JP2012118789A - Printing system, printing method and printing control apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printing system in which a security level of print processing can be improved by preventing a recording medium, on which an image of a specific page is printed, from being carried away by any person other than a person having a right authority, during print processing in which images of a plurality of pages are printed on the recording medium for each page.SOLUTION: A printing system includes an authentication setting section which sets authentication information, to a specific page among a plurality of pages, authentication information for determining whether an image of the specific page can be printed onto a recording medium, an authentication section which acquires authentication information inputted by a user and determines whether the acquired authentication information is matched with the authentication information set by the authentication setting section, and a printing section which prints images of pages other than the specific page on the recording medium and, when it is determined by the authentication section that the authentication information is matched, prints the image of the specific page on the recording medium.

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system, a printing method, and a printing control apparatus that print a plurality of pages of images on a recording medium page by page.

  Transaction slips used in services such as courier services are composed of a plurality of slips such as “customer” slips and “record” slips. In recent years, carbon copy printing has been proposed in which such a set of slips is created by an image forming apparatus such as an MFP (Multi-Function Peripheral) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  When a set of slips is created by carbon copy printing, a plurality of types of images corresponding to each slip are formed based on document data. At this time, for example, all information such as the customer's name, address, and telephone number is described for the “customer” slip image, and part of the information is masked for the “copy” slip image. It is. A set of slips is created by printing these images on a recording medium such as paper. According to carbon copy printing, a set of slips can be created by a single printing instruction to the MFP.

  By the way, there are cases where the slips constituting a set of slips created by the MFP are taken away from the MFP by different persons. For example, a “customer” voucher is removed from the MFP by a person in charge of the sales department, and a “record” voucher is removed from the MFP by a person in charge of the accounting department.

  However, since these slips are similar to each other, in such a case, there is a possibility that a specific slip may be taken away by a person other than the person who should originally take the slip. For example, a “customer” voucher that should be taken away by a person in charge of the sales department may be mistakenly taken away by a person in charge of the accounting department. In particular, there is a security problem when a slip on which important information such as a customer address and a telephone number is written is taken away by a person other than the person who should originally take the slip.

  In Patent Documents 2 to 4 below, the information described in the image is limited by performing a process such as a mask process according to the authority of the user instructing execution of printing in the client terminal, and the security level is set. Techniques for improving are disclosed. However, these techniques prevent the user who instructs the execution of printing from the client terminal from printing an image on which important information is described, and among the plurality of sheets on which the image is printed. It does not prevent a person other than the user from taking away a specific sheet.

JP 2004-155112 A JP 2005-190426 A JP 2005-346398 A JP 2009-296173 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is that in a printing process for printing a plurality of pages of images on a recording medium for each page, a recording medium on which a specific page of images is printed is taken away by a person other than a person having a legitimate authority. It is an object to provide a printing system, a printing method, and a printing control apparatus that can prevent and improve the security level of printing processing.

  The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following means.

  (1) A printing system that prints a plurality of pages of images on a recording medium for each page, in order to determine whether or not printing of the images of the specific pages on the recording medium is possible for the specific pages of the plurality of pages. An authentication setting unit for setting authentication information of the user, and authentication for acquiring authentication information input by the user and determining whether the acquired authentication information matches the authentication information set by the authentication setting unit A printing unit that prints an image of a page other than the specific page on a recording medium and prints the image of the specific page on a recording medium when the authentication unit determines that the authentication information matches. A printing system comprising:

  (2) The printing system according to (1), wherein the authentication setting unit sets authentication information of different security levels for two or more pages.

  (3) A storage unit that stores a print job including the authentication information, and another print job that includes authentication information that matches the acquired authentication information is detected from the print jobs stored in the storage unit. And when the other print job is detected by the detection unit, the print unit further displays an image of a page in which the authentication information is set in the other print job. The printing system according to (1) or (2), wherein printing is performed on a recording medium.

  (4) It further includes a condition setting unit for setting a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing of the image of the corresponding page on the recording medium, and when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the printing unit records the image of the page. The printing system according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein printing is performed on a medium.

  (5) The printing system according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the image of the plurality of pages includes an image element common to the image of the plurality of pages.

  (6) A printing method for printing a plurality of pages of images on a recording medium for each page, in order to determine whether or not to print the images of the specific pages on the recording medium for the specific pages of the plurality of pages. A step (a) of setting authentication information, a step (b) of printing an image of a page other than the specific page on a recording medium, acquiring the authentication information input by the user, and acquiring the acquired authentication information Is determined to match the authentication information set in step (a), and if it is determined in step (c) that the authentication information matches, the image of the specific page is And (d) printing on a recording medium.

  (7) The printing method according to (6), wherein in the step (a), authentication information of different security levels is set for two or more pages.

  (8) storing a print job including the authentication information in a storage unit (e), and including other authentication information that matches the acquired authentication information from among the print jobs stored in the storage unit When the print job is detected in step (f) and the other print job is detected in step (f), the image of the page in which the authentication information is set in the other print job is used as a recording medium. The printing method according to (6) or (7), further comprising a step (g) of printing.

