JP2007207143A - Network system device driver implementation method, computer device driver implementation method, device driver implementation system, and computer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a network system device driver implementation method and the like, which make a device available without requiring a device driver dependent on a computer environment of an installation destination and without depending on the classification and setting of a communication port of the device. <P>SOLUTION: A server 60 generates port information 102 on a communication port for communicating with a device based on designation by a client terminal 10. The client terminal 10, by markup document interpretation means (33, 34, 35), converts a markup document into binary data comprising a processing command for the device, and on the basis of the port information 102 received from the server 60, outputs the converted binary data to the device, by a port control means 36 of the client terminal 10. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a device driver implementation method for a network system, a device driver implementation method for a computer, a device driver implementation system, and a computer.

Conventionally, a device such as a printing apparatus or a scanner is widely used by connecting it to a computer. However, in order to use the device, a device driver for controlling the device is required. The device driver is generally installed in a computer connected to the device (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-251347 A

However, since this device driver has a property that depends on the environment (for example, OS) of the installation destination computer, the user must install a device driver according to the environment of his computer. However, for users who are unfamiliar with computers, it is difficult and difficult to understand the type and version of the OS and install software. Further, when the computer is replaced, it is necessary to install the driver again. In addition, manufacturers who provide devices had to prepare multiple types of drivers according to the usage environment of each computer.

Therefore, it is desirable that the device can be used without the need for a device driver that depends on the environment of the installation destination computer as in the past. To achieve this, for example, when the device is a printing device It can be assumed that control is performed such that a document output as print data is converted into a command that can be processed by the printing apparatus and is output to the printing apparatus. However, in order to output the converted command to the device, it is indispensable to refer to the information about the communication port for communicating with the output target device (printing apparatus). Settings vary depending on the usage environment. Therefore, in order to realize the above control, the type and setting of the communication port of the device to be output must be fixed.

In view of the above problems, the present invention is a network system in which a device can be used without depending on the type or setting of the communication port of the device and without requiring a device driver dependent on the environment of the installation destination computer. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device driver realization method, a computer device driver realization method, a device driver realization system, and a computer.

A device driver implementation method for a network system according to the present invention includes a server that provides port information related to a communication port for performing communication with a device, a markup document that is connected to the server and is described in a markup language. A device driver implementation method for a network system comprising a markup document interpretation means, which is an interpretation program, and a client terminal comprising a port control means for controlling a communication port, wherein the server is based on the designation of the client terminal A port information generating step for generating port information, and a client terminal receiving port information from the server and storing the port information in a storage unit of the client terminal, and a markup document interpreting means. By using Based on the stored port information by using the port control means and the binary data conversion step of inputting the up document and converting the inputted markup document into binary data comprising the processing commands that can be processed by the device A binary data output step for outputting the converted binary data to the device,
It is characterized by performing.

Similarly, a device driver implementation system according to the present invention includes a server that provides port information related to a communication port for performing communication with a device, and a markup document that is connected to the server and is described in a markup language. A device driver realization system comprising a markup document interpretation means that is an interpretation program and a client terminal comprising a port control means for controlling a communication port, wherein the server receives port information based on the designation of the client terminal The client terminal receives the port information from the server, and stores the port information in the storage unit of the client terminal and the markup document interpreting means. Enter the markup document and enter the markup Binary data conversion means for converting the document into binary data consisting of processing commands that can be processed by the device and binary control means for outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means. And a data output means.

According to these configurations, the port information is set in the server, and the binary data converted from the markup document can be output to the device based on the port information reflecting this setting. The computer can realize the device driver without depending on the setting. That is, for example, when printing a markup document output from an application on a printing device, printing can be executed without installing a conventional printer driver in the computer, and the type and setting of the communication port with the printing device Is not limited. Further, since the communication port is set in the server, it is not necessary to install this function in the client terminal, which is efficient particularly when there are a large number of client terminals.

In the device driver implementation method of the network system described above, the storage unit is information that is unique to each device model and indicates a conversion rule for converting a markup document into a processing command that can be processed by the device. Information is further stored, and in the binary data conversion step, the markup document is preferably converted into binary data based on the model-dependent information.

According to this configuration, if the device command specifications or other change rules are changed, it is only necessary to change the model-dependent information, so that maintainability can be improved.

