JP3919780B2 - Information processing apparatus, print control method, and computer-readable storage medium - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a printing system, a printing control method, and a storage medium storing a computer-readable program capable of transferring a print job received from an upper apparatus to the printing apparatus. An information processing apparatus as a print server, a printing system, a printing control method, and a computer-readable program are stored for managing print jobs received from a client computer as an apparatus for each group and controlling transmission to the printing apparatus as a group job. The present invention relates to a storage medium.

  Conventionally, a printing system to which this type of information processing apparatus can be applied is configured such that the printing apparatus and a client computer (PC), a server computer, etc. can communicate with each other via a predetermined communication medium, and a job processing request from each client computer. In response to the print job, the print job received is stored in the job spooler in the order received, and the print job is sequentially analyzed and printed by the printing apparatus.

  In recent printing systems, the job name of the print job spooled on the server can be displayed on the client, and the print job can be specified by using network utility software installed on the client. Depending on the authority of the client, there are those that can suspend printing, stop printing, and control the order of a specified print job.

  Also, as software that operates on recent clients, a PDL format print job generated by a printer driver is held without requesting the print server to print, and a plurality of print jobs are collected as print requests to the print server. There are some that can achieve batch printing by sending.

  However, although the above-described conventional utility software can control the order of print jobs spooled in the server (print server), a plurality of jobs are grouped so that other print jobs are not interrupted in the group job. The group job printing could not be controlled.

  In order to reduce the load on the network and print server, only print requests and job information are sent from the client to the print server, the order control is managed by the print server, and the print job itself is spooled by the print requesting client. However, it is possible to print multiple jobs spooled separately for both the print server and client to output to the same printer from multiple different clients, or for jobs in the same group that are client spooled The processing order could not be specified from different clients.

  In addition, when grouping print jobs, not all print jobs to be grouped are ready, and the user using the client computer always starts the next printing order immediately from the client computer. It is not always possible to make a print request for a print job, and it is conceivable that a print request is made after a considerable time has elapsed since the user has left his / her seat. In this case, since the print processing cannot be started unless all the grouped print jobs can be printed, that is, the print job can be sent to the printer, the server spooler and each client in the print server can be started. The print job spooled in the client spooler in the system must be waiting as it is, but in the conventional print queue, it is assumed that the print job requested for printing is ready to print. In the order of printing, a print job had to be sent to the printer.

  In addition, with conventional software that implements collective printing, print jobs from one client can be printed together, but print jobs generated by multiple clients cannot be grouped together. It was.

  Furthermore, since the process of group printing has not been considered in the past, when the output of each print job is finished, the requesting client is notified of the end, so print processing of all jobs printed in the same group After confirming the situation and confirming that the series of printings has been completed normally, the end notification is not sent to each client.

  In addition, if printing fails due to a printer error etc. without confirming the completion of printing for all jobs in the group, all the jobs in the group must be collected and notified to the client. The user or server cannot change the printing destination, and it is impossible to respond quickly and flexibly to such an error, and the group printing process remains suspended. There was a problem that it could not be obtained quickly.

  In recent printing systems, it is considered to change the print destination for a single print job, but the change of the print destination is not considered for the grouping job as described above. Therefore, even if the print destination is changed in a single print job, if the PDL is the same, there is no need to worry about the paper discharge surface. This is because the print job can be spooled internally and printed in reverse page order by the function of the printer itself. However, only a single job can be realized by the function of the printer itself, and the grouping job considered in the present invention cannot be handled.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and a first object of the present invention is to perform normal printing when a plurality of print jobs requested to be printed by a plurality of clients are grouped and printed. Even if print jobs are mixed and spooled to the print server, it is possible to perform print control for the same printer without causing a normal print job to be mixed in a group print job.

  The second object of the present invention is to confirm that print jobs that have been printed are collectively printed and discharged even if only print confirmation for each print job can be obtained from the printer. Is notified to the host computer of the batch printing.

  A third object of the present invention is to change the printing destination to another printer when errors occur in the printer before the printed jobs are collectively printed and discharged. .

  A fourth object of the present invention is to perform a print job processing in the order received even when the printing destination is changed to a printer having a different paper discharge surface, so that the correct printing order as a grouping job is achieved. It is to provide a mechanism that can be maintained.

  A fifth object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism for specifying a grouping job for printing a group of print jobs from a plurality of clients when a print request is issued from the clients.

  Based on a print request that receives a plurality of print jobs from a plurality of clients, a job management unit that groups the plurality of print jobs and manages print jobs to be printed sequentially, and prints the print jobs to be grouped and printed sequentially At the time of processing, a determination unit that determines a spool destination of each print job included in the group, and a print job that is determined to be spooled in its own spooler by the determination unit prints the spooled print job. A transmission control unit that transmits to the apparatus and transmits a transmission permission notification that permits transmission of a print job to a client that has issued the print request when the determination unit determines that the spooler is not spooled by its own spooler; And the transmission control means determines whether the output destination printing apparatus is a face-up printer. If it is determined that the printer is a face-down printer. If it is determined that the printer is a face-down printer, transmission control starts from the first print job in the print order. If it is determined that the printer is a face-up printer, the print order is displayed. The transmission control is started from the print job behind.

  The job management means manages the spool status of each print job included in the group, and when the job management means determines that all print jobs included in the group are spooled, The printing process is started.

  Recognizing means for recognizing the status of a print job in the printing apparatus, and when the recognizing means recognizes the status of the print job as the end of printing, and the print job is a single print job with no grouping designation, The client that has requested the print request of the print job is notified of the print end, while the recognition unit recognizes the print job status as the print end, and the print job is designated as the grouping print. If it is a job, it is determined whether all the print jobs in the group including the print job are in a print end state, and if all the print jobs are in a print end state, print to a plurality of clients that have requested print requests. When the end is notified, and at least one print job is in an unprinted state, the print end state in the group Characterized in that it comprises a notification control means for controlling not to perform a notification of print end to the client who requested the printing of certain print job.

  The recognizing unit may further recognize whether or not the print job can be printed in the printing apparatus.

  In addition, when the recognizing unit recognizes that the print job cannot be printed in the designated printing apparatus, the recognizing unit further includes a changing unit that changes the output destination of the print job to another printing apparatus. When changing the output destinations of the print jobs in the group, the output destinations of all the print jobs included in the group are changed.

  Further, when the recognizing unit recognizes that the printing apparatus cannot print the print job, the changing unit notifies the client that issued the print job print request and notifies the output destination from the client. A change instruction is received, and the output destination of the print job is changed based on the output destination change instruction.

  Further, when the change unit recognizes that the print job cannot be printed on the printing apparatus designated at the time of the print request by the recognition unit, the change unit checks the attribute information of the print job and specifies the attribute information in advance. The output destination of the print job is changed to an alternative printing apparatus.

  Further, when the output device of the print job is changed by the changing unit, the change of the output destination is notified to the client that has made the print job print request.

  An acquisition unit that acquires information on a print job specified by grouping managed by the management server from a management server that manages a print order in which a plurality of print jobs are grouped and sequentially printed; First user interface providing means for providing a first user interface for designating a group for grouping print jobs to be requested based on the acquired print job information for grouping designation; and Print request means for making a print request including instruction information to be grouped into a group designated via the first user interface provided by the user interface providing means, and a print job to be grouped by the print job requested by the client The name of the group to which the print job should be grouped A second user interface providing means for providing a second user interface including an area for instructing a new group name and an area for instructing an existing group name. In the second user interface provided by the two user interface providing means, when an area for instructing an existing group name is designated, the first user interface is provided by starting the first user interface providing means. It has the 1st user interface control means which controls provision of the 1st user interface so that it may be characterized.

  The first user interface providing means displays a list of the print job information when the information of the print job to be grouped is managed by the management server, while the information of the print job to be grouped is displayed in the management When not managed by a server, the first user interface for securing a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group is provided, and the second interface providing means is further provided in the group. The second user interface including an area for designating a printing order of each print job included is provided.

  In addition, in the first user interface provided by the first user interface providing unit, when a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group is designated, the designated space is supported. It further includes an automatic input means for automatically inputting the printing order in the group into an area for designating the printing order in the second user interface.

