JP2021179912A - Support program, information processing device, and printing method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technique which allows an information processing device incorporating an OS standard printing program to make use of unique capability of a printer even when printing using the printing program.SOLUTION: An auxiliary program 42 that can be run by a CPU 11 of a PC 1 and is compatible with a printer 2 connected to the PC1 is provided. When a print instruction for making the printer 2 print by means of a general-purpose printing program 41 pre-incorporated in an OS 21 of the PC 1 is issued, the auxiliary program 42 outputs a preceding operation command via a communication IF 30 of the PC 1 to make the printer 2 perform a preceding operation before starting printing, prior to the start of transmission to the printer 2 of print execution data based on print data generated by the OS 21 using the general-purpose printing program 41.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

The technical fields disclosed herein relate to support programs, information processing devices, and printing methods that support the control of printers.

As a technique for controlling a printer from an information processing device such as a personal computer (PC), a configuration in which a printer driver is installed in the information processing device, print data is generated by the printer driver, and the print data is transmitted to the printer is widely known. (For example, Patent Document 1). The printer driver is provided by the printer manufacturer, supports various functions of the printer, and can fully utilize the printer.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2017-134718

In recent years, a technique for controlling a printer by a print program built into an operating system (OS) as a standard without using the above-mentioned printer driver has been put into practical use. With this technology, when the OS detects a printer, it associates with the OS standard print program, and when it subsequently receives a print instruction for that printer, it is possible to print using the OS standard print program without using a printer driver. become.

However, not all the functions of the printer can be used in printing by the OS standard printing program. For example, the functions unique to the printer are not supported, and the printer's original ability may not be fully exhibited.

This specification discloses a technique for demonstrating the ability unique to a printer even in printing by the printing program in an information processing apparatus incorporating an OS standard printing program.

The support program made for the purpose of solving the above-mentioned problems is a support program that can be executed by the computer of the information processing apparatus and corresponds to the printer connected to the information processing apparatus, and the information processing apparatus is attached to the computer. When there is a print instruction to perform printing by the printer via a print program preliminarily incorporated in the operating system of the above, print execution data based on the print data generated by the operating system by the printing program is sent to the printer. Before the transmission is started, the command output process for outputting the predecessor operation command for executing the predecessor operation before the start of printing to the printer is executed via the communication interface of the information processing apparatus, and the printer causes the printer to execute the command output process. It is characterized in that it has a function of performing the preceding operation corresponding to the preceding operation command.

The support program disclosed in this specification is to print the print execution data before the transmission of the print execution data is started when the printer is instructed to print through the print program embedded in the operating system. Outputs a predecessor operation command that executes the predecessor operation to the printer that is the target of the instruction. As a result, even when the information processing apparatus receives a print instruction via the print program, the printer can execute the preceding operation unique to the printer before the printer starts printing based on the print instruction, and the printer has its own ability. Can be demonstrated.

A control method for realizing the functions of the above-mentioned apparatus, a computer program, and a computer-readable storage medium for storing the computer program are also new and useful.

According to the technique disclosed in the present specification, in an information processing apparatus incorporating an OS standard printing program, a technique for demonstrating the ability unique to the printer even when printing by the printing program is realized.

It is a block diagram which shows the electrical structure of a printing system. It is explanatory drawing which shows the order of processing by each program. It is a sequence diagram which shows the example of the operation of each program in 1st form. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the printing process in 1st form. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of post-processing in 1st form. It is a sequence diagram which shows the example of the operation of each program in 2nd form.

Hereinafter, the printing system using the program of the embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. This embodiment discloses an embodiment that embodies a printing system including a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as "PC") and a printer.

FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a printing system in which the program of this embodiment is executed. The system shown in FIG. 1 includes a PC 1 and a printer 2. PC1 is an example of an information processing device. The printer 2 is a device having a printing function, and can communicate with the PC 1 via local communication or network communication.

For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the PC 1 includes a controller 10, a user interface (hereinafter referred to as “UI”) 20, and a communication interface (hereinafter referred to as “communication IF”) 30. The UI 20 and the communication IF 30 are electrically connected to the controller 10.

The UI 20 includes hardware that performs various displays and accepts user's instruction input. The UI 20 may be a touch panel having both a display function and an input reception function, or may be a combination of a display having a display function and a keyboard, a mouse, or the like having an input reception function.

The communication IF 30 includes hardware for communicating with the printer 2 and hardware for accessing the Internet. The communication IF 30 may include a plurality of interfaces having different communication methods. Examples of the communication method include network communication and USB communication. It may also include hardware for wireless communication such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) and Bluetooth (registered trademark).

The controller 10 includes a CPU 11 and a memory 12. The CPU 11 is an example of a computer. The memory 12 includes a ROM, a RAM, and a non-volatile memory, and stores programs such as various application programs (hereinafter referred to as “applications”) and various data. In this specification, the details of the memory are not distinguished. The CPU 11 executes various processes according to the program read from the memory 12 and based on the user's instruction. The controller 10 in FIG. 1 is a general term for hardware and software used for controlling the PC 1, and does not necessarily represent a single hardware that actually exists in the PC 1.

An example of the memory 12 may be a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium is a non-transitional medium. In addition to the above examples, the non-transitory medium also includes recording media such as a CD-ROM and a DVD-ROM. The non-transitory medium is also a tangible medium. On the other hand, an electric signal that carries a program downloaded from a server on the Internet is a signal medium that can be read by a computer, which is a kind of medium that can be read by a computer, but is a storage that can be read by a non-transitory computer. Not included in the medium.

