JP2020011429A - Printing system, printing control device and its control method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve a problem in that, in a printing system including a printing control device that is externally connected to a printer and is able to operate the function of part of the printer, the printing control device has to operate according to a use limit of the printer.SOLUTION: A printing system has a printer and a printing control device. The printer receives manager information from the printing control device and, based on the received manager information, carries out authentication. The printing control device determines whether an operation selected on a display relating to the printer requires an authentication process. In a case where it is determined that the authentication process is required, the printing control device shows an authentication display. The manager information input via the authentication display is communicated to the printer and authenticated. In a case where the authentication result is received and the received result satisfies the authentication, control is exerted to accept the operation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing system, a printing control device, a control method therefor, and a program.

  2. Description of the Related Art In the production printing market, printing apparatuses that can handle various types of paper such as thin paper, thick paper, coated paper, and film are used. In such a printing apparatus, paper information such as a name, size, and basis weight is given to paper to identify the paper, and such paper information is used to manage a paper list and to set a paper feed tray. It can be performed.

  In addition to basic attributes such as name, size, and grammage, paper information is printed under conditions that are optimal for the paper, such as transfer voltage and image position adjustment values, so that printing can be performed with better image quality and print accuracy. There are adjustment attributes. In a printing apparatus used in the production printing market, there are a wide variety of adjustable items, and it takes time to set an optimal value for a desired adjustment item. In order to reduce this trouble, a system has been considered in which an information processing apparatus such as a PC is connected to the printing apparatus, and the PC can intuitively operate various types of paper management of the printing apparatus (for example, Non-Patent Document 1). ).

  On the other hand, since the management of the paper of the printing apparatus directly affects the image quality of the printed matter, it is often set such that only a specific user is permitted to use such as a system administrator of the printing apparatus. Therefore, when a function whose use is restricted in a printing apparatus, such as setting of paper information, is used, authentication as a system administrator is required via an operation unit provided in the printing apparatus. If authentication is not possible as a system administrator, control is exercised so that use of a function whose use is restricted is not permitted (for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 5728275

Media Librarian Instruction Manual Canon Inc.

  In a printing system including a printing control device that is externally connected to a printing device described in Non-Patent Document 1 and is capable of operating some functions of the printing device, the printing control device must operate in accordance with usage restrictions of the printing device. For example, a problem may occur as described above. On the other hand, from another point of view, in a printing system for improving the convenience of some functions of the printing apparatus, the convenience may be reduced by complying with the use restriction of the printing apparatus. That is, it may not always be correct to follow the usage restrictions of the printing apparatus.

  An object of the present invention is to solve at least one of the above-mentioned problems of the related art.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to manage a setting of a printing apparatus in a printing control apparatus which can be connected to the printing apparatus from the outside so as to operate some functions of the printing apparatus so as to comply with a use restriction of the printing apparatus but not to impair convenience. It is to provide the technology that can be done.

In order to achieve the above object, a printing system according to one embodiment of the present invention has the following configuration. That is,
A printing system having a printing device and a printing control device, wherein the printing device includes:
First receiving means for receiving administrator information from the print control device;
Authentication means for performing authentication based on the administrator information received by the first receiving means,
The print control device,
Determining means for determining whether the operation selected on the screen regarding the printing device requires authentication processing,
Display means for displaying an authentication screen when the authentication processing is determined to be necessary by the determination means,
A second receiving unit that notifies the printing apparatus of administrator information input through an authentication screen displayed by the display unit, authenticates the printing device, and receives a result of the authentication;
And control means for controlling to accept the operation when the result received by the second receiving means is a successful authentication.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, in a print control device which can be connected to the printing device from the outside and operate some functions of the printing device, the setting of the printing device is managed so as not to impair the convenience while complying with the use restriction of the printing device it can.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a printing system according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a print control apparatus according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2B is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration of the print control apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a top screen of a paper management application executed by the print control apparatus according to the first embodiment. 6 is a flowchart for describing processing for creating a top screen when a paper management application is started in the print control apparatus according to the first embodiment. 6 is a flowchart for describing initialization processing of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sheet setting management table included in the print control apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting screen and an authentication screen displayed on an operation panel of the printing apparatus according to the first embodiment. A screen when the user operates a function that requires authentication by the system administrator from the items on the paper list screen displayed by pressing the paper list button on the top screen of the paper management application according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating processing when a paper list button on a top screen of a paper management application is pressed in the print control apparatus according to the first embodiment. 11 is a flowchart for describing the authentication processing in S1003 of FIG. 10 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a login control target table used in the authentication processing of FIG. 11. In the second embodiment, from among the items of the paper feed stage screen displayed when the paper feed stage button on the top screen is pressed, a screen for a case where the user operates a function that requires authentication as a system administrator is displayed. The figure explaining a transition. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing when a paper feed stage button is pressed on the top screen in the print control apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting dialog displayed when a setting button is pressed on a top screen displayed by a paper management application executed by the print control apparatus according to the third embodiment. 11 is a flowchart illustrating authentication processing in S1003 of FIG. 10 according to the third embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following embodiments do not limit the present invention according to the claims, and all combinations of features described in the present embodiments are not necessarily essential to the solution of the present invention. .

[Embodiment 1]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a printing system 100 according to the first embodiment.

  The printing system 100 includes a printing device 103 and a printing control device 102. The printing system 100 is communicably connected to a client computer 101. The client computer 101 and the print control apparatus 102 are communicably connected to each other via a LAN (Local Area Network) 110 using an Ethernet (registered trademark) cable 109. The print control device 102 and the print device 103 are connected via an image video cable 107 and a control cable 108. In the first embodiment, the printing apparatus 103 is not directly connected to the LAN 110. The printing apparatus 103 and the client computer 101 communicate with each other via the print control apparatus 102. Note that the printing device 103 may be connected to the LAN 110. That is, the printing apparatus 103 may be directly connected to the client computer 101 so as to be able to communicate. The client computer 101 activates an application and issues a print instruction or the like to the printing system 100. The printing control device 102 performs image processing in cooperation with the printing device 103.

  The printing apparatus 103 is a multifunction peripheral having various functions. The printing apparatus 103 not only performs image processing from the client computer 101 and the print control apparatus 102, but also copies data read by the scanner unit 104 and transmits data to the shared folder. It is possible to When scanning an image with the scanner unit 104, various instructions are received from the user via various keys on the operation panel 105. Further, the operation panel 105 presents various information such as a scan state to the user via the panel. The paper discharge unit 106 receives the paper on which the image is formed, and discharges the received paper.

