JP5012344B2 - Image forming apparatus, image forming method, and image forming program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and an image forming program for executing variable printing.

  The variable printing function is a function for creating a printed material in which a specific portion is replaced for each page, such as a business card or direct mail, and includes form printing, form overlay printing, variable printing, and the like. The print data for variable printing includes fixed data that is commonly used for multiple pages such as backgrounds, background patterns, and forms, and variable data whose contents change for each page, such as address, name, and amount. When printing is performed, fixed data and variable data are separately developed into image data, and the variable data is replaced for each page.

  In recent years, there has been a problem that the amount of data handled at the time of variable printing is increased and the printing speed is lowered as a result of the advancement of color and image quality of printing presses. For this reason, it is required to improve the efficiency of processing executed at the time of variable printing. For this efficiency, variable data is arranged earlier in the image data in the page buffer after the printing process of each page is completed. It is important to restore to the previous state.

  Here, as a general method for restoring image data in the page buffer, a method of preparing a save buffer having the same size as the page buffer and saving the entire fixed data in the save buffer is employed. ing. However, according to this method, a portion where variable data is not actually arranged (hereinafter referred to as “invariant portion”) is also subject to saving, so that a part of the saving buffer is wasted. There is a point. In particular, the smaller the proportion of variable data in the print data is, and the larger the fixed data capacity is, the larger the memory area that is wasted.

  In order to solve the above problems, a method has been proposed in which a rectangular area that is the location of variable data is detected from variable data arrangement information included in print data, and only a portion corresponding to the rectangular area is saved / restored. Yes. According to this method, it is possible to selectively save / restore only a rectangular area in which variable data is arranged. However, when performing variable printing of a complex layout in which some or all of a plurality of variable data are arranged so as to overlap each other, the overlapping areas are saved and restored in an overlapping manner, which is wasteful. However, there is a risk that the memory area used for the process will become larger.

  In relation to this, the following Patent Document 1 discloses that each of the normal page buffer and the evacuation page buffer is divided into a plurality of “cells” of a predetermined size, and each cell is variable based on the arrangement information. A technique has been proposed in which it is determined whether or not data exists and only cells in which variable data exists are selectively saved.

According to this technique, a part of fixed data is not saved in a superimposed manner, but depending on the shape and layout of variable data, a lot of invariant parts are included in a cell to be saved. Therefore, the problem that the invariant portion of the fixed data is saved in vain is still not solved.
JP 9-26781 A

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to prevent an invariable portion of fixed data from being saved / restored unnecessarily at the time of execution of variable printing, and at the same time, fixed. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus, an image forming method, and an image forming program capable of preventing a part of a variable portion of data from being saved / restored redundantly.

  The above object of the present invention is achieved by the following means.

(1) An image forming apparatus having a variable print function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data variable for each page, and a rectangle that is a destination of the variable data from the received print data An acquisition means for acquiring position information of an area; and an extraction means for extracting a new rectangular area from the rectangular area excluding a portion where the rectangular areas overlap, based on the acquired position information;
A save unit that temporarily saves a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area of the fixed data as save data, and a restore unit that restores the save data to a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded. And an image forming apparatus.

  (2) An image forming method executed in an image forming apparatus having a variable print function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data variable for each page. A step of acquiring position information of a rectangular area as a data placement destination, and a step of extracting a new rectangular area from the rectangular area excluding a portion where the rectangular areas overlap each other based on the acquired position information; A step of temporarily saving a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area of the fixed data as save data; a step of restoring the save data in a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded; An image forming method comprising:

(3) An image forming program for executing a variable printing function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data for each page, and from the received print data, a rectangle to which the variable data is to be placed A procedure for acquiring position information of a region, and a procedure for extracting a new rectangular region from the rectangular region excluding a portion where the rectangular regions overlap each other based on the acquired position information;
Of the fixed data, a procedure for temporarily saving a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area as save data, a procedure for restoring the save data in a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded, An image forming program for causing an image forming apparatus to execute the above.

