JP2011257975A - Information processing unit, intermediate data processing program, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve expandability of processing intermediate data in accordance with a feature expansion of a printer driver.SOLUTION: An information processing unit includes basic processing means to perform a first processing operation on intermediate data including an intermediate command generated on the basis of print setting information, and an expansion processing means to perform a second processing operation on the intermediate data with respect to an expansion intermediate command that does not correspond to the basic processing means.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device, an intermediate data processing program, and a recording medium, and more particularly to an information processing device, an intermediate data processing program, and a recording medium that process intermediate data related to print data.

  The printer driver converts the print setting into a print command (PJL (Printer Job Language) or the like) that can be interpreted by the printer. 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a printer driver that generates intermediate data composed of intermediate commands in the process of conversion from print settings to print commands is known (for example, Patent Document 1). The intermediate data is less dependent on the printer model and the like. Therefore, by creating a program module (hereinafter referred to as “filter”) that processes intermediate data, a processing process that is less dependent on the printer model or the like is incorporated in the middle of the printing process. be able to.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a printer driver in which a filter is incorporated. In the figure, the printer driver 510 includes a pre-processing unit 511, a filter 512, and a post-processing unit 513.

  A pre-processing unit 511, for example, accepts a print request via an interface called DDI (Device Driver Interface) in Windows (registered trademark), and generates intermediate data based on the DEVMODE structure. The preprocessing unit 511 inputs the generated intermediate data to the filter 512.

  The filter 512 executes preset processing on the intermediate data, and inputs the processed intermediate data to the post-processing unit 513. For example, when the filter 512 is installed by an administrator or the like for the purpose of not permitting color printing in normal business, the filter 512 forcibly rewrites the contents of the intermediate command for the color mode to the monochrome setting. .

  The post-processing unit 513 converts the input intermediate data into print data. The print data is transferred to a printer (not shown) and printed.

  In this way, the filter executes a pre-implemented processing process at the intermediate data stage.

  On the other hand, the print command can be expanded according to the function expansion of the printer. In this case, the function of the printer driver needs to be expanded to cope with the expansion function of the printer (for example, Patent Document 2). Specifically, the user interface needs to be extended so that setting items corresponding to the extended function of the printer can be received. Also, it is necessary to be able to output a print command corresponding to the setting item to the print data.

  When the function of the printer driver is expanded, there is a case where it is desired to correspond to the function expansion for the filter. For example, if an intermediate command corresponding to the extended function is included in the intermediate data, the intermediate function is subjected to predetermined processing, or the intermediate function including the predetermined character string is applied to the extended function. This is the case when processing such as adding corresponding intermediate commands is to be incorporated into the filter.

  However, the intermediate command scheduled by the filter is fixedly determined according to the contents of the filter implementation. Therefore, conventionally, in order for the filter to correspond to the intermediate command corresponding to the extended function, it has been necessary to change the source code of the filter and newly compile it. Then the user had to uninstall the old filter and install the new filter.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is an information processing apparatus, an intermediate data processing program, and a recording that can improve the expandability of the intermediate data processing according to the function expansion of the printer driver. The purpose is to provide a medium.

Therefore, in order to solve the above-described problem, the information processing apparatus includes basic processing means for performing first processing on intermediate data including intermediate commands generated based on the print setting information;
Expansion processing means for performing a second processing on the intermediate data with respect to an extended intermediate command not supported by the basic processing means.

  In such an information processing apparatus, the extensibility of the intermediate data processing according to the function expansion of the printer driver can be improved.

  The expandability of the intermediate data processing according to the expansion of the function of the printer driver can be improved.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a printer driver in which a filter is incorporated. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the printing system in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the hardware structural example of the information processing apparatus in embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the software structural example of the information processing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of intermediate data. It is a figure which shows the function structural example of a filter and a filter plug-in. It is a figure for demonstrating the process sequence of a 1st printing process. It is a figure which shows the example of the filter process definition with respect to the ground pattern time aggregation plug-in in a 1st printing process. It is a figure for demonstrating the process sequence of a 2nd printing process. It is a figure which shows the example of the filter process definition with respect to the secret copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in in 2nd printing processing. It is a figure for demonstrating the process sequence of a 3rd printing process. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a filter process definition for a consolidation invalidation plug-in in a third print process. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the process sequence of the filter process in a printing process. It is a figure which shows the structural example of a filter plug-in information storage part. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the process sequence of the filter plug-in process in a printing process. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the process sequence of the setting process of a filter process definition. It is a figure which shows an example of a filter setting screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a filter plug-in setting screen. It is a figure which shows the software structural example of the information processing apparatus when the filter plug-in is mounted as a part of driver plug-in.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the printing system according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the printing system 1 shown in FIG. 1, one or more information processing apparatuses 10 and one or more printers 20 can communicate via a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network) (whether wired or wireless). It is said that.

  The information processing apparatus 10 is a computer that transmits print data corresponding to the document data to the printer 20 in response to a print instruction for the document data by the user.

  The printer 20 is an image forming apparatus that executes a print job based on print data transferred from the information processing apparatus 10. In addition to the printing function, a multifunction machine having a scanning function or a copying function may be used instead of the printer 20.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the information processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. 3 includes a drive device 100, an auxiliary storage device 102, a memory device 103, a CPU 104, an interface device 105, a display device 106, and an input device that are connected to each other via a bus B. 107.

