JP2015138339A - Control method and control program for printing control apparatus, and computer-readable recording medium recording control program for printing control apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a control method for a printing control apparatus that enables the user of a client PC to easily find an editing job.SOLUTION: A control method for a printing control apparatus comprises a step S107 of generating image data for job identification by rasterizing one job stored in a memory unit of a printing control apparatus, a step S108 of determining whether or not there is any job for which image data for job identification is yet not to be generated, and a step S111 of generating image data for job editing, when absence of any job for which image data for job identification is yet not to be generated is determined, by rasterizing such a job or jobs for image data for which job identification is already generated while repeating the steps S107 and S108 when presence of any job for which image data for job identification is yet not to be generated is determined.

Description

  The present invention relates to a control method for a print control apparatus, a control program for the print control apparatus, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the control program for the print control apparatus is recorded.

  There is a technique for storing a job in a storage unit of a printer controller (hereinafter simply referred to as “controller”) and editing the job on a client PC (Personal Computer) connected to a network. In this technology, a controller that receives a job from a client PC generates image data for job identification and image data for job editing in addition to image data for printing.

  The user of the client PC refers to a thumbnail image (for example, a reduced image of the first page of the job) displayed on the client PC display based on the image data for job identification, and displays a list of jobs stored in the controller. Select the job to be edited. Thereafter, the user uses the preview image (reduced image of all pages of the job) displayed on the display of the client PC based on the image data for job editing, and edits such as paper insertion, page replacement, and imposition. Do.

  On the other hand, a technique for executing job rasterization processing in parallel by a controller including a multi-core processor computer, a blade server, or the like is known (for example, Patent Document 1). According to this technique, the first rasterization process for generating image data for printing and the second rasterization process for generating image data for job identification or image data for job editing are performed in parallel. As a result, the image data for job identification and the image data for job editing can be quickly generated independently of the image data for printing.

  However, when a plurality of jobs are continuously submitted to a controller that independently generates image data for job identification and image data for job editing, the image for job identification is usually in accordance with the order of job submission. Data and image data for job editing are generated for each job. For this reason, there is a problem that it takes time until a job identification image data is generated and a thumbnail image is displayed on the display of the client PC after the job is submitted.

  When the thumbnail image is not displayed on the display of the client PC, the user of the client PC has to find a job to be edited from a plurality of jobs based only on the job name displayed in the job list. For example, if multiple jobs with the same name are submitted to the controller, or if the job name is only an uncharacterized list of alphanumeric characters, the user can edit only from the job name without referring to the thumbnail image. Finding the target job is not easy.

JP 2004-188777 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to quickly display a thumbnail image on the display of the client PC after the job is submitted, and the user of the client PC selects the job to be edited from the list of jobs on the display of the client PC. It is an object to provide a control method for a print control apparatus, a control program for the print control apparatus, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the control program for the print control apparatus is recorded.

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

  (1) A first rasterizing process for generating image data for printing and a second rasterizing process for generating image data for job identification or job editing can be executed in parallel. A method for controlling a print control apparatus, comprising: executing the second rasterization process for one job stored in a storage unit of the print control apparatus to generate image data for job identification ( a) and, after the job identification image data is generated in step (a), among the jobs stored in the storage unit, there is a job for which the job identification image data has not been generated. A step (b) for determining whether or not there is a job in which the image data for job identification has not been generated in step (b). ) And step (b) are repeated, and if it is determined in step (b) that there is no job for which the image data for job identification has not been generated, the job for which the image data for job identification has been generated And (c) generating the image data for job editing by executing the second rasterization process for the printing control apparatus.

  (2) Before the step (a), the method further includes a step (d) of determining a priority in generating the image data for job identification based on the name of the job. ), Image data for job identification is generated for the job stored in the storage unit according to the priority determined in the step (d). A control method for the printing control apparatus according to claim 1.

  (3) Before the step (c), the method further includes a step (e) of determining a priority in generating the image data for job editing based on the print setting of the job. In c), according to the priority determined in the step (e), the image data for job editing is generated for the job for which the image data for job identification has been generated. The control method of the printing control apparatus according to (1) or (2) above.

  (4) Before the step (a), based on the print setting of the job, a page number that requires the second rasterization processing in the creation of the image data for job identification in the step (a). (1) further comprising the step (f) of determining, wherein in the step (a), the image data for job identification of the page number determined in the step (f) is generated. )-(3) The control method of the printing control apparatus as described in any one.