  (4) A computer-readable recording medium storing the image forming program described in (3) above.

  According to the image forming apparatus, the image forming method, and the image forming program of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the invariable portion of the fixed data from being saved unnecessarily during variable printing, and at the same time, a part of the fixed data is duplicated. It can be prevented from being retracted. As a result, the amount of data handled during variable printing can be reduced, and at the same time, the memory area to be secured for saving / restoring fixed data can be minimized, so that processing during variable printing can be performed. Efficiency can be realized.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system according to the present embodiment includes a PC 1 as a client device, a printer controller 2 as an image forming device, and a printer 3 that executes printing in accordance with instructions from the printer controller 2. .

  The PC 1 and the printer controller 2 are connected via a network 4 so that they can communicate with each other. Here, the network 4 includes a LAN in which computers and network devices are connected according to standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), token ring, and FDDI, or a WAN in which LANs are connected by a dedicated line. The type and number of devices connected to the network 4 are not limited to the example shown in FIG. Further, the printer controller 2 may be directly connected (locally connected) between the PC 1 and the device without going through the network 4. The printer controller 2 and the printer 3 are connected via a dedicated interface bus such as an IEEE 1394 serial bus. However, the printer controller 2 and the printer 3 may be connected via the network 4.

  Next, the configuration of each device will be described. 2, 3, and 4 are block diagrams illustrating examples of configurations of the PC 1, the printer controller 2, and the printer 3 in the present embodiment, respectively. In addition, each said apparatus may contain components other than the component mentioned later, or a part of the components mentioned later may not be contained. In addition, portions having similar functions in each device are described only for the first time in order to avoid duplication of description, and descriptions thereof are omitted for the second and subsequent times.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the PC 1 includes a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a RAM 13, a hard disk 14, a display 15, an input device 16, and a network interface 17, which are mutually connected via a bus 18 for exchanging signals. It is connected.

  The CPU 11 performs control of the above parts, various arithmetic processes, and the like according to a program. The ROM 12 stores various programs and parameters for controlling the basic operation of the PC 1. The RAM 13 temporarily stores programs and data as a work area.

  The hard disk 14 stores an OS (operating system, basic software) and programs and parameters for controlling predetermined operations of the PC 1. In particular, the hard disk 14 includes an application for creating a document file and a printer driver for converting the document file into print data described in a page description language (PDL) that can be interpreted by the printer controller 2. Store. Examples of PDL include PDF (Portable Document Format) and PS (PostScript (registered trademark)).

  The display 15 displays various information. The input device 16 is a keyboard, a mouse, or the like, and is used for performing various inputs.

  The network interface 18 is an interface for connecting to a network and communicating with other devices on the network, and standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), token ring, and FDDI are used.

  3, the printer controller 2 includes an image forming unit 21, an image saving unit 22, an image restoring unit 23, an image synthesizing unit 24, a printer engine interface 25, a control unit 26, a storage device 27, an external storage device 28, And a rectangular extraction unit 29.

  The image forming unit 21 performs the rasterization process on the print data 5 transmitted from the PC 1 to generate fixed data 7 and variable data 8 including raster data such as a bitmap. Here, the print data 5 transmitted from the PC 1 is stored in the external storage device 28 and is read out when the rasterizing process is executed. The generated fixed data 7 and variable data 8 are stored in the storage unit 27 and are quickly deleted after being used by the image forming unit 24 as will be described later. The fixed data 7 is image data common to a plurality of pages corresponding to the background, background pattern, form, and the like. The variable data 8 is variable image data for each page corresponding to the address, name, amount, and the like. . The print data 5 includes position information (hereinafter referred to as “placement information”) of a rectangular area where the variable data 8 is placed.

  The image saving unit 22 copies only the rectangular area indicated by the output rectangular information 12 described later among the fixed data 7 developed in the page buffer 6. Further, the image saving unit 22 stores the copied image data and the output rectangle information 12 in the storage device 27 as saved data 9.

