JP2008186164A - Data processing apparatus, image forming apparatus and image forming system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To increase the throughput of a printer with a plurality of feed ports even when a used feed port is switched between continuous pages, by implementing a pre-feed from an appropriate feed port, and increase the throughput of a printer in which a used paper size is assigned to at least one feed port, by implementing a similar pre-feed from an appropriate feed port. <P>SOLUTION: Information specifying a feed port that is the feed source of a pre-feed is added to a pre-pickup command. Even if a logical feed method, "Apply paper assignment" is set, a physical feed port to be actually used is specified in a pre-feed command according to paper size and other setting information in a print setting and paper assignment setting information. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system that prints print data as a visible image using a printing apparatus such as an inkjet printer, and that can print print data sent from a specific data processing apparatus.

  As a printing apparatus that prints a print command sent from a data processing apparatus as a visible image on a printing paper, there are an inkjet type apparatus and an electrophotographic type apparatus.

  In the electrophotographic system, a laser beam is controlled by ON / OFF driving according to a print command in order to irradiate a uniformly charged photoconductor with a light image corresponding to image data for one page. An electrostatic latent image is formed by irradiating the surface of the photoreceptor with an image. In order to make the latent image a visible image, development is performed with toner that is a colorant, and printing processing is performed so that the developed toner image is transferred onto a printing paper. As a page printer, an electrophotographic printing apparatus executes print processing for a print command representing image data for one page.

  For page printers, there is a raster printer system that prints image data as a visible image directly on a print sheet for each line or for each of a plurality of lines. This raster printer can execute print processing if image data for a necessary line is input as a print command without inputting image data for one page. Therefore, even if a page memory for storing a print command over a plurality of pages is not provided, a printing process can be executed only by providing a raster memory. Therefore, the raster printer can reduce the memory capacity as much as possible, and at the same time can directly execute the printing process on the printing paper, so that the size can be reduced and the cost can be reduced. As such a printer, there is an ink jet apparatus.

  In the inkjet method, at least an ink jet head having an orifice for ejecting ink is recorded and scanned in a direction orthogonal to the feeding direction of the printing paper, so that dots (pixels) are directly formed on the printing paper to form a visible image. obtain. In such a raster printer, the printer itself has a raster memory. However, since the print command for one page cannot be held, the print command for the next page exists at a certain point during printing. I can not judge whether or not. For this reason, the printing paper for the next page cannot be fed in advance to a predetermined position.

  That is, when printing processing on a plurality of printing papers is performed, when the next printing paper is printed after the printing processing of the previous printing paper is completed, the preceding paper feeding of the printing paper cannot be performed in advance. This is because continuous printing is performed on the next printing paper after completing the printing process on the previous printing paper, and the next printing paper is fed when the next printing command is sent. It is. Therefore, when continuous printing on a plurality of printing papers is desired, the interval between printing paper discharge and paper feeding becomes longer. As a result, the throughput of the printing process is reduced.

  In the page printer, if all the print commands sent are stored on the printing device side, the printing process to the next printing paper is executed during the printing process to the previous printing paper at the stage of executing the printing process. It can be understood that continuous printing exists. As a result, the next printing paper can be fed in advance to a predetermined position, and the processing time until the start of printing on the next printing paper is shortened. Some electrophotographic page printers use this technique to hold print commands transferred from a data processing apparatus so that advance feeding of printing paper can be performed during execution of printing processing.

  In the above page printer, the number of sheets to be printed is grasped by providing in advance a memory capable of storing print commands corresponding to at least two pages sent from the data processing apparatus. It is possible to send the printing paper to a fixed position in advance. As a result, the time required for the printing process on the next printing paper can be shortened, and as a result, the time for processing all the print commands can be shortened.

On the other hand, in a raster printer that realizes a reduction in printer cost by minimizing the memory capacity of an ink jet method or the like, a print command corresponding to at least two pages sent from the data processing apparatus can be stored in advance. This memory cannot be provided in advance on the printing apparatus side. For this reason, when continuous printing of a plurality of printing papers is performed, when the printing process on one printing paper is completed and the printing paper is discharged, a print command for printing on the next printing paper Is transferred for the first time, the next print sheet is sent to the fixed position, the conveyance of the print sheet at the fixed position is started at the timing of executing the print process, and the control for executing the print process is repeated each time. Become. In order to enable continuous printing with such a small amount of memory, the print command generated in the data processing device is analyzed, and if the next page command exists in the print command, the next print paper is displayed in the header portion of the previous page. A method of notifying the printer that there is continuous printing on the next printing paper by inserting a preceding paper feed command for feeding the paper is considered (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2). .
JP-A-9-193396 JP 2002-361985 A

  However, the above technique has the following problems. Since the memory capacity of the printing device is small, the data processing device analyzes the generated print command after generating the print command from the created image data, confirms the existence of the print command for the next page, A preceding paper feed command is inserted in the header portion of the print command. For this reason, it is necessary to secure a memory space that can temporarily hold a print command for at least two pages after the print command is generated in the data processing apparatus and perform the analysis process of the print command. Alternatively, if the generated print command is recorded in a secondary storage device such as a hard disk drive, it is always checked whether the header of the next page exists, so that the print command for all pages is recorded as a result. Become.

  As described above, the raster printer has a small memory capacity. On the other hand, the data processing apparatus, which is a host device, requires a temporarily large memory space at the time of printing, and the print command generated in parallel with the generation of the print command. Therefore, a great load is applied to the central processing unit (CPU) of the data processing apparatus. Alternatively, in order to reduce the load on the CPU of the data processing device, all print commands generated in a secondary storage device such as a hard disk drive are temporarily stored, and analysis is started after generation of the print command is completed. Therefore, the time difference from the start of print command generation to the actual start of printing increases according to the amount of image data. Further, when a plurality of print commands are issued for one print data and a plurality of copies are executed, the amount of print commands increases almost in proportion to the number of copies. However, it is very wasteful to analyze all the created print commands, determine the presence or absence of the next page, and insert the preceding paper feed command.

  Further, in a printer having a plurality of paper feed ports, if a print setting is made to change the paper feed port used between consecutive pages, if the preceding paper feed is performed in the immediately preceding paper feed method, In order to change the paper feeding method, an extra operation such as discharging the previously fed printing paper as a white paper or back feeding the paper previously fed to the paper feeding port occurs. In particular, when white paper is discharged, white paper is mixed in the printing paper as a printing result, which causes a problem. Furthermore, the paper size is registered in advance for at least one of the plurality of paper supply ports, and the paper size used for printing is the same as the paper size of the paper supply port registered in advance. Some of them provide a so-called “paper allocation” function in which the paper feeding method is changed to the paper feeding port when printing matches, and printing is performed. When a paper feed method according to such “paper assignment” is selected, the paper feed port to be used changes as the paper size changes between consecutive pages, and the preceding paper feed is performed in the immediately preceding paper feed method. In the method, the above-mentioned problems occur, resulting in inconvenience.

  In order to avoid such a problem, when the paper feed port to be used with the previous page is changed or when the paper feed port of the next page cannot be specified, a contrivance is made so that the preceding paper feed is not performed. However, the effect of improving the throughput due to the preceding paper feeding is reduced.

  In view of the above-described conventional problems, the present invention eliminates the above-described time difference when performing continuous printing processing in a printer having a plurality of paper feed ports, enables a reduction in printing time, and improves the throughput, and also allows the number of copies to be printed. In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a printing system that includes a printing device such as a raster printer that does not have a large-capacity memory and a data processing device that generates a print command from image data. .

  Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to improve throughput by performing preceding paper feeding from an appropriate paper feeding port even when the paper feeding port used between consecutive pages is changed. Another object of the present invention is to improve the throughput of a printer that assigns a paper size to be used for at least one paper feed port by similarly performing advance paper feed from an appropriate paper feed port.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention makes it possible for the data processing apparatus sending the print command to perform the preceding feeding so that the preceding feeding for the next printing sheet can be performed in advance on the printing apparatus side. Data processing is performed.

  Therefore, the present invention has the following configuration. A printing system including a data processing device that transmits print data and a printing device that forms a visible image on printing paper in response to a print command sent from the data processing device. In the print command corresponding to the print paper, the presence of the print command for the next print paper and the preceding paper feed command indicating the paper feed port to which the paper is to be fed are added, and the preceding paper feed command added to the print command is added. Whether or not the printing apparatus recognizes the presence of the preceding paper feeding command transmitted together with the printing command and performs the preceding paper feeding of the printing paper to be printed according to the recognition result. In the case of performing the pre-feed, the pre-feed of the print paper is performed from the paper feed port designated by the pre-feed command, and the printer driver of the data processing apparatus is controlled. Includes a print setting processing unit that performs print settings, and an image data generation unit that issues image data according to the print settings of the print setting processing unit in a print command format. The image data generation unit is generated by an application. The preceding paper feed command is issued at an arbitrary timing at the same time when a print command including image data is issued from the print data of the printed page.