  The print control device 102 has the controller unit 300 and the display unit 111, and the display unit 111 displays information on the print control device 102. The user operates the operation button unit 112 of the hardware of the print control apparatus 102 to operate information displayed on the display unit 111. The information displayed on the display unit 111 is used for displaying the minimum information (power operation and confirmation of the IP address) required for operating the print control apparatus 102. Further, an external display device 113, a keyboard 114, and a pointing device 115 of the "print control device 102" are connected. In the first embodiment, the printing system 100 will be described by using the printing control apparatus 102 and the printing apparatus 103 as separate systems. However, the processing of the printing control apparatus 102 is included in the printing apparatus 103, and the printing control apparatus 102 is physically It is not necessary to arrange them. Further, the external display device 113 may have a position input device function such as a touch pad, and may also have a function of the pointing device 115.

  Paper feed units 116-1 to 116-8 (collectively referred to as a paper feed unit 116) connected to the printing apparatus 103 are apparatuses for storing sheets used for printing, and receive a print instruction. , One paper feed stage is selected, and paper is fed from the selected paper feed stage. Note that the number of paper feed units 116 increases or decreases depending on an optional configuration connected to the printing apparatus 103.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the printing apparatus 103 according to the first embodiment.

  The controller 200 has a CPU 201. The CPU 201 loads a control program stored in the ROM 203 or the external storage device 211 into the RAM 202, executes the loaded program, and collects various devices connected to the system bus 204. Control. Further, the CPU 201 outputs an image signal as output information to a printing unit (printer engine) 210 connected via the printing interface 207, and outputs an image signal input from the scanner unit 104 connected via the reading interface 212. Receive. Further, the CPU 201 controls the paper feed unit 116 connected to the print engine 210 via the print interface 207, and acquires the state of the paper feed unit 116. Further, the CPU 201 can perform communication processing with the print control apparatus 102 via the LAN controller 206 and the control cable 108. The RAM 202 mainly functions as a main memory, a work area, and the like for the CPU 201. Access to the external storage device 211 such as a hard disk (HDD) and an IC card is controlled by a disk controller (DKC) 208. The hard disk stores application programs, font data, form data, and the like, temporarily spools print jobs, and is used as a job storage area for externally controlling the spooled jobs. Further, image data input from the scanner unit 104 and image data of a print job are held as BOX data, and are also used as a BOX data storage area for referencing from a network or performing printing. In the first embodiment, an HDD is used as the external storage device 211, and various logs such as a job log and an image log are stored. The operation panel 105 is connected to the controller 200 via an operation panel interface 205, and a user can input various information from a software key or a hardware key. The nonvolatile memory 209 stores various setting information set from a terminal via the operation panel 105 or the network 110. The video interface 214 receives image data from the print control device 102.

  FIG. 3A is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment.

  The controller 300 has a CPU 301. The CPU 301 expands a control program stored in the ROM 303 or the external storage device 309 in the RAM 302, and executes the expanded program to execute various devices connected to the system bus 304. Overall control. The CPU 301 can communicate with the printing device 103 via the LAN controller 306 and the control cable 108. The CPU 301 can perform communication processing with the client computer 101 and the printing apparatus 103 on the network via the LAN controller 307 and the LAN 110. The RAM 302 mainly functions as a main memory, a work area, and the like for the CPU 301. Access to an external storage device 309 such as a hard disk (HDD) or an IC card is controlled by a disk controller (DKC) 308. The hard disk stores application programs, font data, form data, and the like, and temporarily spools print jobs. The spooled job is used as a job storage area for performing RIP (Raster Image Processor) processing and storing the job again. The operation unit interface 305 controls the operation button unit 112 for the user to input various information, and the interface between the display unit 111 and the controller 300 for presenting information to the user. The video interface 310 transmits the RIP-processed image data to the printing apparatus 103. A keyboard controller (KBC) 311 performs a process related to input of information and the like from the keyboard 114 and the pointing device 115. The display control unit 312 has a video memory therein, draws the image in the video memory in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 301, and outputs the image data drawn in the video memory to the display device 113 as a video signal.

  FIG. 3B is a block diagram illustrating a software configuration of the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment. The function of each unit shown in FIG. 3B is achieved by the CPU 301 executing a program expanded in the RAM 302.

  System software for controlling the print control apparatus 102 includes a UI control unit 352, a paper management unit 353, a paper feed stage management unit 354, a network control unit 355, a job management unit 356, and a setting management unit 357. The UI control unit 352 controls a screen displayed by the paper management system. The UI control unit 352 can control to switch the display of the text displayed on the screen and the display unit system of the paper size according to the system setting. The paper management unit 353 communicates with the printing apparatus 103, and manages the obtained paper information in the paper setting management table 700 in FIG.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of the sheet setting management table 700 included in the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment.

  In the paper setting management table 700, paper name, basis weight, size, width, height, and other size information, surface properties, features, colors, and the like are registered in association with the paper ID that specifies the paper. The favorites are used to filter the display contents of a paper list display area 901 described later for each of the customer A, the customer B, and the customer C, for example.

  The paper management unit 353 can edit, add, delete, and search paper information for the paper setting management table 700. The paper setting management table 700 is a management table for managing paper information for each paper ID, and is stored in the external storage device 309 which is a nonvolatile area. It should be noted that the print setting is stored in the external storage device 309, but is stored in the external storage device 210 of the printing device 103, the print control device 102 acquires the sheet setting management table 700 from the printing device 103, and the RAM 302 May be stored. The paper feed stage management unit 354 communicates with the printing apparatus 103 and manages the acquired paper feed stage information.

  The network control unit 355 controls communication with the printing apparatus 103 via the LAN controller 306 and communication with the client computer 101 on the network 110 via the LAN controller 307. The job management unit 356 manages a print processing sequence and a job order. The job management unit 356 manages a job received by the print control apparatus 102 and controls data transfer for printing the received job to the printing apparatus 103 via the LAN controller 306 or the video interface 310. The setting management unit 357 manages system settings related to the paper management system. The system settings include, for example, language settings for texts displayed on the screen of the paper management system, display unit systems (millimeter or inch) for paper sizes, and the like. The authentication management unit 358 manages authentication information in the paper management system using a paper management application described later. The processing of the authentication management unit 358 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a top screen 400 of a paper management application executed by the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment.

  The top screen 400 shows an example of a screen in a state in which information on a paper feed stage of the printing apparatus 103 connected to the printing control apparatus 102 is displayed. The top screen 400 is rendered in the video memory in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 301, and the image data rendered in the video memory is output to the display device 113 as a video signal and displayed.

  When the paper management application is activated, it acquires device configuration information of the printing apparatus 103 and displays a correct image according to the option information. FIG. 4 shows a state in which eight paper feed stages and a paper discharge device are connected. Reference numerals 410 to 417 are paper feed stage buttons corresponding to each paper feed stage. The paper feed unit open buttons 420 to 427 are buttons for instructing to open / close the paper feed stage. That is, when the paper feed unit open button is pressed while the paper feed stage is closed, the paper feed stage is opened, and when the paper feed stage is open, the paper feed unit open button is pressed. And that paper feed stage is closed. The paper management application creates and displays these paper feed stage buttons based on the information on the paper feed stage of the printing apparatus 103 acquired when the application is started. The paper feed stage button has an area for displaying information such as the paper name and the remaining amount of paper set in the paper feed stage. When the status of the paper feed stage is changed by the printing device 103 and the controller 300 receives the paper feed stage status change event from the printing device 103, the controller 300 reacquires the paper feed stage information. Then, the controller 300 redraws the display area of the paper feed tray button according to the obtained paper feed tray information.

