JP2005081759A - Printer device and printing control method, and image processing system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve convenience for a user by smoothly performing a printing process even if an image file specified for printing by printing control information contains an unprintable format. <P>SOLUTION: The printer device is communicatively connected to an image file supply device and acquires an image file from an image file supplying device for printing and outputting. The printer device judges whether the format of the image file to be printed is one of printable prescribed formats or not (Step S102 and S103) based on a printing control information storage file in which the image file is specified for printing and the format of the image file specified for printing is set. The printer device acquires only printable image files to be printed are acquired from among the image files specified for printing from the image file supply device (Step S104 and S105) in the printing control information storage file. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a printer apparatus, a printing control method therefor, and an image processing system.

  In recent years, a system (PictBridge system) has been realized in which a digital camera and a printer device are directly connected by a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable, and desired image data is directly transferred from the digital camera to the printer device for printing. This system is very popular because it eliminates the trouble of bringing a recording medium such as a memory card on which a photographed image is recorded to a laboratory service store. Further, in the PictBridge system, it is possible to print using DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) information.

  In DPOF, as types of print control information, source information (image file name) of an image to be printed, date / time, number of prints, print type (normal print or index print), character and title information, image rotation information , Trimming information, etc. are defined. According to this DPOF, it is possible to easily print out a desired image by recording an image taken by a digital camera or the like together with necessary print control information on a memory card or the like and bringing it into a laboratory service store.

In the PICTBRIDGE system, first, the digital camera provides the printer device with a DPOF file in which printing control information by DPOF is stored. Next, the printer device requests the digital camera for an image file designated for printing in the DPOF file. The digital camera then provides the requested image file to the printer device. Next, the printer device prints out the provided image file. In this way, print control of the image file is executed, and image printing using DPOF is possible in the PICTBRIDGE system.
This makes it possible to print a captured image using either a laboratory service store or a PICTBRIDGE system according to one print control specification (DPOF).

However, when DPOF is used in the PICTBRIDGE system, normal printing cannot be performed unless the format of the image file designated for printing by DPOF is supported by the printer apparatus. For this reason, conventionally, a digital camera converts the format of an image file in accordance with a printer device (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Also, there is a notification that printing cannot be executed when the format of the image file designated for printing by DPOF is not supported by the printer device (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
JP-A-10-65867 JP 2001-138611 A

  However, when image file format conversion processing is performed in a digital camera, the processing of the digital camera becomes complicated, increasing the load on the CPU, resulting in problems such as reduced processing speed and hindering multi-functionality. . In addition, since a new memory is required for file format conversion, the hardware scale is increased and the cost is increased.

  Also, simply notifying that printing cannot be performed eventually requires the user to cancel the notified print job, which is troublesome. Also, if the user is not present at the time of notification, printing remains stopped, and usability is poor. Further, since no consideration is given to an inexecutable image file, it is unfriendly to the user.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to perform printing processing even when there is a format incapable of printing among image files designated for printing by print control information. It is an object of the present invention to provide a printer apparatus and a print control method thereof that can be performed smoothly and can improve convenience for the user.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an image processing system including the printer device of the present invention.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a printer device of the present invention is configured to communicate with an image file supply device, acquire an image file from the image file supply device, and print out the image file. And whether or not the format of the image file to be printed is one of the predetermined formats that can be printed based on at least the print control information storage file in which the format of the image file designated for printing is set. Print suitability determination means for determining; print image acquisition control means for acquiring, from the image file supply device, only an image file to be printed that can be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file; It is characterized by having.
According to this configuration, the format of the image file designated for printing by the print control information such as DPOF can be checked before executing the print output, and only the image file that can be printed can be selected and smoothly printed out. Furthermore, since only image files that can be printed are acquired from the image file supply device, it is possible to shorten the printing execution time.

In the printer device of the present invention, the print control information list storage file for creating a print designation for only the print target image file that can be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file is created. 1 print control information list storage file creation means.
According to this configuration, the next print designation can be easily and reliably executed using the print control information list storage file in which only printable image files are designated.

Further, in the printer apparatus of the present invention, a print control information list storage file for designating only print target image files that cannot be printed among the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file is created. A second print control information list storage file creation unit is provided.
According to this configuration, it is possible to easily and reliably execute print designation of an image file that has not been printed using a print control information list storage file in which only image files that cannot be printed are designated. For example, the print control information list storage file can be supplied to another printer that supports the format of the image file that has not been printed, and printing can be easily performed. It is also possible to request printing from a lab service store.

