JP2010061251A - Printing system, print control device, output instruction device, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To avoid useless printout when a plurality of persons instruct on-demand printing about the same document. <P>SOLUTION: A condition setting part 110 sets automatic duplication conditions CJ and automatic duplication range conditions EJ, and stores those conditions in a condition storage part 120. When the on-demand printing of a document is instructed, a condition monitoring part 130 determines whether or not print instruction data meets the automatic duplication conditions CJ. When being met, a print instruction data duplication part 140 generates automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ for the objects of duplication specified by the automatic duplication range conditions EJ without instruction. When the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ under holding meets invalidation conditions, a print server 50 invalidates the print instruction data. When accepting a list display request through an acceptance part 210, an on-demand terminal 80 distinctly displays the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ and the normal generation print instruction data UPJ, and instructs the print server 50 to release the holding of the print instruction data PJ selected from among those. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system, a printing control apparatus, an output instruction apparatus, and a program.

  There are cases where a printing system is constructed so that a plurality of users share one printing apparatus, or a printing system is constructed so that a single user can use a plurality of printing apparatuses separately. When printing a document, when the user issues a print instruction, the device that creates and edits the document generates a print job that describes the print conditions and print data (document contents). Is sent to the printing apparatus to perform the printing process.

  In the case of each of the above printing systems, when a print instruction is issued, the print process is not immediately executed and the printed output is not discharged, but the print process is temporarily suspended even if a print job is generated. In some cases, a system is constructed so that a print process is executed when an output instruction is issued via an output instruction device later (see Patent Documents 1 to 6). In this specification, such a mechanism is referred to as on-demand printing.

JP 2007-121669 A JP 2004-038886 A JP 2005-266977 A JP 2006-268252 A JP 2007-318360 A JP 2008-84167 A

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 employs a mechanism that allows printing without inconvenience even when an account (user B) executes processing on behalf of a client (user A).

  In Patent Document 2, a sensor for detecting the entrance of a person is introduced in order to accurately grasp the number of attendees. In Patent Document 3, the number of participants is grasped by an RFID tag possessed by the participants. In Patent Document 4, the entire schedule and the individual schedule are managed to grasp the attendees.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228688 solves the problem that all jobs are printed in an environment where “jobs issued by itself” and “jobs issued by others to themselves” such as FAX jobs are mixed during on-demand printing. In addition, conditions are set in advance, and jobs that meet the conditions are kept in a suspended state to notify the pop-up that they do not meet the conditions, thereby preventing all printing.

  In Patent Document 6, a user can automatically obtain a printable document that matches the time and condition without grasping necessary documents by himself and performing an operation of actively acquiring them. A system that guides you to print is being built.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism that can avoid useless print output in on-demand printing when a plurality of people instruct on-demand printing for the same document.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a document creation / editing apparatus capable of creating or editing a document, an image forming apparatus for forming an image of the document on an output medium, the document creation / editing apparatus, and the image A print control apparatus capable of holding the print process interposed between the forming apparatus and the execution instruction based on an instruction from a user who desires to execute the print process held by the print control apparatus. The print control apparatus is configured to include an automatic duplication condition for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user and a condition setting for setting a duplication target user. A condition storage unit for storing an automatic duplication condition created by the condition setting unit and a user to be duplicated, and print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user is stored in the condition storage unit A condition monitoring unit that monitors whether or not the automatic duplication condition is met, and when the condition monitoring unit determines that the condition is met, print instruction data generated based on an instruction from the user is copied A print instruction data duplicating unit that duplicates the target user, and if the print process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to cause the print process to be executed. If it is a kimono, the print instruction data is stored in a storage medium and held in a storage state until a release instruction is issued from the output instruction device, and the print instruction data held in a hold state when the release instruction is received And a hold control unit that executes a printing process by reading the data from a storage medium and transmitting it to the image forming apparatus.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the output instruction device accepts an instruction from a user who desires to execute a print process held by the print control device. A display control unit that controls display, and an execution instruction unit that instructs execution of print processing. The display control unit displays information about print processing that is suspended by the print control apparatus. When the accepting unit accepts, the print instruction data that matches the automatic duplication condition and the print instruction data generated based on the instruction from the user are distinguished and displayed, and the execution instruction unit is distinguished Instructing the execution of the print processing based on the print instruction data selected by the user who desires to execute the print processing from the displayed.

  The invention according to claim 3 is created by an automatic duplication condition for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user, a condition setting unit for setting a user to be duplicated, and the condition setting unit A condition storage unit that stores the automatic copying conditions and the user to be copied, and whether print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user matches the automatic copying conditions stored in the condition storage unit When the condition monitoring unit that monitors whether or not the condition monitoring unit matches, the print instruction data replication that replicates the print instruction data generated based on the instruction of the certain user for the user to be replicated A printing control apparatus.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, when the print instruction data duplicating unit duplicates the print instruction data generated based on the instruction of the certain user, the generation instruction Is notified to the user to be duplicated.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the print instruction data created when the automatic duplication condition for duplicating the print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user is matched with a predetermined condition. Invalidating unit to invalidate according to the above, and if the printing process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to execute the printing process, and if the printing process is to be suspended, the output Until there is a release instruction from the instruction device, the print instruction data is stored in a storage medium and kept in a hold state, and when there is a release instruction, the print instruction data held in a hold state is read from the storage medium. And a hold control unit that executes print processing by transmitting the image to the image forming apparatus.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fifth aspect of the present invention, the invalidation unit is predetermined when there are a plurality of the print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met. Disable unnecessary ones based on conditions.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the sixth aspect of the present invention, the invalidation unit further replaces the oldest one of the plurality of print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met. And replace the old one.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the sixth aspect of the present invention, further, the invalidation unit performs a later operation on the older one of the plurality of print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met. Disable in a state that can be recovered with.

  According to a ninth aspect of the invention, in the invention according to any one of the fifth to eighth aspects of the invention, the invalidation unit is configured to generate the print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met. If the print process remains on hold even after a predetermined time limit, the print instruction data is deleted to invalidate the print process.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the fifth to eighth aspects of the present invention, the invalidation unit is configured to generate the print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met. If the print process remains in the suspended state even after a predetermined time limit, the print instruction data is invalidated in a state where it can be restored later.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, a print process is suspended by interposing between a document creation / editing apparatus capable of creating or editing a document and an image forming apparatus that forms an image of the document on an output medium. An accepting unit that accepts an instruction from a user who wishes to execute a print process that is held by a print control apparatus that is configured to be able to execute; a display control unit that controls display; and an instruction that instructs execution of the print process An instruction unit, and the display control unit, when the reception unit receives a display of print processing information held by the print control apparatus, the print instruction data that matches the automatic duplication condition and the use The print instruction data generated based on an instruction from the user is distinguished and displayed, and the execution instruction unit is selected by the user who wishes to execute the print processing from the distinguished display. An output instruction unit for instructing the execution of the printing process based on-option has been said print instruction data.

  The invention according to claim 12 sets the automatic duplication condition and duplication target user for duplicating the print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user, and sets the set automatic duplication condition and duplication target user. A condition setting unit that stores a user in a predetermined condition storage unit, and whether print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user matches the automatic duplication condition stored in the condition storage unit When the condition monitoring unit that monitors whether or not the condition monitoring unit matches, the print instruction data replication that replicates the print instruction data generated based on the instruction of the certain user for the user to be replicated And a print control program that causes the computer to function as a unit.

  According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the print instruction data generated when the print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user is matched with an automatic duplication condition is set to a predetermined condition. Invalidating unit to invalidate according to the above, and if the printing process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to execute the printing process, and if the printing process is to be suspended, the output Until there is a release instruction from the instruction device, the print instruction data is stored in a storage medium and kept in a hold state, and when there is a release instruction, the print instruction data held in a hold state is read from the storage medium. A print control program that causes a computer to function as a hold control unit that executes print processing by being transmitted to the image forming apparatus.