In the device driver implementation method for the network system described above, the storage unit further stores output format information related to an output format to the device, and the binary data conversion step performs the input markup document based on the output format information. Is converted into a markup document that reflects the output format information, and a second conversion step that converts the converted markup document into binary data based on the model-dependent information. It is preferable.

According to this configuration, the input markup document is once converted into a markup document reflecting the output format information, and then the converted markup document is converted into binary data consisting of device processing commands based on the model-dependent information. Since conversion is performed step by step, such as conversion, if an error or the like occurs at the time of conversion, it is easy to specify the cause, and maintainability can be improved. For example, when the user edits the output format information, the input markup document can be output to the device in an output format according to the user's desire.

In the device driver implementation method for the network system described above, it is preferable that the port information, model-dependent information, and output format information stored in the storage unit are stored in an independent database.

According to this configuration, information having different uses can be individually managed and operated. That is, the output format information is assumed to be mainly edited by the user,
It is assumed that device-dependent information is provided by the device manufacturer. Further, since the port information is information related to communication with the device, the output information is independent information having no relation to the output format information and the model-dependent information. Therefore, by managing these pieces of information individually, it is possible to perform maintenance efficiently, for example, updating each piece of information becomes easy.

In the device driver implementation method for the network system described above, the computer includes:
By using the port control means, an event information acquisition step configured to acquire event information related to an event that has occurred in the device, configured from an output command of the device;
It is preferable to further execute an event information conversion step of converting the acquired event information into a markup document and outputting it by using a markup document interpretation means.

According to this configuration, an event occurring in the device is acquired and converted into a markup document, which is general text data, so that an error occurring in the device and various statuses can be grasped in the computer. it can. Therefore, by displaying and outputting the converted markup document so as to be visible, for example, it can be used for remote management of the device.

In the device driver implementation method of the network system described above, it is preferable that the markup language is XML (Extensible Markup Language), and that the model-dependent information and the output format information are represented by XSL (Extensible Stylesheet Language).

According to this configuration, when executing the device driver implementation method of the network system of the present invention, an XML document can be used as input data, and output format information and model-dependent information can be expressed in XSL.

Furthermore, in the device driver implementation method for the network system described above, the device is preferably a printing apparatus.

According to this configuration, the device can be applied to a printing apparatus as a device in the device driver implementation method for the network system of the present invention.

A device driver implementation method for a computer according to the present invention includes a storage unit that stores port information related to a communication port for performing communication with a device, and a markup document interpretation program that interprets a markup document described in a markup language. A device driver realizing method for a computer comprising: means; and port control means for controlling the communication port,
A computer inputs a markup document by using a port information setting step for setting port information, a port information saving step for saving the set port information in a storage unit, and a markup document interpreting means, and a mark inputted A binary data conversion step for converting the up-document into binary data comprising the processing commands that can be processed by the device;
A binary data output step of outputting the converted binary data to the device is executed based on the stored port information by using the port control means.

Similarly, a computer according to the present invention includes a storage unit that stores port information related to a communication port for performing communication with a device, markup document interpretation means that is a markup document interpretation program described in a markup language, and A port control means for controlling a communication port, a port information setting means for setting port information, a port information saving means for saving the set port information in a storage unit, and a markup document interpretation Binary data conversion means for inputting a markup document by using the means, and converting the input markup document into binary data comprising processing commands that can be processed by the device;
Binary data output means for outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means.

According to these configurations, it is possible to set the port information and output binary data converted from the markup document to the device based on the port information reflecting this setting. The computer can realize the device driver without depending on it. That is, for example, when printing a markup document output from an application on a printing device, printing can be executed without installing a conventional printer driver in the computer, and the type and setting of the communication port with the printing device Is not limited.

Hereinafter, a device driver implementation method for a network system according to an embodiment of the present invention,
A computer device driver implementation method, a device driver implementation system, and a computer will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the network system device driver implementation method of the present invention, any computer in the network system inputs a markup language format document output from, for example, an application program, and includes processing commands that can be processed by the device. By converting to binary data and performing control to output the converted binary data to the device, it is possible to function as a device driver. Therefore, the device driver implementation method for the network system of the present invention will be described by applying it to a network system comprising a server, a computer, and a printing apparatus.

