JP5259003B2 - Image forming apparatus, control method in image control method, and program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus that implements various functions based on print data (PDL (page description language) data) received from a host, a control method in the image control method, and a program.

  Conventionally, various functions are realized by holding print data (PDL data) of a received print job in an apparatus that forms and outputs print data (PDL data) of a print job received from a host.

  For example, an apparatus has been devised that enables interrupt printing that interrupts and prints an ongoing print job (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  Further, for example, an apparatus that enables collate printing for sorting and printing in units of jobs has been devised (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In addition, for example, an apparatus has been devised in which printing can be reserved until a password is input, which enables reservation printing (see, for example, Patent Document 3).

Special registration 02803087 JP 07-096638 JP 08-039898

  By the way, depending on PDL, there is a language that supports an interactive print mode in which print processing is interactively performed between a host and a printer.

  For example, PostScript (registered trademark of Adobe Corporation) supports interactive exchange in which the printer returns the execution result to PostScript data (command) transmitted from the host.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of this. Is the / Times-Roman font transmitted from the host implemented? The printer returns the result (true = implemented).

  Here, the functions (interrupt printing, collate printing, reservation printing, etc.) realized by retaining the received print data in the conventional image forming apparatus and the interactive print mode with the host are executed simultaneously. In such cases, the following problems occur.

  FIG. 3 shows an example of print data (PDL data) used in the description of the problem.

  The PDL data 301 is composed of commands 1 to 4, and when command 1 and command 3 are executed, response data 1 and response data 2 to the host are generated, respectively.

  Further, page 1 is generated by executing commands 1 and 2, and page 2 is generated by executing commands 3 to 4.

  The printer realizes interrupt printing, collate printing, and reserved printing by holding the PDL data 301 received from the host.

<In case of interrupt printing>
FIG. 4 shows an example when the printer receives an interrupt job in the middle of processing the PDL data 301.

  As shown in the figure, the processing of the PDL interpreter of the printer is interrupted when an interrupt job occurs, so that response data for an unexecuted command is not returned to the host, and the host side remains waiting for response data from the printer. turn into.

  When the interrupt job processing is completed and the interrupted job processing is resumed (interrupt return), the PDL interpreter interprets the PDL data 301 held in the printer from the top.

  This is because, depending on the PDL (for example, in the case of PostScript), since the data is recursively described, it is not possible to resume the interpretation from the middle of the data once the interpretation is interrupted.

  When the PDL interpreter interprets again from the top of the PDL data 301, response data 1 is generated when the command 1 is executed, and this is returned to the host again.

  On the other hand, since the host side is waiting for the response data 2 for the command 3, inconsistency occurs when the response data 1 is returned.

  Note that it is easy to store the number of printed pages when an interrupt occurs and not print an image of the printed page when the interrupt is restored.

  However, since the number of printed pages and the execution status of the command before interruption cannot always be matched (as described above, data is recursively described depending on PDL), response data is returned to the host. It is difficult to avoid.

  As described above, when an interrupt job is received while an interactive print job is being processed, problems occur when an interrupt occurs and when the interrupt is restored.

<For collate printing>
FIG. 5 shows an example when the printer prints two or more copies of the PDL data 301 by collate printing.

  As shown in the figure, since the PDL interpreter interprets the PDL data 301 held in the printer again from the top even when printing the second and subsequent copies, the response data each time interpretation is performed a plurality of times. 1 and 2 are returned to the host.

  On the other hand, if the host side transmits the PDL data 301 only once but returns response data a plurality of times, inconsistency occurs.

  Thus, a problem arises when two or more copies of an interactive print job are printed by collate printing.

<For deferred printing>
In the case of reservation printing, the PDL data held in the printer is not interpreted until the user instructs to start printing.

  Therefore, despite the interactive print job, no response data is sent back to the host until the user gives an instruction to start printing, and the host side remains waiting for response data from the printer. Occurs.

In order to solve the above-described problems, an image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes:
Storage means for storing print data received from the host;
Generating means for reading the print data stored in the storage means and generating an intermediate code;
Image forming means for forming an image based on the intermediate code generated by the generating means;
If the received print data is not PostScript print data, execution of a specific print function using the print data holding operation received from the host is not restricted, and if the received print data is PostScript print data, it is received from the host. And a restricting means for restricting execution of a specific print function using the print data holding operation .

  Further, according to the present invention, when print data for interactive printing with a host is received, a specific print function can be realized without any problem.

