JP2007011808A - Printing system and printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing device dispensing with input of troublesome printing control data to correspond to printing control conditions unique to each printing device and capable of securing a sufficient degree of freedom to vary printing conditions without excessive enlargement of printing control data to be prepared on the host computer side. <P>SOLUTION: The printing device 2 receives primary printing control data 48 through a communication line 5 and a receiving interface 28 (a primary printing control data receiving means). The received primary printing control data 48 is converted into secondary control data 50 unique to the printing device 2, by a filter processing program 44 in an ROM 22 achieving the function of a printing control data converting means. Based on the secondary printing control data obtained by conversion, printing processing is performed by a printing part (a printing processing part) 27. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system and a printing apparatus.

JP-A-11-78168

  In a printing apparatus that performs printing in accordance with print control data received from a host computer, Patent Document 1 discloses a print condition setting command (print control data) set by a user by key input or the like. In order to prevent inconveniences that are changed due to the above, there is disclosed a printing apparatus equipped with a function of ignoring a received printing condition setting command when the received command is not a command desired by the user.

  By the way, the usage conditions of the printing apparatus are appropriately selected according to the user's request, and the contents of the print control data must be uniquely determined according to the desired usage conditions. However, conventionally, when the print control data prepared on the host computer side does not match the print conditions desired by the user, it is necessary to input the print control data settings by the user each time. It is troublesome. For example, when multiple printing devices are connected to the host computer and you want to output by changing the printing conditions for each printing device, set the printing control data one by one on the host computer side according to which printing device is used Must be entered. The same applies to the case where a plurality of host computers are connected to a single printing apparatus. For example, the data of a specific host computer is always output to the tray 1, but the other printing source data is In order to output to the tray 2, it is necessary to input print control data relating to tray designation every time before printing. In such a method, not only the setting input of the printing conditions is troublesome, but if an input mistake is made, printing is not performed under the desired conditions, and it is necessary to start again. However, installing a large number of printer drivers corresponding to each printing device and including different print control data on the host computer side takes time to install and wastes the capacity of the storage device. There are drawbacks. In addition, there is a problem that printer drivers in close hierarchies tend to cause processing conflicts.

  In other words, the printing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 is not different from the conventional printing apparatus in that the user inputs and uses a printing condition setting command with a keyboard or the like each time on the printing apparatus side. And even though it has a function to ignore commands that are inconvenient for the user, its purpose is to protect the data sent from the host computer side, and it was necessary for every printing This does not contribute to solving the problem of saving the trouble of inputting the print condition setting command.

  An object of the present invention is that it is not necessary to input troublesome print control data to cope with print control conditions unique to each printing apparatus, and the print control data to be prepared on the host computer side is not excessively expanded. Another object of the present invention is to provide a printing system and a printing apparatus that can ensure a sufficient degree of freedom in changing printing conditions.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

In order to solve the above problems, the printing system of the present invention provides:
A printing system having a transmission source device that is a transmission source of print control data that specifies a control condition for print processing, and a printing device that performs print processing based on print control data received from the transmission source device,
A primary printing control data storage means provided in the transmission source device for storing primary printing control data;
Printing control data conversion means for converting the primary printing control data read from the primary printing control data storage means into secondary printing control data unique to the printing apparatus having different control condition contents from the primary printing control data. ,
The printing apparatus is characterized by performing a printing process based on the secondary printing control data.

Further, the printing apparatus of the present invention includes primary print control data receiving means for receiving primary print control data from a transmission source apparatus as print control data for specifying a control condition for print processing,
Print control data conversion means for converting the received primary print control data into secondary print control data unique to the printing apparatus;
And a print processing unit that performs print processing based on the secondary print control data obtained by the conversion.
Furthermore, the printing system of the present invention can be configured by using the printing apparatus of the present invention. In this case, in the printing system of the present invention, the printing apparatus converts primary printing control data receiving means for receiving primary printing control data from the transmission source apparatus, and converts the received primary printing control data into secondary printing control data. The printing control data conversion means is provided.

  According to the printing system and the printing apparatus of the present invention, the printing control data specialized for the printing conditions required on the printing apparatus side is not held individually for each printing condition, but by the printing control data conversion means. The primary print control data provided in the transmission source apparatus is converted into secondary print control data indicating the control condition contents specific to the printing apparatus and used for printing processing. Therefore, the user is released from the trouble of inputting the print control data one by one in order to correspond to the printing control conditions specific to each printing apparatus, and the secondary printing control data to correspond to various printing conditions is Since it is created and used by conversion from the common primary print control data, it is possible to sufficiently secure the degree of freedom in changing the printing conditions without excessively expanding the print control data to be prepared by the transmission source device.

  In the printing apparatus according to the present invention, the received primary printing control data is converted into the secondary printing control data unique to the printing apparatus, thereby including the secondary printing control data unique to the printing apparatus. Is provided as an internal processing function of the printing apparatus, so that the system of the printing control data (and thus the printer driver that uses it) on the transmission source apparatus side can be greatly simplified. The processing load can be reduced, and version upgrades can be easily handled.

  In particular, when a plurality of printing apparatuses are connected to the transmission source apparatus, it is preferable to prepare common primary printing control data for the plurality of printing apparatuses. In this case, the printing control data conversion means can convert the common primary printing control data into secondary printing control data unique to each printing apparatus, and the printing apparatus can convert the plurality of secondary printing control data. Of the control data, the print data corresponding to the control data can be used for printing. According to this method, it is not necessary to install individual print control data on the transmission source device side for a plurality of printing devices with different print condition settings, and common primary print control data is used among a plurality of printing devices. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the amount of print control data to be mounted on the transmission source device side. In addition, it is not necessary for the user to set individual print control conditions for each printing process in each printing apparatus, and the setting input during printing can be saved greatly.

  The print control data can be described as a set of a plurality of print condition commands. The printing control data converting means converts at least a part of a plurality of primary printing condition commands constituting the primary printing control data into secondary printing condition commands that are printing condition commands specific to the printing apparatus. Can do. By describing the print control data as a set of a plurality of print condition commands, the process of converting to the secondary print control data can be performed in units of commands, and conversion of unnecessary commands can be skipped. Therefore, the efficiency of the conversion process can be improved. In addition, the prospects of the control contents of the printing process are improved, and bugs can be easily found.

In this case, the print control data conversion means
A conversion target command registration unit for pre-registering a conversion target command as a conversion target command among primary printing condition commands;
A conversion command registration unit that pre-registers a conversion command that is a converted printing condition command corresponding to the conversion target command as a secondary printing condition command;
Conversion target command search means for searching for a conversion target command included in the primary print control data with reference to the contents of the conversion target command registration unit;
A command conversion unit that refers to the content of the conversion command registering unit and converts the searched conversion target command into a corresponding conversion command can be configured. According to this configuration, by referring to the registration contents of the conversion command registration part, search for the conversion target command in the primary printing condition command, and further refer to the contents of the conversion command registration part, and convert this to the corresponding conversion command. Since the secondary print condition command is obtained by conversion, the conversion process of the primary print control data to the secondary print control data can be performed very efficiently.

  The command conversion means may replace the conversion target command with a conversion command that is the same type as the conversion target command and has different command condition contents. According to this method, the conversion process can be performed simply by replacing the description part of the command condition contents in the primary print condition command (conversion target command) with the command condition contents specific to the secondary print condition command (conversion command). As a result, the conversion process can be further simplified.