  (9) The method further includes a step (h) of setting a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing the image of the corresponding page on the recording medium, and when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the step (b) and the step (d) The printing method according to any one of (6) to (8), wherein the image of the page is printed on a recording medium.

  (10) The printing method according to any one of (6) to (9), wherein the image of the plurality of pages includes an image element common to the image of the plurality of pages.

  (11) A print control apparatus that executes a print job for printing an image of a plurality of pages on a recording medium for each page, and the specific page of the specific page set for the specific page of the plurality of pages. A receiving unit that receives a print job including authentication information for determining whether or not an image can be printed on a recording medium, and acquires authentication information input by a user, and the acquired authentication information is included in the print job. An authentication unit that determines whether or not the authentication information matches, and instructs the printing apparatus to print an image of a page other than the specific page on a recording medium, and the authentication unit determines that the authentication information matches. And an instruction unit for instructing the printing apparatus to print the image of the specific page on the recording medium.

  (12) The print control apparatus according to (11), wherein the print job includes authentication information of different security levels set for two or more pages.

  (13) A storage unit that stores the print job including the authentication information, and another print job that includes authentication information that matches the acquired authentication information is detected from the print jobs stored in the storage unit. And when the other print job is detected by the detection unit, the instruction unit further includes an image of a page on which the authentication information is set in the other print job. The printing control apparatus according to (11) or (12), wherein the printing apparatus is instructed to print on a recording medium.

  (14) In the print job, a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing of an image of a corresponding page on a recording medium is set, and when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the instruction unit displays the image of the page. The printing control apparatus according to any one of (11) to (13), wherein the printing apparatus is instructed to print on a recording medium.

  (15) The print control apparatus according to any one of (11) to (14), wherein the images of the plurality of pages include image elements common to the images of the plurality of pages.

  According to the present invention, the image on the specific page is not printed on the recording medium unless the authorized user inputs the correct authentication information. Therefore, the recording medium on which the image on the specific page is printed is an image other than the specific page. Is prevented from being discharged to the paper discharge unit together with the printed recording medium. Therefore, the recording medium on which the image of the specific page is printed is prevented from being taken away by a person other than the person having the proper authority, and the security level of the printing process is improved.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of PC shown by FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing the configuration of the MFP shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the MFP illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a program stored in the HDD shown in FIG. 4. It is a figure for demonstrating the image printed by carbon copy printing. It is a figure which shows an example of the print setting screen displayed on the display of PC. It is a figure which shows an example of a carbon copy edit screen. It is a figure which shows an example of print setting information. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of print processing executed by the MFP. It is a flowchart following FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a job designation screen displayed on the operation panel unit of the MFP. FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect of carbon copy printing. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect at the time of applying the printing process of this invention to variable printing. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a modification of print processing executed by the MFP. It is a flowchart following FIG.

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

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a printing system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The printing system of this embodiment includes a PC (Personal Computer) 100 and an MFP 200, which are connected to each other via a network 300 so as to communicate with each other.

  The network 300 includes a LAN (Local Area Network) in which computers and network devices are connected according to standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), token ring, and FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface), and a WAN (LAN (Local Area Network)) in which LANs are connected by a dedicated line. Wide Area Network). The type and number of devices connected to the network 300 are not limited to the example shown in FIG. Further, the PC 100 and the MFP 200 may be directly connected (locally connected) between devices without via the network 300.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the PC shown in FIG. The PC 100 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 101, a memory 102, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 103, a display 104, an input device 105, and a communication I / F (Interface) unit 106, which exchange signals. Are connected to each other via a bus 107.

  The CPU 101 performs control of each part and various arithmetic processes according to a program. The memory 102 includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) that stores various programs and various data in advance, a RAM (Random Access Memory) that temporarily stores programs and data as a work area, and the like.

  The HDD 103 stores various programs including an operating system and various data. The HDD 103 is installed with an application for creating document data and a printer driver for converting the document data into print data described in a page description language (PDL) interpretable by the MFP 200. Examples of applications for creating document data include Microsoft Word (registered trademark), Adobe Illustrator (registered trademark), and applications dedicated to variable printing.

  The display 104 is a liquid crystal display, for example, and displays various types of information. The input device 105 includes a pointing device such as a mouse and a keyboard, and is used for performing various inputs.

  The communication I / F unit 106 is an interface for communicating with other devices via the network 300, and uses standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), token ring, and FDDI.

  3 is a schematic front view showing the configuration of the MFP shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the MFP shown in FIG.

  The MFP 200 includes a control unit 210, an operation panel unit 220, an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) 230, an image reading unit 240, a paper feeding unit 250, an image forming unit 260, and a paper discharge unit 270, which exchange signals. Are connected to each other via a bus. Note that, among the above-described units of the MFP 200, descriptions of portions having functions similar to those of the above-described units of the PC 100 are omitted in order to avoid duplicate description.

