JP2012252527A - Information processing system and its method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that an output of a text combined with various types of insertion sheets such as a cover, a slip sheet, an index sheet and a back cover is not easily achieved when outputting a document file by using a digital image forming device.SOLUTION: For an information processing method in which various types of sheets such as a cover, a slip sheet, a back cover and an index sheet can be inserted from different paper feeding parts, insertion sheet pattern setup means for allowing a user to specify a combination of sheets which he/she wants to insert among the various types of sheets and an insertion order, and insertion sheet order setup means for allowing the user to partially change in the middle of a text "the insertion sheet combination" and "the insertion order" set by the "insertion sheet pattern" setup means are provided.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing method and an information processing apparatus, for example, an information processing method and an information processing apparatus for displaying a print layout in a print layout application or a printer driver.

  Different types of data such as characters, tables, and images have different structures for defining the data and editing operations on the data. Therefore, various application programs corresponding to various types of data are provided. Therefore, a user who uses these data, such as a character processing program for editing characters, a spreadsheet program for editing tables, an image editing program for editing images, etc. It is necessary to use different applications for each type.

  As described above, a user generally uses an application program corresponding to each type of data. However, there are a plurality of documents that the user intends to create, such as characters and tables, characters and images, etc., rather than a document composed of only one type of data such as characters only, tables only, and images only. It is more common to handle documents composed of different types of data. Therefore, in order to create a document including multiple types of data, the user uses each application to print each data using the printing function provided in each application, and the printed matter in the desired order. In combination, it was necessary to create a desired document.

  Alternatively, for example, according to a program called an office suite that forms one integrated application by various applications, a function of configuring one document by combining data generated by each application is provided. By using this integrated application, the user can combine the data created by each application into one document by a specific application included in the integrated application.

  Some integrated applications have a function of inserting a sheet having a special meaning in a print job. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In such an integrated application, patterns in which combinations and order of insertion sheets are defined in advance are prepared as options, and the user selects a desired pattern from these options to collect several pages. It is possible to insert a slip sheet as a break for each (hereinafter referred to as chapter) or insert an index sheet for each chapter.

JP 2003-91390 A

  However, in the case of the paper insertion function of the conventional integrated application, the combination / order of the insertion paper that can be easily set in the text is limited to the limited patterns prepared in advance by the integrated application. It was not easy to insert them in “combinations” or “orders” that are not in the list. However, when the pattern is increased into the options to cover all “combinations” and “order” in the UI of the conventional integrated application, the number of options greatly increases, and there is a problem that it becomes difficult for the user to set. there were.

An information processing method capable of inserting a plurality of types of paper such as a front cover / interleaf / back cover / index paper from different paper feed units,
An insertion sheet pattern setting means (FIG. 14) for designating a combination of sheets to be inserted among the plurality of types of sheets and in what order the sheets are inserted;
The information processing method according to claim 1, wherein the insertion sheet pattern setting means can perform a combination of insertion sheets and an insertion order on one screen.

  When a document file is output using a digital image forming apparatus, there is an effect that it is easy to output a combination of a plurality of types of insertion sheets such as a cover / interleaf / index sheet / back cover and the text.

It is a block diagram for demonstrating the structure of the stand-alone type document processing system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the host computer of the document processing system which concerns on this Embodiment. FIG. 3A is a diagram illustrating an example of the structure of a book file according to the present embodiment, FIG. 3A is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the format of a book file, and FIG. 3B is a diagram illustrating a configuration of document data. is there. It is a figure which shows an example of the book attribute which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the chapter attribute which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the page attribute which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart explaining the procedure which opens the book file which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart explaining the procedure which imports the electronic original file which concerns on this Embodiment to a book file. It is a flowchart explaining the procedure which converts the application data which concern on this Embodiment into an electronic document file. It is a figure which shows an example of the user interface screen at the time of opening the existing book file. It is a figure which shows an example of the user interface screen at the time of opening a new book file. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a client server type document processing system according to the present embodiment. FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of a host computer and a printer in the document processing system according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a figure which shows the setting screen in the case of inserting the insertion paper which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the process which reflects the insertion sheet attribute which concerns on this Embodiment on the attribute of a book file. It is a figure which shows the setting screen in the case of inserting the insertion paper which concerns on this Embodiment.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<System overview>
An outline of a document processing system which is a preferred embodiment for the information processing system of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this document processing system, a data file created by a general application is converted into an electronic document file by an electronic document writer. The bookbinding application provides a function for editing the electronic manuscript file. Details will be described below.