  The paper list button 401 is a button for giving an instruction to display the paper list screen 900. In the first embodiment, when the paper list button 401 is pressed, the controller 300 displays the paper list screen 900 on the top. Details of the paper list screen 900 will be described later with reference to FIG.

  The setting button 402 is a button for instructing to display a screen for changing the system setting of the paper management application. When the setting button 402 is pressed, the controller 300 displays the current system settings according to the system settings stored in the external storage device 309. An example of the displayed screen will be described later with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of creating a top screen 400 when a paper management application is activated in the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment. Although the paper management application according to the first embodiment operates on the print control apparatus 102, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the client computer 101 can operate similarly. Here, an example will be described in which the print control apparatus 102 executes the processing. Note that the processing shown in this flowchart is achieved by the CPU 301 executing the program expanded in the RAM 302 described above.

  This processing is started when the print control apparatus 102 is activated. First, in step S501, the CPU 301 determines the model of the connected printing apparatus 103 to be subjected to paper management. Here, the CPU 301 determines the model of the printing apparatus 103, and uses this determination result when creating a device configuration screen of the top screen 400 or when absorbing a specification difference for each model. At this time, the CPU 301 communicates with the printing apparatus 103, and acquires model information from information returned from the printing apparatus 103 in S607 of FIG. Further, the CPU 301 determines the model of the printing apparatus 103 based on the model identification information stored in advance. When the model of the connected printing apparatus 103 is determined in this way, the process proceeds to S502. In step S502, the CPU 301 communicates with the printing apparatus 103, and acquires information on the device configuration of the printing apparatus 103 from the information returned in step S609 in FIG. Then, the device configuration connected to the printing apparatus 103 is determined. Further, the CPU 301 uses this determination result when creating the device configuration screen of the top screen 400, when specifying the information on the paper feed tray, and when absorbing the specification difference between the models.

  Next, the processing proceeds to step S <b> 503, and the CPU 301 acquires, from the printing apparatus 103, paper feed stage information of the printing apparatus 103. The paper feed stage information includes the configuration of the paper feed stages such as the paper feed stage, the manual feed tray, and the long paper tray, and information on the paper set in each paper feed stage. Further, the CPU 301 determines the number of paper feed stages connected to the printing apparatus 103 to be subjected to paper management, and specifies the number of connected paper feed stages. Then, the process proceeds to step S504, where the CPU 301 communicates with the printing apparatus 103 and, based on the information returned in step S611 in FIG. 6, the sheet information set for each sheet feeder and the sheet feeder open buttons 420 to 427 are pressed. Then, information on whether or not the corresponding paper feed tray can be automatically pulled out is acquired. Then, the processing proceeds to step S505, where the CPU 301 creates information of the paper feed stage buttons 410 to 417 to be displayed on the top screen 400. When creating the button information, if the paper feed tray can be automatically pulled out by pressing the paper feed tray open button, the paper feed tray open buttons 420 to 427 are created on the paper feed tray buttons 410 to 417. To display.

  Next, the processing proceeds to step S506, where the CPU 301 communicates with the printing apparatus 103, and obtains the paper list information returned from the printing apparatus 103 in step S613 of FIG. Next, the processing proceeds to step S <b> 507, and the CPU 301 creates information of the paper list screen 900 to be displayed on the top screen 400. Each piece of paper information on this paper list screen 900 also includes information on whether or not paper can be set for each paper feed tray of the printing apparatus 103. Next, the processing advances to step S508, where the CPU 301 communicates with the printing apparatus 103 to use the adjustment value information on the paper list screen 900, and obtains adjustment values for each adjustment from the information returned in step S615 in FIG. Then, the process advances to step S509, and the CPU 301 creates a character string to be displayed on the sheet information based on the adjustment value acquired in step S508. Here, "no adjustment" is displayed when the adjustment value has been changed from the default value, and "with adjustment" is displayed when the adjustment value has been changed from the default value. Then, the process advances to step S510, and the CPU 301 determines the model device configuration information of the printing apparatus 103 acquired in steps S501 and S502, the paper feed tray button information created in step S505, the sheet list information created in step S507, and the adjustment value information created in step S509. , A top screen 400 is created. Next, the processing proceeds to step S <b> 511, and the CPU 301 registers, in the print control apparatus 102, the destination of the change notification event process for notifying the print apparatus 103 when the paper feed tray information and the sheet information of the print apparatus 103 are changed. I do. When the registration is successful in this way, a process of waiting for a change notification event is performed. When the standby process for the change notification event is performed, the startup process ends.

  Note that the processing in FIG. 5 has been described as an operation when the paper management application is activated. However, paper feed stage information, paper list information, adjustment values, and the like of the printing apparatus 103 may be changed at any time during use of the paper management application. Therefore, the communication with the paper management application and the printing apparatus 103 and the updating of each information accompanying the communication are executed as necessary, regardless of whether the operation is performed by the paper management application or the printing apparatus 103. Information is assumed to be synchronized between the application and the printing apparatus 102.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an initialization process of the printing apparatus 103 according to the first embodiment. Note that the processing shown in this flowchart is achieved by the CPU 201 executing the program expanded in the RAM 202 described above.

  First, in step S <b> 601, the CPU 201 acquires the model information of the printing apparatus 103 from the external storage device 211 and creates the data as replyable data. Then, the process proceeds to step S602, in which the CPU 102 acquires the device configuration information connected to the printing device 103 from the external storage device 211 and creates the data as replyable data. Next, the processing proceeds to step S603, in which the CPU 201 acquires the paper feed stage information of the printing apparatus 103 from the external storage device 211 and creates the data as replyable data. Next, the processing proceeds to step S604, in which the CPU 201 acquires the paper list information of the printing apparatus 103 from the external storage device 211 and creates the data as replyable data. Next, the processing proceeds to step S605, in which the CPU 201 acquires the adjustment value information of the printing apparatus 103 from the external storage device 211 and creates the data as replyable data. The acquisition of the adjustment value information is performed for all items that can be adjusted by the printing apparatus 103.

  In step S606, the CPU 201 determines whether an inquiry about model information has been received from the print control apparatus 102. If the inquiry about model information in step S501 in FIG. 5 has been received, the processing proceeds to step S607, and the model created in step S601. The information is returned to the print control device 102, and the process proceeds to S608. It should be noted that the process also transitions to S608 when the inquiry about the model information has not been received in S606.