  As described above, according to the present invention, a plurality of print jobs requested to be printed from a plurality of clients are subjected to print control after all the print jobs to be grouped are prepared. Therefore, it is possible to control printing without mixing normal print jobs in the group print job, and further, by controlling the order of sending the print jobs to the printing apparatus according to the paper discharge surface of the printer at the print destination, It is possible to perform print control while maintaining a specified print order for print jobs in a group.

  In addition, when a print job requested for printing is included in the group of group print jobs already managed by the management server, the user can easily specify the group name and print order using the graphical user interface. Become.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an information processing system to which the present invention can be applied. It is assumed that n client computers in this system are connected.

  In the figure, reference numerals 102, 103, and 104 denote information processing apparatuses as client computers (clients), which are connected to the network 106 by a network cable such as Ethernet (registered trademark) and can execute various programs such as application programs. A printer driver having a function of converting print data into a printer language corresponding to the printer is installed. Note that the printer driver supports a plurality of printer drivers.

  Reference numeral 101 denotes an information processing apparatus as a server (hereinafter referred to as a print server) of the present invention, which is connected to the network 106 by a network cable, accumulates files used in the network, and monitors the use state of the network 106. To do. The print server 101 manages a plurality of printers connected to the network 106.

  As the configuration, the clients 102 to 104 and the print server 101 are general information processing apparatuses, and the client and the print server each store a print control program for performing different controls.

  The print server 101 in the present embodiment further stores and prints a print job including print data for which a print request has been issued from the client computers 102, 103, 104, or print data from the client computers 102, 103, 104. Only the job information that does not contain data, manages the print order of the client computers 102, 103, and 104, notifies the client in the print order of permission to send a print job including print data, and the status of the network printer 105 And a function for acquiring various types of print job information and notifying the client computers 102, 103, and 104.

  Reference numeral 105 denotes a network printer as a print control apparatus, which is connected to the network 106 via a network interface (not shown), analyzes a print job including print data transmitted from a client computer, and converts it into a dot image page by page. Convert and print page by page. A network 106 is connected to the client computers 102, 103, 104, the server 101, the network printer 105, and the like.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of the information processing apparatus according to the present invention. The client computers 102, 103, and 104, which are information processing apparatuses, have the same configuration, and the server 101 has the same or equivalent hardware configuration. To do. Therefore, it demonstrates as a block diagram explaining the structure of a client and a server.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 200 denotes a CPU that is a control unit of the information processing apparatus, which executes an application program, a printer driver program, an OS, a network printer control program of the present invention, and the like stored in a hard disk (HD) 205. Control to temporarily store information, files, etc. necessary for program execution.

  Reference numeral 201 denotes a ROM which is a storage unit, and stores therein various data such as a program such as a basic I / O program, font data used in document processing, and template data. Reference numeral 202 denotes a RAM which is temporary storage means, and functions as a main memory, work area, and the like of the CPU 200.

  Reference numeral 203 denotes a floppy (registered trademark) disk (FD) drive as a storage medium reading means. As shown in FIG. 5 to be described later, a program stored in the FD 204 as a storage medium is loaded into the computer system through the FD drive 203. can do. Note that the storage medium is not limited to the FD, and includes a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a PC card, a DVD, an IC memory card, an MO, a memory stick, and the like.

  Reference numeral 204 denotes a floppy (registered trademark) disk (FD) as a storage medium, which is a storage medium storing a computer-readable program. The FD 204 stores a network printer control program and related data described in this embodiment. The configuration of the stored contents will be described later with reference to FIG.

  Reference numeral 205 denotes one of external storage means, which is a hard disk (HD) that functions as a large-capacity memory, and stores an application program, a printer driver program, an OS, a network printer control program, related programs, and the like. Further, a spooler which is a spool means is secured here. The spool means is a client spooler in the client, and a server spooler in the print server. In the print server, job information received from the client is stored, and a table for controlling the order is also generated and stored in the external storage means.

  Reference numeral 206 denotes a keyboard which is an instruction input unit. The user instructs the client computer and the operator or administrator inputs an instruction of a device control command to the print server.

  A display 207 is a display unit that displays commands input from the keyboard 206, the status of the printer, and the like.

  A system bus 208 controls the flow of data in a computer that is a client or a print server.

  Reference numeral 209 denotes an interface which is an input / output unit, and the information processing apparatus exchanges data with an external apparatus via the interface 209.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the memory map of the RAM 202 shown in FIG. 2, and is a memory map in a state where the network printer control program loaded from the FD 204 is loaded into the RAM 202 and can be executed.

  In this embodiment, the network printer control program and related data are loaded directly from the FD 204 into the RAM 202 and executed. However, every time the network printer control program is operated from the FD 204, the network printer control program is already executed. May be loaded into the RAM 202 from the HD 205 in which is installed.

  The medium for storing the network printer control program may be a CD-ROM, CD-R, PC card, DVD, or IC memory card in addition to the FD. Furthermore, it is possible to store the network printer control program in the ROM 201, configure it as a part of the memory map, and execute it directly by the CPU 200.

  The network printer control program may be simply referred to as a print control program. The print control program includes a program for causing a client to perform control for specifying a grouping job (a print job for which grouping is specified) and instructing a change of a print destination. The server includes a program for controlling the order of grouping jobs, managing spools of all print jobs in the grouping job, and notifying the end of printing of a grouping job and a print destination change request. Further, the print control program of the present invention that performs such control may separately divide the module installed in the client and the module installed in the print server, or the print control program is installed by one installation. Depending on the execution environment, the execution part may be selected so as to function as a client or as a print server. The print control program in this embodiment includes both meanings.

  Reference numeral 301 denotes a basic I / O program, which has an IPL (Initial Program Loading) function for starting the operation of the OS by reading the OS from the HD 205 into the RAM 202 when the control device is turned on. This is the area that contains the program.

  Reference numeral 302 denotes an operating system (OS), and 303 denotes a network printer control program, which is stored in an area secured on the RAM 202. Reference numeral 304 denotes related data, which is stored in an area secured on the RAM 202. Reference numeral 305 denotes a work area in which an area for the CPU 200 to execute the printer control program is secured.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a memory map of the FD 204 illustrated in FIG.

  In FIG. 4, 400 is the data content of the FD 204, 401 is volume information indicating data information, 402 is directory information, 403 is a network printer control program which is a print control program described in the present embodiment, 404 Is the related data. The network printer control program 403 is a program based on the flowchart described in the embodiment. In this embodiment, the client and the server have the same configuration.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a relationship with the FD 204 inserted into the FD drive 203 shown in FIG. 2, and the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  In FIG. 5, the FD 204 stores a network printer control program and related data described in the present embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the print control module of the information processing apparatus of the present invention. The same components as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  In the figure, reference numeral 600 denotes a client machine, which indicates a machine on which a client module corresponding to a network printer control program that is a print control program for executing a procedure shown in a flowchart to be described later operates.

  In the figure, reference numeral 601 denotes application software for creating a document, a table, and the like, and outputs drawing data to the graphic engine 602 at the time of display or printing. The graphic engine 602 is a drawing means provided by the OS, and is GDI in the Windows (registered trademark) OS. The graphic engine 602 converts a GDI function (Graphic Device Interface), which is drawing data output from the application 601, into a DDI function (Device Driver Interface), which is drawing data that can be interpreted by the device driver 603 to output the DDI function. Is output to the printer driver 603 during printing. The printer driver 603 converts the data into print data including PDL (Page Description Language) that can be interpreted by the printer based on the DDI function received from the graphic engine 602, and provides the OS as a print job to which JL (Job Language) is added. The data is output to Windows (registered trademark) Spooler 604 which is a spooler. Also, the application 601 transfers processing to the printer driver 603 at the time of print setting, and the printer driver 603 displays a graphical user interface screen on the display 207 as a display unit to allow the user to perform various print settings. The OS spooler 604 sequentially transfers the print jobs received from the printer driver to the client spooler 606. The client manager 605 monitors the client spooler 606, and when print job spooling is started in the client spooler 606, determines the print job setting, and in the case of the client spool, extracts job information from the print job and prints it. A print request is issued to the server 610 and the print job is spooled in the client spooler 606. On the other hand, in the case of the server spool, the print job spooled in the client spooler 606 is issued to the print server 610 as a print request. The printing process ends. When the client manager 605 receives a print job transmission permission notification from the print server 610, the client manager 605 starts to directly transmit the print job spooled in the client spooler 606 to the network printer. At this time, the client spooled print job is held without being deleted, and can be deleted when the client manager 605 receives a print completion notification from the print server 610.

