JP2001202216A - Automatic printer selecting system using printer serverless system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the stable operation of a printing system by making it unnecessary to realize the resetting of a print request computer which is conventionally executed at the time of the setting of a printer server and the addition and cancellation of a printer in a system for operating printing to a printer connected through a communication path. SOLUTION: In a printing system in which plural printers and at least one system device (print request computer) for issuing a print request are connected on the same network, at the time of executing printing by the print request computer, print data are transmitted to not a specific printer but all printers which are already connected through the network by a batch print outputting device. Then, a print destination automatic selecting device which receives the print data for the first time compares the state of the other printer with the received print data as a printer server, and transfers the print data to the optimal printer so that the print data can be printed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to an automatic printing destination selection device connected to each printer installed on a network, which can control other printers as a printer server. Since the computer can perform printing without being conscious of a specific printer, it is not necessary for each print request computer to respond when a printer connected to the network is added or deleted.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional printing system, every time a printer to be printed is added to or deleted from a network, it is necessary for the print requesting computer to change the settings of the printer. Such a prior art is disclosed in
No. 202077. In addition, it is necessary to prepare a printer server for managing printers on the network. Such a prior art is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-1.
No. 10161 is known.

[0003]

In the above-mentioned prior art, each time a printer is added or deleted in the network, it is necessary to add and delete the definition of the printer to the print server. It was possible. In addition, since printing from each print requesting computer needs to be performed via the printer server, the printer server must always be kept in a state where it can accept a print request from the print requesting computer. For this reason, if the printer server does not accept the print request for some reason, printing from the print request computer on the premise of printing via the printer server is not performed at all.

An object of the present invention is to eliminate the need to change the definition in each computer by adding or deleting a printer, and to stably operate a printing system by not providing a printer server.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, an automatic print destination having an area for managing printer status in a network and a storage device for temporarily storing print data is provided in each printer. By preparing a selection device and preparing a print request computer for printing to the batch print output device from the print request computer while preparing a batch print output device for batch transmission to all printers in the print request computer, A user's workload for newly adding and deleting a printer is reduced. Further, there is no need to specify a printer server, and all the printer-connected automatic printing destination selection apparatuses can dynamically become printer servers, thereby enabling stable operation of the system.

[0006]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention. The print request computer 1 and the automatic print destination selection devices 2, 4 and 6 are connected by a communication path 8. When print data is transmitted from the print request computer 1 to all the automatic print destination selection devices connected to the communication path 8, the automatic print destination selection device 2 which first receives the print data sets the other print destination automatic selection device as a printer server. The current status data of the printers 5 and 7 connected to the automatic selection devices 4 and 6, respectively, is obtained, and the printer 3 connected to the own housing is obtained.
Check the status of the printer, compare the printer information with the received print data, select the most suitable printer (such as the printer that is currently waiting for printing, or the printer resolution is suitable for the form data), and then Transfer print data and execute printing. Here, the print request computer 1
When the automatic print destination selecting device 6 first receives the print data from the printer, the automatic print destination selecting device 6 performs the same control as a printer server.

FIG. 2 shows the internal structure of the print request computer and the automatic print destination selection device. When printing is performed by the print request AP 11, a print request is sent to the batch print output device transmission unit 12 instead of explicitly specifying a print destination printer. The collective print output device 12 includes a communication path 14
The print data is transmitted to all the automatic print destination selecting devices 15 connected to the printer. The automatic print destination selecting device 15 temporarily stores the received print data in the main storage device 20, and then sends a status as a printer server to all other automatic print destination selecting devices 15 connected to the communication path 14. The transmission request unit 18 requests notification of status information of each printer 23. However, if the status transmission / reception unit 19 has already received the transmission request for the status information of the printer 23 from the other printing destination automatic selection device 15, the own printing destination automatic selection device 15 It does not request notification of the status information of the connected printer 23, but returns the current status information of the printer 23 connected to its own chassis from the status transmitting / receiving unit 19 to the printing destination automatic selection device 15 that has sent the status information transmission request. After completing the transmission of the status information notification request to all the other automatic print destination selection devices 15 as the printer server, the status transmission / reception section 19 receives the status information from each of the automatic print destination selection devices 15. After the reception of all the status information is completed, the status information of the printer 23 connected to the self-body is collected, the status information of all the printers 23 is compared with the already received print data, and the print printer determination device 21 is presently waiting for printing. A printer 23 most suitable for executing printing, such as a printer in the middle or a printer resolution suitable for form data, is selected. After the selection, if the optimum printer 23 is determined to be a printer 23 of another housing, the print data stored in the main storage device 20 is transmitted to the automatic print destination selecting device 15 determined by the print data transmitting / receiving unit 17. I do. The print destination automatic selection device 15 that has received the print data from the printer server at the print data transmission / reception unit 17 transmits the print data to the printer driver 22 of its own housing, and the printer driver 22 transmits the data to the printer 23. To execute printing. In addition, the most suitable printer 23 is a printer 23 of its own housing.
If it is determined that the print data is extracted from the main storage device 20, the data is transmitted to the printer driver 22 in the own housing, and the data is transmitted to the printer driver 22 or the printer 23 connected to the own housing. Execute