  In step S608, the CPU 201 determines whether an inquiry about the device configuration information has been received from the print control apparatus 102. If the inquiry about the device configuration information in step S502 in FIG. 5 has been received, the process proceeds to step S609. In step S609, the CPU 201 returns the device configuration information created in step S602 to the print control apparatus 102, and proceeds to step S610. On the other hand, if the inquiry about the device configuration information has not been received in S608, the process also proceeds to S610.

  In step S <b> 610, the CPU 201 determines whether an inquiry about paper feed stage information has been received from the print control apparatus 102. If the inquiry about the paper feed stage information in S503 and S504 in FIG. 5 has been received, the process proceeds to S611, where the paper feed stage information created in S603 is returned to the print control apparatus 102, and the process proceeds to S612. The process also advances to S612 if the inquiry about the paper feed stage information has not been received in S610.

  In step S612, the CPU 201 determines whether an inquiry about the paper list information has been received from the print control apparatus 102. If the inquiry about the paper list information in steps S506 and S507 in FIG. 5 has been received, the process proceeds to step S613. In step S613, the CPU 201 returns the paper list information created in step S604 to the print control apparatus 102, and proceeds to step S614. If the inquiry about the paper list information has not been received in S612, the process proceeds to S614.

  In step S614, the CPU 201 determines whether an inquiry about the adjustment value information has been received from the print control apparatus 102. If the inquiry about the adjustment value information in step S508 in FIG. The process returns to the device 102, and the process proceeds to S616. If the inquiry about the paper feed stage information has not been received in step S614, the process also advances to step S616. In step S <b> 616, the CPU 201 determines whether a request for registration of transmission destination information for transmitting an event has been received from the print control apparatus 102 when the state of the printing apparatus 103 is changed. If so, the process proceeds to S617, where the CPU 201 adds the print control device 102 to the destination of the event, and the process proceeds to S618. On the other hand, when the registration request of the event transmission destination has not been received in S616, the process proceeds to S618. In step S618, if the processing in steps S606, S608, S610, S612, S614, and S616 is all successful, the CPU 201 ends the initialization processing and ends the processing. On the other hand, if not all succeeded, the process proceeds to S606.

  Note that the paper feed stage 116 in the first embodiment is an example of the paper feed stage, and may be a paper feed stage of another mechanism such as an inserter or a manual tray, and the form is not limited.

  The description returns to FIG. Now, for example, when the paper feed stage button 410 of the paper feed stage 1 is instructed by the pointing device 115 or the like, a paper setting screen of the paper feed stage 1 is displayed, and the paper setting for the paper feed stage 1 and the set paper Can be changed. The case of the paper feed stage buttons 411 to 417 is the same as the case of the paper feed stage buttons 410, and thus the description thereof is omitted. Although not described in detail in the embodiment, it is needless to say that the paper feed tray includes all paper feed trays such as an inserter and a manual tray. In the following description, description of using the pointing device 115 or the like at the time of operating an application such as pressing a button is omitted, but it goes without saying that operation is performed using such an input device.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting screen 800 and an authentication screen 810 displayed on the operation panel 105 of the printing apparatus 103 according to the first embodiment.

  The setting screen 800 displays a list of items 801 that can be set in the printing apparatus 103. The setting screen 800 has a login button 802 and a close button 803. Of the setting items 801, items requiring authentication by the system administrator are grayed out and cannot be used unless the login button 802 is pressed to authenticate the system administrator. Items requiring authentication of the system administrator include, for example, editing paper information. Editing the paper information has a direct effect on the quality of the printed matter, and is configured to allow only specific users, such as a system administrator of the printing apparatus, to use.

  Here, when the system administrator wants to edit the paper information of the paper setting management table 700 as shown in FIG. 7 described above, when the login button 802 is pressed, an authentication screen 810 is displayed. Authenticate the administrator.

  The authentication screen 810 includes an input column 811 for a system management department ID, an input column 812 for a system management password, a cancel button 813, and a login button 814. The input column 811 is used to input a system management department ID, and the input column 812 is used to input a password of the ID. The login button 813 is pressed after confirming that there is no error in the input information entered in the input fields 811 and 812. When the login button 814 is pressed, the input information input in the input fields 811 and 812 matches the authentication information (system administrator ID and management number) stored in the external storage device 211 of the printing device 103. Make sure. The authentication information may be stored in the printing device 103 or may be stored in a storage device external to the printing device 103, for example, a storage device such as an authentication server. Here, if the authentication information matches, the authentication is successful, the authentication screen 810 is closed, and the user having administrator authority can operate various items for which use is restricted. On the other hand, if the authentication information does not match, the authentication fails and an error or the like is displayed, and the operation of the item with the use restriction is not permitted. Examples of conditions that require authentication once after successful authentication include a case where a certain period of time has elapsed since the user last touched the operation panel 105 and a case where the printing apparatus 103 is restarted. However, any conditions may be used.

  Note that, in the above description, the authentication screen 810 is always displayed when the login button 802 is pressed, but various functions may be operated without authentication. For example, the screen displayed on the operation panel 105 may not be restricted in use, and may be set so that users other than the system administrator can use all functions. In the following description, a state in which the printing apparatus 103 is set so that all functions can be used without authentication is referred to as “a state not under the control of authentication”, and a state in which the setting requiring authentication is set as “ The state is under the control of certification. " If the printing apparatus 103 is not under the authentication management, the authentication screen 810 is not displayed.

  Note that the authentication mode according to the first embodiment is a mode using the ID and the password of the system administrator, but is not limited thereto, and may be another mode as long as the authentication of the operator can be performed.

  Next, processing in the printing control apparatus 102 and the printing apparatus 103, which is a feature of the first embodiment, will be described with reference to FIG. In the first embodiment, processing performed when a user operates a function that requires authentication by a system administrator on the screen of the paper management application illustrated in FIG. 4 described above will be described.

  FIG. 9 illustrates a case where the user needs authentication by the system administrator from the items on the paper list screen 900 displayed by pressing the paper list button 401 on the top screen 400 of the paper management application according to the first embodiment. It is a figure explaining transition of a screen when a function is operated.

  The paper list screen 900 is drawn on the video memory in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 301, and the image data drawn on the video memory is output to the display device 113 as a video signal and displayed. The paper list screen 900 includes a paper list display area 901, a pull-down menu 902 for selecting a paper list display method, a paper search input area 903, and a button for adding paper to the paper list. As the paper addition button, a new registration button 904 for registering a new paper in the paper list, a copy button 905 for duplicating an existing paper in the paper list, and a “register from database” button 906 for creating paper from a paper database are displayed. . A close button 909 is a button for terminating the display of the paper list screen 900.

