JP5814885B2 - Print control device - Google Patents

Description

  The embodiment described in this specification relates to a technique for controlling output of print data including signature data.

  It has been a long time since document files have been downloaded, viewed and printed over the Internet.

  When a file is downloaded via the Internet and printed, it may happen that tampered data is printed.

  The present embodiment has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a technique for controlling not to print data that has been tampered with.

  The print control apparatus includes an acquisition unit and a control unit. The acquisition unit acquires data including at least signature data and print data. The control unit verifies the signature data in the data acquired by the acquisition unit, and controls the image forming unit to print the print data when the signature data is valid, and prints the print data when the signature data is invalid. Controls not to print data.

It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of the whole structure of a system. It is a figure which shows the hardware structural example of the main apparatuses of the system of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the data structure of XPS. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a job selection screen of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example when a job is executed by the image processing apparatus. FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a warning dialog of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display example of a warning dialog of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a preview display of the image forming apparatus. FIG.

  In the following embodiment, document data to be printed is described as data in the XPS (XML Paper Specification) format. XPS has a structure in which print setting information such as page allocation setting (Nin1) and sheet size and data to be printed are integrated as one file.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration example of the entire system. First, the XPS file is individually transmitted from the external devices 600A and 600B belonging to the external network, and is permanently stored in the management server 200. A terminal PC 150 (PC: Personal computer) acquires an XPS file stored in the management server 200 via a network 400 (wide area network, Internet line) or a LAN 170 (LAN: Local Area Network). Display and edit using a display program or an editing program. The XPS file newly created by the PC 150 and the edited XPS file are transmitted to the management server 200 via the network 400 or the LAN 170, and are newly saved, overwritten, or saved separately with a history.

  Similarly, the image forming apparatus 100 acquires an XPS file from the management server 200, analyzes the acquired XPS file, and prints it. If the image forming apparatus is a conventional apparatus that cannot process an XPS file, the conversion server 300 acquires the XPS file and converts it into a page description language that can be recognized by the image forming apparatus. The converted data is transmitted to a conventional image forming apparatus and printed.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of main devices of the system. A system 500 includes the image forming apparatus 100 and the management server 200 described above. When the image forming apparatus 100 is an apparatus that cannot perform XPS analysis, the conversion server 300 is responsible for XPS analysis. If the image forming apparatus 100 can perform XPS analysis, the conversion server 300 may be omitted.

  The image forming apparatus 100 is an MFP (Multifunction Peripheral) having a copy function, a printer function, a scanner function, and a FAX and e-mail transmission / reception function, and includes a control board 110 that performs overall control of hardware devices in the apparatus. The control board 110 includes a processor 111 that is an arithmetic processing unit, and includes a RAM (Random Access Memory) that is a volatile storage device, a ROM (Read Only Memory) that is a nonvolatile storage device, and a HDD (Hard disk drive). Including a memory 112. The control board 110 includes a NIC (Network Interface Card) 113 that controls communication with the outside.

  The image processing apparatus 100 has a control panel 120. The control panel 120 includes a keyboard 122 that receives an instruction from the user, and includes a touch panel display 121 that displays control contents and receives an instruction from the user.

  The image forming apparatus 100 includes a reading unit R that scans an original, and an image forming unit P that prints scan data, image data edited by a PC 150 or the like, or an XPS file stored in the management server 200 on a sheet. Have

  The hardware configuration of the management server 200 is the same as that of an existing computer, and includes a processor 211, a volatile storage device, a memory 212 configured by a nonvolatile storage device, and a NIC 213. Moreover, the structure which has the keyboard which receives the input from a user, a mouse | mouth, and the monitor which displays an image to a user may be sufficient. Similarly, the conversion server 300 is similar to an existing computer, and includes a processor 311, a memory 312, and a NIC 313. The NIC 113, NIC 213, and NIC 313 exchange data with each other via the network 400 and the LAN 170.

Next, the XPS file structure will be described with reference to FIG. XPS is a file in which parts such as resources such as images and fonts and print setting information (referred to as a print ticket) are arranged hierarchically in one folder and compressed by the root. XPS includes the following parts (files).
・ Relationships: A file describing the reference information of each part in xml.
-FixedDocuemntSequence: A file that describes the structure of multiple documents in xml.
・ FixedDocument: A file that describes the document structure in xml.
-FixedPage: A file that describes the structure of the page in the document in xml.
・ Image ・ ・ ・ An image file to which the page refers.
・ Font ・ ・ ・ Font file referenced by the page.
・ Tumbnail ・ ・ ・ Thumbnail image file.
-PrintTicket: An XML file that describes print setting information.
・ Digital Signature ・ ・ ・ XML file describing signature information.
・ Digital Signature Certificate ・ ・ ・ Certificate file used for signature.

