JP7207061B2 - Information processing device, image forming device and program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an image forming device, and a program.

In a device that forms an image on paper, such as a printing device, an object whose paper attributes can be specified by reading it with a reading device is read by the reading device to acquire the attribute information of the paper. Techniques for assigning attribute information to trays containing sheets are known. For example, a technique is known in which a barcode reader reads a barcode encoded with attribute information of a sheet to acquire the attribute information of the sheet from the barcode and assigns the attribute information to a tray.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-200000 describes an image requesting an administrator to register a paper attribute via a network when the paper attribute specified by the barcode read by the barcode reader is not registered in the paper attribute database. A forming apparatus is described.

JP 2016-107442 A

By the way, when the object is read by the reading device, a screen is displayed for the user to assign the attribute information obtained by reading to the tray, and the assignment of the attribute information to the tray by the user is completed on the screen. Then, it is conceivable to hide the screen. In such display control, the next time the object is read by the reading device, the screen is displayed again and the assignment is made by the user. In this case, for example, when the user wants to assign a plurality of pieces of attribute information, the above screen is displayed to prompt the user to assign paper to the tray for each reading. operability is reduced.

An object of the present invention is to obtain attribute information of paper by reading an object whose attributes can be identified by reading with a reading device, and assign the attribute information to a tray by a user. To improve the operability of a user when assigning attribute information to a tray, compared with the case of displaying the screen each time the reading is performed, in the case of displaying the screen for performing the reading.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a receiving means for receiving attribute information of a sheet on which an image is to be formed; and a display control means for displaying a screen showing the attribute information and a plurality of trays as allocation destination candidates on a display means, wherein the image is read by a reading device to read the paper. The object whose attributes can be specified is read by the reading device to acquire the attribute information of the paper, the accepting means accepts the acquired attribute information, and the screen is displayed on the display means. When the reading device newly reads the target object while it is being displayed and the reception means newly receives the attribute information, the display control means displays on the screen the attribute information newly received by the reception means. An information processing device that further displays attribute information.

In the invention according to claim 2, the display control means causes the display means to display the screen showing a plurality of pieces of attribute information and a plurality of trays, and the screen displays the allocation information for any piece of attribute information. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of trays selected by the user as targets are commonly displayed.

In the invention according to claim 3, the display control means does not erase the display of the first attribute information from the screen even after receiving an operation by the user to assign the first attribute information to the first tray. 3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an operation for allocating the first attribute information to the second tray is accepted.

In the invention according to claim 4, when the attribute information newly received by the reception means is the same attribute information as the attribute information displayed on the screen, the display control means controls the 4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the received attribute information is not displayed on the screen.

In the invention according to claim 5, the screen is a screen for a user to perform an operation for assigning the correspondence between the attribute information of the sheet and the image forming parameter to the tray, and the display control means further includes a candidate for the correspondence. 5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein is displayed on the screen.

In the invention according to claim 6, the display control means arranges and displays on the screen the plurality of read attribute information and the plurality of trays that are candidates for allocation, and displays each attribute information. 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein only a part of candidates for associated image forming parameters are displayed on the screen.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, image forming means for forming an image on a sheet of paper, a plurality of trays for storing sheets of paper on which an image is formed by the image forming means, a receiving means for receiving attribute information of the paper, and the receiving means. means for displaying a screen for performing an operation for allocating the attribute information received by the receiving means to a tray when the means receives the attribute information, the screen showing the attribute information and a plurality of trays as candidates for allocation. and a display control means for displaying a target object whose attribute can be specified by reading it with a reading device, and the attribute information of the paper is acquired by reading the object with the reading device. When the reception means receives the acquired attribute information, the reading device newly reads the target object while the screen is displayed on the display means, and the reception means newly receives the attribute information The display control means is the image forming apparatus further displaying the attribute information newly received by the receiving means on the screen.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, a computer comprises a receiving means for receiving attribute information of a sheet on which an image is to be formed, and when the receiving means receives the attribute information, the attribute information received by the receiving means is stored in a tray containing the sheets. is a screen for the user to perform an operation for assigning the attribute information and a plurality of trays as candidates for assignment destinations. Attribute information of the sheet is acquired by reading the object whose attribute can be specified by the reading device, the accepting means accepts the acquired attribute information, and the screen is displayed on the display means is displayed on the screen, if the reading device newly reads the target object and the receiving means newly receives the attribute information, the display control means displays on the screen the newly received attribute information by the receiving means It is a program that further displays the attribute information.