  According to the invention described in claim 1, when a plurality of people instruct on-demand printing for the same document, each person creates the same output document as compared with the case where the invention according to claim 1 is not adopted. It is possible to avoid performing unnecessary printing output by performing an instruction operation.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, it is distinguished whether the pending print instruction data is based on a document that meets the automatic duplication condition or generated based on the user's own instruction. Becomes easier.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, it is possible to avoid that each person performs the same output document creation instruction operation as compared with the case where the invention according to claim 3 is not adopted. As an additional effect, useless print output in on-demand printing can be avoided.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the notified user to be copied can grasp and recognize that the print instruction data of the document is generated in advance because the automatic copy condition is met.

  According to the invention described in claim 5, since the print instruction data based on the document matching the automatic duplication condition is reduced, the print processing is desired as compared with the case where the invention according to claim 5 is not adopted. It is possible to realize a print control apparatus that can make it easy to find things.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the print instruction data generated by matching the automatic duplication condition for the same document is reduced and presented to the user, the user can select what he wants to print. Becomes easier.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prepare the print instruction data by giving priority to the newer one, which is generally considered to have a higher degree of need for printing, over the older one, and the user can This makes it easier to find what you want to print. As an additional effect, since the old one is deleted, the storage capacity of the print instruction data can be saved.

  According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a print result based on the older one of the plurality of print instruction data generated by matching the automatic duplication condition for the same document.

  According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the print instruction data generated by meeting the automatic duplication condition is reduced and presented to the user based on the elapsed period from the generation. It becomes easy to select what is desired to be processed.

  According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, when the print instruction data generated by meeting the automatic duplication condition is held beyond the time limit, the print instruction data is based on the print instruction data even if the time limit is exceeded. Printing results can be obtained.

  According to the invention described in claim 11, whether the pending print instruction data is based on a document that matches the automatic duplication condition, as compared with the case where the invention according to claim 11 is not adopted. It is possible to realize an output instruction device that can easily distinguish whether the data is generated based on a user's own instruction.

  According to the twelfth aspect of the present invention, compared to the case where the invention according to the twelfth aspect of the present invention is not adopted, each person can avoid performing the same output document creation instruction operation. It is possible to provide a program that avoids useless printing output.

  According to the thirteenth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to provide a program that makes it easier to find what is desired to be printed, compared to the case where the invention according to the thirteenth aspect is not adopted.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<System overview>
In conventional on-demand printing, after a user manually instructs the generation of print instruction data, the output instruction device is operated to display a list of print instruction data PJ, and print instruction data PJ for which print processing is desired is displayed. The selected print job is released from the hold state, and printing is performed by the printing apparatus. In such a conventional processing method, it is indispensable for the user to manually issue a print instruction data PJ generation instruction.

  Incidentally, the print instruction data PJ is instruction data for print processing including image data that is the contents to be formed on a paper medium or the like and print settings (also referred to as output conditions, print conditions, or print attributes). In general, it corresponds to what is called a print job or an output job. For example, in order to transfer image data between a document creation / editing device, a print control device, and an image forming device (page printer) that forms an image for each page, the image forming device is a page printer. A programming language called a page description language (PDL) is used. In general, the image forming apparatus converts the image data into an image data (image) in a bitmap form on a page basis based on the received PDL data, and stores the data in a predetermined storage device before printing. Further, when executing the print processing, it is necessary to specify print settings (the contents of which will be described later). Therefore, print setting data PJ is created by adding print settings to the image data of each page (described in PDL).

  Output condition settings (print settings) related to image output processing are roughly classified into items such as basic settings, layout settings, page decoration settings, and finishing settings, for example. Basic settings include, for example, the number of copies, the number of copies, black and white or color, paper size (A4, A3, B4, B5, etc.), printing direction (vertical / horizontal), paper feed tray (automatic, tray number), printing Items such as quality are included. For example, the print quality is set in stages from “Premium to Fast”, or registered in advance, such as general documents, photos, DTP (Desk Top Publishing), CAD (Computer Aided Design), etc. Select from the quality settings set according to the printing purpose. The layout setting includes items such as single-sided or double-sided, presence / absence of scaling (enlargement / reduction) and setting of scaling ratio, presence / absence of layout printing (aggregated printing) and setting of arrangement mode. The page decoration setting includes items such as page printing presence / absence and detailed setting, stamp mark presence / absence / stamp mark setting, header / footer presence / absence and printing information setting, and the like. The finishing setting includes items such as sorting, finisher, binding margin, opening direction, and bookbinding setting. The finisher includes items such as setting of presence / absence of punch and number of holes, setting of presence / absence of stapling (processing to bind in one bundle) and setting of binding position.

  On the other hand, in general, in a workflow for handling electronic documents, electronic documents are created or edited on a terminal, and the processed electronic documents are not only stored in a storage medium but also transferred between users. Printing on paper is performed. Here, when printing on paper frequently occurs, it is convenient to previously generate information to be set in the print instruction data PJ based on the electronic document.

  When there is a print instruction based on an electronic document, the printing system according to the present embodiment determines whether the situation matches the automatic duplication condition of the print instruction data PJ, and even if there is no instruction from the user, The print instruction data PJ is created and saved in advance when the automatic duplication conditions are met.

  In other words, when a user issues a print instruction for a document, the print instruction data PJ that can be printed by a user related to the document is copied, held, and copied according to the automatic copy print instruction data CPJ. To be ready for printing. This will be specifically described below.

<Overall configuration of printing system: Basic>
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a basic configuration of a printing system according to the present embodiment. The printing system 1 includes a plurality of document creation and editing devices 3 that are host devices used by a user, a print control device 5 that controls printing processing, one or more image forming devices 7 that execute printing processing, and an output instruction. The device 8 is connected via a communication network 9 which is an example of a communication unit. The output instruction device 8 may be directly connected to the image forming device 7 without going through the communication network 9 or may be integrated with the image forming device 7.

  The document creation / editing device 3 may be any device as long as it has a function for generating an electronic document and a function for editing an electronic document. For example, it is preferable to use a personal computer (PC) as an information processing device. It is.

  The print control device 5 monitors the generation / editing status of the electronic document in the document creation / editing device 3, and automatically generates print instruction data PJ based on the electronic document when a predetermined condition is met. By saving the print instruction data PJ in the storage medium, the print processing is suspended until an output instruction is issued. Although the basic configuration is shown here, as will be described later, some of the functions of the print control device 5 may be installed in the document creation / editing device 3.

  The image forming apparatus 7 only needs to have a function of forming (printing) an image on printing paper based on at least the print instruction data PJ. A multifunction machine having a plurality of functions such as a function and a FAX function may be used.

  The output instruction device 8 accepts an output instruction of the print instruction data PJ held by the print control apparatus 5 from the user, and instructs the image forming apparatus 7 to execute output processing.

  The communication network 9 is based on, for example, wired communication or wireless communication of a LAN (Local Area Network) or a WAN (Wide Area Network).

  As a whole, the document creation / editing device 3, the print control device 5, the image forming device 7, and the output instruction device 8 are connected to the communication network 9, and a single image forming device 7 is shared by a plurality of document creation / editing devices 3. Thus, on-demand printing can be performed. The term “on demand” is generally understood as meaning “when necessary, as much as necessary, when necessary”. Therefore, “on-demand printing” does not mean that the document creation / editing apparatus 3 causes the image forming apparatus 7 to immediately execute the printing process to discharge the printed output, but the printing process is performed even if the print instruction data PJ is generated. Is temporarily suspended and output processing is executed when an output instruction is issued via the output instruction device 8.

<Overall configuration of printing system: application example>
FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an application example of the printing system of the present embodiment. The printing system 1 is an example of a plurality of client terminals 30 having the functions of the document creation / editing device 3, a print server 50 that is an example of a print management device, an authentication server 60 that is an example of an authentication management device, and an image forming device 7. A printer 70 and an on-demand terminal 80, which is an example of the output instruction device 8, are connected via the communication network 9. Each functional unit included in the print control device 5 is appropriately arranged in the client terminal 30 and the print server 50 (details will be described later). The authentication server 60 performs processing for specifying whether or not the user is a legitimate person.