The functional block diagram of the controller 10. FIG. The figure which shows the example which the printer responds to the inquiry from the host The figure which shows the example of the PDL data 301 which the response data to a host generate | occur | produces FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example when a printer receives an interrupt job during the processing of PDL data 301. The figure which shows an example when a printer prints 2 or more copies of PDL data 301 by collate printing. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus 1. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing job reception processing of a job identification unit 202. 7 is a flowchart showing received data storage processing of the PDL spooler 203. The figure which shows the structure of the reception data management table 204. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing received data transfer processing of the PDL spooler 203. 6 is a flowchart showing received data deletion processing of the PDL spooler 203. 7 is a flowchart showing processing at the start of processing of the PDL interpreter 206. 7 is a flowchart showing processing when the processing of the PDL interpreter 206 is stopped. 6 is a flowchart illustrating job reception processing of the job control unit 211 according to the first exemplary embodiment. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a job management table 212 in Embodiment 1. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing processing for generating a job management table 212 in a conventional image forming apparatus. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing for generating a job management table 212 according to the first embodiment. 6 is a first flowchart showing job execution processing of the job control unit 211; FIG. 7 is a second flowchart showing job execution processing of the job control unit 211. FIG. FIG. 13 is a third flowchart showing job execution processing of the job control unit 211. FIG. FIG. 10 is a fourth flowchart showing job execution processing of the job control unit 211. FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing reservation printing execution processing of the job control unit 211. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a job management table 212 according to the second embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating processing for generating a job management table 212 according to the second embodiment. 9 is a flowchart illustrating job reception processing of a job control unit 211 according to the second embodiment.

Example 1
<Hardware configuration>
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an outline of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied.

  The image forming apparatus 1 includes a printer controller (controller) 10 that performs overall control. Furthermore, it includes a panel 20 that receives and displays instructions from the user, a storage device (such as an HDD) 30 that stores print data of a print job received from the host 2, and a printer engine 40 that performs printing.

  Next, the controller 10 will be described. A panel interface (panel I / F) 103, a network interface (Network I / F) 104, an image generator 105, and a printer engine interface (printer I / F) 106 are connected to the CPU bus 102 of the CPU 101. Yes. Further, a storage device interface 107, a RAM 108, and a ROM 109 are connected to the CPU bus 102 of the CPU 101.

  The panel I / F 103 is connected to the panel 20, notifies the CPU 101 of user instructions input from the panel 20, and displays screen information and setting information stored in the ROM 109 and RAM 108 on the panel 20.

  The network I / F 104 transmits / receives data to / from the host 2 connected to the network.

  The image generator 105 generates a bitmap image from the DisplayList obtained by interpreting the data received from the host 2.

  The printer I / F 106 outputs the bitmap image generated by the image generator 105 to the printer engine 40 under the instruction of the CPU 101.

  The storage device I / F 107 transmits and receives data to and from the storage device 30.

  The RAM 108 is a memory used as a work area for the CPU 101.

  The ROM 109 is a memory that stores a control program and screen information to be displayed on the panel 20.

  The CPU 101 controls each unit of the controller 10 according to a control program stored in the ROM 109.

<Software configuration>
FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of the controller 10 in the present embodiment.

  The logical channel control unit 201 allocates the job packet and management packet of the print job received by the network I / F 104 to different channels, and multiplexes the transport layer in the OSI 7 layer.

  Further, the logical channel control unit 201 transmits response data 208 to the host generated by the PDL interpreter 206 to the host 2 via the network I / F 104.

The job identification unit 202 analyzes the received job packet, and passes job setting information to the job control unit 211 and print data (PDL data) to the PDL spooler 203.
The PDL spooler 203 transmits the received PDL data 205 to the PDL interpreter 206 or stores it in the RAM 108 or the storage device 30.

  The reception data management table 204 is a table for the PDL spooler 203 to manage the received PDL data 205 for each job.

  The PDL interpreter 206 interprets the PDL data 205 read from the PDL spooler 203, generates a display list (intermediate code) 207, and stores it in the RAM 108.

  If the response data 208 to the host is generated as a result of interpreting the PDL data 205, the data is stored in the RAM 108 and notified to the logical channel control unit 201.

  A plurality of PDL interpreters 206 can be mounted (206a and 206b in FIG. 1), and the corresponding PDL interpreter processes according to the type of the PDL data 205.

  The image forming output unit 209 expands the display list (intermediate code) 207 to the page image 210 by the image generator 105 and outputs the expanded page image 210 to the printer engine 40 via the printer I / F 106. The printer engine 40 prints on a sheet based on the page image.