  When the XPS file includes signature data of “Digital Signature” and “Digital Signature Certificate”, the image forming apparatus 100 verifies the validity of these signature data to determine whether or not tampering has occurred. If the verification result is valid, the image forming apparatus 100 prints the print data according to the definition in the XPS file. If the verification result is invalid, the image forming apparatus 100 controls not to print the XPS file because there is a possibility of falsification.

  If the image forming apparatus 100 does not support the XPS format and signature verification cannot be performed, the conversion server 300 executes verification processing instead. When the verification result is valid, the conversion server 300 transmits the print job to the image forming apparatus 100 after converting the XPS file into a format supported by the image forming apparatus. If it is invalid, the conversion server 300 does not transmit the print job.

  The operation of the image forming apparatus 100 will be described using the flowchart of FIG. In the flowchart of FIG. 4, the processor 111 in the control board 110 controls the operation of hardware in the image forming apparatus 100 by calculating and executing a program installed in advance in the memory 112. Part or all of the operation control may be performed by an integrated circuit such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit).

  First, the control panel 120 displays a list of XPS files stored in the management server 200 according to a predetermined operation by the user (ACT001). FIG. 5 shows a display example of the control panel 120. This display is performed according to display control of the processor 111.

  Here, the display operation of the screen will be described. The processor 111 issues an XPS file list acquisition command to the management server 200 via the NIC 113. By this command, a file including the extension “.xps” in the file name is searched from among the files stored in the memory 212 of the management server 200. Object data such as screen image layout data and icons are stored in advance in the memory 212 of the management server 200. The processor 211 embeds a list (text data) of XPS files as search results in layout data, The data is edited in the html format and returned to the image forming apparatus that is the transmission source together with the object data. The NIC 113 receives this reply data and stores it in the memory 112. The processor 111 analyzes the acquired data in the html format, arranges object data such as a button image, and causes the control panel 120 to display the object data. Note that the implementation may be such that only the search result of the XPS file is acquired, and the screen layout definition is performed by the processor 111 of the image forming apparatus 100.

  The user selects a desired file by putting a mark in the check box field, and presses the “print” button. Thereby, the printing process of the selected XPS file is started.

  The NIC 113 receives the selected XPS file from the management server 200, and the memory 112 stores the received XPS file (ACT002). Hereinafter, the combined operation of reception and storage is referred to as acquisition. If a plurality of XPS files are selected, one of them is acquired.

  The processor 111 expands the compressed file for the XPS file stored in the memory 112, and determines whether or not there is signature data of the above "Digital Signature" and "Digital Signature Certificate" (ACT003). When there is no signature data (ACT003, No), the processor 111 generates image data defined in the XPS file and transmits it to the image forming unit P, and the image forming unit P prints this image data ( ACT005).

  When there is signature data (ACT003, Yes), the processor 111 verifies the signature and determines whether or not the signature is valid (ACT004). Regarding verification of the signature data, since an existing publicly known technique is adopted, description thereof is omitted here.

  When the signature data is valid (ACT004, valid), the image forming unit P prints the image data defined in the XPS file (ACT005), and when the signature data is invalid (ACT004, invalid), the processor 111 displays a message to that effect on the control panel 120 (ACT006), and proceeds to ACT007 without performing the operation of ACT005. By the operation control by the processor 111, if the signature data is invalid, it is not printed.

  The operation from ACT002 to ACT006 is performed on all the XPS files selected by the user (ACT007, loop from No to ACT002).

  A display example of the control panel 120 at the time of operation after ACT002 is shown in FIG. The control panel 120 displays the progress status of the job as needed, and if the signature data is invalid, displays a message indicating that the XPS file is not printed. In the example of FIG. 6, the report 001 is an unsigned XPS file, and the report 002 is an XPS file having valid signature data. The report 003 is an XPS file having illegal signature data. Since there is a possibility that the report 003 has been tampered with, a message not printing is displayed.