  (5) A first rasterizing process for generating image data for printing and a second rasterizing process for generating image data for job identification or image data for job editing can be executed in parallel. A print control apparatus control program for executing the second rasterization process on one job stored in the storage unit of the print control apparatus to generate image data for job identification ( After the image data for job identification is generated in a) and the procedure (a), there is a job in which the image data for job identification has not been generated among the jobs stored in the storage unit If it is determined in step (b) that there is a job for which image data for job identification has not been generated in step (b), the steps (a) and On the other hand, when it is determined in step (b) that there is no job for which the image data for job identification has not been generated while the sequence (b) is repeated, A control program for a print control apparatus, which causes the print control apparatus to execute a procedure (c) for generating image data for job editing by executing a second rasterization process.

  (6) Before the step (a), the print control apparatus is further caused to execute a step (d) for determining a priority in generating the image data for job identification based on the name of the job. In the step (a), image data for job identification is generated for the job stored in the storage unit according to the priority determined in the step (d). The control program for the print control apparatus according to (5) above.

  (7) Before the step (c), a step (e) for determining a priority in generating the image data for job editing based on the print setting of the job is further executed in the print control apparatus. In step (c), according to the priority determined in step (e), image data for job editing is generated for the job for which image data for job identification has been generated. The control program for a print control apparatus according to the above (5) or (6).

  (8) Before the step (a), based on the print setting of the job, a page number that requires the second rasterization processing in the creation of the image data for job identification in the step (a). The step (f) to be determined is further executed by the print control apparatus, and the image data for job identification of the page number determined in the step (f) is generated in the step (a). The control program for the print control apparatus according to any one of (5) to (7) above.

  (9) A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program for the printing control apparatus according to any one of (5) to (8) is recorded.

  According to the present invention, since the image data for job identification is generated with priority over the image data for job editing, the thumbnail image is quickly displayed on the display of the client PC after the job is submitted. As a result, the user of the client PC can easily find the job to be edited from the job list with reference to the thumbnail image on the display of the client PC.

1 is a block diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a printing system to which a control method of a printing control apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of client PC. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer controller. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a printer. It is a functional block diagram showing a job storage function of the printer controller. It is a figure which shows an example of a job management screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a job edit screen. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the 2nd RIP process performed by a printer controller. It is a figure which shows the relationship between a print setting and a thumbnail image creation page. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect of the parallel RIP process performed by a printer controller. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect of a general parallel RIP process.

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

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

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printing system includes client PCs 1 a, 1 b, 1 c, a controller 2, and a printer 3. The client PCs 1a, 1b, 1c and the controller 2 are connected via a network 4 so that they can communicate with each other. The controller 2 and the printer 3 are connected via a dedicated line.

  The network 4 is a LAN (Local Area Network) in which computers and network devices are connected to each other according to standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface), Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity), or a dedicated line between LANs. WAN (Wide Area Network) etc. connected by

  Note that the types and number of devices connected to the network 4 are not limited to the example shown in FIG. The controller 2 and the printer 3 may be connected via the network 4.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the client PC 1a. Since the client PCs 1a, 1b, and 1c have the same configuration as each other, the following description will be given using the client PC 1a as a representative.

  The client PC 1a includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 13, a hard disk 14, a display 15, an input device 16, and a network interface 17, which exchange signals. Are connected to each other via a bus 18.

  The CPU 11 performs control of each unit and various arithmetic processes according to a program. The ROM 12 stores various programs and various data. The RAM 13 temporarily stores programs and data as a work area. The hard disk 14 stores various programs including an operating system (OS) and various data. The hard disk 14 includes a printer driver for converting a document file into print data described in a page description language (PDL) that can be interpreted by the controller 2, and a job management for editing a job stored in the controller 2. The application is installed.

  The display 15 is a liquid crystal display, for example, and displays various types of information. The input device 16 includes a pointing device such as a mouse and a keyboard, and is used for performing various inputs. The network interface 17 is an interface for communicating with other devices via the network 4, and standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), FDDI, and Wi-Fi are used.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the controller 2. The controller 2 as a print control device includes a CPU 21, a ROM 22, a RAM 23, a hard disk 24, a display 25, an input device 26, a printer interface 27, and a network interface 28, which are mutually connected via a bus 29 for exchanging signals. It is connected to the. In addition, the description is abbreviate | omitted about the part which has the function similar to the said each part of client PC1a among the said each part of the controller 2. FIG.