<System configuration and operation>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a software configuration of a document processing system suitable for the information processing system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  This document processing system is realized by a digital computer 100 which is a preferred embodiment of the information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment. The general application 101 is an application program that provides functions such as word processing, spreadsheet, photo retouching, drawing or painting, presentation, and text editing, and has a printing function. These application programs use a predetermined interface provided by an operating system (OS) when printing application data such as created document data and image data. In other words, the application 101 transmits a predetermined output command (GDI function) depending on the OS to the output module of the OS providing the interface in order to print the created data. Upon receiving this output command, the output module converts the command into a format that can be processed by an output device such as a printer, and outputs the converted command (DDI function). Since the format that can be processed by this output device varies depending on the type, manufacturer, model, etc., a device driver is provided for each device, and the OS uses that device driver to convert commands. The print data is generated by, and a print job is generated by enclosing with JL (Job Language). For example, when using Windows (registered trademark) of Microsoft Corporation as this OS, a module called GDI (Graphic Device Interface) corresponds to the output module described above.

  The electronic document writer 102 is an improvement of the above-described device driver, and is a software module provided for realizing the document processing system. However, the electronic document writer 102 is not intended for a specific output device, and generates an electronic document file 103 by converting an output command into a format that can be processed by a bookbinding application 104 or a printer driver 106 described later. The format converted by the electronic document writer 102 (hereinafter referred to as “electronic document format”) is not particularly limited as long as a document in units of pages can be expressed in a detailed format. Among substantial standard formats, for example, a PDF format by Adobe Systems, an SGML format, or the like can be adopted as an electronic document format. When the application 101 uses the electronic document writer 102, the electronic document writer 102 is designated as a device driver used for output, and printing is executed. However, the electronic manuscript file as created by the electronic manuscript writer 102 does not have a sufficient format as an electronic manuscript file. Therefore, the bookbinding application 104 designates the electronic document writer 102 as a device driver, and conversion of application data into an electronic document file is executed under the management of the bookbinding application 104. The bookbinding application 104 completes the new insufficient electronic original file generated by the electronic original writer 102 as an electronic original file having a format to be described later. Hereinafter, when it is necessary to clearly identify this point, a file created by the electronic manuscript writer 102 will be referred to as an “electronic manuscript file”, and an electronic manuscript file given a structure by the bookbinding application 104 will be referred to as a “book”. Called “File”. If there is no need to distinguish between them, a document file, an electronic manuscript file, and a book file generated by an application are all referred to as a document file (or document data).

  In this way, by designating the electronic document writer 102 as a device driver and printing the data by the general application 101, the application data is called a page defined by the application 101 (hereinafter referred to as “logical page” or “document page”). ) And is stored in a storage medium such as a hard disk as the electronic document file 103. The hard disk may be a local drive provided in a computer that implements the document processing system according to the present embodiment, or may be a drive provided on the network when connected to the network. good.

  The bookbinding application 104 reads the “electronic document file” or “book file” 103 and provides a user with a function for editing the file. However, the bookbinding application 104 does not provide a function for editing the contents of each page, but provides a function for editing the structure of a chapter or book, which will be described later, configured with a page as a minimum unit.

  When the book file 103 edited by the bookbinding application 104 is printed, the bookbinding application 104 activates the electronic document despooler 105. The electronic manuscript despooler 105 reads out a designated book file from the hard disk and generates an output command suitable for the OS output module described above in order to print each page in the format described in the book file. Output to the output module shown. At that time, the printer driver 106 for the printer 107 used as the output device is designated as the device driver. Then, the output module uses the printer driver 106 of the designated printer 107 to convert the received output command into a device command that can be interpreted and executed by the printer 107. The device command is transmitted to the printer 107, and an image corresponding to the command is printed by the printer 107.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of the digital computer 100 shown in FIG.

  2, the CPU 201 executes programs such as the OS, the general application 101, and the bookbinding application 104 that are stored in the program ROM of the ROM 203 or loaded from the hard disk 211 to the RAM 202, and the software configuration in FIG. The procedure of the flowchart is realized. A RAM 202 functions as a main memory, work area, and the like for the CPU 201. A keyboard controller (KBC) 205 controls key input from a keyboard 209 or a pointing device (not shown). A CRT controller (CRTC) 206 controls display on the display unit 210. The display unit 210 is not limited to the CRT, and may be a liquid crystal, plasma, or the like. A disk controller (DKC) 207 is connected to a hard disk (HD) 211 that stores a boot program, various applications, font data, user files, an editing file to be described later, a floppy (registered trademark) disk (FD) (not shown), and the like. Control access between them. The PRTC 208 controls the exchange of signals with the connected printer 107. The NC 212 is connected to the network and executes communication control processing with other devices connected to the network.