  In this case, for a plurality of conversion target commands of the same type, a generalized command in which the description part of the command condition contents in the conversion target commands is commonly encoded is created and replaced with the plurality of conversion target commands in the conversion target command registration unit. Thus, the generalized command can be registered. In this case, the conversion command registration unit can register a representative command in which a data value representing the content of a specific command condition is substituted for the common encoded portion of the generalized command as a conversion command. Then, the conversion target command search means searches for a conversion target command included in the primary print control data that matches the generalized command except for the common-encoded part, and the command conversion means The matching conversion target command can be configured to be uniquely replaced by the representative command. According to this configuration, even when a large number of commands to be converted having different command condition contents are included in the primary print control data, a generalized command in which the description part of the command condition contents is commonly encoded is created. By registering in the conversion command registration unit, it is possible to search / replace the same type of conversion target commands in a batch, which is efficient. In addition, since it is not necessary to register a large number of conversion target commands of the same type, the labor of registration processing can be saved, and the storage capacity of the conversion command registration unit can be used effectively.

  Specifically, a plurality of series of print condition commands having the same print control target type and different command condition contents can be handled as one group in the print condition command description system. The printing condition commands that form these groups can be described as having a group specifying unit that specifies the group and a condition specifying unit that specifies which of the command condition contents belong to the group. The command conversion means can replace the conversion target command with a conversion command having the same content as the conversion target command and the content of the group specifying unit and a different content of the condition specifying unit. By incorporating the group identification part as described above into the print condition command, the same type of command subject to the replacement process can be easily and reliably identified by checking the contents of the group identification part, and the replacement process is efficiently executed. be able to.

  In addition, by using a command structure in which the group specifying unit and the condition specifying unit are separated, the above-described common encoding of the condition specifying unit can be easily performed. Specifically, for a plurality of conversion target commands having the same contents of the group specifying part and different contents of the condition specifying part, a generalized command is created by common encoding of the condition specifying part, and the conversion target command is registered. A generalized command is registered instead of a plurality of conversion target commands in the part, while a representative command in which a specific data value is assigned to the condition specifying part is registered in the conversion command registration part as a conversion command. The conversion target command search means can search for a conversion target command included in the primary print control data for which the group specifying unit matches the generalized command, and the command conversion means matches the search match. The conversion target command can be uniquely replaced with the representative command.

  The group specifying unit selects one of a paper feed tray of the printing apparatus, a paper discharge tray of the printing apparatus, a size of the printing paper, a type of printing paper, a direction in which the printing paper is inserted into the printing apparatus, and a printing format as a print control target. It can be specified. All types of print control targets are common in that they are selected and set from any of a plurality of candidates in the printing apparatus specifications, and the condition specifying unit has a parameter (for example, an integer) corresponding to the candidates one-to-one. Parameter; a specific example is an integer parameter that specifies the number of trays for paper feed and paper discharge). The command replacement process in this case is as simple as converting the parameter value specified in the command in the primary printing condition command into the desired parameter value.

  In the present invention, the command conversion process is not limited to the command replacement process as described above. For example, the command conversion unit adds a print condition command different from the conversion target command to the conversion target command. Can be configured. For example, if the command to be converted in the primary printing condition command simply specifies the type of the paper feed tray of the printing apparatus, the printing condition command added in the additional process specifies the type of printing paper. Can be. As can be seen from this example, by executing the command conversion process as an additional process for different types of print condition commands, the temporary print control data defines the upper print conditions that have a wide spread of condition specifications. By adding a new command, it is possible to control printing with a limited (or complicated) specification with a more specialized purpose. In addition, it is possible to make it more difficult to cause a problem that printing is not performed as desired due to omission of setting conditions.

  Next, in the printing system of the present invention, the use state of the printing apparatus should be satisfied in order to allow the print control data conversion means to perform the control data conversion process for converting the primary print control data into the secondary print control data. Conversion permission condition setting means for setting a predetermined conversion permission condition and the use state of the printing apparatus are detected, and it is determined whether or not the detected use state satisfies the set conversion permission establishment condition. And a conversion permission means for permitting the print control data conversion means to execute control data conversion processing when it is determined by the conversion permission determination means that the conversion permission establishment condition is satisfied. be able to.

  The primary print control data is usually created with consideration given to functioning as a general-purpose print control condition. Therefore, if it matches the user's purpose, it can be considered to be used without any conversion on the printing device side. It is done. That is, not all primary print control data is always converted into secondary print control data. However, it is troublesome for the user to determine which primary print control data is to be converted into secondary print control data each time printing is performed and to issue a command to execute or not perform the conversion. In the above configuration, whether to convert to the secondary print control data is determined in advance by the conversion permission condition setting means depending on the usage state of the printing apparatus, and thereafter each time printing is performed. Detecting the use state of the printing apparatus, determining whether the detected use state satisfies the set conversion permission establishment condition, and determining that the conversion permission establishment condition is satisfied. In this case, since conversion to predetermined secondary print control data is permitted, it is determined each time whether primary print control data relating to the current print processing should be converted to secondary print control data. Users can be freed from the hassle of making them.

  In this case, for each conversion permission condition set by the conversion permission condition setting means, a plurality of sets of control data conversion processing for the corresponding primary print control data can be determined. The conversion content selection means for selecting the above can be provided, and the print control data conversion means can be configured to convert the primary print control data into the secondary print control data in accordance with the selected control data conversion processing. A plurality of conversion content selection candidates are prepared for each conversion permission condition, and the user selects and uses a desired one so that the conversion contents of the primary print control data, and consequently the print control conditions obtained as a result of the conversion, The degree of freedom of setting can be increased, and it is possible to respond in detail according to the user's request. For example, when using a plurality of transmission source devices connected to a single printing device having a plurality of paper discharge trays, the usage status of the printing device for which conversion permission conditions should be determined is received by the primary print control data. It is possible to determine the conversion content selection candidate for each transmission source device as the type of the paper discharge tray that outputs the printed matter. This makes it possible to easily perform print control for properly using a plurality of paper discharge trays depending on the type of the transmission source device.

  Hereinafter, more specific examples will be described. The conversion permission condition setting means has a conversion permission interface setting means for setting which one of the plurality of print control data reception interfaces provided in the printing apparatus is the conversion permission interface as one of the conversion permission conditions. The conversion permission determining unit detects, as a use state of the printing apparatus, which of the plurality of reception interfaces the print control data is input to, and the reception interface from which the input of the print control data is detected is the conversion permission interface. The print control data conversion unit can be configured to permit the execution of the control data conversion process only when they match. According to this method, it is possible to automatically determine whether or not to perform the control data conversion process according to the type of the reception interface of the printing apparatus. For example, in the case of a printing apparatus having two communication interfaces, that is, a serial communication interface and a parallel communication interface, the printing apparatus connects the transmission source apparatus to both communication interfaces so that a plurality of transmission source apparatuses can connect the transmission apparatus. The printing device can be shared. If one of these two communication interfaces is used as a conversion permission interface, only the primary print control data from the transmission source device connected to the conversion permission interface is automatically subjected to control data conversion processing.

