JP2004178097A - Image processor, image forming device and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image processor, an image forming device and a program capable of preventing a file from being drastically changed at a transmission side, and surely printing a PDF file even at the time of transmitting the PDF file to an image forming device in which the available capacity of a storage part is small without converting it into print data. <P>SOLUTION: When a storage capacity necessary for the printing of a PDF file to be printed is larger than that of the storage part of a printer (S102 or S104: YES), this PC linearizes a PDF file (S105). Then, the PC transmits leading data including a hint table in the linearized PDF file to the printer (S106). Then, the PC extracts the predetermined data of the PDF file each time it is requested from the printer, and transmits the data to the printer. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and a program, and more particularly, to an image processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus for transmitting a PDF file from an image processing apparatus to an image forming apparatus and printing the image without converting the file into print data. , And about the program.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art A personal computer (hereinafter, referred to as “PC”) can transmit a document file stored on a hard disk to a printer via a network such as a LAN and print the document file.
[0003]
In this case, the document file is usually written in print data described in PDL (Page Description Language) such as PS (PostScript (R)) which can be analyzed by a printer by a printer driver installed in the PC. It is transmitted after being converted.
[0004]
On the other hand, as a document file distributed on the Internet, a PDF (Portable Document Format) file capable of reproducing the same format as an original document regardless of the type of hardware or application has been widely spread. The PDF file includes an object that can be arranged in the file in an order different from the page order and reference information indicating a position of the object in the file, and defines a page including a predetermined object.
[0005]
By the way, a PDF file may have several hundred pages of data, for example. When such a PDF file having a particularly large data size is converted into print data by a PC, the conversion takes a long time, the processing becomes complicated, and the data size is rather large due to the conversion, and the data transfer time increases. For this reason, the load on the PC increases. In order to reduce the load on the PC, a printer capable of directly printing a PDF file transmitted from the PC to the printer without converting it into print data (hereinafter referred to as “PDF direct print”) has been proposed. .
[0006]
However, since print data described in PDL such as PS has data to be printed arranged in page order in the file, the printer can print from the first page of the received print data. Since the data to be printed can be arranged in the file regardless of the page order, the printer can print only after receiving the entire PDF file. For this reason, the printer may not be able to receive the entire PDF file because of a lack of the capacity (available capacity or free space) of the mounted memory, and may not be able to execute printing.
[0007]
In connection with this problem, there is known an apparatus that changes the contents of a PDF file and reconstructs the data so that the received data can be sequentially displayed on a display without receiving the entire PDF file. (For example, see Patent Document 1).
[0008]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 11-502954
[0009]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, it is desirable that a PDF file distributed widely is exchanged, for example, on a network without much change or modification. However, in the device described in Patent Document 1, as a result, a large change process for reconstructing the PDF file is performed on the transmission side such as a PC before the file transfer. There is a problem that the file becomes completely different from the original PDF file.
[0010]
In addition, the technology of the above-described apparatus is merely a technology relating to display on a display, and thus sufficient consideration is not given to printing with a printer. Specifically, for example, when special printing conditions such as face-up, which indicates processing for printing in order from the last page to the first page, are applied, and it is necessary to print in a different order from the page order of the file, Technology cannot cope.
[0011]
SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that has a small usable capacity of a storage unit while preventing a file from being significantly changed on a transmission side. On the other hand, an object of the present invention is to provide an image processing apparatus, an image forming apparatus, and a program capable of reliably printing even if a PDF file is transmitted without being converted into print data.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following means.
[0013]
(1) An image processing apparatus that transmits a PDF file to an image forming apparatus without converting the file into print data, and uses a size of the PDF file to be printed and a storage unit of the image forming apparatus to print the PDF file. A comparison unit that compares the available capacity with the comparison unit, and as a result of the comparison, when the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus, the PDF file is linearized. An image processing device having conversion processing means.
[0014]
(2) The image processing apparatus according to (1), further including a transmission unit configured to transmit, to the image forming apparatus, head data including a hint table in the PDF file linearized by the conversion processing unit.
[0015]
(3) A program used in an image processing apparatus that transmits a PDF file to the image forming apparatus without converting the PDF file into print data, the size of the PDF file to be printed, and the size of the image forming apparatus to print the PDF file. A comparison procedure for comparing the available capacity of the storage unit, and if the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus as a result of the comparison in the comparison procedure, For causing the image processing apparatus to execute a conversion processing procedure for linearizing.