  As a notification method when the signature data is invalid, an implementation may be adopted in which the notification data is displayed on the control panel 120 as in this example. The notification means (notification unit) in this case is the control panel 120. Also, an implementation that prints a message to the effect that the message is invalid on the sheet and notifies the user, or an implementation that discharges only a blank sheet without printing anything may be used. Alternatively, the image data may be printed and printed on the same sheet together with the fact that the signature data is invalid. In these implementation examples, the notification unit is the image forming unit P. Alternatively, the NIC 13 may be used as the notification means, and notification to the user or administrator by e-mail may be used. Further, by providing a speaker or the like in the image forming apparatus 100, voice notification can be performed.

  When the document is electronic data such as an XPS file, verification can be performed using signature data or the like, so that the user can determine whether the data has been tampered with. However, once the data becomes a sheet medium and passes to another person, no information about the signature is recorded on the sheet medium, so that there is no means for the other person to verify. Therefore, when printed materials with alterations are distributed, it is almost impossible to verify the alteration of data with only the printed materials, so incorrect information or information that has been deliberately rewritten is distributed in various ways and copied. It will be diffused by overlapping.

  This embodiment verifies the signature data to determine whether or not it has been tampered with at the final stage immediately before the sheet medium is used, that is, immediately before the signature information is lost. Control not to. According to this embodiment, it is possible to prevent the distribution and diffusion of printed matter that may be tampered with at the water's edge.

(Second Embodiment)
XPS has a description method for print tickets that can be processed by each manufacturer, and a description method for print tickets that is defined by the manufacturer. The print ticket that is not supported by the common description method is described by a unique description method. be able to. For example, in the page allocation setting, 2in1 and 4in1 are common descriptions, but 16in1 is a unique description.

  In an image forming apparatus that analyzes and prints an XPS file, there is an apparatus that cannot be processed unless converted to an original description even if the print setting has a common description for design reasons. In addition, a print ticket unique to another manufacturer is usually printed after being converted into a common description or a description unique to the company.

  In the overall configuration shown in FIG. 1, since XPS documents on the Internet stored in the management server 200 usually have a print description in a common description, an image forming apparatus that cannot process print settings in the common description In order to print correctly, it is necessary to rewrite the description so that the device can process it.

  On the other hand, the XPS can include the electronic signature data as described above, and there are cases where the XPS document is signed and stored to prevent tampering. In this case, when the rewriting process for printing is performed on the signed XPS, it cannot be said that the signature data is valid. If it is necessary to print this XPS with a signature, it is necessary to invalidate (delete) the signature data and perform printing when performing the rewriting process. It is not preferable in terms of security to perform without permission from the person.

  In the second embodiment, a description will be given of an implementation example in which a warning dialog is displayed to confirm to a user before printing when a signed XPS file has to be rewritten and edited before printing.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example of the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment. Since the hardware configuration and the like are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted here. The reference numerals of the first embodiment are used as they are for the reference numerals of the parts.

  First, as in the first embodiment, a list of XPS files is displayed (ACT 101), and one of the XPS files selected by the user is downloaded (ACT 102). As in the first embodiment, the processor 111 determines whether there is signature data in the XPS file (ACT 103).

  When there is signature data (ACT 103, Yes), the processor 111 verifies the print ticket (ACT 104) and determines whether the print ticket needs to be edited (ACT 105). Here, it is determined and verified whether the print ticket is a description supported by the image forming apparatus 100 and a supported value is set.

  When editing is required (ACT 105, Yes), the control panel 120 displays a warning dialog according to the control of the processor 111. In this example, the control panel 120 displays a dialog asking the user whether to invalidate the signature as shown in FIG.

  Even if no editing is performed, the appearance changes, but the contents are printed without any change. As illustrated in FIG. 9, the control panel 120 prompts the user whether to edit and print or to print as it is. A dialog for selection may be displayed. For example, if there is a print ticket with a 2in1 setting with a common description, and processing is performed on an image forming apparatus that needs to rewrite the print ticket with a unique description, the signature is invalidated and printing is performed with 2in1 or the signature is invalidated The user is allowed to select whether to print as it is without making it (normal printing because 2 in 1 cannot be analyzed).

  When the user presses the “Yes” button in the warning dialog shown in FIG. 8 (ACT 107, “Yes”), the processor 111 verifies the signature data as in the first embodiment (ACT 108). If the signature data is valid (ACT 108, valid), the processor 111 edits the print ticket to a supported description (ACT 109), deletes the signature data (ACT 110), and sends the job to the image forming unit P. (ACT111). The reason for deleting the signature data is that the XPS file has been rewritten by the image forming apparatus 100 and is different from the state in which the signature data is added.