  A program for realizing processing in the information processing apparatus 10 is provided by a recording medium 101 such as a CD-ROM. When the recording medium 101 on which the program is recorded is set in the drive device 100, the program is installed from the recording medium 101 to the auxiliary storage device 102 via the drive device 100. However, the program need not be installed from the recording medium 101 and may be downloaded from another computer via a network. The auxiliary storage device 102 stores the installed program and also stores necessary files and data.

  The memory device 103 reads the program from the auxiliary storage device 102 and stores it when there is an instruction to start the program. The CPU 104 realizes functions related to the information processing apparatus 10 according to a program stored in the memory device 103. The interface device 105 is used as an interface for connecting to a network. The display device 106 displays a GUI (Graphical User Interface) or the like by a program. The input device 107 includes a keyboard and a mouse, and is used for inputting various operation instructions.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration example of the information processing apparatus according to the embodiment of this invention. In FIG. 1, an information processing apparatus 10 includes an application 11, a GDI 12, a printer driver 13, a filter 14, a filter setting unit 15, a driver plug-in 16, and one or more filter plug-ins 17.

  The application 11 is a program that generates document data to be printed in response to an interactive operation by a user, for example. The GDI 12 is a so-called GDI (Graphic Device Interface) and is a set of graphic functions provided by an OS (not shown) (for example, Windows (registered trademark)). The application 11 inputs a print request to the printer driver 13 via the GDI 12 in response to the input of a print instruction. For example, the GDI 12 inputs a print request from the application 11 to the printer driver 13 via an interface called DDI (Device Driver Interface) provided in the printer driver 13.

  The printer driver 13 generates print data corresponding to the print setting information in response to the DDI call. That is, the document data by the application 11 is converted into print data by the printer driver 13 via the GDI 12. The print data refers to data that can be interpreted by the printer 20 and includes a print command (job control command) described in PJL (Printer Job Language), drawing data, and the like. The print data generated by the printer driver 13 is transmitted to the printer 20 via, for example, a spooler (not shown), a port monitor, and the like.

  In the figure, the printer driver 13 includes a driver UI unit 131, a pre-processing unit 132, an intermediate command generation unit 133, a post-processing unit 134, a print command generation unit 135, and the like.

  The driver UI unit 131 displays a print setting dialog in response to a request from the application 11. The print setting dialog is a screen for setting print setting information. The print setting information is information also called print attribute information or printing conditions, and is configured by a set of setting items related to the printing mode and their setting values. When Windows (registered trademark) is adopted as the OS, the print setting information set via the print setting dialog is recorded in the memory device 103 as a DEVMODE structure.

  The preprocessing unit 132 receives the DEVMODE structure from the application 11 via the GDI 12 and inputs the intermediate data generated by the intermediate command generation unit 133 to the filter 14.

  The intermediate command generation unit 133 receives the DEVMODE structure from the preprocessing unit 132, converts the DEVMODE structure into an intermediate command according to a conversion rule (conversion logic) that is implemented in advance, and converts the intermediate data including the converted intermediate command Generate. The intermediate command is a command that expresses the contents of the DEVMODE structure (that is, the contents of the print setting information) in a neutral (independent) format with respect to the model of the printer 20. The intermediate data is data including control data, which is a set of one or more intermediate commands, and drawing data indicating the contents of document data to be printed.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of intermediate data. In the figure, the intermediate data D1 includes control data D11 and drawing data D12.

  The control data D11 includes one or more intermediate commands starting with @iPJL. For example, the intermediate command c1 indicates an execution command for aggregate printing (hereinafter referred to as “2 in 1 printing”) that aggregates two pages into one page. The intermediate command c2 indicates a copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing execution command. The intermediate command c3 indicates a command for storing print data in the printer 20.

  The drawing data D12 is an example when the drawing element is a character string. That is, in the notation of String Data {}, the description in {} indicates the contents of the character string. Specifically, a character code or the like is described character by character in [0] to [10] according to the array format. In the drawing, a description relating to a character string “RefreshCopy” is shown. Drawing elements can also include graphics and images.

  Note that the format of the intermediate data D1 shown in FIG. 5 is merely an example. The effectiveness of the present embodiment does not depend on the format of the intermediate data.

  Returning to FIG. The post-processing unit 134 receives the intermediate data from the filter 14 and causes the print command generation unit 135 to generate print data.

  The print command generation unit 135 receives the intermediate data from the post-processing unit 134, converts the intermediate command in the intermediate data into a print command according to a pre-implemented conversion rule (conversion logic), and prints including the converted print command Generate data.

  The filter 14 processes the intermediate data. That is, the filter 14 receives the intermediate data from the preprocessing unit 132 and performs a processing process on the intermediate data. In the present embodiment, processing means processing that does not involve data format conversion. Therefore, the data output by the filter 14 is intermediate data. The processed intermediate data output from the filter 14 is input to the post-processing unit 134.

  The content of the processing by the filter 14 depends on definition information (hereinafter referred to as “filter processing definition”) of the processing content of the filter 14 set using the filter setting unit 15. The filter processing definition includes a condition for the intermediate data (hereinafter referred to as “filter condition”) and a processing content to be executed for the intermediate data when the filter condition is satisfied. The processing content may include, for example, addition, change, or deletion of an intermediate command, or processing of drawing data in the intermediate data.

  The driver plug-in 16 is a plug-in for the printer driver 13. That is, the driver plug-in 16 is a program for expanding the function of the printer driver 13. Specifically, the driver plug-in 16 executes a process related to a setting item corresponding to the extended function and a print command corresponding to the extended function in accordance with the function expansion of the printer 20 or the like. In the present embodiment, the setting item corresponding to the extended function is referred to as “extended item”, and the setting item corresponding to the basic function before extension is referred to as “basic item”. A print command corresponding to the extended function is referred to as an “extended print command”, and a print command corresponding to the basic function is referred to as a “basic print command”.