For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the memory 12 stores an operating system (hereinafter referred to as “OS”) 21 including a general-purpose printing program 41, an auxiliary program 42, and an editing application 43. The auxiliary program 42 is an example of a support program. The auxiliary program 42 is, for example, a hardware support application (abbreviation, HSA) whose specifications have been released by Microsoft Corporation. OS21 is, for example, Microsoft Windows (registered trademark), macOS (registered trademark), Linux (registered trademark). In addition to the ones shown in the figure, the memory 12 stores various data including information on connected devices and various programs such as a browser.

In addition, each of the following processing and each processing step of the flowchart basically shows the processing of the CPU 11 according to the instruction described in the program such as the auxiliary program 42. That is, the processes such as "judgment", "extraction", "selection", "calculation", "decision", "specification", "acquisition", "acceptance", and "control" in the following description are the processes of the CPU 11. Represents. The processing by the CPU 11 also includes hardware control using the API of the OS 21. In this specification, the operation of each program will be described by omitting the detailed description of the OS 21. That is, in the following description, the description to the effect that "program B controls hardware C" may refer to "program B controls hardware C using the API of OS21". Further, the processing of the CPU 11 according to the instruction described in the program may be described in abbreviated wording. For example, the program may be omitted, such as "Performed by CPU 11". Further, the processing of the CPU 11 according to the instruction described in the program may be described by a wording that omits the CPU, such as "program A performs".

Note that "acquisition" is used as a concept that does not require a request. That is, the process of receiving the data without the CPU 11 requesting is also included in the concept of "the CPU 11 acquires the data". Further, the "data" in the present specification is represented by a computer-readable bit string. Data having the same substantial meaning and different formats are treated as the same data. The same applies to "information" in the present specification. Further, "requesting" and "instructing" are concepts indicating that information indicating that a request is being made or information indicating that an instruction is being given is output to the other party. Further, the information indicating that the request is made or the information indicating the instruction is simply described as "request" or "instruction".

Further, the process of determining whether or not the information A indicates that the information A is the matter B by the CPU 11 is conceptually described as "determining whether or not the information A is the matter B". There is. The process of determining whether the information A indicates that the information A is the matter B or the matter C by the CPU 11 is "determined from the information A whether the information A is the matter B or the matter C." It may be described conceptually as in.

The general-purpose printing program 41 is an application for executing printing from a PC 1 to various printers such as a printer 2, and is an OS standard printing program preliminarily incorporated in the OS 21. The general-purpose print program 41 of the present embodiment is a program that generates print data compatible with the printer based on the image data to be printed. The general-purpose print program 41 is an example of a print program.

The general-purpose printing program 41 is a general-purpose application provided by the vendor of each device and applicable to printers of a plurality of types of models, and is a program for causing each printer to perform operations common to each model. Alternatively, the general-purpose print program 41 may be a kind of a program provided to the vendor of the OS 21 by the vendor of each device in order to be incorporated in the OS 21 in advance, for example, a printer driver provided to be incorporated in the OS 21 in advance.

On the other hand, the program developed by the vendor of each device after providing the general-purpose print program 41 to be incorporated in the OS 21 to the vendor of the OS 21 can be added to the PC 1 in the form of installation. In the following, the printer driver that can be added by installation, not the program pre-installed in OS21, is simply referred to as a "printer driver" or a "vendor driver". That is, the printer driver is not a program built in the OS 21 in advance, but a program that needs to be installed in the OS 21 according to a predetermined procedure in order to use the printer driver. For example, the installer instructed via UI20 or OS21 installs the printer driver in OS21. The printer driver is a program prepared by the printer vendor individually corresponding to each model of the printer, and may be a program capable of receiving instructions of functions specific to the corresponding model.

The printer driver, that is, the vendor driver may have higher performance than the general-purpose printing program 41 preliminarily incorporated in the OS 21. High performance means that, for example, the print data generated by the printer driver can be processed more efficiently by the printer than the print data generated by the general-purpose print program 41, and the printing speed becomes faster. Is also good. Also, the printer may be able to process the print data with less memory. Further, the print data generated by the printer driver may be able to cause the printer to print a printed matter having better color development. Further, the print data generated by the printer driver may be able to cause the printer to print a printed matter having a higher resolution. Further, the printer driver may be able to instruct the printer on a function peculiar to the printer driver, which cannot be instructed to the printer by the general-purpose print program 41. The unique function is, for example, a mirror printing function and a negative / positive reverse printing function.

The auxiliary program 42 is a program that executes processing based on an instruction from the OS 21 according to the operation of the general-purpose printing program 41, and is an application that supports control of the target hardware. The auxiliary program 42 is started from, for example, the OS 21. The auxiliary program 42 is an application corresponding to each model such as the printer 2. The auxiliary program 42 is prepared by the vendor of the device such as the printer 2. The device vendor registers the auxiliary program 42 on the platform provided by the OS 21 vendor according to the procedure specified by the OS 21 vendor. When the printer 2 is newly connected to the PC 1 and the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2 is registered in the platform, the OS 21 downloads the auxiliary program 42 from the server in which the auxiliary program 42 is stored. And incorporate it into PC1.