  Further, the preceding paper feed command is issued with the arbitrary timing as a print command corresponding to the raster of the image data.

  In addition, when a plurality of copies are set by the print setting processing unit and copy printing is set, and a print command for the same page is issued a plurality of times, the preceding paper feed command is used except for the final set number of copies. The print command issuance is controlled by determining the presence of the print data of the next page created by the application only the last time.

  Further, a paper feeding unit for feeding printing paper is set by the print setting processing unit, and the image data generating unit determines the paper feeding unit set for each page of the application document, and the preceding paper feeding is performed. The information of the sheet feeding means is used as a condition for issuing a command.

  With the above configuration, the following effects can be obtained according to the present invention.

  (1) The entire print command created by the printer driver is analyzed, and there is no need to insert a preceding paper feed command after creating the print command. A preceding paper feed command can be issued.

  (2) It is not necessary to store the entire print command created by the printer driver in a secondary storage device such as a hard disk drive.

  (3) A memory capacity sufficient to store at least two continuous print commands of print commands created by the printer driver is not required.

  (4) Since it is not necessary for the printer driver to analyze the generated print command simultaneously with the generation of the print command, the load on the data processing apparatus is reduced.

  (5) It is possible to efficiently issue a preceding paper feed command for printing in which the number of copies setting or the unit setting is set.

  (6) Even when the paper feed port used in the middle of the job is changed in a printer having a plurality of paper feed ports because the physical paper feed port for performing the preceding paper feed is specified by the preceding paper feed command. Since the preceding sheet feeding can be performed from the sheet feeding port designated by the preceding sheet feeding command, the throughput can be improved.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the drawings. In the following description, USB is an abbreviation for Universal Serial Bus, and is a known interface capable of bidirectional communication, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

(First embodiment)
<Configuration of printing system>
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The printer 101 is an ink jet printing apparatus that forms an image, and forms an image based on a print command generated by a data processing apparatus 102 described later. The type of printing apparatus is not particularly limited, but here, an inkjet color printer is assumed. The printer 101 includes various functional blocks 110 to 113 and 120 to 125. In the data processing apparatus 102, application software creates a print job, a printer driver creates image data from a print job print command, and generates a print command for controlling the printing operation of the connected printer 101. In this embodiment, a personal computer is used as the data processing apparatus 102. It also plays a role of receiving instructions and input from the user regarding print settings. The data processing apparatus 102 includes various functional blocks 130 to 133 and 140 to 143. Further, the data processing apparatus 102 incorporates Microsoft (registered trademark) Windows (registered trademark) XP as an operating system (hereinafter abbreviated as OS) for controlling the data processing apparatus 102, and various functions on the OS. Block works. The communication interface 103 is a communication interface that connects the data processing apparatus 102 and the printer 101. In this embodiment, a USB that is a serial interface is used. In addition, a serial interface such as IEEE1394, Ethernet (registered trademark), IrDA, IEEE802.11, or a power line, or a parallel interface such as Centronics or SCSI is used. You can also. Any interface can be used regardless of wired / wireless as long as communication is realized. As described above, the printing system according to the present embodiment is not a single apparatus, but has a configuration in which the data processing apparatus 102 and the printer 101 that performs image formation are connected through a specific bidirectional interface. The present invention is not limited to this, and an apparatus-integrated printing system in which the functions of the data processing apparatus and the printer are integrated may be used. It should be noted that functions that are not particularly necessary for describing the features of the present embodiment in the printer 101 and the data processing apparatus 102 are omitted.

  The print control unit 110 receives the print command transmitted from the data processing apparatus 102 and controls the printing operation of the printing unit 120. The printing unit 120 is a part for transporting the recording medium 100 and printing on the recording medium 100. The recording medium 100 is generally called printing paper and is loaded on a paper feed tray or cassette provided in the printer 101. The head controller 111 controls the operation of the head driver 121 and ejects ink from the orifice of the head. The feed control unit 112 feeds the recording medium 100 one by one from a paper feed tray or paper feed cassette provided in the printer 101, transports the recording medium 100 to a printable position via a fixed position on the transport path, and discharges it together with raster printing. In order to perform the paper operation, the paper transport unit 123 is controlled. The image forming unit 113 expands the image data included in the print command issued from the data processing apparatus 102. The print control unit 110 is provided with a memory for the work area of the control operation performed by the print control unit 110, development of image data, and storage of received print commands. The memory is used by the image forming unit 113. The

  As described above, the print control unit 110 comprehensively controls the printer engine in accordance with the print control command included in the print command. Specifically, the print control unit 110 can be realized by executing a program describing a control procedure by the CPU. The print control command controls the quantized image data for printing (binary or intermediate data before binarization), the ink ejection amount, the number of passes, the printing direction, and the paper conveyance amount. Various commands and commands composed of paper type instructions set by the input operation unit 131 described later are used. The head drive unit 121 performs printing on the recording medium 100 based on the image data of the print command developed by the print control unit 110. Since the printer 101 is an ink jet printer, image formation is performed by ejecting ink. The paper pickup unit 122 performs an operation of placing the recording medium 100 loaded on the paper feed tray or the paper feed cassette on the transport path. The paper transport unit 123 performs a transport operation of the recording medium 100 placed on the transport path by the paper pick-up unit through the fixed path to the paper discharge. The paper detection sensor 124 is installed in the middle of the conveyance path, and can detect the end of the recording medium 100 being conveyed to confirm that the recording medium 100 is at a fixed position in the conveyance path. The I / F control unit 125 is an I / F control unit that manages the interface function of the printer 101. In this embodiment, since the interface used is USB, it is configured by a controller on the USB peripheral device side. The I / F control unit 125 performs transmission of paper information, reception of a print command, and the like. The I / F control unit 125 also returns to the data processing apparatus 102 if there is a request regarding status information such as an error or a communication state that has occurred in the printer main body.

  The central control unit 141 controls various functions of the data processing apparatus 102, and the functions of the CPU correspond to this. The input operation unit 142 includes various input devices for reflecting the user's intention in the print settings. The setting information notification unit 143 notifies the user of print settings. As a notification method, a case where a display device such as a monitor is used or a voice notification is considered. The I / F control unit 140 manages the interface function of the data processing apparatus 102. The I / F control unit 140 is configured by a USB host-side controller and has a function as a USB host. Some functions as a USB host are also configured by software such as an OS and a driver. The printer driver 130 is software for performing various settings for printing, print data generation, and printer control on the data processing apparatus 102. A printer driver program is executed by the central control unit 141 (that is, a CPU of a personal computer), and functions such as a print setting processing unit 131, an image data generation unit 132, and a data communication processing unit 133 are realized. The print setting processing unit 131 performs various print settings including paper settings and print quality settings. The print setting processing unit 131 has a function of receiving an instruction or input from a user and displaying or notifying the set content. The image data generation unit 132 generates image data from print data of a print job created by an application and generates a print command. The print command of the print job created by the image data generation unit 132 is sent to the I / F control unit 140 via the data communication processing unit 133, and the print command is sent to the printer 101.

<Printer driver operation>
FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram of the operation of the printer driver 130 in this embodiment. In the data processing apparatus 102, an application 1110 that creates a document to be printed operates. When a document is created by the application 1110 and print processing of the created document is performed, the application 1110 uses the print setting processing unit 131 of the printer driver 130 via the printing function of the OS to perform various printing described later with reference to FIG. Settings can be made. The application 1110 first starts a document printing process. Then, the page printing process is started for each page, the data included in the page of the document is stored as print data in the spool file 1111 via the printing function of the OS, and the page printing process is finished for each page. After the above-described processing of each page is performed on the page of the document to be printed, the document printing process is terminated. The document created by the application 1110 in this way is stored in the spool file 1111 in the print data format. Here, at the timing when the application 1110 starts / ends the printing process of the document and starts / ends the printing process of the page, a notification of the start / end of the document or page is reported to the printer driver 130 by the printing function of the OS. The spool file 1111 can use functions provided as part of the OS.

  The image data generation unit 132 of the printer driver 130 creates image data to be printed from the print data stored in the spool file 1111, and converts the created image data into a print command that can be interpreted by the printer 101. The print command generated by the image data generation unit 132 is transmitted to the printer 101 via the data communication processing unit 133 and the I / F 103 connecting the data processing apparatus 102 and the printer 101. The printer 101 is controlled by the received print command and forms image data as a visible image on the recording medium 100.