  The driver plug-in 16 includes a driver plug-in UI unit 161, a plug-in pre-processing unit 162, a plug-in post-processing unit 163, and the like. The driver plug-in UI unit 161 generates a user interface (hereinafter referred to as “extended setting screen”) for accepting input of setting values for the extended items. The driver plug-in UI unit 161 records the setting value for the extension item input via the extension setting screen in the DEVMODE structure. The driver plug-in UI unit 161 is called by the driver UI unit 131 when, for example, a predetermined button arranged in a print setting dialog displayed by the driver UI unit 131 is pressed. In response to a call from the driver UI unit 131, the driver plug-in UI unit 161 displays an extension setting screen. The predetermined button is arranged in the print setting dialog when, for example, the driver UI unit 131 confirms whether or not the driver plug-in 16 is installed and installed.

  The plug-in preprocessing unit 162 converts the setting content related to the extension item in the DEVMODE structure into an intermediate command. The intermediate command is an intermediate command corresponding to the extended function. That is, the intermediate command is expanded in accordance with the function expansion of the printer 20. In the present embodiment, an intermediate command corresponding to the extended function is referred to as an “extended intermediate command”, and an intermediate command corresponding to the basic function is referred to as a “basic intermediate command”.

  For example, the intermediate command generation unit 133 converts the DEVMODE structure into an intermediate command within a range that can be processed by itself, and then calls the plug-in preprocessing unit 162 by specifying the DEVMODE structure. The plug-in preprocessing unit 162 generates an extended intermediate command corresponding to the extended item in the designated DEVMODE structure. The extended intermediate command is added to the end of the intermediate data generated by the intermediate command generation unit 133. The “range that can be processed by itself (intermediate command generation unit 133)” refers to the range of basic items. Therefore, the extension item is not included in the range. This is because the intermediate command generation unit 133 is implemented based on the basic function before the function enhancement, and the processing related to the extension item is not planned. Therefore, in the existing state, the intermediate command generation unit 133 cannot perform conversion to the extended intermediate command for the extended item.

  The plug-in post-processing unit 163 converts the extended intermediate command into an extended print command. For example, the print command generation unit 135 converts the intermediate command into a print command within the range that can be processed by itself (range of the basic intermediate command), and then calls the plug-in post-processing unit 163 by specifying the intermediate data. The plug-in post-processing unit 163 converts the extended intermediate command included in the designated intermediate data into an extended print command. The extended print command is included in the print data together with the print command generated by the print command generation unit 135.

  Note that a plurality of types of driver plug-ins 16 may be included in the information processing apparatus 10.

  The filter plug-in 17 is a plug-in for the filter 14. That is, the filter plug-in 17 is a program for expanding the function of the filter 14. Specifically, the filter plug-in 17 executes an intermediate command processing for the extended intermediate command. Examples of the intermediate command processing related to the extended intermediate command include a case where the content of the extended intermediate command is a filter condition, and a case where an extended intermediate command is output as the processing content when the filter condition is satisfied.

  A plurality of filter plug-ins 17 that perform different processing processes may be included in the information processing apparatus 10. The figure shows an example in which three filter plug-ins 17 are included. When a plurality of filter plug-ins 17 are included in the information processing apparatus 10, the filter plug-ins 17 are logically connected in a chain structure, for example. In the chain structure, a calling relationship between the filter plug-ins 17 is formed.

  The filter 14 and the filter plug-in 17 will be described in further detail. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of a filter and a filter plug-in.

  In the figure, the filter 14 includes a filter UI unit 141, a filter processing unit 142, and the like. The filter plug-in 17 includes a filter plug-in UI unit 171 and a filter plug-in processing unit 172. The figure also shows the filter processing definition storage unit 18 and the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 which are omitted in FIG.

  The filter UI unit 141 displays a screen for setting the filter processing definition (hereinafter, “filter setting screen”), and records the setting content (that is, the filter processing definition) for the filter setting screen in the filter processing definition storage unit 18. To do. The filter process definition storage unit 18 stores the filter process definition using the auxiliary storage device 102.

  Based on the filter processing definition, the filter processing unit 142 executes intermediate data processing for the basic intermediate command.

  The filter plug-in UI unit 171 displays a screen for setting a filter processing definition related to the filter plug-in 17. The filter plug-in processing unit 172 executes intermediate data processing for the extended intermediate command.

  The filter plug-in information storage unit 19 stores the attribute information of the filter plug-in 17 installed in the information processing apparatus 10 using the auxiliary storage device 102.

  Next, an outline of a printing process that the software (program) described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 causes the information processing apparatus 10 to execute will be described using three specific examples.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the processing procedure of the first print processing. In the figure, a tint block plug-in 16 a is installed as the driver plug-in 16, and a tint block time aggregation plug-in 17 a is installed as the filter plug-in 17.

  The tint block plug-in 16a is a driver plug-in 16 corresponding to the tint block printing function. Background pattern printing refers to a printing form in which a background pattern is printed on the background. The copy-forgery-inhibited pattern integration plug-in 17a is a filter plug-in 17 for forcing 2-in-1 printing when copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing is executed.

  First, at the time of setting print setting information, if a predetermined button in the print setting dialog displayed by the driver UI unit 131 is pressed, the driver plug-in UI unit 161a of the background pattern plug-in 16a performs the background pattern printing. A copy-forgery-inhibited pattern print setting screen for setting whether or not is displayed. When the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing setting screen is set to perform the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing, the driver plug-in UI unit 161a sets “ON” to the member variable “JIMON” corresponding to the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing in the DEVMODE structure (S11) ). The setting of “ON” for the member variable “JIMON” is expressed as “JIMON: ON” in the drawing.

