JP6565621B2 - Image forming apparatus, image forming system, and image forming method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, an image forming system, and an image forming method capable of printing a plurality of jobs on the same transfer medium.

In an image forming apparatus that prints on a sheet based on a job, a job processing apparatus that prints a plurality of jobs on the same sheet and a job processing program have been proposed.
For example, in Patent Document 1, a plurality of jobs are received, an image of one job is printed on the first side of the paper, and another job duplex printing is performed in which an image of another job is printed on the second side of the paper. Printing systems that can do this have been proposed. In this system, it is said that the convenience when a plurality of jobs are received can be improved.

JP 2010-234540 A

However, in Patent Document 1, although two jobs can be printed on the front and back surfaces of the paper one page at a time, it is not possible to print a plurality of jobs on the same paper surface or to perform detailed print settings.
In recent years, there are cases where data files are divided and created and managed for each item in order to manage security and a huge amount of data. In order to print such data, it is necessary to perform an integration operation into one job by designating a print location in advance using a dedicated application or the like, and the work load is large.

  The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances. A plurality of jobs can be printed on a single transfer medium, not limited to the front and back surfaces, and a plurality of data files can be printed without requiring integration. An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus, an image forming system, and an image forming method.

An image forming apparatus according to a first aspect of the present invention includes an image forming unit that forms an image based on a job and performs printing on a transfer medium , and print positions of a plurality of jobs on the same transfer medium. A storage unit capable of storing a template specified every time, and a control unit for managing the job and controlling the storage unit and the image forming unit,
The control unit has a function of referring to a template stored in the storage unit and associating a print position of the template job with an input job, and associating the print position of the job with the input job. The template is set in a job input waiting state, and when all the associated jobs are input in the input waiting state template, printing by the image forming unit can be started.

  An image forming apparatus according to another aspect is characterized in that, in the present invention according to the aspect described above, a print position and a print range of a job are designated for the template.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the storage unit can store a plurality of templates.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus of the present invention, the control unit has a function of editing the template.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the control unit has a function of specifying at least a print position as editing of the template.

An image forming apparatus of another form has an operation part which receives an operation input in the present invention of the above-mentioned form,
The control unit enables editing of the template via the operation unit.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the control unit may store the template as a new storage or an already stored template based on editing information notified from outside the image forming apparatus via the network. It is characterized by making a change.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the control unit may be configured such that when the print position and the image size of the input job are different from each other in the template, the control unit is within the print range of the designated print position. The image size is reduced.

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the control unit associates the job with the print position of the job by using unique identification information held in the job. .

  According to another aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus includes an operation unit that receives an operation input, and the control unit enables input of unique identification information for a job through the operation unit. And

  In another form of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, the job is obtained from outside the image forming apparatus, and the unique identification information is held.

Among the image forming systems of the present invention, a first form is a storage unit capable of storing a template in which the print positions of a plurality of jobs on the same transfer medium are specified for each page of the transfer medium in the above-described form of the present invention. ,
A control unit for managing the job and controlling the storage unit and the image forming unit,
The control unit has a function of referring to a template stored in the storage unit and associating a print position of the template job with an input job, and associating the print position of the job with the input job. The template is put in a job input waiting state, and control is performed so that printing by the image forming unit can be started when all the associated jobs are input in the template waiting for input.

  In another form of the image forming system according to the present invention, the image forming system includes an image forming unit that forms an image based on a job and prints the image on a transfer medium.

The image forming method of the present invention stores in a storage unit a template in which print positions of a plurality of jobs for the same transfer medium are designated for each page of the transfer medium ;
Referring to the template stored in the storage unit, associating the print position of the template job with the input job;
Placing the template associating the print position of the job with the input job into a job input waiting state;
A template waiting for input includes a step of starting printing when all associated jobs are input.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to input and print a plurality of data files as respective jobs by setting a template in which print positions of a plurality of jobs are specified on the same transfer medium. There is an effect that an expected output can be obtained without requiring the work of integrating data files in advance.

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus and an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Similarly, functional blocks of the image forming apparatus are shown. Similarly, it is an example for explaining association of jobs in a template. Similarly, it is another example for explaining the association of jobs in a template. Similarly, it is still another example for explaining the association of jobs in a template. Similarly, it is a figure which shows the example of a template setting screen. Similarly, it is a flowchart showing a procedure for saving and editing a template. Similarly, it is a flowchart showing a procedure for starting printing after inputting a job.

Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 shows a mechanical configuration of an image forming apparatus of the present invention and an outline of the image forming apparatus.
The image forming apparatus 1 includes an apparatus main body 1A, and a paper feed unit large capacity tray 20 is connected to the front side of the apparatus main body 1A. In this embodiment, a post-processing device is not provided on the rear stage side of the apparatus main body 1A, but a post-processing device may be provided. An appropriate sheet is stored in the large capacity tray 20 of the sheet feeding unit.
In this embodiment, the image forming apparatus 1 is described as being configured by the apparatus main body 1A and the apparatus connected to the apparatus main body 1A. However, the type and number of apparatuses connected to the apparatus main body 1A are described. Is not particularly limited. Further, the image forming apparatus may be configured only by the main body apparatus 1A.

  The image forming apparatus 1 includes an image forming unit 15 that forms an image in the apparatus main body 1A. An operation panel 14 that receives an operation of an operator and displays information is provided on the upper side of the apparatus main body 1A. Have. The operation panel 14 can be configured by an LCD having a touch panel, for example. Moreover, the operation part which performs operation, and the display part which performs a display may be comprised separately.

  Further, an upper side of the operation main body 1A of the image forming apparatus 1 includes a document reading unit 13 including an automatic document feeder that automatically reads a document. The document reading unit 13 reads an image of the document. In addition, the lower part of the apparatus main body 1A has a paper supply unit main body tray 10 for storing paper.

  The apparatus main body 1A has a conveyance path 12 through which paper is conveyed, and paper feeding may be performed from a plurality of paper feeding unit main body trays 10 in the operation main body 1A. 20 may be fed. Sheets fed from the sheet feeding unit main body tray 10 and the sheet feeding unit large capacity tray 20 are conveyed by the conveying path 12 via the conveying rollers 13A, 13B and the like, and reach the image forming unit 15. In the image forming unit 15, the image is transferred to the paper, and the fixing unit 15 E applies heat and pressure to fix the toner image, and then printing is performed. Thereafter, the image is discharged out of the apparatus through the conveyance path 12. The paper of this embodiment corresponds to the transfer medium of the present invention. The transfer medium is not limited to paper, and may be constituted by cloth or the like. Further, the paper on which the image has been formed may be conveyed to a post-processing device.

Although not shown in the drawing, the reverse conveyance path is branched on the downstream side of the fixing device 15E, and the reverse conveyance path is joined to the conveyance path 12 on the upstream side of the image forming unit 15. When images are formed on the front and back surfaces, the paper with the image formed on the front surface is transported to the reverse transport path, the paper is reversed on the reverse transport path, and then transported to the transport path 12 so that the image on the back surface side Formation can be performed.
Note that the mechanism for forming an image on the back side of the paper is not limited to the above, and an image forming unit for the back side may be provided separately.

  The image forming unit 15 has a photoconductor 15A prepared for each color (cyan, magenta, yellow, black, etc.), and a charger, a writing unit, and a developing unit (not shown) are provided on the peripheral portion of each photoconductor 15A. Is arranged. The surface of the photoreceptor 15A charged by the charger is subjected to image exposure by a writing unit such as an LD based on image information of image data, and a latent image is formed on the surface of the photoreceptor 15A. The latent image is developed by the developing unit to become a toner image. The toner image is transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 15B, and the image on the intermediate transfer belt 15B is transferred to the paper that is conveyed while being conveyed by the conveyance path 12 and pressed by the secondary transfer roller 15C.

In the image forming unit 15, a cleaning blade that removes residual toner on the intermediate transfer belt 15B on the rotation direction side of the sheet transfer position of the intermediate transfer belt 15B and on the rotation direction opposite side of the transfer position with each photoconductor 15A. 15D is arranged.
Each of the above-described photoreceptors 15A and the intermediate transfer belt 15B is rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown). The paper on which the image has been transferred is printed with the image fixed by the fixing device 15E. When only printing on the front side of the sheet is performed, the sheet is discharged as it is along the conveyance path 12 after image formation.
When printing on the back side of the paper, the paper is sent to the reverse conveyance path to reverse the paper and circulate in the conveyance path 12 on the upstream side of the image forming unit 15. The recirculated paper is transferred to the back side in the same manner as described above, and after the image is fixed by the fixing device 15E, it is discharged along the transport path 12.