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a network system 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as a system 1) according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, a system 1 includes a computer (hereinafter simply referred to as a PC) 10 that implements a device driver, and a printing apparatus 5 that is a device connected to the PC 10.
0, and a server 60 that is connected to the PC 10 via the Internet or an intranet and provides various types of information. The PC 10 and the printing apparatus 50 are connected by a cable (not shown).

The apparatus configuration of the PC 10 is the same as that of a so-called general computer, and the input device 1
1, a display 12, a storage device 13, a communication interface 14, an input / output interface 15, an internal bus 16, a CPU 17, a ROM 18 and a RAM 19. The PC 10 according to the present embodiment is a POS computer that is installed in a store or the like and generates payment processing data for printing on a receipt. In particular, the input device 11 includes a keyboard, a barcode reader, and a card. A reader or the like is provided, and the contents of sales are acquired by inputting with a keyboard or reading with a barcode reader and a card reader, and processing for displaying a product name, sales amount, etc. on the display 12 is performed. As illustrated, the communication interface 14 includes a port driver 22 (port control means) that controls a communication port for communicating with the printing apparatus 50.

In addition to the POS application 20 for performing payment processing and generating payment processing data, the storage device 13 includes an XML parser (XML parser) 21 that is a general-purpose interpretation program for XML (Extensible Markup Language) documents. This X
The ML parser 21 converts the XML document output from the POS application 20 into a command that can be processed by the printing apparatus 50. That is, the CPU 17 performs a settlement process based on the POS application 20 and realizes a function as a device driver of the printing apparatus 50 based on the XML parser 21 or the like.

The printing apparatus 50 includes a data transmission / reception unit 51 that transmits / receives data via the PC 10 and the communication interface 14, a conveyance unit 52 that conveys receipt paper wound in a roll shape,
The printing unit 53 that prints on receipt paper in synchronization with the conveyance of the receipt paper, the cutting unit 54 that cuts the printed portion of the receipt paper, the drive unit 55 that drives these units, and each unit are connected, And a control unit 56 that controls the entire printing apparatus 50, and functions as a receipt printer.

On the other hand, the device configuration of the server 60 is almost the same as that of the PC 10, and the input device 61, the display 62, the storage device 63, the communication interface 64, and the input / output interface 6.
5, an internal bus 66, a CPU 67, a ROM 68, and a RAM 69 are provided. Server 60
The storage device 63 includes a model designation program 70 for designating the model of the printing apparatus 50 connected to the PC 10 when the PC 10 accesses the server 60, and the printing apparatus 5.
Port information setting program 7 for performing settings related to communication ports for communicating with 0
1 is stored, and a model-dependent information database 72 in which model-dependent information 101 (see FIG. 9; details will be described later) to be provided to the PC 10 is stored. Then, the model dependent information 101 corresponding to the model specified by the model specifying program 70 and the port information 102 (see FIG. 10; details will be described later) set by the port information setting program 71 are provided to the PC 10.

Subsequently, the functional configuration of the system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. Figure 2 shows system 1
FIG. As shown in the figure, the server 60 includes the model designation program 7 described above.
0 and a port information setting program 71, and provides the PC 10 with the model-dependent information 101 corresponding to the model specified by the model specifying program 70 and the port information 102 set by the port information setting program 71.

The PC 10 includes a model-dependent information receiving unit 30, a port information receiving unit 31, a storage unit 32, an XML document input unit 33, a first conversion unit 34, a second conversion unit 35, a binary data output unit 36,
An event information acquisition unit 37 and an event information conversion unit 38 are provided. The model-dependent information receiving unit 30 performs control for saving the model-dependent information 101 transmitted from the server 60 in the storage unit 32. Similarly, the port information receiving unit 31 receives the port information 10 transmitted from the server 60.
2 is stored in the storage unit 32. The model-dependent information receiving unit 30 and the port information receiving unit 31 are configured by the communication interface 14 shown in FIG.

The storage unit 32 is configured by the storage device 13 described above, and the output format information 1
00, model-dependent information 101, and port information 102 are stored. These pieces of information are stored in independent databases. Details of these will be described later.

The XML document input unit 33 is an XML output from the POS application 20.
A document (XML document A in the figure) is input to the first conversion unit 34. The first conversion unit 34 converts the input XML document (XML document A) into an XML document (in the drawing, XML document B) reflecting the output format information 100 based on the output format information 100 in the storage unit 32.