Then, the OS 21 associates the identification information of the incorporated auxiliary program 42 with the printer information of the newly connected printer 2 and stores it in the memory 12. In the PC 1 to which the printers of a plurality of models are connected, each auxiliary program corresponding to each model is incorporated, and the information associated with each printer and each auxiliary program is stored in the memory 12. That is, as the printer information of each printer connected to the PC 1, the memory 12 stores the model information and access information of the printer as well as the information of the corresponding auxiliary program 42.

The editing application 43 is, for example, an application for creating and editing image data and document data. The editing application 43 is, for example, Microsoft Word (registered trademark) or PowerPoint (registered trademark). The editing application 43 accepts a user operation including an instruction to cause the printer 2 to perform a predetermined operation. Specifically, the editing application 43 receives, for example, a printing instruction for the printer 2 to execute printing via the UI 20.

Subsequently, the order of processing for printing by each program will be described with reference to FIG. Hereinafter, a case where the PC 1 receives an instruction to execute printing on the printer 2 via the general-purpose printing program 41 by the editing application 43 via the UI 20 will be described.

The editing application 43 that has received the print instruction passes the print execution notification to the OS 21 based on the received print instruction. The print execution notification includes, for example, information indicating the printer specified in the print instruction, print parameters, and information indicating image data to be printed.

Next, if the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer specified by the print instruction is stored in the memory 12, the OS 21 processes the auxiliary program 42 before starting the generation of the print data by the general-purpose print program 41. Instruct the auxiliary program 42 to execute.

The auxiliary program 42 includes a pre-process executed before the start of the process by the general-purpose print program 41 and a post-execution after the end of the process by the general-purpose print program 41 and before the print image data is transmitted to the printer 2. Processing and is included. In the following, among the processes of the auxiliary program 42, the process executed before the start of the process by the general-purpose print program 41 will be described as the process by the “pre-process auxiliary program” 421, and will be executed after the process by the general-purpose print program 41 is completed. The processing to be performed will be described as processing by the “post-processing auxiliary program” 422.

In the PC 1 of the present embodiment, in response to the reception of the print instruction, the pre-processing by the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 is executed before the generation of the print data by the general-purpose printing program 41 is started. The preprocessing auxiliary program 421 can acquire intermediate image data based on the image data to be printed in addition to various information included in the print instruction, for example, print parameters and printer information, from the OS 21. The pre-processing auxiliary program 421 executes pre-processing based on the acquired information and its own program, and returns a completion notification to OS 21 after the pre-processing is completed. The details of the preprocessing by the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 will be described later.

Upon receiving the end notification from the preprocessing auxiliary program 421, the OS 21 executes the processing by the general-purpose printing program 41. The general-purpose print program 41 generates print data based on the print instruction.

After the generation of the print data is completed, the OS 21 executes post-processing by the post-processing auxiliary program 422 before transmitting the print image data based on the generated print data to the printer 2. The post-processing auxiliary program 422 can acquire print data for which generation has been completed from the OS 21 in addition to print parameters and printer information. The post-processing auxiliary program 422 executes post-processing based on the acquired information and its own program, and returns a completion notification to the OS 21 after the post-processing is completed. The details of the post-processing by the post-processing auxiliary program 422 will be described later.

When the OS 21 receives the end notification from the post-processing auxiliary program 422, the OS 21 associates the print parameter with the print image data and transmits the print image data to the printer 2 via the communication IF 30. The print image data may be the print data itself or may indicate a processed image of the image represented by the print data. For example, when the watermark is combined in the post-processing, the printed image data is the data indicating the combined image. Further, the print parameters may be changed by the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 or the post-processing auxiliary program 422 from the settings in the editing application 43. The printer 2 executes printing based on the received print parameters and print image data.

Subsequently, the first embodiment of the printing procedure by the printing system including the operation of the auxiliary program 42 will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. In the following description, it is assumed that the printer 2 is selected as the printer for executing printing.

First, the editing application 43 accepts the designation of image data to be printed and the setting of print parameters via the UI 20 (arrow A). The print parameters include general settings such as the number of copies setting, as well as settings specific to the printer 2 and the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2.

The editing application 43 receives a transition instruction to the detailed setting in order to receive the setting peculiar to the printer 2 and the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2. When the editing application 43 receives the instruction to shift to the detailed setting, the editing application 43 passes an execution command indicating the setting of the print parameter to the OS 21, and outputs the execution command to the auxiliary program 42 via the OS 21 (arrow B).

The auxiliary program 42 executes the setting process by the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 in response to the execution command indicating the setting of the print parameter (arrow C). Here, the setting screen for accepting the print parameter setting is displayed on the UI 20, and the print parameter setting and the setting completion instruction are received. Acceptable settings include settings for auxiliary programs 42 and printer 2-specific functions.

In this embodiment, as print parameters peculiar to the auxiliary program 42, setting whether to enable the preview function for displaying the image to be printed on the UI 20 before transmitting the print image data and inputting the password are the print execution conditions. And accept the designation of secure printing. If the secure print specification is accepted, the password setting is also accepted. The entered password is included in the print parameters. In addition to these, as a print parameter peculiar to the auxiliary program 42, a setting of a function equivalent to that of the printer driver may be accepted.

