JP2016057829A - Printing system and printing method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system for performing data print processing in which a user does not need to wait for acquirement of a printed matter.SOLUTION: A printing system includes: specifying means for specifying the positional relationship between a user and a printer 103 on the basis of the positional information of the user specified on the basis of a radio signal between a device 200 carried by the user and one or more external devices 201, 202, 203, etc.; and controlling means for gradually controlling a plurality of commands for controlling at least one of transmission/reception of printed data, execution of printing, and preparation of the printer, regarding the printed data designated to the printer by the user in response to the variation in the positional relationship.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system and a printing method.

  When printing using a printer at a location remote from the user, such as in an office, if the printing process and output are performed immediately after the user issues a print instruction from the mobile terminal or PC, the printer at the remote location can be picked up. Prints are left unattended while going. As a means for eliminating such a neglected state of the printed matter, the print data is temporarily stored in the printer or in the storage area of the server, and after the user authenticates in front of the printer, the stored data is printed. Technology is known.

On the other hand, among communication technologies for direct communication between devices, technologies that can save energy and perform near field communication (for example, BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy)) are used to provide various services according to the distance between devices. A mechanism that can be provided has been developed. For example, iBeacon (registered trademark) is a mechanism in which a transmitter broadcasts device information called a beacon by BLE, and a receiver can provide various services according to distance information obtained together with received device information. . If this mechanism is used, for example, a service can be provided in which a beacon is transmitted at a certain store, and sales information is notified according to the distance when the beacon of the store is detected by a customer's mobile terminal.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, when a mobile terminal receives device information broadcasted by BLE or the like using a lighting device having position information, the device information is transmitted to a server, whereby the position of the mobile terminal or the article is transmitted. A technique for grasping the above is disclosed.

JP 2014-49003 A

  In the case of a system that performs print processing after the user authenticates before the printer as described above, since the print processing is started after authentication, the user needs to wait in front of the printer before acquiring the actual printed matter. Couldn't get enough convenience.

  In view of the above problems, it is required to reduce the time from when the user makes a print request until the printed material is acquired while reducing the state of the printed material being left in response to the print request by the user.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a system that solves the above-described problems related to convenience during printing using a short-range wireless communication technology such as BLE.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, in the printing system, the positional relationship between the user and the printer based on the positional information of the user specified based on a wireless signal between a device carried by the user and one or more external devices And a control unit for specifying at least one of transmission / reception of print data, execution of printing, and preparation of the printer for the print data designated by the user with respect to the printer according to the change in the positional relationship And a control means for controlling a plurality of instructions for the above in a stepwise manner.

  According to the present invention, in a system for performing a printing process, it is possible to reduce the waiting time until the printed material is acquired while reducing the state of leaving the printed material.

1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a printing system according to a first embodiment. The figure which shows the structural example of the hardware of each apparatus. The figure which shows the structural example of the hardware of the portable terminal which concerns on 1st embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of software of the printing system according to the first embodiment. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the application of the portable terminal which concerns on 1st embodiment. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the server which concerns on 1st embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the printer according to the first embodiment. The figure which shows the structural example of print data. The figure for demonstrating the calculation method of the positional information on a portable terminal. The figure which shows the structural example of the printing system which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows the structural example of the hardware of the information receiver which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows the structural example of the software of the printing system which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The figure which shows operation | movement of the client computer which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the information receiver which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of the server which concerns on 2nd embodiment. The figure for demonstrating the calculation method of the positional information on ID card.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<First embodiment>
[System configuration]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a printing system according to the present embodiment. The printing system includes a client computer 100, server computers 101 and 102, a printer 103, a portable terminal 200, and information transmission devices 201, 202, and 203. The client computer 100, the server computers 101 and 102, the printer 103, and the portable terminal 200 are connected via a network 300 and a Wi-Fi access point 301 that can perform bidirectional communication. In addition, the mobile terminal 200 can directly receive data (wireless signals) transmitted by the information transmission devices 201, 202, and 203 through wireless communication. The wired / wireless communication system according to the present embodiment is not particularly limited.

  In the present embodiment, the client computer 100, the printer 103, and the mobile terminal 200 each include one unit. However, a plurality of units may be included. Further, the server computers 101 and 102 are configured with two units, but may be configured with one unit, or may be configured with a larger number of units. Furthermore, the information transmission devices 201, 202, and 203 may be three or more. An example of the information transmission device is a device that transmits a beacon such as iBeacon (registered trademark). As an opportunity for the information transmitting device to transmit information, it may be transmitted periodically at a predetermined time interval, or may be transmitted when it is detected that the mobile terminal 200 has moved to a predetermined range. May be. In the present embodiment, a wireless communication technique using BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) will be described as an example.

