JP6686732B2 - Information processing apparatus, information processing system, program, and control method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, a program, and a control method.

  A "pull print printing method" is known in which print data of a user is stored in a server device and printing is performed in response to a user's request.

  In the pull print method, after a print job including print data is input from the client apparatus to the server apparatus, the user of the client apparatus specifies a print job to be printed from a print job list displayed on the image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus acquires the designated print job from the server apparatus and executes printing.

  Further, in the pull printing method, in order to avoid unnecessary printing and contribute to the reduction of TCO (Total Cost of Ownership), a function of displaying a preview image on the operation panel of the image forming apparatus before actual printing is provided. It is known (for example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In this case, the server device generates a preview image when a print job is input or when a request is received from the image forming device.

  If a preview image is generated when a print job is submitted, the load on the server device may increase due to the generation of the preview image that may not be viewed by the user. In response to the request, the server device can promptly respond with the preview image. On the other hand, when the preview image is generated when the request for the preview image is received from the image forming apparatus, it takes time to respond the preview image to the image forming apparatus, but the load on the server apparatus can be suppressed. .

  Further, the server device applies a different preview image generation method depending on the print language used for the print job to generate the preview image.

  As described above, each preview image generation process has its advantages and disadvantages. However, the conventional preview image generation methods include, for example, user convenience, server device load, and printing. It was not possible to flexibly control the preview image generation process in consideration of the print language used in the job.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to flexibly generate a preview image according to the situation.

  An information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the disclosure discloses a receiving unit that receives a print job from a client device, a preview image generating unit that generates a preview image of print data included in the print job, and the generated preview image. And a transmission unit that transmits the image data to the image forming apparatus. The preview image generation unit, when the print data uses the first print language, displays the preview image of the print data under the condition of page. When the generation of the print data is limited to the second print language, the generation of the preview image of the print data is limited under the condition of time.

  According to the disclosed embodiment, it is possible to flexibly generate a preview image according to a situation.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of an overall system configuration of a print system according to a first embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of functional composition concerning a 1st embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the job table which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the setting item of the server which concerns on 1st Embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a display on an operation panel of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a display on an operation panel of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the hardware constitutions of the client apparatus and server apparatus which concern on 1st Embodiment. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation sequence of generating a preview image according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation sequence of generating a preview image according to the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation sequence of generating a preview image according to the first embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the queue table which concerns on 1st Embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation sequence of generating a preview image according to the first embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the operation sequence of the generation of the preview image which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of the generation process of the preview image which concerns on a modification.

[First Embodiment]
<Overall system configuration and functional configuration of each device>
(1) Overall System Configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall system configuration of the print system 1. The print system 1 includes a client device 100, a server device 200, an image forming device 300, and an authentication server 400. The respective devices are connected to each other via a communication network 50. The communication network 50 is not limited to a specific communication method, and is connected to each other using Ethernet (registered trademark), TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol), or the like. Further, at the time of mutual connection, they may be connected via a LAN (Local Area Network), a VPN (Virtual Private Network) and a dedicated line.

  An example of an operation procedure of the print system 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step S101, when the user #A operates the client apparatus 100 to issue a print job (hereinafter referred to as a job) input instruction to the server apparatus 200, the job input instruction and the identifier of the user #A are the server. Transmitted to the device 200. The server device 200 stores the received job in association with the user's identifier. In this case, the user #A identifier and the job are stored in association with each other.

  In step S102, user #A inputs information necessary for logging in to image forming apparatus 300. For example, in this step, the user #A inputs the user ID and the password to the image forming apparatus 300.

  In step S103, the image forming apparatus 300 transmits an authentication request to the authentication server 400. The authentication request includes the user ID and the password.

  In step S104, image forming apparatus 300 receives a response to the authentication request from authentication server 400. When the user ID and the password are properly authenticated, the user #A can use various functions (print, scan, FAX, etc.) associated with the user #A of the image forming apparatus 300. Become.

  In step S105, the image forming apparatus 300 requests the server apparatus 200 for a list of jobs that the user #A can execute.

  In step S106, the server device 200 generates a list of jobs associated with the user #A. Here, the job associated with the user #A is a job submitted from the client device 100 of the user #A.

  The server device 200 generates a preview image of the jobs included in the list. Further, the preview image may be generated when the job is submitted, or may be generated when the preview image is requested from the image forming apparatus 300. Details will be described later.

  The generation of a preview image is generation of display data converted into an image such as JPEG. The preview image is generated for each page of print data included in the job.

  In step S107, server apparatus 200 transmits the list of jobs to image forming apparatus 300.

  In step S108, in response to the request from user #A, image forming apparatus 300 transmits a preview image request. The request includes an identifier (job ID) that identifies the job specified by user #A and the page number of the preview image requested.

  In step S109, server device 200 transmits the preview image to image forming device 300. The transmitted preview image is displayed on the operation reception unit 356 of the image forming apparatus 300. The user #A can check the preview image displayed on the operation reception unit 356 to determine whether to execute printing.

  Upon receiving the job designation and the print execution instruction of the designated job from the user #A, the image forming apparatus 300 transmits a request for print data of the designated job to the server apparatus 200. The print data request includes the job ID of the job specified by user #A. Upon receiving the request for the print data, the server device 200 identifies the job based on the job ID, and responds with the print data of the job to the image forming apparatus 300. The image forming apparatus 300 prints the received print data.

  Here, the client device 100 is an example of a client, and the server device 200 is an example of an information processing device. The combination of the server device 200 and the image forming device 300 is an example of an information processing system.

(2) Functional Configuration of Server Device The functional configuration of the server device 200 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  The server device 200 includes a transmission / reception unit 252, an input / output unit 264, a control unit 256, a preview image generation unit 262, and a storage unit 258.

  The transmission / reception unit 252 receives a job from the client device 100. The preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image of print data included in the job. The transmission / reception unit 252 transmits the generated preview image to the image forming apparatus 300.

  When the first print language is used for the print data, the preview image generation unit 262 controls the generation of the preview image of the print data by controlling the page as a condition.

  When the second print language is used for the print data, the preview image generation unit 262 controls the generation of the preview image of the print data under the condition of time.

  Specifically, when the preview image generation unit 262 controls the generation of the preview image on the condition of the page, the preview image generation unit 262 executes the process of generating the preview image corresponding to the page specified by the condition of the print data. Further, when controlling the generation of the preview image under the condition of time, the preview image generation unit 262 executes the generation process of the preview image corresponding to the print data from the first page of the print data within the predetermined time.

  Here, the use of the first or second print language for the print data may be expressed as the use of the first or second print language for the job.

  The preview image generation unit 262 sets, for example, a timer for generating a preview image to a predetermined period, and generates a preview image during the period when the timer is activated. The timer may be activated at the timing when the preview image generation unit 262 starts generating the preview image. A variable period is set as the predetermined period.

  Here, the predetermined time is an example of a period set by a time-related condition.

  The first print language is, for example, RPCS (Refined Print Command Stream) or PCL (Printer Control Language). When using these print languages, the preview image can be generated by designating the page range (first page and last page) of the print data for generating the preview image. When the first print language is used, for example, the server device 200 is set to generate a preview image of “fifth to tenth page” or “fifth page” of print data. .

  The second print language is, for example, PS (Post Script), PDF (Portable Document Format), or the like. When the second print language is used, it is impossible to cause the server device 200 to generate a preview image by appropriately designating the range in which the preview image needs to be generated, unlike the first print language. Therefore, when the second print language is used, the preview image is generated by using the timer according to the setting for generating the preview image.