  The control unit 210 includes a CPU 201, a memory 202, an HDD 203, and a communication I / F unit 204.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a program stored in the HDD. An HDD 203 has an image data generation unit for converting print data from the PC 100 to generate bitmap format image data, and an image for editing or processing the image data to generate image data for carbon copy printing. A program corresponding to the data editing unit and an authentication execution unit that executes an authentication process for printing out an image based on the image data is stored.

  The operation panel unit 220 includes a touch panel, a numeric keypad, a start button, a stop button, and the like, and is used for displaying various information and inputting various instructions.

  The ADF 230 sequentially conveys a plurality of set originals one by one to a predetermined reading position of the image reading unit 240, and sequentially discharges the originals after image reading.

  The image reading unit 240 irradiates the original set at a predetermined reading position or the original conveyed to the predetermined reading position by the ADF 230 with a light source such as a fluorescent lamp, and the reflected light is a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor. The image data is generated from the electrical signal by photoelectric conversion with an imaging device such as the above.

  The paper feed unit 250 accommodates paper as a recording medium used for printing. The sheet feeding unit 250 has a plurality of sheet feeding trays, and sends out the sheets stored in the sheet feeding tray one by one to the image forming unit 260.

  The image forming unit 260 forms an image based on various data on a sheet using a known image forming process such as an electrophotographic process including charging, exposing, developing, transferring, and fixing processes.

  The paper discharge unit 270 stores printed paper conveyed from the image forming unit 260. The paper discharge unit 270 of this embodiment has a plurality of paper discharge trays and a plurality of paper discharge boxes, and the printed paper conveyed from the image forming unit 260 is placed in a predetermined paper discharge tray or paper discharge box. Be contained. The paper discharge box is provided with a door for taking out the paper contained therein, and the door is provided with a lock function. Each of the paper discharge trays and paper discharge boxes of the present embodiment is provided with a sensor for detecting the paper so that it can be recognized whether or not the paper is contained therein.

  Note that the PC 100 and the MFP 200 may include components other than the above-described components, or some of the above-described components may not be included.

  Next, carbon copy printing executed by the printing system of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In carbon copy printing, a set of documents is created by printing a plurality of pages of images having common image elements on a sheet of paper.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an image printed by carbon copy printing. 6A shows an image of the original data of the “shipping slip”, and FIGS. 6B and 6C show a set of slips generated from the original data of the “shipping slip”. An image is shown.

  In carbon copy printing, a plurality of image data is generated from document data in response to a single print instruction from a user. By printing an image based on the image data on a sheet, a set of slips including a “customer” slip and a “record” slip is created. These slips include common image elements such as customer name, customer address, and slip number.

  Comparing FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B, a slip number (No. 12345567890) is added to the “customer” slip shown in FIG. 6B.

  Further, comparing FIG. 6 (A) and FIG. 6 (C), the “record” slip shown in FIG. 6 (C) includes the same slip number (“No. 12345567890”) as the “customer” slip. , A “record” mark is added to indicate that it is a record. Further, a mask process for hiding a telephone number (Tel: 0426-60-9xxx) that does not need to be printed is applied to the “record” slip. Further, a background color different from that of the “customer” slip shown in FIG. 6B is used for the “record” slip.

  Such a change can be made by the user using the carbon copy editing screen 400 ′ (see FIG. 8) provided by the printer driver.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a print setting screen displayed on the display of the PC. The print setting screen 400 is displayed on the display 104 of the PC 100 when the printer driver is activated. The user of the PC 100 can make settings for carbon copy printing using the print setting screen 400.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the print setting screen 400 has two tabs 410a and 410b. When the “carbon” tab 410b is selected from the two tabs 410a and 410b, a screen for performing settings for carbon copy printing is displayed.

  The print setting screen 400 includes a carbon copy print instruction unit 411, a serial number input unit 412, a usage selection unit 413, a paper discharge tray setting unit 414, an authentication setting unit 415, an output setting unit 416, and a priority setting unit 417. The print setting screen 400 is provided with a carbon copy edit button 418, a print button 419a, an apply button 419b, and a cancel button 419c.

  The carbon copy printing instructing unit 411 receives a setting as to whether or not to execute carbon copy printing. The carbon copy printing instruction unit 411 has a check box and accepts a selection by the user as to whether or not to execute carbon copy printing.

  The serial number input unit 412 receives input of serial numbers added to a plurality of pages of images printed by carbon copy printing. The serial number input unit 412 has a text box and accepts input of a serial number by the user.

  The application selection unit 413 receives selection of one application from applications (“customer” and “record”) specified for each of a plurality of pages of images printed by carbon copy printing. The usage selection unit 413 has a pull-down menu and accepts selection of one usage by the user from the usages corresponding to each page.

