JP2000148312A - Peripheral equipment controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make easily performable the power on/off, wake-up/sleep-down, and printing job stop of the peripheral equipment of a computer, for example, a printer, by a host with a proper timing. SOLUTION: A printer control box 35 is displayed on a display screen 31 of a host computer, and a power source button 51, a power saving button 53 and a stop button 55 are placed in the control box 35. When a user clicks the power source button 51 with a mouse, a power turn-on or turn-off instruction is transmitted to a printer, and when the user clicks the power saving button 53 in the waiting state of the printer, a wake-up or sleep-down instruction is transmitted to the printer, and when the user clicks the stop button 55 after transmitting a printing job, a stop instruction for the job is transmitted to the printer. Similar buttons 61, 63 and 65 can be placed in a task bar 37, or similar buttons 41, 43 and 45 can be placed in a prescribed application window instead of the printer control box 35.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a technique for controlling a power supply and a power saving function of a peripheral device of a computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There are various types of computer peripheral devices, and in order to use them, it is necessary to turn on their power. In a device such as a page printer that consumes a large amount of power when it is in a state in which it can be operated immediately (hereinafter, referred to as a “wake” state), a power saving function is activated in the standby state, and the standby time continues for a long time. Automatically shifts to a state where power consumption is low (hereinafter referred to as “sleep” state), which cannot be performed immediately (hereinafter referred to as “sleep state”).

[0003]

It is troublesome for the user to turn on the peripheral devices of the computer one by one. Especially, in a small room, peripheral devices such as printers may be placed in a place that is not in the way, such as under a desk, but it is difficult to reach when operating the power switch of the device placed in such a place May be inconvenient. On the other hand, in a large office, peripheral devices may be installed at a place distant from the user's location, and it is troublesome for the user to go to a peripheral device far away for power operation.

In addition, when a device in a sleep state is started to be used by a power saving function, for example, when a print job is sent to a printer in a sleep state, the printer performs a preparation operation such as warm-up and wakes up from the sleep state. Until it returns to (hereinafter, "wake-up")
You will have to wait for quite some time. The long waiting time for the wake-up is unpleasant for the user and adversely affects the work efficiency.

Further, in the case of a printer, there is a case where it is desired to cancel a job after issuing a print job execution command.
However, with modern high-speed printers, once a print job is started, all pages are printed in an instant,
There is also a problem that the user cannot cancel printing in time.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to improve the way in which peripheral devices are controlled so that the efficiency of work of a user using a computer system can be improved.

It is another object of the present invention to enable operations of peripheral devices, such as power on / off, wake-up / sleep-down, and print suspension, to be performed on a host computer remote from the peripheral devices.

Another object of the present invention is to turn on / off the power,
An object of the present invention is to make it possible to easily perform peripheral device operations such as wake-up / sleep-down or print suspension at appropriate timing according to user needs.

It is still another object of the present invention to allow a user to quickly and easily stop printing at a desired point in time.

[0010]

A peripheral device control apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a graphical user interface unit for displaying a power button on a display screen of a computer, and a peripheral unit when the power button is operated by a user. A command unit for sending a power-on command or a power-off command to the device.

According to this peripheral device control device, the power of the peripheral device can be turned on or off by operating a button on the display screen of the computer.

A peripheral device control device according to a second aspect of the present invention includes a graphical user interface unit for displaying a power saving button on a display screen of a computer, and a wake-up instruction to the peripheral device when the power saving button is operated by a user. Or a command unit for transmitting a sleep-down command.

According to this peripheral device control device, the standby peripheral device can be woken up or sleep-down by operating a button on the display screen of the computer.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a printer control device comprising: a graphical user interface unit for displaying a stop button on a display screen of a computer; A print canceling unit that prevents the job from being executed by the printer (for example, deletes the job from the print spool or instructs the printer to stop executing the job).

According to this printer control device, the execution of the print job once issued can be quickly stopped by operating a button on the display screen of the computer.

A peripheral device control device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention includes a monitor unit for monitoring the status of a peripheral device, a control button on a display screen of a computer, and a graphical user for displaying the status of the monitored peripheral device. An interface unit; and an instruction unit that sends a predetermined control instruction to the peripheral device when a control button is operated by a user.