  The administrator of the server device 200 can adjust the length of the timer for generating the preview image in multiple stages in consideration of the load on the server device 200. For example, the administrator inputs "longer", "normal", or "smaller" into the timer for generating the preview image. The server device 200 sets a timer for generating a preview image in a period corresponding to such input.

  In the first generation method, the preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image in response to the reception of the job. In this case, the preview image generation unit 262 starts generation of the preview image at the timing when the server device 200 receives the job from the client device 100.

  In the first generation method, when the image forming apparatus 300 requests the transmission of the preview image, the server apparatus 200 can transmit the preview image in response to the request if the preview image has already been generated. In this case, the preview image is displayed on the image forming apparatus 300 promptly, which is convenient for the user. However, since the preview image that is not known whether the user requests the preview is generated and stored, the server is not saved. The load on the device 200 increases.

  Further, in the second generation method, the preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image in response to a request from the image forming apparatus 300. In this case, since the preview image requested by the user is generated, the server device 200 can efficiently generate the preview image requiring the preview, but the user waits until the preview image is generated. Therefore, the convenience of the user is reduced.

  The request for transmitting the preview image from image forming apparatus 300 includes information designating the page of the preview image. When the preview image of the designated page has not been generated, the preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image that has not been generated.

  At least one of the first generation method and the second generation method is performed. For example, the following method is possible. When the server device 200 receives the job, the server device 200 generates the preview images of the first page to the tenth page. When the image forming apparatus 300 requests the transmission of the preview image, the server apparatus 200 transmits the preview images of the first page to the tenth page. When the image forming apparatus 300 requests the preview images for the 11th and subsequent pages, the server apparatus 200 generates the preview images for the 11th and subsequent pages, and transmits the generated preview images to the image forming apparatus 300. By combining the first generation method and the second generation method, it is possible to flexibly generate the preview image.

  The storage unit 258 includes a job table storage unit 258a, a print data storage unit 258b, and a preview image data storage unit 258c.

  The job table storage unit 258a stores the attribute information regarding the job received from the client device 100. FIG. 3 shows an example of a job table in which each item of attribute information stored in the job table storage unit 258a is described.

  A job ID, which is a job identifier, is stored in the job table together with job attributes. Specifically, "job name", "user ID" indicating the user who sent the job, "job submission date" that is the date and time when the server device 200 received the job, attributes related to printing ("number of copies", "Number of pages", "Double-sided information", "Color information"), "Print language", "Print data save destination" indicating the save destination of the print data included in the job, "Preview image save" indicating the save destination of the preview image “Previous”, “presence / absence of preview image” indicating whether or not to generate a preview image, and “preview image generation state” are stored in association with the job ID.

  When “presence / absence of preview image” is “OFF”, the preview image generation unit 262 does not generate a preview image.

  The “preview image generation state” is “before generation” indicating that the preview image is not generated, “generating” indicating that the process of generating the preview image is being executed, and the generation of the preview image is completed. “Completed”, “error”, etc. indicating that the job is being performed are set. The job table storage unit 258a can store the number of pages of generated preview images in addition to the “preview image generation state”.

  The print data storage unit 258b stores print data included in the job. The control unit 256, the preview image generation unit 262, and the like identify the storage destination of the print data by referring to the storage unit 258a of the job table.

  The preview image data storage unit 258c stores the preview image data generated by the preview image generation unit 262. The control unit 256, the preview image generation unit 262, and the like specify the storage destination of the preview image by referring to the storage unit 258a of the job table.

  The “preview image is being generated” is stored in the temporary storage folder (temporary folder), and the preview image data storage unit is stored at the timing when the preview images for the specified number of pages are generated. Move to the folder of 258c. Setting information such as a temporary storage folder and a root path of the folder of the storage unit 258 is stored in the storage unit 258. Under the root path, the image data of the generated preview image is stored in the folder named by the job ID of the job for which the preview image is generated. The input / output unit 264 of the server device 200 receives the setting of the process related to the preview image generation from the administrator. The input / output unit 264 notifies the control unit 256 of the processing content, and the control unit 256 instructs the storage unit 258 to store the set information. The control unit 256 and the preview image generation unit 262 perform a preview generation process while referring to the setting contents stored in the storage unit 258.

  For example, the items shown in FIG. 4 can be provided as the setting items of the process related to the preview image generation.

  “(1) Generation of preview image” is an item for setting whether or not to generate a preview image. When the set value is “execute”, the preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image. On the other hand, when the set value is “not performed”, the preview image generation unit 262 does not generate the preview image.

  “(2) Preparation of preview image” is an item for setting whether or not to generate a preview image. When the setting value is “prepare”, the preview image generation unit 262 generates a preview image at the timing when the job is received from the client device 100. That is, the preview image generation unit 262 executes the first generation method. When the setting value is “do not prepare”, the preview image generation unit 262 does not execute the first generation method.

  “(3) Maximum number of preview image generation processes” is an item for setting the number of preview image generation processes that can be simultaneously activated by the preview image generation unit 262. Since the load on the server device 200 is large for generating the preview image, such an item is provided to limit the number of processes that can be executed simultaneously. Further, an item for setting the number of threads or tasks for generating preview images that the preview image generating unit 262 can simultaneously execute may be provided.

  Therefore, the preview image generation unit 262 sorts the print data for generating the preview image and executes the process of generating the preview image within the range up to the upper limit of the “maximum number of processes for generating the preview image”.

  “(4) Preview image in second print language” is an item for setting whether to generate “all” preview images or “partial” preview images.

  “(5) Amount of preview image of second print language generated” indicates how long the preview will occur when “Part” is selected in “(4) Preview image of second print language” This item is used to set or generate an image. Note that the period itself may be set by the user, but in consideration of the fact that ordinary users do not know how many preview images will be created on average in the set period, here , “Large”, “normal”, or “small” is set. Therefore, in advance, information in which each item is associated with a predetermined period in which the preview image is generated (or the length of the timer for generation) is held. In the storage unit 258, a predetermined period (or timer length) associated with the selected item is set. The length of the timer for generating the preview image is the longest when "Large" is selected, medium when "Normal" is selected, and the shortest when "Low" is selected. Become. For example, the length of the timer may be set to 30 seconds when it is "large", 20 seconds when it is "normal", and 10 seconds when it is "small". Note that it is needless to say that the selection of “(5) amount of generating preview image of second print language” can be set at any stage other than the three stages illustrated. The setting as to whether to generate all or a part of the preview image and the amount to generate the preview image can be set for the first print language. However, in the case of the first print language, the amount of preview images to be generated is not set by the length of the timer, but is set by the range (number of pages) for generating preview images. Further, for the first print language or the second print language, by selecting "partial", a predetermined value (the number of pages or a predetermined period) may be set. Here, regarding the setting of the amount of generating the preview image, it is assumed that a predetermined value (for example, 10 pages) is set for the first print language and a selected set value is set for the second print language. Proceed. The storage unit 258 may store the predetermined value for the first print language.

  The preview image generation unit 262 has a queue management unit 262A and a generation processing unit 262B. The queue management unit 262A has a queue registration control unit 270. The generation processing unit 262B has a process execution requesting unit 271 and a process executing unit 272.

  The queue management unit 262A manages the order of generating preview images by using a processing queue (queue) in which job information is registered.

  The queue registration control unit 270 performs processing such as registration of job information in a queue and replacement of job information in another processing queue. In addition, when the number of processing queues managed by the queue management unit 262A is one, the queue registration control unit 270 performs order management and replacement of job information in one processing queue.