  A print control method of the present invention is a print control method in a printer device that is connected to an image file supply device in communication, acquires an image file from the image file supply device, and prints out the image file. Whether or not the format of the image file to be printed is one of the predetermined formats that can be printed is determined based on at least the print control information storage file in which the format of the image file designated for printing is set. And a process of acquiring only an image file to be printed that can be printed from the image file supply apparatus.

  In the print control method of the present invention, a print control information list storage file is generated that prints only the print target image file that can be printed out of the image files specified for printing in the print control information storage file. It is characterized by including a process.

  In the print control method of the present invention, a print control information list storage file for designating printing only image files to be printed that cannot be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file is created. It is characterized by including the process to do.

An image processing system according to the present invention is an image processing system in which an imaging device and a printer device are connected to communicate, and the printer device acquires an image file from the imaging device and prints out the image file. Print control information storage file supply control means for supplying, to the printer device, a print control information storage file that is specified and at least the format of the image file specified for printing is set, and an image file recorded in a recording medium Image file supply control means for supplying the image file to the printer device, the printer device based on a print control information storage file received from the imaging device, a predetermined image file format that can be printed Print suitability judging means for judging whether it is one of the formats and printing capable of printing It is characterized in that it comprises a print image acquisition control unit for acquiring only the image files of elephant from the imaging device.
According to this configuration, in the PICTBRIDGE system in which the imaging device and the printer device are connected by communication, it is possible to easily and smoothly print a captured image using print control information such as DPOF.

  In the image processing system of the present invention, the printer device prints only a print target image file that can be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file. A first print control information list storage file creation means for creating a storage file is provided.

  In the image processing system of the present invention, the printer device prints print control information for designating only an image file to be printed that cannot be printed from among the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file. A second print control information list storage file creation means for creating a list storage file is provided.

The printer device of the present invention is a printer device that prints out image data supplied from an image file supply device, obtains a print control information storage file from the image file supply device, and selects from the acquired print control information storage file A print compatible file format recognizing unit for recognizing a file format capable of being printed, a list file creating unit for creating a list of print compatible files recognized as the file format capable of being printed by the self, Based on the created list of print compatible files, print compatible file requesting means for requesting a compatible image file from the image file supply device, and image data reception for receiving image data transmitted from the image file supply device Means.
According to this configuration, since the list of file formats that can be printed is known in advance before printing, the number of prints and the print time can be predicted. Further, since processing is performed based on the list, effects such as faster printing processing can be obtained.

  In the printer device of the present invention, the list file creating means also creates a list of non-compliant print files based on information recognized as a file format that cannot be printed by itself.

  In the printer device of the present invention, the print compatible file list is transmitted to the image file supply device after the print output is completed.

  In the printer device of the present invention, at least one of the print compatible file list and the print incompatible file list is transmitted to the image file supply device after print output is completed.

  The print control method of the present invention is a print control method in a printer device that prints out image data supplied from an image file supply device, acquires a print control information storage file from the image file supply device, and acquires the print A process of recognizing a file format that can be printed by itself from a control information storage file, a process of creating a list of print compatible files that have been recognized by the self as a file format that can be printed, and the creation And a step of requesting the image file supply device for a suitable image file based on the list of the print compatible files, and a step of receiving the image data transmitted from the image file supply device. It is said.

  According to the present invention, the format of an image file designated for printing by print control information such as DPOF can be checked before execution of print output, and only image files that can be printed can be selected and printed out smoothly. Furthermore, since only image files that can be printed are acquired from the image file supply device, it is possible to shorten the printing execution time. As a result, the convenience for the user is greatly improved.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, as a specific example of an image processing system, a direct print system (hereinafter, commonly referred to as a direct print system) in which a printer device and a digital camera (imaging device) according to an embodiment of the present invention are directly connected via a USB cable. This is referred to as a PictBridge system.

  FIG. 1 is an external view showing an overall configuration of a PictBridge system according to the present embodiment. The PictBridge system shown in FIG. 1 includes a digital camera 1 and a printer device 10 connected to the digital camera 1 via a USB cable 9. The digital camera 1 and the printer device 10 can transmit and receive data to and from each other through a USB connection.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a release switch button 4 and the like are disposed on the upper surface of the camera body of the digital camera 1. On the back of the camera body, there are a viewfinder eyepiece window 3, an LCD display 2, a dial switch 5 that also functions as a power switch and a mode selection switch, a cross key switch 7 that also functions as a cursor operation switch for the LCD display 2, and a menu selection A switch unit 6, a USB connector 8, and the like are arranged. Then, one end of a USB cable 9 is connected to the USB connector 8 as shown.