  The discharge tray setting unit 414 receives a setting of a discharge tray on which a sheet on which an image of the page is printed is discharged for a specific use page. In carbon copy printing, for example, the person who takes away the paper on which the image of each voucher is printed may be different, and different paper discharge trays are set for each voucher to prevent others from accidentally taking away different paper. . The paper discharge tray setting unit 414 has a pull-down menu and accepts the user's setting of the paper discharge tray for the page of the usage selected by the usage selection unit 413.

  The authentication setting unit 415 receives a setting of authentication information for determining whether or not an image of the page can be printed for a page for a specific use. The authentication setting unit 415 includes an identification information setting unit 415a and a password setting unit 415b, and accepts the setting of identification information and a password by the user for the page of the usage selected by the usage selection unit 413. Further, the authentication setting unit 415 can accept a setting of only identification information.

  The output setting unit 416 receives a setting for prohibiting the sheet on which the image of the page is printed from being overlaid on another sheet in the sheet discharge tray for the page for a specific use. The output setting unit 416 accepts a setting for prohibiting the user from stacking the application page selected by the application selection unit 413.

  The priority setting unit 417 receives a priority setting for a specific use page. The priority setting unit 417 has a pull-down menu, and accepts a priority setting by the user for the page of the usage selected by the usage selection unit 413.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the carbon copy editing screen. The carbon copy edit screen 400 ′ is displayed on the display 104 when the carbon copy edit button 418 on the print setting screen 400 is pressed. The user of the PC 100 can edit the contents of each image printed by carbon copy printing using the carbon copy editing screen 400 ′.

  The carbon copy editing screen 400 ′ includes an image display unit 421, an image selection unit 422, and a background color setting unit 423. The carbon copy editing screen 400 ′ is provided with a detailed editing button 424 and a “return” button 425.

  The image display unit 421 displays one image among a plurality of pages of images printed by carbon copy printing. In the present embodiment, image data for display is generated based on the document data for the page of the usage selected by the usage selection unit 413 of the print setting screen 400, and an image based on the image data is displayed on the image display unit 421. The

  The image selection unit 422 receives a setting of a model of an image displayed on the image display unit 421. The image selection unit 422 has a pull-down menu, and accepts the setting of the image template (data pattern) by the user for the page of the usage selected by the usage selection unit 413 of the print setting screen 400.

  The background color setting unit 423 receives the setting of the background color of the image displayed on the image display unit 421. The background color setting unit 423 has a pull-down menu and accepts a background color setting by the user.

  The detailed editing button 424 is a button for performing detailed editing of an image displayed on the image display unit 421, and is used to call a screen (not shown) for adding a mask or characters to the image. Is done. A “return” button 425 is a button for returning to the print setting screen 400.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of the print setting information. The print setting information 500 is generated by the PC 100 based on the setting content of the print setting screen 400. The print setting information 500 includes job number information 510, carbon copy information 520, and carbon copy print setting information 530a to 530i.

  The job number information 510 is information for identifying a print job. The carbon copy information 520 is information for determining whether or not to execute carbon copy printing. The carbon copy information 520 corresponds to the setting of the carbon copy print instruction unit 411 on the print setting screen 400.

  The carbon copy print setting information 530a to 530i is information related to carbon copy printing, and is serial number information 530a, carbon copy setting information 530b, authentication information 530c, priority information 530d, paper discharge destination information 530e, stacking information 530f, and background color information. 530g, insertion character information 530h, and insertion position information i are included. The serial number information 530a, the carbon copy setting information 530b, the authentication information 530c, the priority information 530d, the paper discharge destination information 530e, and the stacking information 530f are the serial number input unit 412, the application selection unit 413, and the authentication setting unit 415 of the print setting screen 400. , The priority setting unit 417, the discharge tray setting unit 414, and the output setting unit 416, respectively. The background color information 530g, the insertion character information 530h, and the insertion position information i correspond to the setting of the image displayed on the image display unit 421 of the carbon copy editing screen 400 '.

  The serial number information 530a is information indicating a serial number added to the image, and the carbon copy setting information 530b is information for identifying a plurality of pages included in one print job.

  The authentication information 530c is information for determining whether an image of a specific page can be printed on paper. The authentication information 530c is selectively set for a specific page among a plurality of pages included in one print job. For example, in the print job with the job number “0002” in FIG. 9, the authentication information is provided for the first page (Original) and the second page (Copy1) out of four pages (Original, Copy1, Copy2, and Copy3). On the other hand, the authentication information is not set for the third page (Copy 2) and the fourth page (Copy 3). On the first page, both identification information (Secure) and a password (1234) are set as authentication information, while on the second page, only identification information (9999) is set. That is, authentication information of different security levels is set for the first page and the second page.

  The priority information 530d is information indicating the priority of each page included in one print job. In the print job with the job number “0002” in FIG. 9, the first page is set to “High”, and the second to fourth pages are set to “Low”.

  The paper discharge destination information 530e is information indicating a paper discharge tray on which a sheet on which an image is printed is discharged. In the print job with the job number “0002” in FIG. 9, the first page is set in the “LS Main” tray, and the second to fourth pages are set in the “LS Sub” tray.