  As the print server 50 and the authentication server 60, for example, those using an electronic computer system including a display device, an instruction input device, and the like are used. These may be provided separately, or one electronic computer system may serve these two functions.

  The on-demand terminal 80 is generally a separate one prepared for each printer 70 in the vicinity of the printer 70. For example, the first printer 70_1 receives an output instruction from the on-demand terminal 80 connected to the communication network 9. It may be “every printer 70”, and may be the second printer 70_2 to which the on-demand terminal 80_2 is directly connected without going through the communication network 9, or the on-demand terminal 80_3 may be an integrated third printer 70_3 (multifunction device). Good. In the case of a system configuration in which the print server 50 and the authentication server 60 are provided in the vicinity of the printer 70, the print server 50 and the authentication server 60 may also function as the on-demand terminal 80.

<Print control device: Basic configuration>
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the print control apparatus 5. The print control apparatus 5 includes a hold control unit 100, a storage medium 106, a condition setting unit 110, a condition storage unit 120, a condition monitoring unit 130, a print instruction data replication unit 140, a notification unit 150, a duplication instruction data invalidation unit 160, a time limit A monitoring invalidation unit 170 is provided.

  If the printing process is not on-demand printing, the hold control unit 100 immediately transmits the print instruction data PJ to the image forming apparatus 7 to execute the printing process. On the other hand, when the printing process is on-demand printing, the hold control unit 100 stores the print instruction data PJ in the storage medium 106 until the release instruction from the output instruction device 8 is in the hold state, and cancels the release. The print instruction data PJ that has been put on hold when instructed is read from the storage medium 106 and transmitted to the image forming apparatus 7 to execute print processing.

  For example, as will be described later, an identifier (instruction data ID) for uniquely specifying each print instruction data PJ is attached to the storage medium 106, and a user ID, a document file name, a file size, a print instruction date and time, print settings, and the like. Each print instruction data PJ is stored as table data describing the items.

  The hold control unit 100 transmits the reserved print instruction data PJ to the printer 70, and when the print process is executed and completed, the hold control unit 100 deletes the held print instruction data PJ and stores it for the print instruction data PJ. Reduce capacity. Alternatively, the holding period is determined and deleted after the holding period elapses. In the latter case, when the printed matter once printed is lost, if it is within the holding period, the printed matter is output by holding the ID card (described later) again in front of the on-demand terminal 80 and releasing the holding. The

  The condition setting unit 110 is mounted on either the client terminal 30 or the print server 50. For example, the condition setting unit 110 includes a condition input unit 112 that captures an input of an automatic duplication condition CJ from a user, and a condition reception unit 114 that accepts (receives) the automatic duplication condition CJ captured by the condition input unit 112. When the condition storage unit 120 is placed on the print server 50 side, the condition input unit 112 may be placed on the client terminal 30 side, and the condition receiving unit 114 may be placed on the print server 50 side.

  The condition setting unit 110 sets a condition (referred to as automatic duplication condition CJ) for automatically duplicating print instruction data PJ (on-demand print job) for on-demand printing. Examples of the automatic duplication condition CJ include a user ID that uniquely identifies a user of a printed document, a document file name, a file size, and print settings. The automatic duplication condition CJ may be set individually for each document or each storage position. A setting that allows duplication when exactly the same print instruction data PJ is instructed to be printed within a certain period of time, or a setting that does not duplicate the print instruction data PJ with an instruction that does not explicitly duplicate the print instruction data PJ. May be possible.

  The automatic duplication condition CJ may be any one of them, and the print instruction data PJ may be automatically duplicated when they match, or the print instruction data when all of them match in any combination. A mechanism for automatically copying a PJ may be used. For example, copying is permitted if the same print instruction data PJ does not exist, but if the same print instruction data PJ exists, whether or not copying is possible is controlled by whether or not the print settings are the same. May be.

  In addition, the condition setting unit 110 sets whether to generate automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ when generating automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ for an electronic document related to a certain user. For example, it is set which member of the group (affiliation / department) to which the user belongs is permitted to be copied. The automatic duplication range condition EJ may be set individually for each document and each storage position.

  The storage position is not limited to a physical address when the electronic document is stored in the storage medium, but is used as a “folder” used as a storage location for classifying and organizing files in a general file management system. "Folder)" or "directory" may be used.

  The storage medium in which the electronic document is stored may be provided in the document creation / editing apparatus 3 or may be a storage medium connected to the communication network 9. By using the storage position, it is possible to save the trouble of setting the automatic duplication condition CJ and the print instruction data PJ individually for each document.

  Here, the condition of the member range (automatic duplication range condition EJ) for which the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is automatically created may be any user who needs the printed matter of the document. The automatic duplication range condition EJ may be set in advance based on job / age, project, team, and individual. Even if the user who created / edited the document does not need the printed matter of the document, the user may be set not to generate the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ.

  Also, when setting the automatic duplication range condition EJ, there is an item that associates the document distributor with the user who needs the printed document (related user), and the document distributor issues a document printing instruction. Only in some cases, a mechanism may be adopted in which automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ for the related user is generated. As a result, even if the member is related to the document, the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is not created when a person other than the distributor of the document instructs the printing of the document. This prevents the CPJ from being replicated too often.

  The condition storage unit 120 is mounted on either the client terminal 30 or the print server 50. The condition storage unit 120 holds each automatic duplication condition CJ and automatic duplication range condition EJ set by the condition setting unit 110 together with information (user ID) for specifying a user in a storage medium. For example, regarding the automatic duplication range condition EJ, as will be described later, the condition storage unit 120 describes a user who is to generate a copy of the print instruction data PJ (automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ) for each document. Stored as the table data.

  The condition monitoring unit 130 is mounted on either the client terminal 30 or the print server 50 as a monitoring process function unit. The condition monitoring unit 130 is an automatic replication condition CJ in which an electronic document created / edited / saved (newly saved / updated / saved) by the function of the document creation / editing device 3 provided in the client terminal 30 is saved in the condition storage unit 120. To see if it matches. The condition monitoring unit 130 includes an identity determination unit 132 and a duplication permission / inhibition determination unit 134.

  The identity determination unit 132 determines whether or not the print instruction data PJ that has been reserved and the print instruction data PJ that is newly generated and reserved for on-demand printing are the same (identity). In determining the identity, for example, based on the user ID, the file name, the file size, the print setting, and the like, the above-described combination is obtained from the list of print instruction data PJ that the hold control unit 100 holds on the storage medium 106. It is checked whether the same print instruction data PJ exists.

  If it does not exist, it is added to the newly created print instruction data PJ list, and the user ID and file name are passed to the duplication permission determination unit 134. On the other hand, if the same data exists, the notification to the duplication permission / inhibition determination unit 134 is not performed, but the fact is notified via the notification unit 150 to the user who has instructed the creation of the print instruction data PJ. In this case, automatic duplication of the print instruction data PJ is prohibited. In the case of a system in which the normally generated print instruction data UPJ and the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ can be mixed, duplication is permitted even if the same exists.

  Incidentally, in determining the identity, attributes other than the user ID, file name, file size, and print setting may be considered. For example, if the user ID and the file name of the print instruction data PJ existing in the instruction data list indicating each pending print instruction data PJ are the same and the print instruction date / time is within 24 hours of the user's print instruction date / time, the person However, it may be possible to make a setting that allows adding the normally generated print instruction data UPJ but not copying it to others even if the file size is different. In addition, it may be possible to make a setting that allows copying if the file name is the same without considering the file size.

  The duplication permission / inhibition determining unit 134 identifies a user who should create the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ by identifying a related user ID other than the user ID passed from the file name according to the automatic duplication range condition EJ. Information is notified to the print instruction data copying unit 140.