  In addition to the above, a photographing lens, a finder window, a strobe window, and the like (not shown) are disposed on the front surface of the camera body. Although not shown, a card connector for loading a memory card, which is a recording medium for captured image data, a battery storage chamber for storing a battery, and the like are arranged on the side surface or bottom surface of the camera body.

Next, the configuration of the digital camera 1 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the digital camera 1.
As shown in FIG. 2, the digital camera 1 has a built-in CPU 21 as a camera controller that controls each of the control elements described later to control the entire camera. In the digital camera 1, a subject image is taken in via the photographing lens 22 and the diaphragm 23, and the subject image is converted into an electric signal by an image pickup device 29 such as a CCD. The photographing lens 22 is driven forward and backward through a lens driving unit 24. The diaphragm 23 is driven by a diaphragm via a diaphragm driver 25. These driving units 24 and 25 are controlled by the CPU 21.

The image pickup device 29 is driven via the image pickup device driver 28 in synchronization with the CPU 21 by the timing circuit 27. The imaging output of the imaging device 29 is taken into the digital processing circuit 32 as digital image data by the pro-process circuit 30 and the A / D conversion circuit 31. Digital image data output from the digital processing circuit 32 is stored in the frame memory 34 through the bus line under the control of the memory controller 33. Further, the image data stored in the frame memory 34 is recorded for each photographing frame on the memory card 39 attached to the card connector via the card I / F 38 through the bus line. The header information of the image data is also recorded corresponding to the image data for each shooting frame. Image data subjected to digital image processing by the digital processing circuit 32, image data recorded on the memory card 39, image data printed by the printer device 10 to be described later, etc., and an image when the printer device 10 prints Printer information such as a selection screen and the number of prints is displayed on the LCD display unit 2. In this case, the image data is supplied to the LCD display unit 2 via the bus line and the LCD driver 42, and the printer information is supplied to the LCD display unit 2 by the LCD driver 42 based on a program stored in the ROM 37 described later. The
A ROM 37 and a RAM 36 are connected to the bus line. In the ROM 37, the CPU 21 as a camera controller controls the entire photographing and playback operations of the camera, and firmware for transmitting image data to the printer device 10, and the LCD driver 42 displays a print designation screen on the LCD display unit 2. A program to be executed is stored. The RAM 36 temporarily stores data for distance measurement and photometry that are taken in at the time of shooting.
The frame memory 34 also temporarily stores image data supplied to the LCD display unit 2.

  In addition to the above, the CPU 21 includes a release switch button 4, a cross key switch unit 7 for various settings, a dial switch 5 for power on and mode setting, a switch input circuit 41 for the menu selection switch unit 6, and the USB connector 8. A connected USB controller 35, strobe light emitting unit 26, and the like are connected. The USB controller 35 transmits and receives data according to the USB protocol via the USB cable 9 connected to the USB connector 8. Thus, the CPU 21 can perform PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol) communication via the USB as the physical communication layer, and can detect the printer device 10 connected via the USB cable 9. The detection of the printer 10 is performed when the USB controller 35 detects the voltage 5V for power supply by USB.

Next, the configuration of the printer apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the printer apparatus 10.
As shown in FIG. 3, the printer device 10 is a frame sequential sublimation thermal transfer printer device that uses ink ribbons of Y (yellow), M (magenta), and C (cyan), and is stored in the ROM 53. A CPU 51 is incorporated as a printer controller that controls each control element to be described later according to a print control program. In the printer device 10, image data and header information recorded in the digital camera 1 are connected to the CPU 51 and the frame via the USB controller 50 and the bus line via the USB connector 50 connected via the USB cable 9. It is captured in the memory 52.

  Image data stored in the frame memory 52 is subjected to color conversion from RGB to CMY, dot / inch size conversion, γ conversion, color correction, thumbnail conversion, frame composition, and the like based on correction parameters in the image processing circuit 54. Processing is performed. The conversion output data of the image processing circuit 54 is output to the print head (thermal print head) 64 via the head driver 63 under the control of the CPU 51.

