JP4324526B2 - Print processing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a print processing apparatus capable of upgrading firmware.

  In a print processing apparatus (or printer), a printer driver for setting function of print processing to be executed by the printer on the host side and generating print data to be transferred to the printer and print data transferred by the printer side Since the firmware to be printed by the printer is paired and print processing is performed, the printer driver and firmware may be upgraded at the same time. However, in the conventional print processing apparatus, there is a case where an output result unintended by the user is obtained by updating the firmware where the administrator cannot know the user.

  To solve this problem, the firmware version of the main unit must be obtained from the printer driver, and if the printer driver and firmware support functions from that information, the user interface function of the printer driver must be displayed and supported. For example, a method of hiding the function of the user interface has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Also, a method has been proposed in which the printer driver and firmware have a common color module, and the version information of both versions is judged to be new and old, and synchronized so that both versions match (for example, see Patent Document 2). .
In addition, a method has been proposed in which a notification is issued when the version of the printer driver of the print request source and the version of the processing unit on the printer side do not match, thereby reducing problems during printing (for example, see Patent Document 3).
JP 2003-216375 A JP 2004-126965 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-161443

  In the conventional print processing apparatus, when the firmware is updated without the user's knowledge, the function supported by the firmware is changed, which may result in an output result that is not intended by the user. Furthermore, in a print processing apparatus having a hold job function, that is, a function that stores and saves the transmitted print data in a storage unit in the print processing apparatus, and can output it later according to a user's selection designation When the job is stored, the firmware version can be output as intended by the user. However, when the firmware version is updated, an unintended output result or output cannot be performed at the time of job output. Sometimes happened.

  In the conventional technology, if there is a mismatch between the functions supported by the printer driver and firmware at the time of job storage, it can be detected and notified to the user that the output will not be intended. When the firmware is updated, it cannot be detected that the output has an unintended result. A technique capable of automatically avoiding such a problem is desired.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances. The hold job stored in the print processing apparatus before and after the firmware update, that is, the hold job designated to use the hold job function is specified. Regarding the print jobs stored in the storage unit, those that have been determined that the expected print output can be obtained will continue to be stored, and for the hold jobs that have been determined that the expected print output cannot be obtained by updating the firmware, A print processing apparatus capable of performing appropriate processing before firmware update is provided.

  The present invention relates to a hold job accumulation unit that accumulates a print job that is a print job received from an information processing apparatus and includes print data and function information used for processing the print data, and for processing the print data Function update that extracts the functions that are not compatible with the print data of the hold job storage unit by acquiring the functions that can be processed by the new version in order to update the updatable firmware to the new version And a hold job extraction unit that extracts print jobs that are not output as expected with the new version of the firmware by using a function that lacks consistency among the print jobs stored in the hold job storage unit, And a hold job processing unit that deletes the printed print job. To provide a location.

  The print processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a function difference extraction unit that acquires a function that can be processed by a new version of firmware and extracts a function that is inconsistent with when the print data of the hold job storage unit is created, and a hold A print job stored in the job storage unit, and a hold job extraction unit that extracts a print job that does not output a print as expected with the new version of the firmware by using a function that lacks consistency. It is possible to accurately extract and delete only print jobs that do not output the expected print due to the update, avoiding the occurrence of print output defects due to the update, while leaving all print jobs unaffected by the update .

  The print processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a hold job accumulation unit that accumulates a print job received from an information processing apparatus and including print data and information on a function used for processing the print data, and the print data In order to update the updatable firmware for processing to a new version, the functions that can be processed by the new version are acquired, and the functions that are inconsistent with the print data of the hold job storage unit are extracted. Hold job extraction that extracts print jobs that do not output as expected with the new version of firmware by using a function that lacks consistency among the print jobs stored in the function difference extraction unit and the hold job storage unit And a hold job processing unit that deletes the extracted print job. To.

Here, the print job refers to a series of processes until one print data from the information processing apparatus is printed under specified setting conditions. For example, when the print data is composed of a plurality of pages, one print job is from when printing is started until all pages are printed. Alternatively, when printing of a plurality of copies is designated, one print job is from when printing is started until a predetermined number of copies of all pages are printed.
Here, the function information used for processing the print data is information notifying which option of various setting conditions for outputting the print data for each print job has been selected. This is information such as the size of the paper to be printed, whether it is color printing or monochrome printing, the type of color table in the case of color printing, and whether a special function such as a watermark is selected. In addition, some of these functions may be added in the new version or the options for the same function may be increased. Conversely, support for functions included in the old version may be discontinued in the new version. Options for the same function may be reduced. The functional difference extraction unit extracts such functional differences between versions.