  Thereafter, when a print execution instruction is input via the print setting dialog, a DEVMODE structure in which “ON” is set for the member variable “JIMON” is input to the preprocessing unit 132 of the printer driver 13. (S12).

  The DEVMODE structure is input from the preprocessing unit 132 through the intermediate command generation unit 133 to the plug-in preprocessing unit 162a of the tint block plug-in 16a. Note that before the DEVMODE structure is input to the plug-in preprocessing unit 162a, the intermediate command generation unit 133 converts the setting content related to the basic item into an intermediate command, and generates intermediate data including the intermediate command.

  Subsequently, the plug-in preprocessing unit 162a of the background pattern plug-in 16a converts the setting content “JIMON: ON” for the background pattern printing function in the DEVMODE structure into an intermediate command (hereinafter referred to as “background pattern printing intermediate command”). S13). In this embodiment, the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing intermediate command is expressed as “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON”. The tint block printing intermediate command is an extended intermediate command.

  Thereafter, intermediate data including the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing intermediate command is input to the filter 14 by the preprocessing unit 132. The filter 14 performs processing on the basic print intermediate command based on the filter process definition recorded in the filter process definition storage unit 18. Subsequently, the filter 14 inputs the processed intermediate data to the background pattern aggregation plug-in 17a.

  The filter plug-in processing unit 172a of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern aggregation plug-in 17a performs intermediate processing for the extended intermediate command based on the filter processing definition corresponding to itself among the filter processing definitions recorded in the filter processing definition storage unit 18. Perform processing on the data.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the filter processing definition for the ground tint block aggregation plug-in in the first print processing. In the filter processing definition shown in the figure, “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON” is set in the “filter condition”. In addition, “addition: @iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” is set in “processing contents”. Therefore, the filter processing definition indicates the processing content “if @iPJL SET JIMON = ON is set, add @iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1”. This means that “when performing tint block printing, 2-in-1 printing is performed”.

  The filter plug-in processing unit 172a of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern aggregation plug-in 17a includes the filter processing definition shown in FIG. 8 in the filter processing definition storage unit 18, and the filter condition set in the filter processing definition is If satisfied, the processing indicated by the processing content in the filter processing definition is performed on the intermediate data (S14). Here, the intermediate data includes an intermediate command of “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON”. Therefore, the filter plug-in processing unit 172a adds “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” to the end of the control data of the intermediate data.

  The intermediate data processed by the filter plug-in processing unit 172a of the background pattern aggregation plug-in 17a is returned to the filter 14 and input to the post-processing unit 134. The post-processing unit 134 inputs the intermediate data to the print command generation unit 135.

  The print command generation unit 135 converts the basic intermediate command into a basic print command (S15). For example, when the aggregate print function is a basic function, the intermediate command “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” corresponding to the aggregate print function is a basic intermediate command. Therefore, the print command generation unit 135 converts “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” into a basic print command “@PJL SET NUP = 2IN1”. In the present embodiment, the intermediate command and the print command differ only in the keywords (“iPJL” and “PJL”) after the at sign (@), but this is for convenience.

  Subsequently, the print command generation unit 135 inputs the intermediate data to the plug-in post-processing unit 163a of the tint block plug-in 16a. The plug-in post-processing unit 163a converts the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing intermediate command that can be interpreted by itself into a print command (S16). For example, “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON” is converted into a print command “@PJL SET JIMON = ON”.

  The print data converted by the print command generation unit 135 and the plug-in post-processing unit 163a is transmitted to the painter 20 via the post-processing unit 134.

  In this way, in FIG. 7, when the tint block printing is performed, the consolidated printing is forcibly executed even if the consolidated printing is not set by the user.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the processing procedure of the second print processing. 9, parts that are the same as the parts shown in FIG. 7 are given the same reference numerals, and explanation thereof is omitted.

  In the figure, a state in which a secret time pattern plug-in 17b is installed as the filter plug-in 17 is shown. The confidential copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in 17b is a filter plug-in 17 for forcing the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing when the character string “secret” is included in the document data.

  As for the driver plug-in 16, the ground pattern plug-in 16a is installed as in the first printing process. Therefore, the description regarding the tint block plug-in 16a is omitted as appropriate. In addition, processing steps overlapping those in FIG.

  In FIG. 9, it is assumed that the background pattern printing is set not to be performed on the background pattern printing setting screen displayed by the driver plug-in UI unit 161a of the background pattern plug-in 16a. In this case, the driver plug-in UI unit 161a sets “OFF” to the member variable “JIMON” corresponding to the tint block printing in the DEVMODE structure (S21). Therefore, the DEVMODE structure in which “ON” is set for the member variable “JIMON” is input to the preprocessing unit 132 of the printer driver 13 (S22).

  Thereafter, the DEVMODE structure is input to the plug-in preprocessing unit 162a of the tint block plug-in 16a through a processing procedure similar to the processing procedure described in FIG. The plug-in preprocessing unit 162a converts the setting content “JIMON: OFF” for the tint block function in the DEVMODE structure into a tint block printing intermediate command (S23). Here, it is converted to “@iPJL SET JIMON = OFF” indicating that the background pattern printing is not performed.