  Further, a user specifying information input unit for inputting user specifying information of the printing apparatus is provided, and the conversion permission condition setting unit uses predetermined user specifying information as conversion permission user specifying information as one of the conversion permission conditions. A conversion-permitted user specifying information setting unit for setting, and the conversion permission determining unit detects the user specifying information input to the user specifying information input unit, and the user specifying information is set in the set conversion-permitted user specifying information. Only when they match, the print control data conversion unit can be configured to permit execution of control data conversion processing. In this way, the control data conversion process can be executed only when user specific information relating to a specific user is input. For example, a condition specific to the user (that is, only a specific user desires) Thus, conversion of print control data can be performed. The user specifying information may be a user name (user ID) or a user-specific password.

  The conversion permission condition setting means includes conversion permission job setting means for setting a specific print job as a conversion permission job among print jobs using print control data as one of the conversion permission conditions. The determination unit detects the print job name received by the printing device as the usage state of the printing device, and only when the print job name matches the set conversion-permitted job, the print control data conversion unit The control data conversion process can be permitted to be executed. In this way, the control data conversion process can be executed only for a specific print job. For example, the print control data can be converted under conditions specific to the print job.

  Further, the conversion permission condition setting means, as one of the conversion permission conditions, is a conversion permission emulation mode setting means for setting a specific emulation mode as the conversion permission emulation mode among the emulation modes for the printing apparatus to execute print processing. The conversion permission determination means detects, as the usage state of the printing apparatus, an emulation mode used by the printing apparatus for execution of printing processing, and the emulation mode matches the set conversion permission emulation mode. It is also possible to allow the print control data conversion means to execute the control data conversion process only when the print control data is present. In this way, the control data conversion process can be executed only when a specific emulation mode is designated.

  The above conversion permission condition can also be used for the conversion permission determination in a combination of a plurality of conditions. In this case, the conversion permission determination unit can be configured to permit the print control data conversion unit to execute the control data conversion process only when a plurality of predetermined conversion permission conditions are satisfied simultaneously. As a result, even when it is desired to set more limited conversion permission conditions, a combination of a plurality of conversion permission conditions can be easily and precisely handled.

  It is also possible to provide conversion prohibition setting means for performing a conversion prohibition setting for prohibiting execution of the control data conversion process regardless of the use state of the printing apparatus. When the conversion prohibition setting is performed by the conversion prohibition setting unit, the conversion permission unit prohibits the print control data conversion unit from executing the control data conversion process regardless of the setting content by the conversion permission condition setting unit. Configured as By providing a conversion prohibition setting means, control data conversion processing can be uniformly prohibited regardless of the usage status of the printing device, and control data conversion processing can be executed inadvertently when the user does not need it. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a problem that a desired printing result cannot be obtained. In this case, it is more effective if the conversion permission condition setting unit is configured so that the conversion permission condition setting mode is activated only when the conversion prohibition setting unit has not performed the conversion prohibition setting.

  In the above-described series of configurations for setting the conversion permission condition, when the execution of the control data conversion process is permitted, the print process is performed based on the secondary print control data obtained by the control data conversion process, and the control data conversion process is performed. If the execution of the data conversion process is not permitted and the printing apparatus is configured to perform the printing process based on the primary print control data, the primary data can be processed even if the execution of the control data conversion process is not permitted. Printing can be executed for the time being using the print control data as it is.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of a printing system according to the present invention, and a transmission source device 4 that is a transmission source of print control data that specifies control conditions for printing processing, and print control data received from the transmission source device 4. And a printing apparatus 2 that performs a printing process based on the above. In the present embodiment, there is a single transmission source apparatus 4, and a plurality of printing apparatuses 2 are connected to the transmission apparatus 4 via a communication path 5. The communication path 5 can be a wired communication path such as a serial communication cable, a parallel communication cable, a wired LAN cable, or a wireless communication path such as a wireless LAN or Bluetooth. In addition, a plurality of transmission source devices 4 can be connected to one printing apparatus 2 or a plurality of both the printing apparatus 2 and the transmission source apparatus 4 can be connected to each other. .

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an electrical configuration of the printing apparatus 2 and the transmission source apparatus 4. The main part of the printing apparatus 2 is a reception interface (communication interface that also serves as a transmission interface) that receives the CPU 21, ROM 22, RAM 23, and print control data from the transmission source apparatus 4 via the communication path 5. In FIG. Display) 28, computer hardware in which a received buffer memory (hereinafter also referred to as a receive buffer) 29 for temporarily storing received print control data 29, an EEPROM 24 as a nonvolatile memory, and an input / output unit 20 are connected by an internal bus The input / output unit (I / O) 20 includes a well-known ink jet printing mechanism, a laser printing mechanism, a thermal transfer printing mechanism, a dot impact printing mechanism or the like, a display unit 25 such as an LCD, a touch panel, Push button switch or numeric keypad Operation unit 26 for input configured from etc. are connected. The ROM 22 stores a filter processing program 44 described later. The EEPROM 24 is formed with a conversion target command registration unit 41 and a conversion command registration unit 42, which will be described later, used by the filter processing program 44.

  The transmission source device 4 is a well-known personal computer or workstation, and its computer hardware part is a communication interface for transmitting / receiving data to / from the CPU 31, ROM 32, RAM 33, and communication path 5 (in the drawing, it is referred to as an interface). (Abbreviation) 37 and the input / output unit 30 are connected by an internal bus, and a storage device (HDD is adopted in this embodiment) via interfaces (I / F) 34a and 38a. 34, a CD-ROM drive 38, and the like are connected. The input / output unit 30 is connected to a display unit 35 made of an LCD or CRT, and an input operation unit 36 made of a keyboard or a mouse. The storage device 34 is installed with an OS 45 serving as board software of the transmission source device 4, various applications 46 having a printing function, and a printer driver 47 that performs a print control command process to the printing device 2. Temporary print control data 48 that constitutes print job data created by each application 46 and is subject to print control processing by the printer driver 47 is also stored in the storage device 34.

  The storage device 34 provided in the transmission source device 4 functions as primary print control data storage means for storing primary print control data 48. The filter processing program 44 stored in the ROM 22 is executed by the CPU 21 so that the primary print control data 48 read from the storage device (primary print control data storage means) 34 is referred to as the primary print control data 48. This implements the function of a print control data conversion means for converting into secondary print control data 50 unique to the printing apparatus 2 having different control condition contents. Then, the printing apparatus 2 performs a printing process based on the secondary printing control data 50.

  The printing apparatus 2 receives the primary print control data 48 from the transmission source apparatus 4 via the communication path 5 and the reception interface 28 (primary print control data receiving unit). Then, the received primary print control data 48 is converted into the secondary print control data 50 unique to the printing apparatus 2 by the filter processing program 44 in the ROM 22 that realizes the function of the print control data conversion means, and obtained by the conversion. Based on the secondary print control data 50, the printing unit (printing processing unit) 27 performs a printing process. That is, in the printing system 1 of the present embodiment, the printing apparatus 2 is configured to include primary printing control data receiving means and printing control data conversion means.

  In the printing system 1 of FIG. 1, a plurality of printing apparatuses 2 are connected to the transmission source apparatus 4. In FIG. 2, the primary printing control data 48 stored in the storage device 34 of the transmission source apparatus 4 is It is used in common by a plurality of printing apparatuses 2. Each printing apparatus 2 uses the filter processing program (printing control data converting means) 44 in which the conversion processing contents unique to each printing medium are defined, and the common primary printing control data 48 for each printing apparatus 2 is subjected to secondary printing. The data is converted into control data 50, and printing processing is performed using this.