[Hardware configuration]
FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the client computer 100. The client computer 100 is controlled by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 1001. The CPU 1001 can load various programs into a RAM (Random Access Memory) 1002 and execute them. Examples of the programs loaded here include a basic input / output system (BIOS) stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory) 1003, an OS (Operating System) stored in the external memory 1011, and various application programs. . Connected to the client computer 100 are a keyboard 1009 for receiving input from the user and a display 1010 for displaying the processing result as an image to the user. The client computer 100 includes a keyboard 1009, a display 1010, and interfaces (keyboard I / F 1005, display I / F 1006, and external memory I / F 1007) for connecting to the external memory 1011. Furthermore, the client computer 100 includes a network printer I / F 1008 for communicating with other information devices and devices such as a printer. In addition, each component included in the client computer 100 is connected to be communicable with each other via an internal bus 1004.

  In the present embodiment, the server computers 101 and 102 will be described as being configured as a single server device or a cluster server device having the same hardware configuration as the client computer 100 described with reference to FIG. .

  FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the printer 103. The printer 103 is controlled by the CPU 1012. The CPU 1012 can load the control program stored in the ROM 1014 and various programs stored in the external memory 1021 into the RAM 1013 and execute them. The CPU 1012 can perform printing by converting print data input via the input / output unit 1016 into an image signal based on the operation of the control program and outputting the image signal to the printing unit 1019. In addition, the CPU 1012 outputs processing results from the input / output unit 1016 in response to various response requests input via the input / output unit 1016 based on the operation of the control program. Note that an operation unit 1020 is connected to the printer 103, and can receive direct input from the user. The printer 103 includes interfaces (a printing unit I / F 1017 and an external memory I / F 1018) for connecting to the printing unit 1019 and the external memory 1021. In addition, each component included in the printer 103 is connected to be communicable with each other via an internal bus 1015.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the mobile terminal 200. In Flash 2003, various programs are stored. An SoC (System on a Chip) 2001 implements various processes by reading a program stored in the Flash 2003 into the RAM 2002 and executing it. A Wi-Fi 2005 is a part that performs wireless communication, and can be connected to the network 300 via the Wi-Fi access point 301. The mobile terminal 200 further includes a RAM 2002, Bluetooth 2004 for short-range communication, a power supply 2007, and a Voice / Audio unit 2008 such as a microphone and a speaker. In the present embodiment, a configuration corresponding to BLE, which is a short-range communication technology, is used by using Bluetooth 2004. The mobile terminal 200 further includes a touch panel 2009, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) 2010, a camera unit 2011, and a sensor unit 2012. The touch panel 2009 is used when a touch operation with a finger or the like is performed on the mobile terminal 200. The camera unit 2011 is used when performing photography, video shooting, and the like. The sensor unit 2012 is used for detecting GPS (Global Positioning System), acceleration, geomagnetism, proximity, and the like. In the present embodiment, the OS installed in the mobile terminal 200 is assumed to be Android (registered trademark) of Google Inc., but is not limited thereto.

Software configuration
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of software of the printing system according to the present embodiment. Programs that realize the functions of the software configurations shown in FIG. 4 are stored in the ROM or Flash of each device. These functions are realized by the CPU or SOC loading and executing a program in the RAM.

  The client computer 100 and the mobile terminal 200 have a print application (not shown). The print application can transmit the print data generated by the print data generation units 403 and 443 of each device to the server computer 101 and the printer 103 via the communication unit of each device. The print application of the mobile terminal 200 includes an identification information acquisition unit 445, and the identification information acquisition unit 445 can receive identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission unit 451 of the information transmission device 201. The identification information acquired by the identification information acquisition unit 445 is transmitted to the server computer 102 via the communication unit 441.

  The server computer 101 is a print data storage server and has a data storage unit 413. The data storage unit 413 stores print data transmitted from the client computer 100 or the portable terminal 200. The stored print data is transmitted from the server computer 101 to the printer 103 in response to a request from the printer 103.

  The server computer 102 is a printer management server and has a printer management service. The printer management service can communicate with each device, and controls the printer 103 based on identification information transmitted from the mobile terminal 200. In addition, the position information calculation unit 423 calculates position information of the mobile terminal 200 based on the identification information. The printer management unit 424 manages the printer based on the position information of the mobile terminal 200. The management here refers to giving instructions to the printer 103 such as a pre-operation such as warm-up before printing, print data acquisition processing, and execution of printing processing.