<Print setting screen>
2 and 3 are views showing an example of a print setting dialog displayed when the print mode and various paper settings are performed in the present embodiment. In FIG. 2, the print setting dialog 301 includes display areas 302 to 311 and 320 to 331. Since there are a large number of items to be displayed in the print settings, it is common to use a tab sheet to divide the setting items according to the contents so that they are easy to see. Tabs are also used in this embodiment. Similarly, FIG. 3 includes display areas 302 to 311 and 340 to 353. In the basic setting tab 302, contents related to printing basics are displayed. The page setting tab 303 displays contents related to various page settings such as a paper size, a printing direction, and a printing layout (N-up). Details of these tabs will be described later. The stamp / background tab 304 displays a screen for selecting a pattern to be added at the time of printing without changing the print document, such as a stamp function for superimposing characters on a print document and a background function for overlaying an image. The special effect tab 305 displays a selection screen of functions used when special effects such as various image corrections and sepia tones are given to the image. The favorite tab 306 displays a screen for selecting a frequently used print setting or the like and a recall function. The utility tab 307 displays a selection screen for functions such as head adjustment and cleaning. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a paper assignment dialog for assigning the paper type and paper size to be used for one paper feed method. The paper assignment dialog 360 is composed of display areas 361 to 366. . These dialogs display the contents related to the settings, and at the same time accept the user's change instruction and input of the setting contents.

  FIG. 2 shows a display example when the basic setting tab 302 is selected. In the basic setting simple display area 320, not only character information but also information set in a form appealing to the eye is displayed. When the print advisor 321 is selected, a sub-dialog having a function for guiding the optimum print setting step by step from the printing purpose is displayed in order to appropriately input the print setting by the user. The paper type selection unit 322 displays the paper type and allows the user to select it. The paper type selection unit 322 is a drop-down menu that normally displays the type of paper that is selected, and displays a list of paper types that can be selected by clicking there. The types of paper that can be selected are papers that can be printed by a printer, and include, for example, glossy paper, coated paper, photo-only paper, postcards, New Year's card postcards, etc. in addition to the plain paper shown in the figure. A paper feed method selection unit 323 displays a paper feed method by which the printer body feeds paper, and allows the user to select a paper feed method. The user can select, for example, a paper feed tray or a paper cassette that is an automatic paper feed port or “follow paper assignment” that is a logical paper feed method by the paper feed method selection unit 323. The paper feeding method “according to paper assignment” will be described later. When the paper assignment 328 is selected, a paper assignment dialog shown in FIG. 4 to be described later is displayed. The print quality selection unit 324 is an item for allowing the user to set the print quality. The color adjustment unit 325 is an item for allowing the user to adjust the printing color. The gray scale setting unit 326 is a check box for making the print result gray scale even if the print document is in color. The version information 330 is a button for displaying a sub-dialog indicating the version of the driver that displays this dialog. When the standard setting unit 331 is pressed, the setting of the basic setting 302 is returned to the standard (shipment setting).

  The user closes the print setting dialog 301 by pressing the OK button 308 after selecting each item, and can reflect the selected print setting in printing. When the cancel button 309 is pressed, the print setting dialog 301 is closed and the content of the selected setting item is discarded and is not reflected in printing. The apply button 310 can reflect the selected print setting on printing while the print setting dialog 301 remains open. A help button 311 can display an explanatory text regarding each setting item of the basic setting 302 in a separate window.

  FIG. 3 shows a display example when the page setting tab 303 is selected. In the page setting simple display area 340, not only character information but also information set in a form appealing visually is displayed. The paper size selection unit 341 can display the paper size of the document created by the application and can be selected by the user. The output paper size selection unit 343 can display and select a paper size used for printing by the printer. The paper size 341 and the output paper size 343 include paper sizes that can be used by the printer, such as A5, B5, Letter, and postcards, in addition to the illustrated A4. Further, B4, A3, A2, etc. of a size that cannot be handled by the printer may be prepared as the paper size 341. The print orientation selection unit 342 can select the orientation of the document created by the application. The print type borderless full surface print selection unit 344 can instruct printing without margins on the printing paper. The reverse order designation unit 328 is an item for setting the page order in reverse order. The print type selection unit 345 can set the same size printing, fit page printing that matches an application document to the output paper size, enlargement / reduction printing that can set an arbitrary enlargement ratio, print layout (N-up), and the like. Is possible. The duplex printing selection unit 346 can select whether to perform duplex printing, and the automatic selection unit 347 can select whether to perform automatic duplex printing or manual duplex printing during duplex printing. The binding direction selection unit 348 can specify a side to be bound after printing. When the margin specifying button 350 is pressed, another dialog (not shown) is displayed, and the margin width can be set. The print area setting button 349 is effective when both the double-sided print selection unit 346 and the automatic selection unit 347 are selected. When the print area setting button 349 is pressed, another dialog (not shown) is displayed and the print area for automatic double-sided printing is displayed. Settings can be made. The print number setting unit 351 is an item for allowing the user to set the number of print copies. By setting the numerical value, the print data of the print job created by the application is repeatedly printed the designated number of times by the printer driver, so that a plurality of print results can be obtained. The copy unit setting unit 352 is an item for setting whether or not to perform printing in copy units. The setting is effective when the number of print copies 351 is 2 or more.

  FIG. 4 shows a display example of the paper assignment dialog. The paper assignment dialog provides a function for assigning the type and size of the print paper used in the paper feed port to at least one paper feed port of the printer. However, in order to uniquely determine the paper feed ports to be used when all the paper assignments do not apply during printing, if the number of paper feed ports of the printer is N, the paper assignments for N-1 paper feed ports It is desirable to do. The paper assignment dialog 360 shows an example of assigning to a paper feed cassette, and the paper type selection unit 361 displays the type of print paper used in the paper feed cassette and can be selected by the user. The paper size selection unit 362 displays the size of the printing paper used in the paper feed cassette and can be selected by the user. Here, there are many items that can be displayed and selected in the paper type selection unit 361 and the paper size 362 in addition to plain paper and A4 as described with reference to FIGS. The user can select each item and then press the OK button 363 to close the paper assignment dialog 360 and reflect the selected paper assignment setting in the print settings. When the cancel button 364 is pressed, the paper assignment dialog 360 is closed and the contents of the selected setting item are discarded and are not reflected in printing. The return to standard button 365 returns the content of the selected setting item to the initial value. The help button 366 can display an explanatory text regarding each setting item in a separate window.

  At the time of printing the document, “follow paper assignment” is set in the paper feeding method 323 set in FIG. 2 for printing the document, and the set value of the paper type 322 in FIG. 2 and the output in FIG. When the pair of the setting value of the paper size 343 and the pair of the setting value of the paper type selection unit 361 and the selection value of the paper size selection unit 362 set for the paper cassette in the paper allocation dialog 360 are equal, actual printing is performed. The paper feed port used for the paper feed is a paper feed cassette.

<Banding processing>
FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of bands and rasters used when a printer driver 130 for a raster printer operating in the data processing apparatus 102 creates image data from print data included in a print job and converts it into a print command. The raster printer 101 according to the present embodiment receives image data as a print command and performs printing in units of one or a plurality of rasters. An image 600 shows an image formed on the recording medium after printing. Here, if the entire image data of the entire page is created from the page print data (print data of the entire page), the remaining capacity of the memory of the data processing apparatus 102 becomes tight. Create data. Image data formed as an image 600 is divided into bands 601 to 604. FIG. 6 shows an example in which the entire image data is divided into four. The memory capacity required for the entire image data varies depending on the print quality and paper size set via the print setting dialog shown in FIG. 3, so the number of image data divisions is the memory capacity required for one band. Is calculated to be constant. Here, the band is composed of a plurality of rasters. For example, the band 603 includes rasters 611 to 614. In FIG. 6, one band is constituted by four rasters. Each raster is a set of pixels 615. The printer driver 130 creates image data for each band, and converts the created image data into a print command. The image data included in one print command may be for one raster or for a plurality of rasters. In this embodiment, image data included in one print command is described as one raster for easy understanding. In practice, a print command corresponding to ink such as CMYK or a print command corresponding to each color of RGB for which image data is created may be issued from one raster.

<Printer structure>
FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram of an ink jet printer which is an example of the printer 101, and functions that are not particularly necessary for describing the features of this embodiment are omitted. An inkjet printer, which is a raster printer, has a minimum required raster memory that can store image data of one raster or a plurality of rasters included in a print command transferred from the data processing apparatus 102, and can execute print processing. The ink jet head 1000 is reciprocally scanned along a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of the drawing, and ink is ejected to a portion facing the ink jet head 1000 (referred to as a recording position). The printing paper is conveyed by a certain amount for each scanning performed by the inkjet head 1000.

  The printing paper P is stored in a paper feeding cassette 1004 and a paper feeding tray 1006 for automatic paper feeding that are detachably attached to the printer 101 main body. Paper is selectively fed according to the setting in the print setting dialog. A paper feed / conveying roller 1008 is disposed at the top of the paper feed cassette 1004 at the top of the paper with the paper cassette 1004 mounted. The paper feeding / conveying roller 1008 is in pressure contact with the uppermost printing paper P placed on the paper feeding cassette 1004. Therefore, the uppermost printing paper P is supplied to the recording position by driving the paper feeding / conveying roller 1008.