  First, the paper list display area 901 will be described. The paper list display area 901 is an area for displaying a paper list. Here, the paper type is displayed in the column direction, and the paper information such as the attribute of the paper is displayed in the row direction. Here, the sheet being selected is highlighted so that it can be seen that it is selected. When the user wants to display a sheet other than the displayed sheet, the user can operate the slider bar 911 to display the sheet.

  Next, a pull-down menu 902 for selecting a display method of the paper list will be described. The pull-down menu 902 displays the display method of the paper list display area 901. In the first embodiment, examples include display methods such as “display all”, “customer A”, “customer B”, “customer C”, and “history”. It is assumed that “display all” is selected at the time of screen display. Here, “Customer A”, “Customer B”, and “Customer C” are options for filtering the display contents of the paper list display area 901 for each favorite ID of paper information. .

  Next, the search input area 903 will be described. The search input area 903 is an area for the operator to input a keyword for searching for a desired sheet from the sheets in the sheet list display area 901. The search input area 903 allows an incremental search, and a search is automatically performed each time a character is input.

  A new registration button 904, a copy button 905, a database registration button 906, an edit button 907, and a delete button 908 are buttons that are pressed when editing paper information. When these buttons are pressed, a login screen 920 is displayed to urge the user to authenticate. Here, an operation when the edit button 907 is pressed will be described as an example. It should be noted that detailed processing after the edit button 907 is pressed will be described later with reference to the flowchart in FIG. Here, the screen flow will be described with reference to FIG.

  The login screen 920 has the same items as the authentication screen 810 (FIG. 8) displayed on the operation panel 105 of the printing apparatus 103. The authentication screen 920 includes an input column 921 for a system management department ID, an input column 922 for a system management password, a login button 923, and a cancel button 924. The input column 921 is used to input the system management department ID, and the input column 922 is used to input the password of the ID. The login button 923 is pressed after confirming that there is no error in the input information entered in the input fields 921 and 922. When the login button 923 is pressed, the paper management application transfers the system administrator ID and the password input to the input fields 921 and 922 to the printing apparatus 103. The printing device 103 checks whether the transferred system administrator information matches the authentication information stored in the external storage device 211. If the authentication information matches, a notification that the user authentication has succeeded is sent to the paper management application. Upon receiving the notification that the authentication has succeeded, the paper management application closes the login screen 920, displays the paper editing screen 940 on which the use is restricted, and permits the operation of various items. On the other hand, if the authentication information does not match, the login screen 920 is kept displayed until the authentication is successful or the cancel button 924 is pressed, and the system administrator is prompted to re-enter the system administrator ID and the password.

  Next, the paper editing screen 940 displayed when authentication is successful will be described.

  The paper editing screen 940 is a screen for registering new paper and editing registered paper. The paper editing screen 940 includes a paper information input area 941, a paper information adjustment item list 942, a pull-down menu 943 for switching a display group of the adjustment item list, an OK button 944, and a cancel button 945. The paper information input area 941 displays minimum setting items necessary for handling paper in the paper information. In the first embodiment, for example, as setting items, name, basis weight, color, surface properties, size, characteristics, paper-skin setting, double-sided second side, and favorite are displayed. The area 946 is a text area for inputting the name of a sheet. When the name is changed, characters can be input in the text area 946 using the keyboard 112 or the like. To reflect the changed information on the sheet information, the user presses an OK button 944 on the sheet editing screen 940. By pressing the OK button 944, the sheet information of the print control apparatus 102 and the printing apparatus 103 can be changed. On the other hand, by pressing the cancel button 945, the sheet setting can be canceled.

  The area 947 is a text area for inputting the grammage. Since the operation is the same as that of the text area 946, the description will be omitted if the same applies thereafter. A pull-down menu 948 displays paper color information and can be selected from a list. The pull-down menu 949 displays a list of surface property information, and the surface property can be selected from the list. A pull-down menu list 950 displays paper size information, and a desired size can be selected from a list of paper sizes. An area 951 is a text area that can be input when a user-defined size is selected in the pull-down menu list 950 and in which the length of the paper size in the main scanning and sub-scanning directions can be input. On the paper editing screen 940, since the paper size is 13 × 19, the area 951 is grayed out so as not to be input. Note that a button capable of switching between millimeters and inches may be arranged so that the input unit can be switched between millimeters and inches. A feature 952 is a pull-down menu list that displays feature information and can be selected from a list. A pull-down menu list 953 displays the paper cut setting, and can be selected from the list. The paper-skin setting is a setting as to whether to use a sheet whose paper is perpendicular to the sheet feeding direction or a sheet that is parallel to the sheet feeding direction. A radio button 954 displays information on the second side of both sides, and can be switched between with and without setting. The two-sided second-side information is a setting for changing the transfer voltage when the paper that has already been fixed on the front side is placed in the paper feed stage and the back side is fixed.

  The favorite setting 955 is a menu that displays a list of favorites stored in the external storage device 309 and allows the user to set which favorite the user belongs to. Here, a favorite list is displayed with a check box, and if the check box is checked, it indicates that the user belongs to the target favorite. For example, in the favorite setting 955, since three favorites are not checked, it indicates that they do not belong to any of the favorites. To reflect the changed information on the sheet information, the user presses an OK button 944 on the sheet editing screen 940. By pressing the OK button 944, the sheet information of the print control apparatus 102 and the printing apparatus 103 can be changed. Upon receiving the instruction to create the paper editing screen 940, the controller 300 controls the setting management unit 357 to acquire a favorite setting table. The controller 300 controls the UI control unit 352 to display the sheet editing screen 940 according to the acquired favorite information.

  The favorite registration / edit button 956 is a button for displaying a favorite management screen. On the favorites management screen, you can add, edit, and delete favorites.

  In the adjustment item list 942, names, adjustment / non-adjustment, and display groups of items that can be adjusted with the set values included in the sheet information are displayed in a list. Note that the adjustment of the adjustment item is performed by selecting an adjustment item in the adjustment item list 942, the detailed value of the adjustment value and the adjustment button are displayed on the paper edit screen 940, and the target adjustment screen is displayed by pressing the adjustment button. It may be.

  An outline of some adjustment items displayed in the adjustment item list 942 will be described.