  The print control unit 432 of the printer 103 performs print processing of print data transmitted from the client computer 100 and the portable terminal 200 or an operation in accordance with an instruction from the server computer 102.

[Processing flow]
(Mobile device)
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of an application on the portable terminal 200 displaying a print target such as a document or an image. This processing flow is realized by the SoC 2001 of the mobile terminal 200 reading out the program stored in the Flash 2003 or the like to the RAM 2002 and executing it.

  In S501, portable terminal 200 activates an application. The application is a printing application and can display a document or an image to be printed. In S502, the mobile terminal 200 performs a printing process in a state where a print target is displayed. Here, the print processing means that print data is generated by the print data generation unit 443 and is sent to the server computer 101 via the communication unit 441.

  A configuration example of the print data is shown in FIG. The print data includes control data 801 and drawing data 802. The control data 801 includes data other than what is actually printed. For example, the control data 801 corresponds to a data ID 803 for uniquely managing generated data, a user ID 804 indicating a user who has designated printing, and the like. The drawing data 802 includes information such as images, characters, and graphics to be actually printed.

  In S503, portable terminal 200 determines whether or not identification information has been received. Here, the identification information is transmitted from one or a plurality of information transmission devices, and includes a UUID (Universally Unique Identifier), a major number, a minor number, and a description. Table 1 below shows a configuration example of the identification information to be acquired. The UUID is information that can uniquely identify the information transmission device. The major number and the minor number are numbers for identifying information transmitting apparatuses having the same UUID. The description indicates an explanation of the information transmission device, and includes, for example, the name of the information transmission device.

  If the identification information is received (YES in S503), the process proceeds to S504. If the identification information is not received (NO in S503), the process waits until it is received.

  In S504, portable terminal 200 transmits identification information, distance information, and a user ID to server computer 102. The distance information here is information indicating the distance between the mobile terminal 200 and the information transmission device (for example, the information transmission device 201) that transmitted the identification information, and the distance between the two points of the identification information transmission side and the reception side. Indicates. For example, information indicating distances such as “very close”, “close”, “far”, and “out of range” are calculated on the receiving side according to the distance between two points of the transmitting side and the receiving side of the identification information. In the present embodiment, the mobile terminal 200 that has received the identification information uses the identification information acquisition unit 445 based on the reception strength (radio wave intensity) of the identification information such as “very close”, “close”, “far”, “out of range”, etc. The distance information is calculated. The user ID indicates a user who has designated printing, and has the same value as the user ID 804. In the present embodiment, the number of values is divided into four according to the distance value, but the present invention is not limited to this. Further, a specific distance value may be handled.

  In step S505, the mobile terminal 200 confirms the output status of the transmitted print data. The portable terminal 200 searches for data including the same data ID as the print data transmitted to the server computer 101 in S502. As a result of the search, if there is no print data that matches the data ID, or if the print data that matches the print data is in the print processing completed state, the mobile terminal 200 considers that the printing has been completed.

  If it is determined that the printing is completed as a result of the confirmation (YES in S506), the process is terminated. If it is determined that printing has not been completed (NO in S506), the process returns to S503 and the process is repeated.

(Server computer)
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation when the printer management service on the server computer 102 receives the identification information. This processing flow is realized by the CPU 1001 of the server computer 102 reading a program stored in the ROM 1003 or the like into the RAM 1002 and executing it.

  In S <b> 601, server computer 102 receives identification information, distance information, and a user ID from portable terminal 200. The received identification information, distance information, and user ID are information transmitted by the mobile terminal 200 in S504 of FIG. The position information calculation unit 423 of the server computer 102 that has received the identification information and the distance information generates a table including the UUID, the major number, the minor number, the distance, and the reception date and time at which the information is received. Table 2 below shows an example.

 In S602, server computer 102 calculates position information of portable terminal 200 from the received identification information and distance information. The location information of the portable terminal 200 can be calculated from the location information, identification information, and distance information of each information transmission device held in the data storage unit 425 of the server computer 102 in advance. Table 3 below is a table showing an example of the position information of the information transmission apparatus held in the server computer 102 in advance. The location information includes the UUID, major number, minor number, latitude, longitude, and floor number in the building of the information transmission device.

  In the present embodiment, the position of the information transmission device is represented by latitude and longitude, but information other than latitude and longitude may be used as long as the position can be determined. For example, information such as how many meters to the east and how many meters to the north may be used as the relative position from a predetermined position.