  The stacking information 530f is information indicating whether or not stacking of sheets on which images of pages are printed is prohibited. In the print job of job number “0002” in FIG. 9, the first page is set to “prohibited”, and the second to fourth pages are set to “permitted”.

  The background color information 530g is information indicating the background color of the image, and the inserted character information 530h and the insertion position information 530i are information indicating the character added to the image and its insertion position.

  The print setting information 500 includes information for performing mask processing in addition to the above information.

  The print setting information 500 is transmitted as a print job from the PC 100 to the MFP 200 together with corresponding print data. The MFP 200 that has received the print job executes print processing based on the print setting information 500. Hereinafter, the operation of the MFP 200 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of print processing executed by the MFP. Note that the algorithm shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10 is stored as a program in the HDD 203 of the MFP 200 and is executed by the CPU 201.

  In the printing process, first, it is determined whether or not carbon copy printing is set (step S101). In this embodiment, the carbon copy information 520 included in the print job is referred to, and it is determined whether or not carbon copy printing is set.

  If it is determined that carbon copy printing is not set (step S101: NO), normal printing processing is executed (step S102). In this embodiment, bitmap format image data is generated from print data included in a print job, and an image based on the image data is formed on a sheet.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in the process shown in step S101 that carbon copy printing is set (step S101: YES), image data of a plurality of pages is generated (step S103). In the present embodiment, a plurality of pages of image data for carbon copy printing are generated from the print data. Specifically, first, document print data that is original image data is generated from print data. Then, carbon copy data is generated by subjecting the original print data to processing such as mask processing, character addition processing, and background color change processing. Note that the process itself of generating image data of a plurality of pages using a process such as a mask process is a general image data generation process for carbon copy printing, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  Subsequently, the prohibition of output is confirmed (step S104). In the present embodiment, the priority information 530d and the stacking information 530f are referred to for the pages for which authentication information is not set among the plurality of pages for which image data has been generated in the process shown in step S103, and the prohibition of output is confirmed. Is done.

  Subsequently, print output of a page without any error is executed (step S105). In the present embodiment, based on the confirmation result in the process shown in step S104, an image of a page without any errors is printed. Specifically, an image based on image data is formed on a sheet for a page for which authentication information is not set and a prohibition condition is not satisfied.

  In the present embodiment, among pages for which authentication information is not set, an image of a page whose overlay information is “permitted” or a page whose priority information is “High” is printed on paper. Alternatively, for a page whose stacking information is “prohibited”, if there is no other paper in the paper discharge tray to which the paper on which the image of the page is printed is discharged, the image is printed on the paper.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S101 to S105 in FIG. 10, when carbon copy printing is set for a print job, authentication information is set from a plurality of pages included in one print job. A page that does not satisfy the prohibition condition is recognized, and an image of the page is printed on the paper. Note that a page for which authentication information is not set is an image page with a relatively low security level that does not include important information (image elements) such as a customer's telephone number.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether there is job designation or prohibition cancellation (step S106). In the present embodiment, it is determined whether or not there is job designation or prohibition cancellation in order to print the remaining pages excluding the page printed in the process shown in step S105.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a job designation screen. Job designation screen 600 is displayed on operation panel unit 220 of MFP 200. The job designation screen 600 includes a job selection unit 610, a usage selection unit 620, and an authentication information input unit 630.

  Job selection unit 610 accepts a user's selection of one print job from a list of print jobs waiting in MFP 200. The usage selection unit 620 accepts selection of one usage (page) by the user from the usages specified for each page of the print job selected by the job selection unit 610.

  The authentication information input unit 630 receives an input of authentication information for printing out an image of a use selected by the use selecting unit 620. The authentication information input unit 630 receives input of identification information or identification information and a password by a user.

  In FIG. 12, the usage “processing 1” is selected from the four usages specified in the four pages included in the print job “carbon 3”, and the image of “processing 1” is printed out. In order to do this, authentication information is input by the user.

  In the process shown in step S <b> 106, when authentication information input by the user is acquired, it is determined that there is a job designation. In addition, for an unprinted page for which authentication information is not set, when printing of a page having a higher priority than the page ends, or on a paper discharge tray to which a sheet on which an image of the page is printed is discharged When other sheets that existed are removed, it is determined that the prohibition has been lifted.

  In the process shown in step S106, when it is determined that there is no job designation or prohibition cancellation (step S106: NO), the process waits until there is a job designation or prohibition cancellation.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that there is job designation or prohibition cancellation (step S106: YES), it is determined whether or not it is job designation (step S107).

  If it is determined that the job is designated (step S107: YES), an authentication process is executed (step S108). In the present embodiment, the authentication information 530c of the print setting information 500 is referred to, and it is determined whether or not the authentication information input by the user through the job designation screen 600 matches the authentication information set in advance.