  The paper feed tray 1006 is provided with a paper feed roller 1010 at the front end of the paper feed. A paper feed roller 1010 is pressed against the uppermost printing paper P of the paper feed tray 1006 by a paper feed tray cam during printing. Therefore, the uppermost printing paper P is fed by driving the paper feeding / conveying roller 1010. With this configuration, the sheet feeding conveyance roller on the side for feeding either the sheet feeding tray 1006 or the sheet feeding cassette 1004 is selectively driven, and the uppermost sheet of printing paper (hereinafter referred to as the sheet feeding tray or sheet cassette) (One printing sheet is also called a sheet.) P is fed. Printing paper of any size can be set in the paper feed tray 1006, and the user can set printing paper of a size different from that of the paper feed cassette 1004. The printing paper P selectively fed from the paper feeding cassette 1004 or the paper feeding tray 1006 is sent to the position of the transport roller 1016 disposed in front of the printing position where the inkjet head 1000 is provided. The conveyance roller 1016 is configured to temporarily stop the printing paper P that has been fed and start conveyance to the printing position of the inkjet head 1000 in synchronization with the printing operation. A platen 1002 for supporting the printing paper P from the back surface and stabilizing the printing state is provided at a printing position facing the inkjet head 1000. The ink-jet head 1000 and the platen 1002 constitute a printing unit at the printing position. The ink jet head 1000 is provided with an orifice for ejecting ink dots on the side facing the printing surface of the printing paper, and the ink supplied from the ink supply unit is ejected from the orifice by the head driving unit 121. The inkjet head 1000 discharges ink dots while being reciprocally scanned along a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the print paper P, that is, a direction perpendicular to the paper surface with respect to the print paper conveyed from left to right in FIG. The visible image corresponding to the image data composed of a plurality of rasters is formed on the printing surface of the printing paper P. Here, when scanning by the inkjet head 1000 is performed, the conveyance of the printing paper P is stopped, scanning in one direction is performed, and according to the number of rasters printed at the time when the image formation for one scanning is completed. A certain amount of printing paper is conveyed. By repeating this operation in each direction of reciprocating scanning, a print image of one page of image data is formed on the print paper P. The printing paper that has passed through the printing position facing the ink jet head 1000 is discharged out of the main body of the printer 101 via a discharge roller 1018 disposed on the downstream side of the printing position. At that position, a discharge tray 1020 is provided, and printed sheets are discharged onto the discharge tray 1020 with the printed image as the top surface. When a print command for the next page is sent from the data processing apparatus, the printer 101 controls to start feeding the next print paper P and send it to the transport roller 1016. When paper is fed from the paper cassette 1004, the fed printing paper P is reversed and sent to the transport roller 1016. Therefore, the reverse press rollers 1012 and 1014 for supporting the printing paper P at the time of reversal are the paper feeding cassette. It is provided on a conveyance path connecting the conveyance roller 1016 from 1004.

  In the printing system of the present embodiment, the presence or absence of the printing paper P fed from the paper feed tray 1006 or the paper feed cassette 1004 downstream of the paper feed transport rollers 1008 and 1010 in order to execute preceding paper feed (described later). A printing paper detection sensor 124 is provided to detect this. The printing paper detection sensor 124 may be a mechanical type such as a micro switch or an optical type such as a photo sensor. When a sheet is present, a presence signal is indicated, and when there is no sheet, a non-existence signal (hereinafter referred to as a sheet detection signal). Is called). The output signal is input to the feed control unit 112 of the print control unit 110. The start control of the preceding sheet feeding is performed by the sheet detection signal. The printing paper detection sensor for detecting the printing paper P provided at an appropriate position outputs a signal indicating the presence of the sheet when the sheet passes, and outputs a sheet detection signal indicating the absence of the sheet after the sheet passes. The leading edge and trailing edge of the printing paper can be detected by the detection signal. For example, the leading edge and the trailing edge of the sheet can be identified by detecting a pulse appearing in the differential signal of the sheet detection signal. In the printing system of the present embodiment, the leading edge feeding is executed by detecting the trailing edge of the printing paper in particular by the sheet detection signal output from the printing paper detection sensor 124. When the trailing edge of the printing paper is detected based on the sheet detection signal from the printing paper detection sensor 124, that is, the printing paper being printed is in the middle of the conveyance path, and the trailing edge of the printing paper is the paper feed roller 1008 or 1010. If the preceding paper feed command is present in the print command group corresponding to the page currently being printed and received by the printer 101 when the printer 101 is away from the print paper, the leading edge of the next print paper is detected by the print paper detection sensor 124. The paper is fed from the paper feed tray 1004 or the paper feed cassette 1006 to the position detected by, and conveyed. At this time, information indicating from which paper feed port the paper is to be transported is included in the preceding paper feed command, and the printer 101 feeds the next print paper in accordance with the information by the paper feed designated by the preceding paper feed command. Paper is fed from the mouth and transported. As a result, during printing of the current printing paper, the leading edge of the next printing paper in the transport path can be brought close to the trailing edge of the current printing paper. For this reason, after the ink dots are ejected to the trailing edge of the current printing paper and the recording of the last band is completed, the leading edge of the next printing paper is transported almost continuously. It is possible to start recording of the leading band by discharging ink dots to the leading end of the printing paper. In other words, by transmitting the preceding paper feed command from the data processing apparatus 102, it is possible to perform printing on a plurality of sheets almost continuously, and the throughput can be improved by shortening the printing time. In particular, as the conveyance path becomes longer as in the case of paper feeding from the paper feeding cassette 1004, the effect of preceding paper feeding becomes greater.

<Print command>
A print command for causing the above-described raster printer 101 to perform a print operation with preceding paper feed will be described with reference to FIGS. 20, 21, and 5. Further, portions that are not particularly necessary for describing the features of the present embodiment are omitted. Further, although described as “command” in the present embodiment, it is described as “command” in the drawings. As described in FIG. 6, one page of image data is composed of bands, and one band of data is composed of rasters. Even in the print command, one page is composed of band-by-band print commands. As shown in FIG. 5, one band is composed of print commands in raster units. In addition to the print command representing the image data of each page, the preceding paper feed command described above and other setting commands as a page header are also included. The page header includes information such as the size of the printing paper and printing area, the resolution, and the bit depth of the image data in the print command.

  FIGS. 20, 21, and 5 show print command groups created by the printer driver 130 and their order in order to perform print control with preceding paper feed when printing a three-page document. Each print command group includes print commands for three pages. In each figure, the print command group includes page headers 401, 411, and 421, and is located at the head of the print command for each page. The band print command (print command) is, for each page, the band print commands 402, 404, 405 belonging to the page print command # 1, and the band print commands 413, 414, 415 belonging to the page print command # 2. , Band print commands 422, 423, and 424 belonging to page print command # 3 are included.

  In order to perform printing with the preceding sheet feeding operation, the preceding sheet feeding command may be inserted into the printing command corresponding to the previous page. The print command sequence shown in FIG. 21 is the simplest example. Among the print commands grouped as the page print command # 1, there is a preceding paper feed command (command) # 1 (403) following the page header 401, followed by a band print command. The print command wrapped up as page print command # 2 also includes a preceding paper feed command 412. Further, since the print command that is included as the page print command # 3 corresponds to the last page, there is no preceding paper feed command. Upon receiving such a print command, the printer 101 can determine in the print processing of page 1 and page 2 that the next print sheet should be fed in advance before image formation of the page is performed.

  The print command sequence shown in FIG. 20 is preceded at an arbitrary timing in the print command group of the page when the printer driver divides the image data into band units and performs processing, and generates the print command in the band unit. This is an example when a paper feed command is issued. Of the print commands encapsulated by the page print command # 1, there is a preceding paper feed command # 1-1 (402) followed by a preceding paper feed command # 1 (403), followed by the remaining band print commands. ing. Upon receiving such a print command, the printer 101 can determine that the next print sheet should be fed in advance before the last image is generated at the rear end portion of the print sheet. FIG. 20 shows an example in which the preceding paper feed command 403 follows the print instruction 402 for the first band, but there is a preceding paper feed command at least before the print command for the last band included in the print command for each page. Then, it is possible to perform the paper feeding operation in advance.

  The print commands shown in FIG. 5 are arranged in a raster-unit print command group when the printer driver performs processing by dividing the image data into band units and further generates a print command by dividing the bands into raster units. This is an example when a preceding paper feed command is issued at an arbitrary timing in FIG. Of the print commands grouped by the page print command # 1, the raster print command # 1 (501) among the print commands grouped by the band print command # 1-2 following the band print command # 1-1. ) Is followed by a preceding paper feed command # 1 (403), followed by the remaining raster print command and band print command. The printer 101 that has received such a print command can determine that the next print sheet should be fed in advance before the last image is generated at the rear end portion of the print sheet. FIG. 5 shows an example in which the preceding paper feed command 403 follows the print command 501 for the first raster of the second band, but at least before the print command for the last raster included in the print command for each page. If there is a paper feed command, the paper feed operation can be performed in advance.