  Also, if the expected print is not output, the firmware is updated from the version at the time when the print job is created on the information processing device, and the processing results in a difference. This means that different printouts are output, or printouts are not output due to processing errors.

  In addition, acquisition of functions that can be processed by the new version may be performed along with data acquisition of new firmware, but apart from data acquisition, only the function information is acquired and print jobs that do not output the expected print are extracted. May be deleted, and then the data may be acquired to update the firmware.

  It further includes a firmware management unit that stores functions that can be processed by the current version of firmware as function information, and the function difference extraction unit may extract a function that lacks consistency between the new version and the current version. Good. In this way, it is possible to easily compare the function information with the new version by previously extracting and storing the function information of the firmware of the current version.

  In addition, for each print job extracted by the hold job extraction unit, a notification unit is further provided for notifying the information processing apparatus to which the print job has been transmitted that the new version of firmware does not output the print as expected. It ’s good. In this way, by notifying the information processing device that the user who created the print job is using, the print job cannot be output due to firmware update to the user, It is possible to promptly notify the user that the print result will not be printed.

  Further, the notification unit notifies the user whether to delete the print job to be notified, and the hold job processing unit deletes the print job based on the notification selection result or holds it. You may make it do. In this way, whether or not to delete the job for updating the firmware is requested for a user who requested a print job that could result in an unprintable or unintended print result due to firmware update. Can be selected.

  Still further, the notification unit stores the print job to be notified even after the firmware is updated, and performs a notification including an option to output the print job regardless of whether the expected print can be obtained or not. Good. In this way, for a user who has requested a job that may be unable to be output due to firmware update or that may result in an unintended print result, the job is stored and the firmware is updated. You can choose to output later. If it is difficult to predict whether the impact of firmware update will be fatal or minor, the processing of a print job can be determined according to the circumstances and judgment of the user by preparing the above options.

  Alternatively, the print processing apparatus of the present invention may include a hold job forced output unit that forcibly outputs the extracted print job before updating the firmware in place of the hold job processing unit in the print processing apparatus. In this way, it is possible to forcibly output jobs that cannot be output or result in unintended print results due to firmware updates, so the created print job is deleted without being output. There is nothing.

  Alternatively, the print processing apparatus notifies the information processing apparatus, to which the print job is transmitted, of a notification for allowing the user to select whether to forcibly output the print job for each print job extracted by the hold job extraction unit. A forcible output selection notifying unit may be further provided, and the hold job processing unit may forcibly output or hold the print job based on the selection result of the notification. In this way, whether the job is forcibly output to update the firmware for a user who has requested a print job that might not be output due to the firmware update or may result in an unintended print result. You can choose whether or not.

  On the other hand, among the print jobs stored in the hold job storage unit, the print job that has not been extracted by the hold job extraction unit is not notified to the information processing apparatus, and the print job is stored in the hold job storage unit. You may make it leave. In this way, for users of print jobs that are not affected by the firmware update, update the firmware while storing the print job without bothering the user with an update notification, etc. You can get the printing you expect.

  Furthermore, a notification that the expected print is not output when processing is performed with the new version of firmware may be displayed on the display unit of the operation panel of the print processing apparatus. In this way, when the firmware update request is made, the notification is displayed on the display unit of the operation panel of the print processing apparatus. For example, the administrator of the print processing apparatus who has seen the notification display is prompted to perform appropriate processing. Can do.

  The hold job storage unit stores and stores functions used for processing of each accumulated print job in a table, and the hold job extraction unit has a function that matches the function extracted by the function difference extraction unit. A print job that does not output the expected print may be extracted by searching whether it is included in the table. In this way, by previously extracting and holding the function information of each hold job, the hold job extraction unit can efficiently extract a print job that does not output the expected print. .

