveyance path R2 of the medium M between a conveyance path for continuing conveyance to the discharge supply tray 27 and a conveyance path for continuing conveyance to the reverse conveyance path R3 in which the front and back surfaces of the medium M are reversed by the switchback roller pair 26. The medium M whose front and back surfaces have been reversed in the reversing conveyance path R3 is conveyed to the print head 22 again.

The medium M that is not discharged to the medium discharge portion 60 is stacked on the discharge supply tray 27.

The three media supplies 28(28a, 28b, 28c) each have a supply tray T1, T2, T3 for stacking the media M before printing. The supply trays T1, T2, and T3 are disposed in the first printing portion 20, and are examples of a medium storage portion (first medium storage portion) for storing the medium M. The medium supply unit 28 is provided with a conveyance member such as a roller for taking out and conveying the uppermost medium M among the plurality of media M stacked on the supply trays T1, T2, and T3, a supply drive unit (e.g., an actuator) such as a motor for driving the conveyance member, and the like.

The first intermediate conveyance section 30 includes a pair of return rollers 32 and a plurality of pairs of conveyance rollers 31.

The conveying roller pair 31 conveys the medium M discharged from the first printing portion 20 while sandwiching the medium M.

The conveyance path switching mechanism, not shown, of the first intermediate conveyance section 30 switches the conveyance path between a straight conveyance path R4-1 for conveying the medium M discharged from the first printing section 20 to the second printing section 40 as it is, and an inverted conveyance path R4-2 for inverting the front and back sides of the medium M by the switchback roller pair 32, the straight conveyance path R4-1 being a path for conveying the medium M to the second printing section 40.

The second printing portion 40 can have the same configuration as the first printing portion 20. For example, the second printing section 40 includes a print head 42, an adsorption conveying section 43, a conveying path switching section 44, a return roller pair 45, and a plurality of pairs of conveying roller pairs 41, as in the first printing section 20. The second printing unit 40 does not have the discharge supply tray 27 and the conveyance path switching unit 25 for switching the conveyance path to the discharge supply tray 27, unlike the first printing unit 20, but the second printing unit 40 may have the discharge supply tray 27 and the conveyance path switching unit 25 similarly to the first printing unit 20. The second printing unit 40 is disposed downstream of the first printing unit 20 in the conveyance direction of the medium M as described above, and prints on the medium M. Although three medium supply units 46(46a, 46b, and 46c) of the second printing unit 40 are illustrated in fig. 1 and 2, they may be omitted in this embodiment because they are not used.

The printing apparatus 1 includes two printing portions, i.e., the first printing portion 20 and the second printing portion 40, but may include only one printing portion or three or more printing portions.

The conveying roller pair 41 is provided in a plurality of pairs in the second printing portion 40, and the conveying roller pair 41 conveys the medium M while sandwiching the medium M.

The print head 42 is an example of a printing unit, and includes, for example, line-type inkjet heads, not shown, for printing, which are distinguished for each color. The print head 42 prints on the medium M using, for example, CMYK, gray ink (ink of non-magnetic ink) or special ink. The special ink is, for example, Magnetic ink such as MICR (Magnetic ink character recognition) ink. Alternatively, the special ink is ink of a color other than the basic color, such as clear ink, UV ink, or the like.

The suction conveying unit 43 is disposed to face the print head 42. The suction conveying unit 43 conveys the medium M by the belt while adsorbing the medium M. The suction conveying unit 43 is an example of a conveying unit that conveys the medium M. The conveyance unit may be a unit that does not perform suction.

The conveyance path switching unit 44 switches the conveyance path of the medium M printed by the print head 42 between a straight conveyance path R5 for continuing conveyance to the second intermediate conveyance unit 50 and a loop conveyance path R6 for continuing conveyance to the reverse conveyance path R7.

The switchback roller pair 45 reverses the front and back of the medium M in the reversing conveyance path R7. The medium M whose front and back sides have been reversed in the reversing conveyance path R7 is conveyed to the print head 42 again.