The second conversion unit 35 converts an XML document (XML document B) reflecting the output format information 100 into a process command character string that can be processed by the printing apparatus 50 based on the model-dependent information 101 in the storage unit 32. Furthermore, the character string of the processing command is converted into binary data. Based on the port information 102 in the storage unit 32, the binary data output unit 36 performs an open process to the communication port of the printing apparatus 50 and outputs the converted binary data to the printing apparatus 50.

Further, the event information acquisition unit 37 acquires event information (including information related to an event occurrence such as an error or cover open and various status information) output from the printing apparatus 50 as a command. Note that the binary data output unit 36 and the event information acquisition unit 37 are both port drivers 22 incorporated in the PC 10 (included in the communication interface 14).
It functions by.

The event information conversion unit 38 converts the acquired event information into an XML document (X in the drawing).
ML document C) and output to the POS application 20, for example. In addition,
The XML document input unit 33, the first conversion unit 34, the second conversion unit 35, and the event information conversion unit 38 described above all function by the XML parser 21 incorporated in the PC 10.

Here, the above-described output format information 100, model-dependent information 101, port information 102
Will be described in detail. The output format information 100 (see FIG. 8) defines an output format for the printing apparatus 50, and describes general setting information such as font settings and print layout. This information can also be customized by the user, which allows the user to print the XML document in the desired print format.

The model-dependent information 101 (see FIG. 9) is information indicating a conversion rule for converting the XML document output from the POS application 20 into a command that can be processed by the printing apparatus 50. Information relating to an initialization rule for initializing the printing apparatus 50, a conversion rule for character attributes (vertical double angle, horizontal double angle, underline, etc.), and a transmission command such as paper cut and paper feed are described. This information differs depending on the model of the printing apparatus 50 because it has properties depending on the specifications and settings of the printing apparatus 50. The model-dependent information 101 includes the event information (binary data) acquired by the event information acquisition unit 37 as X
Information indicating a conversion rule for converting into an ML document is further included.

In this embodiment, an XML document is assumed as input data as described above, and the output format information 100 and the model-dependent information 101 are XSL (Extensible St.).
ylesheet Language) (see FIGS. 8 and 9). Further, port information 102
(See FIG. 10) defines various settings related to communication ports for communicating with the printing apparatus 50, and describes port types, communication speeds, etc. (FIG. 10 shows an example of serial connection). Show).

Next, each process for realizing the device driver of the printing apparatus 50 by the PC 10 will be specifically described. First, the PC 10 receives model-dependent information 101 and port information 1 from the server 60.
The process of acquiring 02 will be described.

3A shows an example of a model designation screen D1 displayed on the server 60 when the PC 10 accesses the server 60 and acquires the model-dependent information 101. FIG. 3B shows port information. An example of the port information setting screen D2 displayed on the server 60 when acquiring 102 is shown. The model-dependent information 101 is acquired by, for example, specifying the model of the printing apparatus 50 connected to the PC 10 on the model designation screen D1 displayed by the user and downloading the model-dependent information 101 as shown in FIG. By instructing, the model-dependent information 101 corresponding to the specified model is downloaded from the server 60 to the PC 10. That is, the model specifying program 70 of the server 60 reads the model dependent information 101 corresponding to the model specified on the model specifying screen D1 from the model dependent information database 72 and transmits it to the PC 10. Further, by selecting the “detail display” link shown in the figure, the user may check each item constituting the model-dependent information 101 and further edit it.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5B, the port information 102 is acquired by, for example, the user setting the communication port of the printing apparatus 50 on the displayed port setting screen D2 (designation of the port type, communication speed, bit length). Then, the port information 102 reflecting each setting on the port setting screen D2 is downloaded from the server 60 to the PC 10 by instructing the download of the port information 102 thereafter. That is, the port information setting program 71 of the server 60 generates the port information 102 reflecting the setting on the port setting screen D2, and this is transmitted to the PC 10.

The acquisition of the model-dependent information 101 is exemplified by a method in which the user manually accesses the server 60, designates the model, and downloads it to the PC 10.
May be done automatically (internally). That is, for example, when the printing apparatus 50 is connected to the PC 10, the PC 10 reads the model of the printing apparatus 50 and transmits it to the server 60, thereby receiving the model-dependent information 101 corresponding to the model transmitted from the server 60. May be.