  The process execution requesting unit 271 manages the process of generating a preview image in the process executing unit 272. The preview image generation process is started for each job. The process execution requesting unit 271 instructs the process executing unit 272 to generate a preview image based on the job information acquired from the head of the queue managed by the queue managing unit 262A. The process execution requesting unit 271 manages the execution time of each process with a timer or the like, and instructs the process executing unit 272 to terminate the process that has generated the preview image for a predetermined time. The process execution unit 272 generates a preview image based on the instruction from the process execution request unit 271.

  The preview image generation unit 262 executes various processes according to the setting of each setting item in FIG.

  For example, when the “maximum number of processes for preview image creation” in (3) of FIG. 4 is set to 3, the process execution unit 272 of the preview image generation unit 262 can activate three processes at the same time. The process execution requesting unit 271 monitors the number of active processes in the process executing unit 272, and when the number of processes reaches 3, the process execution requesting unit 271 does not give a new preview image generation instruction. When the number is less than 3, the process execution requesting unit 271 acquires job information from the head of the queue managed by the queue managing unit 262A, and newly instructs the process executing unit 272 to generate a preview image.

  The generation processing unit 262B determines whether the print data is the first print language or the second print language. If the print data is the second print language, the generation processing unit 262B displays the “preview image of the second print language” in (4) of FIG. , And (5) "amount of generating preview image in second print language" setting value is confirmed, and a timer corresponding to the setting value is set. In addition, when "all" is selected in (4) of FIG. 4, the timer is set to "no limit (indefinite)", or an assumed sufficiently long period (for example, 10 minutes) is set. .

  The preview image generation unit 262 adjusts the order in which the process of generating the preview image corresponding to each of the plurality of print data is distributed. The order is adjusted based on the attributes of the job corresponding to the print data.

  The preview image generation unit 262 can be configured to preferentially generate a preview image of a user having a high priority by referring to the priority of the user stored in the storage unit 258. Also, the preview image generation unit 262 can be configured to preferentially process the generation of the preview image requested by the image forming apparatus 300 over the generation of the preview image in other cases.

  The transmission / reception unit 252 transmits / receives a job, a preview image, and various data via the communication network 50.

  The transmission / reception unit 252 is an example of a transmission unit or a reception unit.

  As described above, in the pull printing, there is a time lag from when the job is input to the server apparatus 200 until the user specifies the job in the image forming apparatus 300 and prints, and the server apparatus 200 displays the preview image. There are a first generation method and a second generation method as the generation method.

  In the first generation method, the preview image generation processing is requested (or started) during the time lag. Therefore, the first generation method has an advantage that the response is good when the user requests the preview image in the image forming apparatus 300.

  On the other hand, since preview images of some or all jobs are simultaneously generated by the first generation method, for example, when the user prints the print data without previewing, the server device 200 does not use the preview image. Is generated, resulting in a wasteful process. In that sense, there is a risk that the load of the server device 200 will be increased.

  Further, for example, when a preview image of a job is generated by the second generation method, the generation of the preview image is not started in the server device 200 when the job is input, so that the load on the server device 200 as described above is suppressed. There is an advantage that On the other hand, the user may request the preview image in the image forming apparatus 300 and then the generation of the preview image is started, which may cause a disadvantage that the responsiveness deteriorates.

  According to the first embodiment, the user sets in the server device 200 which of the first generation method and the second generation method is used to generate the preview image, and further, the page where the preview image is generated. It is possible to adjust the above-mentioned merits and demerits in a well-balanced manner by the user setting the range, the limitation of the generation time, etc. in the server device 200. Therefore, the server device 200 can efficiently generate the preview image. In addition to this, since the user can flexibly set the preview image generation method and various parameters in the generation method for the server device 200, an appropriate preview image generation method can be selected according to the usage environment of the user. Can be provided.

(3) Functional Configuration of Client Device The functional configuration of the client device 100 will be described with reference to FIG. The client device 100 includes a transmission / reception unit 152, an operation input reception unit 154, and a print job generation unit 156.

  The operation input receiving unit 154 receives an operation input from the user of the client device 100. For example, the operation input receiving unit 154 receives a print instruction for predetermined data.

  The print job generation unit 156 generates a job corresponding to data for which the operation input reception unit 154 has received a print instruction from the user. The print job generation unit 156 requests the transmission / reception unit 152 to transmit the generated job to the server device 200. Here, the print job generation unit 156 may generate a job including user identification information and request the transmission / reception unit 251 to transmit the job, or may transmit the user identification information to the transmission / reception unit 251 separately from the job. You may ask.

  The transmission / reception unit 152 receives the instruction from the print job generation unit 156 and transmits the job to the server device 200. The transmitting / receiving unit 152 transmits a job using the communication network 50.

(4) Functional Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus The functional configuration of the image forming apparatus 300 will be described with reference to FIG. The image forming apparatus 300 includes a transmission / reception unit 352, an authentication processing unit 354, an operation reception unit 356, a job list acquisition unit 358, a preview image generation request unit 360, a preview image acquisition unit 362, a print data acquisition unit 364, and a print processing unit 366. have.

  The transmission / reception unit 352 transmits / receives various data to / from the server device 200 via the communication network 50.

  The authentication processing unit 354 requests the authentication server 400 to authenticate the user. For example, the authentication processing unit 354 requests the user to input the user ID and password on the login screen displayed on the operation panel 307.

  The authentication processing unit 354 transmits the user ID and password to the authentication server 400 via the transmission / reception unit 352. The authentication server 400 determines whether or not to log in the user, depending on whether or not the combination of the user ID and password transmitted from the image forming apparatus 300 is stored.

  Instead of inputting the user's ID and password, it is possible to execute the authentication process using a card such as an IC card or an information recording medium carried by the user such as a mobile terminal. In this case, for example, when the user holds the IC card over the card reader of the image forming apparatus 300, the card ID and password stored in the card are input to the authentication processing unit 354, and the authentication server 400 sets the card ID. Authentication success / failure is determined according to whether or not a password combination is recorded.

  Further, the authentication processing unit 354 may execute user authentication without using the authentication server 400. In this case, the combination of the ID and password of the user who is permitted to use the image forming apparatus 300 or the card ID and password is stored. The authentication processing unit 354 executes the same authentication method as that executed by the authentication server 400.

  The job list acquisition unit 358 acquires a list of jobs of logged-in users from the server device 200.

  The preview image generation requesting unit 360 transmits a signal requesting a preview image of print data of a job selected by the user from the job list to the server apparatus 200. Also, a signal requesting a preview image by designating a specific page is transmitted to the server device 200.

  The preview image acquisition unit 362 acquires (receives) a preview image of print data (or a further specified page) of the job selected from the job list by the user from the server device 200.

  The print processing unit 366 acquires print data of the job selected from the job list by the user, and prints the acquired print data.

  The operation reception unit 356 receives various inputs from the user and displays various information.

  The screen displayed on the operation reception unit 356 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

  The screen of FIG. 5A is a screen displayed on the operation reception unit 356 at the time of user authentication. To log in to the image forming apparatus 300, the user inputs the user's ID and password on the screen displayed on the operation reception unit 356, and selects the log-in display. When the operation reception unit 356 receives the selection of the login display, the authentication processing unit 354 is notified of the input information.

  The screen of FIG. 5B is a screen showing an example of a display screen when selecting a function to be used when the user has successfully logged in. When it is detected that the user selects print, the job list acquisition unit 358 starts the process of acquiring a list of jobs. The job list acquisition unit 358 may be configured to start the process of acquiring the list of jobs when the user has successfully logged in. The job list acquisition unit 358 acquires attribute information of a job corresponding to the user ID of the logged-in user among the jobs registered in the job table.