  Then, it is determined whether or not the authentication result is “OK” (step S109). If it is determined that the authentication result is not “OK” (step S109: NO), an error screen is displayed (step S110), and the process returns to step S106.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the authentication result is “OK” (step S109: YES), or when it is determined that the job is not specified in the process shown in step S107 (step S107: NO), the prohibition of output is confirmed. (Step S111).

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not there is an illegal error (step S112).

  When it is determined that there is a prohibition error (step S112: YES), an error screen is displayed (step S110), and the process returns to step S106. For example, even if the authentication result is “OK”, an error screen (not shown) is displayed if there is another sheet on the sheet discharge tray to which the sheet on which the image of the page is printed is discharged. Is displayed.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that there is no error in prohibition (step S112: NO), the corresponding page is printed out (step S113). In this embodiment, an image of a page in which authentication information is not set and the prohibition is canceled, or an image of a page that is determined to have an authentication result of “OK” and has no prohibition error is printed on a sheet.

  Then, the job information is updated (step S114). In the present embodiment, job information stored together with the print job in the HDD 203 of the MFP 200 is updated according to the print result. Specifically, the output information of the corresponding page included in the job information is updated from “unprinted” to “output completed”.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S106 to S114 in FIG. 10, authentication information input is accepted for a page for which authentication information is set among a plurality of pages included in one print job. If it is determined that the authentication result is “OK” and there is no prohibition error, the image of the corresponding page is printed on the paper. If the same authentication information is preset for two or more pages included in the print job, an image of a plurality of pages is printed on paper.

  According to such a configuration, even if a print job is transmitted from the PC 100, the image on the specific page is not printed on the paper unless the user inputs correct authentication information to the MFP 200. Therefore, the image on the specific page is printed. The discharged paper is prevented from being discharged to the paper discharge tray together with the paper on which images of other pages are printed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the sheet on which the image of the specific page is printed from being taken away by a person other than the person having the proper authority.

  Further, according to the processing shown in steps S106 to S114 in FIG. 10, in the processing shown in steps S104 to S105 in FIG. 10, the prohibition cancellation is recognized for the page that has not been printed because the prohibition condition is satisfied, The image of the corresponding page is printed.

  Subsequently, it is determined again whether or not the job is designated (step S115). If it is determined that the job is not designated (step S115: NO), the process proceeds to step S121.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the job is designated (step S115: YES), another print job is selected (step S116). In the present embodiment, one print job is selected from among the waiting print jobs stored in the HDD 203 of the MFP 200.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the print job has the same setting (step S117). In this embodiment, it is determined whether the print job selected in the process shown in step S116 includes a page in which the same authentication information as the authentication information authenticated in the process shown in step S108 is set. .

  If it is determined that the print job does not have the same setting (step S117: NO), the process proceeds to step S120.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the print job has the same setting (step S117: YES), print output of the page with the same setting is executed (step S118). In the present embodiment, an image of a page in which the same authentication information as the authentication information authenticated in the process shown in step S108 is set is printed on a sheet.

  For example, when the authentication information “9999” is input by the user to print a page in which the authentication information “9999” is set in the print job with the job number “0002” in FIG. 9, first, the job number “0002” is entered. The image of the corresponding page of the print job “” is printed on paper. In addition, pages with the authentication number “9999” are detected in the print jobs with the job numbers “0003” and “0004”, and the image of the page is printed on paper.

  Then, the job information is updated (step S119).

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not all jobs have been confirmed (step S120). In the present embodiment, it is determined whether confirmation of all the print jobs on standby in the MFP 200 has been completed.

  When it is determined that the confirmation of all jobs has not been completed (step S120: NO), the process returns to step S116. On the other hand, when it is determined that all the jobs have been confirmed (step S120: YES), the process proceeds to step S121.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S115 to S120 in FIG. 11, a page of another print job in which the same authentication information as the authentication information authenticated in the processing shown in step S108 is set is detected. The page is printed out. According to such a configuration, images of a plurality of print jobs can be printed by a single input of authentication information by the user. That is, the work for the user to input authentication information for each job is omitted.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not printing of all pages of the print job has been completed (step S121). In the present embodiment, it is determined whether or not an image based on the image data is formed on the paper for all the image data generated in the process shown in step S103.

  When it is determined that the print output of all pages of the print job is not completed (step S121: NO), the process returns to step S106. On the other hand, when it is determined that the print output of all pages of the print job has been completed (step S121: YES), the process ends.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the operational effects of carbon copy printing.

  FIG. 13A is a diagram illustrating an example of an image of original data of a “shipping slip”, and FIG. 13B is a diagram illustrating an example of a set of slip images created by carbon copy printing. is there. In FIG. 13, a set of four sheets is created based on the document data. FIG. 13 shows three print jobs having different information such as customer names and addresses.

  For example, the authentication information is set for the “customer” slip among the four slips printed by executing the first print job, and the “customer” slip is also set for the second and third print jobs. Assume that the same authentication information as that of the first print job is set.