  The server computer 102 calculates the position information of the mobile terminal 200 from the information in Tables 2 and 3 shown above. Specifically, the server computer 102 receives the location information (e.g., latitude and longitude) of the information transmission device that transmitted the identification information received by the mobile terminal 200 and the distance information (very close, close, far) from the mobile terminal 200. , Out of range) position information is calculated. FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining a method for calculating the position information of the mobile terminal 200. In FIG. 9, information transmission devices 201, 202, 203 and a mobile terminal 200 are shown. Here, it is assumed that the mobile terminal 200 has received the identification information transmitted from the three information transmission devices 201, 202, and 203. What is expressed in a circle around each information transmission device is the distance from that information transmission device, and it is "very close", "close", "far", "range" from the one next to the information transmission device The boundary of the “outside” distance is shown schematically.

  For example, from the identification information received by the mobile terminal 200, the distance to the information transmission device 201 is “close”, the distance to the information transmission device 202 is “far”, and the distance to the information transmission device 203 is “close”. To do. In that case, the portion where these ranges overlap is the position of the mobile terminal 200 (the region indicated by the arrow 901). In addition, when identification information is received from more information transmission devices, the accuracy of specifying the position is further improved, and as a result, the positional relationship between the mobile terminal 200 and the printer can be accurately grasped. Become. Further, in FIG. 9, each range indicated by a circle is shown at regular intervals. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and threshold values for determining “very close”, “close”, “far”, and “out of range” are not limited thereto. The interval may be set arbitrarily. The mobile terminal 200 exists in the area indicated by the arrow 901. The server computer 102 uses the position corresponding to this area as the position information of the mobile terminal 200 and holds it in the data storage unit 425 in the form shown in Table 4 associated with the acquired user ID.

  In S603, the server computer 102 calculates the distance between each printer and the portable terminal 200. In step S604, the server computer 102 selects a printer to be controlled. The server computer 102 refers to and selects controllable printer information stored in the data storage unit 425 of the server computer 102 in advance. Table 5 is a table showing an example of printer information stored in the server computer 102 in advance. The printer ID and the corresponding latitude and longitude, the number of floors in the building, threshold information on the distance between the printer and the portable terminal, and a list of appropriate processes according to the distance are included. The appropriate process here refers to a process instructed according to the positional relationship between the mobile terminal 200 and the printer. Table 5 shows an example in which different threshold values (threshold information) for determining the distance such as “very close” and “close” are set for each printer. For example, in “printer A”, it is determined that “very close” is determined when the distance between the printer A and the mobile terminal 200 is 1 m or less. Similarly, when it is located in the range of 1 m to 3 m, it is determined as “close”, and when it is located in the range of 3 m to 10 m, it is determined as “far”. Here, for convenience, the three threshold values for the distance between each printer and the user shown in Table 5 are also referred to as “first value”, “second value”, and “third value” (first value). Value <second value <third value).

  The server computer 102 calculates the distance between the portable terminal 200 and each printer from the position information of the portable terminal 200 shown in Table 4 and the position information of the printer shown in Table 5. It is selected as a printer that controls all printers whose distance is within the “far” threshold shown in Table E. That is, a printer other than the printer located outside the range is selected.

  When a plurality of printers are selected in the above selection of a printer, a printer that meets a specific condition is set as a priority printer. For example, a printer that is closest to the current mobile terminal 200 or a printer that is frequently used by the user is a priority printer. The method for determining the priority order is not limited to the above, and a plurality of conditions may be combined. Although it is possible to perform printing processing for all the selected printers, the user may be prompted to print to a priority printer. The server computer 102 transmits the printer ID and position information of the priority printer to the mobile terminal 200. The mobile terminal 200 that has received the position information displays the position information of the priority printer on the screen, or presents the information of the printer that performs printing by indicating the direction of the priority printer. Thereby, it is possible to guide the user to perform printing with the priority printer. The position information display method is not particularly limited. For example, the position may be displayed on a map image, or the direction of the printer may be indicated by an arrow.

  In S605, the server computer 102 transmits the user ID to the printer selected in S604. The user ID here corresponds to that received from the portable terminal 200 in S601.

  In S606, the server computer 102 determines whether or not the distance between the printer selected in S604 and the portable terminal 200 is “very close”. If it is determined that it is “very close” (YES in step S606), in step S607, the server computer 102 instructs the printer to perform processing corresponding to “very close”. The processing contents instructed here are the processing listed in “Very close” in Table 5. For example, when the distance between “printer A” and the portable terminal 200 is “close”, the server computer 102 instructs “printer A” to perform “print data reception”.