  The screen of FIG. 6A is an example of a screen displaying a list of jobs of the user acquired by the job list acquisition unit 358. In this example, the job list of the user whose user name is "user1" is shown. When the user selects “preview” after selecting the job, the preview image acquisition unit 362 acquires the preview image from the server device 200. Further, when the item value of the “presence / absence of preview image” item of the job selected by the user is “OFF”, “preview” may be clay-out, for example, so that the user does not select it.

  The screen of FIG. 6B is a diagram showing an example of the preview image acquired by the preview image acquisition unit 362. It shows an example of a display screen displayed when the user selects the job “doc002.doc”.

  When the user selects the arrow 710, the preview image advances by one page, and when the arrow 720 is selected, the preview image moves back by one page. When the user selects a preview image that has not been acquired from the server device 200, the preview image acquisition unit 362 requests the server device 200 to transmit the preview image. When a preview image is not generated in the server device 200 when the server receives the request, the preview image generation unit 262 starts the process of generating the preview image in response to the reception of the request. Note that the request includes at least the page number or page range of the preview image that the user wants to display at present.

  Note that the server device 200 may generate only the preview image of the requested page and transmit it to the image forming apparatus 300. Alternatively, the server device 200 may generate the preview image of the requested page and a predetermined page after the requested page. You may generate the preview image of the page of the range. At this time, the generated preview image may be transmitted to the image forming apparatus 300 every time the generation of the preview image is completed, or after the generation of all the preview images of the pages in the predetermined range is completed, These preview images may be transmitted to the image forming apparatus 300.

  It is more convenient for the user to generate a preview image for a predetermined range of pages after the requested page and send it to the image forming apparatus 300 in advance. When the user requests confirmation of a preview image further behind the requested preview image, the speed at which the preview image is displayed on the operation reception unit 356 can be increased.

  When the preview image generation is not supported, for example, when “(1) Preview image generation” is set to “not performed” in the server device 200, the image forming apparatus 300 displays the image in FIG. The selection button “preview” is not displayed, or the user is informed that the function cannot be used as a half-brightness display.

  The operation reception unit 356 is an example of a display unit. The preview image acquisition unit 362 is an example of a request unit.

<Hardware configuration>
(1) Client Device and Server Device FIG. 7 is a hardware configuration diagram of the client device 100 according to the first embodiment. The client device 100 includes a CPU 101 that controls the overall operation of the client device 100, a ROM 102 that stores a program used to drive the CPU 101, and a RAM 103 that is used as a work area of the CPU 101. Further, the client device 100 includes an HD 104 that stores various data such as programs for the client device, and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 105 that controls reading or writing of various data from the HD 104 under the control of the CPU 101.

  Further, the client device 100 includes a display 106 that displays various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, characters, or an image, and a network I / F 107 for performing data communication using the communication network 50. Further, the client device 100 includes a keyboard 108 having a plurality of keys for inputting characters, numerical values, various instructions, and the like, and a mouse 109 for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting a processing target, moving a cursor, and the like. ing. Further, the client device 100 includes a media drive 110 that controls reading or writing (storage) of data with respect to a recording medium 111 such as a flash memory. Further, the client device 100 includes a CD-ROM drive 112 that controls reading and writing of various data from and to a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) 113, which is an example of a removable recording medium, and the above-described components. As shown in FIG. 2, a bus line 114 such as an address bus or a data bus for electrically connecting is provided.

  The CPU 101 reads out and executes a program stored in the ROM 102 or the like to realize each function of the client device 100 shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, since the server device 200 has the same hardware configuration as the client device 100, its description is omitted. However, the HD 104 stores various data such as a program for controlling the server device 200.

  The CPU 101 reads out and executes the program stored in the ROM 102 or the like to realize each function of the server device 200 shown in FIG.

(2) Image Forming Apparatus FIG. 8 is a hardware configuration diagram of the image forming apparatus 300 according to the first embodiment. The image forming apparatus 300 includes a CPU 301 that controls the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 300, a ROM 302 that stores a program used to drive the CPU 301, and a RAM 303 that is used as a work area of the CPU 301. Furthermore, the image forming apparatus 300 stores various data such as image data, document data, programs, font data and form data, programs for the image forming apparatus, and reads or writes various data to the HD 304 under the control of the CPU 301. An HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 305 for controlling the HDD is provided.

  Further, the image forming apparatus 300 displays various information such as a network I / F 306 for data communication using a network, a menu, a window, characters, and an image, and inputs characters, numerical values, various instructions, and the like. An operation panel 307 having a plurality of keys for operating the operation panel 307, and a printing unit 308 that performs various printing processes according to the operation content of the operation panel 307 are provided. Further, the image forming apparatus 300 includes a USB flash memory, a smart media (registered trademark), a compact flash (registered trademark), an SD memory card (registered trademark), a miniSD (registered trademark) card, a microSD (registered trademark) card, and a memory stick ( (Registered trademark), xD picture card (registered trademark), and the like, an external storage device I / F unit 309 that is an interface unit for connecting to an external storage medium, and the above-described components are as shown in FIG. A bus line 350 such as an address bus or a data bus for electrically connecting is provided.

  The CPU 301 realizes each function of the image forming apparatus 300 illustrated in FIG. 2 by reading and executing a program stored in the ROM 302 or the like.

<Operating procedure>
An operation procedure for generating a preview image will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 13.

  9 to 11 show an example of an operation procedure in which the server device 200 generates a preview image when a job is received from the client device 100. FIG. 9 shows an operation procedure until a job is received from the client device 100 and job information is registered in a queue.

  In step S901, the transmitting / receiving unit 252 receives the print job transmitted from the client device 100.

  In step S902, the transmission / reception unit 252 notifies the control unit 256 that the job has been received.

  In step S903, the control unit 256 transmits a request to acquire the item values of “(1) generation of preview image” and “(2) preparation of preview image” to the storage unit 258.

  In step S904, the control unit 256 receives the item value response from the storage unit 258.

  In step S905, the control unit 256 sends a job registration request to the storage unit 258.

  The storage unit 258 analyzes the job included in the registration request and provides information such as the name of the job, the identifier of the user who submitted the job (user ID), the date and time when the job was submitted, the print language of the job, and attributes related to printing. Is acquired and the print data included in the job is saved in a predetermined save destination. Information such as acquired attributes relating to printing and a storage destination of print data are registered in the job table. At this time, a job ID that uniquely identifies the job is assigned. Further, when the item value of “(1) Generate preview image” of the setting item is set to “Do not perform”, the item value of “Presence / absence of preview image” of the job table is set to “OFF” and set. When the item value of “(1) Generate preview image” of the item is set to “Yes”, set the item value of “Presence of preview image” of the job table to “ON” and “Generate preview image” Set "Before generation" to the item value of "Status".

  In step S906, the control unit 256 receives the response of the registration result including the print job ID from the storage unit 258.

  When the item value of “generate preview image” is set to “execute” and the item value of “preparation of preview image” is set to “prepare”, the operation procedure of steps S907 and S908 is executed.

  In step S907, the control unit 256 instructs the queue management unit 262A to add the job information to the queue.

  In response to the instruction from the control unit 256, the queue management unit 262A adds the job information to the end of the queue. The job information includes a job ID, a print language of the job, a print data storage destination, and a page number to be generated. These pieces of information are added to a queue table that is a table that manages the queue. The queue management unit 262A manages the order of preview image generation using the queue table.

  When generating a preview image when a job is input, the page number to be generated does not have to be registered (or is registered as “empty”).

  FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of the queue table. In the queue table, a job ID, a print language, a print data storage destination, and a page number to be generated are stored in association with each other.

  The job ID stores the identification information of the job for which the preview image is generated. The print language stores the print language identification information of the job. These pieces of information are the information acquired when the job was analyzed.

  The process execution requesting unit 271 acquires job information from the head of the queue table and instructs the process executing unit 272 to generate a preview image.

  When the queue management unit 262A has a plurality of queues having different priorities (“normal queue”, “priority queue”), the control unit 256 may instruct a queue to be added. For example, when the preview image is generated in response to the job transmitted from the client device 100, the job information is added to the “normal queue”. In response to the instruction, the queue management unit 262A performs a process of registering job information in the queue.

  In step S908, the queue management unit 262A sends a response to the control unit 256. The response includes that the print job information is added to the queue.

  In step S <b> 909, the control unit 256 sends a response of the job submission result to the sending / receiving unit 252.

  In step S910, the transmission / reception unit 252 transmits the response of the job input result to the client device 100.

  Next, the operation procedure from the registration of the job information to the queue to the start of the preview image generation processing will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step S1001, the process execution requesting unit 271 sends a request for acquiring the number of processes in the process of generating the preview image to the process executing unit 272.

  In step S1002, the process execution unit 272 responds with the number of processes to the process execution request unit 271.

  In step S1003, the process execution requesting unit 271 sends an acquisition request for the item value “(3) maximum number of processes” to the storage unit 258.

  In step S1004, the storage unit 258 transmits the item value to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  In step S1005, the process execution requesting unit 271 performs a process of determining whether or not the maximum number of processes is exceeded when the process of generating a new preview image is started.

  When it is determined that the number of times exceeds, the process returns to step S1001 after waiting for a predetermined time. If it is determined that the number of times is not exceeded, the processes in and after step S1006 including the process described in FIG. 11 are executed.

  In step S1006, the process execution requesting unit 271 sends a request for job information to the queue managing unit 262A.

  In step S1007, the queue management unit 262A transmits the information on the job at the head of the queue to the process execution requesting unit 271 as a response.

  If the print language specified from the job information is the first print language, steps S1008 to S1009A are executed.

  The operation procedure of steps S1008 and S1009 is executed when the page number of the target for generating the preview image is not specified in the job information acquired by the process execution requesting unit 271 or when the value is “empty”.

  In step S1008, the process execution requesting unit 271 transmits to the storage unit 258 an acquisition request for the generation range of the first print language.

  In step S1009, the storage unit 258 transmits the response of the generation range of the first print language to the process execution requesting unit 271. A page range, for example, 1 page to 10 pages is set in the generation range.

  In step S1009A, when the information of the acquired job does not specify the page for which the preview image is to be generated, the process execution requesting unit 271 specifies the generation range acquired in step S1009 as the generation range of the preview image and acquires it. When the job information includes a designation of a page for which a preview image is to be generated, the process execution requesting unit 271 identifies the designated page as a generation range.

  If the print language specified from the job information is the second print language, steps S1010 and S1011 are executed.

  In step S1010, the process execution requesting unit 271 requests the acquisition of item values of “(4) preview image in second print language” and “(5) amount of preview image in second print language”. It is transmitted to the storage unit 258.

  In step S1011, the storage unit 258 transmits a response of the item value to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  In step S1012, the process execution requesting unit 271 sends to the storage unit 258 a request to acquire the temporary save folder for the preview image and the path (root path) in the save folder storage unit 258.

  In step S1013, the storage unit 258 transmits the set value, that is, the path information, to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  In step S1014, the process execution requesting unit 271 sends to the storage unit 258 an instruction to change the item value of the item “preview image generation state” in the job table to “generation in progress”.

  In step S1015, the storage unit 258 transmits a response of the change result to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  Next, the operation procedure of the preview image generation processing will be described with reference to FIG.

  In step S1101, the process execution requesting unit 271 transmits a preview image generation instruction to the process executing unit 272. The generation instruction includes job information.

  In step S1102, the process execution unit 272 transmits a print job data acquisition request to the storage unit 258.

  In step S1103, the storage unit 258 transmits the print job data as a response.

  For example, the process execution unit 272 transmits the job ID of the print job to the storage unit 258, and the storage unit 258 responds with the print job data corresponding to the transmitted job ID.

  When the job is generated in the first print language, the processes of steps S1104 to S1106 are executed. On the other hand, when the job is generated in the second print language, the processes of steps S1107 to S1109 are executed.

  First, the case where the job is generated in the first print language will be described.

  In step S1104, the process execution unit 272 generates a preview image. Specifically, the process execution unit 272 generates a preview image of the page within the generation range specified in step S1009A.

  In step S1105, the process execution unit 272 sends the generated preview image to the storage unit 258. The storage unit 258 stores the received preview image.

  In step S1106, the generation processing unit 262B receives a response indicating that the preview image has been stored from the storage unit 258.

  Next, a case where the job is generated in the second print language will be described.

  In step S1107, the process execution unit 272 generates a preview image. The process execution unit 272 starts a timer for preview image generation at the timing of starting the generation of the preview image, and when the timer expires, the process execution unit 272 ends the preview image generation process.

  If the generation of the preview image of the print data ends before the timer expires, the preview image generation processing ends at that point. The setting value of the timer is based on the item values of “(4) preview image in second print language” and “(5) amount of preview image in second print language” acquired in steps S1010 and S1011. The process execution requesting unit 271 determines and notifies the process executing unit 272. For example, when the item value of “(4) Preview image of second print language” is “all”, the process execution requesting unit 271 determines the timer setting value to be a predetermined length, and If it is “copy”, the length of the timer is determined according to the item value of “(5) amount of generating preview image of second print language”. If the item value of “(4) Preview image in second print language” is “all”, the process execution requesting unit 271 may not set the timer. At this time, the process execution requesting unit 271 instructs the process executing unit 272 to repeatedly execute the processes of steps S1107 to S1109 until the preview images of all pages have been generated.

  In step S1108, the process execution unit 272 sends the preview image generated within the predetermined period to the storage unit 258. The storage unit 258 stores the received preview image. At this time, the process execution unit 272 sends the preview image to the temporary folder named by the job ID in the root path of the temporary folder acquired in steps S1012 and S1013. Further, when this temporary folder does not exist, the process execution unit 272 may generate a temporary folder. Here, the processing execution unit 272 generates a file name of image data corresponding to the page number of the generated preview image. For example, image data may be named by page number.

  In step S1109, the generation processing unit 262B receives a response indicating that the preview image is stored from the storage unit 258.

  In step S1110, the process execution unit 272 sends a notification of completion of preview image generation to the process execution request unit 271.

  In step S1111, the process execution requesting unit 271 transmits an instruction to move the storage location of the preview image to the storage unit 258. Specifically, the process execution requesting unit 271 stores the preview images stored in the temporary storage folder (temporary folder) in a predetermined storage folder (for example, a folder with a high security level) in the preview image data storage unit 258c. Send instructions to go to. At this time, the process execution unit 272 transmits the preview image to the folder named by the job ID in the root path of the preview image storage unit 258 acquired in steps S1012 and S1013. Here, if this folder does not exist, the process execution unit 272 may generate a folder. Further, the process execution requesting unit 271 may transmit the instruction to move after performing the encryption process on the generated preview image.

  In step S1112, the storage unit 258 sends a response of the movement result to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  In step S1113, the process execution requesting unit 271 instructs the storage unit 258 to change the item value of “preview image generation state” in the job table to “generation completed”. Further, the process execution requesting unit 271 instructs the storage unit 258 to register the storage destination after moving the preview image in the item “preview image data storage destination” of the job table.

