JP5104446B2 - Print control apparatus, program, and system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a print control apparatus, a program, and a system.

  Conventionally, in a printing system in which an information processing apparatus, a print server, and a printing apparatus can communicate with each other via a network, it is desired to send a print job from the information processing apparatus to the print server and print from the print job stored in the print server Printing is performed by selecting a print job and transferring the selected print job to a desired printing apparatus. Note that the print server and the printing apparatus may be integrated.

In such a printing system, when a print job is transmitted from the information processing apparatus to the print server, an estimate of the printing fee based on the specified printing conditions (single / double-sided, black / white / color, Nin1, etc.) and the specified There has been proposed a printing system that presents an estimate of a printing fee based on a printing condition (alternative) other than the printing condition, and executes printing according to the printing condition selected by the user (for example, Patent Document 1). There has also been proposed a printing system that calculates a printing fee estimate based on an alternative within an upper limit amount specified by a user when transmitting a print job (for example, Patent Document 2). There has also been proposed a printing system that presents a printing fee based on the cost of consumables required when a print job is executed based on designated printing conditions (for example, Patent Document 3).
JP 2000-081959 A JP 2005-316526 A JP 2003-228474 A

  Even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being conscious of print settings, the present invention can select a simple print mode and perform printing at a low printing cost when issuing a print instruction. An object of the present invention is to provide a print control apparatus, a program, and a system that can perform the above-described process.

In order to achieve the above object, a print control apparatus according to the present invention includes a reception unit that receives a print job including print data generated by a printer driver based on document data from an information processing apparatus, and the print data received by the reception unit. Based on any one of the print data processed by the receiving means, the print data received by the receiving means, and the print data processed by the processing means so that a part of the print data is printed Instruction information transmitting means for transmitting information for instructing whether or not to execute printing to a terminal apparatus for issuing a printing instruction, receiving means for receiving a printing instruction from the terminal apparatus, and printing received by the receiving means Based on the instructions, the print data received by the receiving means and the print data processed by the processing means It is configured to include a print data transmitting means for transmitting either the print data to the printing apparatus of the.

  Further, the processing means of the printing control apparatus of the present invention is configured such that, when the print data received by the receiving means is print data including text data and bitmap data, a portion based on the bitmap data is replaced with a blank. The print data can be processed so as to be printed.

  Further, the processing means of the print control apparatus of the present invention, when the print data received by the receiving means is print data including the same background image data on each page, a background image based on the same background image data The print data can be processed so that the image is removed and printed.

  Further, the processing means of the print control apparatus of the present invention replaces a predetermined area determined according to the predetermined form with a blank when the print data received by the receiving means is print data of a predetermined form. The print data can be processed so as to be printed.

  Further, the processing means of the print control apparatus of the present invention extracts text data from the print data received by the receiving means, and processes the print data so that the extracted text data is printed. Can do.

  Further, the processing means of the print control apparatus of the present invention, when the print data received by the receiving means is print data of a predetermined form, prints corresponding to a predetermined area determined according to the predetermined form Text data can be extracted from the data, and the print data can be processed so that the extracted text data is printed.

In addition, the instruction information transmission unit of the print control apparatus of the present invention transmits a list of print job information according to a request from the terminal device, and the reception unit selects the terminal device according to selection based on the list. It is possible to receive a print instruction transmitted from the .

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a print control program for receiving a print job including print data generated by a printer driver based on document data from an information processing apparatus, and a part of the print data received by the reception unit. Print based on any one of the processing data that is processed by the receiving unit so that the print data is printed, the print data that is received by the receiving unit, and the print data that is processed by the processing unit Based on the instruction information transmitting means for transmitting information for instructing to the terminal apparatus for performing the print instruction, the receiving means for receiving the print instruction from the terminal apparatus, and the print instruction received by the receiving means Print data received by the receiving means and print data processed by the processing means. A print data transmitting means for transmitting one of the print data of data to the printing apparatus is intended for causing to function.

  The print control program of the present invention is for causing a computer to function as the print control apparatus.