The three media supplies 46(46a, 46b, 46c) each have a supply tray T4, T5, T6 for stacking the media M before printing. The supply trays T4, T5, and T6 are disposed in the second printing portion 40, and are an example of a medium storage portion (second medium storage portion) for storing the medium M. The medium supply unit 46 is provided with a conveyance member such as a roller for taking out and conveying the uppermost medium M among the plurality of media M stacked on the supply trays T4, T5, and T6, a supply drive unit (e.g., an actuator) such as a motor for driving the conveyance member, and the like.

The second intermediate conveyance section 50 includes a pair of return rollers 52 and a plurality of pairs of conveyance rollers 51.

The conveying roller pair 51 conveys the medium M discharged from the second printing portion 40 while sandwiching the medium M.

The conveyance path switching mechanism, not shown, of the second intermediate conveyance section 50 switches the conveyance path between a straight conveyance path R8-1 for conveying the medium M discharged from the second printing section 40 to the medium discharge section 60 as it is, and an inverted conveyance path R8-2 for inverting the front and back sides of the medium M by the switchback roller pair 52, the straight conveyance path R8-1 being a path for conveying the medium M to the medium discharge section 60.

The medium discharge unit 60 includes a discharge supply tray 61, an upper surface detection sensor 62, and a supply tray elevation drive unit 63 shown in fig. 2.

The media M discharged from the second intermediate conveyance unit 50, that is, the printed media M, are stacked in order on the discharge supply tray 61. The discharge supply tray 61 is moved up and down by the supply tray up-and-down driving unit 63. The discharge and supply tray 61 may be a belt conveyor, a roller conveyor, or the like for stacking the media M, that is, a discharge and supply tray having a conveying unit.

The upper surface detection sensor 62 is a sensor for detecting the height of the stacking surface on the discharge supply tray 61, that is, the height of the uppermost medium M (the height of the upper surface of the discharge supply tray 61 in a state where the medium M is not stacked). The upper surface detection sensor 62 includes, for example, a light emitting portion that horizontally irradiates light (shown by a broken line in fig. 1) at a height position that is a desired stacking surface, and a light receiving portion that receives the light. When the light emitted from the light emitting portion of the upper surface detection sensor 62 is blocked by the medium M and the light receiving portion of the upper surface detection sensor 62 does not receive the light, the control portion 71 described later controls the supply tray elevation driving portion 63 to lower the discharge supply tray 61 by, for example, a height corresponding to several media M.

The supply tray elevation driving unit 63 shown in fig. 2 is used to elevate the discharge supply tray 61. The supply tray lifting/lowering drive unit 63 is an actuator such as a motor.

The control section 71 includes a processor (e.g., a Central Processing Unit (CPU)) functioning as an arithmetic Processing device for controlling the operation of the entire printing apparatus 1, and the control section 71 controls the operation of each section such as the first printing section 20 and the second printing section 40. Details of the control unit 71 will be described later.

The storage unit 72 is, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory) which is a Read Only semiconductor Memory in which a predetermined control program is recorded in advance, a RAM (Random Access Memory) which is a semiconductor Memory which can be Read and written at any time and is used as a work Memory area as needed when a processor executes various control programs, or the like.

The input unit 73 has, for example, operation keys for performing various operations, and accepts input of various operation information by the user. For example, the following settings are input to the input unit 73 for the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 (first medium accommodating units) for supplying the medium M: the setting of a plurality of candidate settings for designating a plurality of supply trays in a print job is accepted, or the setting of rejection of a plurality of candidate settings for designating a plurality of supply trays in a print job is not accepted.

The display unit 74 is a display for displaying various information. The operation panel having a touch panel can serve as both the input unit 73 and the display unit 74.

The interface unit 75 transmits and receives various kinds of information to and from an external device such as the user terminal 100 (interface unit 150) connected wirelessly or by wire via a network, for example. For example, the interface unit 75 may receive (input) a print job including image data and settings (individual specification or a plurality of candidate settings) of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 to be used from the user terminal 100. In this way, the control section 71 can acquire information of the inputted print job. The print job may be input to the input unit 73 of the printing apparatus 1.

The control unit 71, the storage unit 72, the input unit 73, the display unit 74, and the interface unit 75 may be disposed integrally with the first printing unit 20 or the second printing unit 40, or may be disposed separately from the first printing unit 20 and the second printing unit 40, for example.

