JP2008186241A - Processing data transmission device and processing data transmission program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To notify a user that remote setups cannot be done. <P>SOLUTION: A determination part CP5 determines that all items requiring setup changes can be changed in setups by referring to a printer DB. When all the items requiring setup changes can be changed in setups, a print data transmission part CP6 transmits print data PD to a printer 30 noting that there should be no problem. When the determination part CP5 determines that any item cannot be changed in setups, a warning part CP7 displays a warning screen on a liquid crystal display 55. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing data transmission device and a processing data transmission program, and more particularly to a processing data transmission device and a processing data transmission program for transmitting processing data via a predetermined communication means.

Recent mobile phones are provided with a short-range wireless communication interface for performing infrared communication and Bluetooth (registered trademark of Bluetooth SIG), and such a short-range wireless communication interface is used to convert a mobile phone to a printer. Printing data is output. It has been proposed to attach print conditions to print data and execute printing while controlling the printer under the print conditions (see Patent Document 1, paragraphs 0094 to 0095).
According to such a configuration, the printer can be controlled under printing conditions designated in advance, and a printing result as intended can be obtained.
JP 2002-297345 A

However, the items of printing conditions that can be set via infrared communication differ depending on the printer model. Depending on the printer model, even if the printing conditions are specified, the printing conditions are not actually set. There was a problem of printing. In that case, since the designated printing conditions are not reflected, a print result unintended by the creator or user of the print data is obtained.
In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a processing data transmission apparatus and a processing data transmission program that can prevent an unintended processing result.

  In order to achieve the above object, the processing data transmission device transmits processing data in which processing conditions are designated to an external device via a predetermined communication means. In such a processing data transmission device, when transmitting the processing data to the external device, the device information acquisition unit acquires the device information of the external device via the communication unit. The processing condition acquisition unit acquires the processing condition of the processing data, and the determination unit determines whether the processing condition can be set by the external device based on the device information. If the processing condition cannot be set by the external device, the warning unit issues a warning. As a result, it is possible to warn the user that the intended processing conditions cannot be set, and to prevent the processing that causes unintended processing results from being executed. On the other hand, if the processing condition can be set by the external device, the transmission means transmits the processing data and sets the processing condition in the external device, thereby executing the processing in the external device. Let

  Even when the warning means gives a warning, the process may be executed after the user understands that the process cannot be performed under the optimum processing conditions. That is, after the warning means gives a warning, an instruction to force the processing is received, and when the instruction is received, the forced transmission means transmits the processing data to the external device. . By doing so, it is possible to meet the user's desire to perform processing even if the processing condition mismatch is allowed. If the user can set the processing conditions directly to the external device even if the processing conditions cannot be set from the processing print data sending device, the processing conditions are set after the user sets the processing conditions directly to the external device. Can be made to follow.

  Further, when the processing data is transmitted by the forced transmission means, the device information acquisition means re-acquires the device information, and transmission is performed when the device information matches the device information acquired previously. You may make it perform. As a result, the processing data can be prevented from being forcibly transmitted to different external devices.

  By the way, the processing data may be created by the processing data transmitting device or may be transmitted from another device. For example, the processing data may be received from an external content server. In this case, it is determined whether the processing conditions are specified in advance in the content server, and whether the processing conditions specified in the content server can be set in the external device.

  Usually, whether or not the processing condition can be set differs depending on the model of the external device, so it is desirable that the device information be the model name of the external device. If a database showing items of processing conditions that can be set for each model is prepared in the processing data transmission apparatus, the determination means can determine whether or not setting is possible based on the model name of the external apparatus. . The communication means can be a wireless communication using an infrared ray that is widely used in a mobile phone or the like as a communication medium, and can remotely transmit the processing data through the infrared ray.

  Note that there may be a case where the creator of the process data refuses to execute the process under different process conditions. In such a case, transmission by the forced transmission means may be prohibited. Specifically, it is possible to specify that the transmission by the forced transmission unit is prohibited in the processing data, and when the prohibition is specified, the forced transmission unit transmits the processing data to the external device. Should not be sent to. Thereby, processing contrary to the intention of the creator of the processing data can be prevented. The technical idea of the present invention realizes the above function in cooperation with not only the processing data transmitting apparatus that executes a function for issuing a warning when transmitting the above processing data but also hardware such as the processing data transmitting apparatus. Needless to say, the processing data transmission program can also be realized specifically.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order.
(1) Configuration of print billing system:
(2) Print accounting process:
(3) Modification:

(1) Configuration of Print Billing System FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a print billing system having a printer as an external device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Note that the printer as the external device of the present invention executes printing as processing. In FIG. 1, the print billing system includes a content server (hereinafter abbreviated as a server) 10 in which a large number of contents (images, documents, etc.) are stored, a printer 30 (external device), a mobile phone 50 (process data transmission device), and An Internet In, a gateway G, and an antenna At are connected to connect them. The mobile phone 50 communicates wirelessly with the antenna At in a predetermined radio frequency band. The antenna At is connected to the Internet In via the gateway G, and can communicate with the server 10 that is also connected to the Internet In. The mobile phone 50 and the server 10 can communicate with each other. Both the mobile phone 50 and the printer 30 have an infrared interface (I / F) capable of infrared communication, and can communicate with each other. The antenna At and the mobile phone 50 can communicate with each other via a radio signal conforming to a radio telephone communication standard such as CDMA.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the content server. As shown in the figure, the server 10 includes a control unit 11 and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 12, and a WAN I / F 13 is connected thereto. The WAN I / F 13 is connected to the Internet In, and the server 10 communicates with an external device connected to the Internet In via the WAN I / F 13. The HDD 12 stores program data 12b such as a print charging program SP, an OS (Operating System) 12a, and various contents 12c. The control unit 11 includes a CPU 11a, a ROM 11b, and a RAM 11c. The CPU 11a executes the print accounting program SP on the OS while using the RAM 11b as a work area.

  The print billing program SP is composed of a print data distribution unit SP1 and a billing unit SP2. The print data distribution unit SP1 creates and transmits print data PD based on the content 12c requested to be distributed. The print data PD is an electronic file in which layout information, printing conditions, copyright management information, and the like are attached to the data of the content 12c itself. The content 12c only needs to be data that can finally be rendered into pixel data by the printer, and may be either vector data or image data. As a printing (processing) condition, a printing paper size intended for the creator of the content 12c, a printing resolution, a printing medium type (glossy paper, plain paper, etc.), etc. are specified, and forced execution when these printing conditions are different. Whether to prohibit printing is specified. When the prohibition of forced printing is designated, it becomes impossible to perform printing under a printing condition other than that intended by the creator of the content 12c. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a printing result that the creator does not expect from printing under an unintended printing condition. For example, it is possible to prevent an image content created for a photo card from being enlarged and printed on A4 paper, resulting in a print result that has a different impression from the creator's intention. When the charging unit SP2 confirms that printing of the distributed print data PD has been completed, the accounting unit SP2 acquires a price commensurate with the print data PD, and executes a process for clearing the price.

  FIG. 3 shows a schematic configuration of the printer 30. As shown in the figure, the printer 30 includes a control unit 31, an operation unit 32, an infrared I / F 33, a nonvolatile memory 34, a control circuit 35a, an ink cartridge 35b, a print head unit 35c, an ASIC 36a, a head drive unit 36b, and an I / O. F37a, a carriage mechanism 37b, and a paper feed mechanism 37c are provided. The control unit 31 includes a CPU 31a, a ROM 31b, and a RAM 31c. The CPU 31a controls the entire printer 30 using the RAM 31c as a work area according to an OS and a control program PP (not shown) recorded in the ROM 31b. Further, the non-volatile memory 34 stores a printer ID that can uniquely identify the model and individual of the printer 30, and a cumulative number of sheets that are incremented by 1 each time printing on one printing sheet is completed. The units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a constituting the printer 30 are connected via a system bus so that they can communicate with each other.

  A carriage that reciprocates in the main scanning direction by the carriage mechanism 37b is provided with a cartridge holder on which each ink cartridge 35b is mounted, and a print head unit 35c that includes a print head. The head drive unit 36b receives the applied voltage data corresponding to the print data from the ASIC 36a, generates an applied voltage pattern to the piezo element, and causes the print head incorporating the element to eject ink droplets of four colors in dot units. . The carriage mechanism 37b and the paper feed mechanism 37c connected to the interface (I / F) 37a cause the print head unit 35c to perform main scanning, and sequentially feed sheet-like print media while performing page break operations as appropriate, thereby performing sub-scanning. To go.