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing an aspect of the configuration of the image forming apparatus (print processing apparatus) according to the present embodiment.
The image forming apparatus A forms multicolor and single color images on a predetermined sheet (recording paper) in accordance with image data transmitted from the outside. As shown in the figure, the exposure unit 1, the developing units 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d, the chargers 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, the cleaner units 4a, 4b, and 4c, 4d, an intermediate transfer belt unit 8, a fixing unit 12, a paper transport path S, a paper feed tray 10, a paper discharge tray 15, and the like.

  Note that image data handled in the image forming apparatus corresponds to a color image using each color of black (K), cyan (C), magenta (M), and yellow (Y). Accordingly, the developing units 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d, the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d, the chargers 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d, and the cleaner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d are respectively K, C, M, and Four are provided to form four types of latent images according to each color of Y, and the alphabet a at the end of the code is black (K), b is cyan (C), and c is magenta ( In M), d is set to yellow (Y), and four image stations are configured.

The photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d are disposed (mounted) on the upper portion of the image forming apparatus.
The chargers 5a, 5b, 5c, and 5d are charging means for uniformly charging the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d to a predetermined potential, and are contact type rollers as shown in FIG. Charger type chargers may be used in addition to type and brush type chargers. The exposure unit 1 includes, for example, an EL or LED writing head in which light emitting elements are arranged in an array, in addition to a method using a laser scanning unit (LSU) including a laser irradiation unit and a reflection mirror as shown in FIG. There is also a technique used for each color. The charged photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d are exposed according to the input image data, thereby forming a latent electrostatic image according to the image data on the surface. is there. The developing units 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d visualize the electrostatic latent images formed on the respective photosensitive drums 3 with (K, C, M, Y) toner. The cleaner units 4a, 4b, 4c, and 4d remove and collect the toner remaining on the surfaces of the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d after development and image transfer.

  The intermediate transfer belt unit 8 disposed above the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d includes an intermediate transfer belt 7, an intermediate transfer belt drive roller 71, an intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72, intermediate transfer rollers 6a, 6b, 6c and 6d, and an intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9.

The intermediate transfer belt drive roller 71, the intermediate transfer roller 6, the intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72, etc. stretch the intermediate transfer belt 7 and rotate it in the direction of arrow B.
The intermediate transfer rollers 6 a, 6 b, 6 c, 6 d are rotatably supported by the intermediate transfer belt unit 8, and transfer the toner images of the photosensitive drums 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, 3 d onto the intermediate transfer belt 7. A transfer bias voltage is provided for the transfer.

  The intermediate transfer belt 7 is provided so as to come into contact with the respective photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d, and the toner images of the respective colors formed on the respective photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d. It has a function of forming a color toner image (multi-color toner image) on the intermediate transfer belt 7 by sequentially transferring the images on the intermediate transfer belt 7 in an overlapping manner. The intermediate transfer belt 7 is formed in an endless shape using a film having a thickness of about 100 μm to 150 μm.

  Transfer of the toner image from each of the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d to the intermediate transfer belt 7 is performed by intermediate transfer rollers 6a, 6b, 6c, and 6d that are in contact with the back side of the intermediate transfer belt 7, respectively. . To the intermediate transfer rollers 6a, 6b, 6c, and 6d, a high-voltage transfer bias (a high voltage having a polarity (+) opposite to the toner charging polarity (-)) is applied to transfer the toner image. The intermediate transfer roller 6 is a roller whose base is a metal (for example, stainless steel) shaft having a diameter of 8 to 10 mm and whose surface is covered with a conductive elastic material (for example, EPDM, urethane foam, or the like). With this conductive elastic material, a high voltage can be uniformly applied to the intermediate transfer belt. In this embodiment, a roller shape is used as the transfer electrode, but a brush or the like can also be used.

  As described above, the electrostatic images visualized according to the respective hues on the respective photoreceptors 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d are laminated by the intermediate transfer belt 7 and become image information input to the apparatus. As described above, the laminated image information is transferred onto the sheet by the rotation of the intermediate transfer belt 7 by the transfer roller 11 disposed at the contact position between the sheet and the intermediate transfer belt 7 described later.