  In this embodiment, a color image forming apparatus will be described, but a monochrome image forming apparatus may be used.

  The image forming apparatus 1 is connected to the external apparatus 2 through the LAN 3 to constitute an image forming system. Examples of the external device 2 include a management device that manages a PC terminal and an image forming apparatus. In addition to being acquired by the image forming apparatus 1, the image data may be acquired from job data sent from the external apparatus 2. The job data includes image data and printing condition data.

Next, control blocks of the image forming system including the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG.
The image forming apparatus 1 includes a copier main body having a control block unit 110, a scanner unit 130, an operation display unit 140, and a printer unit 150 as main components, and an external device 2 (for example, a terminal (PC)) through the LAN 3. And an image processing unit (print & scanner controller) 160 for processing input / output image data.

  The control block unit 110 has a PCI bus 112, and the PCI bus 112 is connected to the DRAM control IC 111 in the control block. Further, the HDD 119 is connected to the PCI bus 112. The HDD 119 can store identification information associated with a job, template information to which a plurality of jobs are assigned, and the like.

Further, the control block unit 110 includes a control CPU 113, and a nonvolatile memory 115 is connected to the control CPU 113. The nonvolatile memory 115 stores a program for operating the control CPU 113, setting data of the image forming apparatus 1, process control parameters, template information, and the like.
The control CPU 113 grasps the state of the entire image forming apparatus and performs image formation control and the like. That is, the control CPU 113 functions as a control unit of the present invention.

  The scanner unit 130 includes a CCD 131 that performs optical reading and a scanner control unit 132 that controls the entire scanner unit 130. The scanner control unit 132 is connected to the control CPU 113 so as to be capable of serial communication, and is controlled by the control CPU 113. The scanner control unit 132 can be configured by a CPU or a program for operating the CPU. The image data read by the CCD 131 is subjected to data processing by a reading processing unit 116.

  The operation display unit 140 includes an LCD 141 and an operation unit control unit 142. The LCD 141 and the operation unit control unit 142 are connected to each other so that the operation unit control unit 142 and the control CPU 113 can perform serial communication. It is connected. The LCD 141 constitutes the operation panel 14 together with the touch panel. With this configuration, the operation display unit 140 is controlled by the control CPU 113. The operation unit control unit 142 can be configured by a CPU, a program for operating the CPU, and the like.

  The operation display unit 140 is capable of inputting operation control conditions such as image formation and paper feed settings and operation commands in the image forming apparatus 1. Furthermore, setting contents, machine status, information display, and the like are possible, and are controlled by the control CPU 113. The operation display unit 140 can perform a predetermined operation or the like. It is also possible to create identification information associated with a job, create a template used for printing a plurality of jobs (page position setting, print area, etc.), set a job associated with the page position on the template, and the like.

  The DRAM control IC 111 is connected to an image memory (DRAM) 120 including a compression memory 121 and a page memory 122. The image memory (DRAM) 120 stores image data acquired by the scanner unit 130, image data acquired through the LAN 3, identification information associated with the image, and the like as job data. In addition, job data including image data and identification information can be stored in the HDD 119. A plurality of job data can be stored as saved jobs.

  The DRAM control IC 111 is connected to a compression IC 118 that compresses compressed image data and a decompression IC 117 that decompresses the compressed image data. Further, a write processing unit 123 is connected to the DRAM control IC 111 via a decompression IC 117. The writing processing unit 123 is connected to the LD 152 of the printer unit 150 and processes data used for the operation of the LD 152.

The printer unit 150 includes a printer control unit 151 that controls the entire printer unit 150. The printer control unit 151 is electrically connected to the control CPU 113 and is controlled. The printer control unit 151 performs various controls of the printer unit 150 according to commands from the control CPU 113.
The printer control unit 151 is electrically connected to a paper feed control unit 21 that controls the paper feed unit large capacity tray 20. The printer control unit 151 gives a paper feed instruction to the paper feed control unit 21 in response to a command from the control CPU 113.