  The printer interface 27 is an interface for communicating with the locally connected printer 3.

  The CPU 21 of the controller 2 is a multi-core CPU having a master core and a plurality of slave cores, and the controller 2 executes job rasterization processing (hereinafter referred to as “RIP processing”) in parallel by the plurality of slave cores. Can do. The RAM 23 and the hard disk 24 function as a storage unit that stores jobs.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the printer 3. The printer 3 includes a CPU 31, a ROM 32, a RAM 33, a hard disk 34, an operation panel 35, an image forming unit 36, and a controller interface 37, which are connected to each other via a bus 38 for exchanging signals. Of the above-described units of the printer 3, descriptions of portions having the same functions as those of the units of the client PC 1 a are omitted.

  The operation panel 35 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 image forming unit 36 forms an image based on the image data received from the controller 2 on a recording sheet such as paper using a known image forming process such as an electrophotographic process. The controller interface 37 is an interface for communicating with the controller 2.

  The client PCs 1a, 1b, 1c, the controller 2, and the printer 3 may include components other than the above components, or some of the above components may not be included.

  Next, a technique for storing a job in the storage unit of the controller 2 and editing the job on the client PCs 1a, 1b, and 1c will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing the job storage function of the controller 2. As described above, the controller 2 can execute job RIP processing in parallel. The controller 2 includes a master core and a plurality of slave cores, and the RIP unit 200 including a plurality of slave cores executes job RIP processing in parallel in accordance with instructions from the master core.

  When the controller 2 receives a job, a part of the RIP unit 200 (for example, one slave core) executes a first RIP process that is a high-resolution RIP process to generate image data for printing. On the other hand, the remaining part of the RIP unit 200 (for example, another slave core) executes the second RIP process, which is a low-resolution RIP process, and the image data or preview for thumbnail images (for job identification) Image data for images (for job editing) is generated.

  The print image data generated by the first RIP process is stored in the print image area 240 of the job storage area 210 allocated to the storage unit such as the hard disk 24. The image data for the preview image and the image data for the thumbnail image generated by the second RIP process are stored in the preview image area 250 and the thumbnail image area 260 of the job storage area 210, respectively. The print data and print settings (job ticket) of the job are stored in the print document data area 220 and the print setting information area 230 of the job storage area 210, respectively.

  The job management application 100 is installed on the hard disk 14 of the client PC 1a. The user of the client PC 1a can edit the job stored in the controller 2 using the job management screen 300 (see FIG. 6) provided by the job management application 100.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the job management screen 300 displayed on the display 15 of the client PC 1a.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the job management screen 300 includes a job list display unit 310 and a job information display unit 320. The job list display unit 310 displays a list of jobs stored in the controller 2. The job information display unit 320 displays a thumbnail image 400 of one job selected from the job list displayed on the job list display unit 310. The thumbnail image 400 is, for example, a reduced image of the first page of the job, and is displayed based on image data for thumbnail images generated by the controller 2.

  The user of the client PC 1a can select a job to be edited from the list of jobs stored in the controller 2 with reference to the job name and the thumbnail image 400 displayed on the job management screen 300. it can. If a job to be edited is selected, a job editing screen 350 (see FIG. 7) is displayed on the display 15 of the client PC 1a.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a job edit screen 350 displayed on the display 15 of the client PC 1a.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the job editing screen 350 displays a preview image 500 of the job selected on the job management screen 300. The preview image 500 is a reduced image of all pages of the job, and is displayed based on the image data for the preview image generated by the controller 2.

  Using the preview image 500 displayed on the job editing screen 350, the user of the client PC 1a can edit the job to be edited, such as sheet insertion, page replacement, and imposition.

  Hereinafter, the operation of the controller 2 that generates the image data for the preview image and the image data for the thumbnail image will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the second RIP process executed by the controller 2. The controller 2 executes the first RIP process for generating image data for printing in parallel while executing the process of the flowchart shown in FIG.

  First, the controller 2 receives a job (step S101). In the present embodiment, for example, the user of the client PC 1a submits a job to the controller 2 through copying a file to a printer driver or a designated hot folder. The controller 2 receives a job input from the client PC 1a. In the job input from the client PC 1a, in addition to the print job for generating only the print image data and the image data for printing, the image data for the thumbnail image and the image data for the preview image should be generated. There is a job.