Upon receiving the setting completion instruction, the auxiliary program 42 passes the end notification to the OS 21, and responds to the end notification to the editing application 43 via the OS 21 (arrow D). If the editing application 43 does not accept the instruction to shift to the detailed setting, the processing from the arrow B to the arrow D is omitted.

After that, the editing application 43 receives an instruction to execute printing via the UI 20 (arrow E). Then, when the editing application 43 receives the instruction to execute printing, the editing application 43 passes the print execution notification to the OS 21 (arrow F). The print execution notification includes information indicating set print parameters and image data to be printed.

When the OS 21 detects the print execution notification output from the editing application 43, the OS 21 identifies a printer designated as a device for executing printing based on the information included in the print execution notification. For example, when it is specified that the printer 2 is printed by using the general-purpose printing program 41, if the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2 is incorporated, the OS 21 is instructed to execute the process of the auxiliary program 42. Is output (arrow G).

When the execution instruction corresponding to itself is output, the auxiliary program 42 executes the processing of the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 or the post-processing auxiliary program 422. Here, the OS 21 outputs a preprocessing execution command to the auxiliary program 42 and starts the preprocessing by the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 before starting the generation of print data.

The preprocessing auxiliary program 421 executes preprocessing using the information, print parameters, and image data of the printer 2 passed from the OS 21 (arrow H). The image data acquired from the OS 21 is intermediate image data obtained by converting the format of the image data passed from the editing application 43 by the OS 21 into the format of the intermediate data. The preprocessing corresponds to, for example, image processing based on the setting of print parameters such as enlargement / reduction and aggregation of images. Further, as a preprocessing, the print parameter setting screen may be displayed on the UI 20 and the print parameter setting change may be accepted. After the execution of the pre-processing is completed, the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 passes the end notification to the OS 21 (arrow I).

The OS 21 uses the general-purpose print program 41 to generate print data in response to receiving the end notification from the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 (arrow J). The print data generated by the general-purpose print program 41 is general-purpose print data, and is print data that can be used for printing by various printers 2.

After the generation of the print data by the general-purpose print program 41 is completed, the OS 21 outputs the execution command of the process of the auxiliary program 42 again (arrow K). Specifically, after completing the generation of print data, the OS 21 outputs a post-processing execution command to the auxiliary program 42, and starts post-processing by the post-processing auxiliary program 422.

The post-processing auxiliary program 422 executes post-processing by the post-processing auxiliary program 422 using the information, print parameters, and print data of the printer 2 passed from the OS 21. As post-processing, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 of the present embodiment generates print image data based on the print data acquired from the OS 21, and when the preview function is enabled, the image indicated by the generated print image data is displayed. The preview process to be displayed on the UI 20 is executed (arrow L).

In the preview process, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 uses the UI 20 to display the image indicated by the print image data and accepts the selection of print execution or cancellation. Then, when print execution is selected, the printer 2 is instructed to execute the preceding operation via the communication IF 30 by using the model information and the IP address of the printer 2 acquired from the OS 21. Output (arrow M). The preceding operation is an operation of making the printer 2 prepare for printing before transmitting the print image data.

The printer 2 starts the preceding operation by receiving the preceding operation command from the PC 1 (arrow N). By performing the preceding operation of the printer 2, the waiting time from the user inputting the print instruction to the completion of printing of the first sheet can be shortened.

There are a plurality of types of preceding operations for each model of the printer 2, for example. When the printer 2 is an inkjet printer, for example, there is a preceding operation of removing the drying prevention cap of the print head and moving the print head to the printing start position. Further, when the printer 2 is an electrophotographic printer, for example, there is a preceding operation for starting preheating of the fixing device. That is, since the predecessor operation that can be executed differs depending on the printer model, there are a plurality of types of predecessor operation commands. The auxiliary program 42 stores the preceding operation command in association with the model name. Further, regardless of the printing method of the printer 2, for example, there is a preceding operation in which a paper feed tray is specified based on print parameters, and paper is pulled out from the specified paper feed tray and conveyed to a predetermined standby position.

When the post-processing auxiliary program 422 has a plurality of types of predecessor operation commands that can be handled by the printer 2, the predecessor operation commands of the plurality of types may be output, or the designation of the predecessor operation command to be output to the printer 2 is set in advance. You may accept it on the screen or the like. When the printer 2 is to perform a plurality of preceding operations, a plurality of preceding operation commands may be sequentially transmitted, or a plurality of preceding operation commands may be combined into one preceding operation command and transmitted. The printer 2 has a function of performing at least one preceding operation, and by receiving the preceding operation command, the printer 2 performs the preceding operation corresponding to the preceding operation command.

When print execution is selected by the preview process, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes the end notification to the OS 21 (arrow O). The OS 21 transmits print image data to the printer 2 (arrow P) in response to receiving the end notification from the post-processing auxiliary program 422, and ends the process based on the print execution notification. The printer 2 that has received the print image data prints based on the received print image data (arrow Q).

On the other hand, when cancellation is selected by the preview processing, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes the cancellation notification to the OS 21 (arrow O). In response to receiving the cancellation notification from the post-processing auxiliary program 422, the OS 21 ends the processing based on the print execution notification without transmitting the print image data to the printer 2. In this case, printing is not performed by the printer 2.

Although the output of the preceding operation command by the post-processing auxiliary program 422 is performed before the end notification is passed to the OS 21 in FIG. 3, it may be output after the end notification is passed to the OS 21. If the preview function is not enabled and the preview process is not executed, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 outputs the preceding operation command to the printer 2 and passes the end notification to the OS 21 without displaying the preview.