Next, referring to FIG. 4, the PC 10 outputs the XML document output from the POS application 20 to the printing apparatus 50 by referring to the output format information 100, the model-dependent information 101, and the port information 102 described above. A series of will be described. Although the output format information 100 is preliminarily stored in the PC 10, it can of course be downloaded and acquired from the server 60 like the model-dependent information 101 and the port information 102.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an XML document conversion process by the PC 10.
As shown in the figure, first, the XML document A output from the POS application 20 is input to the first conversion unit 34 as input data by the XML document input unit 33 (S01). Next, the first conversion unit 34 converts the XML document A input based on the output format information 100 into an XML document B reflecting the output format information 100 (S02).

Further, the XML document B reflecting the output format information 100 is temporarily converted by the second conversion unit 35 into a command character string that can be processed by the printing apparatus 50 based on the model-dependent information 101 (S03). Is converted into binary data (S04). Thereafter, the binary data output unit 36 refers to the port information 102, and the converted binary data is output to the printing apparatus 50 (S05).

Next, a specific description will be given with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 shows an example of an XML document A serving as input data. The input data includes product names such as “radish”, “strawberry”, and “peach” and “150”, “500”, “200”. The amount information corresponding to each product is included. FIG. 8 shows an example of output format information 100 described in XSL. The first conversion unit 34 converts the XML document A shown in FIG. 5 into an XML document B reflecting the output format information 100 based on the output format information 100 shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows the XML document A shown in FIG.
9 shows an XML document B converted based on the output format information 100 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6 (particularly, the shaded portion), the XML document B reflects the setting of underlining each product name based on the output format information 100 shown in FIG.

Further, the second conversion unit 35 temporarily converts the XML document B shown in FIG. 6 into a command character string that can be processed by the printing apparatus 50 based on the model-dependent information 101 shown in FIG. Convert to binary data.

Then, the binary data output unit 36 refers to the port information 102 shown in FIG. 10, communicates with the printing apparatus 50 based on this, and outputs the converted binary data. FIG. 7 shows a print result obtained when the printing apparatus 50 performs printing based on the binary data. As shown, XML document A (see FIG. 5) as input data and output format information 10
Based on 0 (see FIG. 8), the product name and its price are output, and each product name is underlined.

Subsequently, event information output from the printing apparatus 50 as a command (including information on occurrence of an event such as an error or cover open and various status information) is acquired and stored in XML.
The process of converting to a document and outputting will be described. As described above, this process is performed by the event information acquisition unit 37 and the event information conversion unit 38 (both refer to FIG. 2), and the event information (command information output from the printing apparatus 50 by the event information acquisition unit 37) (
(Binary data) is acquired, and the event information conversion unit 38 converts the event information into an XML document by referring to the model-dependent information 101, and the POS application 2
This is executed in a procedure such as outputting to 0.

FIG. 11 shows an example of tag specifications in an XML document converted from event information. As shown in FIG. 6A, the contents of the event information are all described in, for example, an “event” tag (shaded portion in the figure). As shown in FIG.
The data representing the event contents is composed of attributes of “printing device name”, “event occurrence location”, and “event contents”, and the contents are described following the attribute names.

By outputting this XML document to the POS application 20, PO
The S application 20 can grasp the operating state of the printing apparatus 50 (whether an error has occurred or the like) and various statuses (cover state and paper setting state), and can be remotely managed by the printing apparatus 50. It becomes. Further, the POS application 20 further transmits the output XML document to the server 60, so that, for example, the printing apparatus 50 installed in each store can be collectively managed in the center (where the server is installed). The maintenance efficiency of the printing apparatus 50 can be further improved.

The event information acquisition unit 37 is configured by the port driver 22 of the PC 10, and the port driver 22 plays a role of controlling and monitoring a communication port that communicates with the printing apparatus 50. Event information in the communication port (information for notifying port open processing failure or the like) may be further acquired as event information. As a result, in addition to the main body of the printing apparatus 50, the communication status between the PC 10 and the printing apparatus 50 can be remotely managed.

As described above, according to the device driver realizing method and the like of the present invention, when a device such as a printing apparatus is connected to a computer, the XML parser 21 and the port driver 22 are incorporated in the computer, and the output format information 100, Model dependent information 1
01 and the device can be used simply by saving the port information 102.

