JP2023048664A - program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technology in which a plurality of templates can be easily used.SOLUTION: A device 10 in which a catalog application 43 supporting a plurality of templates is installed, allows a user to select one template from among the plurality of templates, by the catalog application 43. The catalog application 43 acquires type information on an editing mini application 3 corresponding to the selected template from a management server 300, and acquires URL information corresponding to the acquired type information from an address DB 52. The catalog application 43 generates start information including the URL information, accesses an application server 200 on the basis of the URL information, downloads the editing mini application 3 corresponding to the acquired type information to the device 10 and starts the application. The started editing mini application 3 receives editing of the selected template, and edits the template.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The technical field disclosed in this specification relates to a program capable of printing using a template.

Conventionally, a technique is known in which a plurality of templates are prepared in advance, one of the templates is edited, and the edited template is printed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration in which layout editing software displays a list of templates, accepts template selection, reads the selected template after accepting the selection, and accepts editing of the read template. there is

JP 2009-93243 A

Application programs that can edit and print templates (hereinafter referred to as "editing applications") are provided with a plurality of types of programs according to their uses, and each type may have different editing functions. In this case, the templates prepared in advance are also different for each type. However, some users may want to temporarily use a template prepared by another type of editing application. In this case, the desired template can be used by installing another type of editing application, but the work of installing another editing application for temporary use is a burden for the user.

This specification discloses a program that enables printing using templates, and discloses a technology that allows easy use of a plurality of templates.

A device that aims to solve the above-described problems is a device installed with a selection program that supports a plurality of templates, and the device selects one of the plurality of templates by the selection program. and a type acquisition process for acquiring type information indicating the type of the mini app corresponding to the selected template, wherein the mini app is a program having some functions of a full app, a program that does not need to be installed and is deleted after a predetermined period of time; the mini-app is a program that is downloaded to the device and activated based on activation information for the mini-app; The mini-app has a function of editing the template, there are a plurality of types of mini-apps, and the types of mini-apps that can be handled differ for each template, and the full app is a program that needs to be installed. and further, the device generates the activation information including the acquired type information, and based on the generated activation information, downloads and activates the mini app corresponding to the type information. and the activated mini app reads the selected template and accepts editing of the read template.

A device having the above configuration prepares a plurality of templates by a selection program and accepts selection. Multiple templates are supported by mini apps for each template. When a template is selected, the device downloads and launches the mini-app corresponding to the selected template. This will launch the mini-app required to edit the selected template on the device. A mini appli is a program that does not require installation. Therefore, the user can easily use a plurality of templates without having to install an application in order to temporarily select and use a template.

A control method, a computer program, and a computer-readable storage medium storing the computer program for implementing the functions of the above device are also novel and useful.

According to the technology disclosed in the present specification, a program capable of printing using a template and a technology that can easily use a plurality of templates is realized.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing system according to a first embodiment; FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a management database. It is a figure which shows an example of an address database. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a control procedure of print processing; FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a control procedure of print processing; FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of a selection screen. It is a figure which shows an example of a display screen. FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram showing a control procedure of print processing executed by the printing system according to the second embodiment; It is a figure which shows an example of management DB. It is a figure which shows the modification of a selection screen.

A program according to the present embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. This embodiment applies the present invention to a system in which a printer communicably connected to a device executes printing using a template.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a printing system 1 according to the first embodiment. The printing system 1 of this embodiment includes a device 10 , a printer 100 , an application server 200 and a management server 300 .

The device 10 is connected to a WAN (Wide Area Network) 600 and is communicably connected to the application server 200 and the management server 300 . The management server 300 is an example of a "server". Also, the printer 100 is a device having a communication function and a printing function, and the device 10 can be connected to the printer 100 as well. The printer 100 is, for example, a label printer, label writer, laser printer, inkjet printer, multi-function machine, or the like.

The device 10 is, for example, a smart phone, a tablet terminal, a personal computer, or the like. Device 10 comprises controller 11 including CPU 31 and memory 32 . Device 10 further includes communication unit 12 and user IF 13 , which are electrically connected to controller 11 . Note that the controller 11 is a collective term for software and hardware used to control the device 10 .

The communication unit 12 includes hardware for communicating with an external device. The communication method of the communication unit 12 may be wireless or wired, and may be any standard method such as Wi-Fi (registered trademark) or LAN (Local Area Network). Alternatively, a method of directly communicating with a device such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), USB (Universal Serial Bus), or NFC (Near Field Communication) may be used.

The user IF 13 is, for example, a touch panel, and has a display function for displaying information and an operation function for accepting data input. Note that the user IF 13 may be divided into an operation section such as a keyboard and a mouse and a display section such as a liquid crystal display.