Further, in the post-processing by the post-processing auxiliary program 422, when the printer 2 has a unique function such as a colorant saving mode, a command for enabling the unique function is transmitted to the printer 2. May be good.

Subsequently, among the procedures for realizing the printing system of the first aspect described above, the procedure of the printing process by the OS 21 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The print process is executed by the CPU 11 of the PC 1 according to the OS 21 when the OS 21 receives the print execution notification from the editing application 43 (arrow F in FIG. 3).

In the print process, the OS 21 first determines whether or not the memory 12 has the auxiliary program 42 (S101). As described above, the auxiliary program 42 is prepared by the vendor of the device corresponding to each printer, and is incorporated into the PC 1 by the OS 21 when the OS 21 detects the printer.

When it is determined that the auxiliary program 42 does not exist in the memory 12 (S101: NO), such as when the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2 is not prepared, the OS 21 uses the general-purpose print program 41 to generate print data. (S102). Then, the generated print data or print image data based on the print data is transmitted to the printer 2 (S103), and the print process is terminated. If the transmission of the print image data fails, the OS 21 may execute a predetermined error process.

When the auxiliary program 42 is not incorporated in the PC 1, the print data is generated by the general-purpose print program 41, so that the user can use various printers 2 with the same usability without being aware of the setup of the printer 2. .. However, printing using the general-purpose printing program 41 may take a longer time than printing by a high-performance printer driver, and the quality of printed matter may be lower.

On the other hand, when it is determined that the auxiliary program 42 is present (S101: YES), the OS 21 outputs an execution command to the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2 and starts the preprocessing by the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 (S111, FIG. Arrow G of 3). As a result, the CPU 11 executes the preprocessing according to the preprocessing auxiliary program 421. When the processing of the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 is executed from the OS 21, for example, the OS 21 may input information indicating the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 into the auxiliary program 42. Alternatively, the OS 21 may store the information indicating the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 in the memory 12, then output an execution instruction to the preprocessing auxiliary program 421, and the preprocessing auxiliary program 421 may read the information. Alternatively, the OS 21 may output an execution instruction that specifies the preprocessing of the preprocessing auxiliary program 421.

After the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 starts executing the pre-processing, when the OS 21 receives the end notification from the pre-processing auxiliary program 421, the OS 21 generates print data by using the general-purpose print program 41 included in the OS 21 (S112). , Arrow J in FIG. S112 is the same process as S102. When the cancellation notification is received from the preprocessing auxiliary program 421, the OS 21 ends the printing process without generating print data.

After the print data is generated, before the OS 21 transmits the print image data based on the generated print data to the printer 2, the OS 21 outputs an execution command to the auxiliary program 42 corresponding to the printer 2, and the post-processing auxiliary program 422. (S113, arrow K in FIG. 3). As a result, the CPU 11 executes post-processing according to the post-processing auxiliary program 422.

After the post-processing auxiliary program 422 starts executing the post-processing, the OS 21 determines whether the notification received from the post-processing auxiliary program 422 is a termination notification or a cancellation notification (S114). When it is determined that the end notification has been received (S114: YES), the OS 21 transmits the print data or the print image data based on the print data to the printer 2 (S103, arrow P in FIG. 3), and ends the print process. When it is determined that the cancellation notification has been received (S114: NO), the OS 21 ends the printing process without transmitting the print image data.

Subsequently, the procedure of post-processing by the auxiliary program 42 that realizes the above-mentioned printing system will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The post-processing is executed by the CPU 11 of the PC 1 according to the post-processing auxiliary program 422 which is a part of the auxiliary program 42 when the auxiliary program 42 receives the execution command from the OS 21 (arrow K in FIG. 3). ..

In the post-processing, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 first generates print image data based on the print data generated by the general-purpose print program 41 according to the print parameters (S201). In S201, for example, a process of synthesizing a watermark, a header, or a footer with an image indicated by print data is performed. When the image indicated by the print data is not processed, S201 may be omitted and the print data may be used as the print image data as it is, or a duplicate of the print data may be generated.

Next, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 determines whether or not the preview function is effective (S202). When the preview function is enabled (S202: YES), the post-processing auxiliary program 422 displays the image shown in the print image data generated in S201 on the UI 20 and performs a preview display for accepting the selection of print execution or cancellation. (S211 and arrow L in FIG. 3). S211 is an example of the preview process. Then, the auxiliary program 42 determines whether the user's selection is print execution or cancellation (S212).

When it is determined that the print execution is selected (S212: YES) or the preview is invalid (S202: NO), the post-processing auxiliary program 422 displays the printer information of the printer 2 designated as the device for executing the print. It is acquired and the preceding operation command is output to the printer 2 (S203, arrow M in FIG. 3). S203 is an example of command output processing. Specifically, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 inquires of the OS 21, or refers to the storage location where the OS 21 stores the information, and acquires the model information of the printer 2 and the access information such as the IP address. Then, the preceding operation command suitable for the printer model and printing parameters is determined, and the preceding operation command is output using the access information.

After S202, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes the end notification to the OS 21 (S204, arrow O in FIG. 3), and ends the post-processing. On the other hand, when it is determined that cancellation is selected (S212: NO), the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes a cancellation notification to the OS 21 (S213, arrow R in FIG. 3), and ends the post-processing.