[0016]
(4) The above-mentioned (3) for causing the image processing apparatus to further execute a transmission procedure of transmitting top data including a hint table in the PDF file linearized in the conversion processing procedure to the image forming apparatus. ).
[0017]
(5) An image forming apparatus for receiving and printing a PDF file from an image processing apparatus without being converted into print data, and including a hint table of a linearized PDF file from the image processing apparatus. First receiving means for receiving data; determining means for determining necessary data in the PDF file based on a result of analyzing the leading data received by the first receiving means; Transmitting means for transmitting a transmission request for the necessary data to the apparatus; second receiving means for receiving data transmitted from the image processing apparatus in response to the transmission request; And a printing unit for performing printing based on the data received by the unit.
[0018]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0019]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a print system to which a PC and a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention are applied.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 1, the print system includes PCs 100A and 100B having a function as an image processing apparatus, and a printer 200 as an image forming apparatus, which are communicably connected to each other via a network 300. I have. The network 300 includes a LAN conforming to standards such as Ethernet (R), token ring, and FDDI, and a WAN in which LANs are connected by a dedicated line.
[0021]
Note that the type and number of devices connected to the network are not limited to the example shown in FIG. The printer 200 may be directly connected (locally connected) to the PC 100A or 100B without going through the network 300.
[0022]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of PCs 100A and 100B shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the PCs 100A and 100B include a CPU 101 for controlling the entire apparatus and performing various arithmetic processing, a ROM 102 for storing programs and data, a RAM 103 for temporarily storing programs and data as a work area, A hard disk 104 as an external storage device for storing various programs and data; a display unit 105 such as a liquid crystal display for displaying various information; an input unit 106 including a keyboard and a mouse for inputting various instructions; And a network interface 107 such as a LAN card for connecting to the network 300, which are mutually connected via a bus 108 for exchanging signals.
[0023]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the printer 200 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the printer 200 includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, an operation panel unit 204, a printing unit 205, and a network interface 206, which are interconnected via a bus 207 for exchanging signals. ing. Note that, of the components of the printer 200, a duplicate description of a portion having the same function as the components of the PCs 100A and 100B will be omitted.
[0024]
The RAM 203 can temporarily store data received from the PC. The ROM 202 stores font data which is data relating to the typeface of characters. Note that the printer 200 may include a hard disk as an external storage device for storing various programs and data. The operation panel unit 204 is used for displaying various information and inputting various instructions. The printing unit 205 prints various data on a recording material such as paper using a known image forming process such as an electrophotographic process.
[0025]
The PCs 100A and 100B and the printer 200 may include components other than the components described above, or may not include some of the components described above. In the following, a case where data is transmitted from PC 100A to printer 200 to perform printing, for example, will be described.
[0026]
In the print system shown in FIG. 1, two types of printing, normal printing and PDF direct printing, can be executed. When performing normal printing, a predetermined file is converted to print data described in PDL such as PS by a printer driver installed in the hard disk 104 of the PC 100A, and then transmitted to the printer 200. On the other hand, when the PDF direct print is executed, the PDF file is transmitted from the PC 100A to the printer 200 without being converted into print data according to a program described later installed on the hard disk 104.
[0027]
Here, the structure and analysis method of a standard PDF file will be briefly described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the structure of a standard PDF file, and FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a sample of a standard PDF file. 4 and 5 are created with reference to “PDF Reference third edition Adobe Portable Document Format Version 1.4” (Adobe Systems Inc.).
[0028]
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a standard PDF file 500 includes a header 510, a body 520, a cross-reference table 530, and a trailer 540.
[0029]
In the header 510, a comment starting with “%” is described. From the header 510 in FIG. 5, it can be seen that the format of the file is PDF and the version (1.4 in this case) of the compliant PDF specification.
[0030]
The body 520 includes objects (objects 1 to 6 in FIG. 5) constituting the document. An object refers to an individual element constituting a document, such as a document structure, page information, font information, and color information. For example, the first object 1 is defined by a description from “10 obj” to “endobj”, and other objects are similarly defined. Here, for example, the first number and the next number in “10 obj” represent the ID number and the generation number (generation) of the object, respectively. In the body 520, various types of information such as file attributes, page attributes, character information, graphics information, and image information are configured by a combination of minimum units called objects.
[0031]
The cross-reference table 530 is reference information indicating the position of the object in the file. In the cross-reference table 530, the position of each object having a specific ID number (1 to 6 in FIG. 5) is represented by the number of bytes (offset) from the head of the file to the head of the object. This makes it possible to randomly access the objects arranged in the body 520. This cross-reference table 530 starts with a line containing the keyword “xref” in the actual file.