  Ideally, if the preceding paper feed command exists immediately before the print command including the image data to be imaged by the inkjet head at the position where the trailing edge of the print paper is detected by the print paper detection sensor 124, Needless to say, a complete preceding paper feeding operation for the next page can be performed.

<Print command issuance timing>
18 and 19 show creation of print data by the application software 1110 when the application software 1110 operating on the data processing apparatus 102 performs a printing operation, processing of the image data generation unit 132 of the printer driver 130, and image data generation. The timing of issuing a print command by the unit 132 is shown. FIG. 18 and FIG. 19 show examples when the application prints a document composed of three pages. Note that “print data” between the application 1110 and the image data generation unit 132 in the figure is passed to the printer driver 130 via a function called a graphic device interface provided by the operating system in Windows (registered trademark), for example. It is. In addition, since the creation of print data by the normal application is completed in a shorter time than the creation of the print command by the printer driver 130, the same expression is used in FIGS. 18 and 19. FIGS. 18 and 19 correspond to FIGS. 20 and 21, respectively, and the positions of the preceding paper feed commands in the print command group are different. In FIG. 18, the preceding paper feed command 262 in the page print command # 1 is issued following the print command 261 for the first band. In FIG. 19, a preceding paper feed command 262 is issued following the print command header (page header) 260 in the page print command.

  In FIG. 18, when the application starts print processing (200), the start of job print data creation is notified to the printer driver by the OS print function (230). Subsequently, when the application declares the start of drawing of the first page of the document (201), the printer driver is similarly notified of the start of print data creation for the page (231). Here, the application issues a drawing command for printing the data included in the first page of the document (202). When the page drawing of the first page is completed (232), the completion of page print data creation is sent to the printer driver. Notification is made (232). Thus, the printer driver 130 creates image data from the print data for the first time when the creation of print data for a certain page is completed in this manner, divides the print data into bands as necessary, and starts issuing a print command.

  First, a header corresponding to the page print command is issued (260), and then a print command created by dividing the print data into image data and divided in units of bands is issued (261). Similarly, the printer driver 130 performs processing for the next band. If the application declares the start of drawing the second page of the document (210) during this period, the printer driver is notified of the start of page print data creation (240), and the printer The driver 130 can determine that the next printing paper is necessary. Here, since the printer driver 130 is processing the second band, it issues a preceding paper feed command when the processing of the second band is completed (262), and then issues a print command for the second band. (263). During this time, the application issues a drawing command for the data of the second page of the document and creates print data (211). When the page drawing is finished (212), the completion of page print data creation is notified to the printer driver 130 ( 241) At this point, the printer driver 130 can determine that it can issue a print command for the next page. After issuing all the print commands for the first page (264), the printer driver 130 starts issuing the print command for the second page (270).

  Subsequently, the application declares the start of page drawing to print the third page of the document (220), issues a drawing command to print the data of the document page (221), and declares the end of page drawing (222). ) Declares the end of printing (223). The printer driver 130 is notified of the start / end of page print data creation and the print end timing (250, 251, 252), and it can be determined that the third page is the last page. The printer driver 130 issues a page print command for the second page, issues a preceding paper feed command (270), issues a print command for the band (273, 274), and then issues a print command for the third page, which is the last page, as a header. (280), a band print command is issued (281, 282, 283), and the print processing is terminated. Here, the printer driver does not issue a preceding paper feed command for the third page determined as the last page.

  The numbers in FIG. 19 are the same as those in FIG. 18, and will not be described. The order of the print command issuance (262) and the band print command issuance (261) in issuing the print command for the first page is the same as in FIG. It is reversed. This is because the application waits for the issue of the first band of the print command for the first page until the printer driver 130 is notified of the start of page print data creation for the next page from the application, and then issues the preceding paper feed command (262). By issuing the first band of the print command for the first page (261), it is possible for the printer 101 to determine the preceding paper feeding operation for the next print paper before image formation of the previous page. is there. FIG. 19 shows an example in which the printer driver 130 issues the preceding paper feed command between the band print commands. However, if the preceding paper feed command is issued between the raster print commands, the printer can be executed at a finer timing. It can be determined that the preceding paper feeding operation is necessary.

<Print command issue processing by printer driver>
7, 8, and 9 are flowcharts of processing procedures performed by the image data generation unit 132 of the printer driver 130 according to the present exemplary embodiment. As described above, by issuing a preceding paper feed command between print commands in units of rasters, it becomes possible to determine that the printer needs a preceding paper feeding operation at the finest timing. 7, 8, and 9 show an example in which a preceding paper feed command can be issued between raster print commands. In addition, even when the print setting processing unit 131 sets the number of prints input by the user via the print setting UI shown in FIG. 3, the preceding paper feed command can be issued efficiently. 7 to 9 use a common substitute variable.

  FIG. 7 shows a flow of processing for each page when the number of copies and the number of copies are set. When the printer driver 130 starts job print processing, the number of copies set by the user via the print setting processing unit 131 is substituted for the number of copies C, and 1 is substituted for the number of copy unit loops L for copy printing. Substitution is performed by substituting 1 for the unit counter u (S701). The number of copies C is used to efficiently issue a print command for the same page when copy printing is not set.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not copy printing is set (S702). The determination of the copy printing can be made by holding the value input by the copy printing setting 329 in FIG. 3 as, for example, a “copy printing” flag and testing the value. If the copy printing is not set, the process proceeds to S710. If it is set, the number of copies C is substituted for the number of copy loops L, and 1 is assigned to the number of copies C (S703). Thus, if copy printing is set, the print command for copy is issued L times for the copy loop.

  A copy unit loop is started from S710. First, a case where copy printing is set will be described. In S710, 1 is substituted for page number n. The page number n represents the number of the page of interest. In S720, the number of copies C is substituted for the copy number counter c. When copy printing is set, the number of copies C is 1, so the copy number counter c is also 1. In step S721, it is determined whether or not the unit printing is performed. If the unit printing is not performed, the process proceeds to step S740. If the unit printing is performed, the process proceeds to step S722, and the page print processing for the nth page of the document is performed. Here, a print command and a preceding paper feed command are issued. The flow of the page printing process will be described with reference to FIG. Subsequently, in S723, it is determined whether or not there is a notification of the start of print data generation for the (n + 1) th page, that is, the next page. If there is a notification of the start of print data generation for the next page, the process proceeds to S724 and the page number n is set to (n + 1) ) Is substituted and the process proceeds to S720 to perform the printing process for the next page.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S723 that there is no next page print data creation start notification, the process advances to step S730 to determine whether a job print data creation completion notification is received. If there is no print data creation completion notification for the job, the process proceeds to S732 to wait for the next notification, and then proceeds to S723 to continue the processing. If it is determined in step S730 that there is a print data creation completion notification for the job, the process proceeds to step S731, and it is determined whether the copy unit number counter u is smaller than the copy unit loop number L. If the counter u is smaller than the loop number L, there is still a remaining portion to be printed, so that the process proceeds to S733, (u + 1) is substituted into the unit number counter u, and the process proceeds to S710 to continue the next unit printing. If the copy unit counter u is not smaller than the copy unit loop number L in the determination in S731, the printing of the number of copies designated by the print setting is ended, and the job print processing is ended.

  Next, a case will be described in which copy printing is not set in the print setting processing unit. When copy printing is not set, the copy loop number L is 1, and the number of copies set by the print setting processing unit is substituted for the copy number C. Therefore, the copy unit loop is processed only once, and each page is processed C copies. A description common to the description of the unit printing is omitted.

  In S740, a file for storing a print command of image data of page n of the document (hereinafter referred to as a command file) is created. In step S741, it is determined whether the copy number counter c is greater than zero. If the counter c is larger than 0, the process proceeds to S743, and the page print processing for the nth page of the document is performed. In S744, the remaining number of copies (c-1) to be printed is substituted into the copy number counter c, and the process proceeds to S741, where the remaining number of copies is reached. Execute page printing process twice. On the other hand, if it is determined in S741 that the page printing process has been performed for the set number of copies, the process proceeds to S742, where the command file storing the print command created in S740 is deleted, and the process proceeds to S723 to move to the next page of the document. Continue the page printing process.

  FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of the page printing process of the printer driver 130. Here, the image data of the page is mainly divided into bands, and processing for each band raster will be described.

  After the start of the page printing process, 1 is substituted for the band number b in S801, and a flag F for determining whether or not the preceding sheet feeding has already been issued is set to OFF and initialization is performed. The band number b represents the number of the target band.

  In step S802, it is determined whether the copy number counter c is equal to the number of copies C. If both are equal in the determination in S802, the case where the copy printing is not set and the first copy processing of each page is set and the case where the copy printing is set are included. In either case, the process proceeds to S810. On the other hand, if both are different in the determination in S802, that is, if the unit printing is not set and the page printing process is performed for the second and subsequent parts of each page, the process proceeds to S840.