  If it is determined that it is not “very close” (NO in S606), in S608, the server computer 102 determines whether or not the distance between the selected printer and the portable terminal 200 is “close”. If it is determined to be “close” (YES in S608), in S609, the server computer 102 instructs the printer to perform processing corresponding to “close”. For the processing content here, the processing listed in “near” in Table 5 is instructed. For example, a warm-up instruction is given as an operation for preparing in advance for the printer to execute printing. Alternatively, as advance preparation, an instruction to transmit / receive print data is given.

  If it is determined that it is not “near” (NO in S608), in S610, the server computer 102 determines whether or not the distance between the selected printer and the portable terminal 200 is “far”. If it is determined that it is “far” (YES in S610), in S611, server computer 102 instructs the printer to perform processing corresponding to “far”. For the processing content here, the processing listed in “Far” in Table 5 is instructed.

  In S612, the server computer 102 checks whether or not the processing instruction has been completed for all the printers selected in S604. If processing has been completed for all the selected printers (YES in S612), the flow ends. If not (NO in S612), the process returns to S605 and the process is repeated.

(printer)
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the printer 103 when receiving a print instruction from the printer management service on the server computer 102. Processing listed in Table 5 is instructed from the server computer 102 to the printer 103 according to the distance between the printer and the portable terminal 200. The operation flow for the “print instruction” will be described below as an example of the instruction.

  In step S701, the printer 103 searches for print data that matches the user ID. The user ID here indicates the user who has designated printing, and is transmitted from the server computer 102 in S605 of FIG. The print data to be searched are print data stored in the external memory 1021 of the printer 103 and print data stored in the external memory 1011 of the server computer 101. The print data in which the user ID included in the control data portion of the stored print data matches the user ID transmitted from the server computer 102 is listed.

  In step S <b> 702, the printer 103 checks whether there is any printable data among the print data listed in step S <b> 701. At this time, the printer 103 checks the status of the print data stored in the server computer 101 for each print data listed. Specifically, it is confirmed whether or not the state of the print data is a predetermined status (such as “print processing in progress” or “print processing complete”). Further, the printer 103 checks whether the print data can be processed (whether the data can be interpreted by the printer 103, whether color monochrome, staple, punch, fold, or the like can be processed). In addition, the printer 103 confirms whether the print data that can be printed is stored in the external memory 1021 of the printer 103. The printer 103 lists print data determined to be printable as a result of confirmation.

  In step S703, the printer 103 determines whether there is printable print data. If there is no print data that can be printed (NO in S703), the process ends. If it exists (YES in S703), the process proceeds to S704.

  In step S <b> 704, the printer 103 determines whether there is print data that can be stored only in the server computer 101. If there is no print data stored only in server computer 101 (NO in S704), the process proceeds to S706. If there is print data stored only in the server computer 101 (YES in S704), the printer 103 acquires the corresponding print data from the server computer 101 in S705. At this time, the server computer 101 provides print data in response to a request from the printer 103.

  In step S <b> 706, the printer 103 notifies the server computer 101 that the status of the print data listed as printable in step S <b> 702 is “printing in progress”. Upon receiving the notification, the server computer 101 gives flag information indicating that “print processing is in progress” to the corresponding print data stored in the external memory 1011. By referring to the flag information, the server computer 101 can determine that the print data is being printed.

  In step S <b> 707, the printer 103 performs printing using print data stored in the external memory 1021 of the printer 103.

  In step S <b> 708, the printer 103 notifies the server computer 101 that “print processing is complete” for the print data printed in step S <b> 707. Upon receiving the notification, the server computer 101 adds flag information indicating “print processing complete” to the corresponding print data stored in the external memory 1011. By referring to the flag information, the server computer 101 can determine that the corresponding data has been printed.

  In step S709, the printer 103 deletes the print data that has been printed in step S707. What is deleted here is print data stored in the external memory 1021 of the printer 103.

  The printer 103 can perform various processes according to the processing contents instructed from the server computer 102. For example, when a “print data reception” instruction is issued from the server computer 102, the printer 103 matches the print data stored in the server computer 101 with the user ID transmitted in S605 of FIG. Search print data. If there is matching print data, the printer 103 receives the print data from the server computer 101 and stores it in the external memory 1021. Further, the printer 103 may delete the held print data in response to an instruction from the server computer 101. The process instructed from the server computer 102 may be any process as long as it is related as a series of printing processes.