The user terminal 100 includes a control unit 110, a storage unit 120, an input unit 130, a display unit 140, and an interface unit 150, and functions as an RIP (Raster image processor) controller, for example. The user terminal 100 is, for example, a stationary terminal such as a desktop personal computer, or a portable terminal such as a smart phone, a tablet terminal, or a notebook computer.

The control unit 110 has a processor (e.g., CPU) functioning as an arithmetic processing device that controls the operation of the entire user terminal 100.

The storage unit 120 is, for example, a ROM that is a read-only semiconductor memory in which a predetermined control program is recorded in advance, a RAM that is a semiconductor memory that can be read and written at any time and is used as a work storage area as needed when the processor executes various control programs, or the like.

The input unit 130 is, for example, a keyboard device or a mouse device, and receives input of various operation information by a user.

The display unit 140 is a display for displaying various information.

The interface unit 150 transmits and receives various kinds of information to and from an external device such as the printing apparatus 1 (interface unit 75) connected wirelessly or by wire via a network, for example.

Next, the determination of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 used in the printing apparatus 1 will be described without omitting items overlapping with the above description as appropriate.

Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a plurality of setting candidates.

First, a user sets a print job in the input unit 130 of the user terminal 100 shown in fig. 2, for example. The print job includes image data and setting information of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 to be used. The designated supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 may be a single supply tray (individual setting) or a plurality of supply trays (a plurality of candidate settings). In the present embodiment, the supply trays T4, T5, and T6 disposed in the second printing section 40 are not used.

In the example of fig. 3, in the print job of 4 pages each having image data, the supply tray HF is designated individually for page 1, some of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3, that is, two or more supply trays of the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 are designated for pages 2 and 3, and all of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 are designated for page 4.

In the printing apparatus 1, for example, a setting (ON) to accept a plurality of candidate settings for a print job or a setting (OFF) to reject a plurality of candidate settings for a print job has been selected in advance by the administrator of the printing apparatus 1 for each of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3. For example, the administrator sets a reject (OFF) for a supply tray in which the type of the medium M (e.g., whether there is a folding line, the paper material of plain paper, rough paper, etc.) is different from the type of the medium M of another supply tray. The media M accommodated in the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 have the same size. If a supply tray accommodating a medium M of a size different from that of the medium M designated in the print job is designated among the plurality of candidate settings, the supply tray is preferably excluded from the supply trays to be used even if the supply tray is set to accept the plurality of candidate settings.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the decision processing of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, T3 to be used.

When the print job is input, the control section 71 determines whether or not a plurality of candidate settings are made in the print job for each page, for example (step S1). As shown in page 1 of fig. 3, when the supply tray HF is designated individually in the print job (step S1: no), the control unit 71 causes the designated individual supply tray HF to supply the medium M (step S2) even if the reject setting (OFF) has been performed for the supply tray HF in the printing apparatus setting, and ends the processing shown in fig. 4.

When the plurality of candidate settings are made as in pages 2 to 4 (step S1: yes), control unit 71 determines whether or not the setting (ON) for accepting the plurality of candidate settings has been made for all designated supply trays (step S3). When the printing apparatus 1 has performed setting (ON) of accepting a plurality of candidate settings for all of the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 designated in the print job as in pages 2 and 3 of fig. 3 (yes in step S3), the control unit 71 causes any of the designated supply trays T1, T2, and T3 to supply the tray supply medium M (step S4), and ends the processing shown in fig. 4.

If the setting (ON) to accept the plurality of candidate settings is not performed for all the designated supply trays (no in step S3), control unit 71 determines whether or not a reject setting (OFF) to not accept the plurality of candidate settings is performed for all the designated supply trays (step S5). When the reject setting (OFF) is performed for only some of the designated supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3, that is, for supply tray HF as in page 4 of fig. 3 (no in step S5), control unit 71 causes any of supply trays T1, T2, and T3, for which no reject setting has been performed, other than the supply tray HF for which the reject setting has been performed, to supply tray supply medium M (step S6), and ends the processing shown in fig. 4.