  Next, the controller 2 determines whether or not the job is a saved job (step S102). In the present embodiment, the master core of the controller 2 refers to the information of the head part of the job, and determines whether the job received in the process shown in step S101 is a saved job or a print job.

  If it is determined that the job is not a saved job (step S102: NO), the controller 2 ends the process.

  On the other hand, when determining that the job is a saved job (step S102: YES), the controller 2 confirms the job name and determines the priority of thumbnail image creation (steps S103 and S104). In the present embodiment, the master core of the controller 2 first checks the name of a job (for example, the name of a file) that is determined to be a saved job in the process shown in step S102. Then, the master core sets the priority “high” or “low” for thumbnail image creation based on the confirmed name. In the present embodiment, for jobs that satisfy either of the following conditions (1-1) and (1-2), the priority “high” is set, and for jobs that do not satisfy either of the two conditions, The priority “low” is set.

(1-1) When a job with the same name exists in the controller 2 If a job with the same name as the job name received by the controller 2 is already stored in the controller 2, the priority “high” is set. . For example, in the case of a job with a general name such as “Document 1.pdf”, there may be other jobs with the same name, and the user finds the job to be edited only with the job name. I can't. For this reason, in the present embodiment, for a job having a job with the same name, the priority is set to “high”, the image data for the thumbnail image is preferentially generated, and the thumbnail image is displayed quickly. I have to. When the priority of the received job is set to “high”, even if a job with the same name already stored in the controller 2 is not generated for the thumbnail image data, the priority is “ Set to high.

(1-2) When the job name is an alphanumeric list When the name of the job received by the controller 2 is an alphanumeric list, the priority “high” is set. For example, when the job name is only alphanumeric characters with poor linguistic meaning, such as “No. 04AD1344F.pdf”, the user who has submitted the job cannot find the job quickly only with the job name. For this reason, in the present embodiment, for a job whose name is a list of alphanumeric characters with poor linguistic meaning, the priority is set to “high”, and the image data for the thumbnail image is preferentially generated, and the thumbnail is displayed. Images are displayed quickly.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S103 and S104, the priority for generating image data for thumbnail images is determined based on the job name.

  Next, the controller 2 confirms the print setting of the job and determines a thumbnail image creation page (steps S105 and S106). In the present embodiment, the master core of the controller 2 first confirms the print settings of a job that has been determined to be a saved job in the process shown in step S102. Then, the master core determines a page of a job for generating image data for thumbnail images based on the confirmed print settings.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between print settings and thumbnail image creation pages. In this embodiment, when “2-UP layout” is set as a print setting as a print setting, the first and second pages of the job are determined as pages on which image data for thumbnail images should be generated. . When “booklet” is set in the job, the first page and the last page of the job are determined as pages on which image data for thumbnail images should be generated. On the other hand, when “2-UP layout” or “booklet” is not set in the job, the first page of the job is determined as a page for generating image data for thumbnail images.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S105 and S106, the page number of the image data for the thumbnail image is determined based on the print setting of the job.

  Next, the controller 2 creates a thumbnail image (step S107). In this embodiment, one slave core of the controller 2 executes the second RIP process for one job stored in the controller 2 according to the priority determined in the process shown in step S104, and the thumbnail image Image data is generated. At this time, the slave core generates image data for the thumbnail image for the page determined in the process shown in step S106.

  Next, the controller 2 determines whether or not there is a job for which thumbnail images are not completed (step S108). In this embodiment, the slave core of the controller 2 determines whether there is a job in which image data for thumbnail images has not been generated among jobs (stored jobs) stored in the controller 2.

  When it is determined that there is no job for which thumbnail images are not completed (step S108: YES), the controller 2 proceeds to the process of step S109. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is a job whose thumbnail image is not completed (step S108: NO), the controller 2 returns to the process of step S107. Then, the slave core of the controller 2 sequentially generates image data for thumbnail images according to the priority until there is no job for which image data for thumbnail images has not been generated. If there are a plurality of jobs having the same level of priority, for example, image data for thumbnail images is generated in order according to the job reception order.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S101 to S108 in FIG. 8, when a saved job is recognized, the priority of thumbnail image creation and the thumbnail image creation page are determined. Then, for a plurality of jobs stored in the controller 2, image data for thumbnail images is generated in order according to the priority. Note that the processes shown in steps S101 to S106 and the processes shown in steps S107 to S108 are executed in parallel.