As shown in FIG. 8, the print control data 48 and 50 can be described as a set of a plurality of print condition commands 148 and 150. The filter processing program (print control data conversion means) 44 converts a plurality of primary print condition commands 148 constituting the primary print control data 48 into secondary print condition commands 150 which are print condition commands unique to each printing apparatus 2. The process to do is performed. The filter processing program 44 uses the following command registration unit (both are formed in the EEPROM 24) in order to execute the processing.
Conversion target command registration unit 41: The primary printing condition command to be converted is registered in advance as a conversion target command.
Conversion command registration unit 42: Registers in advance a conversion command that is a converted printing condition command corresponding to the conversion target command as a secondary printing condition command.
Conversion restriction command registration unit 40: A type specifying data string included in a primary printing condition command defined as a conversion restriction command is registered in advance.

  Then, the filter processing program 44 refers to the content of the conversion target command registration unit 41 and searches for the conversion target command included in the primary print control data 48 (conversion target command search means), and the content of the conversion command registration unit 42. Referring to FIG. 5, the control data conversion process is performed in such a manner that the searched conversion target command is converted into a corresponding conversion command (command conversion means). On the other hand, the function of the print control data conversion control means for restricting the execution of the conversion process to the conversion restriction command by the printing condition command conversion means using a predetermined type of the primary printing condition command as the conversion restriction command. It has been incorporated.

  FIG. 10 shows some examples of print control commands. In each command, a character string of a specified number at the beginning (here, 5 digits) forms a command type specifying unit 51, 51 ′, and this command type specifying unit 51, 51 ′ is followed by a parameter unit 53, 53 ′. , And a body tail specifying portion 55, 55 ′. The LeftMargin command and the RightMargin command are commands that define the left margin width or the right margin width of the print area, and the parameter unit 53 forms a condition specifying unit that specifies the number of margin digits. The paper feed destination command is a command for specifying which of a plurality of paper feed trays provided in the printing apparatus 2 is to be fed. A tray number is uniquely assigned to each paper feed tray. 53 is a condition specifying unit that specifies a tray number for feeding paper (a parameter other than a number (integer value) such as an alphabet may be adopted if the order is clear). The print medium selection command is a command for specifying a material (type) of a medium (paper) used for printing, and a medium number is uniquely assigned to a series of usable medium types. It serves as a condition specifying unit for specifying a number.

  Although not shown, the discharge tray selection command is a command for specifying to which of a plurality of discharge trays provided in the printing apparatus 2 the printed material is discharged. The tray number is uniquely assigned, and the parameter unit 53 serves as a condition specifying unit that specifies the tray number for paper discharge. The print paper size selection command is a command for specifying the size of a medium (paper) used for printing. A medium size number is uniquely assigned to a series of usable sizes, and the parameter unit 53 displays the medium size number. The condition specifying part for specifying The paper insertion direction selection command is a command for specifying the insertion direction of the medium (paper) used for printing into the printing apparatus 2, and the parameter unit 53 is a condition for specifying whether the medium insertion direction is vertical or horizontal by a number. Make a specific part. The print format selection command is a command for specifying a print format on a medium (paper). A print format number is uniquely assigned to a series of print formats that can be adopted such as double-sided printing and single-sided integrated printing. Is a condition specifying unit that specifies the print format number that is actually adopted.

  The raster data command indicates raster print image data to be printed. The command type specifying unit 51 ′, the parameter unit 53 ′, and the main unit end specifying unit 55 ′ form a command main body, and follow the command main body. In the form of raster print image data used for printing. That is, raster print image data also forms part of the print control command. The parameter portion 53 'represents the data size of raster print image data incorporated in the command.

  In the present embodiment, the command type specifying unit 51 ′ of the raster data command is defined as a type specifying data string, and the command body portion is set as a conversion processing allowable data string. The remaining raster print image data portion is prohibited from executing command conversion processing as a conversion processing non-permitted data string.

  The filter processing program (print control data converting means) 44 converts the conversion target command into a conversion command according to various rules. First, as a representative process, the conversion target command registered in the conversion target command registration unit 41 may be replaced with a conversion command that is the same type and different in command condition content. In this embodiment, the above-mentioned LeftMargin command, RightMargin command, paper feed destination command, print medium selection command, paper discharge tray selection command, print paper size selection command, paper insertion direction selection command, print format selection command, etc. It is a command to be converted that allows type conversion processing. In these printing condition command description systems, a plurality of series of printing condition commands having the same print control target type and different command condition contents are handled as one group. The printing condition commands that form these groups are described as having a group specifying unit that specifies the group and a condition specifying unit that specifies which of the command condition contents belong to the group. Specifically, in these commands, the command type specifying unit 51 described above serves as a group specifying unit, and the parameter unit 53 serves as a condition specifying unit. Each command is given so that the body tail specifying unit 55 identifies the end of the command itself, and no valid command configuration information follows the body tail specifying unit 55.

  The filter processing program (printing control data conversion means) 44 converts the above-described replacement-type conversion target command into the parameter part (group specification unit) 51 having the same contents as the conversion target command and the command type specification unit (group specification unit) 51. The content of the condition specifying unit 53 is replaced with a different conversion command. FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show examples of setting contents of the conversion target command registration unit 41 and the conversion command registration unit 42 taking the paper feed tray selection command as an example. FIG. 3 uniquely shows the paper feed tray number (2-5) set in the primary print control data 48 for the printing apparatus (printer) A in FIG. This is a registration setting example when it is desired to set the paper feed from. In the conversion target command registration unit 41, a paper feed tray selection command having all the paper feed tray numbers to be converted is stored as a conversion target command 148, and the conversion command registration unit 42 is associated with the command. A paper feed tray selection command for designating paper feed tray number 1 is registered as a conversion command 150. On the other hand, FIG. 4 shows a case in which the paper feed tray number (1) uniquely defined in the primary print control data 48 is changed to another desired paper feed tray number (2, 2) for the printing apparatus (printer) B in FIG. This is a registration setting example when it is desired to set the sheet feeding from 3, 4.

  Next, FIG. 5 discloses another method for obtaining a conversion result equivalent to the conversion process in the printer A of FIG. That is, a plurality of conversion target commands (paper feed tray selection commands) registered in the conversion target command registration unit 41 in FIG. 3 have a plurality of conversions in which the contents of the group specifying unit 51 are the same and the contents of the condition specifying unit 53 are different from each other. In FIG. 5, a generalized command 148w is created by common encoding the condition specifying unit 53 using a so-called wild card command “*”. The generalized command 148w is registered in place of the plurality of conversion target commands 148 in FIG. On the other hand, a representative command 150w in which a specific data value (here, tray number = 1) is assigned to the condition specifying unit 53 is registered in the conversion command registration unit 42 as a conversion command.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 9, the filter processing program (print control data conversion means) 44 is configured so that the command specifying unit (group specifying unit) 51 uses the generalized command for the conversion target command 148 included in the primary print control data 48. Search for a match with 148w. Then, the conversion target command 148 that matches the generalized command 148w is uniquely replaced by the representative command 150w.