Memory 32 includes a volatile memory area and a non-volatile memory area. The memory 32 stores various programs such as an operating system (OS) 41 , a print application program (hereinafter the application program is also referred to as an “application”) 42 , a catalog application 43 , and the like. The catalog application 43 is an example of a "selected application". Applications downloaded or installed from an external device such as the application server 200 are also stored in the memory 32 . Various data are stored in the memory 32 . The memory 32 is used as a work area when various processes are executed, or as a storage area for temporarily storing data.

The CPU 31 executes various processes according to programs read from the memory 32 . The CPU 31 is an example of a "computer". You may make the controller 11 an example of a "computer."

The OS 41 is software that controls the operation of the device 10 . The OS 41 manages various programs downloaded to the device 10 such as the print application 42 and catalog application 43 . The OS 41 is, for example, iOS (registered trademark), Android (registered trademark), Windows (registered trademark), macOS (registered trademark), or Linux (registered trademark).

The print application 42 is a program that can control the printer. Note that the print application 42 may have functions for editing and saving images. The print application 42 is an example of "another program." The print application 42 is provided by a printer manufacturer and can support multiple printer models. A printer can be registered in the print application 42 . In other words, the print application 42 stores printer information regarding printers used for printing. The printer information includes, for example, unique connection information for connecting to the printer, such as SSID and IP address, and model information indicating the model of the printer. The print application 42 of this embodiment corresponds to the model of the printer 100, and connection information specific to the printer 100 and model information of the printer 100 are stored as printer information. If the print application 42 has a function of storing print history, the print application 42 may manage printer information including connection information and model information based on the print history.

Catalog application 43 is provided by a printer manufacturer that owns management server 300 . The catalog application 43 is provided by the same printer manufacturer as the print application 42 and can share printer information with the print application 42 . The catalog application 43 stores template information 51 indicating templates used for editing print images. The template information 51 includes sample images of a plurality of templates, template IDs for identifying templates, and the like. That is, the catalog application 43 supports multiple templates.

The catalog application 43 has a function of selecting one template to be edited from a plurality of supported templates. However, the catalog application 43 does not have functions for editing and printing templates. Therefore, in order to edit and print the template selected by the catalog application 43, it is necessary to cause the device 10 to acquire another application having functions for editing and printing. Therefore, the catalog application 43 has a function of starting an application that can edit the selected template. That is, catalog application 43 can automatically activate another application capable of editing the template when receiving an instruction to select and edit a template. Therefore, the user does not need to manually activate other applications after selecting a template using the catalog application 43 .

The application server 200 is installed on the WAN 600 by a business operator (for example, Apple (registered trademark) or Google (registered trademark)) that provides an application program (application) download service. The application server 200 is a server that distributes an application specified by a device user to the device.

The application server 200 stores applications such as first to fourth editing applications 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D and first to fourth editing mini applications 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D. In the following description, the first to fourth editing mini-apps 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D will be collectively referred to as "editing application 2" unless they need to be distinguished from each other, and the first to fourth editing mini-apps 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D may be collectively referred to as "editing mini appli 3".

The editing application 2 and the editing mini-application 3 are provided by the printer manufacturer that provides the catalog application 43, respectively. The editing application 2 is software for editing and printing templates. The editing application 2 is, for example, an application for a specific industry (for example, the food industry, the home delivery industry, the medical industry), a business application, a home application, and the like, and there are a plurality of types. The editing application 2 is prepared with templates according to usage, and has a selection function for selecting a template to be edited. The editing application 2 also has a saving function for saving the edited template.

For example, the first editing application 2A is an application for the food industry, and templates for processed food labels, fresh food labels, commodity price labels, etc. are prepared. The second editing application 2B is an application for the home delivery industry, and templates such as address labels are prepared. The third editing application 2C is an application for business, and templates such as an address label, equipment management label, entrance certificate/business card label, etc. are prepared. The fourth editing application 2D is a home application, and has templates for CD labels, New Year's cards, and the like.

The editing mini-application 3 is a mini-application having some of the functions of the editing application 2, and is software for simply providing some of the functions of the editing application 2 to the user. A "mini app" is an application program that has some functions of an application program (also called a "full app") that needs to be installed on a device, and is a program that does not need to be installed on the device. Since no installation is required, even devices with program installation restrictions can run mini-apps. A mini appli is a low-capacity program compared to a full appli, and can be downloaded in a short time. Since mini-apps are automatically deleted by the OS when, for example, a predetermined period of time has elapsed after being downloaded, mini-apps have a small memory load. In addition, since the information entered into the mini app does not remain in the memory when the mini app is erased, security is high. By downloading the mini-appli when necessary, the user can use some of the functions of the full app without having to download and install the full app.