  The print instruction data copying unit 140 is mounted on either the client terminal 30 or the print server 50 as a monitoring process function unit. When the condition monitoring unit 130 detects an electronic document corresponding to the automatic copying condition CJ, the print instruction data copying unit 140 prints the print instruction data PJ based on the detected electronic document regardless of whether there is an instruction from the user. It is automatically duplicated and automatically duplicated print instruction data CPJ.

  Note that the client terminal 30 includes a print instruction data generation unit 340 that generates print instruction data PJ when an instruction from a user is given as a normal process. The print instruction data PJ at this time is referred to as normal generation print instruction data UPJ in order to distinguish it from the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ.

  Each print instruction data PJ generated by the print instruction data duplicating section 140 may be stored in a storage medium of the print control apparatus 5, or a printing apparatus to be used is determined and provided with a storage medium. Sometimes it may be sent to the printing device.

  It is preferable that the print service can determine that the print instruction data PJ has been automatically copied. For example, the print instruction data duplication unit 140 preferably uses a flag for distinguishing between the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ and the normally generated print instruction data UPJ in the list display of the print instruction data PJ in the output instruction device 8. As an attribute of each print instruction data PJ.

  Alternatively, a certain printing apparatus may be set to a dedicated one that is in charge of the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ. Here, the “certain printing device” is preferably a so-called logical printer LP. The “logical printer” means a virtual printing device including a setting value of a print option and the like, unlike a physical printing device (physical printer). Information on the output conditions for each printing apparatus, such as information for connecting to a physical printer and printer driver information, is registered as a logical printer, and a system that uses the physical printer via this logical printer is constructed.

  For example, one logical printer LP may be set exclusively for on-demand, and a plurality of physical printers PP may be associated with this. Since the logical printer LP is set to be on-demand only, even if the print instruction data PJ is received, the print instruction is not executed immediately but is held until an output instruction is issued from the output instruction device. . Each printing process to be described later performs an on-demand printing process, and this example is applied.

  The notification unit 150 is mounted on either the client terminal 30 or the print server 50 as a monitoring process function unit. The notification unit 150 notifies the user when the print instruction data duplicating unit 140 automatically duplicates the print instruction data PJ or when automatic duplication is prohibited because the same print instruction data PJ exists. Notice. For example, if the user who is creating / editing a document is the same as the user who needs the printed material of the document, it is used for creation / editing when there is an instruction to print the document. For example, a pop-up window may be displayed on the display screen of the client terminal 30 for notification. If the user who is creating / editing the document is different from the user who needs the printed matter of the document, it is better to notify by e-mail or Web mail.

  In any case, on the notification screen, it is preferable to accept whether the notified print instruction data PJ is held as it is or deleted immediately. Further, a configuration may be adopted in which the setting of the holding period is accepted and deleted after the holding period has elapsed. For example, when notified by e-mail or the like that automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ has been generated, an instruction to delete automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is accepted by a reply function for Web mail or e-mail. That is, if the notified user finds that the printed matter based on the automatically duplicated print instruction data CPJ created automatically is clearly unnecessary, it is prevented from being printed unnecessarily.

  For example, in the case where the printer 70 is the third printer 70_3 having the function of the on-demand terminal 80, a single function machine (single function printer: Single) having a poor user interface that cannot display, select, or delete the list of print instruction data PJ. This is effective when printing with a Function Printer), and wasteful printing is suppressed, and wasteful use of paper resources is avoided.

  The duplication instruction data invalidation unit 160 is installed in the print server 50 as a monitoring process function unit. The duplication instruction data invalidation unit 160, when the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is generated in duplicate for the same electronic document, based on a predetermined condition (duplication invalidation condition) To disable.

  In this embodiment, the duplication permission / inhibition determining unit 134 avoids generating duplicate print instruction data PJ for the user who issued the document print instruction. In the case where the users who require the printed matter of the document are different (that is, the user on the side where the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is generated), the avoidance of duplicate generation is not made. Therefore, when taking the form in which the normally generated print instruction data UPJ and the automatic duplicating print instruction data CPJ can be mixed, for the user on the side where the automatic duplicating print instruction data CPJ is generated, the same document is duplicated. There is a possibility that the instruction data PJ is generated. Therefore, the duplicate instruction data invalidating unit 160 avoids the generation of duplicate print instruction data PJ (automatic duplicate print instruction data CPJ) for the user on the side where the automatic duplicate print instruction data CPJ is generated. .

  For invalidation, the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ may be deleted from the storage medium, or a flag indicating that the invalidation printing instruction data CPJ has been invalidated may be attached to the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ. In either case, since the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ to be displayed as a list is reduced, it becomes easy for the user to search for the print processing desired. The former also contributes to a reduction in storage capacity. In the latter case, since the process returns when the flag is changed, a print result based on the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ after the return is obtained. As the duplicate invalidation condition, either new or old (old) is set. For example, when there is automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ for which print processing has not been executed and automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is newly created by the print instruction data duplication unit 140, the document name and document are stored. If the folder names are compared and it is determined that the versions of the same document are different, the old one is replaced with the new one (the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is updated). At this time, the old automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is automatically deleted.

  For example, in the case of a condition setting that generates automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ each time a document print instruction is issued by each of a plurality of users who are associated with copy permission for the same document, for each user Thus, a plurality of automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is generated and held by the print server 50. However, in most cases, only the latest automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ needs to be executed, and the old one automatically saves the capacity of the storage medium. In addition, the user's convenience is improved because the trouble of searching for a desired one out of a large number of automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ for the same document is saved. Incidentally, by adding a flag indicating that the old one has been invalidated without being deleted, an old document can be printed if the flag is changed, thereby improving the convenience for the user.

  For example, in the case where the printer 70 is the third printer 70_3 having the function of the on-demand terminal 80, a single function machine (single function printer) with a poor user interface that cannot display a list, select or delete the print instruction data PJ, etc. Consider the case of printing with In this case, if there are a plurality of print instruction data PJ for the same document, a plurality of similar printed materials are likely to be output and useless. On the other hand, by leaving only the newer one that is considered to be highly used, that is, by deleting the old automatic duplicate print instruction data CPJ, wasteful printing is suppressed and wasteful use of paper resources. Can be avoided.

  The deadline monitoring invalidation unit 170 is installed in the print server 50 as a monitoring process function unit. The deadline monitoring invalidation unit 170 invalidates (cancels) unnecessary items based on a predetermined deadline condition (deadline invalidation condition DJ). A fixed period (that is, a holding period) is set as the term invalidation condition DJ.

  The deadline monitoring invalidation unit 170 automatically invalidates the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ in which the printing process is not executed even after a certain period. The countermeasure for “invalid” is the same as in the case of the duplication instruction data invalidating unit 160. For example, the deadline monitoring invalidation unit 170 automatically deletes the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ when an elapsed period (for example, 3 days) after the generation (duplication) of the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ elapses. By doing so, it is possible to avoid that a large number of automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ automatically duplicated in a situation not designated by the user are stored for a long period of time without executing the printing process.

  Further, not only the elapsed period after copying, but also the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ may be automatically deleted when the elapsed period (for example, the current day) based on the date on which the printed matter of the document is required is passed. Good. For example, when a document is a material required for a certain meeting (meeting material document), it may be automatically deleted based on the meeting date and time. For example, a schedule DB (DB: DataBase) is associated with an automatic deletion date. When the meeting date and time is determined, the user who has received the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ does not need to consider the deletion instruction for the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ even when not printing. For example, when “specification aaa” and “conference aaa” are associated with each other and “conference aaa” is up to “2008/03/06, 13: 00-15: 00”, the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is If the meeting member does not print and becomes “2008/03/06, 15:00”, it is automatically deleted without intentional deletion.

  For these reasons, it is preferable not to cause the automatic invalidation processing based on the time limit management to function for the normally generated print instruction data UPJ. Of course, the automatic invalidation processing based on the time limit management may be made to function for the normally generated print instruction data UPJ. In this case, for the normally generated print instruction data UPJ, it is preferable to set a longer term invalidation condition DJ (holding period until automatically disabled) than the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ.