  Next, reference numeral 610 denotes a print server, which indicates a machine on which a print server module corresponding to a network printer control program that is a print control program for executing a procedure shown in a flowchart to be described later operates. Reference numeral 611 denotes a server manager that accepts a print request from each client via the network 106. When the print request is a print job including print data, the print job is spooled to the server spooler 612, and job information that has received the print request is managed by the job management table 613. On the other hand, if the print request is job information that does not include print data, the job management table is updated based on the job information. The server manager 611 monitors the job processing status in each network printer, updates the job management table 613 every time the output of the print job is completed, and starts transmission of the subsequent print job. At this time, if the print job to be transmitted is spooled by the server spooler 612, the print server 610 transmits the print job as it is, but if the print job to be transmitted is spooled by the client spooler 606, the request source Issue a print job transmission permission notification to the client. Further, the job management table 613 (job management means) controls the print order based on the job information received from the client, and further includes a print queue 615 for managing the order of issuing permission to send print jobs in sequence. And a group job management table 616 for managing whether job information of all print jobs in the group job is ready in the case of a group job.

  Reference numerals 105 and 650 denote network printers.

  Note that the above classifications are classified by function, and if both softwares are provided on the same information processing apparatus (machine), that is, if the print server from which the client requests printing is on the same machine, the network It is executed by inter-process communication on the same machine without going through, and if it is another machine, it operates as one client.

  In addition, these functions may be included internally by the OS spooler.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of job information generated by the client and managed by the print server as described in FIG. This job information is information indicating the type of print job generated by the client manager 605 based on the print job generated by the printer driver 603 of the client, and is transmitted to the print server 610 as a print request.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the job information in this embodiment includes a job ID for identifying a print job from the print server to the client, a printer name for designating an output destination device, and a machine name that is a client host name. , Print job status, document name extracted from the original document of the print job (generally the document name assigned by the application), print job data size, whether to spool the print job using the client spooler Spool method that specifies whether spooling is performed using a server spooler (may be 0 or 1 bit representation), whether or not group printing can be performed by grouping print jobs and printing control as a grouping job, and printing as a grouping job Group name, grouped printing Groups in the print order indicating the printing order in the group at the time that, and a group in the number of jobs shows the number of print jobs of the total contained in the group or the like at the time of printing grouped.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of group designation information managed by the client 600 shown in FIG. In this embodiment, this group designation information is generated when the client manager 605 receives a print job, as will be described later. The group designation information is a value designated by the user on the user interface screen provided by the printer driver when printing is designated from the application. May be generated by a printer driver.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the group designation information in this embodiment includes a client name that is the host name of its own client, a group name (ID) that indicates a group name when printing prints by grouping print jobs, and grouping information. The printing order includes the printing order indicating the printing order in the group when printing, the total number of jobs in the group, and the like.

  FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram of the present invention showing an example of a procedure for printing a group of printed jobs from three clients.

  First, the procedure of the client and the print server in the group printing according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 9, clients 1, 2, and 3 spool each print job (print job 1, print job 2, and print job 3), and notify the print server of job information from each client. The print server performs grouping based on job information, and shows a procedure for printing in the print order designated by each client, for example, print job 3, print job 2, and print job 1.

  The client 1 generates a print job to be grouped and prints, and the client spool process. When a group job is first generated, the group designation information shown in FIG. 8 and the job information shown in FIG. And instructing the print server to perform group printing using the group designation information and job information. At this time, the print server creates group information based on the received group designation information and job information, and adds and manages a new group job in the group job management table described above. This group job management table has as many cells as the total number of jobs in the group job, and the job information is received in the corresponding cell based on the printing order information in the group included in the job information received from each client. To write and update that it is in “Printing Waiting State”. The server manager 611 monitors the group job management table 616 in the job management table 613 to determine whether all the statuses of the cells corresponding to the group job name ion total number of jobs have become “waiting for printing”. If all the print jobs in the printer are determined to be in the “printing waiting state”, that is, spooled by the client or server, a print request is issued to the print queue for the output destination printer in order to start the print processing of the group job. Starts sequence control with the print job.

  Next, the job information shown in FIG. 7 is input from the client 3 and the client 2 (the group name is specified), and the group job management table is updated respectively. A print request is issued. The printing order within the group is the order of the clients 3, 2, 1, but the timing at which job information is issued to the print server and the timing at which spooling is performed by each spooler may be arbitrary. This is because the print order within the group is defined in the job information of each print job.

  When the print processing of the print job to be grouped by the printer driver is started in the client 1 of FIG. 9, after being spooled once by the Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604, the OS is spooled in the same manner as normal printing. A print job is output. The output print job is caught by the client manager 605 and spooled by the client spooler 606. In the case of client spooling, the client manager 605 generates job information while spooling the print job in the client spooler 606 and issues it to the print server 610 as a print request. Further, the printer driver 603 may generate job information. On the other hand, in the case of server spooling, the client manager 605 issues a print job spooled in the client spooler 606 to the print server 610 as a print request, and spools the print job in the server spooler 612 of the print server.

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a first data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, and corresponds to the spool processing procedure by the client 601 shown in FIG. Note that s1001 to s1006 indicate steps.

  In step s1001, the client 600 causes the user to make print settings using the print setting graphical user interface (FIG. 19) provided by the printer driver when the application 601 starts print processing. The printer driver 603 provides a graphical user interface screen for print settings shown in FIG. 19 and displays it on the display 207 via the OS. In FIG. 19, reference numeral 1901 denotes a menu for setting the type of print job. “Print” generates a print job as a normal print process, and the print job is transmitted to the print server or printer together with the print request. On the other hand, in “group printing”, a print job is generated as a group print job (also called a grouping job), and this print job is not spooled by the print server or client, and job information is output to the print server. Become.

  After the print setting value is set by the user, the application 601 starts outputting drawing data to the graphic engine 602, that is, print processing. Thereby, as described above, the graphic engine receives the GDI function as drawing data, converts it into a DDI function, and passes it to the printer driver 603. The printer driver 603 generates print data described in a page description language based on the received DDI function, and issues a print job to the Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604. The Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604 outputs the received print job to the client manager 605.

  When the client manager 605 starts spool processing of the print job received from the Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604 to the client spooler 606, the client manager 605 acquires the job ID from the server manager 611 of the print server 610. Job information as shown in FIG. 7 such as JOB_INFO_2 of Windows (registered trademark) is created. Other than the “job ID” can be generated by information in the client. For example, the “printer name” may be the name or path of the printer designated as the output destination, the “document name” may be obtained from the application 601, and the “group printing permission / inhibition” is described above. In this way, it can be generated by determining whether the setting 1901 in FIG. 19 is “group printing” or “printing”. The “spool method” determines whether the check box of the server spooler 1902 of the spool method in FIG. 19 is checked. If it is checked, it indicates that the server spooler is used, and if it is not checked, Information indicating that the client spooler is used is generated.

  The communication method between the client and the server may be a multi-protocol function such as RPC, or may be a process using a Winsock or Win32 API communication function, and does not depend on a specific communication method.

  In step s1002, the client manager 605 determines whether the job is a group print job or a normal print job. This is determined by acquiring the print settings of the print job or by looking at “group printing availability” of the generated job information.

  Also, “group printability” is specified by the user at the time of print instruction using the graphical user interface of the print setting of the printer driver, and then the print instruction is given. The display of this graphical user interface screen is the Windows (registered trademark) spooler. Each time data flows to a port that is a contact with 604, a DLL registered as a port monitor of the Windows spooler 604, a method of displaying a dialog on the client, or a port dedicated to group printing may be designated for each port. For example, the print system according to the present invention automatically identifies the print job to be grouped by the print system of the present invention, such as a specific document name used by the application or a job ID uniquely assigned by the Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604. G -Loop printing may be performed.

  This designation is different from ordinary jobs only in that designation information related to group printing is added to the job information for each job, so it can be registered as a setting for each port on the client. No special setting is required for setting the printer or printer server that is the shared resource.