  The processor 111 determines whether the processed data is the last job (ACT 112). If the processed data is not the last job (ACT 112, No), the processor 111 returns the operation to the ACT 102.

  If the determination in ACT 105 is negative, the print ticket is printed as it is (ACT 111). If the “No” button is pressed in the determination of ACT 107, nothing is done with respect to the relevant XPS file, and the processing proceeds to the next XPS file (to ACT 112). If it is determined in ACT 108 that the signature data is invalid, the fact that the signature is invalid is notified as in the first embodiment (ACT 113), the process proceeds to ACT 112 without printing, and the next XPS file is displayed. Processing continues for.

  Further, the control panel 120 displays a preview of the job before invalidating the signature as shown in FIG. The user can visually check whether the contents have been altered or different by comparing the printed sheet medium with the signature invalidated with the displayed preview image. . The control panel 120 displays a preview of the print data in a state before editing the print ticket in accordance with an instruction signal from the control board 110. The control panel 120 may also display a signature verification result.

  In each of the embodiments described above, the image forming apparatus processes XPS. However, a computer such as the conversion server 300 may perform the processing. In addition, a print control apparatus that performs the control operations described in the above embodiments may be provided. In this case, the print control apparatus can have a hardware configuration equivalent to the processor 111, the memory 112, and the NIC 113 (that is, a unit equivalent to the control board 100). Further, the print control apparatus may be incorporated in the PC 150. In this case, for example, a printer driver (program) that executes the functions described in the above embodiments is installed in the PC 150 in advance, thereby functioning as a print control apparatus.

  In each of the above embodiments, the image forming unit P is described as an example of a unit that forms an XPS image on a sheet medium, and the image forming unit P generates a final printed matter. After the processing, it may be implemented such that, for example, FAX transmission is performed to the external device, and the external device generates a printed matter in the final form. In this case, the external device serves as an image forming unit, and the external device prints on a sheet medium.

  In the above example, the data format to be printed has been described as XPS, but this is only an example, and the present invention is not limited to this. The first embodiment can be applied to any format that includes at least signature data and print data, and the second embodiment can be applied to any format that includes print setting information in addition to these. Further, if the correspondence between the data is clear, for example, the signature data and the print data are linked, it is not necessary for the data to be integrated as one file as in XPS.

  The acquisition unit corresponds to the configuration of the NIC 113 and the memory 112 of the embodiment, and the control unit corresponds to the configuration of the processor 111 and the memory 112. The notification unit corresponds to the control panel 120, the image forming unit P, the NIC 113, and the like. The display unit corresponds to the control panel 120.

  As described in detail above, according to the technique described in this specification, it is possible to reduce the distribution of printed matter that may be tampered with.

  The present invention can be implemented in various other forms without departing from the spirit or main features thereof. Therefore, the above-described embodiment is merely an example in all respects and should not be interpreted in a limited manner. The scope of the present invention is indicated by the scope of claims, and is not restricted by the text of the specification. Further, all modifications, various improvements, alternatives and modifications belonging to the equivalent scope of the claims are all within the scope of the present invention.

100 image forming apparatus, 170 LAN, 200 management server, 300 conversion server, 111, 211, 311 processor, 112, 212, 312 memory, 113, 213, 313 NIC, 400 network, 500 system, P image forming unit.

Claims (5)

An acquisition unit that acquires data including signature data, print data, and print setting information about the print data;
The signature data in the data acquired by the acquisition unit is verified, and if the signature data is valid, the image forming unit is controlled to print the print data, and if the signature data is invalid, A control unit that controls not to print the print data;
I have a,
The control unit further determines whether the print setting information is in a format that can be printed by the image forming unit, and converts the print setting information into a printable format if the format is not printable. And
Before the control unit converts the print setting information in printable form, print control apparatus that have a display unit that displays a message inquiring whether to disable the signature data. further,
When verification by the control unit is invalid, a notification unit is provided for notifying a message indicating that the signature data is invalid.
The print control apparatus according to claim 1 . Before converting the print setting information into a printable format,
Wherein the display unit, using the print setting information in a state before converting into a printable format, the print control apparatus according to claim 1 for displaying a preview of the print data. The verification of the signature data by the control unit is as follows:
  Performed when an instruction to invalidate signature data is received after displaying a message asking whether to invalidate the signature data
The print control apparatus according to claim 1. After displaying a message asking whether to invalidate the signature data, when receiving an instruction not to invalidate the signature data, the control unit displays the print data without verifying the signature data. The printing control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the printing control apparatus is controlled not to print.

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