[0032]
The trailer 540 is information to be accessed at the start of file analysis. Specifically, the trailer 540 describes information indicating the position of the cross-reference table 530 in the file, and the ID number of the object to be referred to first (the root object that is the root of the hierarchical structure). The number shown next to “startxref” is the number of bytes (offset) from the head of the file to the head of the cross reference table 530. The line including “Root” indicates the ID number of the root object. The line including “Size” indicates the number of objects existing in the file, including the first entry of the cross reference table 530 (the object ID number is “0”). This trailer 540 is located at the end of the file and begins with a line containing the keyword “trailer”.
[0033]
When analyzing a standard PDF file, the apparatus for analyzing the PDF file first analyzes the trailer 540 at the end of the file, and then analyzes the cross-reference table 530. Then, the contents of the page described in the body 520 can be analyzed based on the information obtained by the analysis. The object contains the ID number of another object in which the next required data is described. Therefore, by following the ID number of the next required object, the entire analysis of the PDF file becomes possible. Since the ID number of the object to be referenced next is indicated, the objects need not be arranged in the analysis order in the body of the PDF file. Therefore, the objects can be described in an arbitrary order on a per-object basis in the body of the PDF file, and as a result, can be arranged in the file in an order different from the page order.
[0034]
As described above, when analyzing a standard PDF file, the apparatus that analyzes the PDF file first analyzes the trailer 540 and the cross-reference table 530 near the end of the file, and then analyzes the order that is not necessarily related to the page order. Must access the objects in the file. For this reason, a device that analyzes a PDF file cannot normally analyze the PDF file unless the entire PDF file is stored in a storage device such as a memory. The present invention uses a linearized PDF file, as described later, to reliably print even if an image forming apparatus such as a printer cannot hold the entire PDF file in a storage device such as a memory. It is something that is possible.
[0035]
Next, processing performed by the PC 100A will be described with reference to FIGS. The algorithm shown by the flowcharts in FIGS. 6 to 8 is stored as a program in a storage device such as the hard disk 104 of the PC 100A, and is executed by the CPU 101.
[0036]
Here, a case will be described in which, instead of normal printing using a printer driver, PDF direct printing is performed on a PDF file, and the printer 200 prints the PDF file.
[0037]
An icon of an application program file for PDF direct printing is displayed on the desktop of the PC 100A in advance. The user can instruct the execution of the PDF direct print by dragging and dropping the PDF file onto the icon and activating the application program. The instruction to execute the PDF direct print may be issued by another method.
[0038]
In addition, for example, before the user instructs execution of PDF direct print, print conditions are designated through the input unit 106. Here, the printing condition refers to an attribute related to the printing order of pages. The printing conditions include, for example, whether or not booklet binding is applied, whether or not face-up indicating processing for printing in order from the last page to the first page is applied, and a plurality of pages (N pages) are reduced on one sheet of paper. The application of Nin1 for printing by printing, the number of copies, and the application of collate for output in copies. However, the printing condition may include other attributes related to printing. The printing conditions may be set in the printer 200 through the operation panel unit 204.
[0039]
First, the PC 100A receives an instruction to execute a PDF direct print for a PDF file by a user (S101).
[0040]
Subsequently, the size of the PDF file to be printed is compared with the available capacity of the memory (RAM 203) of the printer 200 to print the PDF file. As a result of the comparison, the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is determined by the printer. It is determined whether or not the available capacity of the memory 200 is larger than the available capacity (S102).
[0041]
Here, the PC 100A obtains printer-specific information from the printer 200 by making a request to, for example, the printer 200 as an output destination. However, the printer-specific information may be obtained by requesting the printer 200 from the PC 100A when the PC 100A or the printer 200 is started. The printer-specific information includes the available capacity of the memory installed in the printer, the presence or absence of a hard disk, and the available capacity of the hard disk if the printer has a hard disk. It is preferable that the usable capacity of the memory of the printer used in the determination in step S102 (also in S104) is a dynamic value according to the state of use of the memory. However, a fixed value may be used as the available capacity of the memory of the printer, and a certain effect can be expected. In the PC 100A, the unique information of the printer 200 may be manually set in advance.
[0042]
If the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is equal to or less than the available capacity of the memory of the printer 200 (NO in S102), the entire PDF file can be held in the memory of the printer 200, and the PDF file transmission processing is executed as it is. (S106).