  The device management unit 214 notifies the job control unit 211 of an operation instruction input from the panel 20 or an operation instruction input from the host 2 using a management packet, or displays the state of the device on the panel 20.

  The job control unit 211 is connected to the job identification unit 202, the PDL spooler 203, the PDL interpreter 206, the image formation output unit 209, and the device management unit 213, and communicates with these functional units to execute a print job.

  The job management table 212 is a table for the job control unit 211 to manage jobs, and stores job setting information input from the job identification 202 and job control information for each job.

  The job execution queue 213 is a table for the job control unit 211 to control the job execution order, and stores a pointer to the job management table 212 in the execution order.

  Next, processing of main functional units (job identification unit 202, PDL spooler 203, PDL interpreter 206, job control unit 211) of the controller 10 according to the present invention will be described in detail.

<Processing of job identification unit>
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program when the job identification unit 202 receives a new job from the network I / F 104.

  When receiving a new job, the job identification unit 202 first assigns a job identifier (JobID) for identifying the job (S701).

  Subsequently, the job identification unit 202 notifies the job control unit 211 that a new job has been received together with the assigned JobID and the job setting information set for the job (S702).

  Next, the job identification unit 202 notifies the PDL spooler 203 that a new job has been received (S703).

  Next, the job identification unit 202 transfers a series of received data included in the received job to the PDL spooler 203 (S704).

  When the job identification unit 202 detects the end of the job (S705), the job identification unit 202 notifies the PDL spooler 203 of the end of transfer of received data (S706), and the series of processing ends.

<PDL spooler received data storage processing>
FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program for storing data received from the job identification unit 202 in the PDL spooler 203.

  Upon receiving various notifications from the job identification unit 202, the PDL spooler 203 first determines the notification type (S801).

  When the notification type is job reception notification, the PDL spooler 203 generates a new reception data management table 204 and secures a storage area for reception data on the RAM 108 or the storage device 30 (S802).

<Received data management table>
FIG. 9 shows the configuration of the reception data management table 204.

  The reception data management table 204 is generated for each job and includes “JobID”, “write pointer”, “read pointer”, and “read mode”.

  “JobID” indicates a job identifier, and the JobID notified from the job identification unit 202 is set.

  The “write pointer” indicates the storage destination of the reception data 205, and the reception data storage destination address secured by the PDL spooler 203 is set.

  The “read pointer” indicates the read destination of the received data 205, and the same address as the “write pointer” is set when the table is generated.

  “Read mode” indicates processing after the received data 205 is read, “backup” indicates that the received data 205 is retained after it is read, and “read discard” indicates received data. When 205 is read, it is deleted.

  The “read mode” is specified when reading from the PDL interpreter 206 is started, and is not set when the table is generated.

  Again, returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  When the notification type is a reception data transfer notification, the PDL spooler 203 writes the data received from the job identification unit 202 in the received data storage area of the job (S803), and updates the “write pointer” (S804). .

  When the notification type is a reception data transfer end notification, the PDL spooler 203 adds “EOF” indicating the end of data to the end of the reception data 205 of the job, and ends the series of processing ( S805).

<Received data read processing of PDL spooler>
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a processing program for transferring received data 205 to the PDL interpreter 206 in the PDL spooler 203.

  Upon receiving various notifications from the PDL interpreter 206, the PDL spooler 203 first determines the notification type (S1001).

  When the notification type is reception data read start notification, the PDL spooler 203 sets the “read mode” designated by the PDL interpreter 206 in the reception management table 204 of the job (S1002).

  When the notification type is a reception data read notification, the PDL spooler 203 reads the reception data 205 from the “read pointer” of the job and transmits it to the PDL interpreter 206 (S1003).

  Subsequently, the “read pointer” is updated by the data size transmitted to the PDL interpreter 206 (S1004).

  When the “read mode” is “discard” (S1005), the received data 205 transmitted to the PDL interpreter 206 at this time is deleted from the received data storage area (S1006).

  When the notification type is a reception end notification of received data, the process differs depending on the “read mode” (S1007).

  When the “reading mode” is “reading abandoned”, the PDL spooler 203 deletes the received data management table 204 of the job at this time (S1008).

  When the “read mode” is “backup”, the PDL spooler 203 does not delete the received data management table 204 and returns the “read pointer” of the job to the head of the received data storage area (S1009).

  Thereby, when the PDL interpreter 206 re-reads the received data 205, interpretation can be started from the head of the received data 205.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program when the PDL spooler 203 receives a deletion notification of the received data 205 from the job control unit 211.