The print control system of the present invention also includes an information processing apparatus that transmits print data, and a print job that is transmitted from the information processing apparatus and includes print data generated by a printer driver based on document data, from the information processing apparatus. A receiving unit for receiving, a processing unit for processing the print data received by the receiving unit so that a part of the print data received by the receiving unit is printed, the print data received by the receiving unit, and the processing unit A print control apparatus including an instruction information transmission unit that transmits information for instructing which print data is to be printed based on the print data processed by the process, and information transmitted by the instruction information transmission unit. The terminal device for receiving the print instruction and receiving the print instruction based on the print instruction from the terminal device A printing apparatus that receives print data received from the printing unit and print data processed by the processing unit from the print control apparatus, and executes printing according to a print instruction. ing.

  As described above, according to the print control apparatus of the first aspect, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being conscious of print settings, a simple print request can be made. It is possible to obtain an effect that printing can be performed at a low printing cost by selecting a printing mode.

  According to the print control apparatus of claim 2, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being aware of the print settings, the image portion is replaced with a blank in the print instruction. There is an effect that it is possible to select a simple print mode and perform printing at a low printing cost by reducing the amount of toner used.

  According to the print control apparatus according to claim 3, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being conscious of print settings, the simple background image portion is removed at the time of print instruction. An effect is obtained that printing can be performed at a low printing cost by reducing the amount of toner used by selecting an appropriate printing mode.

  According to the print control apparatus of the fourth aspect, even when the print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being aware of the print setting, the predetermined area is replaced with a blank in the print instruction. It is possible to obtain an effect of selecting a simple print mode and performing printing at a low printing cost by reducing the number of pages and the amount of toner used.

  According to the print control apparatus according to claim 5, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being aware of print settings, a simple print mode of only text data is provided when a print instruction is issued. Is selected, and printing can be performed at a low printing cost by reducing the number of pages and the amount of toner used.

  According to the print control apparatus according to claim 6, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being conscious of print settings, only text data in a predetermined area is simplified when a print instruction is issued. An effect is obtained that printing can be performed at a low printing cost by selecting an appropriate print mode and reducing the number of pages and the amount of toner used.

  According to the print control program of claim 8, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being aware of print settings, a simple print mode is selected at the time of print instruction. Thus, it is possible to perform printing at a low printing cost.

  According to the print control program of claim 9, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being aware of print settings, a simple print mode is selected at the time of print instruction. Thus, it is possible to perform printing at a low printing cost.

  According to the print control system of claim 10, even when print data including information other than necessary information is transmitted without being conscious of print settings, a simple print mode is selected at the time of print instruction. Thus, it is possible to perform printing at a low printing cost.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a print control system 10 according to the present embodiment.

  The print control system 10 includes a print server 12, a client PC 14, and a printer 16 each connected to a network 20 such as a LAN, and a terminal device 18 connected to the printer 16. The terminal device 18 is connected to the network via the printer 16 and transmits / receives data to / from the print server 12 or the like.

  In the client PC 14, a print job is generated and transmitted to the print server 12. More specifically, when the user of the client PC 14 designates printing of some document data, the printer driver installed in the client PC 14 is activated. The printer driver generates a print job from the document data designated for printing and transmits it to the print server 12. A print job is composed of attribute data and print data. The attribute data includes information such as the name of the print job, the owner name of the print job (name of the print job creator, that is, the requester of the print job), the size of the print job, the presence / absence of double-sided printing, and monochrome / color printing.

  The printer driver converts document data designated for printing by the user into PDL data, and generates print data for the print job. The printer driver transmits a print job including the generated attribute data and print data to the print server 12. Such generation / transmission of a print job is a process generally performed by a conventional printer driver.

  When the print server 12 receives a print job from the client PC 14, the print server 12 stores the print job and transmits the print job to the designated printer 16 in accordance with an instruction from the terminal device 18. Further, the processing described later is performed on the print data.

  When the printer 16 receives a print job from the print server 12, the printer 16 performs print processing based on the print job.