  The image restoration unit 23 restores the saved data 9 in the storage device 27 on the page buffer 6 as soon as the print image data in the page buffer 6 is transferred to the printer 3 for printing processing. Data transfer to the printer 3 is performed by the printer engine interface 24.

  The image composition unit 24 develops the fixed data 7 and the variable data 8 in the page buffer 6 based on the arrangement information in the print data 5, and generates print image data for each page.

  The printer engine interface 25 is an interface for communication with the printer 3 and transfers the print image data in the page buffer 6 to the printer 3 for print processing.

  The control unit 26 controls each unit of the printer controller 2 to rasterize the print data 5 transmitted from the PC 1, image formation, rectangle extraction, image saving, image synthesis, transfer of print image data to the printer 3, and image Perform processing such as restoration.

  The storage device 27 temporarily stores the raster data (fixed data 7 and variable data 8) generated by the image forming unit 21 and the save data 9 generated by the image save unit 22. Further, the storage device 27 includes a page buffer 6 that is an area for the image composition unit 24 to develop the fixed data 7 and the variable data 8 to generate print image data for each page. The external storage device 28 stores the print data 5 received from the PC 1.

  The rectangular extraction unit 29 acquires the arrangement information of the print data 5 from the control unit 26, and extracts a new rectangular area excluding the overlapping part between the rectangular areas to which the variable data 8 is arranged based on the acquired arrangement information. To do. Further, the rectangle extraction unit 29 generates the output rectangle information 12 which is the position information of the new extracted rectangular area and passes it to the control unit 26. The processing procedure for generating the output rectangle information 12 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the printer 3 includes a control unit 31, a storage unit 32, an operation unit 33, a printing unit 34, and a printer controller interface 35, which are mutually connected via a bus 36 for exchanging signals. It is connected to the.

  The control unit 31 is a CPU, and controls the above units and performs various arithmetic processes according to a program. The storage unit 32 stores a variety of programs and parameters in advance, a ROM that temporarily stores programs and data as a work area, stores various programs and parameters, or stores image data obtained by image processing, and the like. Consists of a hard disk or the like used for temporary storage.

  The operation unit 33 displays various information or a touch panel for inputting various settings, a numeric keypad for setting the number of copies, a start key for instructing start of operation, a stop key for instructing stop of operation, and various setting conditions in the initial stage. It consists of various fixed keys such as reset keys, display lamps and the like.

  The printing unit 34 prints and discharges image data on a sheet of paper through the respective processes of charging, exposure, development, transfer, and fixing by electrophotography. However, the printing method of the printing unit 34 in the present invention is not limited to this, and other than the electrophotographic method, an impact method, a thermal transfer method, an ink jet method, or the like may be used.

  The printer controller interface 35 is an interface for communicating with the printer controller 2.

  Next, the print data 5 and the arrangement information 10 in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a print image based on the print data 5 for each page. As shown in FIG. 5, the print image of the print data 5 is a total of two pages, and the print image of each page is based on an image based on the fixed data 7 common to both pages and an image based on the variable data 8 replaced for each page. Become.

  Next, FIG. 6 is a diagram separately showing an image based on the fixed data 7 and an image based on the variable data 8. As shown in FIG. 6, the print data 5 includes one fixed data 7A and five variable data 8A-1 (8A-2), 8B-1 (8B-2), 8C-1 (8C-2) for each page, It can be seen that 8D-1 (8D-2) and 8E-1 (8E-2) are included (the number after “-” represents the page number). FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the arrangement information 10 of the print data 5. As shown in FIG. 7, the arrangement information 10 is information indicating the position (coordinate X, coordinate Y) and dimension (width, height) of a rectangular area where each variable data 8 is arranged.