  In step S1114, the storage unit 258 transmits a response of the update result to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  In step S1115, the process execution requesting unit 271 transmits an instruction to delete the print job information to the queue managing unit 262A.

  In step S1116, the queue management unit 262A sends the deletion result to the process execution requesting unit 271.

  FIG. 13 shows an example of an operation procedure for generating a preview image in response to a request from the image forming apparatus 300.

  In step S1301, when the user gives a preview instruction on the screen of FIG. 6A, the preview image request is transmitted to the server apparatus 200, and the control unit 256 requests the preview image via the transmission / reception unit 252. To receive. The request includes the job ID. Further, the page number of the print data requesting the preview image may be included in the request. In the following description, it is assumed that the request for the preview image includes the page number of the requested print data.

  In step S1302, the control unit 256 inquires of the storage unit 258a of the job table about the generation state of the preview image. The job ID is used for the inquiry.

  In step S1303, the control unit 256 receives a response from the job table storage unit 258a. The response includes information indicating the generation state of the preview image such as before generation, during generation, and completion of generation. When information about a page of print data for which a preview image is generated is stored in the storage unit 258a of the job table, the response may include information about the page. In this case, for example, information such as "preview images corresponding to pages 1 to 10 have been generated" is included.

  First, the case of “being generated” will be described. When the preview image is "generating", the processes of steps S1304 to S1309 are executed.

  In step S1304, the control unit 256 sends to the storage unit 258 an acquisition request for the setting value of the temporary folder in which the preview image is stored.

  In step S1305, the storage unit 258 transmits a response of the set value to the control unit 256. Thereby, the control unit 256 can acquire the path to the temporary folder in the storage unit 258.

  In step S1306, the control unit 256 sends a signal for confirming whether or not the image data of the requested preview image exists in the temporary storage folder (temporary folder) named by the job ID under the acquired root path, The preview image data is transmitted to the storage unit 258c. The confirmation signal includes information about the page number for which the preview image is requested. Here, the control unit 256 confirms whether or not there is an image file named with the requested page number in the temporary storage folder.

  In step S1307, the control unit 256 receives a response from the preview image data storage unit 258c. The response includes information indicating the presence / absence of image data of the requested preview image.

  If the image data of the preview image exists, the processes of steps S1308 and S1309 are executed.

  In step S1308, the control unit 256 transmits a preview image acquisition request to the temporary storage folder of the preview image data storage unit 258c. The acquisition request includes the job ID and information about the page number for which the preview image is requested. Here, the file name of the image data corresponding to the requested page number is included.

  In step S1309, the control unit 256 acquires the image data of the responded preview image from the temporary folder of the preview image data storage unit 258c.

  If the image data of the preview image does not exist, the process returns to step S1302.

  As described above, in the case of “being generated”, the control unit 256 executes a process of confirming whether or not the preview image is generated at a predetermined cycle. Further, it is possible that all preview images to be generated for the job being confirmed have been generated during the predetermined period. That is, the generation state of the preview image may be changed from “generation in progress” to “generation completed”. In this case, since the item value of “generation completed” is acquired in step S1302, the process is continued from step S1310.

  Next, a case where the preview image is other than "generating" will be described. In this case, the processing from step S1310 is executed.

  In step S1310, the control unit 256 transmits a request for acquiring the setting value of the preview image data storage unit 258c to the storage unit 258.

  In step S1311, the storage unit 258 transmits a response of the set value to the control unit 256.

  As a result, the control unit 256 can acquire the path of the preview image storage destination in the preview image data storage unit 258c.

  In step S1312, the control unit 256 confirms whether the requested preview image image data exists in the folder named by the job ID in the path of the acquired preview image data storage unit 258c. Send a signal. The confirmation signal includes information about the page number for which the preview image is requested. Here, it is confirmed whether or not there is an image file named with the requested page number in the folder.

  In step S1313, the response is received. The response includes information indicating the presence / absence of image data of the requested preview image.

  When the response that the control unit 256 exists is received, it means that the preview image generation unit 262 has already generated the requested preview image. The requested preview image has already been generated, for example, as described above, when a job is received from the client device 100, a preview image in a predetermined range is generated, and thus the requested preview image has already been generated. Is generated. Therefore, even if the generation state of the preview image of the job is “generation completed”, it does not necessarily indicate that all the preview images of the print data have been generated. On the other hand, when the control unit 256 receives the response indicating that the folder does not exist, or when the response indicating that the folder named by the job ID does not exist, it means that the preview image is not generated. When the image data of the requested preview image has already been generated, the processes of steps S1314 and S1315 are executed.

  In step S1314, the control unit 256 transmits a preview image acquisition request to the folder of the preview image data storage unit 258c. The acquisition request includes the job ID and information about the requested page. Here, the file name of the image data corresponding to the requested page number is included.

  In step S1315, the control unit 256 acquires the image data of the responded preview image from the folder of the preview image data storage unit 258c.

  Next, when the preview image has not been generated yet, for example, when the generation state of the preview image is “before generation”, or when the generation is “completion” and the preview image of the requested page has not been generated. Will be described.

  In step S1316, the control unit 256 transmits to the queue management unit 262A a request to add information on the job for which the preview image request has been received to the queue. At this time, when the print language of the job is the first print language, the requested page number is set as the “generation target page number” and the job information is registered in the queue table. On the other hand, when the print language of the job is the second print language, the requested page number is not registered in the “generation target page number”.

  Here, there is a high possibility that the preview image generation request has been received from the image forming apparatus 300, that is, the user is waiting for the preview image to be displayed on the operation receiving unit 356 of the image forming apparatus 300. . Therefore, the control unit 256 instructs the queue management unit 262A to preferentially process. For example, the control unit 256 may instruct to add the information of the job to the head of the queue, or may transmit the information indicating the preferential processing to the queue management unit 262A, and the queue management unit 262A may The order may be adjusted based on this information.

  In step S1317, the queue management unit 262A adds the job information to the queue and sends a response of the addition result to the control unit 256.

  Then, the process returns to step S1302. In this way, the requested preview is generated by the operation procedure of the images shown in FIGS. Here, when the job is in the first print language, the requested page number is registered in the “generation target page number”, and thus the registered page number is specified as the generation range of the preview image in step S1009A. It As a result, only the preview image of the requested page is generated, and it is possible to quickly respond to the user.

  Finally, the control unit 256 acquires the preview image in any of steps S1308 and S1309 or steps 1314 and S1315, and transmits the preview image to the image forming apparatus 300 via the transmission / reception unit 252 in step S1318. When the requested preview image is not generated when the second print language is used, the control unit 256 notifies the transmission / reception unit 252 of an error notification that the preview image has not been generated. Is transmitted to the image forming apparatus 300.

  After executing the above-described processing, the server device 200 transmits the preview image to the image forming device 300.

  Note that the control unit 256 or the process execution requesting unit 271 stores setting information such as setting items of a process relating to preview image generation, settings of a temporary storage folder and preview image data storage unit 258c from the storage unit 258 at a predetermined timing ( For example, it may be acquired and stored at the time of system startup). Further, when the setting information is changed, the control unit 256 or the process execution requesting unit 271 may obtain it again according to a user's instruction (for example, an instruction to restart the system).

[Second Embodiment]
(1) Outline of Embodiment Next, a second embodiment will be described. Descriptions of parts common to the first embodiment will be omitted, and different parts will be described.

  The generation of the preview image may impose a heavy load on the server device 200. Therefore, it is preferable that the process of generating the preview image is executed when the load on the server device 200 is small.