  In this case, first, for the first print job, three slips for which authentication information is not set (“Process 1” slip, “Process 2” slip, and “Record” slip) are printed out. Thereafter, when the right holder designates the first print job and inputs the authentication information on the operation panel unit 220 of the MFP 200, the “customer” slip is printed out for the first print job. In addition, “customer” slips for the second and third print jobs are printed out.

  According to such a configuration, the “customer” slip is not printed unless the right holder who should take away the “customer” slip inputs authentication information to the operation panel unit 220 of the MFP 200. The “use” slip is prevented from being discharged to the discharge tray together with the other three slips. Therefore, the “customer” slip is prevented from being taken away by a person other than the right holder.

  In addition to the “customer” slip for the first print job, the “customer” slips for the second and third print jobs to be taken away by the right holder are also printed out. The operation of designating the second and third print jobs and inputting the authentication information on the panel unit 220 is omitted.

  As described above, in the embodiment described above, the case where the printing process of the present invention is applied to carbon copy printing has been described as an example. However, the printing process of the present invention can also be applied to variable printing.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the operational effect when the printing process of the present invention is applied to variable printing. FIG. 14A is a diagram illustrating an example of an image of document data, and FIG. 14B is a diagram illustrating an example of a set of advertisements created by variable printing. In FIG. 14, a set of three advertisements is created. FIG. 14 shows at least three variable print jobs having different room numbers of buildings.

  In this embodiment, customer information is obtained by superimposing information such as the customer's name and address, which is variable data, on the manuscript data (form data) in which the name, photo, and room number of the building are described. A set of three different ads is created. A set of advertisements includes common image elements such as building photos and room number information. Authentication information is set for a specific advertisement among a plurality of advertisements forming one set of advertisements.

  For example, among the three advertisements with different customer names and addresses to be printed by executing the first variable print job, the authentication information is set for the advertisement for “member customer 1”, and the second and third variable variables are set. Also for the print job, the same authentication information as the first variable print job is set for the “member customer 1” advertisement.

  In this case, first, for the first variable print job, two advertisements for which authentication information is not set (“for general customer 1” and “for general customer 2”) are printed out. Thereafter, if the right holder designates the first variable print job on the operation panel unit 220 of the MFP 200 and inputs the authentication information, the “member customer 1” advertisement is printed out for the first variable print job. Is done. In addition, advertisements for “member customer 1” of the second and third variable print jobs are printed out.

(Modification)
Next, a modification of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 15 and 16. This modification is an embodiment in which no prohibition condition regarding image printing is set.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart for explaining a modification of the printing process of the present embodiment. The algorithm shown in the flowchart of FIG. 15 is stored as a program in the HDD 203 of the MFP 200 and is executed by the CPU 201.

  The processing shown in steps S201 to S203 is the same as the processing shown in steps S101 to S103 in FIG.

  In step S204, a printout of a page for which no authentication information is set is executed. Specifically, an image of a page for which authentication information is not set among a plurality of pages on which an image is printed by carbon copy printing is printed on paper.

  Subsequently, it is determined whether or not there is a job designation (step S205). If it is determined that there is no job designation (step S205: NO), the process waits until there is a job designation. On the other hand, when it is determined that there is a job designation (step S205: YES), an authentication process is executed (step S206).

  Then, it is determined whether or not the authentication result is “OK” (step S207). If it is determined that the authentication result is not “OK” (step S207: NO), an error screen is displayed (step S208), and the process returns to step S205.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the authentication result is “OK” (step S207: YES), the corresponding page is printed out (step S209). Then, the job information is updated (step S210).

  Since the processing shown in steps S211 to S216 is the same as the processing shown in steps S116 to S121 of FIG. 11, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  As described above, according to the printing system of the present embodiment, unless the user inputs correct authentication information to MFP 200, the image on the specific page is not printed on the paper. Thus, it is possible to prevent the image other than the specific page from being discharged to the paper discharge tray together with the printed paper. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the sheet on which the image of the specific page is printed from being taken away by a person other than the person having the proper authority, and the security level of the printing process is improved.

  In the above embodiment, the paper on which the image of each page is printed is stored in a predetermined paper discharge tray or paper discharge box. In carbon copy printing, slips that do not need to be taken away immediately or slips that are processed together are stored in a paper discharge box, not a paper discharge tray. In the present embodiment, from the standpoint of preventing mistaking of the paper on which the image of the specific page for which the authentication information is set is printed, for example, for the specific page, the paper on which the image is printed after the authentication process The other pages are preferably set so that the paper on which the image is printed is stored in the paper discharge box. Alternatively, when all the sheets are set to be stored in different discharge boxes, for example, when it is determined that the authentication result is “OK” in the process shown in step S109 in FIG. The lock of the door of the paper discharge box that stores the paper on which the image is printed may be released together.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the printing process of the present invention is applied to carbon copy printing and variable printing in which images on each page have common image elements has been described as an example. However, the printing process of the present invention can also be applied to printing of images of a plurality of pages that do not have a common image element.