Examples of mini-apps are Apple's AppClips (programs that run on iOS) and Google's InstantApps (programs that run on Android). In this embodiment, the editing application 2 is an example of a "full application", and the editing mini-application 3 is an example of a "mini-application" corresponding to the editing application 2. Specifically, the editing mini application 3 of this embodiment has at least an editing function for editing a selected template and an input function for inputting a print instruction to print the edited template, among the functions provided by the editing application 2, which is a full application. And prepare. The editing mini appli 3 does not have the saving function of the editing appli 2.

In this embodiment, the first editing mini-app 3A is a mini-app corresponding to the first editing application 2A, and has the function of editing the template prepared in the first editing application 2A. The second editing mini-application 3B is a mini-application corresponding to the second editing application 2B, and has a function of editing the template prepared in the second editing application 2B. The third editing mini-application 3C is a mini-application corresponding to the third editing application 2C, and has a function of editing a template prepared for the third editing application 2C. The fourth editing mini-app 3D is a mini-app corresponding to the fourth editing application 2D, and has a function of editing templates prepared in the fourth editing application 2D.

The user can try the editing mini-application 3 before installing the editing application 2, which is a full application, on the device 10, and can decide whether to download the editing application 2 according to the trial result. Note that if the editing application 2 is installed while the editing mini application 3 is stored, the already stored editing mini application 3 will either be incorporated into the editing application 2 as it is, or will be deleted and deleted. is replaced by the Edit Mini App 3 included in the . In addition, the OS 41 automatically deletes the editing mini-application 3 from the memory 32 of the device 10 after a predetermined time has passed since it was downloaded.

The first to fourth editing applications 2A, 2B, 2C and 2D and the first to fourth editing mini applications 3A, 3B, 3C and 3D have application IDs for identifying the applications. The device 10 selects the first to fourth editing apps 2A, 2B, 2C, 2D and the first to fourth editing mini apps 3A, 3B from the application server 200 based on the application ID and the URL indicating the storage destination of the application. , 3C, 3D can be identified and downloaded.

The template information 51 of the catalog application 43 includes, for example, template information of templates prepared for the first to fourth editing applications 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D. In other words, the catalog application 43 is prepared for the first to fourth editing applications 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D even if the first to fourth editing applications 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D are not installed in the device 10. You can choose a template. Also, for example, even if only the first editing application 2A is installed on the device 10, the catalog application 43 can select templates prepared for the second to fourth editing applications 2B, 2C, and 2D.

As described above, even if the catalog application 43 is installed, editing a template requires an application capable of editing the template. The catalog application 43 of this embodiment does not manage which template corresponds to which application in order to reduce the memory load. In this embodiment, the management server 300 manages the relationship between templates and applications.

Specifically, the management server 300 is installed on the WAN 600 by a printer manufacturer that provides printers. The printer maker has a grasp of the printers, consumables, applications, etc. provided by the company. In other words, the printer maker knows which template corresponds to which editing mini appli 3 . For this reason, the management server 300 is provided with a management DB 6 that manages the correspondence between templates and editing mini-applications 3 .

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the management DB 6. As shown in FIG. The management DB 6 stores a template ID that identifies a template in association with the application ID of the edit mini-application 3 that can correspond to the template indicated by the template ID. The application ID is information indicating the type of editing mini-application 3 . The template ID is an example of "template information", and the application ID is an example of "type information".

For example, for the template ID "TEMP1" of "template A" and the template ID "TEMP5" of "template E", the first editing mini-application 3A corresponding to the first editing application 2A for which template A and template D are prepared. The application ID "application identification information Y1" is associated and stored. Similarly, the template ID "TEMP2" of "template B", the template ID "TEMP3" of "template C", and the template ID "TEMP4" of "template D" have the application of the second editing mini application 3B. The ID "application identification information Y2", the application ID "application identification information Y3" of the third edited mini application 3C, and the application ID "application identification information Y4" of the fourth edited mini application 3D are stored in association with each other.

The catalog application 43 shown in FIG. 1 passes the template ID of the selected template to the management server 300 and acquires from the management server 300 the application ID associated with the template ID. In other words, the catalog application 43 cooperates with the management server 300 to identify the editing mini-apps 3 that can edit the selected template. Note that the number of application IDs acquired by the catalog application 43 from the management server 300 is not limited to one, and may be plural.