  The server apparatus 200 according to the second embodiment receives a job from the client apparatus 100, a transmission / reception section 252, a preview image generation section 262 that generates a preview image from print data included in the job, and prints the received job. The storage unit 258 stores data, and the transmission / reception unit 252 transmits the generated preview image to the image forming apparatus 300. The preview image generation unit 262 has a queue management unit 262A and a generation processing unit 262B. The queue management unit 262A has a queue registration control unit 270, and the generation processing unit 262B has a process execution request unit 271 and a process execution unit 272. These functions execute the same processing as in the first embodiment.

  In the server device 200, the preview image generation unit 262 is characterized by monitoring the load of the server device 200 and generating a preview image when the load is equal to or less than the first threshold value.

  For example, when the first threshold is 10% of the usage rate of the CPU 101, the process execution requesting unit 271 monitors the usage rate of the CPU 101, and when the usage rate is 10% or less, a job is sent from the queue of the queue management unit 262A. May be acquired and the process of generating a preview image may be executed. Here, the process execution requesting unit 271 may periodically monitor the usage rate of the CPU 101. For example, the process execution requesting unit 271 may monitor the usage rate of the CPU 101 at a cycle of 5 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or the like.

  When acquiring the job information from the queue of the queue management unit 262A, the process execution requesting unit 271 deletes the acquired job information from the queue and gives an instruction to update the order of distribution to the process of preview image generation.

  The preview image generation unit 262 may monitor the load of the server device 200 and stop the process of generating the preview image when the load is equal to or higher than the second threshold.

  For example, when the second threshold is 80% or higher in the usage rate of the CPU 101, the process execution requesting unit 271 monitors the usage rate of the CPU 101, and when the usage rate is 80% or higher, generates a preview image in execution. Execute the process to stop the process. The process of stopping such a process may be expressed as “killing the process”.

  When the process is stopped, the preview image generated until the process is stopped is stored in the storage unit 258. At this time, the generation state of the preview image of the job stored in the storage unit 258 is updated from “generating” to “generation incomplete”. The print data corresponding to the preview image that has not been generated is registered again in the queue management unit 262A.

  When the usage rate of the CPU 101 falls below the first threshold value, the process execution requesting unit 271 acquires print data corresponding to the process stopped midway from the queue managing unit 262A, and restarts the generation of the preview image. When restarted, the preview image generation status of the job stored in the storage unit is updated from “not completed” to “currently being generated”.

  The process execution requesting unit 271 may determine the start and stop of the process of generating the preview image by using the memory usage amount of the server device 200 in addition to the usage rate of the CPU 101.

  For example, the process execution requesting unit 271 is caused to hold the third threshold value as a memory usage amount of 1 GByte and the fourth threshold value as a memory usage amount of 3 GByte.

  For example, when the usage rate of the CPU 101 is less than or equal to the first threshold value and the usage amount of the memory is less than or equal to the third threshold value, the process execution requesting unit 271 starts generating the preview image.

  For example, when the usage rate of the CPU 101 is equal to or higher than the second threshold value and the usage amount of the memory is equal to or higher than the fourth threshold value, the process execution requesting unit 271 stops the generation of the preview image.

  For example, the processing execution requesting unit 271 does not use the usage rate thresholds (first threshold value, second threshold value) of the CPU 101 but based on the memory usage threshold values (third threshold value, fourth threshold value). , It is determined whether the generation of the preview image is started or stopped.

  For example, the process execution requesting unit 271 determines whether to start or stop the generation of the preview image by using either the threshold value of the usage rate of the CPU 101 or the threshold value of the memory usage amount as a trigger.

  Since the server device 200 compares a predetermined threshold value with the usage rate of the CPU 101 and determines whether or not to generate a preview image, the resources of the server device 200 can be effectively used. Further, since the preview image is generated when the usage rate of the CPU 101 is low, the time required to generate the preview image is shortened, the response in which the preview image is displayed on the image forming apparatus 300 is fast, and the preview image is displayed. Usability is improved.

  Although the case where the process execution requesting unit 271 monitors the usage rate of the CPU 101 and the like has been described, it goes without saying that the usage rate and the like of the CPU 101 may be monitored by the process execution unit 272 and the like.

(2) Operation Procedure An operation procedure according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of an operation procedure according to the second embodiment. FIG. 12 shows an operation in which the process execution requesting unit 271 performs a process of generating a preview image based on the first threshold value.

  The second embodiment is characterized in that the processing execution requesting unit 271 executes the load confirmation processing of the CPU 101 at the start of the processing method of generating the preview image and at the time of generating the preview image.

  The same processes as steps S901 to S910 and steps S1001 to S1005 are executed.

  As a result of the determination processing in step S1005, when it is determined that the maximum number of processes being generated is not exceeded, the processing execution requesting unit 271 performs processing for confirming the usage rate of the CPU 101 in step S1401. Specifically, the process execution requesting unit 271 confirms whether the usage rate of the CPU 101 is less than or equal to the first threshold value. When it is less than or equal to the first threshold value, the subsequent processing is executed. On the other hand, when the usage rate of the CPU 101 is larger than the first threshold value, after waiting for a predetermined time, the process execution requesting unit 271 checks again whether the usage rate of the CPU 101 is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

  After that, the same processing as steps S1006 to S1015 and steps S1101 to S1103 is executed.

  When the first print language is applied to the job, the preview image is generated by the same processing as steps S1104 to S1106. When the process execution unit 272 executes the preview image generation process, in step S1402, the process execution request unit 271 performs a process of confirming the load on the CPU 101. Specifically, the process execution requesting unit 271 confirms whether the usage rate of the CPU 101 is less than or equal to the second threshold value. When the usage rate of the CPU 101 is less than or equal to the second threshold value, the preview image generation process is continued. On the other hand, when the usage rate of the CPU 101 is larger than the second threshold value, the process execution requesting unit 271 instructs the process executing unit 272 to stop the generation of the preview image. At this time, it may be instructed to stop all the preview image generation processes that are being executed, or to stop the preview image generation processes of a specific job. For example, the process execution requesting unit 271 measures the processing time, which is the time from the instruction of the process executing unit 272 to generate the preview image, and instructs the process executing unit 272 to stop the process of generating the preview image of the job having a long processing time. Good.

  When the second print language is applied to the job, the preview image is generated by the same processing as steps S1107 to S1109. While the preview image generation process is being executed by the process execution unit 272, the process execution requesting unit 271 checks the load on the CPU 101 in step S1403. The processing content is the same as in step S1402.

  Note that the processing execution unit 272 may stop the preview image generation processing immediately upon receiving the stop instruction, or stop the preview image generation processing after the execution of the preview image generation processing being executed is completed. You may.

  After the preview image generation process is completed, the same procedure as steps S1110 to S1116 is executed.

[Modification]
Next, a modified example according to the embodiment will be described. In the modification, a method of controlling the order of preview image generation in the preview image generation unit 262 of the server device 200 will be described.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a preview image generation method in the preview image generation unit 262. In the example shown in FIG. 15, the queue registration control unit 270 manages three processing queues Q1, Q2, and Q3 at the same time. ing. Note that the number of processing queues managed by the queue registration control unit 270 can be set to any value.

  Information of a job having a heavy processing load when a job is received from the client device 100 is registered in Q1. The heavy job is, for example, a job in which the number of pages for which the preview image is to be generated is large, the processing for generating the preview image is heavy, and the processing takes time. To determine whether or not the number of pages is large, a predetermined reference value (for example, 100 pages) may be provided, and it may be determined whether or not the reference value is exceeded.