  In addition, before the process is started, the printer 103 or the server computer 102 may notify the mobile terminal 200 of the start of the process. At that time, the printing application on the mobile terminal 200 displays a message to start processing on the screen of the mobile terminal 200. As a result, the user can check the current print processing status from the screen of the mobile terminal 200.

  Table 5 shows an example in which instructions for printing are given step by step as the user approaches the printer. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an instruction for leaving the printer may be given. Specifically, the history of instructions and information on the user's position are retained, and after the printing process is completed, if the user's position leaves the printer, the print data used for that printing process is deleted. An instruction to do so may be sent. Furthermore, if the user is separated from the printer after being determined to be close to the printer and selected (the positional relationship becomes “far” or more), printing related to the user held by the printer All data may be deleted. Furthermore, the priority printer to be printed may be switched in accordance with the user's movement (change in position).

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to issue an instruction relating to a printing process according to the distance between the portable terminal (user) and the printer. As a result, when using a system that prints temporarily stored print data, it is possible to reduce the waiting time until the printed material is acquired.

<Second Embodiment>
A second embodiment according to the present invention will be described. In the first embodiment, the mobile terminal that has received the identification information transmits various types of information to the server computer. In the present embodiment, a configuration in which a user owns an ID card as a device and an information receiving apparatus that has received identification information from the ID card transmits various information to a server computer will be described. In the present embodiment, an example in which a print request by a user is made from a client computer instead of a mobile terminal is shown.

[System configuration]
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a printing system according to the present embodiment. The printing system includes a client computer 100, server computers 101 and 102, a printer 103, an ID card 210, and information receiving apparatuses 211, 212, and 213. The client computer 100, the server computers 101 and 102, the printer 103, and the information receiving apparatuses 211, 212, and 213 are connected via a network 300 capable of bidirectional communication.

  The ID card 210 is a portable card carried by a user, and is a device capable of transmitting identification information by wireless communication. The ID card 210 may always transmit identification information, or may transmit when triggered by entering an area. For example, when entering a certain area, it is possible to switch between sending / not sending identification information by holding the ID card 210 over a card reader. The information transmitted here may be transmitted as a beacon using a short-range communication technology such as BLE described in the first embodiment. The information receiving devices 211, 212, and 213 can directly receive identification information data transmitted from the ID card 210.

  In the present embodiment, an example is shown in which the client computer 100, the printer 103, and the ID card 210 each include one unit, but a plurality of units may be included. Further, the server computers 101 and 102 are configured with two units, but may be configured with one unit, or may be configured with a larger number of units. Furthermore, three or more information receiving apparatuses 211, 212, and 213 may be included.

[Hardware configuration]
The configurations of the client computer 100, the server computers 101 and 102, and the printer 103 according to the present embodiment are the same as those shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the information reception apparatuses 211, 212, and 213. Various programs are stored in the Flash 2103. The SoC 2101 implements each process by reading the program stored in the Flash 2103 into the RAM 2102 and executing it. A Wi-Fi 2105 is a part that performs wireless communication, and can be connected to the network 300 via the Wi-Fi access point 301. Furthermore, the information receiving apparatus 211 includes a Bluetooth 2104 that performs near field communication, and a power source 2106. In the present embodiment, the Bluetooth 2104 receives a beacon transmitted from the ID card 210.

Software configuration
FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of software of the printing system. Since the configuration other than the information receiving apparatus 211 and the ID card 210 is the same as that described with reference to FIG. 4 of the first embodiment, a duplicate description is omitted.

  The information receiving apparatus 211 has an identification information acquisition unit 473. The identification information acquisition unit 473 can receive the identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission unit 461 by the ID card 210. The identification information acquired by the identification information acquisition unit 473 is transmitted to the server computer 102 via the communication unit 471.

  The server computer 102 is a printer management server and has a printer management service (not shown). The printer management service can communicate with each device, and controls the printer 103 based on the identification information transmitted from the information receiving device 211. Further, the position information calculation unit 423 calculates the position information of the ID card 210 based on the identification information. The printer management unit 424 manages the printer based on the position information of the ID card 210. The management here refers to giving instructions to the printer 103 such as a pre-operation such as warm-up before printing, print data acquisition processing, execution of print processing, and the like.

[Processing flow]
(Client computer)
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of an application on the client computer 100 displaying a print target such as a document or an image. This processing flow is realized by the CPU 1001 of the client computer 100 reading out a program stored in the ROM 1003 or the like to the RAM 1002 and executing it.