  Next, the controller 2 confirms the print setting of the job and determines the priority for creating the preview image (steps S109 and S110). In the present embodiment, the master core of the controller 2 first confirms the print settings of a job that has been determined to be a saved job in the process shown in step S102. Then, the master core sets the priority “high” or “low” for creating the preview image based on the confirmed print setting. In the present embodiment, for jobs that satisfy either of the following conditions (2-1) and (2-2), the priority “high” is set, and for jobs that do not satisfy either of the two conditions, The priority “low” is set.

(2-1) When an irregular switching of printing conditions occurs The printing conditions such as color conversion settings and layouts are irregular between pages, such as “insert page”, “imposition”, and “page unit setting”. The priority “high” is set for jobs for which jobs that can be switched automatically are set. This is because such a job is likely to require a preview image for finishing confirmation and editing.

(2-2) When printing conditions are not set For a job to which print settings are not given at the time of job input, such as direct printing, priority “high” is set. This is because such a job has a high possibility that the user will edit the print settings later and a preview image is required.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S109 and S110, the priority for generating image data for the preview image is determined based on the print setting of the job.

  Next, the controller 2 creates a preview image (step S111). In the present embodiment, the slave core of the controller 2 executes the second RIP process on one job received by the controller 2 according to the priority determined in the process shown in step S110, and the preview image Generate image data. In the present embodiment, the image data for thumbnail images generated in the process shown in step S107 is used together as image data for preview images. For this reason, in the processing shown in step S111, image data for preview images is generated for the remaining pages except for the page of thumbnail image image data that has already been generated.

  Next, the controller 2 determines whether or not there is a job for which the preview image is not completed (step S112). In this embodiment, the slave core of the controller 2 determines whether there is a job in which image data for a preview image is not generated among jobs (stored jobs) stored in the controller 2.

  If it is determined that there is a job for which the preview image is not completed (step S112: NO), the controller 2 returns to the process of step S111. Then, the slave core of the controller 2 sequentially generates image data for the preview image according to the priority until there is no job for which image data for the preview image has not been generated. If there are a plurality of jobs having the same level of priority, for example, the image data for the preview image is sequentially generated according to the job reception order.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that there is no job for which the preview image is not completed (step S112: YES), the controller 2 ends the process.

  As described above, according to the processing shown in steps S109 to S112 in FIG. 8, the image data for the preview image is sequentially generated according to the priority for the job for which the image data for the thumbnail image has been generated. Note that the processes shown in steps S109 to S110 and the processes shown in steps S111 to S112 are executed in parallel.

  Further, the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 is based on the assumption that there is no interruption operation from the user. Therefore, even when image data for thumbnail images is being generated in order prior to image data for preview images, for example, the user performs an operation to start page editing for a job for which no preview image has been created. In this case, in order to shorten the waiting time of the user, it is desirable to temporarily interrupt the generation of the image data for the thumbnail image and generate the image data for the preview image.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the effect of the parallel RIP process executed by the controller 2.

  As described above, in the parallel RIP process of the present embodiment, the first RIP process for generating image data for printing, and the second RIP process for generating image data for thumbnail images or image data for preview images, Are executed in parallel.

  The first RIP process for generating image data for printing is executed according to the job reception order. In FIG. 10, the first RIP process is completed for the job with the identification number “1”, and the first RIP process is performed for the job with the identification number “2”.

  On the other hand, in the second RIP process for generating image data for thumbnail images or image data for preview images, image data for thumbnail images is generated before image data for preview images. At this time, image data for thumbnail images is sequentially generated for a plurality of jobs in accordance with the priority (“high” or “low”) determined based on the job name.

  In FIG. 10, jobs with identification numbers “4”, “6”, and “8” include “Chapter” as the job name. As described above, in this embodiment, the priority “high” for creating thumbnail images is set for such a job having the same name. Also, the job with the identification number “5” named “2013-08-24” and the job with the identification number “7” named “A030F1024” are alphanumeric sequences with poor linguistic meaning. , “High” priority for creating thumbnail images is set. On the other hand, for jobs with identification numbers “1” to “3” and “9”, a priority “low” for creating thumbnail images is set.