According to this peripheral device control device, not only can the peripheral device be controlled by operating the buttons on the display screen of the computer, but also the status of the peripheral device is displayed on the display screen. Since the user can operate the buttons by knowing the information, accurate control is possible.

In the preferred embodiment, a symbol indicating the monitored state is displayed on the control button. For example, on the power control button, a symbol indicating whether the power of the peripheral device is on or off (for example, the characters “on” and “off”,
Different colors and button shapes for on and off). The button for canceling a print job includes a symbol (for example, a symbol indicating whether a job to be canceled exists).
The button is turned off if there is no target job, and the button is turned on only when there is a target job). Accordingly, the user can be informed of the state of the peripheral device accurately without taking extra space on the screen, and can perform accurate control.

A peripheral device control device according to a sixth aspect of the present invention includes a monitor unit for monitoring the state of a peripheral device, a graphical user interface unit for displaying control buttons on a display screen of a computer, and a control button operated by a user. An instruction unit for sending a predetermined control instruction according to the monitored state of the peripheral device to the peripheral device when the peripheral device is monitored.

According to this peripheral device control device, an appropriate control according to the state of the peripheral device can be performed by operating the buttons on the display screen of the computer. For example, by pressing a power control button on the screen, if the power of the peripheral device is off, it can be turned on, if it is on, it can be turned off,
And so on. Further, for example, when a button for controlling a standby state (wake, sleep) is pressed, if the peripheral device is on standby, it can be sleep-down or wake-up depending on whether it is wake or sleep. That is, if the peripheral device is at work, pressing the button does not cause the peripheral device to sleep.

In a preferred embodiment, the power button, the power save button and the stop button are arranged on the display screen on the desktop or, in principle, in a constantly displayed area (such as the task bar in the case of the Microsoft Windows environment). Alternatively, it is displayed in a dedicated area of a predetermined application (for example, a toolbar in a window of a specific application in a Windows environment). This allows the user to immediately touch those buttons while working on the application,
When necessary, the peripheral devices can be turned on / off, wake-up / sleep-down, and jobs can be stopped immediately.

In a preferred embodiment, the power supply can be turned on / off, wake-up / sleep-down, or stopped in response to a predetermined event in addition to a button operation by the user. For example,
For example, the power supply of peripheral devices is turned on / off in conjunction with the startup or shutdown of a computer, and the wake-up or sleep down is performed in conjunction with the activation or stop of a predetermined application. Thereby, the user's labor can be further reduced.

In the preferred embodiment, a print job to be canceled, which is canceled when the cancel button is pressed, is displayed on the display screen. This allows
The user can accurately grasp whether the print job desired by the user can be canceled.

In a preferred embodiment, a list of print jobs that have not been printed is displayed on the display screen, and the user selects a desired job from the list and then presses the stop button to display only the selected job. Can be stopped. As a result, the user can appropriately select only the desired job and cancel it.

Although the present invention can be typically implemented by a program on a computer, the computer program can be installed or loaded on the computer through various media such as a disk type storage, a semiconductor memory, and a communication network. it can.

[0026]

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of a computer system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

A printer 3 is communicably connected to the host computer 1. The connection between them is one-to-one using a parallel interface or a serial interface.
Connection or a connection using a communication network such as a LAN. The host computer 1 has a printer control device 7 for controlling a power supply, a power saving function, and a printing function of the printer 3. The printer control device 7 is typically implemented as a computer program, but may be dedicated hardware. The printer control device 7 as a computer program can be of a resident type, so that the user can always use the printer control device 7 if the OS of the host computer 1 is started.

The printer control device 7 includes a printer monitor 9
, A power control unit 11, a power saving control unit 13, and a job cancel unit 15. When the printer control device 7 is started, in principle, the printer monitor 9 and the power supply control unit 1
1. All of the power saving control unit 13 and the job canceling unit 15 are activated. The printer control unit 7 provides a graphical user interface displaying a power button, a power saving button, a job cancel button, and the like on a display of the host computer 1 as described later, and an input device such as a mouse 5 or the like for the graphical buttons by the user. In response to this operation, various control operations to be described later are performed.