That is, since the XML parser 21 is often incorporated in a general-purpose web browser application, the user does not particularly need to install software by using a PC in which the web browser application is incorporated. Therefore, since it is not necessary to install a device driver, which is software specialized for device control as in the past, on a computer, even a user unfamiliar with a computer,
It is possible to easily use the printing apparatus (device) without being aware of the environment of the computer used by itself (for example, the type and version of the OS). In addition, work associated with replacement of a computer connected to a device can be simplified.

In addition, since a conventional printer driver is not required, the burden on the manufacturer that provides the device can be reduced. In particular, the conventional printer driver needs to create a program according to the environment of the installation destination computer. However, according to the present invention, these operations are unnecessary, and the development cost can be greatly reduced.

In addition, when the firmware is incorporated in the printing apparatus 50, the setting value and reference information of the firmware is included in the model-dependent information 101, and a mechanism is provided for the firmware to execute each process while referring to the model-dependent information 101. Firmware update can also be realized by changing the model-dependent information 101.

Furthermore, it is possible to cope with changes in output format, printer model 50, communication port settings, etc. by changing the output format information 100, model-dependent information 101, and port information 102. . That is, since the work of changing the program as in the prior art becomes unnecessary, the user can change the output format, change the model of the printing apparatus 50, and change the setting of the communication port in real time.

Note that a plurality of model-dependent information 101 may be stored in the PC 10. In this case, for example, the model-dependent information 101 of the designated model may be read by designating the model of the device used by the user each time. Thereby, when connecting a plurality of types of devices to the PC 10, it is possible to use the devices only by storing the corresponding model-dependent information 101 in the PC 10, which is more convenient.

In this embodiment, the network system 1 including the server 60, the PC 10, and the printing apparatus 50 has been described as the computer that executes the present invention. However, the PC 10 does not necessarily need to be a computer that executes the present invention. Absent. For example, the server 60 may be a computer that executes the present invention. In this case, the server 60 has X
An ML parser 21 and a port driver 22 are incorporated, and the server 60 receives an XML document from the PC 10, converts it into binary data, and converts the converted binary data to P
The data is output to the printing apparatus 50 via C10. When the POS application 20 is incorporated in the server 60 instead of the PC 10, the converted binary data may be directly output to the printing apparatus 50 without going through the PC 10.

When the server 60 is a computer that executes the present invention, the server 60 acquires model information related to the model of the device, and reads and uses the model-dependent information 101 corresponding to the acquired model information. The acquisition of the model information may be manually input using the input device 61 of the server 60 as described above, or the model of the device is automatically (internally) accessed by the server 60. It may be configured to read. Similarly, the port information 102 is also set using the input device 61 of the server 60.

Further, the XML parser 21 is incorporated in the printing apparatus 50, and the output format information 100, the model-dependent information 101, and the port information 102 are stored in the storage area of the printing apparatus 50, so that the computer that executes the present invention is a printing apparatus 50. It is also possible. In other words, the XML document output from the POS application 20 is transmitted to the printing apparatus 50, and the XML document received (input) by the printing apparatus 50 is converted into binary data internally and output to, for example, a buffer. As described above, since the present invention can be realized by various apparatus configurations, the device driver realizing method of the present invention can be realized in various forms according to the use environment of the printing apparatus 50.

In the present embodiment, the printing apparatus 50 is described as an example of the device. However, the present invention is not limited to the printing apparatus 50 and can be applied to various devices such as a scanner and a display.

Further, output format information 10 for each device type (for example, a printing apparatus and a scanner).
0, model-dependent information 101, and port information 102 may be stored in the PC 10 and used separately according to the type of device to be output.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, an XML document has been described as an example of input data.
uage) or SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language) or the like), and the present invention can be applied with input data as a document.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the POS application 20 is described as an example of an application that outputs input data (XML document), but the type of application is not particularly limited.

In addition, regardless of the example of the system 1 in the above-described embodiment, the device configuration, processing steps, and the like can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention.