  On the other hand, in synchronization with the printing operation of the print head 64, the ribbon feed motor (M) 56 and the paper feed motor (M) 60 are driven via the motor drivers 55 and 59 to feed the ink ribbon and paper to the paper. Is printed.

  The ink ribbon feeding state is detected by the ribbon sensor 57, and ink ribbon remaining amount data is taken into the CPU 51. Further, the remaining number-of-sheets data stored in the sheet cassette for storing the sheets is detected by the sheet feeding sensor 58 and taken into the CPU 51. The printer device 10 includes an LED 13 for displaying a warning or the like during the operation state of the printer or a printing operation, a PCV (piezoelectric buzzer) 68 serving as a warning means for generating a warning sound during the printing operation, the printer power switch unit 11 and the printing. Switch contacts 11 a and 12 a that are turned on by the start switch unit 12 are arranged and connected to the CPU 51, respectively.

  A ROM 53 is connected to the bus line. The ROM 53 stores a program for communicating with the digital camera 1 and operating the entire printer.

Next, the operation at the time of image printing according to the above configuration will be described in detail.
First, when the USB connector 8 of the digital camera 1 is connected to the USB connector 50 of the printer device 10 via the USB cable 9, the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 is supplied from the printer device 10 via the USB connector 50. The voltage (5V) is detected. In response to this detection, the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 controls the LCD driver 42, reads a program for displaying a print control screen from the ROM 37, and displays a print designation screen on the LCD display unit 2. By operating the cross key switch unit 7 and the like while referring to the print designation screen, a desired print designation can be performed. When the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 receives the signal related to the print designation, it reads the corresponding image data from the removable memory card 39 and transmits it to the printer device 10 via the USB controller 35, USB connector 8, and USB cable 9. To do. Alternatively, the printer device 10 may be requested to acquire an image file. Next, the CPU 51 of the printer device 10 starts printing out the image file acquired from the digital camera 1. Thereby, the print output of the image file is executed.

  Here, the user can designate printing of a plurality of images at the same time. The CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 sequentially transmits the plurality of image files designated for printing to the printer device 10. Alternatively, the printer device 10 may be requested to sequentially acquire the plurality of image files.

Hereinafter, a case where the digital camera 1 requests the printer device 10 to acquire an image file will be described.
As one of the print control specifications used at the time of this request, DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) can be adopted in this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DPOF file (printing control information storage file). The example of FIG. 4 requests to print out five image files. As shown in FIG. 4, the DPOF file 100 describes five print jobs (hereinafter simply referred to as jobs) 110, 120, 130, 140, and 150. For each job, print control information such as image file names 111, 121, 131, 141, 151 to be printed is described.
“PRT PID” is the number of the image file to be printed, “PRT TYP” is the print type, standard in the example of FIG. 4, “IMG FMT” is the image file format, and “IMG SRC” is the image file storage. A relative path indicating the destination.

  The CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 creates a DPOF file for the image file designated for printing. In this DPOF file, as shown in FIG. 4, a job is described for each image file designated for printing, and print control information such as an image file name to be printed is described in each job.

  Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, an operation in which the printer apparatus 10 acquires an image file and prints it out when a print request is issued from the digital camera 1 will be described. FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram showing the flow of print control processing in the PictBridge system according to the present embodiment. In the following description, it is assumed that data and the like are transmitted and received between the digital camera 1 and the printer device 10 using a USB connection.

  In FIG. 5, first, when the communication connection between the digital camera 1 and the printer device 10 is established, the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 transmits the created DPOF file to the printer device 10. Next, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 executes the jobs described in the received DPOF file in order from the top. When this job is executed, an image file to be printed is transferred between the printer device 10 and the digital camera 1. Specifically, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 transmits the image file name to be printed relating to the job being executed to the digital camera 1 and requests the corresponding image file. Next, the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 reads out the image file corresponding to the received image file name from, for example, the memory card 39 and transmits it to the printer device 10. Next, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 starts printing the received image file. As a result, the image file designated for printing in the DPOF file is acquired from the digital camera 1 by the printer device 10 and printed out.

  By the way, there are various image file formats, but not all of them are supported by the printer 10. For example, in the DPOF file 100 shown in FIG. 4, five image files are designated for printing, and among them, there are a JPEG format file and a TIFF format file. Among these, when the printer device 10 supports, for example, the JPEG format but does not support the TIFF format, if the TIFF format image file is printed and output as it is, the print output is not normally executed. Furthermore, there is a possibility that the printer 10 becomes in an error state and subsequent jobs cannot be executed.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the printer device 10 checks in advance the format of the image file designated for printing, so that an unsupported format image file is not printed out.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the printer apparatus 10 when there is an image file in a format not supported by the printer apparatus 10 among the image files designated for printing by the DPOF file will be described.