  The printer 30 according to the present embodiment is an inkjet printer that discharges each ink of CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, and black) from a print head to form ink dots on a print medium and prints the ink. Of course, an ink jet printer using other types of ink may be employed as the printer 30, and various ink sublimation printers, laser printers using toner ink, and the like may be employed as the printer 30. The infrared I / F 33 includes a light emitting diode that transmits infrared light and a photodiode that performs reception. For example, infrared communication standards such as IrDA 1.0 to 1.4, FIR, UFIR, and Ir-Simple can be used. Has been. In these communication standards, infrared rays are used as a communication medium for wireless communication, and the communicable distance is about 30 cm to 1 m. The operation unit 32 receives an operation input from the user using, for example, a plurality of operation buttons. In order to display a screen or the like for accepting various operation inputs, the operation unit 32 may be provided with a display unit such as a liquid crystal panel. The non-volatile memory 34 is a memory capable of recording, deleting, and rewriting data according to the control of the control unit 31. For example, a flash memory or an EEPROM can be used.

  The control program PP executed by the control unit 31 includes an infrared communication unit PP1, a print execution unit PP2, a request reception unit PP3, a status acquisition unit PP4, an object generation unit PP5, and a status transmission unit PP6 as internal modules. The control unit 31 executes an OS (not shown), and the control program P uses an API provided by the OS. The infrared communication unit PP1 demodulates various electronic files from the infrared signal received by the infrared I / F 33, and outputs them to the modules PP2 to PP4. Conversely, the electronic file input from each of the modules PP2 to PP4 is modulated into an infrared signal and output to the infrared I / F 33. In the infrared communication described above, an object transfer protocol (for example, OBEX (object exchange protocol) or the like) or a file transfer protocol (for example, FTP or the like) can be used as an upper layer protocol, and exchange is possible in the object transfer protocol. Electronic files can be exchanged as objects.

  The print execution unit PP2 acquires the print data PD as an electronic file from the infrared communication unit PP1, and executes a process for executing printing based on the print data PD. Specifically, the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a are controlled based on the printing conditions attached to the print data PD, and the layout process / rendering process / color based on the main body of the print data. Conversion processing / halftone processing / microweave processing is sequentially executed to output a drive signal corresponding to the print image to each of the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a. The print execution unit PP2 appropriately obtains status information from the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a, and the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, The control of 37a is executed.

  The request acceptance unit PP3 receives a status request from the infrared communication unit PP1, and sends the status request to the status acquisition unit PP4. The status acquisition unit PP4 inquires status information from each of the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a via the system bus and collects status information. The object generation unit PP5 acquires the status information collected by the status acquisition unit PP4 and converts the status information into an electronic file as an object that can be transmitted by the infrared communication unit PP1.

  This electronic file is stored in the RAM 31c as a status file SF. For example, each status information is described as text in a file in the TXT format, HTML format, XML format or the like. The status transmission unit PP6 acquires the status file SF from the RAM 31c and sends the status file SF to the infrared communication unit PP1. As a result, the status file SF is transmitted to the outside via infrared rays. When the status file SF is transmitted, the status transmission unit PP6 deletes the status file SF from the RAM 31c.

  FIG. 4 shows a schematic configuration of the mobile phone 50. In the figure, a cellular phone 50 includes a non-volatile memory 51, a control unit 52, a wireless I / F 53 and an infrared I / F 54 connected to an antenna, a screen for receiving various operation inputs at the time of a call and a print instruction, etc. Is constituted by a liquid crystal display 55 for displaying the sound, an operation unit 56 for accepting an operation input from the user by an operation key, a speaker 57 for outputting sound, and a microphone 58 for inputting sound. The wireless I / F 53 demodulates an audio signal and a data signal from a radio signal input from the antenna, and modulates an audio signal and a data signal input from the microphone 58 and the control unit 52 into the radio signal. The infrared I / F 54 includes a light emitting diode that transmits infrared light and a photodiode that receives light, and an object transfer protocol and an infrared communication standard common to the printer 30 can be used.

  The control unit 52 includes a CPU 52b and a RAM 52c connected to the system bus 52a. The CPU 52b executes the print relay program CP read from the ROM 52c on an OS (not shown) while using the RAM 52c as a work area. A non-volatile memory 51 is connected to the control unit 52, and a mobile phone ID 51 a and a printer database (hereinafter referred to as a printer DB) that can uniquely identify the mobile phone 50 are stored in the memory 51. . The print relay program CP is not limited to a native application on the OS, and may be executed on a virtual machine such as Java (registered trademark of Sun Microsystems). The print relay program CP includes a content specifying unit CP1, a print data receiving unit CP2, an infrared communication unit CP3, a status request unit CP4, a determination unit CP5, a print data transmission unit CP6, a warning unit CP7, a print data forced transmission unit CP8, and an accounting request. It consists of part CP9. Furthermore, the determination unit CP5 includes a device information acquisition unit CP5a as an internal module.