<Electronic manuscript data format>
Before referring to details of the editing application 104, the data format of the “book file” described above will be described.

  This book file has a three-layer structure imitating a paper medium book. The upper layer is called a “book”, imitating one book, and attributes related to the whole book are defined. The middle layer below it corresponds to the chapter in the book and is also called “chapter”. For each “chapter”, attributes for each chapter can be defined. The lower layer is a “page” and corresponds to each page defined by the application program. For each “page”, attributes for each page can be defined. One “book” may include a plurality of “chapter”, and one “chapter” may include a plurality of “pages”.

  FIG. 3A is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of a book file format. In the book file of this example, “book”, “chapter”, and “page” are indicated by corresponding nodes. One book file contains one “book”. Since “book” and “chapter” are concepts for defining a structure as “book”, the defined attribute values and links to lower layers are included as entities. The “page” has data for each “page” output by the application program as an entity. Therefore, the “page” includes a document page entity (document page data) and a link to each document page data in addition to the attribute value. Note that a print page when outputting to a paper medium or the like may include a plurality of document pages. This structure is not displayed by a link but is displayed as an attribute in each hierarchy of “book”, “chapter”, and “page”.

  In FIG. 3A, a book 301 has a book attribute defined therein, and two chapters 302A and 302B are linked. By this link, it is displayed that chapters 302A and 302B are included in book 301. Furthermore, pages 303A and 303B are linked to chapter 302A, and it is shown that these pages are included. Each page 303A, 303B is defined with an attribute value of the page, and includes links to the original page data (1) and (2). These links indicate the original data (1) and (2) of the original page data 304 shown in FIG. 3 (B), and the entities of the pages 303A and 303B are the original page data (1) and (2). Display that there is.

  Similarly, the chapter 302B includes pages 303C and 303D, and includes links to the original document page data (3) and (4). These links indicate the original data (3) and (4) of the original page data 304 shown in FIG. 3B, and the entities of the pages 303C and 303D are the original page data (3) and (4). It is displayed.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the book attribute 301 according to the present embodiment.

  Here, for items that can be defined redundantly with the lower layer, the attribute value of the lower layer is preferentially adopted. Therefore, for an item included only in the book attribute 301, the value defined by the book attribute 301 becomes a valid value throughout the book. However, items that overlap the lower layer have meanings as default values when they are not defined in the lower layer. Each illustrated item does not specifically correspond to one item, but may include a plurality of related items.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining chapter attributes according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining page attributes according to the present embodiment. Here, the relationship between these chapter attributes and page attributes is the same as the relationship between the book attributes and lower layer attributes described above.

  In FIG. 4, items unique to the book attribute 301 are six items of “printing method”, “bookbinding details”, “cover / back cover”, “index sheet”, “insert sheet”, and “chapter break”. These items are items defined throughout the book.

  As the “printing method” attribute, three values “single-sided printing”, “double-sided printing”, and “bookbinding printing” can be designated. Here, “bookbinding printing” is a method of printing in a format that enables bookbinding by bundling a separately designated number of sheets into two and folding the bundle. As the “bookbinding details” attribute, when “bookbinding printing” is designated in the “printing method”, “opening direction”, “number of sheets to be bundled”, and the like can be designated.

  The attribute of “front cover / back cover” includes designation of adding sheets to be a front cover and a back cover when printing an electronic manuscript file collected as a book, and designation of print contents on the added sheets. The attribute of “index paper” includes designation of insertion of index paper with ears separately prepared in the printing apparatus as chapter breaks and designation of print contents in the index (ear) portion. This attribute can be used when an inserter with an insert function for inserting paper prepared separately from the printing paper into a desired position is provided in the printing apparatus to be used, or a plurality of paper feeding cassettes can be used. It becomes effective when it is. The same applies to the attribute of “interleaf”. The attribute of “interleaf” includes designation of insertion of paper supplied from an inserter or a paper cassette as a chapter break, and designation of a paper feed source when inserting interleaf. .