As described above in detail, according to the auxiliary program 42 of the first embodiment, when there is a print instruction for printing by the printer 2 via the general-purpose print program 41, it is generated by the general-purpose print program 41. Before the transmission of the print image data based on the print data to the printer 2 is started, the predecessor operation command for executing the predecessor operation peculiar to the printer to the printer 2 targeted for the print instruction is output. As a result, even when the PC 1 receives a print instruction via the general-purpose print program 41, the printer 2 can execute the preceding operation unique to the printer before the printer 2 starts printing based on the print instruction, and the printer has its own. You can demonstrate your abilities.

Further, the auxiliary program 42 of the first embodiment outputs a preceding command after finishing the user's operation in the preview process after the print data is generated by the OS 21. That is, when the preview is valid, the print execution is not confirmed before the print data is generated, but is confirmed after the print data is generated. Therefore, by transmitting the predecessor operation command after the print data is generated, it is possible to avoid waste of the predecessor operation in the printer. Further, when the user's operation is accepted before the print execution data is transmitted, even if the preceding operation command is transmitted at an early stage, the preceding operation may be wasted if the waiting time for accepting the user's operation becomes long. Therefore, by sending the predecessor operation command after the user's operation, it is possible to avoid waste of the predecessor operation in the printer.

Subsequently, a second embodiment of the printing procedure by the printing system including the operation of the auxiliary program 42 will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. The second form differs from the first form in that a preceding operation command may be output in the preprocessing. Of the processes shown in FIG. 6, the same processes as those in the first embodiment shown in FIG. 3 are designated by the same reference numerals. Further, in the second form, of the first form shown in FIG. 3, the arrows A to G are the same, and the description thereof will be omitted.

Preprocessing of the auxiliary program 42 When the execution command of the preprocessing is output from the OS21 (arrow G in FIG. 3), the auxiliary program 421 outputs the preceding operation command as one of the preprocessing after the print data is generated. The first output determination is made as to whether or not both the post-output condition, which is the condition to be performed, and the restriction condition, which is the condition to restrict the output of the preceding operation command, are satisfied (arrow S). Then, when the condition based on the first output determination is satisfied, that is, when both the post-output condition and the restriction condition are not satisfied, the preceding operation command is output to the printer 2 in the preprocessing (arrow T). The printer 2 starts the preceding operation by receiving the preceding operation command from the PC 1 (arrow U). On the other hand, if the condition based on the first output determination is not satisfied, that is, at least one of the post-output condition and the restriction condition is satisfied, the preceding operation command is not output.

The post-output condition of this embodiment corresponds to the fact that the preview function is enabled. When the preview process is executed, printing may be canceled, and even if the preceding operation command is output before the preview processing, the preceding operation on the printer 2 may be wasted. Further, even when the print execution is selected, if it takes a long time to select the print execution, the preceding operation of the folding angle may be wasted.

That is, the condition relating to at least one of the fact that the print execution is canceled and the waiting for the user operation to be accepted corresponds to the post-output condition. The post-output condition is an example of the first condition. For example, in addition to the preview function, if there is a function to display a transmission permission message before sending the print image data and accept the user's input operation, it is also possible to set the post-output condition that the function is enabled. good. When accepting a change in print parameters due to a user input operation in the pre-processing, the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 determines the post-output condition after the acceptance is completed.

Further, the restriction condition of this embodiment corresponds to the designation of secure printing. When secure printing is specified, the printer 2 accepts the input of the password after receiving the print image data, and when the password matching the password included in the print parameter is input, the printer 2 prints based on the print image data. Will be done. That is, when secure printing is specified, printing is not started immediately even if the printer 2 receives the print image data. Therefore, it is not necessary to perform the preceding operation, and it can be determined that the transmission of the preceding operation command is restricted.

That is, even if the printer 2 receives the print image data, the restriction condition corresponds to the fact that printing is not started unless other conditions are satisfied. The limiting condition is an example of the second condition. For example, in addition to secure printing, it may be a limiting condition that there is a designation of reserved printing that causes printing to be performed at a designated time. Alternatively, even if printing is started after waiting for the input operation of the execution instruction from the user without inputting the password, it may be included in the restriction condition. Alternatively, the limiting condition may be that the printer 2 has already executed printing. This is because no preceding operation is required during printing. Further, the limiting condition may be that printing is not possible due to an error such as no paper or a paper jam. This is because printing cannot be started immediately even if the preceding operation is performed.

After the execution of the pre-processing is completed, the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 passes the end notification to the OS 21 (arrow I). In response to receiving the end notification from the pre-processing auxiliary program 421, the OS 21 generates print data using the general-purpose print program 41 (arrow J), and outputs a post-processing execution command of the auxiliary program 42 (arrow J). Arrow K).

Post-processing of the auxiliary program 42 When the execution command of the post-processing is output, the auxiliary program 422 executes the preview processing as one of the post-processing (arrow L). If the preview function is disabled, the preview process is omitted.

Further, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 does not satisfy the output execution condition, which is a condition for outputting the preceding operation command, and the restriction condition, which is a condition for limiting the output of the preceding operation command, as one of the post-processing. The second output determination is made as to whether or not both of the above are satisfied (arrow V). Then, when the condition based on the second output determination is satisfied, the preceding operation command is output to the printer 2 in the post-processing (arrow W). The printer 2 starts the preceding operation by receiving the preceding operation command from the PC 1 (arrow X).