  Therefore, in FIG. 10, first, the second RIP process is sequentially executed for the jobs with the identification numbers “4” to “8” for which the priority of thumbnail image creation is set to “high”, and the thumbnail image Image data is generated in order. Thereafter, the second RIP process is sequentially executed for the jobs with the identification numbers “1” to “3” and “9” whose thumbnail image creation priority is set to “low”, and the thumbnail image Data is generated in order.

  Here, the page on which the image data for the thumbnail image is generated is a page determined based on the print settings. In FIG. 10, printing conditions such as “2-UP layout” are set for the jobs with the identification numbers “4” and “7”, and image data for the thumbnail images of the first and second pages is generated. The In addition, printing conditions such as “booklet” are set for the job with the identification number “9”, and image data for thumbnail images of the first and eighth pages is generated.

  Then, after image data for thumbnail images is generated for all jobs, image data for preview images is generated. At this time, image data for preview images is generated in order for a plurality of jobs according to the priority determined based on the print settings of the job.

  In FIG. 10, the priority “high” for creating the preview image is set for the jobs with the identification numbers “4”, “7”, and “9” for which two pages of image data for thumbnail images have been generated. The On the other hand, for jobs with identification numbers “1” to “3”, “5”, “6”, and “8”, the priority “low” for creating a preview image is set.

  Therefore, first, the second RIP process is sequentially executed on the jobs having the identification numbers “4”, “7”, and “9”, and the image data for the preview image is generated in order. Thereafter, the second RIP process is sequentially executed on the jobs having the identification numbers “1” to “3”, “5”, “6”, and “8”, and the image data for the preview image is generated in order. . In FIG. 10, the second RIP process is completed for the job with the identification number “4”, and the second RIP process is performed for the job with the identification number “7”.

  As described above, according to the parallel RIP processing of this embodiment, image data for thumbnail images is generated prior to image data for preview images. Therefore, the time from when the job is submitted until the thumbnail image is displayed on the display 15 of the client PC 1a is shortened, and the user who needs to confirm the job can quickly execute the job due to the delay in creating the thumbnail image. The problem of not being discovered is avoided.

  Further, according to the parallel RIP process of the present embodiment, image data for thumbnail images is generated in order according to the priority determined based on the job name. Therefore, since the image data for the thumbnail image of the job with a high possibility of referring to the thumbnail image is preferentially generated, even when a large number of jobs are input to the controller 2, the necessary thumbnail image There is a high possibility that the creation delay will not occur.

  Further, according to the parallel RIP process of the present embodiment, image data for preview images is generated in order according to the priority determined based on the print setting of the job. Therefore, a problem that a user who needs to edit a job using a preview image cannot start editing the job due to a delay in creating the preview image is avoided.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the effect of general parallel RIP processing. Similar to the parallel RIP processing of the present embodiment, also in general parallel RIP processing, first RIP processing for generating image data for printing and image data for thumbnail images or preview image are generated. Therefore, the second RIP process is executed in parallel.

  However, unlike the parallel RIP processing of the present embodiment, in the general parallel RIP processing, in the second RIP processing for generating image data for thumbnail images or image data for preview images, according to the job reception order. The image data for the thumbnail image and the image data for the preview image are generated at the same time. In FIG. 11, the second RIP process is executed in order from the job with the identification number “1”, and the image data for the thumbnail image and the image data for the preview image are generated simultaneously for each job.

  For this reason, in general parallel RIP processing, it takes time until a thumbnail image is displayed on the display 15 of the client PC 1a after a job is submitted, and a user who needs to check the job creates a thumbnail image. Due to the delay, the job to be edited may not be found quickly. Further, in general parallel RIP processing, image data for a preview image is generated in accordance with the job reception order. Therefore, a user who needs to edit a job using the preview image may experience a delay in creating the preview image. In some cases, job editing cannot be started.

  On the other hand, according to the parallel RIP process of the present embodiment, the possibility that the image data for the preview image and the image data for the thumbnail image are completed at the required stage is increased. As a result, the user can quickly find the job to be operated, and job editing can be started in a short time.

  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 first and second RIP processes are executed in parallel by the controller of the multi-core CPU having a master core and a plurality of slave cores has been described as an example. However, the controller that executes the first and second RIP processes in parallel may be a blade server.