Further, when the reject setting (OFF) has been made for all the specified supply trays without accepting the plurality of candidate settings (step S5: "YES"), the control section 71 regards the "error" as not supplying the medium M and ends the processing shown in FIG. 4. In the case of this error, since the printing apparatus 1 determines that the print setting is not matched and does not perform printing, for example, the user terminal 100 may be notified of an error state from the printing apparatus 1 and the user may be prompted to re-designate the supply tray in the user terminal 100.

As described above, a print job in which a plurality of candidate settings specifying two or more of the plurality of supply trays HF, T1, T2, T3 are performed with respect to page 4 of fig. 3 is input (step S1: "yes" of fig. 4 described above), and rejection setting (OFF) is performed not to accept the plurality of candidate settings for a part of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, T3 specified in the plurality of candidate settings, that is, the supply tray HF (step S3, S5: "no"). In this case, the control section 71 performs first control of causing any one of the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 for which the reject setting (OFF) has not been performed, among the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, to supply the tray supply medium M (step S6). The first control is control in which the control unit 71 causes the medium supply unit 28(28a, 28b, 28c) to supply the medium M. When any one of the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 is to supply the tray supply medium M, the control unit 71 may supply the medium M from the same supply tray in the order of supply trays T1, T2, and T3 until the supply tray becomes empty, or may replace the supply tray of the supply medium M according to the conditions such as the fixed number of sheets or the fixed time. In addition, the control unit 71 may set a priority between the supply trays such as supplying the media M in order from the supply tray having the large number of accommodated sheets of the media M when the supply tray HF can accommodate more media M than the other supply trays T1, T2, and T3.

The control unit 71 may perform the second control of notifying the sheet 4 of the supply tray HF that is specified among the plurality of candidate settings and has been subjected to the reject setting (OFF). The second control is, for example, control in which the control unit 71 notifies the user terminal 100 of information on the supply tray HF. The user terminal 100 can make the user recognize that the reject setting (OFF) of the supply tray HF has been performed, for example, by displaying the notified supply tray HF on the display unit 140. The second control may be control in which the control unit 71 causes the display unit 74 of the printing apparatus 1 to display information on the supply tray HF, control in which an audio output unit, not shown, of the printing apparatus 1 outputs information on the supply tray HF by audio, or the like.

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the correspondence relationship between a plurality of candidate settings between print job settings and printing apparatus settings in the present embodiment.

In the present embodiment of fig. 5, as described above, only when all of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings have been set for rejection (step S5: "no") is regarded as "error" (step S7).

In the comparative example of fig. 6, not only the case where all of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings are rejected (step S5: no) is regarded as "error" in the present embodiment of fig. 5, but also the case where some of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings are rejected without accepting the plurality of candidate settings (step S5: yes) is regarded as "error".

In the example of fig. 3, the medium storage portions (supply trays) designated in the plurality of candidate settings of the print job are the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 for page 2 and page 3, and the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 for page 4. In the printing apparatus 1, the setting (ON) for accepting a plurality of candidate settings is selected for the supply trays T1, T2, and T3, and the reject setting (OFF) for not accepting a plurality of candidate settings is selected for the supply tray HF.

Therefore, pages 2 and 3 correspond to the 8 th column from the top (ON: setting of plural candidate settings: T1+ T2+ T3) of the 4 th row from the top in FIG. 5 (plural candidate settings: supply tray T1+ T2+ T3), and the tray supply medium M is supplied from any one of supply trays T1, T2, and T3. This is the same for the comparative example of fig. 6.

In addition, since page 4 corresponds to the 8 th column from the bottom of fig. 5 (left column 8 of the plurality of candidate settings: supply tray HF + T1+ T2+ T3) (receives the setting (ON) of the plurality of candidate settings: T1+ T2+ T3), the medium M is supplied from any one of supply trays T1, T2, and T3. On the other hand, in the comparative example of fig. 6, since the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings include the supply tray HF for which the reject setting has been made, the supply tray HF corresponds to the bottom 1 st row and the left 8 th column of fig. 6 and is regarded as "error".

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the correspondence relationship between a plurality of candidate settings between print job settings and printing apparatus settings in the modification of the present embodiment.