  The content designation unit CP1 uses a browser or the like to access the server 10 via the wireless I / F 53 and the Internet In, and performs processing for designating the content 12c desired to be printed to the server 10. The print data receiving unit CP2 receives print data PD for printing the content 12c designated via the wireless I / F 53 and the Internet In from the server 10, and stores it in the memory 51 or the RAM 52c. The infrared communication unit CP3 demodulates various electronic files from the infrared signal received by the infrared I / F 54, and outputs them to the modules CP1 to CP9. Conversely, the electronic file input from each of the modules CP1 to CP9 is modulated into an infrared signal and output to the infrared I / F 54. The status request unit CP4 generates a command requesting status information from the printer 30 as a status request, and outputs it to the infrared communication unit CP3.

  The determination unit CP5 acquires the status file SF demodulated by the infrared communication unit CP3, and the device information acquisition unit CP5a acquires the model name stored in the status file SF as device information. The determination unit CP5 acquires the status information stored in the status file SF and also acquires the printing conditions attached to the print data PD. Then, the status information is compared with the printing conditions, and setting items that require setting changes are extracted. Further, the determination unit CP5 determines whether or not a setting item that needs to be changed can be set by infrared communication. Specifically, the determination unit CP5 searches the printer DB for the model name acquired by the device information acquisition unit CP5a, and acquires setting items of print conditions that can be set for the model. Then, it is determined whether or not the setting item that needs to be changed is a setting item that can be set in the model. Here, if all the setting items that need to be changed can be set, the print data transmission unit CP6 outputs the print data PD received from the server 10 to the infrared communication unit CP3. As a result, the print data PD is received by the printer 30 by infrared rays. When the transmission of the print data PD is completed, the print data transmission unit CP6 deletes the print data PD from the memory 51 or the RAM 52c.

  On the other hand, if all the setting items that need to be changed are not settable, the warning unit CP7 displays a warning screen on the liquid crystal display 55 and receives an instruction from the user. Here, if the user gives an instruction to force printing and the model of the destination printer 30 is confirmed again, and the model name has not changed, the print data forcing transmission unit CP8 obtains the print data PD. The data is output to the infrared communication unit CP3, and the print data PD is transmitted to the printer 30 by infrared rays. That is, although some of the settings are different from the designated printing conditions, the print data PD is transmitted as it is to be allowed by the user, and printing is executed by the printer 30. In this print data PD, since printing conditions including setting items that cannot be set by the printer 30 are attached, printing is executed ignoring the setting items. When receiving the print completion notification transmitted as a file from the printer 30, the charging request unit CP7 transmits a charging request to the server 10 via the wireless I / F 53 and the Internet In.

(2) Print Billing Process FIG. 5 shows the overall flow of the print billing process. In the figure, the print billing process is performed between the server 10, the mobile phone 50, and the printer 30, and at that time, the control units 11, 31, 52 provided in the server 10, the mobile phone 50, and the printer 30 print the print billing program. An SP, a print relay program CP, and a control program PP are executed. In step S01, the print data distribution unit SP1 executed by the server 10 generates a thumbnail of each content 12c, and transmits the list to the mobile phone 20 via wireless communication. On the other hand, in the mobile phone 20, the content specifying unit CP 1 is executed, and the content specifying unit CP 1 brands the list of thumbnails according to the operation of the operation unit 56. The content designation unit CP1 accepts designation of the content 12c purchased by the user in step C02, and the designation is transmitted to the server 10 by wireless communication.

  The print data distribution unit SP1 of the server 10 accepts the designation of the content 12c to be purchased in step S02 and creates print data PD for printing the content 12c on the HDD 12. Here, the print data PD includes, for example, layout information for designating a layout such as a frame, a background, and a margin, a print paper size, a paper type, a print resolution, and an ink type used in the content data for rendering the content 12c itself. This is an electronic file to which printing conditions, security information for limiting the printer 30 that can be printed, and the like are attached as a header or footer. When it is designated to print a plurality of sheets, content data and layout information for the number of sheets are transmitted. Further, it is desirable that the print data PD is generated in a dedicated file format and scrambled so that the content data is not expanded to an unspecified person even if the print data PD is leaked.