In addition, a DRAM control IC 161 of the image processing unit (print & scanner controller) 160 is connected to the PCI bus 112 connected to the DRAM control IC 111. In the image processing unit (print & scanner controller) 160, an image memory 162 and a LAN interface 165 are connected to the DRAM control IC 161. The LAN interface 165 is connected to the LAN 3. The LAN 3 can be various networks.
An external device 2 such as a PC terminal or a management device is connected to the LAN 3, and image data and identification information can be transmitted / received to / from the image forming device 1. The external device 2 includes an external device control unit 200 that controls the entire external device 2 and an external device operation unit 210.

Next, the basic operation of the image forming apparatus 1 will be described.
First, a procedure for accumulating image data in the image forming apparatus 1 will be described.
In the image forming apparatus 1, when the scanner unit 130 reads an image of a document and generates image data, the scanner unit 130 optically reads the document image from the document by the CCD 131. At this time, the operation of the CCD 131 is controlled by the scanner control unit 132 that receives a command from the control CPU 113. The image read by the CCD 131 is subjected to data processing by the reading processing unit 116, and the image data subjected to the data processing is compressed by the compression IC 118 and stored in the compression memory 121 and the HDD 119 via the DRAM control IC 111. The image data stored in the compression memory 121 or the HDD 119 can be managed as a job by the control CPU 113.

  When acquiring image data from the outside, for example, image data transmitted from the external device 2 via the LAN 3 is stored in the image memory 162 by the DRAM control IC 161 via the LAN interface 165. At this time, the print information can be received in the same manner. If the image data in the image memory 162 requires RIP processing (Raster Image Processing), it is converted into a bitmap by the controller control CPU 163 and stored again in the image memory 162. When a plurality of jobs are assigned by a template externally, the page position and image data based on the job are associated with each other and input to the image processing unit (print & scanner controller) 160.

In the external device 2, the template can be edited by the external device operation unit 210. Information on the edited template is notified to the image forming apparatus 1 as editing information, and can be used to change or newly save the template stored in the image forming apparatus 1.
Further, the external device 2 may transmit the template information as described above, hold the template information, and control the printing operation in the image forming apparatus 1 based on this information.

  Also, when a template is prepared in the image forming apparatus and is waiting for job input, the control CPU 113 applies job data to the template waiting for job input from the time when image data is read or received. Can be stored in the compression memory 121.

  Data in the image memory 162 is temporarily stored in the page memory 122 via the DRAM control IC 161, the PCI bus 112, and the DRAM control IC 111. Data stored in the page memory 122 is sequentially sent to the compression IC via the DRAM control IC 111 and compressed, stored in the compression memory 121 and the HDD 119 via the DRAM control IC 111, and managed by the control CPU 113 in the same manner as described above. Made. The printing conditions can include unique identification information for each job.

  As described above, the control CPU 113 has a function of imposing a plurality of jobs on one transfer medium. The imposition setting may be performed by the user via the operation panel 14, or may be set in advance or specified from the outside. Further, template information may be included in the print conditions of an external job.

Next, when outputting an image with the image forming apparatus 1, the image data and print information stored in the compression memory 121 and the HDD 119 are sent to the decompression IC 117 via the DRAM control IC 111 to decompress and decompress the data. The transmitted data is sent to the writing processing unit 123, and the LD 152 performs writing on each photoconductor.
When the control CPU 113 has unique identification information for each job as print information of the received image data, the control CPU 113 can assign the job to the template based on the identification information. The paper printed by the image forming unit 15 is discharged through the conveyance path 12.
The job can be associated with the template by storing the template with which the job has been associated in advance, and when printing, this can be read and printed. Also, when printing, the job can be associated with the template. You may make it perform.

When printing using a template, when a job assigned to the template is input, the job is stored in the compression memory 121 or the HDD 119 and prepared. Alternatively, the image data may be decompressed and waited in the page memory 122. The control CPU 113 waits for printing when the template is waiting for input, creates image data for output when all the print jobs are ready, sends the image data to the writing processing unit 123, and starts printing. can do. When waiting in the page memory 122, the data in the page memory 122 is updated when a job is input, and when the data is updated by all jobs, the image data is sent to the write processing unit 123 and printed. Can start.
In the above description, the image forming apparatus 1 has been described as performing template storage, editing, reference, and job association. However, some or all of these may be performed by an external apparatus. The external device control unit 200 may control image formation of the image forming apparatus 1.