The printer monitor 9 monitors and stores the current state of the printer 3. There are various states of the printer to be monitored, and the states directly related to the present invention include whether the power is on or off, whether the printer is in a wake state or a sleep state during standby, and whether the printer 3 has received a print job. Of these, there are three types of print jobs for which printing of all pages has not been completed (hereinafter, referred to as “printing not completed” jobs). The printer monitor 9 acquires these printer statuses from the printer 3 by inquiring the printer 3 periodically or as needed.

The power control unit 11 instructs the printer 3 to turn on and off the power. The trigger for issuing a power turn-on or turn-off command is basically a user's mouse operation on a button on the display screen. However, as described later, a specific event occurs (for example, activation and termination of the printer control device 7). ) May be used as a trigger.

The power-saving control unit 13 gives a wake-up or sleep-down command to the printer 2 when the printer 3 is on standby. The trigger of the wake-up or sleep-down instruction is basically a user's mouse operation on a button on the display screen. However, as described later, occurrence of a specific event (for example,
Start and end of a specific application on the host computer) may be used as a trigger.

The job canceling unit 15 cancels the execution of a print job that the user has instructed to execute. If the print job still remains on the print spool (not shown) in the host computer 1, the job is canceled. The job in the spool is deleted or, if the print job has already been sent to the printer 3, a job stop command is sent to the printer 3. The trigger of the job stop command is basically a user's mouse operation on a button on the display screen. However, a specific event occurs (for example, an error occurs in the printer 3, an error in communication with the printer 3 or the like). ) May be used as a trigger.

The printer 3 has an automatic power switch 17,
A power supply circuit 19, a controller 21, and other circuits and mechanisms (hereinafter, referred to as “print engine”) 23 such as a print engine are provided. The power supply circuit 19 supplies power to each section of the printer 3 and includes an automatic power switch 17.
(Of course, also by a manual power switch, not shown). The automatic power switch 17 operates not only when the power supply circuit 19 of the printer 3 is on, but also when the power supply circuit 19 is off (for example, by a rechargeable battery). When the power supply turn-on command is received from No. 1, the power supply circuit 19 is turned on in response to the command. When the power is turned on, the automatic power switch 17 turns off the power supply circuit 19 according to a command from the controller 21. The automatic power switch 17 can be implemented, for example, as dedicated hardware with extremely low power consumption.

The controller 21 performs various controls as described below. That is, when a print job is sent from the host computer 1, the controller 21 processes the print job and drives the print engine 23 to perform printing.
During standby, the controller 21 causes the print engine 23 to sleep down when the standby time continues for a long time or when a sleep down command is received from the host computer 1. The controller 21 wakes up the print engine 23 when a print job comes or a wake-up command comes in the sleep state. At the time of printing, upon receiving a job stop command from the host computer 1, the controller 21 stops execution of the specified job and deletes the job from the printer 3. The controller 21 grasps and stores the current state of the printer 3 at any time, and upon receiving a state request command from the host computer 1,
The latest state is notified to the host computer 1. When the power supply turn-off command is received from the host computer 1, the controller 21 instructs the automatic power switch 17 to finish printing all the jobs already received, and instructs the power supply circuit 1 to
Turn 9 off. The controller 21 is typically implemented by a computer, but at least a part thereof may be implemented by dedicated hardware.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a graphical user interface displayed on the display screen by the printer control device 7 in the host computer 1.

This example is that of a Microsoft Windows environment. A large part of the display screen 31 is an area 32 for work called a desktop, and an edge of the screen is an area 37 for control called a task bar. There is. If the printer control device 7 is running,
A box (hereinafter, referred to as “printer control box”) 35 of the printer control device 7 is open on the desktop 32. If the printer control device 7 is a resident type program, the printer control box 35 is automatically opened when the OS is started (substantially when the host computer 1 is started), and the user intentionally operates the printer control device 7. The printer control box 35 remains open as long as the printer control box 35 is not deleted or the printer control box 35 is not erased. Further, if any application, for example, a word processor is activated, a window 33 of the word processor is also opened on the desktop 32.

In the printer control box 35, there are a power button 51, a power saving button 53, a stop button 55, and a selected job field 35. The power button 51 indicates whether the power circuit 19 of the printer 3 is currently on or off. For example, “ON” is displayed in the illustrated example, so that the power of the printer 3 is on. Means
When the printer power is off, for example, “OFF” is displayed. When the power button 51 displayed as “ON” is pressed (for example, clicked) with the mouse 5, the power control unit 11 of the printer control device 7 issues a power turn-off command to the printer 3, and the power circuit of the printer 3 19 will be turned on. Conversely, the power button 51 is turned "OFF"
When the power button 51 is pressed with the mouse 5 when is displayed, a power-on command is issued to the printer 3 and the power circuit of the printer 3 is turned on.