At this time, the intermediate transfer belt 7 and the transfer roller 11 are pressed against each other at a predetermined nip, and a voltage for transferring the toner onto the sheet is applied to the transfer roller 11 (the polarity opposite to the toner charging polarity (−)). (+) High voltage). Further, in order to obtain the nip constantly, the transfer roller 11 uses either the transfer roller 11 or the intermediate transfer belt drive roller 71 as a hard material (metal or the like) and the other as a soft material (elasticity such as an elastic roller). A rubber roller, a foaming resin roller, or the like) is used.
Further, as described above, the toner adhered to the intermediate transfer belt 7 due to contact with the photosensitive drum 3 or the toner that is not transferred onto the sheet by the transfer roller 11 and remains on the intermediate transfer belt 7 Therefore, the intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9 is configured to remove and collect the toner. The intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 9 is provided with a cleaning blade as a cleaning member that comes into contact with the intermediate transfer belt 7. The intermediate transfer belt 7 in contact with the cleaning blade is supported by an intermediate transfer belt driven roller 72 from the back side. ing.

  The paper feed tray 10 is a tray for storing sheets (recording paper) used for image formation, and is provided below the image forming unit and the exposure unit 1 of the image forming apparatus A. The paper discharge tray 15 provided on the upper part of the image forming apparatus A is a tray for placing printed sheets face down.

  In addition, the image forming apparatus A is provided with a substantially vertical sheet conveyance path S for sending the sheet in the sheet feeding tray 10 to the sheet discharge tray 15 via the transfer unit 11 and the fixing unit 12. . Further, pickup rollers 16-1 and 16-2, a registration roller 14, a transfer unit 11, a fixing unit 12, and a conveyance roller for conveying a sheet are disposed in the vicinity of the sheet conveyance path S from the paper feed tray 10 to the paper discharge tray 15. 25 etc. are arranged.

The conveyance rollers 25-1 to 25-8 are small rollers for promoting and assisting the conveyance of the sheet, and a plurality of the conveyance rollers 25-1 to 25-8 are provided along the sheet conveyance path S. The pick-up rollers 16-1 and 16-2 are attracting rollers that are provided at the ends of the paper feed tray 10 and supply sheets from the paper feed tray 10 to the paper transport path S one by one.
Further, the registration roller 14 temporarily holds the sheet being conveyed on the sheet conveyance path S. The sheet has a function of conveying the sheet to the transfer unit at the timing when the leading edge of the toner image on each of the photosensitive drums 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d is aligned with the leading edge of the sheet.

The fixing unit 12 includes a heat roller 31, a pressure roller 32, and the like, and the heat roller 31 and the pressure roller 32 rotate with the sheet interposed therebetween. The heat roller 31 is set by the control unit to have a predetermined fixing temperature based on a signal from a temperature detector (not shown), and is transferred to the sheet by thermocompression bonding the sheet together with the pressure roller 32. The resulting multicolor toner image is melted, mixed, and pressed to thermally fix the sheet.
The sheet on which the multicolor toner image has been fixed is conveyed to the reverse paper discharge path of the paper conveyance path S by the conveyance rollers 25-2 and 25-3, and in a reversed state (the multicolor toner image is placed on the lower side). Toward the paper discharge tray 15.

  Next, the sheet conveyance path will be described in detail. The image forming apparatus is provided with a paper feed cassette 10 that stores sheets in advance, and a manual feed tray 20 that does not need to open and close the paper feed cassette 10 when a user prints a small number of sheets. ing.

  In both paper feeding methods, the pickup rollers 16-1 and 16-2 are respectively arranged so as to guide the sheets one by one to the conveyance path. The sheet conveyed from the sheet feeding cassette 10 is conveyed to the registration roller 14 by the conveying roller 25-1 in the conveying path, and is transferred to the transfer roller 11 at a timing when the leading edge of the sheet and the leading edge of the image information on the intermediate transfer belt 7 are aligned. The image information is written on the sheet. Thereafter, the sheet passes through the fixing unit 12 so that the unfixed toner on the sheet is melted and fixed by heat and is discharged from the discharge roller 25-3 onto the discharge tray 15 through the conveying roller 25-2 (one side). When printing is requested). On the other hand, the sheets stacked on the manual paper feed tray 20 are fed by the pickup roller 16-2 and reach the registration roller 14 through a plurality of transport rollers (25-6, 25-5, 25-4). Thereafter, the sheet is discharged to the sheet discharge tray 15 through the same process as that of the sheet fed from the sheet cassette (when one-side printing is requested).