  The gloss / black quality adjustment is an item for adjusting the gloss of the output image by adjusting the temperature of the fixing device when using plain paper or coated paper. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The adjustment of the secondary transfer voltage is an adjustment item for changing the voltage at the time of transferring the toner image onto the paper. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The trailing edge white spot correction is an adjustment item for changing the transfer voltage when the toner becomes white or the color becomes light at the rear edge of the sheet in the transport direction. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The secondary transfer static elimination bias adjustment is an adjustment item for changing a voltage value (static elimination bias) for removing static electricity remaining on the intermediate transfer belt. The display group is defined as “image quality”. ITB image removal adjustment is an adjustment item that changes the degree of image removal of the intermediate transfer belt. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The toner amount adjustment mode is an adjustment item for changing the total amount of toner. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The adjustment of the primary transfer voltage is an adjustment item for changing the voltage when the toner image is transferred from the intermediate transfer belt to the paper. The display group is defined as “image quality”. The image position adjustment is an adjustment item for changing the print position of the front side and the back side with respect to the sheet. The display group is defined as “image position”. The leading / rear margin adjustment is an adjustment item that changes the length of the leading and trailing margins in the transport direction during printing. The display group is defined as “image position”. It should be noted that there are many other paper information setting items, but a description thereof will be omitted. The pull-down menu 943 is a pull-down menu that enables selection of a filter for displaying the adjustment item list 942 as a filter for each group. For example, when “image quality” is selected from the pull-down menu 943, the controller 300 controls the UI control unit 352 to display only the adjustment items whose display group is “image quality” in the adjustment item list 942.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating processing when the paper control button 102 on the top screen 400 of the paper management application is pressed by the print control apparatus 102 according to the first embodiment. Note that the processing shown in this flowchart is achieved by the CPU 301 executing the program developed in the RAM 302 described above.

  First, in S1001, the CPU 301 displays, for example, a paper list screen 900 in FIG. In step S1002, it is determined whether the edit button 907 has been pressed. If the edit button 907 has been pressed, the process proceeds to the authentication process in step S1003. Otherwise, the process remains in step S1002. Details of the authentication processing executed by the authentication management unit 358 in S1003 will be described later with reference to FIG. Then, the process advances to step S1004, and the CPU 301 determines whether the authentication has succeeded. If the authentication has succeeded, the process advances to step S1005 to display, for example, a sheet editing screen 940 shown in FIG. 9 and end the process. On the other hand, if it is determined in S1004 that the authentication has failed, the process ends without displaying the paper edit screen 940.

  According to this processing, if the printing apparatus supports editing, such as setting of paper information, which is a function whose use is restricted, authentication of the printing apparatus as a system administrator is required.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating the authentication processing in S1003 of FIG. 10 according to the first embodiment.

  First, in step S1101, the CPU 301 refers to a login control target table 1200 illustrated in FIG. 12 described below, and determines whether the user is operating a function whose use is restricted. If the CPU 301 determines in step S1102 that the user intends to operate a function whose use is restricted, the process advances to step S1103 to inquire the printing apparatus 103 whether the printing apparatus 103 is under authentication management. On the other hand, if the user is not trying to operate a function whose use is restricted, the process advances to step S1111 to return authentication success and end the process.

  If the CPU 301 determines in step S1104 that the printing apparatus 103 is under authentication management, the process advances to step S1105; otherwise, the process advances to step S1111. In step S <b> 1105, the CPU 301 determines whether the authentication is the first authentication after the paper management application is activated or whether the authentication has been successful in the past. Here, the condition for requiring the re-authentication may be, for example, a case where a predetermined time has elapsed since the last successful authentication, a case where the paper management application is restarted, or the like. The re-authentication condition may be any condition, but in the first embodiment, after the authentication is successful, the authentication is valid until the paper management application is restarted. Therefore, when the authentication is successful, the authentication management unit 358 stores the information of the system administrator ID and the password at the time of the success in the RAM 302 during the execution of the paper management application. Is not successful.

  If the CPU 301 determines in step S1105 that authentication has not been successful in the past, the process advances to step S1106, displays the above-described login screen 920, prompts user authentication, and advances to step S1107. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1105 that the authentication has been successful in the past, the process advances to step S1108 to authenticate the user using the system administrator ID and the password stored in the RAM 302. In step S1107, when the CPU 301 detects that the login button 923 is pressed on the login screen 920, the process advances to step S1108, and transfers the information of the system administrator ID and the password input on the login screen 920 to the printing apparatus 103. On the other hand, if the cancel button 924 is pressed on the login screen 920, the process advances to step S1112, where the CPU 301 notifies the upper layer that the authentication has been canceled, and ends this processing.

In step S1109, the CPU 301 determines whether the transferred system administrator ID and personal identification number match the authentication information stored in the external storage device 211. If the authentication information matches, the printing apparatus 103 determines Notify 102 that authentication has been successful. In step S1109, the CPU 301 determines whether the user has been successfully authenticated based on the authentication result from the printing apparatus 103. When the user is notified that the authentication has been successful, the process advances to step S1110 to be notified that authentication has failed. Then, the process returns to S1106. In this way, the login screen 920 keeps displaying the login screen 920 until the authentication is successful or the cancel button 924 is pressed, and prompts the re-input of the system administrator ID and the password. In step S <b> 1110, the CPU 301 stores the successfully authenticated administrator ID and password in the RAM 302. At this time, if the information already exists in the RAM 302, the information is overwritten. Then, the processing proceeds to S1111 and the CPU 301 notifies the upper layer that the user authentication has been successful, and ends this processing.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the login control target table 1200 used in the authentication processing of FIG.

  The login control target table 1200 is stored in the external storage device 309 of the controller 300. The login control target table 1200 has information of a button ID 1201, a button name 1202, and an authentication control 1203. The button ID 1201 is an ID assigned to a button on the operation screen of the sheet management application. In the example of FIG. 12, the button ID 1201 describes the ID of a button arranged in the sheet list 900. The button name 1202 corresponds to the name of the button arranged in the paper list 900 in the example of FIG. The authentication control 1203 describes whether authentication is required to display the next screen when the corresponding button is pressed.

  For example, in the paper list 900 of FIG. 9, a new registration button 904, a copy button 905, a registration from database button 906, an edit button 907, and a delete button 908 require authentication because paper information is edited. Therefore, the authentication control in this case is “YES”. On the other hand, since the close button 909 only closes the screen and does not edit the paper information, authentication is not required. Therefore, the authentication control of the close button 909 is “NO”.

  In the authentication process of FIG. 11, when an arbitrary button is pressed by the user, it is determined whether or not an operation required for authentication is performed based on the login control target table 1200. This login control target table 1200 may be created so as to be equivalent to the control of the screen displayed on the operation panel 105 of the printing apparatus 103, or may be created independently of the printing apparatus 103 in the form of the paper management application. The function may be described. For example, the paper management application has favorite information as shown in the description of the pull-down menu 902 in FIG. 9 and FIG. Since the favorite information is not managed by the printing apparatus 103 and is a function unique to the paper management application, if authentication control is not required for this function, the fact is added to the login control target table 1200 by adding the fact. Can be easily handled.

  In the first embodiment, the button ID 1201 and the button name 1202 are described in the login control target table 1200, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, various functions for editing paper information, operations such as mouse-over, drag-and-drop, and the like may be described in a table, and whether authentication control is performed for each corresponding element may be defined.