The catalog application 43 has an address DB 52 that manages the URLs indicating where the editing mini-applications 3 are stored. As shown in FIG. 3, the address DB 52 stores an application ID in association with the URL of the edit mini-application 3 indicated by the application ID. For example, the URL "address X1" of the first editing mini-appli 3A is stored in association with the application ID "application identification information Y1" of the first editing mini-appli 3A. Similarly, the application ID "application identification information Y2" of the second editing mini application 3B, the application ID "application identification information Y3" of the third editing mini application 3C, and the application ID "application identification information Y3" of the fourth editing mini application 3D. Y4" stores the URL "address X2" of the second editing mini appli 3B, the URL "address X3" of the third editing mini appli 3C, and the URL "address X4" of the fourth editing mini appli 3D. It is Therefore, the catalog application 43 shown in FIG. 1 can acquire the URL of the editing mini-application 3 that can edit the selected template, download the editing mini-application 3 based on the URL, and start it.

<Description of operation>
Next, a control procedure for print processing executed in the printing system 1 will be described. 4 and 5 are sequence diagrams showing the control procedure of print processing. FIG. 4 shows the processing up to activation of the editing mini-appli 3, and FIG. 5 shows the processing from activation of the editing mini-appli 3 to execution of printing. Each process performed by the device 10 is performed by the CPU 31 , but for convenience of explanation, the device 10 , the OS 41 , the print application 42 , the catalog application 43 , and the edit application 3 will be described as the subjects that perform each process.

When the user U activates the catalog application 43 (arrow A11) and inputs an instruction to display a template to the user IF 13 (arrow A12), the catalog application 43 displays a template and displays a selection screen for the user to select the template. Display on IF13 (arrow A13). The catalog application 43 may display all supported templates, or accept display conditions for narrowing down the templates to be displayed, and display templates that match the display conditions.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the selection screen 1000. As shown in FIG. A list of templates supported by the catalog application 43 is displayed on the selection screen 1000 . The selection screen 1000 is provided with template display fields DA1, DA2, and DA3 for each template. For example, template sample images SM1, SM2, SM3 and an edit button SW1 are displayed in each of the template display fields DA1, DA2, and DA3.

For example, when the user U taps the sample image SM2 to select the template B and taps the edit button SW1, the catalog application 43 receives an instruction to select and edit the template B as shown in FIG. A14). The processing of arrows A11 to A14 is an example of "selection processing".

After that, the catalog application 43 reads the template ID "TEMP2" of the template B selected from the template information 51, and transmits it to the management server 300 via the communication unit 12 (arrow A21). The management server 300 reads the application ID "application identification information Y2" of the second editing mini-application 3B associated with the received template ID "TEMP2" from the management DB 6 shown in FIG. 2, and transmits it to the device 10 (arrow A22 ). Note that the number of application IDs is not limited to one, and may be plural. The processing of arrows A21 and A22 is an example of the “type acquisition processing”.

When the catalog application 43 receives the application ID via the communication unit 12 (arrow A22), the catalog application 43 inquires about the printer information to the application that can share the printer information (arrow A23). That is, the catalog application 43 searches for the editing mini-application 3 indicated by the application ID, and when the editing mini-application 3 is found, inquires of the found editing mini-application 3 about the printer information. The catalog application 43 also searches for the editing application 2 corresponding to the editing mini-application 3 indicated by the application ID, and when the editing application 2 is found, the catalog application 43 inquires of the found editing application 2 about the printer information. Further, the catalog application 43 inquires printer information to an application that is different from the editing mini-applications 3 and 2 and that can share printer information with the catalog application 43 .

In this embodiment, the device 10 does not have the second editing mini-application 3B and the corresponding second editing application 2B, so the catalog application 43 queries the print application 42 for printer information. The print application 42 passes the printer information including the connection information of the printer 100 registered in the print application 42 itself to the catalog application 43 (arrow A24). If the print application 42 has a function of storing the print history, the print application 42 may pass the printer information (connection information) of the printer used in the most recent printing to the catalog application 43 based on the print history. The processing of arrows A23 and A24 is an example of "connection information acquisition processing".

When the catalog application 43 cannot acquire the connection information from the print application 42, the catalog application 43 inquires about the printer information (connection information) from another application in the device 10, and acquires the printer information (connection information). The catalog application 43 repeats the processing of arrows A23 and A24 until there is no application that acquires the connection information or inquires about the connection information. Further, when the catalog application 43 acquires a plurality of application IDs, for example, it executes the processing of arrows A23 to A24 in order of reception of the application IDs.