[0043]
On the other hand, if the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the available capacity of the memory of the printer (YES in S102), it is determined whether the printer 200 has a hard disk (S103). In making such a determination, the printer-specific information is referred to.
[0044]
In step S103, if the printer 200 is equipped with a hard disk (YES in S103), the size of the PDF file to be printed is compared with the available capacity of the hard disk of the printer 200 to print the PDF file. As a result, it is determined whether the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the usable capacity of the hard disk of the printer 200 (S104).
[0045]
If the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is less than or equal to the usable capacity of the hard disk of the printer 200 (NO in S104), the entire PDF file can be stored in the hard disk of the printer 200. (S106).
[0046]
If it is determined in step S103 that the printer 200 is not equipped with a hard disk (NO in S103), or in step S104, the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the usable capacity of the hard disk of the printer 200. If it is determined that the size is large (YES in S104), the PDF file is analyzed (S105). After the PDF file analysis processing is completed, a PDF file transmission processing is performed (S106).
[0047]
Here, the analysis process of the PDF file in step S105 of FIG. 6 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0048]
First, it is determined whether the PDF file to be printed is a linearized PDF file (Linearized PDF) (S301). Details of the linearized PDF file will be described later. In the case of the linearized PDF file (YES in S301), the PDF file analysis processing ends.
[0049]
If the PDF file is not a linearized PDF file, that is, if the PDF file to be printed is a standard PDF file (NO in S301), the PDF file is linearized (S302). Linearization of a PDF file is automatically performed using an application having a linearization function. The linearized PDF file is stored in a storage device such as a memory (RAM 103), and the PDF file analysis process ends.
[0050]
FIGS. 9 and 10 show the first half and the second half of the sample of the linearized PDF file, respectively. 9 and 10 are created with reference to "PDF Reference third edition Adobe Portable Document Format Version 1.4" (Adobe Systems Inc.).
[0051]
The linearized PDF file refers to a PDF file optimized to enable efficient access in a network environment. As shown in FIG. 9, a linearized PDF file 600 includes a header (part 1) 601, a linearization parameter (part 2) 602, a first page cross-reference table and a trailer (part 3) 603, and a document catalog. And a document level object (part 4) 604, a hint table (part 5) 605, a first page part (part 6) 606, and the remaining pages (part 7) 607.
[0052]
The linearization parameter 602 is arranged next to the header 601 and is contained within 1024 bytes from the head of the PDF file. The linearization parameter 602 includes a description indicating a linearized version of “Linearized 1.0”. Therefore, the PC 100A can determine whether the PDF file to be printed is a standard PDF file or a linearized PDF file by analyzing 1024 bytes of data from the beginning of the PDF file. it can.
[0053]
The hint table 605 is arranged before or after the first page section 606, and is stored within 1024 bytes from the head of the PDF file. The hint table 605 includes a description indicating information of the remaining pages, such as reference information indicating a position of an object regarding data of the second and subsequent pages. That is, in the linearized PDF file, necessary data of the page is freely acquired by analyzing the leading data including the hint table 605 (specifically, data from the beginning of the file to, for example, 1024 bytes). Structure. Therefore, an apparatus that analyzes a linearized PDF file can immediately access data of an arbitrary page by referring to the hint table 605 included in the head data.
[0054]
Next, the PDF file transmission process in step S106 in FIG. 6 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0055]
First, it is determined whether the PDF file to be transmitted is a linearized PDF file (S401).
[0056]
If the PDF file to be transmitted is not a linearized PDF file, that is, if it is a standard file (NO in S401), when the user instructs execution of PDF direct printing, for example, the In response, the entire PDF file is transmitted (S407). At this time, the printing conditions are also transmitted from the PC 100A to the printer 200 (the same applies to S402). After the entire PDF file has been transmitted, the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the execution of the process illustrated in FIG. 6 ends.
[0057]
On the other hand, if the PDF file to be transmitted is a linearized PDF file (YES in S401), the first data including the hint table 605 is transmitted to the printer 200 (S402).
[0058]
In step S403, it is determined whether a transmission request for predetermined data in the PDF file has been received from printer 200. Here, the predetermined data is data (for example, a predetermined object) that is sequentially required according to printing in the printer 200.
[0059]
When a transmission request for predetermined data is received (YES in S403), the requested data is extracted from the PDF file (S404) and transmitted to the printer 200 (S405). On the other hand, when the transmission request for the predetermined data is not received (NO in S403), the process proceeds to step S406.