  In the first embodiment, the login control target table 1200 is stored in the external storage device 309 of the controller 300. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be stored in the external storage device 211 of the printing device 103. If the paper management application has the same function as the printing apparatus 103, the application may be created in common with the table referenced by the printing apparatus 103.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, a print control device that can be connected to a printing device from the outside and can operate some functions of the printing device can be operated according to the usage restrictions of the printing device. In addition, in view of the convenience of the paper management application, it is also possible to independently define and operate a function for restricting use and an operation at the time of re-authentication.

[Embodiment 2]
In the first embodiment described above, the control performed when an operation requiring authentication is performed on the paper list screen 900 of the paper management application has been described. On the other hand, in the second embodiment, authentication control in the paper feed stage screen 1300 (FIG. 13) displayed when the paper feed stage buttons 410 to 417 are pressed will be described. Note that the printing system according to the second embodiment, the hardware configuration of the printing apparatus 103 and the printing control apparatus 102, and the like are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  FIG. 13 illustrates a case where the user needs to authenticate as a system administrator from the items of the paper feed tray screen 1300 displayed when the paper feed tray buttons 410 to 417 on the top screen 400 are pressed in the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining screen transition when a function to be operated is operated.

  The paper feed stage screen 1300 is rendered in the video memory in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 301, and the image data rendered in the video memory is output to the display device 111 as a video signal and displayed. The paper feed stage screen 1300 includes a paper list display area 1301, a paper information display area 1302, a button 1303 for displaying an adjustment item adjustment screen, a button 1304 for displaying another paper information setting screen not displayed here, An OK button 1305 and a cancel button 1306 are included. Further, a pull-down menu 1307 for selecting a paper list display method and a paper search input area 1308 are included.

  Since the same contents as the paper list display area 901 of the paper list screen 900 described in the first embodiment are displayed in the paper list display area 1301, detailed description thereof is omitted here. When the paper feed stage screen 1300 is displayed, the paper set for the paper feed stage is in a selected state on the paper list display area 1301. When a sheet is selected from the sheet list display area 1301, information on the selected sheet is displayed in the sheet information display area 1302. If another sheet is selected in the sheet list display area 1301 and an OK button 1305 is pressed, the controller 300 performs sheet setting for the printing apparatus 103. When another sheet is selected in the sheet list display area 1301 and the cancel button 1306 is pressed, the controller 300 closes the sheet setting screen 1300 without performing the sheet setting for the printing apparatus 103. The paper information display area 1302 displays the setting information of the currently selected paper.

  For example, when the paper feed stage button 410 on the top screen 400 in FIG. 4 is pressed to display the paper setting screen 1300, information on the paper assigned to the paper feed stage 1 at that time is displayed.

  Next, each item of the paper information display area 1302 will be described.

  In the second embodiment, as an example, only the paper information frequently used by the user is displayed to improve the user's convenience. Specifically, the paper name and various adjustment items (image position adjustment, secondary transfer voltage adjustment, curl correction amount, gloss / black quality adjustment, trailing edge whiteout correction, saddle stitching setting, paper fan The paper information display area 1302 displays the currently selected paper name and whether or not various adjustment values have been changed from the initial values of the printing apparatus 103. If the print control device 102 has not been adjusted, “Adjustment not performed” is displayed, and if it has been changed, “Adjusted” is displayed. The detailed adjustment button 1304 is pressed when confirming information not displayed in the paper information display area 1302 and changing the setting. A button for selecting a display method of the paper list is displayed. Down menu 1307, the search input area 1308 .1 paper omitted because it is similar to that of the pull-down menu 902 of FIG. 9 will be omitted because it is similar to the search input area 903 in FIG.

  Since the adjustment button 1303 and the detailed adjustment button 1304 are buttons that are pressed when editing paper information, when these buttons are pressed, a login screen 920 is displayed to prompt authentication. Here, an operation when the adjustment button 1304 is pressed will be described as an example. Note that detailed processing after the adjustment button 1303 is pressed will be described later with reference to a flowchart of FIG. 14 described later. The login screen 920 in FIG. 13 is the same as the login screen 920 in FIG.

  Next, the curl correction adjustment screen 1340 shown in FIG. 13 will be described.

  The adjustment screen 1340 is drawn on the video memory in accordance with an instruction from the CPU 301, and the image data drawn on the video memory is output to the display device 111 as a video signal and displayed. In the adjustment screen 1340, the controller 1341 changes the curl correction amount at the time of face-up output of paper and the curl correction amount at the time of face-down output. The curl correction adjustment screen 1340 has an OK button 1342, a cancel button 1343, and an apply button 1344. The apply button 1344 may be grayed out so that it cannot be clicked until the curl correction amount 1341 is changed. When the OK button 1342 or the apply button 1344 is clicked, the controller 300 writes information on the current sheet to the sheet setting management table 700. Then, the controller 300 transmits to the printing apparatus 103 a sheet setting instruction for registering information of the sheet setting management table 700 corresponding to the selected sheet in the sheet feeding tray. On the other hand, if the cancel button 1343 is clicked, the controller 300 closes this dialog without editing the paper set when the adjustment screen 1340 was displayed.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating processing when the paper feed stage buttons 410 to 417 are pressed on the top screen 400 in the print control apparatus 102 according to the second embodiment. Note that the processing shown in this flowchart is achieved by the CPU 301 executing the program developed in the RAM 302 described above.

  First, in step S1401, the CPU 301 displays the paper feed stage screen 1300 in FIG. Next, the processing advances to step S1402, and the CPU 301 determines whether the adjustment button 1303 has been pressed. If it is determined that the adjustment button 1303 has been pressed, the processing proceeds to authentication processing in step S1403. The details of the authentication processing executed by the authentication management unit 358 have been described with reference to FIG. Then, the processing proceeds to step S1404, where the CPU 301 receives the information of the authentication success or the authentication failure from the authentication management unit 358, and determines whether the authentication is successful. If the authentication has succeeded, the process advances to step S1405 to display the adjustment screen 1340 shown in FIG. 13, and the process ends. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S1404 that the authentication has failed, the process ends without displaying the adjustment screen 1340.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, the paper feed tray screen 1300 displayed when the paper feed tray buttons 410 to 417 are pressed on the top screen can be similarly operated according to the specification of the use restriction. it can. That is, as described in the first and second embodiments, the use restriction of the paper management application can be applied to any operation on the screen.

[Embodiment 3]
In the first and second embodiments, when the user performs an operation with usage restriction on the paper management application, the login screen is displayed, and the ID and the password of the system administrator are input. If the authentication succeeds, the following operations can be performed.

  On the other hand, in a third embodiment, a description will be given of a control method for enabling the function of the paper management application regardless of the use restriction of the printing apparatus 103. Note that the print system according to the third embodiment, the hardware configuration of the printing apparatus 103 and the print control apparatus 102, and the like are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  The setting items of the printing apparatus 103 are various in addition to the setting of the paper information, for example, the setting related to the image quality at the time of printing, the setting related to the finishing at the time of printing, and the setting related to the network of the printing apparatus 103. Some of these settings, like the paper information settings, allow only the system administrator to operate. In other words, there are many systems in which a wide range of settings are uniformly restricted so that they cannot be operated until authenticated by a system administrator.