  In step S04, the print data distribution unit SP1 transmits the print data PD from the server 10 to the mobile phone 50 by wireless communication. On the other hand, in the mobile phone 50, the print data receiving unit CP2 receives the print data PD in step C03 and stores it in the memory 51. When the reception of the print data PD is completed, the status request unit CP4 makes a status request in step C04. Specifically, a command for obtaining the status file SF stored in the RAM 31c of the printer 30 via infrared communication (get) is generated.

  The OS executed by the printer 30 is assigned to the path of the RAM 31c in the printer 30. By adding the path and the file name of the status file SF to the command, a command for obtaining the status file SF can be generated. . The status request command is modulated into an infrared signal by the infrared communication unit CP3 and transmitted to the printer 30. Note that a (get) command for obtaining an electronic file as an object by specifying a file name and a path via infrared light is a command that can be used in the OBEX standard.

  When the request receiving unit PP3 being executed in the printer 30 in step P01 receives the above command via the infrared communication unit PP1, the status acquisition unit PP4 is connected to each of the units 31, 32, 33,. 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a are inquired about status information. Although the statuses that can be inquired differ depending on the model of the printer 30, for example, the model name and the cumulative number of printed sheets can be acquired from the ROM 31b, and the presence or absence of ink and the remaining amount of ink can be acquired from the ink cartridge 35b. In addition, from the paper feeding mechanism 37c, it is possible to acquire the set printing paper size, the number of paper sheets, the paper type (glossy paper or plain paper, etc.), the presence / absence of paper jamming, and the like. In addition, the remaining number of jobs to be executed by the printer 30, the head temperature, and the like may be acquired.

  When the status information as described above is collected by the status acquisition unit PP4, the object generation unit PP5 generates a status file SF describing the collected status information and stores it in the RAM 31c. Here, the file name of the status file SF generated by the object generation unit PP5 and the path in the RAM 31c are defined to be always constant. This rule is also registered in the status request unit CP4 of the mobile phone 50 described above, and the specified path and file name are added when generating a command for obtaining the status file SF in step C04 (get). It is possible. That is, in step C04, the path and file name where the status file SF will be created in step P02 are designated in advance.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of contents described in the status file SF. In the figure, the status file SF is set to TempStatus. It is defined to be created with a file name txt and stored in the root path of the RAM drive, for example. As the status information, the model name and serial ID (printer ID) of the printer 30 are described. By describing the remaining ink amount as other status information, it is possible to determine whether or not there is a sufficient amount of ink remaining for printing the print data PD when transmitting the print data PD. Further, in the printer 30 capable of setting a plurality of types of ink sets, it can be determined whether or not an appropriate ink set is set for printing the print data PD. Furthermore, it is possible to determine whether or not the required number of print sheets of a size capable of printing the print data PD has been set by describing the print paper size and the number of sheets set in the paper feed as status information. . Of course, other status information can be described in the status file SF.

  In step P03, status transmission unit PP6 transmits status file SF to mobile phone 50. Again, infrared is used as a communication medium, but a command to send an electronic file as an object via infrared (put) can also be used in the OBEX standard. As described above, even in a communication medium such as infrared communication that does not have a mechanism for transmitting and receiving the printer status alone, status information is stored in a general-purpose object (electronic file) in which an exchange protocol is defined in the communication medium. Therefore, smooth exchange of status information can be realized. In this embodiment, the model name of the printer 30 is stored in the status file SF together with other status information and transmitted. However, a file storing only the model name of the printer 30 may be transmitted separately. .

  In step C05, the determination unit CP5 in the mobile phone 50 receives the status file SF via the infrared communication unit CP3, and the TXT status file SF is stored in the RAM 52c of the mobile phone 50, for example. When the reception of the status file SF is completed, the printer 30 deletes the status file SF from the RAM 31c in step P04. As described above, since the RAM 31c is used as a work area when the control program PP is executed, it is desirable to delete the RAM 31c from the RAM 31c in order to secure more free space. Further, the status file SF in which old status information is described can be prevented from remaining in the RAM 31c, and only the latest status information can always be transmitted to the mobile phone 50. The mobile phone 50 that has received the status file SF and stored it in the RAM 52c executes warning processing described below.