  In the above embodiment, image data for carbon copy printing is generated in the MFP 200. However, image data for carbon copy printing may be generated in the PC 100 and transmitted to the MFP 200.

  In the above embodiment, an MFP including a printing apparatus is used as the printing control apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other apparatuses such as a copying machine and a printer are used. May be. Alternatively, the present invention can be applied to a print control device separated from the printing device.

  The means and method for performing various processes in the printing system according to the present embodiment can be realized by either a dedicated hardware circuit or a programmed computer. The program may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a flexible disk and a CD-ROM, or may be provided online via a network such as the Internet. In this case, the program recorded on the computer-readable recording medium is normally transferred to and stored in a storage unit such as a hard disk. The program may be provided as a single application software, or may be incorporated in the software of the device as one function of the device.

100 PC,
101, 201 CPU,
102, 202 memory,
103, 203 HDD,
104 display,
105 input devices,
106,204 Communication I / F part,
107 bus,
200 MFP,
210 control unit,
220 operation panel section,
230 ADF,
240 image reading unit,
250 paper feeder,
260 Image forming unit,
270 paper discharge section,
300 network,
400 print setting screen,
500 print setting information,
600 Job specification screen.

Claims (15)

A printing system for printing images of a plurality of pages on a recording medium for each page,
An authentication setting unit that sets authentication information for determining whether or not to print an image of the specific page on a recording medium for the specific page of the plurality of pages;
An authentication unit that acquires authentication information input by a user and determines whether the acquired authentication information matches the authentication information set by the authentication setting unit;
A printing unit that prints an image of a page other than the specific page on a recording medium and prints the image of the specific page on a recording medium when the authentication unit determines that the authentication information matches. A printing system featuring.   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the authentication setting unit sets authentication information of different security levels for two or more pages. A storage unit for storing a print job including the authentication information;
A detection unit that detects other print jobs including authentication information that matches the acquired authentication information from among the print jobs stored in the storage unit;
When the other print job is detected by the detection unit, the print unit further prints an image of a page in which the authentication information is set in the other print job on a recording medium. The printing system according to claim 1 or 2. A condition setting unit for setting a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing an image of the corresponding page on a recording medium;
The printing system according to claim 1, wherein when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the printing unit prints an image of the page on a recording medium.   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of pages of images includes an image element common to the plurality of pages of images. A printing method for printing an image of a plurality of pages on a recording medium for each page,
A step (a) of setting authentication information for determining whether or not printing of an image of the specific page on a recording medium is possible for the specific page of the plurality of pages;
Printing an image of a page other than the specific page on a recording medium (b);
Step (c) of acquiring authentication information input by a user and determining whether the acquired authentication information matches the authentication information set in Step (a);
And (d) printing the image of the specific page on a recording medium when it is determined in step (c) that the authentication information matches.   The printing method according to claim 6, wherein in the step (a), authentication information having different security levels is set for two or more pages. Storing a print job including the authentication information in a storage unit (e);
Detecting another print job including authentication information matching the acquired authentication information from the print jobs stored in the storage unit;
A step (g) of printing an image of a page in which the authentication information is set in the other print job on a recording medium when the other print job is detected in the step (f). The printing method according to claim 6 or 7, wherein: A step (h) of setting a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing an image of the corresponding page on a recording medium;
9. The method according to claim 6, wherein when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the image of the page is printed on a recording medium in the step (b) and the step (d). Printing method.   The printing method according to claim 6, wherein the image of the plurality of pages includes an image element common to the image of the plurality of pages. A print control apparatus that executes a print job for printing an image of a plurality of pages on a recording medium for each page,
A receiving unit configured to receive a print job including authentication information that is set for a specific page of the plurality of pages and that determines whether to print an image of the specific page on a recording medium;
An authentication unit that acquires authentication information input by a user and determines whether the acquired authentication information matches the authentication information included in the print job;
Instructing the printing apparatus to print an image of a page other than the specific page on the recording medium, and printing the image of the specific page on the recording medium when the authentication unit determines that the authentication information matches. A printing control apparatus comprising: an instruction unit that instructs the printing apparatus.   The print control apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the print job includes authentication information of different security levels set for two or more pages. A storage unit for storing a print job including the authentication information;
A detection unit that detects other print jobs including authentication information that matches the acquired authentication information from among the print jobs stored in the storage unit;
When the other print job is detected by the detection unit, the instruction unit further causes the printing apparatus to print an image of a page in which the authentication information is set in the other print job on a recording medium. The print control apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the print control apparatus instructs the print control apparatus. In the print job, a prohibition condition for prohibiting printing an image of the corresponding page on a recording medium is set,
14. The print control according to claim 11, wherein when the prohibition condition is not satisfied, the instruction unit instructs the printing apparatus to print the image of the page on a recording medium. apparatus.   The print control apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the image of the plurality of pages includes an image element common to the image of the plurality of pages.