First, a first example of print control processing performed by the printer device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a first example of print control processing in the printer device 10 according to the present embodiment.
In FIG. 6, when receiving the DPOF file from the digital camera 1, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 starts executing the first job described in the DPOF file (step S101). Next, the CPU 51 refers to the name of the image file to be printed of the job being executed, and confirms the format of the image file (step S102). In the DPOF file 100 shown in FIG. 4, the extension of the image file name indicates the file format. For example, the extension “JPG” indicates the JPEG format, and the extension “TIFF” indicates the TIFF format.

  Next, the CPU 51 determines whether or not the format of the image file to be printed of the job being executed is one of the predetermined formats that can be printed (step S103). If the result of this determination is that printing is possible, the process proceeds to step S104. On the other hand, if printing is not possible, the process proceeds to step S107.

  Next, in step S104, the CPU 51 requests the digital camera 1 for the image file because the image file to be printed of the job being executed can be printed (step S104). Next, when an image file to be printed is transmitted from the digital camera 1 and received by the printer device 10, the CPU 51 starts printing out the received image file (steps S105 and S106).

  Next, in step S107, the CPU 51 determines whether there is an unexecuted job among the jobs described in the DPOF file (step S107). If there is an unexecuted job as a result of this determination, the process returns to step S101 to start execution of the next job. On the other hand, if there is no unexecuted job, the process ends.

  According to the first embodiment described above, print output of an image file is performed only when the format of the image file to be printed is compatible with printing. As a result, it is possible to prevent an image file in a format that cannot be printed from being printed out, and to prevent an error from occurring due to an incompatibility of the image file format. As a result, print output of an image file that can be printed is smoothly executed. Furthermore, since only the image file that can be printed is requested and acquired from the digital camera 1, the printing execution time can be shortened.

  Next, a second example of the print control process performed by the printer device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a second example of the print control process in the printer apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 7, the processing from step S201 to S206 corresponds to the processing from step S101 to S106 in FIG. 6 described above, and the description thereof is omitted. In step S <b> 207, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 newly creates a DPOF file (hereinafter referred to as a printed DPOF file) that includes only the image file that can be printed and can be printed. The printed DPOF file is updated each time the image file is printed out. The description of the job described in the original DPOF file received from the digital camera 1 is copied to the printed DPOF file. Alternatively, the print control information other than the image file name may be newly set for the image file that has been printed out, and the set print control information may be described in the printed DPOF file.

  FIG. 8 shows an example of a printed DPOF file. The printed DPOF file 200 shown in FIG. 8 is the one when the JPEG format can be printed and the TIFF format cannot be printed when the DPOF file 100 of FIG. 4 is executed. As shown in FIG. 8, in the printed DPOF file 200, only the image file in JPEG format is designated for printing. Further, in this example, descriptions of the corresponding jobs 110, 120, and 140 in the DPOF file 100 of FIG. 4 are copied to the printed DPOF file 200.

  Next, after all jobs have been executed, the CPU 51 transmits the printed DPOF file to the digital camera 1 (step S209). This printed DPOF file is stored on the digital camera 1 side.

According to the second embodiment described above, the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained. Furthermore, the next print designation can be easily and reliably executed using the printed DPOF file.
In the second embodiment, the printed DPOF file corresponds to a print control information list storage file in which only print target image files that can be printed are designated.

  Next, a third example of the print control process performed by the printer device 10 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a third example of the print control process in the printer apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.

  In FIG. 9, the processing from step S301 to S306 corresponds to the processing from step S101 to S106 in FIG. 6 described above, and the description thereof is omitted. In step S307, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 newly creates a DPOF file (hereinafter, referred to as a non-printed DPOF file) only for an image file whose print target image file cannot be printed and is not printed out. . Each time an image file that is not printed out is detected, the non-printed DPOF file is updated. A description of the job described in the original DPOF file received from the digital camera 1 is copied to the non-printed DPOF file. Alternatively, for an image file that is not printed out, print control information other than the image file name may be newly set, and the set print control information may be described in the printed DPOF file.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of a non-printed DPOF file. The non-printed DPOF file 300 shown in FIG. 10 is the one when the JPEG format can be printed and the TIFF format cannot be printed when the DPOF file 100 of FIG. 4 is executed. As shown in FIG. 10, in the non-printed DPOF file 300, only the TIFF format image file is designated for printing. In this example, the descriptions of the corresponding jobs 130 and 150 in the DPOF file 100 in FIG. 4 are copied to the non-printed DPOF file 300.