[0060]
As a method of transmitting a PDF file from the PC 100A to the printer 200, a method of establishing a session between the PC and the printer by executing an application program and transferring the designated PDF file is adopted. Therefore, the user is not burdened with the operation. However, it is also possible to realize the transfer of the PDF file using the function of the OS (basic software).
[0061]
Data (for example, an object) requested to be transmitted can be specified by the number of bytes (offset) from the beginning of the file to the beginning of the data and the data length represented by the number of bytes. Various protocols such as HTTP and FTP can be used as the transfer protocol.
[0062]
In step S406, it is determined whether the printing of the PDF file in the printer 200 has been completed. Here, the end of printing can be determined based on, for example, whether a notification indicating the end of printing has been received from the printer 200.
[0063]
If the printing of the PDF file has not been completed (NO in S406), the process returns to step S403, and the processes in steps S403 to S406 are repeated. That is, the PC 100A extracts the data requested by the printer 200 and transmits the extracted data to the printer 200 every time there is a transmission request of the predetermined data from the printer 200. Then, when all the printing of the PDF file has been completed (YES in S406), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 6, and the execution of the processing illustrated in FIG. 6 ends.
[0064]
Next, processing performed by the printer 200 will be described with reference to FIGS. The algorithm shown in the flowcharts of FIGS. 11 to 13 is stored as a program in a storage device such as the ROM 202 of the printer 200 and is executed by the CPU 201.
[0065]
Here, the case where the printer 200 receives the PDF file to be printed transmitted from the PC 100A and executes the PDF direct print on the received PDF file will be described below.
[0066]
First, the printer 200 starts receiving a PDF file transmitted from the PC 100A (S501). After the start of reception, reception of the data transmitted from PC 100A is continued until reception of the data is completed.
[0067]
Subsequently, the process waits until the head data of the PDF file (data of, for example, 1024 bytes from the head of the file) is received (S502). Here, when the PDF file to be printed is a linearized PDF file, the head data includes the hint table 605. The received head data is stored in the memory (RAM 203).
[0068]
Next, it is determined whether the PDF file to be printed is a linearized PDF file from the linearization parameters 602 included in the received head data (S503).
[0069]
If the PDF file to be printed is a linearized PDF file (YES in S503), print processing of the linearized PDF file is performed (S504). Details of this processing will be described later.
[0070]
On the other hand, if the PDF file to be printed is not a linearized PDF file, that is, if it is a standard file (NO in S503), the printing process of the standard file is performed (S505). Details of this processing will be described later.
[0071]
Next, the printing process of the linearized PDF file in step S504 of FIG. 11 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0072]
First, the printer 200 analyzes the leading data including the received hint table 605 (S601).
[0073]
The head data of the linearized PDF file includes a hint table 605 and a first page portion 606 having first page data. Here, the hint table 605 is stored in the memory after being analyzed. When the hint table 605 is arranged behind the first page section 606, the hint table 605 may be analyzed and saved in the memory after printing based on one page of data is performed as needed.
[0074]
In step S602, data required for each page is requested to the PC 100A, and data corresponding to this request is received from the PC 100A. However, the process of step S602 is executed when a PDF file having a plurality of pages is printed in page units, and is not in the order of printing the first page. The data required for the PC 100A may be one object or a group of appropriate data such as a plurality of objects. Further, a plurality of pages of the PDF file may be requested to the PC 100A according to the margin of the available capacity of the memory in the printer 200.
[0075]
Here, the printer 200 refers to the hint table 605 stored in the memory, determines data necessary for performing appropriate printing, and requests the PC 100A for necessary data. At this time, the printing conditions are also referred to. When face-up is applied to printing of a PDF file, for example, page data transmission is requested in order from the last page of the file to the first page. When face-down is applied, transmission of page data is requested in the same order as the page order of the file. In other words, even when printing the same PDF file, the printing order of the pages differs depending on the printing conditions. Therefore, data requested to be transmitted from the printer to the PC is determined with reference to the printing conditions. As described above, since the hint table 605 includes reference information indicating the position of the object regarding the data of the second and subsequent pages, the printer 200 specifies the data of an arbitrary page and sends the data from the PC 100A to the PC 100A. It is possible to get
[0076]
If it is the first page printing order, the process proceeds to step S603 without performing any processing in step S602. This is because the first page data is entirely described in the head data of the linearized PDF file. However, based on the result of analyzing the cross-reference table of the first page and the trailer 603, in step S602, the data of the first page is requested to the PC 100A in the same manner as the data of the second and subsequent pages. May be received from the PC 100A.