  The PDL spooler 203 deletes the received data 205 of the job specified from the job control unit 211 from the received data storage area, and deletes the received management table 204 of the job (S1101).

<Processing at startup of PDL interpreter>
FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing program when the PDL interpreter 206 (206a, 206b) is instructed to start processing by the job control unit 211.

  The PDL interpreter 206 (206a or 206b) instructed to start processing first notifies the PDL spooler 203 of the start of reading the received data 205 (S1201).

  In the reading start notification, the “reading mode” specified by the job control unit 211 is specified.

  Subsequently, the received data 205 is sequentially read from the PDL spooler 203 (S1202), the read received data 205 is interpreted to generate a display list 207, and stored in the RAM 108 (S1203).

  When the received data 205 is interpreted and response data 208 to the host is generated (S1204), this is stored in the RAM 108 and notified to the logical channel control unit 201 (S1205).

  The processes in steps S1202 to S1205 are repeated until the end of reception data 205 (EOF) is detected.

  When detecting the end (EOF) of the received data 205 (S1206), the PDL interpreter 206 notifies the PDL spooler 203 of the completion of reading the received data 205 (S1207).

  Subsequently, the PDL interpreter 206 notifies the job control unit 211 of the completion of interpretation of the received data 205 (S1208).

  The interpretation completion notification to the job control unit 211 includes the total page number of the job. Upon receiving this notification, the job control unit 211 receives the “total page number (TP)” in the job management table 212 of the job. ) ”Is set to this value.

<Process when PDL interpreter is stopped>
FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a processing program when the job control unit 211 instructs the PDL interpreter 206 (206a, 206b) to stop processing.

  The PDL interpreter 206 (206a or 206b) instructed to stop processing first stops interpretation of the received data 205 currently being processed (S1301).

  Subsequently, the received data read from the PDL spooler 206 and temporarily held, and the display list 207 being generated are deleted (S1302).

  If the reading of the received data 205 has not been completed (S1303), the PDL spooler 203 is notified of the end of reading of the received data 205 (S1304), and the process ends.

<Processing when the job control unit receives a job>
FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program when the job control unit 211 receives a job reception notification from the job identification unit 202.

  First, the job control unit 211 generates a job management table 212 (S1401).

<Job management table>
Here, the job management table 212 will be described.

  FIG. 15 shows the configuration of the job management table 212 in the first embodiment.

  The job management table 212 includes “JobID”, “job setting information”, and “job control information”.

  “JobID” indicates a job identifier, and the JobID notified from the job identification unit 202 is set.

  “Job setting information” is setting information related to a job obtained by the job identification unit 202 interpreting a job packet received from the host 2. The job identification unit 202 includes the job reception notification in the job control unit 211. Notice.

  “Job setting information” includes, for example, “job execution mode”, “PDL type”, “number of copies”, and “collate printing”.

  “Job execution mode” indicates job execution timing, “Normal” indicates processing in the order of acceptance, “Interrupt” indicates that the job currently being executed is interrupted, and “Reserved” indicates , Indicates that the execution is waited until the user gives an execution instruction.

  “PDL type” indicates the type of PDL data included in the job. For example, a PDL name such as LIPS or PostScript is set.

  “Number of copies” designates the number of copies of the job.

  “Collate printing” designates whether or not to print the job in collate.

  “Job control information” is information used when the job control unit 211 controls a job, and is set by the job control unit 211.

  The “job control information” includes “status”, “read mode”, “total number of pages (TP)”, “number of generated pages (RP)”, and “number of printed pages (OP)”.

  “Status” indicates the job execution status, and is set to any value of “waiting execution”, “running”, “interrupt request”, “waiting for stop”, and “stopping” according to the status.

  The “read mode” is the same as the “read mode” in the received data management table 204.

  “Total number of pages (TP)” indicates the total number of pages of one job.

  “Number of generated pages (RP)” indicates the number of pages for which the image forming output unit 209 has finished generating the page image 210.

  “Number of printed pages (OP)” indicates the number of pages that have been printed by the printer engine 40.

  How each member is used and how it is updated will be described later.

<Job management table generation processing>
FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing a generation processing program of the job management table 212 in the conventional image forming apparatus.

  First, the job control unit 211 sets the value notified from the job identification 202 to each member of the “job setting information” (S1601).

  Next, set “Status” to “Waiting for execution”, “Total number of pages (TP)” to “Undetermined”, and “Number of generated pages (RP)” and “Number of printed pages (OP)” to 0 (S1602).