  FIG. 7 shows the flow of warning processing (C06: C060 to C069). In step C060, the determination unit CP5 acquires the current status information of the printer 30 from the status file SF received in step C05, and acquires the printing conditions from the print data PD received in step C03. Then, by comparing these, items that need to be changed in the printer 30 (hereinafter referred to as setting change required items) are extracted. For example, if the print paper size is specified as the photo card size in the print condition of the print data PD and the print paper size is set to A4 in the status information, the print paper size is changed to the photo card size. Judge that it is necessary. In addition, if the printing conditions such as the print media type (glossy paper, plain paper, etc.), the printing resolution, and the ink set do not match the current status information, the item is extracted as a setting change item.

  In step C061, the determination unit CP5 determines the presence / absence of a required setting change item, and if there is no required setting change item, the process proceeds to step C08 in FIG. In step C08, the print data transmission unit CP6 transmits the print data PD to the printer 30. That is, since there is no problem even if printing is executed without changing the setting, the printer 30 executes printing of the print data PD. On the other hand, if there is even one setting change item that is required in step C061, the process proceeds to step C062. The device information acquisition unit CP5a acquires the model name as device information from the status file SF. Next, in step C063, the determination unit CP5 refers to the printer DB to determine whether or not the required setting change item is a setting changeable item in the model.

  Here, the item whose setting can be changed means an item whose setting can be changed by the printer 30 by transmitting print data PD (printing conditions) to the printer 30 via infrared rays. Such setting changeable items greatly depend on the model of the printer 30. For example, a model that includes both a photo tray on which a photo card can be set and a main tray on which A4 paper or the like can be set, and that can be switched by the control of the control unit 31 according to print data PD (printing conditions). In this case, the print paper size is an item whose setting can be changed. On the other hand, if the currently set printing paper is A4 in a model having only the main tray, a photo card must be artificially set on the main tray. In this case, the printing paper size cannot be changed. It becomes a possible item.

  For example, since the print resolution largely depends on the mechanical structure of the print head unit 35c, even if the print resolution itself can be changed, the print resolution specified as the print condition can be set by the corresponding model. It may be out of the range. Also in this case, it is determined that the print resolution setting cannot be changed. Information on which items can be set and changed in what range in which model as described above is stored in a database in advance, and the database is stored as a printer DB. Since the status file SF received in step C05 includes the model name of the printer 30 to be printed, it is possible to make a determination according to the model of the printer 30 to be printed.

  It is desirable that the latest printer DB is distributed from the manufacturer of the printer 30. For example, update data may be periodically distributed from the server 10 or another server on the Internet In. In step C063, if the determination unit CP5 determines that all the setting change required items can be changed, the process proceeds to step C08 in FIG. 5 and the print data transmission unit CP6 transmits the print data PD to the printer. 30. On the other hand, if it is determined in step C063 that one of the required setting change items cannot be changed, the warning unit CP7 displays a warning screen on the liquid crystal display 55 in step C064.

  FIG. 8 shows the warning screen. In the figure, a message notifying that the current printer 30 settings are different and a good print result cannot be obtained as it is, items that require setting changes by the user, guidance for changing the settings of the items, , A selection button for receiving a user instruction is displayed. Items that need to be changed by the user have been previously investigated in step C063 and can be displayed in step C064. The guidance display is registered in the printer DB for each model, and guidance according to the model acquired in step C062 is displayed. Various setting change methods depend on the model of the printer 30, but appropriate guidance can be displayed based on the model name.

  With a selection button that accepts a user instruction, it is possible to select instructions to cancel printing, retry, and forced printing. If printing cancellation is instructed here, the process proceeds to step C12 in FIG. Here, it is displayed that printing has been canceled or impossible. If an error is displayed, the print data PD is deleted from the memory 51 of the mobile phone 50 in step C13. As a result, the print data PD can be prevented from remaining in the mobile phone 50, and unauthorized duplication of the print data PD and the content 12c can be prevented. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, billing request transmission (step C11), which will be described later, is avoided, so that only billing can be prevented even though printing is not actually performed.

  On the other hand, if a retry is instructed in step C065, the process returns to step C03 in FIG. That is, the user changes the setting of the printer 30 in accordance with the guidance display, and determines again whether or not the subsequent status information matches the printing conditions. The printer 30 can transmit the latest status information after the setting change by the user to the mobile phone 50 by executing the above-described steps P01 to P04. If forced printing is instructed in step C065, the determination unit CP5 determines whether forced printing is prohibited for the print data PD in step C066. As described above, whether to prohibit the forced printing when the printing conditions are different is specified by the printing conditions attached to the print data PD. If the forced printing is prohibited, the process proceeds to step C12 in FIG. 5 and an error display is displayed on the liquid crystal display 55. Thereby, it is possible to prevent printing under printing conditions that are not intended by the creator of the content 12c.