  At this time, when the content of the print request is a double-sided print request, the trailing edge of the sheet that has finished single-sided printing and has passed through the fixing unit 12 as described above is chucked by the paper discharge roller 25-3, and the paper discharge roller is reversed. After being guided to the conveying rollers (25-7, 25-8) by rotation, the back side printing is performed through the registration rollers 14, and then the paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray 15.

  FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a printing system according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, client computers 101, 103, 104, and 105 (information processing apparatuses) are connected to an image forming apparatus 102 via a network 106.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of each of the client computers 101, 103, 104, 105 and the image forming apparatus 102 connected to each other. In FIG. 2, client computers 101, 103, 104, and 105 include a CPU 201, a hard disk 202, a ROM 203, a RAM 204, a communication unit 205, a display 206, and a keyboard / mouse 207. When the power is turned on, the CPU 201 reads the OS and application from the hard disk 202 in accordance with a boot program stored in the ROM 203, develops it in the RAM 204, forms an image, and displays the image on the display 206. Further, by operating the keyboard / mouse 207, the CPU 201 creates print data on the RAM 204 using a printer driver read from the hard disk 202, and transmits the print data to the image forming apparatus 102 via the communication unit 205.

  The image forming apparatus 102 includes a communication unit 208, a display unit 209, an operation panel 210, a print control unit 211, a printing unit 212, a CPU 213, a hard disk 214, a ROM 215, a flash memory 216, and a RAM 217. When the power is turned on, the CPU 213 reads the firmware from the flash memory 215 according to the boot program stored in the ROM 215, displays the screen on the display unit 209, and enters a print standby state. Print data transmitted from the client computers 101, 103, 104, and 105 is received from the communication unit 208, registered as a print job in the job management unit 217, and sequentially output from the printing unit 212. If the print data is a hold job, the data is stored in the hard disk 214 and the user operates the operation panel 210 to output the job.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the flow of firmware update in the present invention. In FIG. 3, the new firmware received by the communication unit 208 according to the administrator's firmware update request 301 is temporarily stored in the RAM 217. The CPU 213 includes a function difference extraction unit 302, a firmware management unit 303, a hold job extraction unit 304, and a hold job processing unit 305. The hard disk 214 includes a hold job management unit 306 that manages job information of hold jobs, and a hold job storage unit that stores data. The function difference extraction unit 302 reads the function information of the old firmware stored in the flash memory 216 from the firmware management unit 303, and extracts the difference in output function from the new firmware. The hold job extraction unit 304 extracts a hold job using the above-described different function from the hold job management unit 306. The hold job processing unit 305 processes the job extracted above according to the processing conditions, and performs printing via the job management unit 211 and the printing unit 212.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a method for registering print data created by the client computers 101, 103, 104, and 105 in the image forming apparatus 102 as a hold job. In the process shown in FIG. 4, first, the application makes a print request for a hold job (step S4-1). In response to this, the printer driver reads the job name / user name from the application or the hard disk 202 and embeds them in the print data (step S4-2). Then, the IP address is read from the hard disk 202 or the RAM 204 and embedded in the print data (step S4-3). Further, the printer driver embeds information on functions used in the print data in the print data (step S4-4). The print data prepared in this way is transmitted from the communication unit 205 (step S4-5), and transferred to the image forming apparatus 102 via the network 106. The image forming apparatus 102 receives the transferred print data by the communication unit 208 and registers it as a hold job in the hard disk 214 (step S4-6).

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of print data registered as described above. As shown in FIG. 5, the print data is print data composed of ASCII character strings. For example, the first line of the data indicates the start of the print data. The second line indicates that the print data is a hold job. The third line indicates that the job name of this print data is “April Accounting Report”, and the fourth line indicates that the user name of this print data is “Maeda”.
Further, the fifth line indicates that the IP address of this print data is “192.168.1.1”. The sixth line indicates that the font version of this print data is 1.20. The seventh line indicates that the paper size of the print data is A4. The eighth line indicates that this print data includes color data. The ninth line indicates that no watermark is used in this print data. The tenth line to one line before the last line indicate binary data which is the main body of this print data. The last line indicates the end of the print data.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing for updating the firmware of the image forming apparatus 102. In the flowchart of FIG. 6, first, the communication unit 208 receives a firmware update request (step S6-1). At this time, the new firmware received together with the update request or thereafter is temporarily stored in the RAM 217 (step S6-2). After the storage, the function information of the new firmware is acquired from the data of the new firmware stored in the RAM 217, and the function information of the old firmware is acquired from the firmware management unit 303 (step S6-3). Next, the function difference extraction unit 302 compares the function information acquired as described above, and determines whether there is a difference in the functions related to the output (step S6-4). If there is no difference in functions related to the output, for example, if only the language data displayed on the display unit 209 has been changed, the routine proceeds to step S6-8, performs firmware update, and ends the processing. On the other hand, if there is a difference in functions related to output, the routine proceeds to step S6-5.