  Next, the job control unit 211 determines the mounting status of the storage device (HDD) 30 (S1603), and when the storage device (HDD) 30 is mounted, sets “backup” in the “read mode”. (S1606).

  If the storage device (HDD) 30 is not installed, the “job execution mode” is overwritten with “normal”, the “collate printing” is overwritten with “OFF” (S1604), and the “read mode” is set to “discard”. (S1605).

  This is because when the storage device (HDD) 30 is not installed, a sufficient storage area for the received data 205 cannot be secured, so the operation for holding the received data 205 and the functions realized thereby (interrupt printing, This is to limit collate printing and reserving printing.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a generation processing program of the job management table 212 in this embodiment.

  The difference from the conventional image forming apparatus is that in step S1703, in addition to the mounting status of the storage device (HDD) 30, the type of the installed PDL interpreter 206 is determined.

  In this embodiment, it is determined whether PostScript is installed as the type of PDL interpreter.

  This is because some PDLs support an interactive print mode with the host. In this case, the operation of holding the received data 205 and the functions realized thereby (interrupt printing, collate printing, reservation) This is for limiting printing.

  Returning to the flowchart of FIG. 14 again, the processing at the time of job reception in the job control unit 211 will be described.

  When the generation of the job management table 212 is completed in step S1401, the job control unit 211 determines whether to add the job to the job execution queue 213 according to the “job execution mode” of the job (S1402).

  When the “job execution mode” is “retained”, the process is not executed until the user gives an instruction, and at this point, the process is finished without being added to the job execution queue 213.

  If the “job execution mode” is “normal”, the job is added to the end of the job execution queue 213 (S1403).

  When the “job execution mode” is “interrupt”, first, it is determined whether or not there is a job in the job execution queue 213 (S1404), and when there is no job, it is added to the end (= start) of the job execution queue 213. (S1403).

  If there is a job in the job execution queue 213, the “job execution mode” of the first job in the job execution queue 213 is checked to determine whether it is “interrupt” (S1405).

  If the first job is an interrupt job, the job is added to the second job execution queue 213 (S1410).

  This is because interruption to an interruption job is prohibited.

  If the first job is not an interrupt job, the “status” of the first job is checked, and it is determined whether it is “being executed” (S1406).

  If the head job is not being executed, the job is added to the head of the job execution queue 213 (S1409).

  If the first job is being executed, it must first be interrupted, so the “status” of the first job is changed to “interrupt request” (S1407), and the “status” of the job is changed to “waiting for stop”. (S1408).

  Subsequently, the job is added to the head of the job execution queue 213 (S1409).

<Job execution processing of job control unit>
FIG. 18 shows a flowchart of a job execution processing program in the job control unit 211.

  First, the job control unit 211 determines whether there is a job in the job execution queue 213 (S1801). If there is no job, the job control unit 211 waits until a job is generated.

  If there is a job, the “status” in the job management table 212 of the job is confirmed (S1802).

  When “Status” is “Waiting for stop”, the job control unit 211 waits until “Status” shifts to “Waiting for execution”.

  If the “status” is “waiting for execution”, the job control unit 211 changes the “status” of the job to “being executed” (S1803).

  Subsequently, the job control unit 211 notifies the PDL interpreter 206 (206a or 206b) indicated by “PDL type” in the job management table 212 and the image formation output unit 209 of the start of processing (S1804).

  The PDL interpreter 206 is notified of the start of processing by specifying the “read mode” in the job management table 212.

  When processing of the PDL interpreter 206 (206 or 206b) and the image forming output unit 209 is started, an actual printing sequence is started.

  In the print sequence, the job control unit 211 first inquires of the image forming output unit 209 whether there is a generated page image 210 (S1805).

  If there is a generated page image 210, the job control unit 211 subsequently performs page image output processing (S1806).

<Page image output processing>
FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing the page image output processing program in step S1806.

  First, the job control unit 211 increments the “number of generated pages (RP)” of the job management table 212 (S1901), compares this with the “number of printed pages (OP)”, and the page is not printed. It is determined whether or not the current page is a current page (S1902).

  In the case of an unprinted page, the job control unit 211 instructs the image formation output unit 209 to output the page image 210 and prints it with the printer engine 40 (S1903).

  In the case of a printed page, the job control unit 211 instructs the image forming output unit 209 to discard the page image 210 (S1907) and ends the process.

  This is to prevent duplicate pages from being printed when the interrupted job is resumed (when interrupt is restored).

  When the printing of one page is completed in step S1903, the job control unit 211 refers to “collate printing” in the job management table 212, and determines whether the setting of the job is collate printing (S1904).