  The command conversion process is not limited to the command replacement process as described above. For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, for the conversion target command 148, a print condition command 56 different from the conversion target command 148 is set. It can also be implemented as additional processing. In FIG. 6A, the conversion target command 148 registered in the conversion target command registration unit 41 merely defines the type of the paper feed tray of the printing apparatus 2, while the conversion command registration unit 42 includes the conversion command described above. In addition to the target command 148, a print medium selection command for specifying the type of print paper is registered as a print condition command (hereinafter, also referred to as an additional print condition command) 56 added in the addition process. As shown in FIG. 7, only the printing condition command 56 added in the addition process may be registered in the conversion command registration unit 42. In the case of FIG. 6A, since the conversion target command 148 is also registered in the conversion command registration unit 42, in the processing situation, the conversion target command 148 registered in the conversion target command registration unit 41 is converted into the conversion command registration unit. It can also be regarded as a process of replacement with “conversion target command 148 + additional printing condition command 56” registered in the file 42. However, in the case of FIG. 7, since only the additional printing condition command 56 is registered in the conversion command registration unit 42, if the command conversion process is executed by uniquely determining this as a replacement process, the conversion target command 148 is replaced by the additional print condition command 56, and a desired conversion result cannot be obtained. In this case, a flag for specifying the conversion form is separately provided, and the replacement process as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 and the additional process as shown in FIG. 7 may be identified by the value of the flag (here, Flag value = “0” is replacement processing, and flag value = “1” is addition processing).

  Next, for the raster data command described above, the content of the command type identification unit 51 ′ arranged at the head of the command is registered in the conversion restriction command registration unit 40 as shown in FIG. 6B. Thus, it can be easily specified by searching for a command including the command type specifying unit 51 ′. Since this raster data command is a conversion restriction command, the analysis of how far is the conversion processing allowable data string is continued. In the present embodiment, the main body tail specifying unit 55 ′ (W) of the raster data command identifies the end of the command main body, and thus the boundary between the conversion process allowable data string and the data string not belonging to the conversion process allowable data string. It is defined as an identification code. In this case, this identification code is registered in the conversion restriction command registration unit 40, and the character string forming the found raster data command is collated with the registered identification code in order from the first character. To the position where the identification code (W) is found is determined as a conversion processing allowable data string, and the subsequent character string (raster print image data portion) is determined as a conversion processing non-permissible data string.

  When the replacement process is actually performed, the raster command is copied from the reception buffer to the RAM 23 into the conversion memory (which can be formed in the RAM 23 in FIG. 2), the above range determination process is performed, and then the specified conversion process is not performed. The allowable data string is separated and saved in another memory area (that is, the conversion processing non-permissible data string (raster print image data) is deleted from the conversion memory). Then, the conversion command registration unit is referred to the conversion processing allowable data sequence remaining in the conversion memory, and if the same data sequence as the conversion processing allowable data sequence is registered, the conversion command registration unit responds. The converted data string (conversion command) is read and conversion processing is performed. Thereafter, the saved conversion process non-permissible data string is recombined with the conversion process allowable data string after the conversion process, and this is used as a secondary printing condition command for the printing process.

  As an example of the conversion restriction command, a filter command can be exemplified in addition to the raster data command. As shown in FIG. 10, the filter command is a command for registering the conversion target command and the conversion command or the conversion restriction command in the corresponding registration units 41, 42, and 40, and the command type specifying unit arranged at the head of the command. The contents of 51 ″ are registered in the conversion restriction command registration unit 40 of FIG. 2. By searching for a command including the command type identification unit 51 ″ in the primary print control data, conversion restriction is performed. Identified as a command. Similarly, in the filter command, the body tail specifying unit 55 ″ (F) is determined as an identification code, and the identification code is registered in the conversion restriction command registration unit 40. In the case of a filter command, the conversion process non-permissible data string is a character string indicating the contents of the conversion target command and a character string indicating the contents of the conversion command. The parameter portion 53 ″ indicates the registration position of the conversion target command and the conversion command in the registration portions 41 and 42.

  When the replacement process is actually performed, the entire conversion restriction command is copied from the reception buffer to the RAM 23 and converted into the conversion memory (which can be formed in the RAM 23 in FIG. 2), and after the above range determination process is performed, it is specified. The conversion process non-permitted data string is separated and saved in another memory area (that is, the conversion process non-permitted data string is deleted from the conversion memory). Then, the conversion command registration unit is referred to the conversion processing allowable data sequence remaining in the conversion memory, and if the same data sequence as the conversion processing allowable data sequence is registered, the conversion command registration unit responds. The converted data string (conversion command) is read and conversion processing is performed. Thereafter, the saved conversion process non-permissible data string is recombined with the conversion process allowable data string after the conversion process, and this is used as a secondary printing condition command for the printing process.

Next, in the present embodiment, the printer driver 47 of the transmission source apparatus 4 in FIG. 2 cooperates with the filter processing program (print control data conversion means) 44 on the printing apparatus 2 side in the print control data conversion means. The following function realization means is realized as an auxiliary function.
Conversion permission condition setting means: In order to permit a control data conversion process for converting the primary printing control data 48 to the secondary printing control data 50, a predetermined conversion permission condition that should satisfy the usage state of the printing apparatus 2 is set. Set.
Conversion permission determination means: detects the use state of the printing apparatus 2 and determines whether the detected use state satisfies a set conversion permission establishment condition.
Conversion permission unit: When the conversion permission determination unit determines that the conversion permission establishment condition is satisfied, the print control data conversion unit is permitted to execute the control data conversion process.

  In the present embodiment, setting / releasing of a plurality of conversion permission conditions is performed by individually specifying a printing device based on setting input information from an operation unit (comprising a mouse and a keyboard) 36 provided in the transmission source device 4. While trying to run. FIG. 11 shows a conversion permission condition setting screen on the display unit 35 of the transmission source device 4. A setting display unit (here, a check box) 161 that is individually turned on / off by the setting input is displayed. The display state of the setting display unit 161 is switched by a mouse click or the like so that the set conversion permission condition and the non-set conversion permission condition can be identified (here, the set conversion permission condition is checked) A check mark appears in the box). In addition, auxiliary input sections 162 to 166 for inputting individual conversion permission conditions are formed.

This will be described in more detail below. In this embodiment, the conversion permission condition is
(1) Specifying an interface for receiving print control data from the transmission source device 4;
(2) Specify user name;
(3) Specify job name;
(4) Specify emulation;
(5) Specify the password;
These can be set / released individually. The printing apparatus 2 has a filter processing program (print control data conversion means) 44 when a use state is realized in which all of the conversion permission conditions for which the setting display unit 161 is ON (set) are satisfied under the AND condition. Execution of command conversion processing by is permitted.

Hereinafter, it demonstrates individually.
(1) A plurality of print control data reception interfaces provided in the printing apparatus 2 in a state where the corresponding setting display section 161 is ON (in FIG. 2, only one is represented by reference numeral 28, but here, Of the serial interface (specifically, USB) and the parallel interface (specifically, Centronics), which one of the reception interfaces is provided), which one is set as the conversion permission interface is set in advance. Here, the conversion permission interface is selected by clicking the setting icon formed on the auxiliary input unit 162 using the mouse. As the usage state of the printing apparatus 2, it is detected to which of the plurality of reception interfaces the print control data of the print job to be executed is input, and the reception interface from which the input of the print control data is detected is permitted to convert. Execution of command conversion processing (control data conversion processing) is permitted only when the interface (USB or Centronics) is matched.

(2) (5) With the corresponding setting display unit 161 turned ON, predetermined user identification information is converted as conversion-permitted user identification information from the operation unit 36 (user identification information input means: keyboard here). Input and set in the auxiliary input units 163 and 166 (conversion permission user specific information setting means). Then, only when the user identification information input prior to execution of the print job to be printed is detected and this matches the preset conversion permission user identification information, the command conversion process (control data conversion) is performed. Execution of processing) is permitted. In (2), the conversion-permitted user specifying information is a user name, and in (5), the conversion-permitting user specifying information is a password.