  If it is determined in step s1002 that the print job is a group print job, in step s1003, the client manager 605 provides a dialog box (FIG. 17) for accepting designation from the user to the OS to display the display 207. To display. The dialog box shown in FIG. 17 can specify a group name (or ID) for specifying group printing, the total number of jobs in the group, and the print order of jobs as shown in FIG. Use the mouse or mouse to specify the group name and print order.

  The group printing designation method only needs to designate group designation information for each job, so that the group designation information sound content is uniquely determined with respect to information (document name, job ID, etc.) that can identify the job. Anything is fine. It is also possible to use a specified value held by the client, such as a registry or INI file, or hold multiple information and allow the user to select it without displaying a dialog box and entering it manually. is there.

  Next, in step s1004, based on the group name entered by the user in the dialog of FIG. 17 displayed in step s1003, the client manager 605 registers with the print server 610 whether this grouping job is a new grouping job. It is determined whether the job is a grouping job that has been performed. That is, in the designation of the group name in FIG. 17, if a new name is input by the user, it is determined that the job is a new grouping job, and the “reference button” 1701 is pressed and the grouping registered in the print server 610 is determined. When referring to the group name of the job, it is determined that the group printing has been registered. If it is determined that the printing is new group printing, the process proceeds to step s1005.

  In step s1005, the client manager 605 prompts the user to manually input information on the printing order in the new group job and the total number of print jobs in the new group job. Further, the client manager 605 adds group print designation information, which is a group name, a print order within the group, and the number of jobs within the group, to the job information shown in FIG.

  In step s1006, the client manager 605, based on the input in the dialog box, specifies the group name (which may be an ID) shown in FIG. 8 for the job information of this print job, the print order, and the total number of jobs. Etc. are added. This embodiment will be described on the premise that there is a group printing member in the job information. For example, a special member is prepared by embedding information that can identify group printing in comment information or a document name. It can be realized without doing it. (Example: A character string “Group01_1_5” is added to a comment or document name.)

  In step s1007, the client manager 605 performs print job spool processing. The spool process is performed as follows. First, the client manager 605 determines whether the print job is a client spool print job or a server spool print job by looking at the “spool method” of the job information. If it is determined that the client spool is set, the client manager 605 spools the print job received from the Windows (registered trademark) spooler 604 in association with the group designation information in the client spooler 606, and the job information of the print job (FIG. 7). And group designation information (FIG. 8) is transmitted to the print server 610. On the other hand, when it is determined that the server spool is set, the client manager 605 transmits the print job, job information, and group designation information to the print server 610 to release the print processing in the client 600.

  Next, the spooling procedure of the clients 2 and 3, that is, the procedure of adding the remaining print job to the corresponding grouping job after the grouping job is set will be described.

  Since the procedure from step s1001 to step s1003 is the same as the above process, it is omitted. In step s1004, the client manager 605 determines whether the grouping job is a new grouping job based on the group name input by the user in the dialog of FIG. 17 displayed in step s1003. It is determined whether the job is a grouping job registered in 610. In the dialog of FIG. 17, when the “reference button” 1701 is pressed by a user instruction and the group name of the grouping job registered in the print server 610 is referred to, it is determined that the group printing has been registered, The process proceeds to step s1009.

  In step s1009, the client manager 605 inquires of the server manager 611 of the print server 610 about a list of grouping jobs spooled by the print server 610. The inquiry means may be general inter-process communication such as processing an API such as Win32 API EnumJobs by RPC.

  In response to this inquiry, the print server 610 performs the following processing. First, when the server manager 611 receives a grouping job list query from the client manager 605, the server manager 611 refers to the group job management table 616 managed by the job management table 613, and returns a grouping job list for replying to the client manager 605. Is generated. Then, the server manager 611 returns the generated list to the client manager 605. In addition to various types of inquiry, various types of spool processing are performed. First, when a print request including job information is received from a client, the server manager 611 determines that there is a print request, and causes the job management table 613 to manage the print order. At this time, if it is determined that the print request is a group print job by analyzing the job information, the job management table 613 corresponds to a new job or a grouping job already registered in the group job management table 616. At this time, the server manager 611 spools the print job to the server spooler 612. When the spool method is client spool, only job information management is performed, and spool processing is left to the client.

  In step s1009, in response to the inquiry described above, the client manager 605 acquires a grouping job list from the server manager 611, generates display data, and displays it on the display 207 via the OS as shown in FIG. Let

  FIG. 18 is an example of a display screen generated by the client manager based on the grouping job list managed by the group job management table.

  Reference numeral 1801 denotes the name of the grouping job managed by the print server 610. Reference numeral 1802 denotes the printing order within each group, and the total number of jobs and the printing order are displayed. Reference numeral 1803 denotes the status of the print job. “Waiting for printing” indicates that the print job has already been spooled. “Unprocessed” indicates that the spool of the print job corresponding to the corresponding print order is still in the print job. Indicates that it has not been done. Reference numeral 1804 denotes a spool method. “Client” indicates that a print job including print data is spooled in the client spooler 606, and “Server” indicates that a print job including print data is sent to the server spooler 612. Indicates spooling. Reference numeral 1805 denotes the name of the client that has requested printing of the corresponding print job.

  In this graphical user interface, a user can determine a selection state for each print job using a pointing device such as a keyboard 206 or a mouse. In the example of FIG. 18, the print job with the second print order of Group 2 in the range indicated by 1806 is selected. In this selected state, by specifying an OK button 1807, each item of the group print designation dialog shown in FIG. 17 is automatically selected. For example, when the OK button 1807 is designated while the range 1806 is selected, the group name in FIG. 17 is “Group 2”, and the print order is automatically input as “2/5”.

  Thus, in step s1010, as shown in FIG. 18, when a print job is specified by the user, the client manager 605 determines the group name of the specified print job, and determines the determined group name. It inputs into the item of the group name of FIG. Subsequently, in step s1011, as shown in FIG. 18, when a print job is designated by the user, the client manager 605 determines the printing order of the designated print job and the total number of print jobs, and determines each of them. It inputs into each item of FIG.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the user is allowed to specify a print job in the grouping job using the graphical user interface screen and each item is automatically input. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the client manager 605 may acquire only the group name of the grouping job from the print server 610, specify the grouping job from the group name, and then specify the print order or the like by manual input from the user.

  When various designations are made in the group print job, the process proceeds to step s1006. Since step s1006 and subsequent steps are the same as those described above, description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the data structure of group print information created by the server manager 611 of the print server 610 shown in FIG. The group print information is generated based on job information received from the client and group designation information.

  As shown in FIG. 16, in this embodiment, a group name, a total number of jobs, a printer name of a printing destination, a printer status and a job ID, a printing order, a status, and a client name are included for the job.

  Next, the spool processing by the server manager 611 operating on the print server 610 shown in FIG. 6 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the second data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, and corresponds to the spool processing by the server manager 611 operating on the print server 610 shown in FIG. Note that s1101 to s1112 indicate each step.

  When the spool processing of the job from the client machine 600 is started in step s1101, the server manager 611 creates a job ID, passes the job ID to the client manager 606, and performs the following spool processing in step s1102.

  In step s1102, the server manager 611 receives job information from the client manager 606 and receives a print request. The server manager 611 also receives group designation information from the client manager 606 as necessary. When the print request is received, the server manager 611 updates the print queue and starts the print job received from the client server spooler 612 in order to start managing the print order by receiving a new job in the print queue in the job management table 613. Spool to Further, when a print job is not received from the client, that is, a print job that performs client spool processing, the print server 610 performs print order management by causing the client to perform spooling.

  In step s1103, the server manager 611 searches the job information passed from the client manager 606. In step s1104, the server manager 611 determines whether there is group printing designation information in the job information, whether the job is a grouping job that is a print job in which group printing is designated.

  If it is determined that the print job is a group print designation job, the processing differs depending on whether the spool is for the first job in the same group or the spool for the second and subsequent jobs.

  Accordingly, in step s1105, the server manager 611 determines whether the received print job is the first print job in the group based on the job information and the group designation information. If it is determined that the printing is new group printing, the process proceeds to step s1106. If the group printing information (GP-INFO) shown in FIG. 10 has already been created on the storage device, the process proceeds to step s1107.

  In step s1106, the server manager 611 creates group print information (GP-INFO) and stores the new group print information in the group job management table 616 of the job management table 613. The group print information GP-INFO is managed as list data for each printer that designates printing.