After acquiring the printer information (connection information), the catalog application 43 generates activation information for activating the editing mini-appli 3 (arrow A31). Specifically, for example, the catalog application 43 reads out the URL "address X2" associated with the application ID "application identification information Y2" acquired by the arrow A22 in the address DB 52 shown in FIG. Then, the catalog application 43 generates activation information using the read URL "address X2". Further, the catalog application 43 adds the template ID "TEMP2" of the template B selected with the arrow A14 and the connection information of the printer 100 acquired with the arrow A24 to the activation information. If the catalog application 43 fails to acquire the connection information, the catalog application 43 generates activation information that does not include the connection information.

As shown in FIG. 4, the catalog application 43 passes the generated activation information to the OS 41 (arrow A32). The OS 41 transmits a download instruction to the application server 200 via the communication unit 12 using the URL "address X2" of the activation information (arrow A33). The application server 200 transmits the second edited mini-application 3B to the device 10 based on the download instruction. OS 41 receives second editing mini-appli 3B transmitted from application server 200 via communication unit 12, and temporarily stores it in memory 32 (arrow A34). The OS 41 then activates the downloaded second editing mini-appli 3B (arrow A35). The processing of arrows A31 to A35 is an example of "startup processing".

When the OS 41 receives activation information from the catalog application 43 (arrow A32), and if the second editing mini-application 3B has already been downloaded, the OS 41 omits the processing of arrows A33 and A34, and 2. The editing mini application 3B may be activated (arrow A35). Also, when the OS 41 receives activation information from the catalog application 43 (arrow A32), and if the second editing mini-application 2B corresponding to the second editing mini-application 3B is already installed on the device 10, the OS 41 performs the processing following the arrow A33. , the template is edited and saved by activating the second editing application 2B.

Here, the catalog application 43 automatically downloads the second editing mini-application 3B to the device 10 and starts it (arrows A31 to A35). Therefore, the user U does not normally use the second editing mini appli 3B, and may be unfamiliar with the second editing mini appli 3B. Therefore, the catalog application 43 displays the manual of the second editing mini application 3B on the user IF 13 (arrow A41). Instead of being provided by the catalog application 43, the manual may be provided by the second editing mini-application 3B, or may be provided by an application for displaying the manual. Also, if the second editing application 2B corresponding to the second editing mini-application 3B is already installed on the device 10, the second editing application 2B may provide the manual. Note that the process of arrow A41 is an example of "manual display process".

As shown in FIG. 5, when the OS 41 activates the downloaded second editing mini-appli 3B (arrow A35), the OS 41 sets the template ID "TEMP2" of template B given to the activation information at arrow A32 in FIG. 100 connection information is passed to the second editing mini-appli 3B (arrow A101). As soon as the second editing mini-appli 3B is activated, it causes the user IF 13 to display a display screen displaying template B based on the template ID "TEMP2" (arrow A102).

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the display screen 1001. As shown in FIG. The display screen 1001 includes an image IM1 based on the template B, an edit button SW11 for accepting an edit instruction to edit the template, a transfer button SW12 for accepting a transfer instruction to transfer the template to a printer, and a print instruction to print the template. A print button SW13 is displayed.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the second edit mini-appli 3B receives an edit instruction via the edit button W11 (alt: edit), it displays an edit input screen on the user IF 13 (A111). The second editing mini-application 3B accepts editing of template B via the editing input screen (A112, A113). For example, the second editing mini-appli 3B causes the user IF 13 to display text and controls for inputting text settings. The second editing mini-appli 3B may cause the user IF 13 to display operators for inputting the size of the print medium such as tape, the setting of the decorative frame, and the like. The second editing mini-appli 3B accepts editing of the template B through those operators. For example, an edit input screen is provided with an edit end button, and when this button is operated, the edit input screen is closed and the screen returns to the display screen 1001 . In this case, the edited content is reflected in the image IM1.

When the second editing mini-appli 3B receives a transfer instruction via the transfer button SW12 shown in FIG. The indicated information is transferred to the printer 100 (arrow A124). The information indicating the template includes, for example, a template ID, image data based on the image IM1, and print parameters. In other words, the second editing mini-appli 3B transmits to the printer 100 information based on the template and editing content. Therefore, the second editing mini-appli 3B sends the original data of template B to the printer 100 before accepting editing of template B, and after accepting editing of template B, sends information indicating edited template B to the printer 100. Send to

When the printer 100 receives the template B transferred from the device 10, it stores it in the built-in memory (arrow A125). As a result, the printer 100 can use the template B, for example, by editing the template B via the operation panel of the printer 100 or by obtaining the template B from the printer by a device other than the device 10 . Instead of manually transferring the template, the second editing mini-appli 3B may automatically transfer the template B to the printer 100 when it is activated or when a printing instruction is received.