[0077]
In step S603, an intermediate language in a format that can be internally processed by the printer is created for the data to be printed, that is, the received predetermined page data or the first page data.
[0078]
Subsequently, bitmap raster data is created from the created intermediate language (S604). The created raster data is transferred to the printing unit 205 (S605), and a printing process is executed (S606).
[0079]
In the printing process of step S606, when an output page that is all data to be output on one sheet is completed, the output page is printed on the sheet. For example, in a general case where one page of a PDF file is printed on one sheet of paper, when one page of raster data is created, it is determined that the output page is completed, and the output page is determined. Is printed on the paper. However, when Nin1 (N = 2) is applied to the printing of a PDF file, for example, two pages of data must be printed on the first sheet. The output page is not completed just by being created. In this case, after the raster data for the necessary pages is further acquired (S602 to S605), the printing for the completed output page is performed.
[0080]
In step S607, it is determined whether printing of all pages of the PDF file has been completed. If printing for all pages has not been completed (NO in step S607), the process returns to step S602, and the processes in steps S602 to S607 are repeated.
[0081]
When the printing of all pages of the PDF file to be printed is completed (YES in step S607), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 11 and ends the execution of the processing illustrated in FIG.
[0082]
In the process of FIG. 12, when the storage capacity required for printing the rasterized PDF file is less than the available capacity of the memory or the hard disk of the printer 200, after the entire rasterized PDF file is collectively received, It is also possible to perform print processing while referring to the hint table 605.
[0083]
Next, the standard PDF file print processing in step S505 in FIG. 11 will be described with reference to FIG.
[0084]
When the PC 100A transmits a standard PDF file to the printer 200, the memory of the printer 200 (memory or hard disk in the case of a printer equipped with a hard disk) has a storage capacity required for printing the standard PDF file. Has a usable capacity sufficient to secure
[0085]
Therefore, the whole of the received standard PDF file is collectively stored in the memory (S701). In the case of a printer equipped with a hard disk, the entire PDF file is stored in the memory if there is sufficient free space in the memory, and is stored in the hard disk if there is not enough free space in the memory. If there is not enough free space in the memory while the file is being saved to the memory, the data saved in the memory is swapped to the hard disk, and the storage location of the file is changed to the hard disk.
[0086]
The printer 200 analyzes the PDF file based on the analysis result of the trailer 540 and the cross-reference table 530 (see FIGS. 4 and 5) and the printing conditions, and acquires data to be printed in page units. Then, an intermediate language for the acquired data of the predetermined page is created (S702).
[0087]
Subsequently, bitmap format raster data is created from the created intermediate language (S703). The created raster data is transferred to the printing unit 205 (S704), and a printing process is executed (S705).
[0088]
In step S706, it is determined whether printing of all pages of the PDF file has been completed. If printing for all pages has not been completed (NO in step S706), the process returns to step S702, and the processes in steps S702 to S706 are repeated.
[0089]
Then, when printing of all pages of the PDF file to be printed is completed (YES in step S706), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 11 and ends the execution of the processing illustrated in FIG.
[0090]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, when transmitting a PDF file to a printer without converting the PDF file into print data described in PDL such as PS, the PC has a storage capacity necessary for printing the PDF file to be printed. Is larger than the available capacity of the storage unit of the printer, the PDF file can be linearized.
[0091]
Therefore, by transmitting the leading data including the hint table of the linearized PDF file to the printer, the printer can sequentially request the PC for data necessary for printing, and the PC The predetermined data can be extracted and transmitted to the printer each time it is requested from the printer.
[0092]
As a result, even if the PDF file is transmitted to the printer having a small available capacity of the memory without being converted into the print data, the printing can be reliably performed. Moreover, the PC which is the transmission side of the PDF file only needs to linearize the PDF file, and does not need to perform a significant change process for reconstructing the file.
[0093]
Further, by determining data requested to be transmitted from the printer to the PC with reference to the printing conditions, special printing conditions such as booklet binding or face-up are applied, and printing is performed in a different order from the page order of the file. Even if it is necessary, it can be adequately dealt with without any trouble.
[0094]
FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of the PDF file analysis processing in step S105 in FIG. The points other than the processing shown in FIG. 14 are the same as those in the above-described embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.
[0095]
In this embodiment, Adobe (R) Acrobat (R) or an application having a similar linearizing function for a PDF file is installed in a storage device such as the hard disk 104 of the PC.