  In step S810, image data corresponding to the band number b is created from the print data of the nth page of the document. In step S811, 1 is assigned to the raster number r in the band. In step S820, a preceding paper feed command issuance process is performed when a certain condition is satisfied. The preceding paper feed command issuing process will be described in detail with reference to FIG. In step S821, the image data corresponding to the raster r in the band b is converted into a print command and issued. In step S822, it is determined whether or not copy printing is to be performed. If it is not copy printing, the process proceeds to S823, the created print command is added to the command file created in S740 of FIG. 7, and the process proceeds to S824. By storing the print command created in this way, it is possible to omit the image data and print command creation processing when the print command for the same page is issued a plurality of times in succession. If it is determined in step S822 that the unit printing is performed, the process proceeds to step S824, and the created print command is not stored in the command file.

  In S824, it is determined whether or not the raster with the raster number r is the final raster in the band. If it is not the final raster, the process proceeds to S825, the next raster number (r + 1) is substituted for the raster number r, and the process proceeds to S820. Continue with the next raster. On the other hand, if it is determined in S824 that the raster with the raster number r is the final raster, the process proceeds to S830, where it is determined whether the band with the band number b, that is, the target band is the final band in the page. If it is not the final band, the process moves to S831, the next band number (b + 1) is substituted for the band number b, and the process moves to S810 to continue the process for the next band. On the other hand, if it is determined in S830 that it is the last band, the page printing process is terminated.

  If it is determined in step S802 that the counter c and the number of copies C are not equal, that is, the second copy in the setting for issuing a print command for the same page a plurality of times in succession (setting that is not set for unit printing). If it is determined that it is after, first, 1 is substituted into the raster number r in S840. The raster number r represents the number of the raster of interest in the band of interest. Subsequently, in S841, it is determined whether or not the preceding paper feed command has already been issued by testing the flag F. If it has not been issued yet, the process proceeds to S842 to perform the preceding paper feed command issuing process. In step S843, a raster print command of raster number r of band number b is read from the command file and issued. Since the command file stores the print commands corresponding to the rasters constituting the page in order, it can simply be read in units of print commands from the top of the file. In step S844, it is determined whether the raster with the raster number r is the last raster in the band. If it is not the final raster, the process proceeds to S845, the next raster number (r + 1) is substituted for the raster number r, and the process proceeds to S841 to continue the next raster. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S844 that the raster is the final raster, the process advances to step S846 to determine whether the band with the band number b is the final band in the page. If it is not the final band, the process proceeds to S847, the next band number (b + 1) is substituted for the band number b, and the process proceeds to S840 to continue the process for the next band. On the other hand, if the last band is determined in S846, the page printing process is terminated.

  If it is determined in step S841 that the preceding paper feed command has already been issued, the process advances to step S848, and the print command after the raster number r of the band with the band number b is read from the file and issued. This is because the start of drawing the next page was declared while the print command stored in the file was issued for each raster in the final round of the process of issuing the print command for a certain page of the document multiple times. Is notified to the printer driver 130, a preceding paper feed command is issued between the raster print commands, and thereafter, it is not necessary to issue the raster print command in the page for each raster. This is because the process of extracting the next print command can be omitted. In this way, the remaining print commands in the page are issued, and the page printing process is terminated.

  FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of the preceding paper feed command issuing process of the printer driver 130. As described above, when the user sets the logical paper feed method “According to paper assignment” when printing a document, the physical paper feed port that is actually used is the type of paper that is set and the paper type. It is determined by the size, the paper type assigned to the paper feed cassette, and the paper size. In addition, when the paper feed port used between consecutive pages is changed, if the next page of print paper is fed in advance from the paper feed port that feeds the paper that is currently being printed, blank paper is ejected. As a result, the preceding paper feed command includes information on which paper feed port the paper is to be transported, so that the printer 101 applies the next printing paper to the preceding paper feed command according to the information. The paper can be fed from the paper feed port specified in the above and conveyed. Accordingly, FIG. 9 shows an example in which a preceding sheet feeding command including sheet feeding port information to be subjected to preceding sheet feeding is issued in consideration that the logical sheet feeding method “according to sheet allocation” is set for a print job. explain.

  When the preceding paper feed command issuance process starts, it is determined in S901 whether or not the preceding paper feed command has already been issued by testing the flag F. If it has been issued, the preceding paper feed command issuance processing is terminated. If it has not been issued yet, the process proceeds to S902, where it is determined whether or not the copy number counter c is greater than 1, that is, whether or not two or more print command issuing operations for the same page should be performed. If two or more print commands should be issued, the same paper feed method as that for the current page is applied to the next output page, so the process proceeds to S905, and the next page print setting is changed to the next page. The paper feed port from which the paper should actually be fed is specified, a preceding paper feed command for designating the specified paper feed port is issued in S909, and then the preceding paper feed command issuance flag is issued in S910. F is set to ON and the preceding paper feed command issuance process is terminated. Note that the paper feed port that is actually used is determined based on the paper feed method, the paper type, and the paper size in the printer driver 130. Details will be described later with reference to FIG.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in S902 that the print command issuing operation for the same page is the last, the process proceeds to S903. In step S903, it is determined whether or not there has been a notification of the start of print data creation for the (n + 1) th page of the document, that is, the next page. The paper feed slot that is actually used when feeding the next paper is specified. Since the spool file stores information related to the print setting of the (n + 1) th page before the print data of the (n + 1) th page, the print setting of the (n + 1) th page can be acquired prior to the actual data. Is possible.

  Subsequently, the process proceeds to S909, and after issuing a preceding paper feed command designating the specified paper feed port, the preceding paper feed command issuance flag F is set to ON in S910, and the preceding paper feed command issuance processing is terminated.

  If it is determined in step S903 that there is no print data creation start notification for the (n + 1) th page of the document, that is, the next page, the process advances to step S906, and it is determined whether a job print data creation completion notification has been received. If there is no job print data creation completion notification, the preceding paper feed command issuance process is terminated, and the preceding paper feed command issuance is postponed. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S906 that job print data creation is completed, the process proceeds to step S907, where it is determined whether the copy unit counter u is smaller than the copy unit loop number L, that is, the final copy of copy printing. If it is a copy, it means that it is the last page, so the preceding paper feed command is not issued, the process proceeds to S910, and the preceding paper feed command issuance flag is turned on, and the preceding paper feed command issuance processing is terminated. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S907 that the copy is not the final copy of the unit printing, the process proceeds to step S908, and the feed actually used when the next sheet is fed from the print setting set on the first page of the document. Identify the paper mouth. Subsequently, the process proceeds to S909, and after issuing a preceding paper feed command designating the specified paper feed port, the preceding paper feed command issuing flag F is set to ON in S910, and the preceding paper feeding command issuing process is ended.

  FIG. 15 shows the data structure of the preceding paper feed command issued in S909. “ID” is for specifying the type of command, and here, an ID for indicating a preceding paper feed command is designated. In “length”, the command length is specified in bytes. “NextPage” designates whether or not advance feeding is possible. As shown in FIG. 16, 1 is specified when the preceding paper feeding is possible, and 2 is designated when it is impossible. In the present embodiment, when the presence of the next page becomes clear, the preceding paper feed command is issued assuming that the preceding paper feeding is always possible, so 1 is always set in NextPage. In “InputSlot”, a physical sheet feeding port for performing preceding sheet feeding is designated. As shown in FIG. 17, 1 is entered to designate that the next paper is to be fed in advance from the paper feed tray, and 2 is entered to designate to be fed in advance from the paper feed cassette.

  The conventional command for instructing only the execution of the preceding paper feed has a data structure as shown in FIG. 14, for example. In the present invention, it is determined from which paper feed port the paper should be fed ahead. By specifying “InputSlot”, it is possible to always perform the preceding paper feeding from an appropriate paper feeding port even when the paper feeding port is changed during the job.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart of processing for determining the paper feed port that is actually used from the print settings in the printer driver 130. In this embodiment, since a printer having two sheet feeding trays and sheet feeding cassettes is assumed as an actual sheet feeding port, sheet allocation is performed for the sheet feeding cassettes. First, in S1201, it is determined whether or not the paper feed method of the print setting is “follow paper assignment”. If “follow paper assignment”, the process proceeds to S1202. In S1202, it is determined whether or not the paper type of the print setting matches the paper type of the paper allocation setting. If not, the process ends in S1205 with the actual paper feed port as the paper feed tray. If they match in the determination of S1202, the process moves to S1203, where it is determined whether or not the paper size of the print setting matches the output paper size of the paper allocation setting. If they do not match, the actual paper feed port is set to the paper feed tray in S1205. To finish the process. If they match in the determination in S1203, the process ends in S1204 with the actual paper feed port as the paper feed cassette. On the other hand, if the paper feed method is different from “according to paper assignment” in S1201, the paper feed method indicates the physical paper feed port that is actually used. Therefore, the paper feed method is determined in S1206, and S1207 and The paper feed method set in S1208 is determined as the paper feed port to be actually used as it is, and the process is terminated. Further, in a printer having three or more paper feed ports, it is only necessary to assign paper to a maximum of two paper feed ports, and if the determination in S1202 and S1203 is repeated for the number of paper feed ports assigned to paper, It can be easily extended to determine the actual paper feed slot for the paper feed method “follow paper assignment”. If the paper feeding method is other than “follow paper allocation”, it can be easily handled by preparing a determination in S1206 and a plurality of determination units in S1207 and S1208.