When the second editing mini-appli 3B receives a print instruction via the print button SW13 shown in FIG. 7 (alt: print), it creates a print job (arrow A133). The print job includes, for example, image data based on the edited template, print parameters, and connection information of the printer 100 received at arrow A101. The second editing mini-application 3B transmits the generated print job (arrow A134). When the printer 100 receives the print job including the connection information of its own device, the printer 100 prints the template according to the print job (arrow A135). Since the connection information included in the print job was used by the print application 42 of the device 10, there is a high possibility that the printer 100 can print.

If the second editing mini-appli 3B receives a transfer instruction or a print instruction without receiving connection information from the OS 41, it causes the user IF 13 to display a connection information input screen for entering printer connection information. User U may be requested to input connection information.

As described above, the device 10 of the present embodiment prepares a plurality of templates by the catalog application 43 and accepts selection. A plurality of templates are handled by the editing mini appli 3 for each template. For example, when template B is selected, the device 10 downloads and activates the second editing mini app 3B corresponding to the selected template B. As a result, on the device 10, the second editing mini-application 3B required for editing the selected template B is activated. The second editing mini application 3B is a program that does not require installation. Therefore, the user U does not need to install an application such as the second editing application 2B in order to temporarily select and use the template B, and can easily use a plurality of templates.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 8 is a sequence diagram showing the control procedure of print processing executed by the printing system according to the second embodiment. The printing system of this embodiment differs from that of the first embodiment in the configuration of the management DB 2006 provided in the management server 300, and is otherwise configured similarly to the printing system 1 of the first embodiment. Here, configurations and processes different from those of the first embodiment will be described, and configurations and processes common to those of the first embodiment will be given the same reference numerals in the drawings, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the management DB 2006. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, the management DB 2006 stores, in addition to the application ID, model information indicating the model of the printer corresponding to the template in association with the template ID. For example, template ID "TEMP2" of template B is stored in association with model information "model M21", "model M22", and "model M23".

As shown in FIG. 8, for example, when the catalog application 43 receives an instruction to select and edit template B (arrows A11 to A14), the catalog application 43 transmits the template ID "TEMP2" of template B to the management server 300 ( Arrow A21). The management server 300 obtains from the management DB 2006 the application ID "application identification information Y2" of the second editing mini application 3B associated with the template ID "TEMP2", and the model information "model M21", "model M22", "model M23". ” and transmits it to the device 10 (arrow B1).

When the catalog application 43 receives the application ID and the model information via the communication unit 12 (arrow B1), an application corresponding to the application ID or a program that can share information with the catalog application 43 (the printing application 42 in this embodiment) to inquire about the printer information (arrow A23). The print application 42, for example, passes the printer information of the printer 100 to the catalog application 43 (arrow B1). The printer information includes, for example, connection information of the printer 100 and model information of the printer 100 . Note that the model information acquired by the arrow B2 is an example of "specific information". Also, the print application 42 is an example of a "first program."

The catalog application 43 performs model determination processing for determining whether or not the model indicated by the model information obtained from the print application 42 at arrow B1 matches the model indicated by the model information obtained from the management server 300 at arrow B2. (Arrow B3).

The catalog application 43 determines that the model of the model information acquired from the print application 42 at arrow B2 is any of the model information "model M21", "model M22", and "model M23" acquired from the management server 300 at arrow B1. , it is determined that the models match in the model determination process of arrow B3 (alt: model match). In this case, the catalog application 43 checks the application ID "application identification information Y2" obtained from the management server 300 with the arrow B1 against the address DB 52, and based on the URL "address X2" of the second editing mini application 3B. to generate boot information. At this time, the catalog application 43 adds the connection information obtained from the print application 42 together with the model information at arrow B2 (arrow B11).

On the other hand, the catalog application 43 changes the model information obtained from the print application 42 at arrow B2 to the model information "model M21", "model M22", and "model information" obtained from the management server 300 at arrow B1. M23”, it is determined that the models do not match in the model determination process of arrow B3 (alt: model mismatch). In this case, catalog application 43 inquires printer information to other application 2002 (arrow B21). Another application 2002 is an example of a "second program."

For example, if another application 2002 is registered with a printer different from the printer 100, the catalog application 43 receives from the other application 2002 connection information possessed by the different printer and model information indicating the model of the different printer. (arrow B22). The catalog application 43 performs model determination processing to determine whether or not the model indicated by the model information obtained from the other application 2002 matches the model indicated by the model information obtained by arrow B1 (arrow B3). When the catalog application 43 determines that the models match in the model determination process (alt: model match), it generates activation information to which the connection information acquired from the other application 2002 is added in arrow B22 (arrow B11). .