  Next, after all jobs have been executed, the CPU 51 transmits a non-printed DPOF file to the digital camera 1 (step S309). This non-printed DPOF file is stored on the digital camera 1 side.

According to the third embodiment described above, the same effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained. Furthermore, it is possible to easily and reliably execute print designation of an image file that has not been printed using a non-printed DPOF file. For example, it is possible to easily supply a non-printed DPOF file to another printer device that supports the format of an image file that has not been printed, and execute printing. It is also possible to request printing from a lab service store.
In the third embodiment, the non-printed DPOF file corresponds to a print control information list storage file in which only print target image files that cannot be printed are designated.

  The printed DPOF file and the non-printed DPOF file may be stored on the printer device 10 side.

  In the printer device 10, both a printed DPOF file and a non-printed DPOF file may be created.

  In the above-described embodiment, the CPU 21 of the digital camera 1 corresponds to the print control information storage file supply control unit and the image file supply control unit. Further, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 corresponds to print suitability determination means, print image acquisition control means, and first and second print control information list storage file creation means.

The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes design changes and the like within a scope not departing from the gist of the present invention.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, an image file that can be printed is acquired every time a print job is executed, but the compatibility of the format of all the image files to be printed is collectively checked, and an image that can be printed You may make it acquire a file collectively. FIG. 11 is a flowchart of the print control process according to the fourth embodiment.

  In FIG. 11, when receiving the DPOF file from the digital camera 1, the CPU 51 of the printer apparatus 10 searches for a printable file from the image files designated for printing in the DPOF file (step S401). Next, the CPU 51 determines whether there is a printable file (step S402). If there is a printable file, the CPU 51 creates a list of print compatible files using the printable file as a print compatible file (step S403). On the other hand, if there is no printable file, a list of print incompatible files is created with all image files designated for printing in the DPOF file as print incompatible files (step S404).

  In this example, the DPOF file format is adopted as the format of the print conforming file list and the print incompatible file list. That is, in the print compatible file list, as shown in FIG. 8, a job for an image file that can be printed by the printer 10 is described. In the print incompatible file list, as shown in FIG. 10, a job for an image file that cannot be printed by the printer 10 is described.

  Next, in step S405, the CPU 51 requests the digital camera 1 for a printable image file based on the created print compatible file list. Next, the image file transmitted from the digital camera 1 in response to this request is received, and the received image file is printed out (steps S406 and S407). Next, the CPU 51 creates a list of non-compliant print files as non-compliant print files that have not been printed (step S408). As a method of determining this print incompatible file, for example, the DPOF file from the digital camera 1 is checked against the print compatible file list created in step S403, and the difference image file is determined to be a print incompatible file. If there is no difference, a list of non-printable files is not created.

  Next, in step S409, the CPU 51 transmits the created list (print compatible file list or print incompatible file list) to the digital camera 1.

  According to the fourth embodiment, since a list of file formats that can be printed is known in advance before printing, the number of printed sheets and the printing time can be predicted. Further, since processing is performed based on the list, effects such as faster printing processing can be obtained.

  In the above-described embodiment, the USB connection method is used as one of the communication connection methods, but another method may be used. For example, a communication connection method such as IEEE 1394 or RS-232C may be used. Further, the connection method is not limited to a wired connection method, and a wireless connection method such as infrared communication may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, the digital camera supplies both the DPOF file and the image file to the printer apparatus. However, the supply source of the DPOF file (print control information storage file) is different from the supply source of the image file. It may be. For example, the DPOF file may be input directly to the printer device by the user.

  Further, the image file supply apparatus with which the printer apparatus obtains an image file is not limited to a digital camera. For example, a mobile phone having an electronic imaging function may be used. Alternatively, a terminal or the like that can read the image file from a recording medium on which the image file is recorded may be used. For example, it may be a portable terminal called a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a personal computer, or the like.