  Next, a processing procedure for the variable print data 5 by the control unit 26 of the printer controller 2 will be described. Note that the print data 5 processed in the following description is exemplified in FIGS. Further, as a precondition for performing the processing, it is assumed that the print data 5 generated by the printer driver of the PC 1 or a dedicated application is transmitted to the printer controller 2 side and stored in the external storage device 28. .

  First, the control unit 26 passes the print data 5 in the external storage device 28 to the image forming unit 21, performs rasterization processing on the print data 5, and generates the fixed data 7 and variable data 8. 21 is instructed (S101).

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 acquires the arrangement information of the print data 5 and passes it to the image composition unit 24, and instructs the image composition unit 24 to develop the fixed data 7 generated in S101 in the page buffer 6 (S102). ).

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 passes the arrangement information of the print data 5 to the rectangle extracting unit 29, detects an overlapping portion between the rectangular areas where the variable data 8 is arranged, and detects the overlapping portion detected. A new rectangular area is extracted, and the rectangular extraction unit 29 is instructed to generate output rectangular information 12 that is the arrangement information of the extracted new rectangular area (S103). The processing procedure of the rectangle extraction unit 29 at this time will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 passes the output rectangle information 12 generated by the rectangle extraction unit 29 to the image saving unit 22, and among the fixed data 7 developed in the page buffer 6, the rectangle indicated by the output rectangle information 12. The image saving unit 22 is instructed to save the portion corresponding to the area outside the page buffer 6 (S104). The processing procedure of the image saving unit 22 at this time will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 passes the arrangement information of the print data 5 to the image composition unit 24, further develops the variable data 8 in the page buffer 6 based on the arrangement information, and generates print image data for one page. The image composition unit 24 is instructed (S105).

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 transmits the print image data in the page buffer 6 to the printer 3 through the printer engine interface 35 for the printing process by the printer 3 (S106).

  Subsequently, the control unit 26 analyzes whether or not the transfer of the print image data for all pages is completed. If the transfer is completed (YES in S107), the process ends. If the transfer has not been completed (NO in S107), the image restoration unit 23 is instructed to restore the fixed data 7 by expanding the saved data 9 in the storage device 27 in the page buffer 6 (S108). , One page is advanced, and the process returns to S105. The processing procedure of the image restoration unit 23 at this time will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In the above description, there is only one fixed data 7 included in the print data 5, and the common fixed data 7 is used for all pages. However, there are a plurality of fixed data 7 included in the print data 5. In that case, each time the fixed data 7 is replaced, the process of the flowchart of FIG. 5 is repeated.

  Next, FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process (S103) of the rectangle extracting unit 29. First, the rectangle extraction unit 29 acquires the arrangement information 10 in the print data 5, and sets the acquired arrangement information 10 as the input rectangle information 11 (S201). For example, the contents of the input rectangle information 11 in which the arrangement information 10 in FIG. 7 is set are as shown in FIG.

  Subsequently, the rectangle extraction unit 29 detects the rectangles included in the input rectangle information 11 that are completely contained in other rectangles, and excludes the detected rectangles from the input rectangle information 11 (S202). In the example of FIG. 7, the rectangle e is completely included in the rectangle d and is excluded from the input rectangle information 11. The contents of the input rectangle information 11 after the rectangle e is excluded in this way are as shown in FIG.

  Subsequently, the rectangle extraction unit 29 classifies the rectangles included in the input rectangle information 11 into an intersecting rectangle that intersects with another rectangle and a non-intersecting rectangle that does not intersect with another rectangle (S203). In the example of FIG. 7, the rectangle c does not intersect with any other rectangle, and thus is classified as a non-intersecting rectangle. Further, since the rectangle a intersects with the rectangle d and the rectangle b intersects with the rectangle d, the rectangle a, the rectangle b, and the rectangle d are all classified as intersecting rectangles. In the example of FIG. 7, the contents of the input rectangular information 11 after the intersection / non-intersection classification is performed are as shown in FIG.