  In Q2, when a job is received from the client device 100, information of the job other than the received job having a heavy processing load is registered. The job information is registered in the order in which the jobs are submitted from the client device, for example. Further, when the job list is acquired by the image forming apparatus 300, information on the jobs included in the list is registered. The job information is registered in the order of the job list, for example. Here, Q1 and Q2 may be expressed as ordinary queues.

  In Q3, information on a job for which a preview image is preferentially generated is registered. Q3 may be expressed as a priority queue. Information on a job for which an instruction to generate a preview image is received from the user of the image forming apparatus 300 is registered.

  The generation processing unit 262B confirms the presence or absence of job information registered in the order of Q3, Q2, and Q1, and if there is job information, executes the preview image generation processing in the order from the head of the queue. To do. For example, when the job information is registered in Q3, regardless of whether the job information is registered in Q2 and Q1, the preview image generation process of the first job in Q3 is executed. On the other hand, when the job information is registered in Q3, the above processing is performed in the order of Q2 and Q1.

  The operation when the server device 200 receives a request for a preview image of a designated job from the image forming device 300 will be described.

  The control unit 256 of the server apparatus 200 receives the request for the preview image of the job from the image forming apparatus 300 via the transmission / reception unit 252 ((1) in FIG. 15). The request includes the ID of the job “doc003”. In response to the reception of the request, the control unit 256 refers to the storage unit 258a of the job table and confirms the generation state of the preview image of "doc003".

  As a result, when the control unit 256 confirms that the generation state of the preview image of “doc003” is “before generation” ((2) in FIG. 15), the control unit 256 causes the preview image generation unit 262 to display the preview image. Request generation ((3) in FIG. 15).

  The queue management unit 262A of the preview image generation unit 262 confirms that the job information of "doc003" is registered in Q2. The queue management unit 262A determines that it is necessary to give priority to the information of the job of "doc003" to the generation processing unit 262B, and changes the processing queue of the information of the job of "doc003" to Q3 (FIG. 15). (4)).

  Specifically, the queue management unit 262A performs a process of registering the job information of "doc003" in Q3 and deleting the queue of "doc003" registered in Q1 or Q2.

  By this processing, “doc003” is changed to Q3, which is preferentially processed. Therefore, when the number of preview image generation processes executed in the processing execution unit 272 is less than the set maximum number of processes, the process execution is performed. The request unit 271 instructs the process execution unit 272 to generate the preview image of “doc003” preferentially registered in Q3, thereby accelerating the timing at which the preview image of “doc003” is started and the image forming apparatus. It is possible to reduce the time taken to transmit the generated preview image to 300.

  That is, when the job is transmitted from the client device 100, it is considered that the user is not in front of the image forming apparatus 300 yet, but when the user specifies a specific job in the image forming apparatus 300 and requests a preview, It is considered that the user wants to operate the image forming apparatus 300 to see the preview. Therefore, since it is more convenient for the latter to deal with the situation more promptly than the former, the former case is registered in the normal queue, and the latter case is registered in the priority queue.

[Other]
In the above-described embodiment, the form in which the server device 200 generates the preview image has been described, but the image forming device 300 may generate the preview image. For example, by mounting the same function as the preview image generation unit 262 or the like on the image forming apparatus 300, it is possible to generate a preview image on the image forming apparatus 300.

  A storage medium recording a program code of software that realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments may be supplied to the server device 200. Needless to say, the above-described embodiment is also achieved by the server device 200 reading and executing the program code stored in the storage medium. In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the storage medium storing the program code constitutes one of the embodiments. Here, the storage medium is a recording medium or a non-transitory storage medium.

  Further, the functions of the above-described embodiments are not only realized by executing the program code read by the computer device. An operating system (OS) or the like running on the computer device may perform some or all of the actual processing according to the instructions of the program code. Further, it goes without saying that the processing may realize the functions of the above-described embodiments.

  Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment, and various modifications and substitutions can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

100 client device 200 server device 256 control unit 258 storage unit 262 preview image generation unit 264 input / output unit 300 image forming apparatus

JP 2012-245695 A

Claims (11)

A receiver for receiving a print job from the client device,
A preview image generation unit that generates a preview image of print data included in the print job;
A transmission unit that transmits the generated preview image to the image forming apparatus,
The preview image generation unit,
When the first print language is used for the print data, pages in a predetermined range of the print data are determined as targets for generating the preview image ,
An information processing apparatus , wherein when a second print language is used for the print data, a predetermined time is determined as a time for generating the preview image . The preview image generation unit,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein when the second print language is used for the print data, the preview image is generated from a predetermined page of the print data . The preview image generation unit,
The condition for the time is set in the timer for generating the preview image,
Generating the preview image while the timer is activated,
The timer is activated at the timing when the generation of the preview image is started,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the time-related condition is variable.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preview image generation unit generates the preview image in response to receiving the print job.   The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the preview image generation unit generates the preview image in response to a request from the image forming apparatus. The request from the image forming apparatus includes information designating a page of print data requesting display of the preview image,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein when a preview image of the designated page has not been generated, the preview image generation unit generates a preview image which has not been generated. The preview image generation unit,
A plurality of processes for executing the process of generating the preview image,
The process of generating a plurality of preview images is distributed so as to be processed by the plurality of processes,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the number of the plurality of processes has an upper limit value. The preview image generation unit adjusts an order in which processing of generating a preview image corresponding to each of a plurality of print data is distributed.
The information processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the order is adjusted based on an attribute of the print job corresponding to the print data. An information processing system having an information processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus,
The information processing device,
A receiver for receiving a print job from the client device,
A preview image generation unit that generates a preview image of print data included in the print job;
A transmission unit that transmits the generated preview image to the image forming apparatus,
The preview image generation unit,
When the first print language is used for the print data, pages in a predetermined range of the print data are determined as targets for generating the preview image ,
When a second print language is used for the print data, a predetermined time is determined as the time for generating the preview image ,
The image forming apparatus,
A display unit for displaying the preview image according to an instruction from a user,
The information processing device, a request unit for transmitting a signal requesting to transmit a preview image corresponding to the page instructed by the user,
Upon receiving the request signal, the preview image generation unit
When the preview image corresponding to the page has already been generated, the preview image generation unit instructs the transmission unit to transmit the preview image,
An information processing system that generates a preview image when a preview image corresponding to the page has not already been generated. Receiving a print job from a client device,
Generating a preview image of print data included in the print job;
A program for causing an information processing apparatus to execute the step of transmitting the generated preview image to an image forming apparatus,
The step of generating the preview image includes
Determining a page within a predetermined range of the print data as a target for generating the preview image, when the print data uses a first print language;
A program for an information processing device, comprising: determining a predetermined time as a time for generating the preview image when the second print language is used for the print data. A control method executed between an information processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus, comprising:
The information processing device is
Receiving a print job from a client device,
Generating a preview image of print data included in the print job;
Transmitting the generated preview image to an image forming apparatus,
The step of generating the preview image includes
Determining a page within a predetermined range of the print data as a target for generating the preview image, when the print data uses a first print language;
When a second print language is used for the print data, a predetermined time is determined as a time for generating the preview image ,
The control method is
The image forming apparatus,
Displaying the preview image according to an instruction from a user,
Transmitting a signal requesting the information processing device to transmit a preview image corresponding to the page instructed by the user,
The step of generating the preview image includes
When receiving the requested signal,
If a preview image corresponding to the page has already been generated, instructing the image forming apparatus to transmit the preview image,
A control method comprising the step of generating a preview image if a preview image corresponding to the page has not already been generated.

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