(3) With the corresponding setting display unit 161 turned on, conversion of a specific print job is permitted from among the print jobs that use the print control data from the operation unit 36 (user identification information input means: here, the keyboard). A job is input and set in the auxiliary input unit 164 (conversion permission job setting means). The command conversion process (control data conversion) is performed only when the set job name matches the set conversion-permitted job among the job names input prior to execution of the print job to be printed. Execution of processing) is permitted.

(4) With the corresponding setting display unit 161 turned on, a specific one of the emulation modes for the printing apparatus 2 to execute the printing process is selected from the operation unit 36 (user identification information input means: keyboard here). Set the emulation mode as the conversion-enabled emulation mode. Here, the conversion permission emulation mode is selected by clicking the setting icon formed on the auxiliary input unit 165 with the mouse. As a usage state of the printing apparatus 2, it is detected what emulation mode is the emulation mode of a print job to be executed from now on, and only when the detected emulation mode matches the conversion permission emulation mode. , Execution of command conversion processing (control data conversion processing) is permitted.

  In FIG. 11, it is possible to perform conversion prohibition setting for prohibiting execution of the control data conversion process (conversion prohibition setting means) regardless of the use state of the printing apparatus 2. Setting / cancellation of conversion prohibition can be executed while individually specifying a printing device based on setting input information from an operation unit (comprising a mouse and a keyboard) 36 provided in the transmission source device 4. As shown in FIG. 11, on the display unit 35 of the transmission source device 4, a setting display unit (in this case, a check box) 160 for conversion prohibition setting that is individually turned on / off by the setting input is displayed. When the setting display state of the setting display unit 160 is OFF, the execution of the control data conversion process is completely prohibited regardless of which of the plurality of conversion permission conditions is permitted.

  FIG. 12 shows the output state of the setting screen of the display unit 35 set by combining some of the plurality of conversion permission conditions. Here, when a specific user name (“TARO”) and emulation mode (PCL) are designated at the start of execution of a print job, control data conversion processing is executed. When the execution of the control data conversion process is permitted, the print process is performed based on the secondary print control data 50 (FIG. 2) obtained by the control data conversion process. If not permitted, the printing process is performed based on the primary printing control data 48.

  13 to 15 are flowcharts showing an example of the printing process in this case. In S1 of FIG. 13, it is determined whether or not conversion prohibition is set (that is, whether or not the control data conversion process (filter function) is ON: the setting display state of the setting display unit 160 is ON). If Yes, the process proceeds to S2, and the filter flag (formed in the RAM 23 forming the work area of the filter processing program 44 in FIG. 2) is set to “1” (conversion permission). On the other hand, if NO, the process proceeds to S13, and the filter flag is set to “0” (conversion prohibited). In S3, S5, S7, S9, and S11, it is determined whether or not each conversion permission condition is in the set state (the corresponding setting display state of the setting display unit 161 is ON). For those that are, it is determined whether or not each of the above-described conversion permission conditions is satisfied (S4, S6, S8, S10, S12). If even one conversion permission condition is not satisfied, the process proceeds to S13, and the filter flag is set to “0” (conversion prohibited). On the other hand, if all the set conversion permission conditions are satisfied, the filter flag value of S2 is maintained at “1” (that is, conversion permission). For the non-set conversion permission conditions, the subsequent conversion permission condition satisfaction determination steps (S4, S6, S8, S10, S12) are skipped in S3, S5, S7, S9, and S11.

  Next, the process proceeds to S14 in FIG. 14, and the contents of the filter flag are confirmed. If the filter flag is “1”, the process proceeds to S16, where control data conversion processing (filter function processing) and printing are executed. 15 to 17 show an example of the filter function process. In this processing flow, all primary printing condition commands included in the primary printing control data are subject to command conversion processing, and for conversion restriction commands, after the conversion processing unacceptable data string is removed by the above method, the command It is used for the conversion process. In addition, since the command conversion process and the command execution process for print execution are performed in different cycles, whether or not the command conversion process (search and conversion) has already been completed for each primary print condition command. 2 is formed in the RAM 23 of FIG. In S51, the contents of the converted search flag are cleared (initialized), and the primary print control data 48 is received via the reception buffer 29 in S52.

  In S53, S60, and S67, the type (command to be converted / conversion restriction command) of the primary printing condition command read sequentially is identified, and command conversion processing corresponding to the type (S54 to S59 (FIG. 15)). , S61 to S66 (FIG. 16), S68 to S72, and S73 (FIG. 17) In any command conversion process, first, the contents of the corresponding conversion search flag are confirmed (S54, S61, S68). If the content of the flag is not set to the conversion searched state (“1”) (that is, “0”), it is set to “1” (S55, S62, S69).

  In the step (S56 and S57, S63 and S64, S70 and S71) for confirming whether the primary printing condition command is a command to be converted, first, the conversion restriction command registration unit 40 (FIG. 2) is searched. If the command is not the conversion restriction target command, the conversion target command 148 included in the primary print control data 48 is referred to by referring to the content of the conversion target command registration unit 41 formed in the EEPROM (nonvolatile memory) 24 of FIG. Search for. Then, referring to the contents of the conversion command registration unit 42, a process of converting into the corresponding conversion command 150 (substitution or addition: details are as described with reference to FIGS. A printing condition command is set (S58, S65, S72). In step S65, in order to avoid unnecessary conversion of the raster data, the raster data is temporarily removed, and after the conversion process is performed, the raster data is added again to obtain a secondary printing condition command.

  Thereafter, the process returns to immediately before S53 and repeats the same routine. However, since the conversion search flag has already been set for the second time (S54, S61, S68: Yes), secondary printing after each conversion is performed. Registration processing of a command to be printed or converted, a conversion command, and a conversion restriction command is executed by the condition command (S59, S66, S72). If the filter flag is “0” in S14 of FIG. 14, the process proceeds to S15, the received primary print control data 48 is acquired from the reception buffer without conversion, and printing is executed (or processing according to the command) in S17. ).

  In the filter function processing of FIGS. 15 to 17, command conversion processing is also performed for the conversion restriction command (raster data command and filter command). However, as shown in FIG. 18, command conversion processing is performed for the conversion restriction command. It is also possible to skip (that is, keep the primary printing condition command) and immediately shift to command execution processing (S60 → S66, S67 → S73).

As shown in FIG. 19, a plurality of sets of control data conversion processing contents for the corresponding primary print control data 48 are defined for each of the plurality of conversion permission conditions, and the conversion permission is determined based on the input from the operation unit 36. It is also possible to customize the contents of the control data conversion process adopted for each condition. FIG. 19 shows a screen for setting conversion permission conditions in the display unit 35 of the transmission source device 4 in this case, and the basic configuration is the same as that of the setting screen of FIG. 11 (common parts are given common reference numerals). However, a conversion content selection icon group 167 as conversion content selection means is formed for each conversion permission condition, and one of them can be selected by clicking with the mouse. Here, common conversion permission conditions are available as selectable conversion contents;
Conversion 1: Convert paper feed tray 2 to paper feed tray 1 Conversion 2: Convert paper feed tray 4 to paper feed tray 1 Conversion 3: Convert printing paper size A4 to printing paper size letter 3 One is prepared. A conversion target command registration unit and a conversion command registration unit corresponding to each conversion content are individually prepared. FIG. 20 shows an example of the setting state, and only the conversion permission condition (check box 161 is ON: only one of a plurality of conversion permission conditions can be selectively set) in the setting state. The selection of conversion contents is allowed.