  The terminal device 18 includes a list request instruction for a print job stored in the print server 12, input means for issuing a print instruction, and display means for displaying a list of print jobs. . As the input unit and the display unit, a display unit with a touch panel, an information processing apparatus including a display, a mouse, a keyboard, and the like can be used.

  Although FIG. 1 illustrates the case where each of the client PC 14, the printer 16, and the terminal device 18 is connected to the network 20, the present invention is not limited to this, and each is connected to the plurality of networks 20. May be.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing the hardware configuration of the print server 12.
As shown in FIG. 2, the print server 12 includes a CPU 30 that controls the entire print server 12, a ROM 32 as a storage medium that stores a print control processing routine and a print data processing routine described later, and data as a work area. RAM 34 for temporarily storing data, HDD 36 as storage means for storing received print jobs, network interface (I / F) 38 for transmitting and receiving data via network 20, and bus 40 for connecting them. It is configured. The HDD 36 may be a storage device provided outside the print server 12.

  The storage medium for storing the program executed by the CPU 30 is not limited to the ROM 32. For example, the storage medium is a HDD 36 or a portable recording medium such as a DVD disk, a magneto-optical disk, or an IC card (not shown). It may also be a database connected via a line, or another computer system and its database, or a transmission medium on the line. Therefore, it is possible not only to provide a program or the like according to an embodiment of the present invention, which will be described later, via a communication medium, but also to store it on a recording medium such as a CD-ROM.

  The print server 12 will be described in terms of functional blocks divided for each function realization means determined based on hardware and software. As shown in FIG. 3, a print job reception unit 42 for receiving a print job transmitted from the client PC 14. The original data copy unit 44 that copies the print data of the original print job (hereinafter also referred to as original data) received by the print job reception unit 42, and the print that processes the print data copied by the original data copy unit 44 A data processing unit 46, an original print job, a print job holding unit 48 that holds the print data processed by the print data processing unit in association with each other, an instruction reception that receives a list request instruction and a print instruction transmitted from the terminal device 18. 50, printing based on print job attribute data A list generation unit 52 that generates a list of information related to the print job held in the job holding unit 48, and a print job transmission unit 54 that transmits the print job to the printer 16 based on the print instruction received by the instruction reception unit 50. Can be expressed in a configuration including

  With reference to FIG. 4, the print control processing routine of this embodiment will be described.

  In step 100, the print job reception unit 42 determines whether a print job has been received from the client PC 14. If received, the process proceeds to step 102. If not received, the process waits until it is received.

  In step 102, the original data copy unit 44 copies the print data of the received print job. Next, in step 104, the print data processing unit 46 performs print data processing on the copied print data. Perform routine processing.

  Here, the print data processing routine of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step 200, parsing of the print data that is PDL data is performed, and the ratio of the image area to the entire print result is calculated based on the bitmap data included in the print data. Then, it is determined whether the calculated ratio of the image area is equal to or less than a predetermined value. If the image area is equal to or smaller than the predetermined value, the process proceeds to step 204.

  In step 204, the print data is processed so that the image portion corresponding to the bitmap data is replaced with a blank (white box) and printed. Information that processing data with the image replaced with blanks is generated is added to the attribute data of the original print job, and the original print job and the generated processing data are associated with each other and stored in the print job holding unit 48. To do.

  If it is determined in step 202 that the image area is larger than the predetermined value, the print result printed based on the original print job is mainly composed of an image. It seems to be meaningless to replace the part with a blank. Therefore, the predetermined value for determining the ratio of the image area is a value that can determine whether the print result is mainly composed of an image or text, for example, if the image area is 80% or more, the image is mainly composed. It can be set to a value that can be determined.

  Next, in step 206, the print data is parsed to determine whether the print data has a plurality of pages and each page includes the same background image. This determination is made by confirming whether or not the same image is set as the background in the same area of each page for a predetermined number of pages (for example, 5 pages). When the print data is equal to or less than the predetermined number of pages, all pages are confirmed. If the same background image is included, the process proceeds to step 208; otherwise, the process proceeds to step 210.