The power saving button 53 indicates that the state of the printer 3 is currently wake or sleep. For example, in the illustrated example, "open eyes" is displayed, so that the printer 3 is in the wake state. In the sleep state, for example, “closed eyes” (reference numeral 87 in FIG. 6) is displayed. When the power saving button 53 on which the “open eyes” is displayed is pressed with the mouse 5, the power saving control unit 13 of the printer control device 7 issues a sleep down command to the printer 3, and the printer 3 sleeps down. . Conversely, if the power-saving button 53 is pressed with the mouse 5 while “closed eyes” is displayed on the power-saving button 53, a wake-up command is issued to the printer 3, and the printer 3 wakes up. When the printer 3 is printing (processing a print job), the power saving button 53 may display a message to that effect (for example, “open / close eyes”). Sleepdown can be configured to cause sleepdown after completing all jobs.

The stop button 55 is operated by the host computer 1
Is turned on when there is an unprinted job remaining in the print spool or the printer 3, and the lighted stop button 5
When the mouse 5 is pressed with the mouse 5, the job canceling unit 15 of the printer control device 7 performs a canceling process on the selected job field 57. The canceling process includes erasing the job from the print spool and issuing a command to cancel the job to the printer 3.

The selected job field 57 is a column for displaying a print job to be canceled. Since "File A" is displayed in the illustrated example, the file A is to be canceled.

By clicking the inverted triangle button 59 on the right side of the selected job field 57 with a mouse, a pull-down menu is displayed below the selected job field 57.
A list of other unfinished jobs can be displayed. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, a selected job field 73 is displayed beside the cancel button 71, and below the selected job field 73,
Uncompleted job lists 75 and 77 in which other uncompleted jobs are arranged from the top in the order of the occurrence time are displayed. Here, the upper list 75 shows jobs which have already been sent from the host computer 1 to the printer 3 and are waiting for printing in the printer 3, and the lower list 77 shows the jobs in the print spool of the host computer 1. Indicates the remaining jobs. The user sets the incomplete job list 75,
By clicking a mouse on an arbitrary job in 77, the job can be entered in the selected job field 73.

Referring back to FIG. The power button, the power saving button, and the stop button described above are replaced with or in combination with the printer control box 35, and are denoted by reference numeral 61,
It can be displayed in the task bar 37 as indicated by 63 or 65, or it can be displayed by being added in the window 33 of a specific application as indicated by reference numerals 41, 43 and 45. Further, the information may be displayed on the display screen in another form. In any case, since these control buttons are displayed in a place on the screen where they can be immediately pressed, the power on / off of the printer 3, the wake-up / sleep-down, and the job stop can be performed quickly and easily at a time desired by the user. be able to.

It is highly likely that there is no space for displaying the selected job field in the task bar 37 or the application window 33. In such a case, for example, when the mouse cursor enters the stop button, the selected job fold 73 and the incomplete job lists 75 and 77 as shown in FIG. 3 may automatically appear in the form of a pull-down menu. Of course, the printer control box 35 may be configured to do so.

The operation of each section will be described below.

FIG. 4 shows the operation of the printer monitor 9 of the printer control device 7.

The printer monitor 9 inquires the printer 3 of its current state (S1), and receives the current state received from the printer 3 (whether the power is on or off, sleep or wake or printing, and what the unprinted job is. Is stored in the memory (S2). This operation is repeated periodically or as needed. Alternatively, at least a part of the status of the printer 3 may be voluntarily sent from the printer 9 to the host computer 1, and may be passively received by the printer monitor 9 and stored in the memory. The power on / off can be determined from the electrical state of the interface of the printer 3 with the host computer 1.

FIG. 5 shows the operation of the power control unit 11 of the printer control device 7.