  The printer that receives the print command issued by the above procedure operates as follows, for example.

  When the sheet supplied from the sheet feed tray or sheet cassette reaches a certain position, a visible image is formed on the sheet by interpreting and executing the print command. When the print command is sequentially processed and, as a result, the preceding paper feed command for the next page is fetched before the trailing edge of the currently printed sheet is detected, the processing of the preceding paper feed command is advanced. Then, the next print command is processed. In this case, the preceding paper feed command is processed when the trailing edge of the sheet is subsequently detected.

  When the trailing edge of the sheet is detected based on the output signal of the paper detection sensor 124, the received print command group stored in the memory provided in the print control unit 110 is not yet processed. Whether the preceding paper feed command for the next page is included. Whether or not a preceding paper feed command for the next page has been received is determined based on whether or not the preceding paper feed command is included in the print command group corresponding to the page currently being printed, separated for each page by the page header as shown in FIG. This can be determined by checking whether a command is included.

  If the preceding paper feed command for the next page has already been received, it is desirable to process the preceding paper feed command immediately. However, the print commands are processed in order, and feeding of the next sheet is started from the paper feed port designated by the preceding paper feed command. Of course, the printing process for the current page is also performed in parallel with the operation.

  As a result, even if the physical paper feed port to be used is changed on a continuous page, paper can be fed from the paper feed port specified by the preceding paper feed command, which is unnecessary. Throughput can be improved without generating a blank page output or re-feeding.

  Until the print processing of the current page is completed, it is monitored whether or not the preceding paper feed command is included in the print command group of the next page received during that time. The paper command is processed in parallel with the printing process to start feeding the next page sheet.

  When the data processing apparatus and the printer are connected by a bus such as USB or IEEE1394, data can be transmitted from the data processing apparatus by designating the address of the printer memory. Therefore, the data processing apparatus can be configured such that the preceding paper feed command is given an attribute for designating the page and is transmitted to a specific area different from other print commands. In this way, it is possible to determine the presence or absence of the preceding paper feed command by examining only the specific area without examining the memory by the print control unit 110.

(Second embodiment)
<Configuration of printing system>
The printing system according to the second embodiment of the present invention is configured as shown in FIG. 1, and the data processing apparatus 102 incorporates a Linux OS as an OS for controlling the data processing apparatus 102. Function block operates.

  As in the first embodiment, the printer driver 130 includes a print setting processing unit 131, an image data generation unit 132, and a data communication processing unit 133. The image data generation unit 132 according to this embodiment includes a filter process 1322 that generates a print command and a spool process 1321 that spools input data. Details will be described later with reference to FIG.

  Other system configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment. As for the printer 101, an ink jet printer as shown in FIG. 10 is used as in the first embodiment.

<Printer driver operation>
FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram of the operation of the printer driver 130 in this embodiment. In the data processing apparatus 102, an application 1110 that creates a document to be printed operates. When a document is created by the application 1110 and the created document is printed,
The print setting processing unit 131 of the printer driver 130 can perform various print settings as described in the first embodiment with reference to FIG.

  Since the application 1110 converts the data into a format such as PostScript (registered trademark) and outputs it, the PostScript data output from the application 1110 is converted into print data to be sent to the printer in an inkjet printer or the like that cannot print the PostScript data. It is necessary to perform processing. Generally, PostScript data output from an application is first input to a renderer such as GhostScript, converted to image data, and output, and the output image data is converted into a print command that can be interpreted by the printer driver. And printing to the printer.

  In the printing system according to the present embodiment, printing from an application is performed using GhostScript 1301 as a renderer, as shown in FIG. Specific processing will be described below.

  The application 1110 starts a page printing process for each page, outputs data included in the document page as a PostScript file for each page of the document, and ends the document printing process. The output PostScript file is input to the spool process 1321 of the image data generating unit 132. The spool process 1321 converts the PostScript file into image data using the GhostScript 1301, and spools the image data as a spool file. In this way, in this embodiment, the image data is stored in the spool file 1111 by the spool process 1321 of the image data generation unit 132.

  When spooling the second and subsequent pages, a “next page creation start notification” indicating the start of the page is transmitted to the filter process 1322 when reading the header of the PostScript file is completed. At this time, the setting values of the paper feed method, paper size, and paper type are added to the “next page creation start notification” from the print setting information of the next page and transmitted to the filter process 1322. Then, when there is no input from the application 1110 (= when the last page has been spooled), the spool process 1321 transmits a “job print data completion notification” indicating the end of the document to the filter process 1322.

On the other hand, the filter process 1322 repeats the process of reading the image data stored in the spool file 1111 for each band, converting it into a print command interpretable by the printer 101, and outputting the print command. At that time, before each band processing, it is checked whether the “next page creation start notification” and the “job print data completion notification” are issued from the spool process 1321, and the “next page creation start notification” is received. In this case, the advance pickup command issuance process is performed when a certain condition is satisfied. (Details of the advance pickup command issuance process will be described later)
The print command created by the filter process 1322 is transmitted to the printer 101 via the data communication processing unit 133 and the I / F 103 connecting the data processing apparatus 102 and the printer 101. The printer 101 is controlled by the received print command and forms image data as a visible image on the recording medium 100.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the spool process 1321 of the image data generation unit 132 generates image data and spools image data using the GhostScript 1301, and performs “next page creation start notification” and “job print data completion”. Notification "is issued to the filter process 1322, and the filter process 1322 generates a print command from the image data and outputs it.

  Note that the concept of the band and raster shown in FIG. 6 and the structure of the print command shown in FIGS. 20, 21, and 5 are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

<Print command issue processing by printer driver>
The processing procedure of the image data generation unit 132 of the present embodiment is as shown in FIG. 7 for the processing procedure of the entire job when the number of copies and the unit of the setting are set. The page printing processing for each page is shown in FIG. The preceding paper feed command issuance processing is performed according to the flow shown in FIG. 9, and processing equivalent to the processing performed by the image data generation unit 132 in the first embodiment is performed.

  However, as described above, the image data generation unit 132 includes the spool process 1321 and the filter process 1322. For example, in the process of “generating image data of band b” in S810, the spool process uses GhostScript. The process of “converting and issuing image data into a print command” in S821 and the process of “issuing a preceding paper feed command” in S909 are performed by the spool process of the image data generation unit as performed by the filter process 1322. Each process is executed by 1321 and the filter process 1322.

  The “next page creation start notification” and the “job print data completion notification” are issued to the filter process 1322 by the spool process 1321 in the printer driver 132. Accordingly, in S730, it is determined whether or not “job print data completion notification” is issued from the spool process 1321 to the filter process 1322 in this embodiment.

  Similarly, the determination of “whether there has been a notification of start of page (n + 1) print data creation” in S903 determines whether or not “next page creation start notification” has been issued from the spool process 1321 to the filter process 1322. In step S <b> 906, it is determined whether “job print data creation notification” has been issued from the spool process 1321 to the filter process 1322. Further, in the “next page creation start notification”, the paper feed method, paper size, and paper type are sent from the spool process 1321 to the filter process 1322 as print setting information for the next page. Based on this information, the filter process 1322 is sent. In S904, information for specifying can be obtained when “specifying a paper feed port actually used in page (n + 1)” is specified.

  The operation of the printer that has received the print command issued by the above procedure is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  In the embodiments described so far, the image data included in one print command is one raster, but the same effect can be obtained even when a plurality of rasters are included. The timing for issuing the preceding paper feed command is between raster print commands. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be issued at a timing between bands, and image data such as a raster or a band may be issued. Prior to issuing the included print command, the preceding paper feed command may be issued as part of the header of the print command.

  In addition, although it has been described that ink is ejected in each of the forward scan and the backward scan of the inkjet head, the ink is ejected in one scan and the ink is not ejected in the other scan, and the transport operation is performed simultaneously with the scan. May be performed.

  In the structure of the printer, the preceding paper feed is executed after the trailing edge of the printing paper is detected by the printing paper detection sensor. However, the printer may be configured to detect the leading edge of the printing paper by the printing paper detection sensor. In this case, the printer driver stores the data representing the paper length in the print command, and the printer determines the trailing edge position of the printing paper from the transport amount of the printing paper after detecting the leading edge of the printing paper and the paper length in the printing command. And the preceding paper feeding can be executed after the trailing edge of the printing paper is separated from the paper feed roller.