  When the print instruction data replication unit 140 generates the print instruction data PJ, the notification unit 150 not only generates the print instruction data PJ but also the expiration date invalidation condition DJ set in the print instruction data PJ. It is good to notify.

  Incidentally, each of these functional units included in the printing control apparatus 5 has no dependency relationship with the existing printing system and can be installed / operated independently.

<Output instruction device: basic configuration>
FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the output instruction device 8. The output instruction device 8 receives a command input from a user 210, a display control unit 220 that controls display of a list of print command data PJ and other operation menus, and an execution command for executing a print process. An instruction unit 230 and an ID card reader 240 that reads information described in the ID card are provided.

  Preferably, when displaying the list of print instruction data PJ, the display control unit 220 automatically reproduces the normally generated print instruction data UPJ generated based on the user's manual operation and the print instruction data duplication unit 140. The automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ should be distinguished.

  For example, display is performed using a figure (icon or the like) that distinguishes the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ and the normally generated print instruction data UPJ. For example, a graphic (icon or the like) indicating that the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is automatically duplicated is displayed next to the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ. A graphic indicating normal generation print instruction data UPJ is displayed next to the normal generation print instruction data UPJ. These do not need to be executed for both, and can be distinguished from each other by executing only one of them.

  Or you may perform the display using not only the distinction using a figure but a boundary line. For example, a boundary line is displayed on the display screen, the list of normally generated print instruction data UPJ is displayed on one of the upper and lower sides of the boundary line (for example, the upper side), and the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is displayed on the other side (for example, the lower side). Display a list.

  Alternatively, when a list display instruction is given, a method may be employed in which only one of the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ and the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is extracted and displayed according to the display filter conditions.

  For such distinction display, the print instruction data duplicating unit 140 has also been described. However, information (flag) for distinguishing the two is attached as an attribute of the print instruction data PJ and output from the print control apparatus 5. It is preferable to send the list information of the print instruction data PJ to the instruction device 8. Alternatively, a display condition (filter condition) based on the instruction received by the output instruction device 8 via the reception unit 210 is sent from the output instruction device 8 to the print control device 5, and the print control device 5 matches the display condition. The list information may be sent to the output instruction device 8.

  The execution instruction unit 230 is selected when receiving an instruction to execute printing based on certain print instruction data PJ selected from the print instruction data PJ displayed on the display control unit 220 via the reception unit 210. The print server 50 and the printer 70 are instructed to execute printing based on the print instruction data PJ. For example, the print server 50 that has received this instruction releases the hold of the selected print instruction data PJ and transmits the print instruction data PJ to the printer 70. The printer 70 that has received the print instruction data PJ executes print processing.

  The ID card reader 240 is an example of a user information reading device, and is an ID card that is required to receive use permission through user authentication when the user uses the printing system 1 (on-demand terminal 80). The user identification information stored (registered) is read by, for example, wireless communication. Specifically, when the user holds the ID card close to the reading unit provided in the ID card reader 240, wireless communication is automatically performed between the ID card reader 240 and the ID card, The stored user identification information is read by the ID card reader 240. The user identification information is unique information assigned to each individual user in order to uniquely identify the user. The ID card is a card that incorporates an integrated circuit chip and communicates with the ID card reader 240 in a contactless manner for information exchange.

  The ID card is a means for specifying a user (user specifying means). The user card is not limited to an ID card, and may be a magnetic card with a magnetic stripe. For example, an information storage medium mounted on a mobile phone may be used. When the user specifying means is a magnetic card, the sensor is detected that the magnetic card has been inserted into the card insertion slot of the user information reading apparatus that matches the user specifying means, and the magnetic card is placed in the user information reading apparatus. It is only necessary to read the user identification information recorded in the magnetic stripe in this state.

<Print processing: Basic>
3 to 3A are diagrams for explaining the basics of the automatic on-demand printing process of the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a system configuration diagram of the printing system 1A according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3A is a flowchart illustrating a basic example of a processing procedure in the printing system 1A of the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the system configuration of the present embodiment, the condition input unit 112 in each functional unit constituting the print control device 5 and the print instruction data PJ when there is an instruction from the user. A print instruction data generation unit 340 to generate is provided. Except for the condition input unit 112 of the print control apparatus 5, the print server 50 is provided. As an example of the printer 70, a first printer 70_1 that receives an output instruction from an on-demand terminal 80 connected to the communication network 9 is used. In the example, the print server 50 and the authentication server 60 are provided separately.

  In the automatic on-demand printing process of the present embodiment, when a document is instructed to be printed by a user and the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is created, if the automatic duplication condition CJ that is predetermined for the document is met, For the user to be replicated set as the automatic duplication range condition EJ, the normal duplication print instruction data UPJ is automatically duplicated and the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is duplicated (created). For example, when generating normally generated print instruction data UPJ for an electronic document related to a user, set which member of the group (affiliation / department) to which the user belongs to generate automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ It is possible.

  The user operates (starts) the condition setting unit 110 and the condition storage unit 120 by operating the client terminal 30.

  The group administrator (user) first sets the automatic duplication condition CJ in the condition setting unit 110 (condition input unit 112) (S110). For example, for each user ID, if there is no print instruction data PJ that matches the file name of the document and the file size, it is natural that the normal generation print instruction data UPJ for itself is generated, and the same as the normal generation print instruction data UPJ. Set to permit copying of others (automatic copying print instruction data CPJ). On the other hand, if there is print instruction data PJ that has the same file name and file size as the document, copy is prohibited for others, but for personal use, if the print settings are the same, creation is prohibited However, if the print settings are different, the creation is permitted.

  The group administrator also sets an automatic duplication range condition EJ that specifies the generation range of the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ when generating the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ for electronic documents related to a user belonging to the group. (S114). For example, a member that generates automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is set for each project related to a document.

  The condition setting unit 110 (condition input unit 112) sends each set automatic duplication condition CJ to the condition reception unit 114 together with identification information (user ID) that uniquely identifies the user. The condition receiving unit 114 stores these in the condition storage unit 120 in association with each other (S118). The condition setting unit 110 (condition input unit 112) also sends the set automatic duplication range condition EJ to the condition reception unit 114 together with the identification information (user ID). The condition receiving unit 114 also stores the automatic duplication range condition EJ in the condition storage unit 120 in association with the identification information (user ID) and the document file name (S119).

  When there is an instruction to create the print instruction data PJ from the user (S120-YES), the print instruction data generation unit 340 generates the normal generation print instruction data UPJ (S122), and the normal user's normal indicated by the user ID is displayed. The generated print instruction data UPJ is transmitted to the print server 50 (S124).

  Each time the condition monitoring unit 130 receives the normal generation print instruction data UPJ, it compares the normal generation print instruction data UPJ with the automatic duplication condition CJ stored in the condition storage unit 120 to determine whether or not it is an automatic duplication target. If they match, the print instruction data duplication unit 140 is instructed to create automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ.

  For example, the identity determination unit 132 first matches the received normal generation print instruction data UPJ with the instruction data list, and the combination of the user ID, file name, and file size set in the normal generation print instruction data UPJ is the same. The sex is determined (S132). The identity determination unit 132 holds the print instruction data PJ (normally generated print instruction data UPJ) received from the print instruction data generation unit 340 if no combination of these exists (S132-NO). The state is stored in the storage device (S150). At that time, an identifier for distinguishing each print instruction data PJ is attached, and a user ID and a document name are also recorded.

  In addition, the identity determination unit 132 passes the user ID and file name to the duplication permission / non-permission judgment unit 134 and instructs the duplication target user to be specified (S134). The duplication permission / inhibition determining unit 134 refers to the automatic duplication range condition EJ of the document (normally generated print instruction data UPJ), and notifies the print instruction data duplication unit 140 of a related user ID other than the user ID passed from the file name. . Returns nothing if it doesn't exist.