  The “chapter break” attribute includes designation of whether to use a new sheet, use a new print page, or do nothing in particular at the chapter break. In “one-sided printing”, the use of a new sheet and the use of a new print page have the same meaning. In “duplex printing”, if “use new paper” is specified, continuous chapters will not be printed on one sheet, but if “use new print page” is specified, continuous chapters will not be printed. May be printed on the front and back of a sheet of paper.

  Next, as for the chapter attributes shown in FIG. 5, there are no items unique to the chapters, and all items overlap with the book attributes. Therefore, if the definition in the chapter attribute is different from the definition in the book attribute, the value defined in the chapter attribute has priority. Items common only to the book attribute and chapter attribute described above are five items of “paper size”, “paper orientation”, “N-up printing designation”, “enlargement / reduction”, and “discharge method”. Among these, the attribute “N-up print designation” is an item for designating the number of document pages included in one print page. Arrangements that can be specified here include 1 × 1, 1 × 2, 2 × 2, 3 × 3, and 4 × 4. The attribute of “paper discharge method” is an item for designating whether or not stapling is performed on the discharged paper, and the validity of this attribute depends on whether or not the printing apparatus to be used has a stapling function. .

  Next, in the page attributes shown in FIG. 6, items unique to the page attributes include “page rotation designation”, “zoom”, “arrangement designation”, “annotation”, “page division”, and the like. “Page rotation designation” is an item for designating a rotation angle when an original page is arranged on a print page. The “zoom” attribute is an item for designating the scaling factor of the original page. This scaling factor is designated with the size of the virtual logical page area as 100%. The virtual logical page area is an area occupied by one original page when the original page is arranged in accordance with designation of N-up or the like. For example, if it is 1 × 1, the virtual logical page area is an area corresponding to one print page, and if it is 1 × 2, each side of one print page is an area reduced to about 70%.

  As attributes common to the “book”, “chapter”, and “page” described above, there are a “watermark” attribute and a “header / footer” attribute. A “watermark” is a separately designated image or character string that is printed over data created by an application. “Header / Footer” is a watermark printed on the upper and lower margins of each page. However, the “header / footer” includes items that can be specified by variables, such as a page number and date / time. The contents that can be specified in the “watermark” attribute and the “header / footer” attribute are common to “chapter” and “page”, but different in the case of “book”. In "Book", you can set the contents of "Watermark" and "Header / Footer", and specify how "Watermark" and "Header / Footer" are printed throughout the book. it can. On the other hand, in “chapter” and “page”, it is only possible to specify whether or not to print “watermark” and “header / footer” set in the book in the chapter or page.

<Book file generation procedure>
The “book file”, which is an electronic document file given a structure by the bookbinding application 104, has the structure and contents as described above. Next, a procedure for creating a book file by the bookbinding application 104 and the electronic document writer 102 will be described. The creation of the book file is realized as part of the book file editing operation by the bookbinding application 104.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining a procedure for opening a book file by the bookbinding application 104 according to this embodiment.

  First, in step S701, it is determined whether the book file to be opened is to be newly created or is an existing one. In the case of new creation, the process advances to step S702 to create a new book file that does not include chapters. This newly created book file, as shown in the example of FIG. 3, is a book node having only the book node 301 and having no link to the chapter node. As a book attribute in this case, a set of attributes prepared in advance for new creation is applied. In step S704, a user interface (UI) screen for editing a new book file is displayed.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of a UI screen when a book file is newly created. In this case, since the book file has no substantial content, nothing is displayed on the UI screen 1100.

  On the other hand, if there is an existing book file in step S701, the process proceeds to step S703, where the designated book file is opened, and a user interface (UI) screen is displayed according to the structure, attributes, and contents of the book file.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the displayed UI screen.

  The UI screen 1100 includes a tree portion 1101 that shows the book structure and a preview portion 1102 that displays the printed state. In the tree portion 1101, chapters included in the book and pages included in each chapter are displayed in a tree structure as shown in FIG. A page number is displayed in the tree portion 1101, and this page number indicates the number of the original page. In the preview area 1102, the contents of the print page are reduced and displayed. The display order reflects the structure of the book.

  Now, application data converted into an electronic manuscript file by the electronic manuscript writer 102 can be added to the opened book file as a new chapter. This function is called “electronic document import function”. By importing this electronic manuscript into a newly created book file according to the procedure shown in the flowchart of FIG. 7 described above, an entity is given to the book file. This function is activated by dragging and dropping application data on the screen of FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure of electronic document import according to the present embodiment.