  In the embodiment described above, the image data for the thumbnail image is also used as the image data for the preview image. However, the thumbnail image and the preview image may have different resolutions, and the image data for the preview image may be generated for all pages of the job separately from the image data for the thumbnail image.

  In the above-described embodiment, the priority for creating the preview image is determined based on the print setting of the job. However, the preview image creation priority may be linked with the thumbnail image creation priority. For example, for a job whose thumbnail image creation priority is set to “high”, the preview image creation priority is also set to “high”.

  The means and method for performing various processes in the printing system according to the above-described 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 usually 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 apparatus as one function of the printing system.

1a, 1b, 1c client PC,
11, 21, 31 CPU,
12, 22, 32 ROM
13, 23, 33 RAM,
14, 24, 34 hard disk,
15, 25 display,
16, 26 input device,
17, 28 Network interface,
18, 29, 38 buses,
2 Printer controller,
27 Printer interface,
3 Printer,
35 Operation panel,
36 Image forming unit,
37 Controller interface,
4 network,
300 Job management screen,
350 Job edit screen,
400 thumbnail images,
500 Preview image.

Claims (9)

Print control capable of executing in parallel the first rasterization processing for generating image data for printing and the second rasterization processing for generating image data for job identification or job editing An apparatus control method comprising:
(A) generating the job identification image data by executing the second rasterization process for one job stored in the storage unit of the print control apparatus;
After the image data for job identification is generated in step (a), whether there is a job for which the image data for job identification has not been generated among the jobs stored in the storage unit. Determining step (b);
When it is determined in step (b) that there is a job for which image data for job identification has not been generated, the steps (a) and (b) are repeated while the job in step (b) is repeated. If it is determined that there is no job for which identification image data has not been generated, the second rasterization process is performed on the job for which the job identification image data has been generated, and the job editing image data is obtained. Generating step (c);
A control method for a printing control apparatus, comprising: Before step (a),
A step (d) of determining a priority in generating the image data for job identification based on the name of the job;
In the step (a), the image data for job identification is generated for the job stored in the storage unit according to the priority determined in the step (d). The control method of the printing control apparatus according to claim 1. Before step (c),
A step (e) of determining a priority in generating the image data for job editing based on the print setting of the job;
In step (c), according to the priority determined in step (e), the job editing image data is generated for the job for which the job identification image data has been generated. The method of controlling a print control apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: Before step (a),
A step (f) of determining a page number that requires the second rasterization processing in creating the job identification image data in the step (a) based on the print setting of the job;
4. The printing according to claim 1, wherein in the step (a), the image data for job identification of the page number determined in the step (f) is generated. 5. Control method of the control device. Print control capable of executing in parallel the first rasterization processing for generating image data for printing and the second rasterization processing for generating image data for job identification or job editing A control program for the device,
A procedure (a) for generating the job identification image data by executing the second rasterization process for one job stored in the storage unit of the print control apparatus;
After the image data for job identification is generated in the step (a), it is determined whether or not there is a job for which the image data for job identification has not been generated among the jobs stored in the storage unit. A procedure (b) for determining;
When it is determined in step (b) that there is a job for which image data for job identification has not been generated, the steps (a) and (b) are repeated while the job in step (b) is repeated. If it is determined that there is no job for which identification image data has not been generated, the second rasterization process is performed on the job for which the job identification image data has been generated, and the job editing image data is obtained. Generating step (c);
A control program for a print control apparatus, which causes the print control apparatus to execute the process. Prior to step (a),
Based on the name of the job, the print control apparatus is further caused to execute a procedure (d) for determining a priority in generating the image data for job identification,
In the step (a), image data for job identification is generated for the job stored in the storage unit according to the priority determined in the step (d). A control program for a print control apparatus according to claim 5. Before step (c)
Based on the print setting of the job, the print control apparatus is further caused to execute a procedure (e) for determining a priority in generating the image data for job editing,
In step (c), according to the priority determined in step (e), image data for job editing is generated for the job for which image data for job identification has been generated. The control program for a print control apparatus according to claim 5 or 6, characterized by the above. Prior to step (a),
The print control apparatus further includes a step (f) of determining a page number that requires the second rasterization process in creating the image data for job identification in the step (a) based on the print setting of the job. To run
8. The printing according to claim 5, wherein in the step (a), image data for job identification of the page number determined in the step (f) is generated. Control unit control program.   The computer-readable recording medium which recorded the control program of the printing control apparatus of any one of Claims 5-8.