The power control unit 11 refers to the printer status information in the memory stored in the printer monitor 9 periodically or as needed to determine whether the power of the printer 3 is on or off (S11). (For example, "ON" when the power is on and "OFF" when the power is off) is displayed on the display screen as illustrated in FIG. 2 (S12). When the power status on the memory changes, the display of the power button changes accordingly. Then, when the power button is pressed by the user (for example, mouse click) (S13), according to the current state of the power button (S13 '), if the current power button is "OFF", power is supplied to the printer 3. Send a turn-on command (S14),
If the current power button is "ON", a power turn-off command is sent to the printer 3 (S15).

FIG. 6 shows the operation of the power saving control unit 13 of the printer control device 7.

The power saving control unit 13 refers to the printer status information in the memory stored in the printer monitor 9 periodically or as needed to determine whether the operation status of the printer 3 is wake, sleep or printing (S21). The operation state is shown (for example, "open eyes" for wake, "closed eyes" for sleep, and "open / close eyes" for printing). (S22). When the operation state in the memory changes, the display of the power saving button changes accordingly. When the power saving button is pressed (for example, mouse clicked) by the user (S23), the current power saving button is set to “closed eyes” according to the current state of the power saving button (S23 ′).
If so, a wake-up command is sent to the printer 3 (S2
4) If the current power saving button is "open eyes", a sleep down command is sent to the printer 3 (S25).

FIG. 7 shows the operation of the job canceling unit 15 of the printer control device 7.

The job canceling unit 15 periodically or at any time
By referring to the printer status information in the memory stored by the printer monitor 9, it is determined what the unprinted job in the printer 3 is (S 31).
The print uncompleted job remaining in the print spool is also grasped (S33). Then, when there is an unprinted job issued from the host computer 1 in the printer 3 and when there is an unprinted job in the print spool (S35), the cancel button is pressed as shown in FIG. The display screen is turned on (S37), and the job that is issued first among the uncompleted jobs is determined as a default selected job (S39).

When the printer control box 35 is open as illustrated in FIG. 2, the job canceling unit 15 displays the sight of the selected job in the selected job field 57 in the box 35, and displays the selected job field 57 in the selected job field 57. When the pull-down menu button 59 on the side is pressed, a list in which the unprinted jobs are arranged in the order of occurrence as shown in FIG. 3 is displayed in a pull-down manner. Alternatively, when the cancel button is displayed in the task bar 37 or in the application window, the job canceling unit 15 displays a list of the selected job and the unfinished print job when the mouse cursor is placed on the cancel button (S41). And pull-down display (S
43). When one user is selected from the list of unprinted jobs by the user (S45), the selected job is changed to the job selected by the user (S47).

When the cancel button is pressed (for example, when the mouse is clicked) (S49), if the selected job is in the printer 3, the job cancel unit 15 sends the selected job to the printer 3. Send a stop command (S
51) If the selected job is in the print spool, the selected job is deleted from the print spool (S53).

FIG. 8 shows the operation of the controller 21 of the printer 3 with respect to the printer control device 7.

When the controller 21 of the printer 3 receives a command from the printer control device 7 (S61), it interprets the command (S62). As a result of command interpretation,
If the command is a status request command, the printer control device 7 is notified of various printer statuses, such as printing, wake or sleep, what is a print uncompleted job, and the status of consumables (S63). If the command is a wake-up command, wake-up is performed (S6).
4) If it is a sleep down command, sleep down is performed (S65). If the command is a job stop command, all data of the selected job other than the page except for the page currently being printed on the paper of the selected job are deleted from the printer 3, and the execution of the selected job is executed. The operation is stopped (S66). If the command is a power-off command, after all printing of the currently received job is completed, the automatic power switch 17 is instructed to turn off the power circuit 19 (S67).

When a power-on command is received from the printer control device 7 when the power is turned off, the automatic power switch 17 turns on the power circuit in response to the command, as described above.

With the above operations, the user can easily and easily turn on and off the power of the printer 3, wake up and wake down during standby, and stop execution of the print job simply by operating the buttons on the display screen.

FIG. 9 shows a modification of the operation of the power supply control section 11 of the printer control device 7.

When the power control unit 11 is started, that is, when the printer control device 7 is started (when the host computer 1 is resident, when the host computer 1 is started), the power control unit 11 sends a power-on command to the printer 3 (S71). . Also, the power control unit 1
When the termination command of the printer controller 7 is received, that is, the termination command of the printer control device 7 (the shutdown command of the host computer 1 in the case of being resident) is input, the power supply controller 11 sends a power turn-off command to the printer 3 before the termination (S73). As a result, the power of the printer 3 is turned on and off in conjunction with the activation and termination of the printer control device 7 (the activation and shutdown of the host computer 1 when the printer is resident).