  In step 208, the data corresponding to the background image is deleted for all pages so that the background image is removed and printed. The information that the processed data from which the background image is removed is generated is added to the attribute data of the original print job, and the original print job and the generated processed data are associated with each other and stored in the print job holding unit 48. .

  In step 210, the print data is parsed and rendered from the PDL data state to a state that is reproduced as a print result. Pattern matching is performed between the rendering result and a predetermined form set in advance, and it is determined whether or not the result corresponds to the predetermined form. The predetermined form is, for example, a news site or blog page provided on the web, in which a fixed image is inserted in a predetermined area of the page (for example, the beginning or the end), or a predetermined area of the page ( For example, a form in which an area for displaying advertisements and related information is provided at the right end). If it corresponds to the predetermined form, the process proceeds to step 212, and if not, the process proceeds to step 216.

  Next, in step 212, the print data is processed so that a portion corresponding to a predetermined area predetermined according to a predetermined form is masked with a blank. The predetermined area of the predetermined form refers to an area where a fixed image is inserted in the above example, an area where advertisements and related information are displayed, and the like. The information on the predetermined form and the predetermined area is created in advance with reference to a frequently used web page or the like and stored in the ROM 32, the HDD 36, or the like. Information that processing data masking a predetermined area has been generated is added to the attribute data of the original print job, and the original print job and the generated processing data are associated with each other and stored in the print job holding unit 48. .

  Next, in step 214, text data is extracted from the print data corresponding to the area other than the area masked in step 212, and the extracted text data is converted into PDL data. The converted PDL data is used as processed data. Information that processing data generated by extracting text data from a region other than a predetermined region of a predetermined form and converting it into PDL data is added to the attribute data of the original print job, and the original print job and the generated processing The data is stored in the print job holding unit 48 in association with the data.

  Next, in step 216, text data is extracted from the entire print data, and the extracted text data is converted into PDL data. The converted PDL data is used as processed data. Information that processing data is generated by extracting text data from the entire print data and converted to PDL data is added to the attribute data of the original print job, and the original print job and the generated processing data are associated. At the same time, it is stored in the print job holding unit 48, and this routine is terminated and the process returns.

  Next, returning to the print control processing routine of FIG. 4, in step 106, the instruction receiving unit 50 determines whether a list request instruction has been received from the terminal device 18. If accepted, the process proceeds to step 108. If not accepted, the process waits until accepted.

  In step 108, the list generation unit 52 generates a list related to the print job information held in the print job holding unit 48 based on the list request instruction received by the instruction receiving unit 50. Specifically, the user who requests the list specifies the owner name of the print job when instructing the list request from the terminal device 18. The owner name of the print job is included in the list request instruction and transmitted to the print server 12. The list generation unit 52 acquires the print job owner name from the list request instruction received by the instruction reception unit 50, and refers to the print job attribute data held in the print job holding unit 48 to print job owner name Finds a print job that matches the owner name of the print job acquired from the list request instruction. The name of the retrieved print job, the reception date and time, the information related to the processing data added to the attribute data in step 104, and the like are acquired from the attribute data of each print job, and a list is generated and transmitted to the terminal device 18.

  Next, in step 110, the instruction receiving unit 50 determines whether a print instruction is received from the terminal device 18. The list transmitted from the print server 12 to the terminal device 18 in step 108 is displayed on the terminal device 18, and the user prints with a desired print job and original data or processed data from the displayed list. By selecting (print mode), a print instruction is transmitted from the terminal device 18 to the print server 12. Accordingly, the print instruction includes the name of the selected print job and the print mode. If a print instruction is accepted, the process proceeds to step 112. If not accepted, the process waits until accepted.

  In step 112, the instruction receiving unit 50 determines whether or not the original data is selected as the print mode based on the received print instruction. If the original data has been selected, the process proceeds to step 114. If the original data has not been selected, that is, if any of the processed data has been selected, the process proceeds to step 116.