The output execution condition of this embodiment corresponds to the fact that print execution is selected in the preview process. When executing the preview process, since it is accepted whether to execute or cancel printing after the print data is generated, it can be determined that the preceding operation command can be transmitted when the print execution is selected.

Further, the restriction condition in the post-processing of this embodiment corresponds to the fact that the preceding operation command is transmitted in the pre-processing in addition to the same conditions as the restriction condition in the pre-processing. If the predecessor action command has already been sent in the preprocessing, the transmission of the predecessor action command in the post-processing is useless. Therefore, if the preceding operation command has already been transmitted, it can be determined that the preceding operation command does not need to be transmitted.

When the execution of the post-processing is terminated without selecting cancel in the preview processing, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes the termination notification to the OS 21 (arrow O). The OS 21 transmits print image data to the printer 2 (arrow P) in response to receiving the end notification from the post-processing auxiliary program 422, and ends the process based on the print execution notification. The printer 2 that has received the print image data starts printing based on the received print image data (arrow Q). Although not shown, when cancellation is selected and the execution of the post-processing is terminated, the post-processing auxiliary program 422 passes the cancellation notification to the OS 21. The OS 21 ends the process based on the print execution notification without transmitting the print image data in response to receiving the cancellation notification.

As described above in detail, even in the auxiliary program 42 of the second form, when there is a print instruction to perform printing by the printer 2 via the general-purpose print program 41, the printer 2 of the print image data is printed. The auxiliary program 42 outputs a predecessor operation command to the printer 2 before the transmission to the printer 2 is started. As a result, even when the PC 1 receives a print instruction via the general-purpose print program 41, the printer 2 can execute the printer's own preceding operation before the printer 2 starts printing based on the print instruction. You can bring out your own abilities.

Further, the auxiliary program 42 of the present embodiment determines the post-output condition before the OS 21 generates the print data, and if the post-output condition is not satisfied, the auxiliary program 42 operates in advance even before the OS 21 generates the print data. The command can be sent to the printer 2. That is, depending on the printing conditions, the execution of printing may be confirmed even before the print data is generated. In that case, by transmitting the predecessor operation command before the print data is generated, the predecessor operation in the printer can be started earlier, and the start of printing can be made earlier.

Further, the auxiliary program 42 of the present embodiment determines the restriction condition, and if the restriction condition is satisfied, the printer 2 issues a preceding operation command even if the post-output condition is not satisfied or the output execution condition is satisfied. Not sent to. That is, depending on the printing conditions, printing may not be started immediately by the printer 2 after the print execution data is transmitted to the printer 2. In that case, the waste of the preceding operation in the printer 2 can be avoided by not transmitting the preceding operation command.

It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed in the present specification are merely examples, and do not limit the present invention in any way. Therefore, the techniques disclosed herein can, of course, be variously improved and modified without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the device connected to the PC 1 is not limited to a printer, and any device having a printing function, such as a multifunction device, a copying machine, and a fax machine, can be applied. Further, the number of printers connected to the PC 1 is not limited to one, and may be a plurality of printers.

Further, for example, in the embodiment, it is assumed that the auxiliary program 42 includes both pre-processing and post-processing, but the auxiliary program 42 has only the configuration of the post-processing auxiliary program 422 that is started after the generation of print data. There may be. Further, the pre-processing auxiliary program 421 and the post-processing auxiliary program 422 may be one module or another module.

Further, a print parameter may be transmitted as a preceding operation command. In this case, the printer 2 that has received the print parameter executes, for example, a color print preparation operation if the print parameter includes the color print setting, and executes a black-only preparation operation if the print parameter has the monochrome print setting. do.

Further, when the printer 2 is a laser printer, a calibration process for suppressing color shift may be performed as a preparatory operation for color printing. Further, when the printer 2 is a model including a finisher and the print parameters include the processing by the finisher, the printer 2 may perform the finisher preparation operation when the print parameters are received.

Further, the module that executes the pre-processing and the post-processing is not limited to the auxiliary program 42, and may be any program that receives instructions from the OS 21 when printing is performed by the general-purpose printing program 41 of the OS 21. For example, a print workflow application (Print workflow) whose specifications have been released by Microsoft may be used.

Further, in the embodiment, it is said that the auxiliary program 42 is started by outputting the execution command of the auxiliary program 42 from the OS 21, but the start timing of the auxiliary program 42 is not limited to this. For example, the auxiliary program 42 may be always started, and in that case, the auxiliary program 42 may perform the above-described operation in response to the execution command.

Further, in the embodiment, the preview function of displaying the image to be printed on the UI 20 before the transmission of the print image data is enabled as a unique print parameter in the auxiliary program 42 before accepting the print instruction (arrow E). It is designed to accept the setting of whether to set or not and the specification of secure printing with the input of the password as the execution condition of printing (arrow C), but the pre-processing after receiving the print instruction (arrow H). It may be accepted as one of.

Further, in the embodiment, as the print parameters unique to the auxiliary program 42, the setting of whether or not to enable the preview function for displaying the image to be printed on the UI 20 before the transmission of the print image data and the input of the password are input. Although the specification of secure printing as a printing execution condition is accepted, some or all of these settings may be accepted by the OS 21.