  By performing the processing described in the above embodiment, even when the number of copies or the number of copies is set by the user, the print command generated at the same time as the creation of the image data is analyzed and the preceding paper feed command Without inserting a print command, it is possible to issue a print command while issuing a preceding paper feed command between raster print commands at the most detailed timing at the stage of generating a print command. That is, since it is not necessary to analyze the generated print command, it is not necessary to store all the generated print commands in a secondary storage device such as a hard disk, and the print commands for at least two pages are held in the memory. Since there is no need, it is possible to efficiently generate a print command with a small memory capacity.

  In addition, since the paper feed port for performing the preceding paper feed is designated by the preceding paper feed command, even if the paper feed port used in the middle of the job is changed in a printer having a plurality of paper feed ports, Since it is possible to perform pre-feeding from the paper feed port specified by the paper command, it is possible to suppress unnecessary operations such as extra blank paper discharge due to preceding paper feeding from the wrong paper feed port, and throughput Can be improved.

  In addition, even when the logical paper feeding method “according to paper assignment” is set in a printer having a plurality of paper feed openings as described above, setting information such as the paper size of the print setting and the paper assignment setting are set. Based on the information, the physical paper feed port that is actually used is specified by the preceding paper feed command. Can be suppressed.

[Modification of Embodiment]
In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible. Examples of such modifications include the following.

  To describe a data processing apparatus that is one of the components of a printing system as a feature of the present invention, a personal computer is assumed in the embodiment, but nothing has a function unique to the personal computer. . That is, as described in the above embodiment, the type is not limited as long as the data processing apparatus has a function of setting the number of copies related to printing and an item to be printed in units of copies. In other words, the individual devices and apparatuses are not limited as long as the total functions of the printing system are satisfied.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the example using Windows (registered trademark) XP of Microsoft (registered trademark) and the example using Linux OS as the OS have been described as examples. However, the present invention is not limited to this OS. By adopting a simple configuration, it can be realized in any OS.

  In the embodiment of the present invention, the USB interface is used as an interface between the data processing apparatus 102 and the printer 101. However, the present invention is not limited to this interface, and can be realized with an arbitrary interface by adopting the same configuration. can do.

  In addition, the present invention can be applied to a system composed of a plurality of devices (for example, a host computer, interface device, reader, printer, etc.), but a device (for example, a copier, a facsimile device, etc.) composed of a single device. You may apply to.

  Another object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium (or recording medium) that records the program code of the software shown in FIGS. 7 to 8 to realize the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus such as a personal computer. This can also be achieved by the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus reading and executing the program code stored in the storage medium. A program for processing a print command according to the procedure described in the above embodiment is also supplied to the printer connected to the computer, and is executed by the CPU of the printer.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the program code itself and the storage medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an operating system (OS) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. A case where part or all of the actual processing is performed and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing is also included.

  Furthermore, after the program code read from the storage medium is written into a memory provided in a function expansion card inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function is determined based on the instruction of the program code. This includes a case where the CPU of the expansion card or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

The block diagram which shows the structure of the printing system in 1st and 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the print setting dialog in 1st and 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the print setting dialog in 1st and 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the print setting dialog in 1st and 2nd embodiment. The figure which showed the position in the print command of the preceding paper supply command in 1st and 2nd embodiment. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of page image data, bands, and rasters in the first and second embodiments. 9 is a flowchart showing page printing processing of an image data generation unit in the first and second embodiments. 10 is a flowchart showing raster printing processing of an image data generation unit in the first and second embodiments. 9 is a flowchart showing a preceding paper feed command issuing process of an image data generation unit in the first and second embodiments. The conceptual diagram of the inkjet printer in 1st and 2nd embodiment. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of printer driver operation according to the first embodiment. 7 is a flowchart showing a paper feed port determination process actually used in the first and second embodiments. FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram of printer driver operation according to the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a conventional preceding paper feed command. The block diagram showing the data structure of the preceding paper feed command in the first and second embodiments. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a correspondence table of preceding sheet feeding commands and sheet feeding ports used in the first and second embodiments. FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a correspondence table between preceding sheet feeding commands and preceding sheet availability in the first and second embodiments. 5 is a timing chart of an application and a printer related to printing in the first embodiment. 5 is a timing chart of an application and a printer related to printing in the first embodiment. The figure which showed the position in the print command of the preceding paper supply command in 1st and 2nd embodiment. The figure which showed the position in the print command of the preceding paper supply command in 1st and 2nd embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Recording medium 101 Printer 102 Data processing apparatus 103 Communication interface 110 Print control part 111 Head control part 112 Feed control part 113 Image system western part 120 Printing part 121 Head drive part 122 Paper pick-up part 123 Paper conveyance part 124 Printing paper detection sensor 125 I / F control unit 130 Printer driver 131 Print setting processing unit 132 Image data generation unit 133 Data communication processing unit 140 I / F control unit 141 Central control unit 142 Input operation unit 143 Setting information notification unit 360 Paper allocation dialog 1000 Inkjet head 1002 Platen 1004 Paper Feed Cassette 1006 Paper Feed Tray 1008 Paper Feed Roller 1010 Paper Feed Roller 1012 Reverse Press Roller 1014 Reverse Press Roller 101 Conveying rollers 1018 discharge roller 1020 paper feed tray 1110 application software 1111 spool file 1321 spool process 1322 filter process

Claims (9)

A print command generation process for generating a print command in units of sub-pages obtained by dividing the page and sending it to the printer for the page of interest;
It is determined whether or not the next page of the page of interest is to be printed. If it is determined that printing is to be performed, the paper feeding method of the next page of the page of interest is further determined, and the paper feeding method of the next page is determined. And a paper feed command generation step of generating a preceding paper feed command for the next page including the information and transmitting the command to the printer.   The paper feed command generation step determines whether or not to print the next page of the page of interest based on a drawing command for the next page of the page of interest from an application program. The data processing method described.   In the print command generation step, a print command is generated for each band or raster line as a sub-page unit obtained by dividing a page. In the paper feed command generation step, the advance feed is performed between print commands for the page of interest. The data processing method according to claim 1, wherein a paper command is generated and transmitted to the printer.   The data processing method according to claim 1, wherein the preceding paper feed command includes information related to a paper feed method for the next page. A method for controlling an image forming apparatus that receives a print command and a paper feed command in units of sub-pages obtained by dividing a page, and performs processing according to the command for the page of interest,
A detection step of detecting the trailing edge of the sheet in the sheet conveyance path;
When the paper feed command is received, if the trailing edge of the sheet on which the page to which the paper feed command belongs is detected is detected by the detecting step, the paper feed command is used for the next page. A control method for an image forming apparatus, comprising: a sheet feeding control step of specifying a sheet feeding port and feeding a sheet for the next page. Print command generation means for generating a print command for each sub-page divided into pages and sending it to the printer for the page of interest;
It is determined whether or not the next page of the page of interest is to be printed. If it is determined that printing is to be performed, the paper feeding method of the next page of the page of interest is further determined, and the paper feeding method of the next page is determined. A data processing apparatus comprising: a paper feed command generation unit that generates a preceding paper feed command for the next page and transmits the command to the printer. An image forming apparatus that receives a print command and a paper feed command in units of sub-pages obtained by dividing a page, and performs processing according to the command for the page of interest,
Detecting means for detecting the trailing edge of the sheet in the sheet conveyance path;
When the paper feed command is received, if the trailing edge of the sheet on which the page to which the paper feed command belongs is printed is detected by the detection means, the paper feed command is used for the next page. An image forming apparatus comprising: a sheet feeding control unit that identifies a sheet feeding port and feeds a sheet for the next page. By computer
A print command generation process for generating a print command for each sub-page unit obtained by dividing the page and sending it to the printer for the page of interest;
It is determined whether or not the next page of the page of interest is to be printed. If it is determined that printing is to be performed, the paper feeding method of the next page of the page of interest is further determined, and the paper feeding method of the next page is determined. And a paper feed command generation step of generating a preceding paper feed command for the next page including the information and transmitting it to the printer. Print command generation means for generating a print command for each sub-page divided into pages and sending it to the printer for the page of interest;
It is determined whether or not the next page of the page of interest is to be printed. If it is determined that printing is to be performed, the paper feeding method of the next page of the page of interest is further determined, and the paper feeding method of the next page is determined. In response, a data processing device comprising paper feed command generation means for generating a preceding paper feed command for the next page including the information and transmitting it to the printer;
An image forming apparatus that receives a print command and a paper feed command in sub-page units for a page of interest and performs processing according to the command, and detects the trailing edge of the sheet in the sheet conveyance path Detecting means for
When the paper feed command is received, if the trailing edge of the sheet on which the page to which the paper feed command belongs is printed is detected by the detection means, the paper feed command is used for the next page. An image forming system comprising: an image forming apparatus including a sheet feeding control unit configured to identify a sheet feeding port and feed a sheet for the next page.

Images