The catalog application 43 that has generated the activation information executes the processes after the arrow A32 as in the first embodiment. If the catalog application 43 cannot acquire printer connection information from an application other than the catalog application 43, or acquires a model that matches the model indicated by the model information acquired from the management server 300, the catalog application 43 acquires the model from the application in the device 10. If not, generate boot information that does not include connection information.

As described above, the device 10 of the present embodiment uses the catalog application 43 to generate activation information including connection information to the printer of the model corresponding to the template, and activates the second editing mini-appli 3B based on the activation information. . The second editing mini-appli 3B accesses the printer using the connection information included in the activation information and prints the template. Therefore, according to the device 10 of the present embodiment, it is possible to print the selected template with a printer of a model corresponding to the selected template, increasing the possibility that the template can be printed regardless of the application (type).

It should be noted that the present embodiment is merely an example, and does not limit the present invention in any way. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, the user U directly selects a template from among a plurality of templates displayed on the selection screen 1000, as indicated by arrows A13 and A14 in FIG. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10, the catalog application 43 may cause the user IF 13 to display an edit content input screen 3000 and allow the user U to input the edit content. For example, the edit content input screen 3000 displays edit content such as the use of the label and whether or not to insert an image. When the catalog application 43 accepts an operation of the template search button SW31 with editing contents selected, it automatically selects one template suitable for the selected editing contents and displays it on the user IF13. When the catalog application 43 receives an instruction to edit the automatically selected template, the catalog application 43 executes the processes after A21 in FIG. This makes it easier to select a template even when the number of templates supported by the catalog application 43 is large. However, as in the above-described embodiment, the user U can easily select a template that meets the user's U intention by directly selecting the template.

Alternatively, the process of arrow A41 in FIG. 4 may be omitted, and the manual for editing mini-appli 3 may not be displayed on device 10 . Edit mini-appli 3 may omit the transfer button SW12 on the display screen 1001 shown in FIG. 7, omit the process of transferring the template indicated by arrow A124 in FIG. 5, and prevent the printer 100 from saving the template. .

Also, the second editing application 2B corresponding to the selected template B may be installed on the device 10 . In this case, since the second editing application 2B can edit and save the template B, the image data based on the selected template can be reused without being temporary.

Also, before downloading the second editing mini appli 3B to the device 10 using the arrows A33 and A34 in FIG. may notify you. That is, installation of a full app for a mini app may be prompted. Also, the notification prompting the user to install the second editing mini-application 2B may be sent before downloading the second editing mini-application 3B.

Also, the management server 300 may be omitted. In this case, the management DB 6 of FIG. 1 may be provided in the catalog application 43, and the catalog application 43 may acquire the application ID from the management DB 6 of the catalog application 43 itself instead of performing the processes of arrows A21 and A22 of FIG. . In this way, the catalog application 43 itself manages the editing mini-apps 3 corresponding to the template, thereby eliminating the need to access the management server 300 and enabling the quick acquisition of the application ID. By providing the management DB 6 in the management server 300 and managing the editing mini-apps 3 corresponding to the template, as in the above embodiment, the catalog application 43 does not need to be changed individually. The corresponding editing mini appli 3 can be changed collectively.

Also, the processing of arrows A23 and A24 in FIG. 4 and arrow A101 in FIG. good too. However, as shown by arrows A23 and A24 in FIG. 4, the catalog application 43 acquires printer connection information before starting the second editing mini-application 3B, and as shown by arrow A101 in FIG. If the editing mini-appli 3B acquires the connection information from the catalog application 43 and transfers the template B to the printer or sends the print job, the trouble of inputting the connection information can be omitted. 10 and the printer 100 can be simplified.

Further, for example, if the second editing application 2B corresponding to the selected template B is installed in the device 10, printer connection information may be obtained from the second editing application 2B. The second editing application 2B has a printing function and registers printer connection information. Therefore, if the connection information is obtained from the second editing application 2B, the possibility that the selected template B can be printed increases.

In the above embodiment, the catalog application 43 manages the URLs of the editing mini-applications 3 in the address DB 52 . On the other hand, for example, the management server 300 may manage the URL of the edit mini-appli 3. FIG. For example, the management DB 6 may store the template ID in association with the application ID and the URL of the editing mini-application 3 indicated by the application ID. In this case, the address DB 52 may be omitted. Then, the catalog application 43 may receive the application ID and the URL from the management server 300 at arrow A22 in FIG. 4, for example, and generate activation information using the URL. According to this, the size of the catalog application 43 can be reduced and the load on the memory 32 can be reduced.

Further, in any flowchart disclosed in the embodiments, multiple processes in any multiple steps can be arbitrarily changed in execution order or executed in parallel as long as there is no contradiction in the processing contents.