  Next, in step s1107, the server manager 611 uses the created group print information (GP-INFO) from the job information, prints the client name (or address), the print order within the group, etc. Record information.

  In step s1108, the server manager 611 determines whether the job is the first job in the same group. Here, in the case of the first job, the spool order of the job is the printing order of the group, so the position of the job is not changed, and the process proceeds to step s1110 to end the spool process.

  Next, if it is determined in step s1108 that the print order is not the first print job, the process advances to step s1109 to arrange the job information of the print jobs so that they are arranged in the designated order in the same group. The spool order of print jobs in the server spooler 612 is aligned as necessary.

  The print job spool order will be described. This process is executed during the spool process of the server spool print job. Specifically, among the jobs that are already spooled in the group print information (GP-INFO), if the job is earlier than the order of the print job being processed, the job is moved immediately after that, and from its own order. If only the back jobs are spooled, the process moves to the top, moves to step s1110, and ends the spool processing. By spooling in accordance with the print order in this way, it is easy to read out the print job when printing the grouping job. However, even if the spool order of the print job is not spooled in the print order, the print processing can actually be performed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1104 that the spool is a print job that is not a group print job, the process advances to step s1111. In step s1111, the server manager 611 confirms that the current spool position does not interrupt the job printed by the group print designation, and if the group print designation of the same group is designated to designate another order change such as priority. If it is determined that the job has been interrupted (YES), it is determined from the job information whether the preceding and succeeding jobs are group print designations, and in step s1112, the position is changed so as to be spooled behind the job information. If it is determined in step s1111 that the group print job is not entered at the normal spool position, the process proceeds to step s1110 to end the spool process.

  Next, regarding the print processing of the spooled job, the processing of the server manager 611 of the print server 610 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of a third data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the present invention, and corresponds to the processing procedure of the server manager 611 in the print server 610 shown in FIG. In this process, the server manager 611 monitors the status of managed printers connected to the network, manages spooled jobs, and starts sending print jobs to the corresponding printers in order. This is performed in units of processing such as a thread of Windows (registered trademark). Note that s1201 to s1208 indicate each step.

  First, in step s1201, the server manager 611 monitors the status of the managed printer, and when it is determined that a print job can be transmitted to the monitored printer, this process is started. In step s1202, the server manager 611 searches for job information spooled in the job management table 613. In step s1203, it is determined whether there is a print job waiting for printing among print jobs to be transmitted to the printer corresponding to the job management table 613. If this state is a steady state and there is no print job waiting to be printed, the process continues to wait until the job is spooled in step s1201 until it is determined in step s1203 that there is a print wait job.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1203 that there is a print waiting job, in step s1204, the server manager 611 determines whether the print job waiting for printing is group printing. If the printing order of the jobs designated for group printing is reached, in step s1204, the server manager 611 analyzes the group job management table 616 to determine whether all print jobs in the same group have been spooled. If it is determined that all print jobs in the group have been spooled, the server manager 611 performs print processing for the grouping job in step s1206. Specifically, based on the group job management table 616, the server manager 611 transmits print jobs that are sequentially spooled according to the printing order within the group to the printer. In this transmission process, the server manager 611 recognizes the print job spooling method in the printing order, and in the case of the server spool, reads the corresponding print job stored in the server spooler 612 and prints it to the printer via the network. Submit the job. In the case of client spooling, the server manager 611 recognizes the requesting client 1805 shown in FIG. 18 and issues print job transmission permission information including information specifying a job ID to the corresponding client. When the print data transmission processing from the print server 610 or the client 600 to the printer 105 is completed, in step s1207, the server manager 611 status information of group print information (GP-INFO) managed by the group job management table 616. The group job management table 616 shown in FIG. 18 is changed to “transmission end”, and the process proceeds to the print job processing corresponding to the next printing order. By repeating this printing procedure, jobs in the same group are continuously transmitted to the printer 105 to perform printing.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1205 that the first job in the same group is printed before all the jobs in the same group are spooled and it is determined that all print jobs in the same group are not spooled, step Proceeding to s1208, the server manager 611 transfers control to the next print job in the print queue for the corresponding printer, returns to step s1203, and continues processing for the next job in the same manner.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1204 that the print job in the print queue 615 is a normal print job, the process proceeds to step s1206, and the server manager 611 performs the print processing (print job) as described above. Delivery control). The printing process in the print server 610 is performed according to the above procedure.

  If the print confirmation is not performed, the group print information GP-INFO is also deleted when the job is deleted after the data transfer is completed.

  By executing these procedures, a series of multiple print jobs printed from multiple host computers at an arbitrary timing can be spooled to the print server together with normal print jobs, or spooled at the client. Even in this case, continuous printing can be performed collectively in the order specified for the same printer.

[Second Embodiment]
Thereafter, after printing according to the procedure described in the first embodiment, the server manager 611 of the print server 610 performs print confirmation of each print job from the printer 105 in the same manner as a normal print job, and records it in the group print information. After confirming the end of printing of all the print jobs in the group print information, the end of printing may be notified to the client manager 605 of the client 600 that spooled each job. The embodiment will be described below.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of a fourth data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The print confirmation thread (detailed procedure of the print confirmation process) by the server manager 611 shown in FIG. ). Note that s1301 to s1312 indicate steps.

  First, in step s1301, the print confirmation thread is started. This thread is started from the time of starting the server manager 611 and stays resident until the power of the server machine 610 is turned off. It may be activated only until confirmation can be obtained, and the operation is terminated at an arbitrary timing.

  After the thread starts, in step s1302, the server manager 611 waits for a print confirmation notification from the printer 105 by monitoring the status of the managed printer via the network.

  For example, in the case of a network printer in a TCP / IP network environment, this confirmation method may be polled by the print server 611 using a command such as SNMP get, or a notification from the printer 105 by trap or the like. You may receive.

  When the printer is locally connected, communication via a Centro cable may be used, and any protocol or information acquisition method may be used.

  When a print confirmation notification is received from the printer 105 in this way, the server manager 611 determines in step s1303 whether a print job error has been notified from the printer 105. If it is determined that an error has been notified, the process proceeds to step s1312, where the server manager 611 recognizes the client that requested the related print job using the group job management table shown in FIG. An error is notified to the manager 605.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1303 that an error has not been notified, in step s1304, the server manager 611 determines whether the job is a group printing job from the job information of the print job whose printing has been confirmed. If it is determined that the job is a group print job, the status of the corresponding print job in the group print job information (GP-INFO) is updated from “printing” to “printing completed” in step s1305.

  In step s1306, the server manager 611 determines whether printing of all print jobs in the group print job information (GP-INFO) has been confirmed, and it is determined that there are still jobs being printed. If it is determined, the process returns to step s1302 and waits for a print confirmation notification from the printer 105.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1306 that it is the print confirmation notification of the last job in the group, the process proceeds to step s1307, and the server manager 611 requests the print source client that requested the print job in the group. The client manager 605 of 600 is notified. After notifying each client, in step s1308, the server manager 611 deletes all the job information of the same group.

  If a print job including print data remains in the server spooler 612 after printing, the server manager 611 deletes the print data at the same time as the job information.

  After deleting the job information in the group in this way, in step s1309, the server manager 611 deletes the group print information for which printing has ended, and returns to step s1302.

  On the other hand, if a print confirmation notification for a normal job is received in step s1304, the server manager 611 notifies the client 601 of each client machine in step s1310, deletes the job in step s1311, and returns to step s1302. .

  With such a procedure, print confirmation for group printing can be performed with almost no extra processing added to the normal job print confirmation procedure.

  As a result, even if only the print confirmation for each job can be obtained from the printer 105, it is confirmed that the printed jobs are collectively printed and discharged, and are collected by the host computer that issued the print request for each print job. Can be printed.

[Third Embodiment]
In the second embodiment, it is confirmed that print jobs requested to be printed are collectively printed and discharged, and the print jobs are collectively printed on the client (host computer) that issued the print request for each print job. Although the case of notification has been described, an error may occur in the printer 105 during the printing process, and an error occurs in the printer before the print jobs requested for printing are collectively printed and discharged. Alternatively, the printing destination may be changed collectively in another printer on the network. The embodiment will be described below.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of a fifth data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention, and corresponds to the procedure for changing the printing destination by the server manager 611 in the print server 610. Note that s1401 to s1414 indicate each step. Also, in the present embodiment, a process will be described in which printing is performed according to the procedure of the first embodiment, and the print server of the procedure of the second embodiment is in a print confirmation waiting state.