Further, in any flowchart disclosed in the embodiment, the plurality of processes in the arbitrary plurality of steps can be arbitrarily changed in the execution order or executed in parallel as long as the processing contents do not conflict with each other.

Further, the process disclosed in the embodiment may be executed by a single CPU, a plurality of CPUs, hardware such as an ASIC, or a combination thereof. Further, the process disclosed in the embodiment can be realized in various aspects such as a recording medium or a method in which a program for executing the process is recorded.

1 PC
2 Printer 11 CPU
21 OS
41 General-purpose printing program 42 Auxiliary program 43 Editing app

Claims (12)

It is a support program that can be executed by the computer of the information processing device and corresponds to the printer connected to the information processing device.
To the computer
When there is a print instruction to perform printing by the printer via a print program preliminarily incorporated in the operating system of the information processing apparatus, print execution data based on the print data generated by the operating system by the print program Before the transmission to the printer is started, a command output process for outputting a predecessor operation command for executing the predecessor operation before the start of printing to the printer is executed via the communication interface of the information processing apparatus. The printer has a function of performing the preceding operation corresponding to the preceding operation command.
A support program that features that. In the support program described in claim 1,
To the computer
After the printing program completes the generation of the print data by the operating system, the command output process is executed.
A support program that features that. In the support program described in claim 2,
To the computer
After the print data is generated by the operating system, the print execution data based on the generated print data is shown to the display device of the information processing apparatus by the print execution data before being transmitted to the printer. Display the image to be printed, execute the preview process that accepts the instruction whether to print, and execute the preview process.
Further to the computer
After the preview process, the command output process is executed.
A support program that features that. In the support program described in claim 1,
To the computer
When the print instruction is given, the print program causes the operating system to execute a first determination process for determining whether or not the first condition is satisfied before the operating system completes the generation of the print data. The condition is a condition indicating that whether or not to perform printing is determined before the generation of the print data is completed, and whether or not to perform printing is determined after the generation of the print data is completed. ,
Further to the computer
When the first condition is satisfied, the command output process is executed after the operating system completes the generation of the print data.
If the first condition is not satisfied, the command output process is executed before the operating system completes the generation of the print data.
A support program that features that. In the support program according to claim 4,
To the computer
After the print data is generated by the operating system, the print execution data based on the generated print data is shown to the display device of the information processing apparatus by the print execution data before being transmitted to the printer. Display the image to be printed, execute the preview process that accepts the instruction whether to print, and execute the preview process.
Further to the computer
When the setting for executing the preview process is valid, the first determination process determines that the first condition is satisfied.
Further to the computer
When an instruction to print is received in the preview process, the command output process is executed.
A support program that features that. In the support program according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
To the computer
When the print instruction is given, the second determination process for determining whether or not the second condition is satisfied is executed, and the second condition satisfies the predetermined condition in the printer that has received the print execution data. It is a condition that indicates that printing will start after printing is performed.
Further to the computer
When the second condition is satisfied, even if the print execution data is transmitted to the printer, the command output process is not executed.
If the second condition is not satisfied, the command output process is executed before the transmission of the print execution data to the printer is started.
A support program that features that. In the support program according to claim 6,
To the computer
When the reception process for accepting the setting of the password associated with the print execution data is executed and the password is set, the password is associated with the print execution data transmitted to the printer, and the printer causes the printer. When the password is associated with the received print execution data, the printer has a function of printing using the print execution data on the condition that the password is input to the printer.
Further to the computer
When the password is set, it is determined that the second determination condition is satisfied in the second determination process.
A support program that features that. In the support program described in claim 1,
To the computer
When the print instruction is given, the operation acceptance process for accepting the user's operation is executed via the input device of the information processing apparatus before the transmission of the print execution data to the printer is started.
Further to the computer
After accepting the user's operation in the operation acceptance process, the command output process is executed.
A support program that features that. Communication interface and
With a computer
It is an information processing device equipped with
A support program corresponding to the printer connected to the information processing apparatus is incorporated, and the printer has a function of performing a preceding operation before starting printing.
The operating system of the information processing apparatus has a print program which is a pre-installed program.
The computer
When there is a print instruction for printing by the printer via the print program, the print execution data based on the print data generated by the operating system by the print program is transmitted to the printer before the transmission is started. , The support program executes a command output process for outputting a predecessor operation command for executing the predecessor operation to the printer via the communication interface.
An information processing device characterized by this. In the information processing apparatus according to claim 9,
The computer
After the operating system completes the generation of the print data by the print program, the command output process is executed.
An information processing device characterized by this. A printer is connected to the information processing device,
A support program corresponding to the printer is incorporated in the information processing apparatus, and the printer has a function of performing a preceding operation before starting printing.
The operating system of the information processing apparatus has a print program which is a pre-installed program.
In a printing method for causing the printer to perform printing using print execution data based on print data generated by the information processing apparatus.
Before the start of transmission of the print execution data to the printer based on the print data generated by the operating system by the print program when there is a print instruction to perform printing by the printer via the print program. Including a command output step of causing the information processing apparatus to output a preceding operation command for executing the preceding operation to the printer by the support program.
A printing method characterized by that. In the printing method according to claim 11,
In the command output step, after the operating system completes the generation of the print data by the print program, the support program outputs the preceding operation command.
A printing method characterized by that.

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