  In step 114, the instruction receiving unit 50 searches for print jobs in which the print job name matches the print job name acquired from the print instruction from the print job attribute data held in the print job holding unit 48. The retrieved print job (original data) is taken out and a transmission request is issued to the print job transmission unit 54 so as to be transmitted to the printer 16 to which the terminal device 18 is connected. The print job transmission unit 54 transmits a print job to the printer 16 based on a request from the instruction reception unit 50.

  If any of the processed data is selected and the process proceeds to step 116, the instruction receiving unit 50 searches for a print job in the same manner as in step 114, and is stored in association with the searched print job and print job. The processed data is taken out, the print data of the original print job is replaced with the selected processed data, and a transmission request is issued to the print job transmission unit 54 to transmit to the printer 16 to which the terminal device 18 is connected. The print job transmission unit 54 transmits the print job to the printer 16 based on the request from the instruction reception unit 50 and ends the process.

  When the print result based on the original data is composed of text, illustrations, and photographs as shown in FIG. 6A, for example, and when the processed data in which the image is replaced with a blank is selected by the print instruction As shown in FIG. 6B, a portion of a photo or illustration other than text is replaced with a blank and printed. Further, when the print result based on the original data is composed of a background image and foreground text as shown in FIG. 7A, for example, and processed data from which the background image has been removed is selected by a print instruction As shown in FIG. 7B, the background image is removed and only the foreground text is printed. Further, when the print result based on the original data is a web page as shown in FIG. 8A, for example, when the processing data in which a predetermined area is masked by the print instruction is selected, FIG. ), A predetermined area determined according to a predetermined form is masked and printed. In this case, a blank page is deleted as a result of masking. Further, when the print result based on the original data is composed of text, illustrations, and photographs as shown in FIG. 9A, for example, the text data is obtained from an area other than the predetermined area of the predetermined form by a print instruction. When the processing data extracted and converted into PDL data is selected, as shown in FIG. 9B, text extracted from only an area other than the predetermined area is printed.

  In this embodiment, the case where the terminal device 18 is connected to the printer 16 has been described. However, as shown in FIG. 10A, the terminal device 18 is directly connected to the network 20 to execute printing. It is also possible to configure so that printing is instructed by designating. Also in the present embodiment, a printer other than the printer 16 to which the terminal device 18 is connected can be designated as a printer that executes printing.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 10B, the print server 12 and the printer 16 can be configured integrally. Further, the printing apparatus is not limited to the printer 16, and as shown in FIG. 10C, the multifunction device 60 having a plurality of functions such as copying, printer, scanner, and facsimile and the print server 12 are integrated. Further, a UI (user interface) console 62 of the multi-function device 60 may be configured to function as a terminal device.

  In the present embodiment, processing for replacing an image with a blank, processing for removing a background image, processing for masking a predetermined area of a predetermined form, processing for extracting text data in a predetermined area, and extracting text data from the entire print data As for the processing to be performed, the case where the processing is performed independently has been described, but the above processing can be appropriately combined by processing the processing data processed by a certain processing by another processing.

  In the present embodiment, the case has been described in which processed data is generated and held for all received print jobs. However, only information about what processed data is generated is attributed to the print job. It may be added to the data, and when the print instruction is received, only the processing in the selected print mode may be performed.

  Further, in the present embodiment, a case has been described in which a user selects a desired print job from the terminal device 18 to transmit a print instruction, and printing is executed. In such a case, a print instruction may be transmitted. When printing based on the processed data is performed, the number of pages and the amount of toner used can be reduced, so that a lower fee than printing based on the original data can be set.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the case where it is determined whether or not the predetermined form is determined by pattern matching in the process of masking the predetermined area of the predetermined form has been described. However, the URL of the web page corresponding to the predetermined form is stored in advance. In addition, when a web page is designated for printing, it may be determined whether or not the form is a predetermined form based on URL information included in the attribute data of the print job.

  Further, when displaying the list on the terminal device 18, what kind of processed data is created is displayed as a symbol image that symbolizes the printing result when the printing is performed based on the processed data (for example, by reducing the printing result). It may be displayed as a thumbnail image).