  Upon receiving this notification, the print instruction data duplication unit 140 duplicates the normally generated print instruction data UPJ to automatically generate the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ (S136), and the user's automatic indicated by the duplication target user ID. The duplicate print instruction data CPJ is passed to a logical printer dedicated to automatic on-demand printing set in the print server 50.

  When the print instruction data duplication unit 140 automatically creates the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ, the notification unit 150 uses the display means and voice notification means (speaker, etc.) of the client terminal 30 to copy the information. The user is notified (S136).

  On the other hand, if there is no combination having the same combination of user ID, file name, and file size (S132-NO), the identity determining unit 132 further determines the identity of the print settings (S140). When the print settings are the same (S140-YES), the identity determination unit 132 notifies the user who has instructed the creation of the normally generated print instruction data UPJ via the notification unit 150, and displays it in the instruction data list. Normally generated print instruction data UPJ is not added. That is, the normally generated print instruction data UPJ received here is discarded without being held (S152).

  In this case, it is considered that the contents of the print instruction data PJ are the same as those on hold and only the print instruction date / time is different. Therefore, the duplication instruction data invalidating unit 160 may replace the pending one with the newly generated normal generation print instruction data UPJ (that is, delete the original) (S162, S164). In this case, the hold control unit 100 attaches a new number different from the original to the instruction data ID.

  If the print settings are different (S140-NO), the user who has instructed the creation of the normal generation print instruction data UPJ is notified, and the normal generation print instruction data UPJ is added to the instruction data list. The print instruction data PJ (normally generated print instruction data UPJ) received from the clogged print instruction data generation unit 340 is stored in the storage device in a suspended state (S150). In this case, a plurality of documents having the same image data but different print settings are held for the same document. Therefore, there is a concern that a large number of print instruction data PJ of the same document is generated. As a countermeasure, the duplication instruction data invalidating unit 160 replaces the print instruction data PJ of the pending file, that is, the file having the same name with different print settings, with the newly generated normally generated print instruction data UPJ (that is, the original print instruction data UPJ). (S162, S164). Only the normally generated print instruction data UPJ with the print settings intended by the user remains. Also in this case, the hold control unit 100 attaches a new number different from the original to the instruction data ID.

  The deadline monitoring invalidation unit 170 monitors whether the saving period of the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ saved in the hold state has reached a predetermined deadline at regular intervals (S166). Then, the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ in which the printing process is not executed even after a certain period of time is automatically invalidated (S166-YES, S168).

  The user is given an ID card for using the printing system 1A. The user holds the ID card over the ID card reader in order to operate the on-demand terminal 80 (S170). The on-demand terminal 80 inquires the authentication server 60 based on the information read from the ID card by the ID card reader 240 and identifies the user (S172). When the user ID is not specified or when the user is an unauthorized user, the processing is stopped (S172-NO). When the legitimate user ID is specified (S172-YES), the display control unit 220 displays a list of normally generated print instruction data UPJ created based on the user's voluntary instructions and logic dedicated to automatic on-demand printing. A list of the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ transmitted to the printer is inquired of the print server 50 (S174).

  The display control unit 220 displays a list of print instruction data PJ acquired from the print server 50 on the operation screen (S175). At this time, for example, the display control unit 220 displays the normally generated print instruction data UPJ at the top of the list, and displays the list of automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ at the lower part where the boundary lines are displayed.

  The user selects a desired print process from the displayed print instruction data PJ and instructs the print process (S176). When receiving the instruction input via the reception unit 210, the execution instruction unit 230 transmits a hold release command for the print instruction data PJ selected by the user to the print server 50 (S178).

  For example, the user selects the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ desired to be printed from the list of each automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ shown at the lower part of the boundary line, and issues an output instruction from the printer 70. Then, the hold release command for the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ selected by the user is transmitted to the print server 50.

  When the print server 50 receives a hold release command for the print instruction data PJ (S180-YES), the print server 50 releases the hold of the print instruction data PJ that has been put on hold and transmits it to the connected printer 70 (S182). The printer 70 that has received the print instruction data PJ executes print processing (S184).

  According to this procedure, when a user wants to print an electronic document, it matches the automatic duplication condition CJ specified in advance (when the combination of user ID, file name, and file size is different in the previous example). For example, when the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is newly created and transmitted to the print server 50 based on an instruction from a certain user, the automatic duplication target user specified by the automatic duplication range condition EJ is automatically duplicated. The print instruction data CPJ has been automatically copied. The duplication target user can operate the on-demand terminal 80 to obtain the print output simply by releasing the hold state of the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ. As a result, compared with the case where the present embodiment is not applied, the printing operation procedure is simplified and the time until the print output is obtained is shortened.

  In other words, when a user handling a document gives an instruction to print the document, the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ for the document is generated, suspended, and notified that it has been automatically duplicated according to the automatic duplication condition CJ. In this state, the printer can immediately print (on-demand printing is possible). Therefore, the user to be copied who has received the notification (the user who wishes to execute the printing process, which is different from the user who issued the print instruction) simply holds the ID card over the on-demand terminal 80. Output is possible.

  For example, in a situation where a plurality of users print the same printed matter, each user can similarly give an instruction for on-demand printing at the client terminal 30. In this case, each person can perform the same instruction operation. Doing is redundant. On the other hand, if the mechanism of this embodiment is applied, if someone instructs on-demand printing of a document, and if the automatic duplication condition CJ is met, an automatic duplication printing instruction is also given to a user set as a duplication target. Data CPJ is automatically generated and put on hold in a printable state, and a notification to that effect is sent to the user to be copied. The person who has received the notification does not need to give the same print instruction as the person who issued the print instruction, and can be output simply by holding the ID card while omitting the trouble of the instruction operation.

  To give a more specific example, when a member prints a document created by another member at a high frequency, if the document meets the automatic on-demand printing conditions (automatic duplication condition CJ in this example), automatic duplication Automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ of the users to be duplicated (for example, for all project members) specified by the range condition EJ is generated. As a result, not only the improvement of the personal printing business process but also the efficiency of the business on a project basis is led. Further, when the same document is edited by a plurality of people, it is preferable to set so that automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is generated for each editing member at the timing when a document print instruction is issued by somebody. When an editing member wants to print a document, the print output of the latest document can be obtained quickly at any time by canceling the pending state of the already generated automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ.

  In a meeting or the like, it may be difficult to grasp the appropriate number of copies when a representative prepares printed matter for the number of people and distributes it at the time of the meeting. If the grasp is not appropriate, it may happen that more printing is necessary than necessary. Even if the number of participants in the conference is known in advance, when a person who does not participate in the meeting occurs, the printed matter for that person is wasted. On the other hand, if this embodiment is applied so that each person brings a printed matter and participates, the user related to the document will be notified that the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ received is in a suspended state. Therefore, selection of whether or not to print the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is left to the duplication target user. Therefore, printing not intended by the user is not performed, and as a result, the optimum number of copies is output.

  On the other hand, from the viewpoint of increasing profits by charging according to the number of print outputs, the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is automatically duplicated, which increases the chances of print output and may lead to an increase in profits. Be expected. For example, when the user operates the on-demand terminal 80 and print instruction data PJ waiting for output is displayed in a list, not only the normally generated print instruction data UPJ that the user has instructed but also the user prints. The automatically duplicated print instruction data CPJ that is generated automatically with a high possibility of being desired is also listed. As a result, the number of print outputs can be increased, which can increase profits.

<Specific example>
Next, there is a case where the print instruction data PJ for the same document does not exist in the instruction data list and the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is generated, and the print instruction data PJ for the same document exists in the instruction data list and the print settings are the same Each case where the print instruction data PJ of the same document exists in the instruction data list but the print settings are different will be described with specific examples.