  Thereafter, the intermediate data is input to the filter plug-in processing unit 172b of the confidential copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in 17b through a processing procedure similar to the processing procedure described in FIG. The filter plug-in processing unit 172b executes processing on the intermediate data for the extended intermediate command based on the filter processing definition corresponding to itself among the filter processing definitions recorded in the filter processing definition storage unit 18. .

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the filter process definition for the confidential copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in in the second print process. In the filter processing definition shown in the drawing, “the character string“ secret ”is included in the drawing data” is set in the “filter condition”. Further, “addition: @iPJL SET JIMON = ON” is set in “processing contents”. Therefore, the filter processing definition indicates the processing content “add @iPJL SET JIMON = ON when there is a character string“ secret ”in the drawing data”. This means that if the character string “confidential” is included in the drawing data (of the intermediate data), copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing is performed.

  The filter plug-in processing unit 172b of the confidential copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in 17b includes the filter processing definition shown in FIG. 10 in the filter processing definition storage unit 18 and the filter conditions set in the filter processing definition. Is satisfied, the processing indicated by the processing content in the filter processing definition is performed on the intermediate data (S24). Therefore, if the character string “Mal secret” is included in the drawing data of the intermediate data, the filter plug-in processing unit 172b adds “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON” to the end of the control data of the intermediate data. . Note that if the same print command is included in the print data generated based on the intermediate data, the one described later is valid. Therefore, when “@iPJL SET JIMMON = OFF” is included in the control data of the intermediate data, if “@iPJL SET JIMMON = ON” is added to the end of the control data, the former The intermediate command is changed to the latter intermediate command. However, the filter plug-in processing unit 172b may check for duplication of the intermediate command, and if the same intermediate command exists, the description of the intermediate command may be replaced (changed) with a new setting value. .

  Thereafter, the intermediate data is input to the plug-in post-processing unit 163a of the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern plug-in 16a through a processing procedure similar to the processing procedure described in FIG. The plug-in post-processing unit 163a converts the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing intermediate command that can be interpreted by itself into a print command (S25). That is, “@iPJL SET JIMON = ON” is converted into a print command “@PJL SET JIMON = ON”.

  The print data converted by the print command generation unit 135 and the plug-in post-processing unit 163a is transmitted to the painter 20 via the post-processing unit 134.

  In this way, in FIG. 9, when printing is performed on a document including the character string “confidential”, the tint block printing is forcibly executed even if the tint block printing is not set by the user.

  Next, FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the processing procedure of the third printing processing. In the figure, a data storage plug-in 16 c is installed as the driver plug-in 16, and an aggregation-time storage invalidation plug-in 17 c is installed as the filter plug-in 17.

  The data storage plug-in 16c is a driver plug-in 16 corresponding to the data storage function. The data storage function refers to a function in which the printer 20 stores received print data in the nonvolatile storage device of the printer 20, and corresponds to an extended function in the third print processing. The consolidation invalidation plug-in 17c is a filter plug-in 17 for forcibly invalidating the data accumulation function when 2in1 printing is executed.

  First, at the time of setting the print setting information, if it is set to perform 2-in-1 printing via the print setting dialog displayed by the driver UI unit 131, the driver UI unit 131 corresponds to the aggregation number in the DEVMODE structure. The member variable “NUP” to be set is set to “2” (S31). Subsequently, when a predetermined button in the print setting dialog is pressed, the driver plug-in UI unit 161c of the data storage plug-in 16c displays a storage setting screen for setting whether to store data. When data storage is set on the storage setting screen, the driver plug-in UI unit 161c sets “ON” to the member variable “DATASTORE” corresponding to data storage in the DEVMODE structure (S32).

  Thereafter, when a print execution instruction is input via the print setting dialog, “2” is set to the member variable “NUP” in the pre-processing unit 132 of the printer driver 13, and the member variable “DATASOTRE” is set. DEVMODE structure in which “ON” is set for “” is input (S33).

  The DEVMODE structure is input to the intermediate command generation unit 133 by the preprocessing unit 132. The intermediate command generation unit 133 changes the member variable corresponding to the basic item in the DEVMODE structure to the intermediate command. For example, conversion to the intermediate command “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” is executed with respect to the setting contents of 2in1 printing (S34). Subsequently, the intermediate command generation unit 133 inputs the DEVMODE structure to the plug-in preprocessing unit 162c of the data storage plug-in 16c.

  The plug-in preprocessing unit 162c of the data storage plug-in 16c converts the setting content “DATASTORE: ON” for the data storage function in the DEVMODE structure into an intermediate command (hereinafter referred to as “data storage intermediate command”) (S34). . In the present embodiment, the data storage intermediate command is represented as “@iPJL SET DATASTORE”. The data accumulation intermediate command is an extended intermediate command.

  Thereafter, the intermediate data including the data accumulation intermediate command and the like is input to the filter plug-in processing unit 172c of the aggregation accumulation invalidation plug-in 17c through a processing procedure similar to the processing procedure described in FIG. The filter plug-in processing unit 172c executes processing on the intermediate data for the extended intermediate command based on the filter processing definition corresponding to itself among the filter processing definitions recorded in the filter processing definition storage unit 18. .

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of the filter process definition for the accumulation invalidation plug-in in the third print process. In the filter processing definition shown in the figure, “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” is set in the “filter condition”. In addition, “Delete: @iPJL SET DATASTORE” is set in “Processing content”. Therefore, the filter processing definition indicates the processing content of “when @iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1 is set, delete @iPJL SET DATASTORE”. This means that “when 2 in 1 printing is performed, data accumulation is not performed”.