  On the other hand, if forced printing is permitted, the status request unit CP4 transmits a status request in step C067. The transmission of the status request here is the same as step C04 in FIG. When the status request is transmitted in step C067, the printer 30 creates the latest status file SF and returns the status file SF to the mobile phone 50 in the same manner as the above-described procedure (steps P01 to P03). In step C068, the determination unit CP5 acquires the status file SF, and the device information acquisition unit CP5a acquires the model name described in the status file SF. In step C069, the determination unit CP5 determines whether or not the model name acquired in step C068 matches the model name acquired in step C062 last time. If the model names do not match, the process proceeds to step C12 in FIG. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the print data PD from being transmitted to a printer different from the printer 30 that has performed the above-described determination or to another infrared communication device. On the other hand, if the model names match, the process proceeds to step C08 in FIG. 5 and the print data forced transmission unit CP8 transmits the print data PD to the printer 30.

  When the print data PD is transmitted from the mobile phone 50 in step C08 in FIG. 5, the print execution unit PP2 of the printer 30 receives the print data PD in step P05, and subsequently expands the print data PD in step P06 ( If scrambled, the scramble is released). First, print conditions are extracted from the print data PD, and the units 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, and 37a are controlled according to the print conditions. Based on the main body of the print data, layout processing / rendering processing / color conversion processing / halftone processing / microweave processing are sequentially executed to drive each unit 31, 32, 33, 34, 35a, 36a, 37a according to the print image. Processing to output a signal is performed. As a result, a print image based on the print data PD can be printed under the print conditions specified by the print data PD. In this embodiment, the printer 30 extracts print conditions from the print data PD. However, the print conditions are previously extracted from the print data PD by the mobile phone 50 and the extracted print conditions alone are transmitted to the printer 30. You may do it.

  Note that when forced printing is instructed in step C066, printing conditions including items different from the actual settings of the printer 30 are specified. Since it cannot be changed, printing is ignored and printing is canceled due to an error. If printing is performed ignoring, there may be a problem that the intended printing result does not occur because printing is performed under printing conditions different from the original printing conditions. However, since the user gives an instruction for forced printing after understanding that such a problem may occur, there is no problem. Therefore, even if the billing process described later is performed, there is no unfair charge for the user. That is, by performing the warning screen, it is possible to prevent printing under inappropriate printing conditions without the user's knowledge, and therefore it is possible to prevent unfair charges against the user's intention. Even when the user approves, if the creator of the content 12c prohibits, the print data PD is not transmitted, and thus the intention of the creator is not disobeyed. On the other hand, even when printing is stopped due to an error, the user is notified that the setting of the printer 30 is not appropriate by the above-described warning screen, so that the user can take appropriate measures.

  On the other hand, in the mobile phone 50 that has completed the transmission of the print data PD, the print data PD is deleted from the memory 51 of the mobile phone 50 in step C13. As a result, the print data PD can be prevented from remaining in the mobile phone 50, and unauthorized duplication of the print data PD and the content 12c can be prevented. When the printing execution unit PP2 completes printing in the printer 30, the object generation unit PP5 generates a status file SF indicating completion of printing and stores it in the RAM 31c. In step P07, the status transmission unit PP6 transmits a status file SF indicating completion of printing to the mobile phone 50 as a completion notification.

  In the mobile phone 50, the determination unit CP5 receives the status file SF in step C10 and recognizes the completion of printing. When the completion of printing is recognized, the charging request unit CP7 transmits a charging request to the server 10 in the subsequent step C11. In other words, in this embodiment, the completion of printing in the printer 30 is set as a charge requirement. In server 10, billing unit SP2 receives the billing request in step S05, and executes billing processing in step S06. For example, the content 12c corresponding to the print data PD for which printing has been completed is specified based on the billing request transmitted from the mobile phone 50, and the price corresponding to the content 12c is acquired. And the process for charging the said price with respect to the user who possesses the mobile telephone 50 is performed.