  Subsequently, the rectangle extraction unit 29 excludes rectangles classified as non-intersecting rectangles from the input rectangle information 11 and newly adds them to the output rectangle information 12 (S204). In the example of FIG. 7, the rectangle c classified as a non-intersecting rectangle is excluded from the input rectangle information 11 and newly added to the output rectangle information 12. After the addition / exclusion of the rectangle c is performed in this way, The contents of the input rectangle information 11 and the output rectangle information 12 are as shown in FIG.

  Subsequently, the rectangle extracting unit 29 analyzes whether or not there is an intersecting rectangle in the input rectangle information 11, and if there is no intersecting rectangle (NO in S205), the output rectangle information 12 at that time is displayed. After transmission to the control unit 26 (S208), the process returns to the flowchart of FIG. 8 (return).

On the other hand, if there is an intersection rectangle in the input rectangle information 11 (YES in S205), after the intersection rectangle is excluded from the input rectangle information 11, a rectangle that forms an intersection area and a non-intersection area between the intersection rectangles is detected. (S206) After the detected rectangle is newly added to the input rectangle information 11 (S207), the process returns to S202. In the example of FIG. 7, the rectangle that forms the intersection region of the rectangle a and the rectangle d is the rectangle h in FIG. 14, and the rectangle that forms the non-intersection region is the rectangle f, the rectangle g, and the rectangle i in FIG. Further, the rectangle that forms the intersection region of the rectangle b and the rectangle d is the rectangle l in FIG. 15, and the rectangle that forms the non-intersection region is the rectangle j, the rectangle k, and the rectangle m in FIG. In S207, the contents of the input rectangle information 11 after the rectangles f to i in FIG. 14 and j to m in FIG. 15 are added are as shown in FIG. In S202, the rectangle g included in the rectangle k, the rectangle h included in the rectangle k, the rectangle l included in the rectangle i, and the rectangle m included in the rectangle i are excluded (FIG. 17). Furthermore, when the rectangle f, rectangle i, rectangle j, and rectangle k are classified as non-intersecting rectangles in FIG. 18 (FIG. 18), the rectangle f, rectangle i, rectangle j, and rectangle k that are non-intersecting rectangles are output rectangles in S204. Added to information 12. As shown in FIG. 19, the output rectangle information 12 at this time includes a rectangle c, a rectangle f, a rectangle i, a rectangle j, and a rectangle k. At this point, since there are no more intersecting rectangles (NO in S205), the output rectangle information 12 in FIG. 19 is transmitted to the control unit 26 in S208. Next, FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of S104). First, the image saving unit 22 acquires the output rectangle information 12 generated by the rectangle extracting unit 29 from the control unit 26 (S301). Subsequently, the image saving unit 33 extracts one piece of rectangular information from the acquired output rectangular information 12 (S302), and copies the rectangular area corresponding to the rectangular information in the fixed data 7 developed in the page buffer 6. (S303) The copied data is saved in the storage area 27 as saved data 9 (S304).

  Subsequently, the image saving unit 23 analyzes whether or not the processing of S302 to S304 has been completed for all the rectangular information included in the output rectangular information 12, and if completed (YES in S305), Returning to the flowchart of FIG. 8 (return), if not completed (NO in S305), the process returns to S302.

  Next, FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the process (S104) of the image restoration unit 23. First, the image restoration unit 23 extracts a portion corresponding to one piece of rectangular information from the saved data 9 saved in S104 (S401), and develops the extracted data in the page buffer 6 based on the rectangular information. The saved data 9 is restored (S402).

  Subsequently, the image restoration unit 23 analyzes whether or not the restoration of all the saved data 9 is completed, and when the restoration of all the saved data 9 is completed (YES in S403), the flowchart of FIG. Return (return), if not completed (NO in S403), return to S401.