In the modification shown in fig. 7, when the supply tray HF as an example of the predetermined specific medium storage unit is included in the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, the first control is performed only when the reject setting (OFF) is not performed for the specific supply tray HF. That is, when the specific supply tray HF is specified among the plurality of candidate settings and the reject setting has been made (the area of the upper 5 th to 11 th rows and the left 2 nd to 8 th columns surrounded by the dotted line in fig. 7), all of them are regarded as "errors". Otherwise, the same as the case of fig. 5 is applied.

Further, in the present modification, the above-described first control is performed only when the reject setting (OFF) is not performed for the supply tray HF, which is an example of the specific medium storing portion, but the first control may be performed such that the supply tray HF supplies the medium M first when the supply tray HF, which is an example of the predetermined specific medium storing portion, is included in the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, differently from this example. The specific medium supplying unit may be, for example, a medium storing unit that stores a large amount of remaining media M, a medium storing unit that stores a large amount of stackable media M, a medium storing unit that stores a medium M oriented in the same direction as the image data, or the like.

In the embodiment described above, the printing apparatus 1 includes the control unit 71 and the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 as examples of a plurality of medium storage units that store the medium M. When a print job in which a plurality of candidate settings for the medium M are supplied from two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated among the plurality of supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 is input and a reject setting that does not accept the plurality of candidate settings has been performed for some of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated among the plurality of candidate settings (for example, supply tray HF) (no in step S5 in fig. 4), the control unit 71 performs control (first control) for supplying the medium M to the supply tray not subjected to the reject setting (for example, supply trays T1, T2, and T3) among the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated among the plurality of candidate settings (step S6).

Thus, when a reject setting is performed for the supply tray HF that is a part of the plurality of supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings of the print job, and does not accept the plurality of candidate settings, the medium M can be supplied from the remaining supply trays T1, T2, and T3 for which the reject setting is not performed. In contrast, in the comparative example of fig. 6, when a reject setting is made for the supply tray HF that is a part of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated as the plurality of candidate settings of the print job, and the plurality of candidate settings are not accepted, it is determined that the print settings are not matched and the medium M cannot be supplied. Thus, the user must specify the supply tray again in the print job. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce the downtime caused by the printing stop when it is determined that the printing settings do not match when a plurality of supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 are designated in the print job.

In the present embodiment, the control unit 71 notifies the supply tray (for example, the supply tray HF) that is designated among the plurality of candidate settings and has been subjected to the reject setting. This makes it possible for the user to recognize that a reject setting is performed for the supply tray HF that is a part of the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated among the plurality of candidate settings for the print job, without accepting the plurality of candidate settings. Therefore, the user can further reduce the downtime of the printing apparatus 1 by taking a countermeasure such as removing the notified supply tray HF from the specification of the plurality of candidate settings.

In the modification of the present embodiment, when the supply tray HF as an example of the predetermined specific medium supply unit is included in the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, the control unit 71 performs the above control only when the rejection setting is not performed for the specific supply tray HF. Thus, for example, it is possible to avoid that the supply tray HF accommodating a large number of media M is no longer the object of use due to being regarded as "wrong" in the case where the supply tray HF capable of accommodating more media M than the other supply trays T1, T2, T3 is specified among a plurality of candidate settings and has been subjected to the reject setting. In this manner, the use priority of the specific supply tray HF can be made higher than the use priorities of the other supply trays T1, T2, and T3.