FIG. 3 shows a processing flowchart of the automatic print destination selecting device 15. FIG. 3 suggests that the automatic print destination selection device 15 can be both a printer server or a printer client. At the time when the automatic print destination selecting device 15 is activated, 100 receives data transmitted from the communication path 14. 200 after receiving data
Then, the type of the data is determined. If the received data is print data, it is checked in 300 whether a status information notification request has already been received from another automatic print destination selecting device 15. Since the device 15 operates as a printer server at the time of executing the current printing, after storing the received print data in the main storage device, the status of 600 is sent to all the automatic printing destination selection devices connected via the communication path 14 at 600. Send an information notification request. When the transmission of the status information notification request is completed, the process waits at 200 for data reception. Also, 200
In the determination of the type of the data, if the received data is a status information notification request, the automatic print destination selecting device 1
The printer 5 operates as a printer client, and in response to the status information notification request, checks the status (printing, etc.) of its own printer at 500 and transmits the status information notification request to the automatic print destination selection device (printer server).
In step 700, the status of the own printer is transmitted.
After receiving the data at 100, if it is determined that the status is received by the data type determination at 200, the receiving status is stored in the status table in the main storage device at 400 because the self-printing destination automatic selection device is the printer server. Store. If it is determined at 800 that the statuses of all the printers have not been received yet, the process returns to 100 again and repeats the status information reception. If it is determined at 800 that all printer statuses have been received,
Check the status information of the printer at 900,
At 1000, all other printer statuses received at 400, the own printer status confirmed at 900 and the received print data are compared to determine an optimal printer. The optimal printer is determined based on the current operating status of the printer and the resolution of the printer. 100
If it is determined at 0 that another printer is optimal, at 1100 the print data already received is transmitted to the automatic print destination selecting device connected to the determined printer. If it is determined at 1000 that the own printer is optimal, at 1200 the received print data is converted into a language recognizable by the printer and transmitted to 1300 to perform printing on the own printer. If the data is received at 100, the print data is determined at 200, and if the status information notification request has already been received at 300, the self-printing destination selection device operates as a printer client. It is determined that the print data has been transmitted from another print destination selection device serving as the server, and the print data received in 1200 is converted into a printer language.
0 to execute printing.

As described above, according to the present invention, all of the automatic print destination selecting devices can be used as printer servers, so that printers can be easily added or deleted, and the printing system itself can be operated stably. There is an effect that can be done.

[0010]

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily add and delete a printer to and from the printing system, so that there is no need to install a print server and reset the print request computer as in the related art.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an internal configuration of an apparatus for realizing the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing of an apparatus for realizing the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1, 10,... Print request computer, 2, 4, 6, 15,.
Automatic print destination selection device, 3, 5, 7, 23 ... printer,
4, 14: communication path, 11: print request AP, 12: collective print output device, 13, 16: communication control device, 17: print data transmission / reception unit, 18: status transmission request unit, 19: status transmission / reception unit, 20 ... Main storage device, 21: Printer determining device, 22: Printer driver.

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Kenji Hibi 5030 Totsuka-cho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside the Software Division of Hitachi, Ltd. (72) Inventor Shigeru Nakamichi 5030 Totsukacho, Totsuka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Address: Hitachi, Ltd. Software Division (72) Inventor: Munehide Tanaka 81-81, Onoue-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Hitachi Software Engineering Co., Ltd. In-house F-term (reference)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A printing system in which a plurality of printers and one or more printing requesting system devices (print request computers) are connected to the same network in a printing system, and when the printing is performed by the print request computers, the identification is performed. To the batch print output device that sends the print data to all the printers connected to the network, not to the printer that is connected to the printer. A printing system that performs printing by comparing the status of another printer with the received print data and transferring the print data to an optimal printer.