  As described above, according to the printer controller 2 of the present embodiment, at the time of executing variable printing, it is possible to prevent the fixed portion of the fixed data from being saved unnecessarily, and at the same time, to partially save the fixed data. This can be prevented. As a result, the amount of data handled during variable printing can be reduced, and at the same time, the memory area to be secured for saving / restoring fixed data can be minimized, so that processing during variable printing can be performed. Efficiency can be realized.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the claims. For example, in the above embodiment, the case where the fixed data is included in the print data has been described. However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to this, and the fixed data is stored in advance in an external storage device of the printer controller. Such a configuration is also possible. In this case, the fixed data image forming process is not required, so that the efficiency of the variable printing process can be further improved.

  In the above embodiment, the printer controller has been described as an example of the image processing apparatus according to the present invention, but the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto. As another aspect of the image forming apparatus of the present invention, a printer controller built-in printer, a printer controller built-in MFP (Multi Function Peripheral Peripheral Peripheral Device), and the like are conceivable.

  The image forming apparatus and the image forming method according to the present invention can be realized by a dedicated hardware circuit for executing each procedure described above, or by executing a program describing each procedure described above by a CPU. . When the present invention is realized by the latter, the program for operating the image forming apparatus may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a floppy (registered trademark) disk or a CD-ROM, or a network such as the Internet. May be provided online. In this case, the program recorded on the computer-readable recording medium is usually transferred and stored in a ROM, a hard disk or the like. Further, this program may be provided as, for example, a single application software, or may be incorporated in the software of the apparatus as one function of the image forming apparatus.

1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of PC1 in FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer controller 2 in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer 3 in FIG. 1. It is a figure which shows the print image of the print data 5 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the image based on the fixed data 7 and the variable data 8 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the arrangement information 10 of the print data 5 concerning embodiment of this invention. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of a control unit 26 of the printer controller 2 according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process of the rectangle extraction part 29 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the rectangular intersection area | region and non-intersection area | region contained in the input rectangle information 11 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the rectangular intersection area | region and non-intersection area | region contained in the input rectangle information 11 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the input arrangement information 11 and the output arrangement information 12 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process of the image saving part 22 concerning embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process of the image restoration part 23 concerning embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 PC,
2 Printer controller 21 Image forming unit,
22 Image saving unit,
23 Image restoration unit,
24 Image composition unit,
25 printer engine interface 26 control unit,
27 storage device,
28 external storage device,
29 rectangle extraction unit,
3 Printer,
4 network,
5 Print data,
6 page buffer,
7 fixed data,
8 Variable data,
9 Saved data,
10 Placement information,
11 Input rectangle information,
12 Output rectangle information.

Claims (4)

An image forming apparatus having a variable printing function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data variable for each page,
An acquisition means for acquiring position information of a rectangular area where the variable data is to be arranged, from the received print data;
Based on the acquired position information, an extraction means for extracting a new rectangular area from the rectangular area excluding a portion where the rectangular areas overlap with each other; and
A saving unit that temporarily saves a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area of the fixed data as save data;
An image forming apparatus comprising: a restoring unit that restores the saved data to a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded. An image forming method executed in an image forming apparatus having a variable printing function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data variable for each page,
Obtaining the position information of the rectangular area to which the variable data is to be arranged from the received print data;
Based on the acquired position information, extracting from the rectangular area a new rectangular area excluding a portion where the rectangular areas overlap, and
A step of temporarily saving a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area of the fixed data as save data;
An image forming method comprising: restoring the saved data to a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded. An image forming program for executing a variable printing function for printing fixed data common to a plurality of pages and variable data variable for each page,
From the received print data, a procedure for obtaining position information of the rectangular area where the variable data is to be arranged;
Based on the acquired position information, a procedure for extracting a new rectangular area excluding a portion where the rectangular areas overlap from the rectangular area; and
Of the fixed data, a procedure for temporarily saving a portion corresponding to the new rectangular area as save data;
An image forming program that causes an image forming apparatus to execute a procedure for restoring the saved data to a page buffer in which the fixed data and the variable data are expanded.   A computer-readable recording medium storing the image forming program according to claim 3.

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