  21 and 22 are flowcharts showing an example of the printing process in this case. In S101 of FIG. 21, it is determined whether or not conversion prohibition is set. If NO, the process proceeds to S112, and the filter flag is set to “0” (conversion prohibited). On the other hand, if it is YES, it will progress to the process below S102. In S102, S104, S106, S108, and S110, it is determined whether or not each conversion permission condition is in a set state. For those in the set state, each conversion permission condition described above is satisfied. It is determined whether or not (S103, S105, S107, S109, S111). If none of the conversion permission conditions are satisfied, the process proceeds to S112, and the filter flag is set to “0” (conversion prohibited). On the other hand, only when one of them is satisfied, the process proceeds to S113, and the filter flag is set to “1” (conversion permission).

  The following steps are the same as in FIG. 14, but the conversion function candidate selection execution process as shown in FIG. 22 is added to the filter function process in S16. That is, the primary print control data 48 is received via the reception buffer 29 in S151, and in S152, S155, S158, and S161, it is determined which of a plurality of conversion content candidates is selected. Then, with respect to the selected conversion content candidate, the conversion target command is searched with reference to the corresponding conversion target command registration unit (S153, S156, S159, S162). Then, the command to be converted that matches the search is converted into a conversion command with reference to the corresponding conversion command registration unit (S154, S157, S160, S163).

  Note that the conversion permission condition setting / cancellation function (and related function realization means) shown in FIGS. 11 to 13 may be provided on the individual printing apparatus 2 side (in this case, in FIG. 2). The conversion permission condition setting process can be similarly executed using the operation unit 26 and the display unit 25). Alternatively, the printing apparatus 2 may be provided with a Web server function that provides a setting page for accepting a setting input for the function for setting / canceling the conversion permission condition, and the setting input may be received from a Web browser provided in the transmission source apparatus 4. good. In the embodiment described above, as shown in FIG. 23, the filter processing program (print control data conversion means) 44, the conversion target command registration unit 41, and the conversion command registration unit 42 are all provided on the printing apparatus 2 side, and are transmitted. A primary printing condition command (abbreviated as primary command in the figure) from the original apparatus 4 is received by the printing apparatus 2 and converted into a secondary printing condition command (abbreviated as secondary command in FIGS. 24 and 25) for printing. It was used for. However, as shown in FIG. 24, the conversion command registration unit 42 ′ for each printing device is custom-installed in the transmission source device 4 together with the printer driver 47 (for example, using the CD-ROM driver 38 in FIG. 2). However, only the conversion target command registration unit 41 can be provided on each printing apparatus 2 side. In this case, each printing device 2 only searches for the conversion target command in the primary print control data received from the transmission source device 4, and each time a conversion target command is found, the secondary printing condition command is sent to the transmission source device 4. Request to issue In the transmission source device 4, the conversion command corresponding to the conversion target command found on the printing device 2 side is searched in the conversion command registration unit 42 ′ of the corresponding printing device, and the corresponding command is used as the secondary printing condition command. Issued (sent) to the printing apparatus 2 side.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 25, the conversion target command registration unit 41 ′ and the conversion command registration unit 42 ′ for each printing device are custom-installed together with the printer driver 47 and the filter processing program 44 in the transmission source device 4. You can also. In this case, on the side of the transmission source device 4, the conversion target command is searched for in the primary print control data by referring to the conversion target command registration unit 41 ′ corresponding to the printing device 2 that is the transmission destination, and the conversion target command Is found, it is converted into a conversion command with reference to the corresponding conversion command registration unit 42 ′, and transmitted to the corresponding printing apparatus 2 as a secondary printing condition command.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing system of the present invention. The block diagram which shows the internal structure of a printing apparatus and a transmission source apparatus. The conceptual diagram which shows the 1st structural example of a conversion object command registration part and a conversion command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the 2nd structural example of a conversion object command registration part and a conversion command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the 3rd structural example of a conversion object command registration part and a conversion command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the 4th structural example of a conversion object command registration part and a conversion command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the structural example of a conversion restriction command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the 5th structural example of a conversion object command registration part and a conversion command registration part. The conceptual diagram which shows the 1st specific example of a control data conversion process. The conceptual diagram which shows the 2nd specific example of a control data conversion process. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating some examples of printing condition commands. The figure which shows the 1st example of the setting screen of the conversion permission conditions in the display part of a transmission source apparatus (before conditions setting). The figure which shows the 1st example of the setting screen of the conversion permission conditions in the display part of a transmission source apparatus (after setting conditions). 6 is a flowchart illustrating a first example of printing processing in the printing system of the present invention. The flowchart following FIG. The flowchart of a filter function process. The flowchart following FIG. The flowchart following FIG. The flowchart which shows the modification of filter function processing. The figure which shows the 2nd example of the setting screen of the conversion permission conditions in the display part of a transmission source apparatus (before conditions setting). The figure which shows the 2nd example of the setting screen of the conversion permission conditions in the display part of a transmission source apparatus (after setting conditions). The flowchart which shows the 2nd example of the printing process in the printing system of this invention (the first half part and the second half part are the same as FIG. 14). The flowchart which shows the flow of the filter function process corresponding to FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a first configuration example of a printing system according to the present invention. The conceptual diagram which shows the 2nd structural example of the printing system of this invention. The conceptual diagram which shows the 3rd structural example of the printing system of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printing system 2 Printing apparatus 4 Transmission origin apparatus 28 Reception interface (primary printing control data receiving means)
34 Storage device (primary printing control data storage means)
36 Input operation unit (conversion permission condition setting means, conversion permission interface setting means, conversion permission user specific information setting means, conversion permission job setting means, conversion permission emulation mode setting means, conversion prohibition setting means)
41 Conversion target command registration unit 42 Conversion command registration unit 44 Filter processing program (print control data conversion unit, conversion target command search unit, command conversion unit, conversion permission condition setting unit, conversion permission determination unit, conversion permission interface setting unit, conversion (Permitted user specific information setting means, conversion permission job setting means, conversion permission emulation mode setting means, conversion prohibition setting means)
47 Printer driver (conversion permission condition setting means, conversion permission determination means, conversion permission interface setting means, conversion permission user identification information setting means, conversion permission job setting means, conversion permission emulation mode setting means, conversion prohibition setting means)
48 Primary print control data 50 Secondary print control data 51 Command type specifying part (group specifying part)
53 Parameter part (condition specifying part)
148 Primary printing condition command 148w Generalization command 150 Secondary printing condition command

Claims (23)