1 is an external view showing an overall configuration of an image processing system (PictBridge system) according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of a digital camera 1. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of a printer device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of a DPOF file. It is a sequence diagram which shows the flow of the printing control processing in the image processing system (PictBridge system) shown in FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a first embodiment of print control processing in the printer device 10 illustrated in FIG. 3. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a second embodiment of a print control process in the printer apparatus 10 illustrated in FIG. 3. It is a figure which shows an example of the printed DPOF file. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a third embodiment of a print control process in the printer device 10 illustrated in FIG. 3. It is a figure which shows an example of the non-printed DPOF file. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a fourth embodiment of print control processing in the printer apparatus 10 illustrated in FIG. 3.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Digital camera (imaging apparatus, image file supply apparatus), 9 ... USB cable, 10 ... Printer apparatus, 21 ... Camera controller (CPU), 35, 70 ... USB controller, 51 ... Printer controller (CPU).

Claims (14)

In a printer device that communicates with an image file supply device, acquires an image file from the image file supply device, and prints it out.
One of the predetermined formats in which the format of the image file to be printed can be printed based on the print control information storage file in which the image file is designated for printing and the format of the image file designated for printing is set at least Print suitability judging means for judging whether or not
Print image acquisition control means for acquiring, from the image file supply device, only the image file to be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file;
A printer apparatus comprising: First print control information list storage file creation means for creating a print control information list storage file for designating only print target image files that can be printed from among the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file The printer apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: Creation of a second print control information list storage file for creating a print control information list storage file that designates printing only of image files to be printed that cannot be printed among the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file The printer apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: means. A printing control method in a printer apparatus that is connected to an image file supply apparatus, acquires an image file from the image file supply apparatus, and prints out the image file.
One of the predetermined formats in which the format of the image file to be printed can be printed based on the print control information storage file in which the image file is designated for printing and the format of the image file designated for printing is set at least The process of determining whether or not
A process of acquiring only an image file to be printed that can be printed from the image file supply device;
A printing control method comprising: 5. A process for creating a print control information list storage file for designating only print target image files that can be printed from among the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file. A printing control method according to claim 1. The printing control information list storage file that includes a step of creating a print control information list storage file in which only the image files to be printed that cannot be printed among the image files that are specified to be printed in the print control information storage file is included. The printing control method according to claim 4 or 5. In an image processing system in which an imaging device and a printer device are connected for communication, and the printer device acquires an image file from the imaging device and prints it out,
The imaging apparatus includes a print control information storage file supply control unit that supplies a print control information storage file in which an image file is designated for printing and at least a format of the image file designated for printing to the printer apparatus; Image file supply control means for supplying an image file recorded in a recording medium to the printer device;
The printer device determines whether or not the format of the image file to be printed is one of predetermined formats that can be printed based on the print control information storage file received from the imaging device. Means, and a print image acquisition control means for acquiring only an image file to be printed that can be printed from the imaging device,
An image processing system comprising: The printer device generates first print control information for creating a print control information list storage file that designates printing of only image files to be printed out of the image files designated for printing in the print control information storage file. The image processing system according to claim 7, further comprising a list storage file creation unit. The printer device generates a print control information list storage file that specifies print printing of only image files to be printed that cannot be printed from among the image files specified for printing in the print control information storage file. 9. The image processing system according to claim 7, further comprising information list storage file creation means. In a printer that prints out image data supplied from an image file supply device,
A print compatible file format recognition unit that acquires a print control information storage file from the image file supply device and recognizes a file format that can be printed by itself from the acquired print control information storage file;
A list file creating means for creating a list of print compatible files recognized as a file format that the self can handle;
Print compatible file requesting means for requesting a suitable image file to the image file supply device based on the created list of print compatible files;
Image data receiving means for receiving image data transmitted from the image file supply device;
A printer apparatus comprising: The printer apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the list file creation unit also creates a list of non-printable files based on information recognized as a file format that cannot be printed by itself. The printer apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the print compatible file list is transmitted to the image file supply apparatus after print output is completed. The printer apparatus according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the print compatible file list and the print incompatible file list is transmitted to the image file supply apparatus after print output is completed. A printing control method in a printer device for printing out image data supplied from an image file supply device,
A process of acquiring a print control information storage file from the image file supply device and recognizing a file format that can be printed by itself from the acquired print control information storage file;
Creating a list of print compatible files that the self recognizes as a file format that can be printed;
Requesting a suitable image file from the image file supply device based on the generated list of print compatible files;
Receiving image data transmitted from the image file supply device;
A printing control method comprising:

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