Next, an example of a template for assigning a plurality of jobs will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 3, JOB1, JOB2, and JOB3 are assigned to the front side of the paper by the template T1, and JOB4 is assigned to the back side of the paper by the template T2.
In the front-side template T1, print positions P1 to P3 with a print range are set in order from the top, JOB1 is associated with the print position P1, JOB2 is associated with the print position P2, and the print position P3 is associated with it. JOB3 is associated. On the back side, a print position P4 with a defined print range is set, and JOB4 is associated with the print position P4.

  In this template example, the same template is commonly used for the previous page. Therefore, on the first page of the paper, the first page of JOB1 is printed at the printing position P1, the first page of JOB2 is printed at the printing position P2, and the first page of JOB3 is printed at the printing position P3. On the back side, the first page of JOB4 is printed at the print position P4. On the second page, the second page of JOB1 is printed at the print position P1, the second page of JOB2 is printed at the print position P2, and the second page of JOB3 is printed at the print position P3 on the front side. On the side, the second page of JOB4 is printed at the printing position P4. Thereafter, the same printing is performed. By the above procedure, a plurality of data files can be printed by executing a plurality of jobs. Further, at the print position associated with each job, printing can be performed using the print settings set for the job. Accordingly, it is possible to perform detailed print settings for each job.

Further, the same template may be used for all pages, or a different template may be used for each page.
FIG. 4 shows a template T3 targeted for the second page, for example, when the template of FIG. 3 is used. In the template T3, a print position P5 associated with JOB1 and a print position P6 associated with JOB2 are set. If printing is performed using this template, JOB1 is printed at the printing position P5 and JOB2 is printed at the printing position P6 on the second page.

Also, when associating a job with a template, the image size of the job may be different from the designated print position range. If the job image size is smaller than the specified print position range, the job image size can be printed. In addition, if there is an enlargement designation or the like, it is possible to enlarge and print to the range of the print position.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, in the template T4, when the job image size (JOB5) is larger than the range of the designated print position P5, the job image size may be reduced to be within the print position range. it can. The reduction ratio may be determined so as to be within the print position range, or the reduction ratio may be set. In this template, the number and position of jobs may be designated for each print page.

  FIG. 6 shows a print setting screen 1400 displayed on the operation panel 14. When a template setting tab 1410 is pressed, a template setting screen 1420 is displayed. In the template setting screen 1420, a template can be edited, and editing includes new creation, change of an existing template, deletion, and the like.

A template selection list 1421 and a job specification list 1422 are displayed to be operable. In this example, template 1 is selected from the template selection list 1421 and JOB1 is selected as the association job. When the OK button 1401 is pressed in this state, a print position designation field is displayed, and the print position can be designated. Further, when a job is specified in the JOB specification list 1421 and the OK button is pressed, a print position specification field is displayed, and the print position can be specified. If a newly created item is provided in the template selection list 1421, a new template can be created by selecting this item.
In template editing, a plurality of jobs can be designated, and the ranges of the print positions may overlap.

If the template setting is completed, the application button 1403 is pressed to store the template in the HDD 119 or the nonvolatile memory 115, and the screen changes. Therefore, the HDD 119 and the nonvolatile memory 115 in which the template is stored correspond to a storage unit of the present invention.
The cancel button 1402 can cancel the setting content immediately before the OK button 1401 is pressed. For example, the print position designation can be canceled and the job selection can be changed as necessary.

Next, the procedure for saving and editing the template will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The following procedure is executed under the control of the control unit.
At the start of the process, it is determined whether to edit the template (step s1). If the template is not edited (step s1, NO), it is determined whether to use the template (step s11). When the template is not used (step s11, NO), the template editing / setting process is terminated.

When a template is used (step s11, YES), a template selection process is performed (step s12). The template selection process may be performed automatically when there is one template. When there are a plurality of templates, the template can be selected from a plurality of templates on the operation screen. Complete the selection process.
After selecting the template, a job input waiting state is started (step s13), and the template editing / setting process is terminated.

When editing a template (step s1, YES), it is determined whether a new template is created (step s2). In the case of creating a new template (step s2, YES), the creation of a new template is started (step s3), and a template name and the like are set.
If the template is not newly created (step 2, NO), the template selection operation is enabled on the operation screen and the template operation by the user is accepted (step s4). If there is one template, the template may be automatically selected.