When the supply tray HF, which is an example of a predetermined specific medium storage portion, is included in the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, the control unit 71 performs the above control so that the supply tray HF supplies the medium M first. This makes it possible to set the use priority of the specific supply tray HF higher than the use priorities of the other supply trays T1, T2, and T3. This priority may be increased, for example, to reduce the number of times of tray switching by increasing the priority of trays having a large remaining amount of media M. Alternatively, the priority of the tray provided with the medium M oriented in the same direction as the image data may be increased to prevent a decrease in productivity due to image rotation.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the printing apparatus 1 further includes: a first printing unit 20 that prints on the medium M; and a second printing unit 40 disposed downstream of the first printing unit 20 in the conveyance direction of the medium M and configured to print on the medium M. The plurality of supply trays HF, T1 to T6 are supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 as examples of two or more medium storage units (first medium storage units) disposed on the upstream side of the first printing unit 20, the second printing unit 40, or the first printing unit 20 in the transport direction. When a reject setting has been performed for some of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings, the control section 71 performs the above-described control of causing the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 arranged on the upstream side of the first printing section 20 or the first printing section 20 in the conveyance direction, which are not subjected to the reject setting, of the two or more supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 designated in the plurality of candidate settings to supply the medium M. As described above, when duplex printing is performed at high speed using two printing units (the first printing unit 20 and the second printing unit 40), the control unit 71 performs the first control using the supply trays T1, T2, and T3 disposed in the first printing unit 20 and the supply tray HF disposed upstream of the first printing unit 20, without using the supply trays T4, T5, and T6, even if the supply trays T4, T5, and T6 disposed in the second printing unit 40 downstream of the first printing unit 20 are present. This can simplify the control of the duplex printing. In the case of using the supply trays T4, T5, and T6 disposed in the second printing unit 40, for example, when the supply tray for the supply medium M is changed from the supply trays HF, T1, T2, and T3 to the supply trays T4, T5, and T6, the process of deleting the print job of the first printing unit 20 and changing the print job to the print job of the second printing unit 40 occurs. In addition, when the ink used in the second printing portion 40 is an ink such as a special ink (for example, a magnetic ink such as an MICR ink, an ink of a color other than a basic color such as a clear ink, a UV ink, or the like) different from the ink used in the first printing portion 20, the second printing portion 40 performs printing that should be performed by the first printing portion 20. The present invention can also avoid these situations.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be embodied by modifying the components in the implementation stage without departing from the scope of the present invention. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriate combinations of a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments. For example, all the components described in the embodiments may be combined as appropriate. It is needless to say that various modifications and applications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Hereinafter, the invention described in the claims of the original application of the present application will be described.

[ additional notes 1]

A printing apparatus is characterized by comprising:

a plurality of medium accommodating sections for accommodating a medium; and

and a control unit configured to, when a print job in which a plurality of candidate settings for supplying the medium from two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of medium accommodating units are input and a reject setting in which the plurality of candidate settings are not accepted has been performed for some of the two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of candidate settings, perform control for causing the medium to be supplied to the medium from the medium accommodating unit not subjected to the reject setting among the two or more of the medium accommodating units designated by the plurality of candidate settings.

[ appendix 2]

The printing apparatus according to supplementary note 1, wherein,

the control unit notifies the medium accommodating unit that is specified from among the plurality of candidate settings and has been subjected to the reject setting.

[ additional notes 3]

The printing apparatus according to

supplementary note

1 or 2, wherein,

when a predetermined specific medium accommodating portion is included in the two or more medium accommodating portions specified in the plurality of candidate settings, the control portion performs the control such that the specific medium accommodating portion supplies the medium first.

[ additional notes 4]

The printing apparatus according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 3, wherein,

the printing apparatus further includes:

a first printing unit that prints on the medium; and

a second printing unit that is disposed downstream of the first printing unit in a conveyance direction of the medium and prints on the medium,

wherein the plurality of medium accommodating units are two or more medium accommodating units disposed on an upstream side of the first printing unit in the transport direction,

when the reject setting has been performed for a part of the two or more medium accommodating sections designated in the plurality of candidate settings, the control section performs the control of causing the medium to be supplied to the medium accommodating section disposed on the upstream side of the first printing section or the first printing section in the conveying direction, which is not subjected to the reject setting, of the two or more medium accommodating sections designated in the plurality of candidate settings.

Claims

1. A printing apparatus is characterized by comprising:

a plurality of medium accommodating sections for accommodating a medium; and

2. Printing device according to claim 1,

3. Printing device according to claim 1 or 2,

4. Printing device according to claim 1 or 2,

the printing apparatus further includes:

a first printing unit that prints on the medium; and

wherein the plurality of medium storing sections are two or more medium storing sections arranged on the upstream side of the first printing section in the transport direction,