  In step S <b> 6-5, the process corresponding to the hold job extraction unit 304 determines whether there is a hold job on the hard disk 214. If there is no hold job, the routine proceeds to step S6-8, and after updating the firmware, the process ends. If there is a hold job, the routine proceeds to step S6-6.

In step S6-6, it is determined whether or not there is a hold job using the function difference related to the output extracted in step S6-4. The determination method will be described later. If there is no corresponding hold job, the routine proceeds to step S6-8, and after updating the firmware, the process is terminated. If there is a corresponding hold job, the routine proceeds to step S6-7.
In step S6-7, hold job processing is performed using the difference in functions related to output. Details of the processing method will be described later. After the processing for all corresponding jobs is completed, the routine proceeds to step S6-8, where the firmware is updated, and all processing is ended.

  FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a table for comparing functions of new firmware and old firmware. In the example illustrated in FIG. 7, the items in each column indicate firmware functions. As shown in FIG. From old firmware version 1.2 to Ver. When updating to 1.5 new firmware, the language data 701, color table 702, font version 703, and A4 print area 705 are changed. The watermark 704 and the B5 print area 706 are not changed. Among the changed functions, the color table 702, the font version 703, and the A4 print area 705 are functions related to output. Therefore, according to this example, the function difference extracting unit 302 performs step S6-4 in FIG. It is determined that there is a difference in output function.

  FIG. 8 is an example of a hold job list stored in the hold job management unit 306 in FIG. In the example of FIG. 8, the hold job list includes a job name 801 that is a print data job name, a user 802 that is a print data user name, an IP address 803 that is an IP address of a client computer that has transmitted the print data, and a print job. The transmission date and time 804 indicating the date and time when the data is transmitted, the font version 805 indicating the font version used for the print data, the paper size 806 indicating the paper size used for the print data, and the print data includes color data. Color printing 807 indicating whether or not the data is used and the version of the used color data, and a watermark 808 indicating whether or not the print data includes a watermark and the version of the used watermark. In step S6-6 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 described above, the hold job extraction unit 304 searches the list to determine whether there is a hold job that uses a difference in function related to output.

  An example of the determination performed by the hold job extraction unit 304 in step S6-6 in the flowchart of FIG. 6 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in FIG. 7, it is recognized that the A4 print area 705 has been changed. Then, it is checked whether there is a hold job related to the changed A4 print area 705 in the job list of FIG. In FIG. 8, there are three hold jobs whose paper size 806 is A4. Therefore, in the example of FIG. 8, it is determined that there is a hold job that uses a different function.

  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a detailed processing procedure of step S6-7 in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, the hold job processing unit 305 in FIG. 3 first notifies the user of the job to be processed (step S9-1). Here, by processing only the hold job whose function is to be changed when updating the firmware, the user is not bothered about the job whose output result is not affected by the firmware update.

  As an example of a notification method to the user, it is conceivable to notify the information processing apparatus of the IP address 803 recorded in the hold job list via the network 106. Alternatively, it may be possible to display on the display unit 209 of the image forming apparatus.

  FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a notification screen to the information processing apparatus. In the notification screen 1001 in FIG. 10, the job name 801 and the transmission date and time 804 of the corresponding job are shown, so that even when the same user has accumulated a plurality of hold jobs, the job can be identified. A message 1002 notifies that the firmware is updated and that the output result of the job differs before and after the update. Further, the message 1003 notifies the difference contents.

  Next, the hold job processing unit 305 determines whether or not the content of the message 1003 is allowed by the user (step S9-2). In this example, it is said that the hue may change, but it is considered acceptable if only the letter is in red for emphasis and if it contains a photo Is considered unacceptable. Also, it is said that a part of the image may be missing, but it is considered acceptable if the original margin is large. If the user determines that the content of the message 1003 is all acceptable, the user is caused to click the button 1004, detects this, and the routine proceeds to step S9-5. In step S9-5, the processing is terminated assuming that the accumulation is continued as it is.