  First, the application program that generated the specified application data is activated, and the electronic document writer 102 is specified as a device driver, and the application data is printed to be converted into electronic document data (step S801). When the conversion to the electronic document data is completed, the process proceeds to step S802, and it is determined whether or not the converted data is image data. This determination can be made based on the file extension of the application data under the Windows OS. For example, if the extension is “bmp”, it can be determined as Windows bitmap data, if “jpg”, it can be determined as JPEG-compressed image data, and if “tiff”, it can be determined as image data in the tif format. In the case of such image data, since it is possible to generate an electronic document file directly from the image data without starting an application as in step S801, the processing in step S801 can be omitted. is there.

  If the image data is not image data in step S802, the process advances to step S803, and the electronic document file generated in step S801 is added as a new chapter to the book of the currently opened book file. In this case, as the chapter attribute, the value of the book attribute is copied for those that are common to the book attribute, and for those that are not, the preset value is set in advance.

  If it is image data in step S802, the process proceeds to step S804. In principle, no new chapter is added, and each original page included in the electronic original file generated in step S801 is added to the designated chapter. To do. However, if the book file is a newly created file, a new chapter is created, and each page of the electronic document file is added as a page belonging to the chapter. Here, the page attribute is given an attribute value for an attribute common to the upper layer attribute, and is given for an attribute that inherits the attribute defined in the application data in the electronic document file. For example, when “N-up printing designation” or the like is set in the application data, the attribute value is inherited. In this way, a new book file is created or a new chapter is added.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure for generating an electronic document file by the electronic document writer 102 in step S801 of FIG.

  First, in step S901, a new electronic document file is created and opened. In step S902, an application corresponding to the designated application data is activated, and an output command is transmitted to the OS output module using the electronic document writer 102 as a device driver. The output module converts the received output command into data in an electronic document format by an electronic document writer and outputs the data. Here, the output destination is the electronic document file opened in step S901. In step S903, it is determined whether or not the conversion has been completed for all the designated data. If completed, the process proceeds to step S904, and the electronic document file is closed. The electronic document file generated by the electronic document writer 102 in this way is a file including the document page data entity shown in FIG.

<Edit book file>
As described above, a book file can be created from application data. With respect to the book file generated in this way, the following editing operations can be performed on chapters and pages.
(1) New addition (2) Delete (3) Copy (4) Cut (5) Paste (6) Move (7) Rename chapter (8) Rename page number (9) Insert cover (10) Insert paper Insert (11) Insert index paper (12) Page layout for each document page.

  In addition, an operation for canceling an editing operation once performed and an operation for redoing the canceled operation are possible. Using these editing functions, for example, integration of multiple book files, rearrangement of chapters and pages in the book file, deletion of chapters and pages in the book file, layout change of manuscript pages, insertion of slip sheets and index sheets Operation becomes possible. When these operations are performed, the search results are reflected in the attributes shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 or in the structure of the book file. For example, if a blank page new addition operation is performed, a blank page is inserted at a designated location. This blank page is treated as a manuscript page. If the layout of the original page is changed, the changed content is reflected in attributes such as a printing method, N-up printing, front / back cover, index paper, slip sheet, and chapter break.

<Output book file>
The book file created and edited as described above has the final purpose of print output. When the user selects a file menu from the UI screen 1100 of the bookbinding application shown in FIG. 10 and selects print from the menu, printing is performed by the designated output device. At this time, the bookbinding application 104 first creates a job ticket from the currently opened book file and passes it to the electronic document despooler 105. As a result, the electronic document despooler 105 converts the job ticket into an OS output command, for example, a Windows GDI command, and transmits it to an output module, for example, GDI. The output module uses the designated printer driver 106 to generate a command suitable for the output device, and transmits the command to the output device.

  Here, the job ticket is data having a structure in which the original page is a minimum unit. The data structure in the job ticket defines the layout of the original page on the paper. One job ticket is issued per job. For this reason, there is a document node at the top, and attributes of the entire document, such as double-sided printing / single-sided printing, are defined. Below that, a paper node belongs, and includes attributes such as an identifier of a paper to be used and designation of a paper feed port in the printer. Each paper node includes a node of a sheet printed on the paper. One sheet corresponds to one print sheet, and a print page (physical page) belongs to each sheet. For single-sided printing, one physical page belongs to one sheet, and for double-sided printing, two physical pages belong to one sheet. Each physical page has an original page arranged thereon. The physical page attribute includes the layout of the original page.