(3) Modified Example In the above, the embodiment in which the print data PD transmitted from the server 10 is printed by the printer 30 has been described. However, in the present invention, the print data PD is not necessarily transmitted from the server 10. There is no. That is, the present invention can be realized between an external device (printer 30) and a processing data transmission device (mobile phone 50) connected to the external device via a predetermined communication medium. Even when the printer 30 prints the print data PD created and specified with the print conditions, the warning can be issued by the method of the present invention. In addition, although an example in which the external device (printer 30) and the processing data transmission device (mobile phone 50) can communicate with each other by infrared rays has been described, communication may be performed by a wireless communication medium such as Bluetooth or by wire. In the case of infrared communication as in the above embodiment, the items that can be set via infrared communication are limited, so that the merit of applying the present invention is great.

  In the above-described embodiment, the device name is exemplified as the device information. However, it may be managed whether or not the setting can be changed in a higher classification such as the model type or series. Whether or not the setting can be changed may be managed by a lower classification such as firmware version and serial number. In the above-described embodiment, the model name as device information is included in the status file SF in which other status information is also stored. However, it is possible to transmit only the model name alone.

1 is a block diagram of a print billing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. It is a block diagram of a content server. It is a block diagram of a printer. It is a block diagram of a mobile phone. It is a flowchart of a printing accounting process. It is a figure which shows the content of a status file. It is a flowchart of a warning process. It is a figure which shows an example of a warning screen.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Content server, 11 ... Control part, 11a ... CPU, 12 ... HDD, 12c ... Content, 20 ... Mobile phone, 30 ... Printer, 31 ... Control part, 31a ... CPU, 32 ... Operation part, 33 ... Infrared I / F, 34 ... Nonvolatile memory, 50 ... Mobile phone, 51 ... Memory, 52 ... Control unit, 52a ... System bus, 52b ... CPU, 53 ... Wireless I / F, 54 ... Infrared I / F, 55 ... Liquid crystal display, 56 ... Operation unit, 57 ... Speaker, 58 ... Microphone, At ... Antenna, CP ... Print relay program, CP1 ... Content designation unit, CP2 ... Print data receiving unit, CP3 ... Infrared communication unit, CP4 ... Status request unit, CP5 ... Determination unit, CP5a ... device information acquisition unit, CP6 ... print data transmission unit, CP7 ... warning unit, CP8 ... print data forced transmission unit, CP9 ... Gold request part, G ... Gateway, In ... Internet, PD ... Print data, PP ... Control program, PP1 ... Infrared communication part, PP2 ... Print execution part, PP3 ... Request reception part, PP4 ... Status acquisition part, PP5 ... Object generation Part, PP6 ... status transmission part, SF ... status file, SP ... print charging program, SP1 ... print data distribution part, SP2 ... charging part.

Claims (8)

In a processing data transmitting device that transmits processing data in which processing conditions are specified to an external device via a predetermined communication means,
In transmitting the processing data to the external device, device information acquisition means for acquiring the device information of the external device via the communication means;
Determining means for determining whether the processing condition specified in the processing data can be set by the external device based on the device information;
Warning means for issuing a warning when the processing conditions are not settable by the external device;
A transmission unit configured to transmit the processing data to the external device via the communication unit when the processing condition can be set by the external device, and to set the processing condition to the external device. A featured processing data transmitter. After the warning means gives a warning, it accepts an instruction to force the process,
The processing data transmission device according to claim 1, further comprising forced transmission means for transmitting the processing data to the external device when the instruction is received.   The forced transmission unit causes the device information acquisition unit to acquire the device information again after receiving an instruction to force the processing, and the processing is performed when the device information matches the device information acquired previously. The processing data transmission device according to claim 2, wherein the data is transmitted to the external device.   The processing data according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the processing data is received from an external content server, and the processing conditions are specified in advance in the content server. Transmitter device.   The processing data transmitting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the device information is a model name of the external apparatus.   6. The external apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit is wireless communication using infrared as a communication medium.   The forced transmission means does not transmit the processing data to the external device when the processing data specifies that the transmission by the forced transmission means is prohibited. The processing data transmission device according to any one of the above. In a processing data transmission program for causing a processing data transmitting apparatus to execute a function of transmitting processing data in which processing conditions are specified to an external device via a predetermined communication means.
In transmitting the processing data to the external device, a device information acquisition function for acquiring device information of the external device via the communication means;
A determination function for determining whether the processing condition specified by the processing data can be set by the external device based on the device information;
A warning function that issues a warning when the processing conditions are not settable by the external device;
When the processing conditions can be set by the external device, the processing data is transmitted to the external device via the communication means, and a transmission function for setting the processing conditions to the external device is transmitted to the processing data. A processing data transmission program which is executed by an apparatus.

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