  The filter plug-in processing unit 172c of the accumulation invalidation plug-in 17c includes a filter whose contents shown in FIG. 12 are included in the filter processing definition storage unit 18 and set in the filter processing definition. If the condition is satisfied, the processing indicated by the processing content in the filter processing definition is performed on the intermediate data (S36). Therefore, the data storage intermediate command “@iPJL SET DATASTORE” is deleted from the intermediate data. Here, the reason why the data accumulation intermediate command is deleted instead of being changed is that the data accumulation intermediate command is an intermediate command indicating whether the data accumulation function is valid or invalid depending on the presence / absence of the command. In the present embodiment, not only the extended intermediate command but all of the intermediate data is input to each filter plug-in 17. Further, the filter plug-in 17 outputs all of the intermediate data after processing by itself. By doing so, the intermediate command can be deleted by the filter plug-in 17.

  Thereafter, the intermediate data is input to the print command generation unit 135 through a processing procedure similar to the processing procedure described in FIG. The print command generation unit 135 converts the basic intermediate command “@iPJL SET NUP = 2IN1” into a print command “@PJL SET NUP = 2IN1” (S37). The intermediate data is also input to the plug-in post-processing unit 163c of the data storage plug-in 16c, but the extended intermediate command has been deleted in the example of FIG. Therefore, the conversion process by the plug-in post-processing unit 163c is not executed.

  The print data converted by the print command generation unit 135 is transmitted to the painter 20 via the post-processing unit 134.

  As described above, in FIG. 11, when 2in1 printing is executed, the data storage function is forcibly disabled even if the data storage function is set by the user.

  Next, the processing content of the filter 14 in the printing process will be described in more detail. FIG. 13 is a flowchart for explaining the processing procedure of the filtering process in the printing process.

  In step S <b> 101, the filter processing unit 142 of the filter 14 receives input of intermediate data from the preprocessing unit 132. Subsequently, the filter processing unit 142 acquires a filter process definition (hereinafter referred to as “basic filter process definition”) related to the basic intermediate command from the filter process definition storage unit 18 (S102). The basic filter process definition is a filter process definition in which the description about the extended intermediate command is not included in both the filter condition and the processing content.

  When the basic filter process definition is acquired (Yes in S103), the filter processing unit 142 determines whether or not the acquired basic filter process definition satisfies the filter condition with reference to the intermediate data (S104). ). If there is a basic filter process definition that satisfies the filter condition (Yes in S104), the filter processing unit 142 executes the processing indicated by the processing content of the basic filter process definition on the intermediate data (S105). That is, addition, change, or deletion is executed for the intermediate command in the control data of the intermediate data. Alternatively, when the processing content for processing the drawing data of the intermediate data is defined, the processing is executed on the drawing data. If the document data to be printed is a plurality of pages, the processing is performed for all pages. That is, the processing by the filter 14 and each filter plug-in 17 is not looped for each page, but the processing for all pages is collectively performed for each filter 14 and each filter plug-in 17.

  Subsequently, the filter processing unit 142 refers to the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 and determines the presence or absence of the filter plug-in 17 (S106).

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the filter plug-in information storage unit. In the figure, a filter plug-in information storage unit 19 stores items such as a name, a UI unit, and a processing unit for each filter plug-in 17 installed in the information processing apparatus 10. The name is the name of the filter plug-in 17. The UI part is a file name of a program file (for example, DLL (Dynamic Link Library)) for causing the information processing apparatus 10 to function as the filter plug-in UI part 171. The processing unit is a file name of a program file for causing the information processing apparatus 10 to function as the filter plug-in processing unit 172. In the figure, an example in which the same file name is registered for the UI unit and the processing unit is shown for the copy-forgery-inhibited pattern aggregation plug-in, but each may be different. When the UI unit and the processing unit are included in the same program file, for example, the filter plug-in UI unit 171 and the filter plug-in processing unit 172 are implemented as different functions or methods in the same program file.

  The filter plug-in information storage unit 19 may not be explicitly formed as a table or the like. For example, when the program file of the installed filter plug-in 17 is stored in a predetermined folder, the folder itself functions as the filter plug-in information storage unit 19. In other words, the list of file names in the folder becomes the list information of the filter plug-in 17. Note that the content of the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 is updated by installing or uninstalling the filter plug-in 17.

  If the filter plug-in 17 exists (is installed), that is, if at least one record is registered in the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 (Yes in S106), the filter processing unit 142 The filter plug-in processing unit 172 of the filter plug-in 17 is called (S107). That is, the intermediate data is input to the filter plug-in processing unit 172 of the filter plug-in 17. The leading filter plug-in 17 refers to the leading filter plug-in 17 in the order of the filter plug-ins 17. The order relationship of the filter plug-ins 17 may be arbitrarily determined. For example, the recording order in the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 may be used.

  Subsequently, intermediate data processing (filter plug-in processing) is executed by the filter plug-in 17 to which the intermediate data is input (S108). If the filter plug-in 17 is not installed (No in S106), steps S107 and S108 are not executed.

  In the case of No in step S106 or subsequent to step S108, the filter processing unit 142 outputs the processed intermediate data (S109). The output intermediate data is input to the post-processing unit 134.

  Next, details of step S108 will be described. FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining the processing procedure of the filter plug-in process in the printing process. It should be noted that the processing procedure of the figure is executed in common by the filter plug-ins 17. However, the specific processing content (processing content) of step S205 may differ for each filter plug-in 17.