[0096]
First, it is determined whether the PDF file to be printed is a linearized PDF file (S801). In the case of a linearized PDF file (YES in S801), the PDF file analysis processing ends.
[0097]
If the PDF file is not a linearized PDF file, that is, if the PDF file to be printed is a standard PDF file (NO in S801), a linearization application for linearizing the standard PDF file (for example, Adobe (R) ) Acrobat (R) is started (S802).
[0098]
Then, in step S803, the PDF file to be printed is linearized by the activated linearization application (S803). The linearized PDF file is stored in a storage device such as a memory (RAM 103), and the PDF file analysis process ends. According to this embodiment, it is also possible to obtain the same effect as the above embodiment.
[0099]
It should be noted that extra processing by the user can be eliminated by incorporating the processing for instructing execution of linearization into Adobe (R) Acrobat (R) in advance as a plug-in. At the same time, by including a function of transmitting the linearized PDF file to the printer in the plug-in, a series of processes from linearizing the PDF file to transmitting the linearized PDF file to the printer can be simplified. It can be executed.
[0100]
The present invention is not limited to only the above-described embodiments, but can be variously modified within the scope of the claims.
[0101]
For example, as an apparatus having a function as an image processing apparatus, a computer such as a workstation or a server may be used instead of a PC. Further, instead of the printer, an image forming apparatus such as a facsimile machine, a copying machine, and a multi-function peripheral (MFP) having a combined function thereof may be used.
[0102]
In the present invention, a means and a method for performing various processes for transmitting a PDF file from an image processing apparatus to an image forming apparatus for printing without converting the PDF file into print data are provided by a dedicated hardware circuit or a programmed computer. It can be realized by any of them. The program may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a flexible disk or a CD-ROM, or may be provided online via a network such as the Internet. In this case, the program recorded on the computer-readable recording medium is usually transferred to a storage device such as a hard disk and stored. Further, the program may be provided as independent application software, or may be incorporated in the software of the device as one function of the device.
[0103]
The embodiments of the present invention described above include the inventions described in the following supplementary notes 1 to 10 in addition to the inventions described in claims 1 to 5 of the claims.
[0104]
[Supplementary Note 1] The conversion processing unit determines that the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the usable capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus as a result of the comparison by the comparison unit, The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the PDF file is linearized when the PDF file has not been linearized yet.
[0105]
[Supplementary Note 2] As a result of the comparison by the comparing unit, if the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is smaller than the usable capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus, the conversion processing unit linearizes the PDF file. 3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the transmission unit transmits the entire PDF file to the image forming apparatus.
[0106]
[Supplementary Note 3] A receiving unit that receives a transmission request for predetermined data in the PDF file from the image forming apparatus;
Extracting means for extracting data corresponding to the transmission request from the PDF file;
A second transmission unit for transmitting data extracted from the PDF file by the extraction unit to the image forming apparatus;
The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:
[0107]
[Supplementary Note 4] The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the determining unit determines the necessary data by referring to a printing condition related to a printing order of pages.
[0108]
[Supplementary Note 5] A program used in an image forming apparatus that receives and prints a PDF file from an image processing apparatus without being converted into print data,
A first receiving procedure for receiving, from the image processing apparatus, head data including a hint table in a linearized PDF file;
A determining step of determining necessary data in the PDF file based on a result of analyzing the leading data received in the first receiving step;
A transmission procedure for transmitting a transmission request for the necessary data to the image processing apparatus,
A second receiving procedure for receiving data transmitted from the image processing device in response to the transmission request;
A printing procedure for performing printing based on the data received in the second receiving procedure;
For causing the image forming apparatus to execute the above.
[0109]
[Supplementary Note 6] An image processing method for transmitting a PDF file to an image forming apparatus without converting the file into print data,
A comparing step of comparing the size of the PDF file to be printed with the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus to print the PDF file;
As a result of the comparison in the comparing step, when the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus, a conversion processing step of linearizing the PDF file;
An image processing method comprising:
[0110]
[Supplementary note 7] The image processing method according to supplementary note 6, further comprising a transmission step of transmitting leading data including a hint table of the PDF file linearized in the conversion processing step to the image forming apparatus.