  When “collate printing” is “OFF”, printing of a plurality of copies is performed in units of pages, and the page is printed the number of times specified by the number of copies (S1905).

  When the printing of the page is completed, the job control unit 211 increments the “number of printed pages (OP)” in the job management table 212 (S1906), and instructs the image formation output unit 209 to discard the page image 210. (S1907) and the process ends.

  Returning again to the flowchart of FIG.

  If there is no generated page image 210 in step S1805, the job management table 212 of the job is referred to, whether the “total number of pages (TP)” has been determined and all pages have been printed. Whether OP and TP are equal is determined (S1807).

  If printing of all pages has been completed, the job control unit 211 refers to “collate printing” in the job management table 212 and determines whether the setting of the job is collate printing (S1808).

  If “collate printing” is “ON”, a plurality of copies are printed for each job, and it is subsequently determined whether or not printing of all the prints has been completed (S1809).

  If it is determined that there are still copies to be printed, the process returns to step S1804 to continue printing the next number of copies.

  Upon receiving this notification, the PDL interpreter 206 (206a or 206b) reads the job received data 205 held by the PDL spooler 203 again from the top and interprets it, thereby printing a plurality of copies.

  If “collate printing” is “OFF” in step S1808, or if all the prints have been completed in step S1809, the process proceeds to job end processing (S1812).

<Job end processing>
FIG. 20 shows a flowchart of the job end processing program in step S1812.

  The job control unit 211 first checks the “read mode” of the job management table 212 (S2001), and if “backup”, notifies the PDL spooler 203 of the end of the job (S2002).

  Upon receiving this notification, the PDL spooler 203 deletes the received data 205 and the received data management table 204 of the job in step S1101 of FIG.

  Subsequently, the job control unit 211 checks the “job execution mode” in the job management table 212 and determines whether or not the job is an interrupt job (S2003).

  If the job is an interrupt job, the job control unit 211 changes the “status” of the interrupted job (“status” = “stopped” job) to “waiting for execution” (S2004).

  Finally, the job control unit 211 deletes the job from the job execution queue 213 (S2005), and ends a series of processing.

  Returning to the flowchart of FIG.

  If the printing of all pages has not been completed in step S1807, the job control unit 211 subsequently refers to the “status” in the job management table 212 and confirms whether or not it has been changed to “interrupt request” ( S1811).

  If the “status” is “interrupt request”, it indicates that an interrupt job has occurred, and the process proceeds to job interrupt processing (S1812).

  If the “status” is not “interrupt request”, the process returns to step S1805 to continue printing the next page.

<Job interrupt processing>
FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing the job interrupt processing program in step S1812.

  First, the job control unit 211 notifies the PDL interpreter 206 (206 or 206b) that processes the job and the image formation output unit 209 that processing is stopped (S2101).

  Receiving this notification, the PDL interpreter 206 and the image forming output unit 209 delete the data (Display List 207, page image 210) being processed.

  Subsequently, the job control unit 211 clears “number of generated pages (RP)” in the job management table 212 of the job, and changes “status” to “stopped”.

  Finally, the job control unit 211 changes the “status” of the interrupt job (“status” = “waiting for stop”) to “execution waiting” (S2103), and ends the process.

<Reserved printing execution processing>
FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program when the job control unit 211 is instructed to start reserved printing.

  This instruction is generated when the user designates a job (JobID) held in the image forming apparatus 1 from the panel 20 or the host 2 and instructs the start of printing. The job is input to the job control unit 211 via 214.

  First, the job control unit 211 determines whether or not the job management table 212 corresponding to the designated JobID exists (S2201). If there is no job management table 212, the process ends without doing anything.

  If the corresponding job management table 212 exists, the job control unit 211 determines whether there is a job in the job execution queue 213 (S2202). If there is no job, the job control unit 211 places the job in the job execution queue. It adds to the head of 213 (S2203).

  If there is a job, then the job control unit 211 refers to the job management table 212 of the first job, and determines whether the first job is an interrupt job or whether the “status” is “running” ( S2204).

  If the first job is an interrupt job or the “status” is “executing”, the job is added to the second job execution queue (S2205). In other cases, the job is added to the head of the job execution queue (S2203) and the process is terminated.

  As described above, depending on the type of installed PDL interpreter, the operation of a specific printing function (PDL data received from the host 2 is held in the PDL spooler 203, interrupt printing, collate printing, reservation printing) is restricted. I tried to do it.