  In step S201, the called filter plug-in processing unit 172 of the filter plug-in 17 receives input of intermediate data. Subsequently, the filter plug-in processing unit 172 acquires from the filter processing definition storage unit 18 a filter processing definition (hereinafter referred to as “extended filter processing definition”) related to the extended intermediate command to which the filter plug-in 17 corresponds (S202). ). The extended filter process definition is a filter process definition in which a description relating to an extended intermediate command is included in at least one of the filter condition and the processing content.

  When the corresponding extended filter processing definition is acquired (Yes in S203), the filter plug-in processing unit 172 refers to the intermediate data to determine whether the acquired extended filter processing definition satisfies the filter condition. Determine (S204). If there is an extended filter process definition that satisfies the filter condition (Yes in S204), the filter plug-in processing unit 172 performs the processing indicated by the processing content of the extended filter process definition on the intermediate data (S205). . That is, addition, change, or deletion is executed for the intermediate command in the control data of the intermediate data. Alternatively, when the processing content for processing the drawing data of the intermediate data is defined, the processing is executed on the drawing data. If the document data to be printed is a plurality of pages, the processing is performed for all pages.

  Subsequently, the filter plug-in processing unit 172 refers to the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 and determines the presence / absence of the next filter plug-in 17 (S206). When the next filter plug-in 17 exists (is installed) (Yes in S206), the filter plug-in processing unit 172 calls the filter plug-in processing unit 172 of the next filter plug-in 17 (S207). That is, the intermediate data is input to the filter plug-in processing unit 172 of the filter plug-in 17. Subsequently, a processing process (filter plug-in process shown in FIG. 15) is executed by the next filter plug-in 17 (S208). Thereafter, when the intermediate data is output from the next filter plug-in 17, the filter plug-in processing unit 172 outputs the intermediate data to the caller filter 14 or the filter plug-in 17 (S209). If there is no next filter plug-in 17 (No in S206), steps S207 and S208 are not executed.

  Next, the filter process definition setting process will be described. FIG. 16 is a sequence diagram for explaining the processing procedure of the filter processing definition setting processing.

  When the filter setting unit 15 is activated by the user, the filter setting unit 15 calls the filter UI unit 141 of the filter 14 (S301). In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the filter setting unit 15 is a program that is activated as one process, such as an EXE file, and the filter 14 is a program that is invoked within the process, such as a DLL. . However, the mounting form of each part is not limited to a predetermined one.

  Subsequently, the filter UI unit 141 displays a filter setting screen on the display device 106 (S302).

  FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of the filter setting screen. In the figure, the filter setting screen 600 includes a plurality of sheets (screens) such as a keyword sheet 610, a basic sheet 620, an editing sheet 630, a finishing sheet 640, other sheets 650, and a print quality sheet 660.

  The basic sheet 610 is a sheet for setting filter conditions and the like in the filter processing definition, and includes a title setting area 611, a detection character string setting area 612, a printer condition setting area 613, a search range setting area 614, and a plug-in button 615. Etc.

  The title setting area 611 is an area for inputting the title of the filter processing definition. Although omitted in FIGS. 8, 10, and 12, a title can be set for each filter processing definition.

  The detected character string setting area 612 is an area for setting a character string or the like to be searched when a filter condition is that a predetermined character string is included in the intermediate data. For example, the text box 612a is a text box for setting a character string to be detected in the drawing data of the intermediate data. The text box 612b is a text box for setting a character string to be detected for the job name.

  A printer condition setting area 613 is an area for selecting a printer name when the printer of the printing destination is a filter condition.

  The search range setting area 614 is an area for setting the search range (all pages or specific pages) of the character string set in the detected character string setting area 612.

  The plug-in button 615 displays a screen (hereinafter referred to as “filter plug-in setting screen”) for setting a filter processing definition related to the filter plug-in 17 when the filter plug-in 17 is installed. Button (display component). That is, the filter UI unit 141 refers to the filter plug-in information storage unit 19 and displays the plug-in button 615 in an operable state when at least one filter plug-in 17 is installed, If no in 17 is installed, the plug-in button 615 is hidden. Alternatively, when no filter plug-in 17 is installed, the plug-in button 615 may be displayed in a grayed-out state (that is, in an inoperable state). When there are a plurality of filter plug-ins 17, the corresponding plug-in buttons 615 may be displayed, or each filter plug-in 17 may be displayed in a display component suitable for selection from a plurality of options such as a menu. May be displayed as an option.

  In the figure, an area for setting a filter condition for a basic item (for example, a filter condition for setting 2in1) is omitted.

  On the other hand, in the basic sheet 620 and the like, the printing mode when the filter condition in the keyword sheet 610 is matched is set. The setting of the printing mode is substantially the same as the content set in the print setting dialog, for example. Accordingly, in FIG. 8 and the like, the filter processing definition is simplified, but a plurality of processing contents can be set for one filter condition.

  When at least setting for the keyword sheet 610 is performed on the filter setting screen 600 and the plug-in button 615 is pressed, the filter UI unit 141 displays the filter plug-in UI of the filter plug-in 17 corresponding to the pressed plug-in button. The unit 171 is called (S303).

  The called filter plug-in UI unit 171 displays the filter plug-in setting screen of the filter plug-in 17 on the display device 106 (S304).

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a filter plug-in setting screen. This figure illustrates a filter plug-in setting screen 700 for the background pattern aggregation plug-in 17a. The filter plug-in setting screen 700 has a check button 710 for selecting whether or not to perform aggregation at the time of copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing. When the check button 710 is checked, it means that the processing content for executing aggregation at the time of copy-forgery-inhibited pattern printing is set. The filter conditions in this case are those set in the basic sheet 610 of the filter setting screen 600. However, the filter conditions may be set individually on the filter plug-in setting screen 700. In particular, when an extended function is used as a filter condition (that is, when a setting for an extended intermediate command is used as a filter condition), it is preferable that unique filter conditions can be set on the filter plug-in setting screen.