[Specific Example 1]
4 to 4D are diagrams for explaining a specific example 1 in which the print instruction data PJ for the same document does not exist in the instruction data list and the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ is generated. Here, FIG. 4 is an example of a list (instruction data list) of the print instruction data PJ held by the hold control unit 100 before the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is created for the user “AAA”. 4A is an example of the instruction data list after the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is generated for the user “AAA”. FIG. 4B is a copy describing the automatic duplication range condition EJ set for each document. Fig. 4C is an example of an instruction data list after the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is generated for other users, and Fig. 4D is an example 1 (to be described later). It is the figure which showed the outline | summary of also including the specific examples 2 and 3.

  1) By operating the client terminal 30, the user “AAA” instructs the print server 50 to print “aaa specifications” with the print setting “punch / both sides”.

  2) In the print server 50, the identity determination unit 132 determines from the instruction data list (FIG. 4) held by the hold control unit 100 based on the user ID, file name, and file size passed in 1). It is checked whether print instruction data PJ having the same combination exists. If it does not exist, the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is added to the instruction data list (FIG. 4) (instruction data ID: 784 in FIG. 4), and the user ID and file name are passed to the duplication permission / inhibition determining unit 134.

  3) The duplication permission / inhibition determining unit 134 refers to the duplication target list (FIG. 4B) and returns a related user ID other than the user ID passed from the file name to the print instruction data duplicating unit 140. Returns nothing if it doesn't exist. For example, since the related users of the “aaa specification” are AAA, BBB, and CCC, BBB and CCC other than AAA are returned.

  4) The print instruction data duplicating unit 140 duplicates the normally generated print instruction data UPJ created in 2) by the number of user IDs passed from the duplication permission / inhibition judging unit 134 and replaces it with the passed user ID. Generate automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ for each duplication target user. Further, the notification unit 150 notifies the corresponding copy target user that the normally generated print instruction data UPJ has been copied by Web mail or electronic mail. For example, since BBB and CCC are passed, two instruction data IDs: 784 are duplicated, the user IDs are replaced with BBB and CCC, and added to the instruction data list (FIG. 4A) (FIG. 4C).

  5) The user “AAA” can output the “aaa specification” from the favorite printer 70 on demand.

  6) Further, the user “BBB” and the user “CCC” to be copied can output the “aaa specification” from the favorite printer 70 in the on-demand printing without taking the trouble of instructing to print.

[Specific Example 2]
With reference to FIG. 4C, a specific example 2 in which print instruction data PJ of the same document exists in the instruction data list and the print settings are the same will be described. In the following, it is assumed that the process is subsequent to the first specific example.

  1) The user “BBB” instructs the print server 50 to print “aaa specifications” with the print setting “punch / both sides”.

  2) In the print server 50, the identity determination unit 132 determines from the instruction data list (FIG. 4C) that the hold control unit 100 holds based on the user ID, file name, and file size passed in 1). It is checked whether print instruction data PJ having the same combination exists.

  3) If it exists, the identity determination unit 132 checks whether the print settings are the same, and if the print settings are the same, the notification unit 150 informs that “similar print instruction data already exists”. A message to that effect is notified to the user “BBB” and is not added to the instruction data list. Furthermore, if the duplicated print instruction data PJ (automatically duplicated print instruction data CPJ) and the personally generated print instruction data UPJ are duplicated (batting), the print settings will be taken into account and the “already existing” “punch print” By displaying “There is instruction data PJ” or the like, the user's print instruction may be supported (supported). In this case, since the duplication process by the print instruction data duplication unit 140 is not performed, the normally generated print instruction data UPJ of the user “BBB” is not duplicated to other duplication target persons.

  Further, the automatic duplication print instruction data CPJ obtained by duplicating the above process may be replaced with the normally generated print instruction data UPJ issued by itself. That is, the instruction data ID: 785 is deleted, and print instruction data PJ having the same document and the same print settings as the instruction data ID: 787 is added to the instruction data list. At this time, the print instruction time is updated with the time when the operation of 1) is performed.

[Specific Example 3]
FIG. 4E is a diagram for explaining a specific example 3 in which print instruction data PJ of the same document exists in the instruction data list but the print settings are different. Here, FIG. 4E is an example of a list of instruction data held by the hold control unit 100 after the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is created for the user “CCC”.

  1) The user “CCC” instructs the print server 50 to print “aaa specifications” with the print setting “A5 / staple”.

  2) In the print server 50, the identity determination unit 132 determines whether the hold control unit 100 holds the instruction data list (FIG. 4C) on hold based on the user ID, file name, and file size passed in 1). It is checked whether print instruction data PJ having the same combination exists. If the print settings are the same, the identity determination unit 132 checks whether the print settings are also the same. If the print settings are different, the notification unit 150 notifies the user that “print instruction data PJ of the file with the same name but different print settings exists. A message “Masu” is notified to the user “CCC”, and the normally generated print instruction data UPJ is added to the instruction data list (FIG. 4E). In this case, since the copy process by the print instruction data copying unit 140 is not performed in this case, the normally generated print instruction data UPJ of the user “CCC” is not copied to other copy target persons.

  Note that existing print instruction data PJ (print instruction data PJ of files having the same name with different print settings) may be deleted during the processing. As a result, only the print instruction data PJ of the print setting intended by the user “CCC” remains, and for example, printing is performed by a single function machine (simple function printer) that cannot select or delete the print instruction data PJ by the printer 70. It is effective in cases where

<Configuration by electronic computer>
FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating another configuration example of the print control device 5 and the output instruction device 8. Here, a more realistic hardware configuration in which the print control device 5 and the output instruction device 8 are constructed from a microprocessor or the like that executes software using an electronic computer such as a personal computer is shown.

  That is, in the present embodiment, the mechanism of the print control device 5 and the image forming device 7 that perform processing related to on-demand printing processing is not limited to being configured by a hardware processing circuit, but based on program code that realizes the function. It is realized by software using an electronic computer (computer). Therefore, a program suitable for realizing the mechanism according to the present embodiment by software using an electronic computer (computer) or a computer-readable storage medium storing this program is extracted as an invention. By adopting a mechanism that is executed by software, the processing procedure and the like can be easily changed without changing hardware.

  A series of on-demand printing processes for generating the automatic duplication printing instruction data APJ is not limited to hardware or software alone, but can be realized by a combined configuration of both. When executing processing by software, a program showing the processing procedure is installed (installed) in a storage medium in a computer embedded in hardware and executed, or a general-purpose electronic computer capable of executing various types of processing is used. Incorporate and execute the program.

  A program for causing a computer to execute an on-demand print processing function for generating automatic duplication print instruction data APJ is distributed through a recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Alternatively, this program may be stored in the FD instead of the CD-ROM. In addition, an MO drive may be provided to store the program in the MO, or the program may be stored in another recording medium such as a nonvolatile semiconductor memory card such as a flash memory. Furthermore, the program constituting the software is not limited to being provided via a recording medium, but may be provided via a wired or wireless communication network. For example, the program may be obtained by downloading from another server or the like via a network such as the Internet, or may be updated. Furthermore, the program is provided as a file describing a program code for realizing the function of performing on-demand printing processing for generating the automatic duplication printing instruction data APJ. In this case, the program is not limited to being provided as a batch program file. The program may be provided as an individual program module according to the hardware configuration of the system configured by the computer.

  For example, the computer system 900 can read and write at any time from a central control unit 910 constituted by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a microprocessor and a ROM (Read Only Memory) that is a read-only storage unit. A storage unit 912 having a random access memory (RAM), an operation unit 914, and other peripheral members not shown.

  The central control unit 910 is similar to the central control unit 910 that forms the center of an electronic computer whose representative example is a CPU in which the functions of computation and control performed by a computer are integrated into an ultra-small integrated circuit. The ROM stores a control program for an on-demand print processing function that generates automatic duplication print instruction data APJ. The ROM of the storage unit 612 may have the function. The operation unit 914 is a user interface for accepting an operation by a user.