From the start to the end, the power supply control unit 11 operates in substantially the same manner as shown in FIG.
The power of the printer 3 can be turned on and off by operating the power button.

FIG. 10 shows a modification of the operation of the power saving control unit 13 of the printer control device 7.

When a predetermined application (for example, a specific word processor) is activated or terminated (S81), the power-saving control unit 13 issues a wake-up command at the time of activation (S82), and issues a sleep-down command at termination of the application (S8).
3) Send each to the printer 3. Thus, the printer 3 can be woken up and sleep-down linked to the activation and termination of the predetermined application.

The power-saving control unit 13 operates substantially the same as that shown in FIG. 6 except when the predetermined application is started and when the predetermined application is ended. Therefore, the state of the printer 3 can be controlled by operating the power-saving button.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this embodiment is merely an example for describing the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention to this embodiment. Therefore, the present invention can be implemented in various modes other than the above-described embodiment. For example, in an environment where multiple hosts share a printer in a network or the like, it is not necessary for each user to turn off the printer or sleep down, so each user can turn on and wake up the printer individually. Can be freely controlled from the host, but the power-off and sleep-down cannot be controlled from the host, or the control authority can be restricted, such as limiting the users who can be controlled from the host to only those who have passed a predetermined authentication. . When an event is used as a trigger, the event includes FIGS.
Various things other than those shown in FIG. For example, the start and end of a specific application may be used as a power-on and turn-on trigger of the printer, or the occurrence of a specific error (e.g., paper jam) in the printer may be used as a trigger to stop the job. Good. The present invention is applicable not only to printers but also to other peripheral devices.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exemplary block diagram showing the overall configuration of a computer system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing an example of a graphical user interface displayed on a display screen by a printer control device 7 in a host computer 1.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing uncompleted job lists 75 and 77 displayed as a pull-down menu.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of a printer monitor 9 of the printer control device 7;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a power supply control unit 11 of the printer control device 7;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a power saving control unit 13 of the printer control device 7;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of a job canceling unit 15 of the printer control device 7;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the controller 21 of the printer 3 with respect to the printer control device 7;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a modification of the operation of the power supply control unit 11 of the printer control device 7.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a modification of the operation of the power saving control unit 13 of the printer control device 7;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Host computer 3 Printer 5 Mouse 7 Printer control device 9 Printer monitor 11 Power control unit 13 Power saving control unit 15 Job cancellation unit 17 Automatic power switch 19 Power supply circuit 21 Controller 23 Print engine 31 Display screen 33 Application window 35 Printer control box 37 Task bar 41, 51, 61 Power button 43, 53, 63 Power saving button 45, 55, 65, 71 Cancel button 57, 73 Selected job field 75, 77 Unprinted job list

Continued on front page F-term (reference) 2C061 HH11 HJ07 HJ10 HT04 5B011 EB08 EB09 HH02 HH07 LL14 5B021 AA01 BB01 CC05 CC07 MM01 5E501 AA01 AC24 AC37 BA05 CA02 CB05 EA05 EA10 EA32 FA03 FA05 FA06 FA23 FA23

Claims (22)