1 is a system configuration diagram of a network system. It is a functional block diagram of a network system. It is a figure which illustrates a model specification screen (a) and a port information setting screen (b). It is a flowchart which shows a series of flows which convert and output an XML document into binary data. It is explanatory drawing which illustrates input data. It is explanatory drawing which illustrates the specific example of the conversion result of input data. FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a specific example of an output result following FIG. 7. It is a figure which illustrates output format information. It is a figure which illustrates model dependence information. It is a figure which illustrates port information. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating event information.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Network system 10 ... PC 17 ... CPU (PC) 20 ... POS application 21 ... XML parser 22 ... Port driver 30 ... Model dependence information receiving part
31 ... Port information receiving unit 32 ... Storage unit 33 ... XML document input unit 34 ... First
Conversion unit 35 ... second conversion unit 36 ... binary data output unit 37 ... event information acquisition unit
38 ... Event information conversion unit 50 ... Printing device 60 ... Server 67 ... CPU (server)
70 ... Model designation program 71 ... Port information setting program 72 ... Model dependence information database 100 ... Output format information 101 ... Model dependence information 102 ... Port information

Claims (10)

A server that provides port information relating to a communication port for communicating with a device, a markup document interpretation unit that is connected to the server and that is an interpretation program of a markup document described in a markup language, and the communication A device driver implementation method for a network system comprising a client terminal having a port control means for controlling a port,
The server is
Performing a port information generation step of generating the port information based on the designation of the client terminal;
The client terminal is
A port information receiving step for receiving the port information from the server and storing it in the storage unit of the client terminal;
By using the markup document interpretation means, the markup document is input,
A binary data conversion step of converting the input markup document into binary data composed of the processing commands that can be processed by the device;
A binary data output step of outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means; . The storage unit is information unique to each device model, and further stores model-dependent information indicating a conversion rule for converting the markup document into a processing command that can be processed by the device,
2. The device driver implementation method for a network system according to claim 1, wherein in the binary data conversion step, the markup document is converted into the binary data based on the model-dependent information. The storage unit further stores output format information related to an output format to the device,
The binary data conversion step includes
A first conversion step of converting an input markup document into a markup document reflecting the output format information based on the output format information;
3. The method of realizing a device driver of a network system according to claim 2, further comprising: a second conversion step of converting the markup document converted into the binary data based on the model-dependent information. 4. The method of realizing a device driver in a network system according to claim 3, wherein the port information, the model-dependent information, and the output format information stored in the storage unit are stored in an independent database. . The computer is
By using the port control means, it is composed of output commands of the device,
An event information acquisition step of acquiring event information related to an event that has occurred in the device;
5. The event information converting step of converting the acquired event information into the markup document and outputting it by using the markup document interpretation means, further executing the event information conversion step. A device driver implementation method for a network system according to item 1. The markup language is XML (Extensible Markup Language), and the model-dependent information and the output format information are XSL (Extensible Stylesheet Lang).
6. The device driver realization method of the network system according to claim 3, wherein the device driver is realized by uage). The device driver implementation method for a network system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the device is a printing apparatus. A storage unit for storing port information related to a communication port for communicating with a device, markup document interpretation means that is a markup document interpretation program described in a markup language, and port control for controlling the communication port A device driver implementation method for a computer comprising:
The computer is
A port information setting step for setting the port information;
A port information storage step of storing the set port information in the storage unit;
By using the markup document interpretation means, the markup document is input,
A binary data conversion step of converting the input markup document into binary data composed of the processing commands that can be processed by the device;
A binary device output step of outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means. A server that provides port information related to a communication port for communicating with a device, a markup document interpretation unit that is connected to the server and is a markup document interpretation program described in a markup language, and the communication A device driver implementation system comprising a client terminal having a port control means for controlling a port,
The server
A port information generating unit configured to generate the port information based on the designation of the client terminal;
The client terminal is
Port information receiving means for receiving the port information from the server and storing it in the storage unit of the client terminal;
By using the markup document interpretation means, the markup document is input,
Binary data conversion means for converting the input markup document into binary data composed of the processing commands that can be processed by the device;
A device driver implementation system comprising: binary data output means for outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means. A storage unit for storing port information related to a communication port for communicating with a device, markup document interpretation means that is a markup document interpretation program described in a markup language, and port control for controlling the communication port A computer comprising means,
Port information setting means for setting the port information;
Port information storage means for storing the set port information in the storage unit;
By using the markup document interpretation means, the markup document is input,
Binary data conversion means for converting the input markup document into binary data composed of the processing commands that can be processed by the device;
A computer comprising: binary data output means for outputting the converted binary data to the device based on the stored port information by using the port control means.

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