  The control system of the computer system 900 may be configured such that an external recording medium such as a memory card that is not shown can be inserted and removed, and can be connected to a communication network such as the Internet. For this purpose, the control system includes a memory reading unit 920 that reads information on a portable recording medium and a communication I / F 922 as a communication interface unit with the outside in addition to the central control unit 910 and the storage unit 912. It is good to make it. By providing the memory reading unit 920, a program can be installed or updated from an external recording medium. By providing the communication I / F 922, the program can be installed or updated via the communication network. The basic on-demand print processing mechanism is the same as in the above-described embodiment.

  Here, the print control device 5 and the output instruction device 8 have been described as a configuration example that is realized by software on a computer, but the print control device 5 for realizing the on-demand print processing of the present embodiment Specific means of each part (including functional blocks) of the output instruction device 8 may be hardware, software, communication means, a combination thereof, or other means, which is obvious to those skilled in the art. Moreover, the functional blocks may be combined and integrated into one functional block. Also, software that causes a computer to execute program processing is installed in a distributed manner according to the combination.

1 is a diagram illustrating a basic configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of application of the printing system of this embodiment. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a print control apparatus. FIG. It is a figure which shows the structural example of an output instruction | indication apparatus. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a printing system according to an embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure in the printing system of the present embodiment. It is an example of the instruction | indication data list | wrist which the holding | maintenance control part hold | maintains before normal production | generation print instruction data is produced. It is an example of the instruction data list after the normal generation print instruction data is generated for the user “AAA”. It is an example of a duplication target list describing automatic duplication range conditions set for each document. It is an example of the instruction data list after the automatic duplication printing instruction data CPJ is generated. It is the figure which showed the outline | summary of the specific examples 1-3. It is an example of the instruction data list after the normal generation print instruction data is generated for the user “CCC”. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example when comprising a printing control apparatus and an output instruction | indication apparatus using an electronic computer.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Printing system, 100 ... Hold control part, 106 ... Storage medium, 110 ... Condition setting part, 112 ... Condition input part 112, 114 ... Condition reception part 114, 120 ... Condition storage part, 130 ... Condition monitoring part, 132 ... Identity determination unit 132, 134 ... Duplicate permission determination unit 134, 140 ... Print instruction data duplication unit 140, 150 ... Notification unit, 160 ... Duplicate instruction data invalidation unit, 170 ... Deadline monitoring invalidation unit, 210 ... Acceptance unit, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 220 ... Display control part, 230 ... Execution instruction | indication part, 240 ... ID card reader, 3 ... Document creation edit apparatus, 30 ... Client terminal, 340 ... Print instruction data generation part 340, 5 ... Print control apparatus, 50 ... Print server, 60 ... Authentication server, 7 ... Image forming device, 70 ... Printer, 8 ... Output instruction device, 80 ... On-demand terminal, 9 ... Communication network, 910 ... Central control unit, 12 ... storage unit, 914 ... operating unit, 920 ... memory reading unit, 922 ... communication I / F

Claims (13)

A document creation / editing apparatus capable of creating or editing a document, an image forming apparatus for forming an image of the document on an output medium, and the document creation / editing apparatus and the image forming apparatus. A print control device capable of holding a print process; and an output instruction device for instructing the execution of the process based on an instruction from a user who wishes to execute the print process held by the print control device. And
The print control device includes:
An automatic duplication condition for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user, and a condition setting unit for setting the user to be duplicated,
A condition storage unit for storing the automatic duplication condition created by the condition setting unit and the user to be duplicated;
A condition monitoring unit that monitors whether print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a user matches an automatic duplication condition stored in the condition storage unit;
A print instruction data duplicating unit for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction of the certain user for the user to be replicated when the condition monitoring unit determines that the match is satisfied;
If the print process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to execute the print process. If the print process is to be suspended, the output instruction apparatus has a cancel instruction. Stores the print instruction data in a storage medium and puts it on hold, reads the print instruction data held on hold when there is a release instruction, and sends it to the image forming apparatus. A hold control unit for executing print processing;
Having a printing system. The output instruction device includes:
A receiving unit that receives an instruction from a user who desires to execute a printing process held by the print control apparatus;
A display control unit for controlling the display;
An execution instruction unit for instructing execution of the printing process,
The display control unit, based on the print instruction data that matches the automatic duplication condition and the instruction from the user, when the reception unit receives the display of the print processing information held by the print control apparatus. Display the generated print instruction data separately,
The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the execution instruction unit instructs execution of a print process based on the print instruction data selected by a user who desires to execute a print process from the distinguished display. An automatic duplication condition for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user, and a condition setting unit for setting the user to be duplicated,
A condition storage unit for storing the automatic duplication condition created by the condition setting unit and the user to be duplicated;
A condition monitoring unit that monitors whether print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a user matches an automatic duplication condition stored in the condition storage unit;
A print instruction data duplicating unit for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction of the certain user for the user to be replicated when the condition monitoring unit determines that the match is satisfied;
A printing control apparatus. The printing instruction data duplicating unit includes a notifying unit for notifying the duplication target user when the printing instruction data generated based on the instruction of the certain user is duplicated. The printing control apparatus according to 3. An invalidating unit for invalidating the print instruction data created when the automatic duplication condition for duplicating the print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user is met according to a predetermined condition;
If the print process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to execute the print process. If the print process is to be suspended, the output instruction apparatus has a cancel instruction. Stores the print instruction data in a storage medium and puts it on hold, reads the print instruction data held on hold when there is a release instruction, and sends it to the image forming apparatus. A hold control unit for executing print processing;
A printing control apparatus. The printing according to claim 5, wherein the invalidation unit invalidates unnecessary data based on a predetermined condition when there are a plurality of the print instruction data generated by meeting the automatic duplication condition. Control device. The print control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the invalidation unit replaces the old one with the new one among the plurality of print instruction data generated when the automatic duplication condition is met, and deletes the old one. The print control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the invalidation unit invalidates an older one of the plurality of print instruction data generated by matching the automatic duplication condition in a state where the data can be restored later. The invalidation unit deletes the print instruction data when the print processing for the print instruction data generated by meeting the automatic duplication condition remains in a pending state even after a predetermined time limit is exceeded. The printing control apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the printing control apparatus is invalidated. The invalidation unit, when the print processing for the print instruction data generated by meeting the automatic duplication condition remains in a pending state even after a predetermined time limit, the print instruction data, The print control apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the print control apparatus is disabled in a state where it can be restored later. A printing control apparatus configured to hold a printing process by interposing between a document creating / editing apparatus capable of creating or editing a document and an image forming apparatus for forming an image of the document on an output medium An accepting unit that accepts an instruction from a user who wishes to execute a printing process suspended by
A display control unit for controlling the display;
An execution instruction unit for instructing execution of the printing process,
The display control unit, based on the print instruction data that matches the automatic duplication condition and the instruction from the user, when the reception unit receives the display of the print processing information held by the print control apparatus. The generated print instruction data is distinguished and displayed.
The output instruction device is configured to instruct execution of a print process based on the print instruction data selected by a user who desires to execute a print process from the distinguished display. An automatic duplication condition for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction from a user and a user to be duplicated are set, and the set automatic duplication condition and a user to be duplicated are predetermined conditions. A condition setting unit stored in the storage unit;
A condition monitoring unit that monitors whether print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a user matches an automatic duplication condition stored in the condition storage unit;
A print instruction data duplicating unit for duplicating print instruction data generated based on an instruction of the certain user for the user to be replicated when the condition monitoring unit determines that the match is satisfied;
Print control program that causes the computer to function. An invalidating unit for invalidating the print instruction data created when the automatic duplication condition for duplicating the print instruction data generated based on an instruction of a certain user is met according to a predetermined condition;
If the print process is not to be suspended, the print instruction data is immediately transmitted to the image forming apparatus to execute the print process. If the print process is to be suspended, the output instruction apparatus has a cancel instruction. Stores the print instruction data in a storage medium and puts it on hold, reads the print instruction data held on hold when there is a release instruction, and sends it to the image forming apparatus. A hold control unit for executing print processing;
Print control program that causes the computer to function.

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