  On the other hand, if the content that cannot be accepted by the user is included, the user clicks the button 1005 to detect it, and the routine proceeds to step S9-3. In step S9-3, a notification screen that prompts the user to select a processing method is displayed. FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a notification screen that prompts the user to select a processing method. The hold job processing unit 305 displays a notification screen 1101 as shown in FIG. 11 and allows the user to select whether to print the job immediately or delete the job.

Here, when the user selects the method of printing immediately, the button 1102 is clicked. If the click of the button 1102 is detected, the routine proceeds to step S9-4, the job is output, and the process is terminated.
On the other hand, when the user selects to delete a job, the button 1103 is clicked. If the click of the button 1103 is detected, the routine proceeds to step S9-6, deletes the job, and ends the processing.

  In the case of a hold job that has been stored in the hold job storage unit 307 at the time of firmware update and cannot be output normally after the firmware update, for example, if the updated firmware has an older creation date ( If there is a malfunction, it may be possible to downgrade)), displaying the notification screen 1201 of FIG. 12, omitting step S9-2 and proceeding to step S9-3. it can.

  With the configuration and processing as described above, among the hold jobs accumulated at the time of firmware update request, the hold jobs that do not cause a difference in output results before and after the firmware update, do not bother the user. With respect to hold jobs that continue to be accumulated and have different output results, an effect is obtained in that appropriate processing can be performed by the user selecting a processing method before updating the firmware.

(Embodiment 2)
In this embodiment, when updating the firmware, only the function information of the new firmware is first stored in the RAM 217, a hold job causing a difference in function information is extracted and processed, and then the new firmware is downloaded.
FIG. 14 is a block diagram illustrating the flow of firmware update in the present invention. The difference from FIG. 3 is that only the function information of the new firmware is stored in the RAM 217, and there is no firmware management unit that stores information of functions that can be processed by the current version.

  The function information of the new firmware may include the same contents as in FIG. 7, that is, language data 701, color table 702, font version 703, watermark 704, A4 print area 705, watermark 704 and B5 print area 706. .

  After the function information is stored in the RAM 217, the function difference extraction unit 302 compares the contents of the function information of the new firmware with the job table of FIG. 8, and whether there is a hold job that causes a difference in output results before and after the firmware update. Detect if. A specific example of detection will be described. The color table of the new firmware (Ver.1.5) 707 in FIG. 7 uses 3B, but the color print 807 of the April accounting report in FIG. 8 uses 2A. Therefore, the function difference extraction unit 302 determines that a difference occurs in the output result before and after the firmware update.

  As described above, a hold job that is detected as having a difference in output results before and after firmware update is deleted before firmware update. For hold jobs in which there is no difference in output results, accumulation is continued.

  After the processing for all jobs that have different output results is completed, new firmware is received from the communication unit 208 and the firmware in the flash memory 216 is updated.