  In S1301, the client computer 100 starts an application. The application is a printing application and can display a document or an image to be printed. In step S <b> 1302, the client computer 100 performs print processing while displaying a print target. Here, the printing process is to generate print data by the print data generation unit 403 in the application and send it to the server computer 101 via the communication unit 401. A configuration example of the print data is the same as that of FIG. 8 shown in the first embodiment. Then, this processing flow ends.

(Information receiver)
FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an operation when the information receiving device 211 receives the identification information transmitted from the ID card 210. This processing flow is realized by the SoC 2101 of the information receiving apparatus 211 reading a program stored in the Flash 2103 or the like into the RAM 2102 and executing it.

  In step S <b> 1401, the information reception device 211 determines whether identification information has been received from the ID card 210. The identification information includes a UUID, a major number, a minor number, and a description. Table 6 below shows an example of identification information to be acquired. The UUID is information that can uniquely identify the information transmission device. The major number and the minor number are numbers for identifying information transmitting apparatuses having the same UUID. The description is about the ID card 210. For example, it is assumed that the user ID of the ID card 210 is stored.

  If the identification information is received (YES in S1401), the process proceeds to S1402. If not received (NO in S1401), information receiving apparatus 211 waits until receiving identification information.

  In S1402, the information receiving apparatus 211 transmits the receiving apparatus ID, the distance information, and the user ID to the server computer 102. The receiving device ID here is an ID for uniquely managing the information receiving device, and is assumed to be allocated in advance to each information receiving device. The distance information is information indicating the distance between the information receiving device 211 and the ID card 210, and indicates the distance between two points on the transmitting side and the receiving side of the identification information. For example, information indicating the distance such as “very close”, “close”, “far”, and “out of range” is calculated on the receiving side according to the distance between the two points of the transmitting side and the receiving side of the identification information. In the present embodiment, the information receiving apparatus 211 that has received the identification information is “very close”, “near”, “far”, “out of range” based on the reception strength (radio wave intensity) of the identification information in the identification information acquisition unit 473. Such distance information is calculated. As in the first embodiment, a specific distance value may be used. The user ID indicates the user who has designated printing, and has the same value as that stored in the description of Table 6 above. Then, this processing flow ends.

(Server computer)
FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating an operation when the printer management service on the server computer 102 receives a receiving device ID or the like from the information receiving device 211. This processing flow is realized by the CPU 1001 of the server computer 102 reading a program stored in the ROM 1003 or the like into the RAM 1002 and executing it.

  In S1501, the server computer 102 receives the receiving device ID, the distance information, and the user ID from one or more information receiving devices. The receiving device ID, distance information, and user ID to be received are information transmitted by the information receiving device in S1402 of FIG. The position information calculation unit 423 of the server computer 102 that has received the receiving device ID and the distance information generates a table including the receiving device ID, the distance, and the received reception date and time. Table 7 shown below is an example.

  In S1502, server computer 102 calculates position information of ID card 210 from the received receiving apparatus ID and distance information. The location information of the ID card 210 can be calculated from the location information of the information receiving device, the receiving device ID, and the distance information held in advance in the data storage unit 425 of the server computer 102. Table 8 is an example of a table indicating the position information of the information receiving apparatus held in advance in the server computer 102. The position information includes the receiving device ID of the information receiving device, the major number, the minor number, the latitude and longitude, and the number of floors in the building.

  In the present embodiment, the position of the information transmission device is represented by latitude and longitude, but information other than latitude and longitude may be used as long as the position can be determined. For example, information such as how many meters to the east and how many meters to the north as the relative distance from a predetermined position may be used.

  The server computer 102 calculates the position information of the ID card 210 from the information in Tables 7 and 8. The position information is calculated from the position information (e.g., latitude and longitude) of the information receiving device and the distance information (very close, close, far, out of range) with the ID card. FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining a method for calculating the position information of the ID card 210. In FIG. 16, information receiving apparatuses 211, 212, and 213 and an ID card 210 that transmits identification information are shown. What is expressed in a circle around the information receiving devices 211, 212, and 213 is a schematic diagram of boundaries of distances of “very close”, “close”, “far”, and “out of range” from the ID card 210. It is written in.