  In addition, since the present embodiment performs processing on the print data of a print job, as an application thereof, information other than print data designated by the user for printing can be added to the print result. For example, it is possible to reduce the print area and create and print PDL data in which information such as advertisements and notifications is inserted in the margin. If an advertisement is inserted, the printing fee can be set to be discounted.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a print control system 10 according to the present embodiment. 2 is a block diagram schematically showing a hardware configuration of a print server 12. FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of a print control system 10 according to the present embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a print control processing routine of the present embodiment. 4 is a flowchart showing a print data processing routine of the present embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the printing result of original data and process data. It is another figure which shows an example of the printing result of original data and process data. It is another figure which shows an example of the printing result of original data and process data. It is another figure which shows an example of the printing result of original data and process data. It is the schematic which shows the other structure of the printing control system 10 which concerns on this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10 Print Control System 12 Print Server 14 Client PC
16 Printer 18 Terminal device 42 Print job reception unit 44 Original data copy unit 46 Print data processing unit 48 Print job holding unit 50 Instruction reception unit 52 List generation unit 54 Print job transmission unit

Claims (10)

Receiving means for receiving a print job including print data generated by a printer driver based on document data from the information processing apparatus ;
Processing means for processing the print data received by the receiving means so that a part of the print data received by the receiving means is printed;
Information for instructing which print data to be executed based on the print data received by the accepting unit and the print data processed by the processing unit is transmitted to the terminal device for instructing printing. Instruction information transmitting means;
Receiving means for receiving a print instruction from the terminal device;
Print data transmission means for transmitting to the printing apparatus any one of the print data received by the reception means and the print data processed by the processing means based on the print instruction received by the reception means;
Including a printing control device.   When the print data received by the receiving unit is print data including text data and bitmap data, the processing unit prints the print data so that a portion based on the bitmap data is replaced with a blank. The print control device according to claim 1, wherein the print control device is processed.   When the print data received by the receiving unit is print data including the same background image data on each page, the processing unit is configured to print with the background image based on the same background image data removed. The print control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print data is processed.   When the printing data received by the receiving unit is print data of a predetermined form, the processing unit prints the predetermined area determined according to the predetermined form so that the predetermined area is replaced with a blank. The print control apparatus according to claim 1, which processes data.   The print control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing unit extracts text data from the print data received by the receiving unit, and processes the print data so that the extracted text data is printed.   When the print data received by the receiving unit is print data of a predetermined form, the processing unit extracts text data from print data corresponding to a predetermined area determined according to the predetermined form, and extracts the text data The print control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the print data is processed so that the text data is printed. The instruction information transmitting means transmits a list of information on a print job in response to a request from the terminal device;
The print control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reception unit receives a print instruction transmitted from the terminal apparatus by selection based on the list. Computer
Receiving means for receiving a print job including print data generated by a printer driver based on document data from the information processing apparatus ;
Processing means for processing the print data received by the receiving means so that a part of the print data received by the receiving means is printed;
Information for instructing which print data to be executed based on the print data received by the accepting unit and the print data processed by the processing unit is transmitted to the terminal device for instructing printing. Instruction information transmitting means;
Receiving means for receiving a print instruction from the terminal device;
Print data transmission means for transmitting to the printing apparatus any one of the print data received by the reception means and the print data processed by the processing means based on the print instruction received by the reception means;
Print control program to function. Computer
A print control program for causing a print control apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 to function. An information processing device for transmitting print data;
A reception unit that receives from the information processing device a print job that is transmitted from the information processing device and includes print data generated by a printer driver based on document data, and a part of the print data received by the reception unit is printed The processing unit that processes the print data received by the receiving unit, the print data received by the receiving unit, and the print data processed by the processing unit are instructed to execute printing A print control apparatus including instruction information transmission means for transmitting information for
A terminal device for receiving information transmitted by the instruction information transmitting means and issuing a print instruction;
Based on the print instruction from the terminal device, the print data received by the accepting unit and the print data processed by the processing unit are received from the print control device, and the print command is received. A printing device for performing printing;
Including printing control system.