After steps s3 and s4, template editing is started (step s5). In editing, a job association setting by the user is accepted (step s6), and a job input position setting by the user is accepted (step s7).
Next, it is determined whether the editing has been completed (step s8). If the editing has not been completed (step s8, NO), the process returns to step s6 to continue the editing.
If it is determined in step s8 that the editing is complete (step s8, YES), it is determined whether to save the template (step s9). If the template is not stored (step s9, NO), the process proceeds to the procedure for using the template as it is (step s11). When the template is stored (step s9, YES), the template is stored in the storage unit (step s10), and the process proceeds to the procedure for using the template (step s11).

Next, a procedure from template job input to printing start will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The following procedure is executed under the control of the control unit.
A determination is made as to whether or not the input of the template is awaited as the job is input (step s20). If not waiting for template input (NO in step s20), normal printing is performed (step s27).
If it is waiting for the template input (step s20, YES), it is determined whether the input job is a job used in the template (step s21). If the job is not used in the template (step s21, NO), normal printing is performed (step s27).
If the input job is a job used in the template (step s21, YES), it is determined whether all the jobs used in the template are ready (step s22).

If all the jobs used in the template are not complete (step s22, NO), the next job is waited (step s23), and the process proceeds to step s20 when the next job is input.
If all jobs used in the template are ready (step s22, YES), it is determined whether the print position range is the same as the image size (step s24).
If the print position range and the image size are the same (step s24, YES), an output image is formed (step s26). If the print position range and the image size are not the same (step s24, NO), the print position The image size is reduced so that the image size falls within the range (step s25), and an output image is formed (step s26).
Printing is started after the output image is formed.

  In the above flow chart, it has been described that a template editing and printing execution procedure is performed by the image forming apparatus. However, a part or all of these may be executed by the control unit of the external apparatus.

  As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated based on the said embodiment, unless it leaves the scope of the present invention, the suitable change with respect to the said embodiment is possible.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 External apparatus 14 Operation panel 15 Image forming part 19 HDD
113 Control CPU
115 Non-volatile memory 200 External device controller 1400 Template setting screen T1, T2, T3, T4 Template P1, P2, P3, P4 Print position

Claims (14)

An image forming unit that forms an image based on a job and prints on a transfer medium;
A storage unit capable of storing a template in which print positions of a plurality of jobs for the same transfer medium are designated for each page of the transfer medium ;
A control unit for managing the job and controlling the storage unit and the image forming unit,
The control unit has a function of referring to a template stored in the storage unit and associating a print position of the template job with an input job, and associating the print position of the job with the input job. An image forming apparatus characterized in that a template is placed in a job input waiting state, and printing by the image forming unit can be started when all the associated jobs are input in the template waiting for input.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a print position and a print range of the job are designated for the template.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage unit is capable of storing a plurality of the templates.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit has a function of editing the template.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control unit has a function of designating at least a print position as editing of the template. It has an operation unit that accepts operation inputs,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit enables editing of the template via the operation unit.   The said control part performs the new preservation | save of the said template, or the change of the template memorize | stored already based on the edit information notified via the network from the outside of an image forming apparatus. 2. The image forming apparatus according to item 1.   The control unit according to claim 1, wherein when the print position and the image size of the input job are different from each other in the template, the control unit reduces the image size to be within a print range of a specified print position. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit associates the job with the print position of the job by using unique identification information held in the job. . It has an operation unit that accepts operation inputs,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the control unit enables input of unique identification information for a job through the operation unit.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the job is acquired from outside the image forming apparatus, and the unique identification information is held. A storage unit capable of storing a template in which print positions of a plurality of jobs for the same transfer medium are designated for each page of the transfer medium ;
A control unit for managing the job and controlling the storage unit and the image forming unit,
The control unit has a function of referring to a template stored in the storage unit and associating a print position of the template job with an input job, and associating the print position of the job with the input job. An image forming system, wherein a template is set in a job input waiting state, and control is performed so that printing by an image forming unit can be started when all of the associated jobs are input in the template waiting for input.   13. The image forming system according to claim 12, further comprising an image forming unit that forms an image based on a job and prints the image on a transfer medium. Storing in the storage unit a template designating the print positions of a plurality of jobs for the same transfer medium for each page of the transfer medium ;
Referring to the template stored in the storage unit, associating the print position of the template job with the input job;
Placing the template associating the print position of the job with the input job into a job input waiting state;
An image forming method, comprising: a step of starting printing when all associated jobs are input in a template waiting for input.

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