[Claims] 1. A computer system for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, a graphical user interface unit displaying a power button on a display screen of the computer, and a peripheral device when the power button is operated by a user. A control unit for sending a power-on command or a power-off command to the device. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a monitor unit that monitors whether the power of the peripheral device is on or off, wherein the graphical user interface unit also displays a symbol indicating whether the power is on or off on the display screen or the power button. The peripheral device control device according to claim 1, wherein the peripheral device control device displays the information. And a monitor unit for monitoring whether the power of the peripheral device is on or off, wherein the command unit sends the power turn-off command when the power button is operated when the power is on, 3. The peripheral device control device according to claim 1, wherein when the power button is operated when the power is off, the power supply turn-on command is transmitted. 4. 4. The peripheral device according to claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface unit displays the power button on a desktop on the display screen, an area that is always displayed in principle, or a dedicated area for a predetermined application. Control device. 5. The peripheral device control device according to claim 1, wherein the command unit sends the power turn-on command or the power turn-off command in response to a predetermined event. 6. A graphical user interface unit for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, wherein the graphical user interface unit displays a power saving button on a display screen of the computer; A command unit for sending a wake-up command or a sleep-down command to a device. 7. A monitor unit for monitoring whether the state of the peripheral device is wake or sleep, and the graphical user interface unit also displays a symbol indicating the wake or sleep on the display screen or the power saving button. The peripheral device control device according to claim 6. 8. A monitor unit for monitoring whether the state of the peripheral device is wake or sleep, wherein the command unit sends the sleep down command when the power saving button is operated when the device is in the wake mode. 8. The peripheral device control device according to claim 6, wherein the wake-up command is transmitted when the power saving button is operated in a sleep mode. 9. The peripheral device according to claim 6, wherein the graphical user interface unit displays the power saving button on a desktop on the display screen, an area that is displayed constantly in principle, or a dedicated area for a predetermined application. Control device. 10. The peripheral device control device according to claim 6, wherein the command unit sends the wake-up command or the sleep-down command in response to a predetermined event. 11. A control unit for controlling a printer connected to a computer, comprising: a graphical user interface unit for displaying a stop button on a display screen of the computer; and a user operating the stop button after a print job occurs. A print canceling unit that prevents the print job from being executed by the printer when the print job is executed. 12. The printer control device according to claim 11, wherein the graphical user interface unit displays on the display screen a print job to be canceled, the execution of which is inhibited if the operation button is pressed. 13. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a monitor unit configured to monitor a print job that has not been printed, wherein the graphical user interface unit displays the print job that has not been printed on the display screen. 12. The printing apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a selection unit configured to select a print job desired by the user from uncompleted print jobs, wherein the print suspension unit prevents the selected print job from being executed by the printer. Printer control device as described. 14. The graphical user interface unit displays the stop button on a desktop on the display screen, in an area which is always displayed in principle, or a dedicated area for a predetermined application.
Printer control device as described. 15. The printer control device according to claim 11, wherein the print stop unit prevents the print job from being executed by the printer in response to a predetermined event. 16. A control unit for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, the monitor unit monitoring a state of the peripheral device, a control button on a display screen of the computer,
A peripheral device control device, comprising: a graphical user interface unit that displays a monitored state of the peripheral device; and an instruction unit that sends a predetermined control instruction to the peripheral device when the control button is operated by a user. 17. A controller for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, wherein the monitor unit monitors a state of the peripheral device; a graphical user interface unit for displaying a control button on a display screen of the computer; A control unit for transmitting a predetermined control command to the peripheral device according to a state of the monitored peripheral device when a control button is operated by a user. 18. A computer system for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, comprising: a graphical user interface unit for displaying a power button on a display screen of the computer; and a peripheral device when the power button is operated by a user. A computer-readable recording medium carrying a program for causing a computer to function as a peripheral device control device including: a command unit that sends a power-on command or a power-off command to a device. 19. A controller for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, wherein a graphical user interface unit for displaying a power saving button on a display screen of the computer, and wherein the peripheral device is operated when the power saving button is operated by a user. A computer-readable recording medium carrying a program for causing a computer to function as a peripheral device control device including: a command unit that sends a wake-up command or a sleep-down command to a device. 20. A printer for controlling a printer connected to a computer, a graphical user interface unit for displaying a stop button on a display screen of the computer, and the stop button being operated by a user after a print job has occurred. A computer-readable recording medium carrying a program for causing a computer to function as a printer control device having a print canceling unit for preventing the print job from being executed by the printer when the printer is executed. 21. A computer for controlling peripheral devices connected to a computer, wherein the monitor unit monitors a state of the peripheral devices; a control button on a display screen of the computer;
A peripheral device control device including: a graphical user interface unit that displays a monitored state of the peripheral device; and an instruction unit that sends a predetermined control instruction to the peripheral device when the control button is operated by a user. Computer-readable recording medium carrying a program for causing a computer to function as a computer. 22. A controller for controlling a peripheral device connected to a computer, wherein the monitor unit monitors a state of the peripheral device; a graphical user interface unit for displaying a control button on a display screen of the computer; And a command unit for transmitting a predetermined control command to the peripheral device according to a state of the monitored peripheral device when a control button is operated by a user. A computer-readable recording medium carrying a program.