  The electronic document despooler 105 converts the above-described job ticket into an output command to the output module.

<Other system configurations>
The outline of the document processing system according to the present embodiment is as described above. This is a stand-alone system, but a book file is created and edited in almost the same configuration and procedure even in an extended server / client system. However, the book file and print processing are managed by the server.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a server / client type document processing system according to the present embodiment.

  The client document processing system 1200 is configured by adding a DOMS (Document Output Management Service) driver 109, a DOMS print service module 110, and a DS (document service) client module 108 to a stand-alone system. Have. To this client document processing system 1200, a document management server 1201, a centralized print management server 1202, and a print server 1203 are connected. These servers are usually connected to the client document processing system 1200 via a network. However, when the servers simultaneously function as clients, they are connected by inter-process communication that simulates communication between networks. In FIG. 12, both the document management server 1201 and the print central management server 1202 are connected to the client, but only one of them may exist on the network. If the connected server is a document management server, the document management server / client system 1201SC including the client module is the print central management server 1202, and if the server is the print management server / client system 1202SC including the client module, Added to standalone document management system.

  The document management server 1201 is a server that stores book files created and edited by the bookbinding application 104. When a book file is managed by the document management server 1201, the book file is stored in the database 1211 of the document management server 1201 instead of or in addition to the local HD of the client PC. Saving and reading of book files between the bookbinding application 104 and the document management server 1201 are performed via the DS client 108 and the DS core 1212.

  The print central management server 1202 is a server that manages printing of book files stored in the client document management system 1200 or stored in the document management server 1201. The print request in the client is transmitted to the DOMSWG server module 1221 of the print central management server 1202 via the DOMS driver 109 and the DOMS print service module 110. When printing by the client printer 107, the print central management server 1202 passes the electronic document data to the electronic document despooler 105 through the client's DOMS print service module 110.

  On the other hand, when printing is performed by the print server 1203, it is transmitted to the DOMS print service module 1231 of the print server 1203. The print central management server 1202 performs a security check on the qualification of the user who issued the print request, for example, for a saved book file, and saves a print processing log. Thus, this document processing system can be realized as a stand-alone or a client-server system.

<Contents of preview display>
As already described, when the book file is opened by the bookbinding application, the user interface screen 1100 shown in FIG. 10 is displayed. Here, the tree portion 1101 displays a tree showing the structure of an open book (hereinafter referred to as “target book”). The print preview unit 1102 is provided with three display methods according to the user's designation. The first is a “document view mode” in which a document page is displayed as it is. In this “original view mode”, the contents of original pages belonging to the book of interest are displayed in a reduced size. In this case, the display of the preview unit 1102 does not reflect the layout of the document. The second is the “print view mode”. In the “print view mode”, the preview unit 1102 displays the manuscript page in a form that reflects the layout of each manuscript page. The third is the “simple print view mode”. In the “simple print view mode”, the contents of each original page are not reflected in the display of the preview unit 1102 but only the layout thereof.

  Next, before describing features of the embodiment of the present invention, a configuration of a document processing system having a host computer 100 (corresponding to the information processing apparatus of the present invention) and a printer 107 applicable to the present embodiment. explain. Note that the configuration of the host computer 100 (hereinafter also referred to as a client) is as described with reference to FIG. 2 described above. Is omitted. The printer 107 is applicable to either a local printer connected to a client or a printer 1204 (FIG. 12) connected to a server.

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the document processing system according to the embodiment of the present invention. As long as the function according to the present embodiment is executed, a connection is made through a network such as a LAN or a WAN, regardless of whether it is a single device or a system composed of a plurality of devices. The present invention can be applied to a system that is implemented. Here, the configuration of the host computer 100 is the same as that shown in FIG.

  The printer 107 is controlled by the CPU 12. The CPU 12 outputs to a printing unit (printer engine) 17 connected to the system bus 15 based on a control program stored in the program ROM of the ROM 13 or a control program stored in the external memory 14 and loaded into the RAM 19. An image signal as information is output. Further, a control program for the CPU 12 is stored in the program ROM of the ROM 13. The font ROM of the ROM 13 stores font data used when generating the output information. In the case of a printer in which the ROM 13 data ROM is not provided with the external memory 14 such as a hard disk, Information used by the host computer 100 is stored.