Also, the processing disclosed in the embodiments may be performed by a single CPU, multiple CPUs, hardware such as an ASIC, or a combination thereof. Further, the processes disclosed in the embodiments can be realized in various forms such as a recording medium recording a program for executing the processes, a method, and the like.

2 Editing application 3 Editing mini application 10 Device 31 CPU
43 Catalog App

Claims (11)

A device installed with a selection program that supports multiple templates,
The device is
a selection process of selecting one from the plurality of templates by the selection program;
and a type acquisition process for acquiring type information indicating the type of the mini-app corresponding to the selected template, wherein the mini-app is a program having partial functions of a full app and does not need to be installed. The mini-app is a program that is deleted after a predetermined period of time has passed, the mini-app is a program that is downloaded to the device and activated based on activation information for the mini-app, and the mini-app is the has a template editing function, there are a plurality of types of mini-apps, the types of mini-apps that can be handled differ for each template, and the full app is a program that must be installed;
Further, the device
generating the activation information including the acquired type information; executing activation processing for downloading and activating the mini app corresponding to the type information based on the generated activation information; the mini-appli reads the selected template and accepts editing of the read template;
A device characterized by: The device of claim 1, wherein
The device is
executing manual display processing for displaying a manual for the mini app to be launched when the mini app is downloaded and launched;
A device characterized by: A device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein
The device is
After starting the mini-appli, the mini-appli accepts an instruction to transfer the template, and when the transfer instruction is accepted, executes a transfer process to transfer the template to a printer, and the printer receives the transferred template. saving said template;
A device characterized by: A device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein
The device is
When the full app corresponding to the mini app corresponding to the acquired type information is installed, the full app is launched without launching the mini app, and the launched full app is the selected template. accept editing and saving of
A device characterized by: A program executable by a computer of a device, said program supporting multiple templates,
on the computer of said device;
a selection process of selecting one from the plurality of templates;
a type acquisition process for acquiring type information indicating the type of the mini-app that corresponds to the selected template; The mini-app is a program that is deleted after a predetermined period of time has passed, the mini-app is a program that is downloaded to the device and activated based on activation information for the mini-app, and the mini-app is the has a template editing function, there are a plurality of types of mini-apps, the types of mini-apps that can be handled differ for each template, and the full app is a program that must be installed;
Furthermore, in said computer,
The activation information including the acquired type information is generated, the mini-application corresponding to the type information is downloaded and activated based on the generated activation information, and the activated mini-app is executed. the mini-appli reads the selected template and accepts editing of the read template;
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5,
on the computer of said device;
executing manual display processing for displaying a manual for the mini-app to be launched when the mini-app is downloaded and launched;
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5 or claim 6,
In the type acquisition process,
After transmitting template information indicating the selected template to the server, the type information is received by receiving the type information transmitted from the server, and the server acquires the type information, and the server receives the template information according to the template information. is stored in association with the type information indicating the types of the mini app compatible with the indicated template, and when the template information is received from the device, the type associated with the received template information reading information and responding to the device with the read type information;
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 5 or claim 6,
The template to be selected is associated with the type information indicating the type of the corresponding mini app,
In the type acquisition process,
obtaining the type information associated with the selected template;
A program characterized by In the program according to any one of claims 5 to 8,
to the computer;
After the template is selected and before the mini app is started, a printer acquisition process is executed to acquire printer information about a printer, the printer information includes connection information used to connect to the printer,
In the startup process,
The activation information including the acquired type information and the printer information is generated, the mini-application corresponding to the type information is downloaded and activated based on the generated activation information, and the activated mini-app is activated. The application reads the selected template, accepts editing of the read template, and connects to the printer using the printer information included in the activation information.
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 9,
In the printer acquisition process,
when the full app is installed on the device, the printer information is acquired from the installed full app, and the full app has a printing function and can register the printer information.
A program characterized by In the program according to claim 9 or claim 10,
to the computer;
executing model acquisition processing for acquiring model information indicating a printer model corresponding to the selected template;
the printer information acquired in the printer acquisition process includes specific information specifying a model of the printer;
Furthermore, in said computer,
obtaining the printer information from the first program by the printer obtaining process;
If the model identified by the specific information obtained from the first program matches the model indicated by the obtained model information, the activation process causes the printer information obtained from the first program to be generating the activation information including
If the model identified by the specific information obtained from the first program does not match the model indicated by the model information obtained, the printer information is obtained from the second program again by the printer obtaining process. If the model specified by the specific information acquired from the second program matches the model indicated by the acquired model information, the activation process causes the model acquired from the second program to generating the activation information including printer information;
A program characterized by

Images