  First, when print confirmation processing is started in step s1401, in step s1402, the server manager 611 acquires the status of the printer 105 and the print job based on the notification from the printer 105, and the notification from the client 601. This is a wait state for accepting.

  Next, in step s1402, when the server manager 611 is notified of a print job error from the printer 105, in step s1403, the server manager 611 determines whether it is a job error after data transfer. For this determination, the status of each job may be obtained directly from the printer 105, or if the printer 105 fails before the print confirmation is taken, it is determined that the job is an error. Even when the completion cannot be confirmed, it may be determined as a job error.

  If it is determined in step s1403 that the job has been transferred to the printer 105, in step s1404, the server manager 611 searches for the job information from the notified job ID, and determines whether the job is a group print job. Judge based. If it is determined that the print job is not a group print job, in step s1405, the server manager 611 sets the status of the print job to “error”, and in step s1406, the client manager of the client 600 that has printed the job. 605 is notified, and the process returns to the next confirmation wait process in step s1402.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1404 that the job is a group print job, the server manager 611 updates the group print information (GP-INFO) in step s1407, and proceeds to step s1408 to proceed to group print information (GP). -INFO) print job status is regarded as an error.

  In step s1408, the server manager 611 determines whether the printer is not designated as the printer change destination at the time of error. As will be described later, this determination process is determined by designation from the client at the time of an error. However, the alternative printer name information is added in advance to the group designation information shown in FIG. 8, and the group printing shown in FIG. The server manager 611 may determine by managing the alternative printer name in the information (GP-INFO).

  If it is determined that the printer has not been designated as the printer change destination, the server manager 611 simply changes the status of the print job in steps s1405 and s1406 in the same manner as a normal job. The client manager 605 of 600 is notified. In this case, the change of the print destination is not executed until an instruction is received from the client manager 605 of the client 600.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1408 that the printer is the designated change destination at the time of error, the process advances to step s1409, and the server manager 611 stores the list data of the change destination printer, for example, the printer 650. Move all the job information in the group. Also, management of group print information (GP-INFO) is transferred to the group print information list of the new printer. In this case, after changing the printer spooled automatically by the print server 611, in step s1410, the server manager 611 notifies the client of each client machine of the change of the print destination, and after the change of the print destination, As in the first embodiment, printing is performed as a group printing job.

  On the other hand, if the process proceeds to steps s1402, s1403, and s1411 shown in FIG. 14 and a print destination change instruction is issued, in step s1412, the server manager 611 specifies that the print destination change from the client is a group print job. In step s1413, the server manager 611 moves only the designated print job. If the job is a group print job, in step s1414, the server manager 611 moves the designated print job. The group print information (GP-INFO) is updated, and the process proceeds to steps s1409 and s1410. The server manager 611 changes the output destination of all print jobs in the group to the alternative printer to be changed, and the print queue in the corresponding printer. To print job To spool the job information.

  Note that the printer change destination printer designation method may be specified in the registry, INI file, or information managed by the print server, or a printer with the same printer driver may be designated at random. Any method can be used as long as the printer is designated so that the document is normally printed. In the following, a description will be given of processing in a case where the print destination of a job is changed to another intended printer by a user instruction on the client 600 after a print confirmation notification from the print server 610 when an error occurs.

  FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a sixth data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus according to the third embodiment of this invention. The print confirmation procedure of the client manager 605 and the print destination of group printing in the client manager 605 are shown. Corresponds to the change procedure (print destination change procedure after job error notification). Note that s1501 to s1511 indicate steps.

  First, in s1501, when the client manager 605 is started or after the printing process is started, in step s1502, the client manager 605 waits for an instruction. If there is any instruction from the server manager 611, in step s1503, the process starts. The client manager 605 determines whether it is a print confirmation notification. Note that the print confirmation notification is the same whether the print destination is changed or not.

  If it is determined in step s1503 that a print confirmation notification has been made, in step s1504, the client manager 605 displays a graphical user interface screen indicating a job print confirmation, such as a dialog box or a status change such as the print manager. The user is notified and displayed on the display 207 via the OS. After this notification, the process returns to step s1502.

  Here, in the case of group printing, job information is deleted after the notification process to the client is completed. For this display process, job information and group print information are acquired from the server manager 611 of the print server 610 and the group information is acquired. A special display indicating that the print confirmation of printing has ended may be performed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step s1503 that the notification is not a print confirmation notification, in step s1505, the client manager 605 determines whether the notification is an error notification. In step S1506, the client manager 605 provides a dialog indicating a job error and notifies the user by displaying the dialog on the display 207 via the OS. This display may be notified from the client manager 605 to the user as a change in the status of the print job, like a Windows (registered trademark) print manager, without displaying a special notification message.

  After the error notification is displayed, in step s1507, the client manager 605 provides a user interface (UI) for changing the printing destination such as a Windows (registered trademark) dialog box, which is shown in FIG. 2 using the OS. It is displayed on the display 207.

  In step s1508, the client manager 605 determines whether a print destination change instruction has been issued according to a user instruction. If it is determined that a print destination change instruction has been issued, the process advances to step s1509. The client manager 605 notifies the server manager 611 of the server 610 of the change destination, and returns to step s1502. Even for a group print job, it is only necessary to specify a print destination for a print job whose print destination is to be changed.

  If the print destination is changed by the server manager 611, a print destination change notification is received from the server manager 611. In this case, the process advances from steps s1502 to s1503 and s1505, and in step s1510, the client manager is changed. In step S605, it is determined whether a print destination change instruction has been issued. If the print destination change instruction has not been issued, the process returns to step s1502. If it is determined that a print destination change instruction has been issued, the process advances to step s15011. The changed print destination is notified to the user by a dialog box or the like on the display 207 shown in FIG. 2, and the process returns to step s1502. In this case, since the print destination change process of the job is finished, only the change result is notified.

  The server manager 611 of the print server 610 instructed to change the print destination from the client manager 605 of the client 600 in this way proceeds to steps s1402, s1403, and s1411 shown in FIG. In step s1412, it is determined based on the job information whether the job designated by the client to change the printing destination is a group printing job. If the job is not a group printing job, only the designated job is moved in step s1413. If the job is a group print job, the GP-INFO is updated in step s1414, and the flow advances to steps s1409 and s1410 to spool all jobs in the group to the change destination printer.

  When the printing destination of the grouping job is changed, the server manager 611 performs the following determination.

  First, the server manager 611 determines whether the changed printing destination printer is a face-up printer or a face-down printer. If the printer of the print destination is a face-down printer, it is sufficient to print from the top of the print job. Therefore, the print job is transmitted according to the print order of the group designation information (GP-INFO) managed in the group job management table 616. Control is sufficient. On the other hand, if the printing destination printer is a face-up printer, printing must be performed from the back of the print job.

  Here, the page order in one print job may be the function of the printer, and the print job may be spooled in the printer and the printing operation may be performed from the last page. In the case of a grouping job to be handled as a print job, it is necessary to perform transmission control in order from the rear of the printing order of the group designation information. Therefore, when the print destination is changed to the face-up printer, the spool method is determined in order from the last print job in the print order designated by the group designation information. If it is determined that the server spooler 612 is used, the print job spooled in the server spooler is transmitted. If it is determined that the client spooler 606 is used, the print job to be printed is printed. The transmission permission information is notified to the client manager 605 of the client that issued the request.

  When the print destination is changed from the face-up printer to the face-down printer, the server manager 611 may perform transmission control from the reverse print order to the print order. By controlling in this way, even when the printing destination is changed for a printer with a different discharge method, it is possible to perform a printing process that maintains the discharge order of the grouping job.

  The designation of changing the print destination can be instructed from any client. However, if an instruction is given earlier from another client, each client is in the same way as the print destination automatic change process of the print server. Only the change result is displayed.

  According to the above procedure, the print server 611 checks the print destination specified by default when printing cannot be continued due to an error of the printer 105 or the like before confirming the completion of printing of all jobs in the group. The print destination can be automatically changed, or the print destination can be changed collectively by an instruction from the client manager 605 of the client 600.