[0111]
[Supplementary Note 8] An image forming method for receiving and printing a PDF file from an image processing apparatus without being converted into print data,
A first receiving step of receiving, from the image processing apparatus, head data including a hint table in a linearized PDF file;
A determining step of determining necessary data in the PDF file based on a result of analyzing the leading data received in the first receiving step;
A transmission step of transmitting a transmission request for the necessary data to the image processing apparatus,
A second receiving step of receiving data transmitted from the image processing apparatus in response to the transmission request;
A printing step of performing printing based on the data received in the second receiving step;
An image forming method comprising:
[0112]
[Supplementary Note 9] A computer-readable recording medium recording the program according to claim 3 or 4.
[0113]
[Supplementary Note 10] A computer-readable recording medium recording the program according to Supplementary Note 5.
[0114]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, when the storage capacity required for printing a PDF file to be printed is larger than the usable capacity of the storage unit of the printer, the PDF file can be linearized. Therefore, by transmitting the leading data including the hint table of the linearized PDF file to the image forming apparatus, the image forming apparatus can sequentially request the image processing apparatus for data necessary for printing. The image processing apparatus can extract predetermined data from the PDF file each time the image forming apparatus requests the data, and transmit the extracted data to the image forming apparatus.
[0115]
As a result, even if the PDF file is transmitted to the image forming apparatus having a small usable capacity of the storage unit without being converted into the print data, the printing can be reliably performed. Moreover, the PDF file transmitting side only needs to linearize the PDF file, and does not need to perform a significant change process for reconstructing the file.
[0116]
Further, by determining data requested to be transmitted from the image forming apparatus to the image processing apparatus with reference to the printing conditions, special printing conditions such as booklet binding or face-up are applied, and the page order of the file is different from that of the file. Even when the printing needs to be performed in order, it is possible to sufficiently cope with the trouble.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a print system to which a PC and a printer according to an embodiment of the present invention are applied.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a PC shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the printer shown in FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a configuration of a standard PDF file.
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a sample of a standard PDF file.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a process performed by the PC.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a PDF file analysis process shown in FIG. 6;
FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a PDF file transmission process illustrated in FIG. 6;
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a first half of a sample of a linearized PDF file.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating the latter half of a sample of a linearized PDF file.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a process performed by the printer.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart for explaining a printing process of the linearized PDF file shown in FIG. 11;
FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining a standard PDF file printing process shown in FIG. 11;
FIG. 14 is a flowchart for explaining another embodiment of the PDF file analysis processing shown in FIG. 6;
[Explanation of symbols]
1-21, an object,
100A, 100B ... PC,
101, 201 ... CPU,
102, 202 ... ROM,
103, 203 ... RAM,
104 ... Hard disk,
105 display unit,
106 ... input unit,
107, 206 ... network interface,
108, 207 ... bus,
200 ... printer,
204: operation panel section,
205 printing section,
300 ... network,
500 ... standard PDF file,
510 ... header,
520 ... body,
530 ... Cross reference table,
540 ... trailer,
600: Linearized PDF file,
601, a header,
602: linearization parameters,
605: hint table,
606: First page section,
607 ... remaining pages.

Claims (5)

An image processing apparatus for transmitting a PDF file to an image forming apparatus without converting the file into print data,
Comparing means for comparing the size of the PDF file to be printed with the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus to print the PDF file;
An image processing apparatus comprising: a conversion processing unit that linearizes the PDF file when a storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than a usable capacity of a storage unit of the image forming apparatus as a result of the comparison by the comparison unit. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transmission unit configured to transmit head data including a hint table in the PDF file linearized by the conversion processing unit to the image forming apparatus. A program used in an image processing apparatus that transmits a PDF file to an image forming apparatus without converting the file into print data,
A comparison procedure for comparing the size of the PDF file to be printed with the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus to print the PDF file;
As a result of the comparison in the comparison procedure, when the storage capacity required for printing the PDF file is larger than the available capacity of the storage unit of the image forming apparatus, the conversion processing procedure for linearizing the PDF file is performed by the image processing apparatus. The program to be executed. 4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising causing the image processing apparatus to execute a transmission procedure of transmitting head data including a hint table in the PDF file linearized in the conversion processing procedure to the image forming apparatus. program. An image forming apparatus for receiving and printing a PDF file from an image processing apparatus without being converted into print data,
First receiving means for receiving, from the image processing apparatus, head data including a hint table in a linearized PDF file;
Determining means for determining necessary data in the PDF file based on a result of analyzing the head data received by the first receiving means;
Transmission means for transmitting a transmission request for the necessary data to the image processing apparatus,
Second receiving means for receiving data transmitted from the image processing apparatus in response to the transmission request;
A printing unit for performing printing based on the data received by the second receiving unit.

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