  The CPU 12 can perform communication processing with the host computer 100 via the input unit 18 and can notify the host computer 100 of information on the printer 107 and the like. The RAM 19 is a RAM that functions as a main memory, a work area, or the like for the CPU 12, and is configured such that its memory capacity can be expanded by an optional RAM connected to an expansion port (not shown). The RAM 19 is used as an output information expansion area, environment data storage area, NVRAM, and the like. Access to the external memory 14 such as the hard disk (HD) and IC card described above is controlled by a memory controller (MC) 20. The external memory 14 is connected as an option and stores font data, an emulation program, form data, and the like. The operation panel 21 is provided with switches for operation, LED indicators, and the like.

  The external memory 14 described above is not limited to one, and a plurality of external memories 14 are provided. In addition to the built-in font, a plurality of external memories storing an option card and a program for interpreting a printer control language having a different language system can be connected. May be. Further, an NVRAM (not shown) may be provided to store printer mode setting information from the operation panel 21.

  Here, it is assumed that the host computer 100 includes the file, application, despooler, driver, and the like described above with reference to FIG. Then, the electronic document file 103 is generated by passing the document file (application data) generated by the application 101 through the electronic document writer 102. As described above, the electronic original file 103 can be opened by the bookbinding application 104, and the bookbinding application 104 causes the display unit 210 to display an operation screen as shown in FIG. A major difference between the bookbinding application 104 and the general-purpose general application 101 is that the bookbinding application 104 has a print setting function that the normal printer driver 106 should provide. With this print setting function, the bookbinding application 104 is different from the general-purpose application 101 in addition to editing functions such as changing the page order of documents, copying (copying), and deleting, as well as function settings in the printer 107 such as stapling and punching holes. Can be performed on an electronic document file, and printing can be performed using a designated printer. Note that the bookbinding application 104 described in this embodiment is also referred to as a print setting application.

<Insert “front cover, back cover”, “interleaf” and “index paper”>
Next, a paper feed setting process in the printing process of the present embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 14 illustrates a UI screen provided by the bookbinding application 104 that allows the user to set whether to insert or not to insert “front cover, back cover”, “interleaf”, and “index paper” on only one screen. . Check boxes 1401, 1403, 1405, and 1407 allow the user to freely select a combination of insertion sheets to be inserted into a document to be printed.

  In the case of FIG. 14, since “cover” is checked in the check box 1401, this is a case where an instruction to insert “cover” is given at the top of the document, and insertion by the inserter and insertion from the paper feeding unit can be selected. . In the case of the inserter, the paper prepared in advance is taken from the outside and used as the cover (in this case, printing on the cover is not performed), but when inserted from the paper feeder, the first page of the printed document is printed as the cover. The In the case of FIG. 14, since the paper feed unit is designated and the check box 1402 is checked, “print original on cover page” is checked, printing on the cover page is performed.

  In FIG. 14, since “back cover” is checked in the check box 1403, an instruction to insert “back cover” is given at the end of the document. You can choose between insertion and insertion from the paper feeder. In the case of FIG. 14, although the paper feed unit is designated, since “print original on the back cover” is not checked in the check box 1404, printing on the back cover is not performed.

  In FIG. 14, since “index paper” is checked in the check box 1405, the insertion of “index paper” is instructed to the document, which is displayed in the tree portion 1101 of FIG. 10. Index paper is inserted before the first page of each chapter. Further, “print chapter name on index sheet tab” is checked by a check box 1106. As a result, the name of each chapter displayed in the tree section 1101 in FIG. 10 (stored in advance as setting information for each chapter (FIG. 22)) is printed on the tab of the index sheet inserted for each chapter. Can be specified. In the case of FIG. 14, since “print original on index sheet” is checked by the check box 1406, the name of each chapter is printed on the tab of the index sheet.

  In FIG. 14, “insert” is checked in the check box 1407, and therefore, “insert” is selected for the document, which is displayed in the tree portion 1101 of FIG. A slip is inserted before the first page of each chapter. In this case, since insertion by the inserter is designated, printing on the slip sheet is not performed.

  In FIG. 14, “index sheet / insert sheet order” 1409 is an area for instructing the insertion order of “index sheet” and “insert sheet” to be inserted at the beginning of each chapter among the inserted sheets. . This area is valid only when both the check box 1405 and the check box 1407 are checked. In the case of FIG. 14, since “(first) index, (back) slip sheet” is selected, index sheets are inserted in the order of index sheets and slip sheets at the beginning of all chapters.