  In the above embodiment, the network printer has been described as an example. However, the printer is not limited to the network printer, and may be a printer that can transmit data from the print server and acquire status information, such as a printer locally connected to the print server. Any printer can be used.

  Further, the present invention can be applied even when only job information is spooled as in the virtual print server system, and even when the print server function is provided inside the network printer.

  According to each embodiment described above, even if a plurality of jobs are printed from a plurality of clients at an arbitrary timing, it is possible to print them in a specified order from the printer. Further, it is possible to confirm that all jobs printed together are printed by the client PC that printed each job. Furthermore, when printing of jobs that should be printed together cannot be confirmed, it is possible to change the printing destination printer and print a plurality of jobs together.

  The configuration of a data processing program that can be read out by a printing system to which the information processing apparatus according to the present invention can be applied will be described below with reference to the memory map shown in FIG.

  FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a memory map of a storage medium that stores various data processing programs that can be read by a printing system to which the information processing apparatus according to the present invention can be applied.

  Although not particularly illustrated, information for managing a program group stored in the storage medium, for example, version information, creator, etc. is also stored, and information depending on the OS on the program reading side, for example, a program is identified and displayed. Icons may also be stored.

  Further, data depending on various programs is also managed in the directory. In addition, a program for installing various programs in the computer, and a program for decompressing when the program to be installed is compressed may be stored.

  The functions shown in FIGS. 10 to 15 in this embodiment may be performed by a host computer by a program installed from the outside. In this case, the present invention is applied even when an information group including a program is supplied to the output device from a storage medium such as a CD-ROM, a flash memory, or an FD, or from an external storage medium via a network. Is.

  As described above, a storage medium storing software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to the system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus stores the storage medium in the storage medium. It goes without saying that the object of the present invention can also be achieved by reading and executing the programmed program code.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the novel function of the present invention, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes the present invention.

  As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a DVD, a magnetic tape, and a nonvolatile memory A card, ROM, EEPROM, or the like can be used.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (operating system) or the like running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that a case where the function of the above-described embodiment is realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written to a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function expansion is performed based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the case where the CPU or the like provided in the board or the function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

It is a block diagram explaining the structure of the information processing system which can apply this invention. It is a block diagram explaining the structure of the information processing apparatus which shows 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a memory map of a RAM illustrated in FIG. 2. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a memory map of the FD illustrated in FIG. 2. It is a figure which shows the relationship with FD inserted with respect to the FD drive shown in FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a print control module of an information processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of this invention. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data structure of job information common to a client and a server illustrated in FIG. 6. It is a figure which shows an example of the group designation | designated information managed with the client machine shown in FIG. It is a sequence diagram which shows simply the process of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 1st data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 2nd data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 3rd data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the 4th data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a float which shows an example of the 5th data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a float which shows an example of the 6th data processing procedure in the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the data structure of the group printing information produced by the server machine shown in FIG. It is an example of a dialog box screen for designating group printing provided by a module in the client. It is an example of a graphical user interface screen displayed on the client in accordance with a group job management table managed by the print server. 3 is an example of a graphical user interface screen for performing print settings provided by a printer driver. It is a figure explaining the memory map of the storage medium which stores the various data processing program which can be read with the printing system which can apply the information processing apparatus which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

105 Printer 106 Network 600 Client 601 Application 602 Graphic Engine 603 Printer Driver 604 System Spooler 605 Client Manager 606 Client Spooler 610 Print Server 611 Server Manager 612 Server Spooler 613 Job Management Table 615 Print Queue 616 Group Job Management Table 650 Printer

Claims (36)