  With the configuration and processing as described above, among the hold jobs accumulated at the time of firmware update request, the hold jobs that do not cause a difference in output results before and after the firmware update, do not bother the user. Hold jobs that continue to be accumulated and have different output results can be deleted before updating the firmware.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an exemplary print system according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exemplary block diagram of a client computer and an image forming apparatus. It is the block diagram which illustrated the flow of the firmware update in 1st embodiment of this invention. It is an exemplary flowchart until a hold job is registered in the present invention. It is an example of the print data of the hold job in the present invention. It is an exemplary flowchart until the firmware in this invention is updated. It is an example of the function comparison table of the new and old firmware in the present invention. It is a table which shows an example of the hold job list in this invention. It is an exemplary flowchart of the flow of hold job processing performed before firmware update in the present invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the notification screen to a user when a difference comes out in an output result before and after firmware update. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processing method selection dialog screen when a user performs a hold job process before firmware update. It is a figure which shows an example of the notification screen to a user when output becomes impossible after firmware update. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention. It is the block diagram which illustrated the flow of the firmware update in 1st embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 Exposure unit 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d Developer 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d Photosensitive drum 4a, 4b, 4c, 4d Cleaner unit 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d Charger 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d Intermediate transfer roller 7 Intermediate transfer belt 8 Intermediate transfer belt unit 9 Intermediate transfer belt cleaning unit 10 Paper feed tray 11 Transfer roller, transfer unit 12 Fixing unit, fixing unit 14 Registration roller 15 Paper discharge tray 16-1, 16-2 Pickup roller 25-1 -25-8 Conveying roller 31 Heat roller 32 Pressure roller 71 Intermediate transfer belt drive roller 72 Intermediate transfer belt driven roller 101, 103, 104, 105 Client computer, information processing apparatus 102 Image forming apparatus 106 Network 201, 213 CPU
202, 214 Hard disk 203, 215 ROM
204,217 RAM
205, 208 Communication unit 206 Display 207 Keyboard, mouse 209 Display unit 210 Operation panel 211 Job management unit, print control unit 212 Printing unit 216 Flash memory 301 Firmware update request 302 from administrator Functional difference extraction unit 303 Firmware management unit 304 Hold Job Extraction Unit 305 Hold Job Processing Unit 306 Hold Job Management Units 701 to 706 Example Table Items 801 to 808 for Comparing Firmware Functions Example 1001 for Hold Job List Notification Screen 1002, 1003 Message 1004, 1005 Button S Paper Transport Path

Claims (10)

A hold job storage unit that stores print jobs that are received from the information processing apparatus and that includes print data and various setting conditions used for processing for outputting the print data for each print job ;
In order to update the updatable firmware for processing the print data to the new version, the setting data that can be processed by the new version is acquired from the outside through communication, and the print data of the hold job storage unit is created A function difference extraction unit that extracts the setting condition that is not consistent with time;
Of the print jobs stored in the hold job storage unit, by using the setting conditions that are not consistent, the new version of firmware outputs prints that differ from the print results that should be output according to the version at the time of print data creation. Or a hold job extraction unit that extracts a print job that is not output due to a processing error in the new version of firmware ,
A print processing apparatus comprising: a hold job processing unit that deletes an extracted print job. A firmware management unit for storing the setting conditions that can be processed by the current version of the firmware as function information;
The print processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the functional difference extraction unit extracts the setting condition that is inconsistent between the new version and the current version. For each print job extracted by the hold job extractor, the new version of the firmware outputs a print that differs from the print result that should be output according to the version at the time the print data was created, or the new version of the firmware has a processing error. The print processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a notification unit that notifies the information processing apparatus to which the print job is transmitted that a notification that output is not performed. The notification unit performs notification for selecting whether to delete a print job to be notified, or not,
The print processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the hold job processing unit deletes or holds the print job in accordance with the notification selection result. Whether the notification unit stores the print job to be notified even after the firmware update and prints different from the print result to be output according to the version at the time of creation of the print data, whether or not the new version firmware outputs, The print processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a notification including an option to output the print job is issued regardless of whether or not the output is not performed due to a processing error in the new version of firmware .   3. The print processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a hold job forced output unit that forcibly outputs the extracted print job before updating the firmware instead of the hold job processing unit. For each print job extracted by the hold job extraction unit, the hold job extraction unit further includes a forcible output selection notification unit that notifies the information processing apparatus to which the print job is transmitted, a notification for allowing the user to select whether to forcibly output the print job. The print processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the job processing unit forcibly outputs or suspends the print job according to the selection result of the notification.   Among print jobs stored in the hold job storage unit, a print job that has not been extracted by the hold job extraction unit is not notified to the information processing apparatus, and the print job is stored in the hold job storage unit. Item 7. The print processing apparatus according to any one of Items 1, 2, and 6. When processing with a new version of firmware, a print that differs from the print result that should be output depending on the version at the time of creation of print data is output, or a notification that a new version of firmware does not output due to a processing error The print processing apparatus according to claim 1, which is displayed on a display unit of an operation panel of the print processing apparatus. The hold job storage unit stores and holds the setting conditions used for processing of each stored print job in a table,
Held job extraction unit, the functional difference extracting unit outputs the version of the time of writing the print data by determining whether the retrieved new version of firmware or included in the setting condition is the table that matches the set condition extracted The print processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a print job that outputs a print that is different from a print result to be performed or that is not output due to a processing error in a new version of firmware is extracted.

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