  On the other hand, the paper management application exists to improve the convenience of paper management, and is an application specialized in improving the convenience of some functions of the printing apparatus. Since the users who use such applications are limited, it is not always necessary to comply with the usage restrictions of the printing apparatus 103. For example, when operating a paper management application on the print control device 102, it may be necessary to log in to the print control device 102 first. In this case, the user has to perform authentication when logging in to the print control apparatus 102 and also perform authentication when using the paper management application. In other words, depending on the usage environment of the user, it may be more convenient for an application that specializes in a specific function of the printing apparatus 103 and pursues its operability to eliminate the need for authentication. Thus, in the third embodiment, an example will be described in which the paper management application can be operated according to the usage environment of the user without the need for authentication.

  FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a setting dialog 1500 displayed when the setting button 402 is pressed on the top screen 400 displayed by the paper management application executed by the print control apparatus 102 according to the third embodiment.

  The check box 1501 is checked to disable the use restriction of the paper information editing function of the paper management application. When an OK button 1502 is pressed, the value of the check box 1501 is reflected, and when a cancel button 1503 is pressed, the settings on this screen are canceled. The default of the check box 1501 is off, and in order to set the check box 1501 to on, it is necessary to input a system administrator ID and a password on a login screen 920 displayed when the check box 1501 is operated to perform authentication. There is. The description of the login screen 920 has been already described, and will not be repeated. If the authentication is successful with the system administrator ID and the password entered on the login screen 920, all functions can be operated without displaying the login screen 920 until the check box 1501 is turned off again. Becomes Since the setting value of the check box 1501 is stored in the external storage device 309 of the controller 300, the value of the check box 1501 is retained even if the paper management application is restarted. In the third embodiment, the authentication is performed using the same system administrator ID and password as the printing apparatus 103. However, an ID and a password unique to the paper management application are prepared, and the authentication is performed using the ID and the password. Needless to say, it is good.

  FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating the authentication processing in S1003 of FIG. 10 according to the third embodiment. In FIG. 16, the same processes as those in the flowchart of FIG. 11 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

  First, in step S1601, the CPU 301 acquires the state of the check box 1501 in order to validate the use restriction of the paper information editing function described with reference to FIG. In step S1602, the CPU 301 determines whether the use restriction is set to be valid. If the use restriction is determined to be valid, the process advances to step S1101. On the other hand, if the use restriction is set to invalid, the process proceeds to S1111 so that the function can be used without authentication.

  In the third embodiment, the method of controlling the use restriction of the paper management application with reference to the value set in the setting dialog 1500 as shown in FIG. 15 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when the paper management application is operating on the print control apparatus 102, it may be controlled to be always available.

  This is because the use of the print control device 102 connected one-to-one to the printing device 103 is often restricted. That is, in order to use the functions of the print control apparatus 102, it is often required to log in to the print control apparatus 102. Therefore, it is not preferable in terms of operability that the user must log in to the paper management application after logging in to the print control apparatus 102. Therefore, when the paper management application is operated by the print control apparatus 102, the print control apparatus 102 may not always display the dialog 1500 of FIG. Then, only when the paper management application is executed on the client computer 101, the dialog 1500 in FIG. 15 may be displayed to enable / disable the use restriction.

  As described above, according to the third embodiment, in a print control device that is externally connected to a printing device and can operate some functions of the printing device, regardless of the setting of the use restriction of the printing device, The paper management application can be used without any restrictions.

  102 print control device, 103 print device, 113 display device, 201 CPU (print device 103), 301 CPU (print control device 102), 400 top screen, 410 to 717 paper feed stage button, 700 ... Paper setting management table, 900 ... Paper list screen

Claims (13)

A printing system having a printing device and a printing control device, wherein the printing device includes:
First receiving means for receiving administrator information from the print control device;
Authentication means for performing authentication based on the administrator information received by said first receiving means,
The print control device includes:
Determining means for determining whether the operation selected on the screen regarding the printing device requires authentication processing,
Display means for displaying an authentication screen when the authentication means determines that authentication processing is necessary,
A second receiving unit that notifies the printing apparatus of administrator information input through an authentication screen displayed by the display unit, authenticates the printing device, and receives a result of the authentication;
When the result received by the second receiving unit is an authentication success, a control unit that controls to receive the operation,
A printing system comprising:   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the administrator information includes an ID and a password of a system administrator of the printing apparatus.   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the operation includes a setting related to sheet information of a sheet used for printing in the printing apparatus.   The printing system according to claim 1, wherein when the administrator information is not set in the printing apparatus, the control unit controls to accept the operation without displaying the authentication screen. .   The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the print control apparatus is set not to perform the authentication processing, the control unit controls to accept the operation without displaying the authentication screen. Printing system. A print control device connected to a printing device and capable of operating some functions of the printing device,
Determining means for determining whether the operation selected on the screen related to the setting of the printing device requires an authentication process,
Display means for displaying an authentication screen when the authentication processing is determined to be necessary by the determination means,
Receiving means for notifying the printing device of the administrator information input via the authentication screen displayed by the display means and authenticating the printing apparatus, and receiving the authenticated result;
When the result received by the receiving unit is an authentication success, a control unit that controls to receive the operation,
A print control device comprising:   7. The print control apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the determination unit determines that the authentication process is required when the selected operation includes editing of the setting.   7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the determining unit determines that the authentication processing is required when the selected operation includes editing of settings relating to paper information of paper used for printing in the printing apparatus. The printing control device according to the above.   7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the determining unit determines that the authentication process is required when the selected operation includes editing of an adjustment item relating to paper information of paper used for printing in the printing apparatus. 3. The print control device according to claim 1. Setting means for setting whether the printing device is under authentication management, further comprising:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the determining unit determines whether the selected operation requires the authentication process when the setting unit sets the printing device under the authentication management. 10. The print control device according to any one of items 6 to 9. Storage means for storing whether the authentication process is necessary, in association with an operation selectable on the screen,
11. The method according to claim 6, wherein the determination unit refers to the storage unit to determine whether an operation selected on the screen requires the authentication processing. 12. Print control device. A control method for controlling a print control device connected to a printing device and capable of operating some functions of the printing device,
A determining step of determining whether the operation selected on the screen related to the setting of the printing device requires an authentication process;
A display step of displaying an authentication screen when the authentication processing is determined to be necessary by the determination step,
A receiving step of notifying the printing device of the administrator information input through the authentication screen displayed by the display step and authenticating the printing apparatus, and receiving the authenticated result;
When the result received in the receiving step is successful authentication, a control step of controlling to accept the operation,
A control method comprising:   A program for causing a computer to execute each step of the control method according to claim 12.