  Note that the “cover”, “index paper”, “interleaf”, and “back cover” specified in this dialog box do not exist as actual document data in the electronic manuscript file, but are managed as print setting information in the electronic manuscript file. Has been. Therefore, insert or delete "cover", "index paper", "interleaf", or "back cover" simply by changing the print settings in this dialog box (unchecking the check box or changing the tag). Can do.

  As described above, the bookbinding application 104 according to the present invention allows the user to select whether or not to insert a document whose insertion position with respect to a document is uniquely determined (that is, a front cover or a back cover) in a check box format. The user is allowed to select both ON / OFF in the check box format and the insertion order for only a plurality of sheets inserted into the document (for example, index sheets or slip sheets). Thereby, there is an effect that it is possible for the user to designate a plurality of types of insertion sheets by an easy operation and in any “combination” and “order”.

  Furthermore, the display contents of the options of the insertion order are narrowed down according to ON / OFF of the check box. As a result, only a minimum of insertion order options are displayed, so that even if the number of types of insertion sheets increases in the future, the user can easily select.

  FIG. 15 illustrates a process in which the bookbinding application 104 reflects the contents set on the “paper insertion setting” setting screen described in FIG. 14 on the book attributes of the book file. First, in step S1501, the bookbinding application 104 reads insertion sheet setting information set by the user on the setting screen of FIG. In step S1502, it is determined whether or not an instruction to insert a “cover” is issued using the check box 1401. If an instruction to insert “cover” is issued, the process proceeds to step S1503, and the book attribute of the book file is set. Set the “Cover” attribute. On the other hand, if there is no instruction to insert “cover” in step S1502 or if the reflection processing to the book attribute in step S1503 is completed, the process proceeds to step S1504, and “back cover” is inserted in the check box 1403. Determine if instructions have been given. If an instruction to insert “back cover” is given, the process advances to step S1505 to set the “back cover” attribute to the book attribute of the book file. Thereafter, the same processing is performed for the “insert paper” and “index paper” attributes in steps S1506 to S1509, and then the process proceeds to step S1510. In step S1510, it is determined whether or not the insertion order of “index sheet” and “interleaf” is specified in the area 1409 of FIG. 14, and if the insertion order is specified, the process proceeds to step S1511. After setting the insertion order attribute to the book attribute, the process of reflecting the content of “paper insertion setting” in the book attribute of the book file is terminated.

<Changing the insertion order of index sheets and slip sheets>
Furthermore, the bookbinding application 104 of the document processing system according to the present embodiment can change the setting of “index sheet / interleaf order” set in the area 1409 in FIG. 14 in the middle of the document.

  The user opens one of the chapters displayed in the tree part 1101 described with reference to FIG. 10 and opens a “chapter setting” dialog to select one of the contents of the selected chapter. The part can be changed. The example of FIG. 16 shows a state in which the “cover / interleaf” sheet is opened in the “chapter setting” dialog. Here, it is possible to change a part of the content specified on the screen of FIG. Is possible. In the check boxes 1601 and 1602 in FIG. 16, it is possible to change the setting contents of the “index sheet / insert sheet order” specified in FIG. In the case of FIG. 16, since “the following items are set differently from the document” is checked in the check box 1601, the “index sheet order” setting specified in FIG. 14 is set for the selected chapter. This indicates that an instruction to change the contents has been given. The “index sheet / insert sheet order” 1602 is an area for instructing to change the insertion order of “index sheet” and “insert sheet” to be inserted at the head of the selected prize. In this case, since “(first) slip sheet, (second) index sheet” is selected, the corresponding chapter is inserted in the order of slip sheet and index sheet.

  As described above, in the bookbinding application 104 according to the present invention, when the insertion of index sheets and slip sheets is designated for a document, the insertion order of index sheets and slip sheets can be changed in chapter units. It is possible. Thereby, there is an effect that the degree of freedom in setting the insertion sheet is increased.

100 Digital Computer 101 Application 102 Electronic Document Writer

Claims (2)

An information processing method capable of inserting a plurality of types of paper such as a front cover / interleaf / back cover / index paper from different paper feed units,
An insertion sheet pattern setting means (FIG. 14) for designating a combination of sheets to be inserted among the plurality of types of sheets and in what order the sheets are inserted;
The information processing method according to claim 1, wherein the insertion sheet pattern setting means can perform a combination of insertion sheets and an insertion order on one screen. The “insertion sheet combination” and the “insertion order” set by the “insertion sheet pattern” setting unit are set to an insertion sheet order setting unit (FIG. 16) that can be partially changed in the middle of a sentence. The information processing method according to claim 1.

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