A printing system comprising: a transmission source device that is a transmission source of print control data that specifies control conditions for print processing; and a printing device that performs printing processing based on the print control data received from the transmission source device,
A primary print control data storage means provided in the transmission source device for storing primary print control data;
Print control data conversion means for converting the primary print control data read from the primary print control data storage means into secondary print control data unique to the printing apparatus having different control condition contents from the primary print control data And
The printing system, wherein the printing apparatus performs the printing process based on the secondary printing control data. The printing apparatus includes primary print control data receiving means for receiving the primary print control data from the transmission source apparatus, and print control data converting means for converting the received primary print control data into the secondary print control data. The printing system according to claim 1. A plurality of the printing devices are connected to the transmission source device, and the primary print control data common to the plurality of printing devices is prepared, and the print control data converting means stores the common primary print control data. , To convert the secondary printing control data unique to each printing device,
The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the printing apparatus performs the printing process using data corresponding to itself among the plurality of secondary printing control data. The print control data is described as a set of a plurality of print condition commands, and the print control data conversion unit converts at least a part of a plurality of primary print condition commands constituting the primary print control data to the printing apparatus. The printing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the printing system converts the command into a secondary printing condition command that is a printing condition command unique to the printer. The print control data conversion means includes
A conversion target command registration unit for previously registering a conversion target command among the primary print condition commands,
A conversion command registration unit that pre-registers a conversion command that is a print condition command after conversion corresponding to the conversion target command as the secondary printing condition command;
Conversion target command search means for searching for a conversion target command included in the primary print control data with reference to the content of the conversion target command registration unit;
The printing system according to claim 4, further comprising command conversion means for converting the searched command to be converted into the corresponding conversion command with reference to the content of the conversion command registration unit. 6. The printing system according to claim 5, wherein the command conversion means replaces the conversion target command with a conversion command that is the same type as the conversion target command and has different command condition contents. For a plurality of conversion target commands of the same type, a generalized command in which the description part of the command condition contents in the conversion target commands is commonly encoded is created, and the conversion target command registration unit replaces the plurality of conversion target commands. While the generalized command is registered, the conversion command registration unit is substituted with a data value representing a specific command condition content as the conversion command for the common encoded portion of the generalized command. The representative command is registered,
The conversion target command search means is for searching for conversion target commands included in the primary print control data that match the generalized command except for the common encoded portion.
The printing system according to claim 6, wherein the command conversion unit is configured to unambiguously replace the search-target conversion target command with the representative command. A plurality of series of printing condition commands having the same print control target type and different command condition contents form a group, and the printing condition commands forming the group include a group specifying unit for specifying each group and a plurality of printing condition commands belonging to the group. It is configured as having a condition specifying unit that specifies which of the command condition contents,
8. The command conversion means replaces the conversion target command with a conversion command in which the content of the conversion target command and the group specifying unit are the same and the content of the condition specifying unit is different. The printing system described in. For a plurality of conversion target commands having the same content of the group specifying unit and different contents of the condition specifying unit, a generalized command is created in a form of common encoding of the condition specifying unit, and the conversion target command registration unit The generalized command is registered in place of the plurality of conversion target commands, while the conversion command registration unit includes a representative command in which a specific data value is assigned to the precondition specifying unit as the conversion command. Be registered,

The conversion target command search means searches the conversion target commands included in the primary print control data for a command that matches the generalized command by the group specifying unit,
The printing system according to claim 8, wherein the command conversion unit is configured to unambiguously replace the command to be converted that matches the search with the representative command. The group specifying unit includes, as the print control target, a paper feed tray of the printing apparatus, a paper discharge tray of the printing apparatus, a size of printing paper, a type of printing paper, an insertion direction of the printing paper into the printing apparatus, and printing. The printing system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein one of the formats is specified. The printing system according to claim 5, wherein the command conversion unit additionally processes a print condition command different from the conversion target command with respect to the conversion target command. The printing system according to claim 11, wherein the conversion target command specifies a type of a paper feed tray of the printing apparatus, and an added printing condition command specifies a type of printing paper. In order to allow the print control data conversion means to perform control data conversion processing for converting the primary print control data into the secondary print control data, a predetermined conversion permission that the use state of the printing apparatus should satisfy Conversion permission condition setting means for setting conditions;
Conversion permission determination means for detecting the use state of the printing apparatus and determining whether the detected use state satisfies the set conversion permission establishment condition;
A conversion permission unit that permits the print control data conversion unit to execute the control data conversion process when the conversion permission determination unit determines that the conversion permission establishment condition is satisfied. The printing system according to claim 12. For each of the conversion permission conditions set by the conversion permission condition setting means, a plurality of sets of contents of the control data conversion processing for the corresponding primary print control data are determined, and any one of the plurality of sets of control data conversion processing 14. A conversion content selection means for selecting the image data is provided, and the print control data conversion means converts the primary print control data into the secondary print control data in accordance with the selected control data conversion processing. The printing system described. The conversion permission condition setting means sets one of the plurality of print control data reception interfaces provided in the printing apparatus as a conversion permission interface as one of the conversion permission conditions. Having means,
The conversion permission determination unit detects, as a use state of the printing apparatus, which of the plurality of reception interfaces the print control data is input to, and a reception interface from which the input of the print control data is detected includes: The printing system according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the printing control data conversion unit is allowed to execute the control data conversion processing only when the conversion permission interface is matched. User specification information input means for inputting user specification information of the printing apparatus, wherein the conversion permission condition setting means sets predetermined user specification information as conversion permission user specification information as one of the conversion permission conditions Conversion permission user specific information setting means to
The conversion permission determination means detects the user identification information input to the user identification information input means, and only when the user identification information matches the set conversion permission user identification information, The printing system according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein a print control data conversion unit is allowed to execute the control data conversion process. The conversion permission condition setting means includes a conversion permission job setting means for setting a specific print job as a conversion permission job among print jobs using the print control data as one of the conversion permission conditions,
The conversion permission determination unit detects a print job name received by the printing apparatus as a usage state of the printing apparatus, and only when the print job name matches the set conversion permission job, The printing system according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the print control data conversion unit is allowed to execute the control data conversion process. The conversion permission condition setting means, as one of the conversion permission conditions, is a conversion permission emulation mode for setting a specific emulation mode as a conversion permission emulation mode among the emulation modes for the printing apparatus to execute the printing process. Having setting means,
The conversion permission determination unit detects an emulation mode used by the printing apparatus for execution of the printing process as a use state of the printing apparatus, and the emulation mode matches the set conversion permission emulation mode. 18. The printing system according to claim 13, wherein the printing control data conversion unit permits the execution of the control data conversion processing only when the printing control data conversion unit is present. 19. The conversion permission determination unit permits the print control data conversion unit to execute the control data conversion process only when a plurality of predetermined conversion permission conditions are satisfied at the same time. The printing system according to any one of the above. A conversion prohibition setting means for performing a conversion prohibition setting for prohibiting the execution of the control data conversion process regardless of the use state of the printing apparatus;
When the conversion prohibition setting is performed by the conversion prohibition setting unit, the conversion permission unit performs the control data conversion process on the print control data conversion unit regardless of the setting contents by the conversion permission condition setting unit. 20. The printing system according to any one of claims 13 to 19, wherein execution of the function is prohibited. 21. The printing system according to claim 20, wherein the conversion permission condition setting unit activates the conversion permission condition setting mode only when the conversion prohibition setting unit has not performed the conversion prohibition setting. When the execution of the control data conversion process is permitted, the printing apparatus performs the print process based on the secondary print control data obtained by the control data conversion process, and the control data conversion process is executed. The printing system according to any one of claims 13 to 21, wherein if the permission is not permitted, the printing process is performed based on the primary printing control data. Primary print control data receiving means for receiving primary print control data from a transmission source device as print control data for specifying a control condition for print processing;
Print control data conversion means for converting the received primary print control data into secondary print control data unique to the printing device;
A print processing unit that performs the print processing based on the secondary print control data obtained by the conversion;
A printing apparatus comprising:

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