  Therefore, for example, when a PDL interpreter that supports the interactive print mode with the host is installed, such as PostScript, the interactive print mode can be executed without any problem by restricting the above-described operation. Can do.

(Example 2)
In the first embodiment, the operation is limited depending on the type of the PDL interpreter installed in the image forming apparatus 1, but the operation may be limited for each received job.

  For example, when PostScript data is received in AppleTalk's PAP (Printer Access Protocol) Direct mode, the image forming apparatus 1 supports an interactive print mode with the host.

  At this time, the image forming apparatus 1 can identify whether or not the received job is a PAP Direct job by the network socket that has received the data, and based on this, the operation can be limited for each job. .

  FIG. 23 shows the configuration of the job management table 212 in the second embodiment.

  The difference from the job management table (FIG. 15) of the first embodiment is that information “PAP Direct” indicating whether or not the job is a PAP Direct job is added to the job setting information.

  This “PAP Direct” information is set in the job management table 212 as follows.

  First, the network I / F 104 notifies the logical channel control unit 201 of the socket information of the network that has received the data.

  Next, when the logical channel control unit 201 transmits a job packet to the job identification unit 202, this is clearly indicated in the case of a job received by PAP Direct.

  Then, the job identification unit 202 adds the “PAP Direct” information to the job setting information in the job reception notification notified to the job control unit 211, and is set in the job management table 212.

<Job management table generation processing>
FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating a generation processing program of the job management table 212 of the job control unit 211 according to the second embodiment.

  Steps S2401 and S2402 are the same as steps S1701 and S1702 of the first embodiment, respectively, and thus description thereof is omitted.

  In step S2403, the job control unit 211 confirms the mounting status of the storage device (HDD) 30.

  If the storage device (HDD) 30 is mounted, next, “PAP Direct” in the job management table 212 is referred to, and it is determined whether or not the job is a PAP Direct job (S2406).

  If the job is not a PAP Direct job, there is no particular need to limit the operation, so “backup” is set in the “read mode” (S2410), and the process ends.

When the job is a PAP Direct job, the job control unit 211 overwrites “OFF” with “Collate printing” in the job management table 212 (S2407).
If the “job execution mode” is “retained” (S2408), it is overwritten with “normal” (S2409).

  It should be noted that there is no particular problem as long as the PAP Direct job is executed as an interrupt job (since interrupts for an interrupt job are prohibited), even if the “job execution mode” is “interrupt”, “normal” is set. Do not overwrite.

  If the storage device (HDD) 30 is not attached or if the job is a PAP Direct job, the job control unit 211 sets “reading mode” to “reading mode” (S2405) and ends the process.

  With the above processing, in the case of a PAP Direct job, even if collate printing or reservation printing is specified, these operations are restricted, and interactive printing processing with the host can be executed without any problem.

<Processing when the job control unit receives a job>
FIG. 25 is a flowchart illustrating a processing program when a job is received by the job control unit 211 according to the second embodiment.

  The difference from the first embodiment is that in step S2505, when the received job is an interrupt job and there is a job in the job execution queue 213, in the first embodiment, only when the first job is an interrupt job, Interrupting the job is prohibited.

  On the other hand, in the second embodiment, in addition to the above, even when the top job is a PAP Direct job, interruption to the job is prohibited.

  As a result, since an interrupt to the PAP Direct job is prohibited, the PAPDirect job can execute an interactive print process with the host without any problem.

  As described above, when interrupt printing, collate printing, and reserve printing are performed, if the received job is a job that supports the interactive print mode with the host, the operation of these specific printing functions is limited.

  Therefore, in the case of a job that supports the interactive print mode with the host, such as a job submitted in the PAP Direct mode of AppleTalk, the interactive print mode can be executed without any problem by restricting the above-described operation. Can do.

  In the first and second embodiments, “collate printing” is not performed in the case where the image forming apparatus is equipped with PostScript or in the case of a PAP Direct job, but the following method may be used. .

  When the image forming apparatus 1 supports a method of holding the display list 207 and the page image 210 in addition to the method of holding the received data 205 described in the present embodiment as a method for realizing collate printing. The latter method may be selected.