  For example, from the identification information transmitted by the ID card 210, the distance to the information receiving device 211 is “far”, the distance to the information receiving device 212 is “close”, and the distance to the information receiving device 213 is “close”. To do. In that case, the part where the ranges overlap is the position information of the ID card 210 (area indicated by the arrow 1601). The ID card 210 exists in the area indicated by the arrow 1601. The server computer 102 sets the appropriate position from this area as the position information of the ID card 210 and holds it in the data storage unit 425 in the form shown in Table 9 associated with the acquired user ID.

  In S1503, server computer 102 calculates the distance between each printer and ID card 210. In step S1504, the server computer 102 selects a printer to be controlled. Here, the server computer 102 refers to and selects controllable printer information held in the data storage unit 425. The printer information stored in advance in the server computer 102 is the same as that in Table 5 shown in the first embodiment.

  The server computer 102 calculates the distance between the ID card 210 and each printer from the position information of the ID card 210 shown in Table 9 and the position information of the printer shown in Table 5. The server computer 102 selects the printers that control all the printers whose distances are within the “far” threshold shown in Table 5. That is, a printer other than the printer that is “out of range” is selected.

  Since the processing of S1505 to S1512 is the same as the processing of S605 to S612 of FIG.

  Since the operation of the printer 103 when receiving a print instruction from the printer management service on the server computer 102 is the same as that in FIG. 7 described in the first embodiment, a description thereof will be omitted.

  According to the present embodiment, it is possible to perform a printing process according to the distance between the user holding the ID card and the printer. As a result, even when printing is performed using a system that performs printing processing and output of temporarily stored data, it is possible to reduce the waiting time until the printed matter is acquired.

  Further, in the configuration of the present embodiment, unlike the first embodiment, a device (for example, an ID card) that transmits identification information even if each user does not have a device (for example, a portable terminal) that receives the identification information. It becomes possible to process only by preparing.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is also realized by executing the following processing. That is, software (program) for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or apparatus via a network or various storage media, and a computer (or CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or apparatus reads the program. It is a process to be executed.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Client computer, 101, 102 ... Server computer, 103 ... Printer, 200 ... Portable terminal, 201, 202, 202 ... Information transmission device, 301 ... Access point

Claims (9)

Identifying means for identifying a positional relationship between the user and the printer based on positional information of the user identified based on a wireless signal between a device carried by the user and one or more external devices;
In response to the change in the positional relationship, a plurality of instructions for controlling at least one of transmission / reception of print data, execution of printing, and preparation of the printer for the print data designated by the user to the printer. A printing system comprising: control means for controlling in stages. The device carried by the user is a portable terminal capable of receiving a beacon,
The plurality of external devices are a plurality of transmitting devices that transmit beacons,
When the mobile terminal receives a beacon transmitted from each of the plurality of transmission devices, the mobile terminal acquires data indicating the user's position transmitted from the mobile terminal, and uses the data to calculate the user's position information The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising a calculating unit that performs the calculation.   The printing system according to claim 2, wherein the data indicating the position of the user is data indicating a distance between each of the plurality of transmitting devices and the portable terminal. The device held by the user is a portable card capable of transmitting a beacon,
The plurality of external devices are a plurality of receiving devices that receive beacons transmitted from the portable card,
When each of the plurality of receiving devices receives a beacon transmitted from the portable card, the data indicating the position of the user transmitted from each of the plurality of receiving devices is obtained, and using the data, the user's position is acquired. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising calculation means for calculating position information.   The printing system according to claim 4, wherein the data indicating the position of the user is data indicating a distance between each of the plurality of receiving devices and the portable card. The specifying unit is configured such that a distance between the printer and the user is closer than a first value, between the first value and a second value, or farther than the second value. Identifying the positional relationship;
The control means includes
If the distance is identified as being closer than the first value, instruct the printer to print the print data;
When the distance is specified as being between the first value and the second value, as a preparation of the printer, a pre-operation for executing printing on the print data, or acquisition of the print data Instruct the printer,
When the distance is specified as being between the first value and the second value and then specified as being farther than the second value, the deletion of the print data is instructed. The printing system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. Determining means for determining a printer to execute processing for print data instructed by the user from among a plurality of printers based on the positional relationship specified by the specifying means;
The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising a presentation unit that presents the position of the printer determined by the determination unit to the user.   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the wireless signal is transmitted and received by short-range communication using BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy). A specifying step of specifying a positional relationship between the user and the printer based on the positional information of the user specified based on a radio signal between a device carried by the user and one or a plurality of external devices;
In response to the change in the positional relationship, a plurality of instructions for controlling at least one of transmission / reception of print data, execution of printing, and preparation of the printer for the print data designated by the user to the printer. A printing method comprising a control step of controlling in stages.

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