  When the setting on the filter plug-in setting screen is completed (S305) and saving is instructed on the filter setting screen 600 (when the “OK button” is pressed), the filter UI unit 141 displays the filter setting screen 600 and the filter plug. The setting contents on the in setting screen are recorded in the filter processing definition storage unit 18 (S306). One filtering process definition is generated by one operation (one execution of the processing procedure of FIG. 16).

  In this embodiment, the example in which the filter processing definition related to the filter 14 and the filter processing definition related to the filter plug-in 17 are mixed and recorded in the filter processing definition storage unit 18 has been described. The filter processing definition for in 17 may be distinguished and stored. The distinction is not limited to a predetermined form. Each may be recorded in a different file (table), or identification information of the filter 14 or each filter plug-in 17 may be added for each filter processing definition in one file (table).

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the processing of intermediate data can be expanded by the filter plug-in 17 in accordance with the function expansion of the printer driver 13. Since the filter plug-in 17 is a program that can be installed or uninstalled independently of the filter 14, the configuration can be flexibly changed according to the function expansion.

  In the present embodiment, an example in which the driver plug-in 16 is added is shown as a function expansion form of the printer driver 13. However, the form of function expansion of the printer driver 13 that can be supported by the filter plug-in 17 is not limited to a predetermined one. For example, when the function extension of the printer driver 13 is performed by changing the source code of the printer driver 13, the filter plug-in 17 may handle the function extension.

  When the function of the printer driver 13 is expanded by the driver plug-in 16, the filter plug-in 17 may be mounted as a part of the driver plug-in 16.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration example of the information processing apparatus when the filter plug-in is mounted as a part of the driver plug-in. In the figure, an example in which a filter plug-in 17 is included in the driver plug-in 16 is shown. For example, the filter plug-in 17 is implemented as a DLL function as the driver plug-in 16. According to such a form, by installing the driver plug-in 16, the function of the filter 14 can be expanded. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the work load such as installation work.

  The mounting form of the driver plug-in 16 and the filter plug-in 17 is not limited to the DLL. An appropriate mounting form may be selected as appropriate in accordance with a program language used for mounting and an operating environment (OS (Operating System) or the like).

  As mentioned above, although the Example of this invention was explained in full detail, this invention is not limited to such specific embodiment, In the range of the summary of this invention described in the claim, various deformation | transformation・ Change is possible.

1 Printing System 10 Information Processing Device 11 Application 12 GDI
13 Printer Driver 14 Filter 15 Filter Setting Unit 16 Driver Plug-In 16a Background Pattern Plug-In 16c Data Storage Plug-In 17 Filter Plug-In 17a Background Pattern Aggregation Plug-In 17b Secret Time Background Pattern Plug-In 17c Aggregation Storage Invalidation Plug-In 18 Filter Processing Definition storage unit 19 Filter plug-in information storage unit 20 Printer 100 Drive device 101 Recording medium 102 Auxiliary storage device 103 Memory device 104 CPU
105 interface device 106 display device 107 input device 131 driver UI unit 132 preprocessing unit 133 intermediate command generation unit 134 post processing unit 135 print command generation unit 141 filter UI unit 142 filter processing unit 161 driver plug-in UI unit 162 plug-in preprocessing 163 Plug-in post-processing unit 171 Filter plug-in UI unit 172 Filter plug-in processing unit B bus

JP 2009-146321 A JP 2008-97574 A

Claims (11)

Basic processing means for performing first processing on intermediate data including intermediate commands generated based on print setting information;
An information processing apparatus comprising: an extended processing unit that performs a second processing on the intermediate data with respect to an extended intermediate command that is not supported by the basic processing unit.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the extended processing unit performs the second processing on the extended intermediate command included in the intermediate data.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the extension processing unit adds the extended intermediate command to the intermediate data. The basic processing means includes basic display control means for displaying a first setting screen for setting the content of the first processing process.
The extended processing means has extended display control means for displaying a second setting screen for setting the content of the second processing.
4. The information according to claim 1, wherein the basic display control unit displays a display component for causing the extended display control unit to display the second setting screen on the first setting screen. 5. Processing equipment.   The basic display control means displays the display component in an operable state when the expansion processing means is present, and displays the display component in an inoperable state when the expansion processing means is absent or The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display component is not displayed. Computer
Function as basic processing means for performing first processing on intermediate data including intermediate commands generated based on print setting information;
The basic processing means relates to the extended intermediate command included in the intermediate data in the extended processing means for performing a second processing on the intermediate data with respect to the extended intermediate command not supported by the basic processing means. Intermediate data processing program that executes processing.   The intermediate data processing program according to claim 6, wherein the extended processing means performs the second processing on the extended intermediate command included in the intermediate data.   The intermediate data processing program according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the extended processing means adds the extended intermediate command to the intermediate data. The basic processing means includes basic display control means for displaying a first setting screen for setting the content of the first processing process.
The extended processing means has extended display control means for displaying a second setting screen for setting the content of the second processing.
The intermediate according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the basic display control means displays a display component for causing the extended display control means to display the second setting screen on the first setting screen. Data processing program.   The basic display control means displays the display component in an operable state when the expansion processing means is present, and displays the display component in an inoperable state when the expansion processing means is absent or The intermediate data processing program according to claim 9, wherein the display component is not displayed.   A computer-readable recording medium on which the intermediate data processing program according to any one of claims 6 to 10 is recorded.

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