Job management means for grouping a plurality of print jobs and managing print jobs to be sequentially printed based on print requests received from a plurality of clients;
Determining means for determining a spool destination of each print job included in the group at the time of print processing of the print jobs to be grouped and sequentially printed;
The print job that is determined to be spooled in the spooler by the determination unit transmits the spooled print job to the printing apparatus, and is determined not to be spooled in the spooler by the determination unit. A transmission control means for transmitting a transmission permission notification for permitting transmission of a print job to the client that has issued the print request,
The transmission control means determines whether the output destination printing apparatus is a face-up printer or a face-down printer. If it is determined that the output device is a face-down printer, transmission control is performed from the first print job in the print order. , And if it is determined that the printer is a face-up printer, transmission control is started from a print job after the print order. The job management means manages a spool status of each print job included in the group;
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the job management unit determines that all print jobs included in the group are spooled, the print processing is started. An alignment unit that arranges and arranges the print order of print jobs for which grouping is specified, in an order specified by the print request;
The job management means includes: a print job for which the grouping is specified and a print job for which the grouping is not specified, based on the alignment status of the print jobs for which the grouping is specified by the alignment means The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the output order is controlled. Recognition means for recognizing the status of a print job in the printing apparatus;
When the recognizing unit recognizes that the status of the print job is the end of printing, and the print job is a single print job with no grouping designation, print to a client that has requested a print request for the single print job. On the other hand, when the status of the print job is recognized as the print end by the recognition means, and the print job is a print job for which the grouping is specified, in the group including the print job, It is determined whether all print jobs are in a print end state, and when all print jobs are in a print end state, a plurality of clients that have requested print requests are notified of the print end, and at least one print job is in an unprinted state If the client has requested printing of a print job that is in a print end state within the group, The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it comprises a notification control means for controlling not to perform the notification of termination.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the recognizing unit can further recognize whether or not the print job can be printed in the printing apparatus. When the recognizing unit recognizes that the print job cannot be printed in the designated printing apparatus, the recognizing unit further includes a changing unit that changes the output destination of the print job to another printing apparatus,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein when the output unit of the print job in the group is changed by the changing unit, the output destination of all the print jobs included in the group is changed.   When the recognizing unit recognizes that the print device cannot print the print job, the change unit notifies the client that issued the print job print request to notify the client of the print destination change instruction. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the output destination of the print job is changed based on the output destination change instruction.   When the recognizing unit recognizes that the print job cannot be printed in the printing apparatus designated at the time of the print request by the recognizing unit, the change unit examines the attribute information of the print job and substitutes the attribute information specified in advance. The information processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein an output destination of the print job is changed to a printing apparatus.   8. The output destination change notification is sent to a client that has made a print request for the print job when the output device of the print job is changed by the changing unit. The information processing apparatus described in 1. A job management process for grouping a plurality of print jobs and managing print jobs to be sequentially printed based on print requests received from a plurality of clients;
A determination step of determining a spool destination of each print job included in the group at the time of print processing of the print jobs to be grouped and sequentially printed;
The print job determined to be spooled in its own spooler by the determination step transmits the spooled print job to the printing apparatus, and is determined not to be spooled in the own spooler by the determination step. A transmission control step of transmitting a transmission permission notification that permits transmission of a print job to a client that has issued the print request,
The transmission control step determines whether the output destination printing apparatus is a face-up printer or a face-down printer. If it is determined that the output device is a face-down printer, transmission control is performed from the first print job in the print order. Is started, and if it is determined that the printer is a face-up printer, transmission control is started from a print job after the print order. The job management step manages a spool status of each print job included in the group,
The print control method according to claim 10, wherein a print process is started when it is determined by the job management step that all print jobs included in the group are spooled. An alignment step of rearranging and aligning the print order of print jobs for which grouping is specified in the specified order specified by the print request;
The job management process includes: a print job in which the grouping is specified and a print job in which the grouping is not specified based on an alignment status of the print jobs in which the grouping is specified in the alignment process The print control method according to claim 10, wherein the output order is controlled. A recognition process for recognizing the status of a print job in the printing apparatus;
If the status of the print job is recognized as being printed by the recognition step, and the print job is a single print job with no grouping designation, print to the client that has requested a print request for the single print job. On the other hand, if the status of the print job is recognized as being printed by the recognition step, and the print job is a print job for which the grouping is specified, in the group including the print job It is determined whether all print jobs are in a print end state, and when all print jobs are in a print end state, a plurality of clients that have requested print requests are notified of the print end, and at least one print job is in an unprinted state If the client has requested printing of a print job that is in a print end state within the group, The print control method according to any one of claims 10 to 12, further comprising a notification control step of controlling so as not to perform the notification of termination.   The print control method according to claim 13, wherein the recognition step can further recognize whether or not the print job can be printed in the printing apparatus. When recognizing that the print job cannot be printed in the designated printing device by the recognition step, the method further includes a changing step of changing the output destination of the print job to another printing device,
The print control method according to claim 14, wherein when changing the output destination of the print job in the group in the changing step, the output destination of all the print jobs included in the group is changed.   When the change step recognizes that the printing apparatus cannot print a print job in the recognition step, the change step notifies the client that issued the print job print request and instructs the client to change the output destination. The print control method according to claim 15, wherein the output destination of the print job is changed based on the output destination change instruction.   When the change step recognizes that the print job cannot be printed in the printing apparatus designated at the time of the print request in the recognition step, the attribute information of the print job is checked, and an alternative designated in advance in the attribute information The print control method according to claim 15 or 16, wherein an output destination of the print job is changed to a printing apparatus.   18. The output destination change notification is sent to a client that has made a print request for the print job when a printing apparatus that is an output destination of the print job is changed by the changing step. A printing control method according to claim 1. A job management process for grouping a plurality of print jobs and managing print jobs to be sequentially printed based on print requests received from a plurality of clients;
A determination step of determining a spool destination of each print job included in the group at the time of print processing of the print jobs to be grouped and sequentially printed;
A print job that is determined to be spooled in its own spooler by the determination step transmits the spooled print job to the printing apparatus, and is determined not to be spooled in its own spooler by the determination step. A transmission control step of transmitting a transmission permission notification that permits transmission of a print job to a client that has issued the print request,
The transmission control step determines whether the output destination printing apparatus is a face-up printer or a face-down printer. If it is determined that the output device is a face-down printer, transmission control is performed from the first print job in the print order. A storage medium storing a computer-readable program, wherein transmission control is started from a print job after the print order when it is determined that the printer is a face-up printer. The job management step manages a spool status of each print job included in the group,
The storage medium according to claim 19, wherein when the job management process determines that all print jobs included in the group are spooled, the print processing is started. An alignment step of rearranging and aligning the print order of print jobs for which grouping is specified in the specified order specified by the print request;
The job management step includes: a print job in which the grouping is specified and a print job in which the grouping is not specified based on an alignment state of the print jobs in which the grouping is specified in the alignment step 21. The storage medium according to claim 19 or 20, wherein the output order is controlled. A recognition process for recognizing the status of a print job in the printing apparatus;
If the status of the print job is recognized as being printed by the recognition step, and the print job is a single print job with no grouping designation, print to the client that has requested a print request for the single print job. On the other hand, if the status of the print job is recognized as being printed by the recognition step, and the print job is a print job for which the grouping is specified, in the group including the print job It is determined whether all print jobs are in a print end state, and when all print jobs are in a print end state, a plurality of clients that have requested print requests are notified of the print end, and at least one print job is in an unprinted state If the client has requested printing of a print job that is in the print end state in the group, Storage medium according to any one of claims 19 to 21, further comprising a notification control step of controlling so as not to perform the notification of termination.   23. The storage medium according to claim 22, wherein the recognizing step can further recognize whether or not the print job can be printed in the printing apparatus. When recognizing that the print job cannot be printed in the designated printing device by the recognition step, the method further includes a changing step of changing the output destination of the print job to another printing device,
The storage medium according to claim 23, wherein when the output destination of the print job in the group is changed in the changing step, the output destination of all the print jobs included in the group is changed.   When the change step recognizes that the printing apparatus cannot print a print job in the recognition step, the change step notifies the client that issued the print job print request and instructs the client to change the output destination. 25. The storage medium according to claim 24, wherein the output destination of the print job is changed based on the output destination change instruction.   When the change step recognizes that the print job cannot be printed in the printing apparatus designated at the time of the print request in the recognition step, the attribute information of the print job is checked, and an alternative designated in advance in the attribute information 26. The storage medium according to claim 24, wherein an output destination of the print job is changed to a printing apparatus.   27. The output destination change notification is sent to a client that has made a print request for the print job when a printing apparatus that is an output destination of the print job is changed by the changing step. The storage medium described in 1. An acquisition unit that acquires information on grouped print jobs managed by the management server from a management server that manages a print order in which a plurality of print jobs are grouped and sequentially printed;
First user interface providing means for providing a first user interface for designating a group for grouping print jobs to be requested based on information on the print job designated for grouping acquired by the acquiring means; ,
Print request means for making a print request including instruction information to be grouped into a group designated via the first user interface provided by the first user interface providing means;
If the print job requested by the client is a print job to be grouped, an area for instructing a new group name and an existing area are provided to instruct the group name to be grouped. A second user interface providing means for providing a second user interface including an area for instructing a group name;
In the second user interface provided by the second user interface providing means, when an area for instructing an existing group name is designated, the first user interface providing means is started to start the first user interface An information processing apparatus comprising first user interface control means for controlling provision of the first user interface so that the first user interface is provided. The first user interface providing means displays a list of the print job information when the information of the print job to be grouped is managed by the management server, while the information of the print job to be grouped is displayed in the management If not managed by a server, providing the first user interface for securing a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group;
29. The information processing apparatus according to claim 28, wherein the second interface providing unit further provides the second user interface including an area for designating a printing order of each print job included in the group. .   In the first user interface provided by the first user interface providing means, when a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group is designated, the inside of the group corresponding to the designated space 30. The information processing apparatus according to claim 28 or 29, further comprising automatic input means for automatically inputting the printing order in the area for designating the printing order in the second user interface. An acquisition step of acquiring, from a management server that groups a plurality of print jobs and manages a print order to be sequentially printed, information on print jobs designated by grouping managed by the management server;
A first user interface providing step for providing a first user interface for designating a group for grouping print jobs to be requested based on information on the print job designated for grouping obtained in the obtaining step; ,
A print request step for making a print request including instruction information to be grouped into a group designated via the first user interface provided by the first user interface providing step;
If the print job requested by the client is a print job to be grouped, an area for instructing a new group name and an existing area are provided to instruct the group name to be grouped. A second user interface providing step of providing a second user interface including an area for instructing a group name;
In the second user interface provided in the second user interface providing step, the first user interface providing step is started when an area for instructing an existing group name is designated. A printing control method comprising a first user interface control step of controlling provision of a first user interface so as to be provided. The first user interface providing step displays a list of the print job information when the information of the print job to be grouped is managed by the management server, while the information of the print job to be grouped is the management If not managed by a server, providing the first user interface for securing a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group;
32. The print control method according to claim 31, wherein the second interface providing step further provides the second user interface including an area for designating a print order of each print job included in the group. .   In the first user interface provided in the first user interface providing step, when a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group is designated, the inside of the group corresponding to the designated space 33. The print control method according to claim 31 or 32, further comprising an automatic input step of automatically inputting the print order in the area for designating the print order in the second user interface. An acquisition step of acquiring, from a management server that groups a plurality of print jobs and manages a print order to be sequentially printed, information on print jobs designated by grouping managed by the management server;
A first user interface providing step for providing a first user interface for designating a group for grouping print jobs to be requested based on information on the print job designated for grouping obtained in the obtaining step; ,
A print request step for making a print request including instruction information to be grouped into a group designated via the first user interface provided by the first user interface providing step;
If the print job requested by the client is a print job to be grouped, an area for instructing a new group name and an existing area are provided to instruct the group name to be grouped. A second user interface providing step of providing a second user interface including an area for instructing a group name;
In the second user interface provided in the second user interface providing step, the first user interface providing step is started when an area for instructing an existing group name is designated. A storage medium storing a computer-readable program, characterized by having a first user interface control step for controlling the provision of the first user interface so as to be provided. The first user interface providing step displays a list of the print job information when the information of the print job to be grouped is managed by the management server, while the information of the print job to be grouped is the management If not managed by a server, providing the first user interface for securing a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group;
The storage medium according to claim 34, wherein the second interface providing step further provides the second user interface including an area for designating a printing order of each print job included in the group. In the first user interface provided in the first user interface providing step, when a space for displaying information of a print job to be included in the group is designated, the inside of the group corresponding to the designated space 36. The storage medium according to claim 34 or 35, further comprising: an automatic input step of automatically inputting the printing order in the area for designating the printing order in the second user interface.

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