  In the latter method, since the received data 205 is not read again even in collate printing, the interactive print mode with the host can be executed without any problem.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 Host 10 Printer controller 20 Panel 30 Memory | storage device 40 Printer engine 101 CPU
102 CPU bus 103 Panel I / F
104 Network I / F
105 Image Generator 106 Printer I / F
107 Storage device I / F
108 RAM
109 ROM
201 Logical Channel Control Unit 202 Job Identification Unit 203 PDL Spooler 204 Received Data Management Table 205 Received Data 206, 206a, 206b PDL Interpreter 207 Display List
209 Image formation output unit 208 Response data 210 Page image 211 Job control unit 212 Job management table 213 Job execution queue 214 Device management unit

Claims (16)

Storage means for storing print data received from the host;
Generation means for reading out print data stored in the storage means and generating an intermediate code; and image forming means for forming an image based on the intermediate code generated by the generation means;
If the received print data is not PostScript print data , execution of a specific print function using the print data holding operation received from the host is not restricted, and if the received print data is PostScript print data, it is received from the host. An image forming apparatus comprising: a restricting unit that restricts execution of a specific print function using the held print data operation. The specific printing function using the operation of holding the print data received from the host includes interrupt printing that interrupts the job being executed and executes printing,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generation unit generates an intermediate code based on print data of the interrupted job after interrupt printing is completed. The specific printing function that uses the holding operation of the print data received from the host includes collate printing that performs printing of a specified number of copies in units of jobs,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generation unit performs generation of an intermediate code from print data a plurality of times according to a designated number of copies.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the specific printing function using the holding operation of the print data received from the host includes deferred printing that keeps printing until a user instructs to start printing.   If the received print data is PostScript print data, multiple copies are executed by reading the print data once from the first page. If the received print data is not PostScript print data, the print data is the first page. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising execution means for executing printing of a plurality of copies by reading a plurality of times. Storage means for storing print data received from the host, generation means for reading the print data stored in the storage means to generate an intermediate code, and an image for forming an image based on the intermediate code generated by the generation means A control method in an image forming apparatus having a forming unit,
If the received print data is not PostScript print data, execution of a specific print function using the print data holding operation received from the host is not restricted, and if the received print data is PostScript print data, it is received from the host. A control method in an image forming apparatus, which restricts execution of a specific print function using a print data holding operation. The specific printing function using the operation of holding the print data received from the host includes interrupt printing that interrupts the job being executed and executes printing,
7. The control method for an image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the generation unit generates the intermediate code based on the print data of the interrupted job after the interrupt printing is completed. The specific printing function that uses the holding operation of the print data received from the host includes collate printing that performs printing of a specified number of copies in units of jobs,
7. The control method for an image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the generation unit generates the intermediate code from the print data a plurality of times according to the designated number of copies.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the specific print function using the hold operation of the print data received from the host includes deferred printing that holds the print until a user instructs to start printing. Control method.   If the received print data is PostScript print data, multiple copies are executed by reading the print data once from the first page. If the received print data is not PostScript print data, the print data is the first page. 7. A control method in an image forming apparatus according to claim 6, wherein printing of a plurality of copies is executed by reading a plurality of times. Storage means for storing print data received from the host, generation means for reading the print data stored in the storage means to generate an intermediate code, and an image for forming an image based on the intermediate code generated by the generation means A program executed by an image forming apparatus having a forming unit,
If the received print data is not PostScript print data, execution of a specific print function using the print data holding operation received from the host is not restricted, and if the received print data is PostScript print data, it is received from the host. A program for causing an image forming apparatus to execute a process of restricting execution of a specific printing function using a print data holding operation. The specific printing function using the operation of holding the print data received from the host includes interrupt printing that interrupts the job being executed and executes printing,
12. The program according to claim 11, wherein the generation unit generates the intermediate code based on the print data of the interrupted job after the interrupt printing is completed. The specific printing function that uses the holding operation of the print data received from the host includes collate printing that performs printing of a specified number of copies in units of jobs,
12. The program according to claim 11, wherein the generation unit performs generation of an intermediate code from print data a plurality of times according to a designated number of copies.   12. The program according to claim 11, wherein the specific print function using the operation of holding the print data received from the host includes deferred printing that keeps printing until a user instructs to start printing.   If the received print data is PostScript print data, multiple copies are executed by reading the print data once from the first page. If the received print data is not PostScript print data, the print data is the first page. 12. The program according to claim 11, further comprising an execution step of executing printing of a plurality of copies by reading a plurality of times. Storage means for storing print data received from the host;
Generation means for reading out print data stored in the storage means and generating an intermediate code; and image forming means for forming an image based on the intermediate code generated by the generation means;
If the received print data is not print data that is processed by interacting with the host, execution of a specific print function using the hold operation of the print data received from the host is not restricted, and the received print data interacts with the host In the case of print data to be processed, an image forming apparatus comprising: a restricting unit that restricts execution of a specific print function using a print data holding operation received from a host.

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