According to the inventions according to claims 1, 7, and 8, the reading device acquires the attribute information of the paper by reading the object whose paper attributes can be specified by reading it with the reading device, and the user can When displaying a screen for assigning the attribute information to the tray, the user's operation when assigning the attribute information to the tray compared to the case where the screen is displayed each time the reading is performed improve sexuality.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, redundant information is not displayed as compared with the case where separate screens are displayed for each piece of attribute information and a plurality of trays are displayed on each screen.

According to the third aspect of the invention, when assigning certain attribute information to a plurality of trays, it is unnecessary to read the target object a plurality of times.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, redundant information is not displayed.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the user's operability when assigning the attribute information and the image forming parameters to the corresponding trays is higher than when the screen is displayed each time the image is read. improves.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the operation of assigning attribute information to a tray becomes easier than in the case of displaying a part of a plurality of attribute information and a part of a plurality of trays. No need for a display area to display everything.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment; FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an exterior of a sheet; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a tray management table; FIG. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of the tray management table; It is a figure which shows a main screen. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a screen prompting a user to perform operations necessary for allocating sheets to trays; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another screen that prompts the user for operations necessary for allocating sheets to trays; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another screen that prompts the user for operations necessary for allocating sheets to trays; It is a figure which shows a confirmation screen. It is a figure which shows the flowchart which shows the process which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a terminal device. It is a figure which shows the flowchart which shows the process which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a paper allocation operation screen; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a paper allocation operation screen; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a paper allocation operation screen; It is a figure which shows a stock allocation operation screen. It is a figure which shows a stock allocation operation screen. It is a figure which shows a stock allocation operation screen. It is a figure which shows an allocation operation screen. It is a figure which shows an allocation operation screen. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment; FIG. It is a figure which shows the flowchart which shows the process which concerns on 3rd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows a stock management table. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a print parameter setting screen; It is a figure which shows the calculation method of a recommendation degree. It is a figure which shows the display screen of stock information.

<First embodiment>
An image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 shows an example of the configuration of an image forming apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment. The image forming apparatus 10 corresponds to an example of an information processing apparatus. The image forming apparatus 10 is an apparatus having a function of forming an image on paper. Here, as an example, the image forming apparatus 10 is an apparatus having a function of printing an image on paper. The image forming apparatus 10 may be a printer, or may be a multifunction machine having an image reading function, a copying function, a facsimile communication function, and the like.

A reading device 12 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10 . The connection may be established by wired communication or by wireless communication. The reading device 12 is a device having a function of reading information and images, such as a bar code reader, scanner, camera, or reader compatible with IC tags such as RF tags. Further, the reading device 12 may be a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as “PC”), a tablet PC, a smart phone, a mobile phone, or the like having a photographing device such as a camera.

Information indicating the attributes of the paper (hereinafter referred to as "paper attribute information") is obtained by reading the target object whose paper attributes can be specified by being read by the reading device 12. is obtained. Paper attributes include, for example, paper size, paper type, paper color, paper weight (eg basis weight), presence or absence of coating, and presence or absence of punch holes.

The object is an object, an image, a character string, or the like that can specify the attribute of the paper. Specifically, the target object may be a bar code, a two-dimensional code, or the like indicating information for specifying the attribute of the paper, or an IC tag such as an RF tag using RFID (Radio Frequency Identifier). It may be a character string indicating information for specifying the attributes of the paper, or the paper itself. For example, a QR code (registered trademark) or the like is used as the two-dimensional code. The character string is, for example, a character string indicating "A4" or "plain paper".

Information for specifying attributes of paper is, for example, paper attribute information. In this case, the paper attribute information is acquired from the object by reading the object with the reading device 12 . The paper attribute information is output to the image forming apparatus 10 .

The information for specifying the attribute of paper may be identification information for identifying paper attribute information. The identification information is, for example, a management number, a management ID, or the like. In this case, the identification information is acquired from the object by reading the object with the reading device 12 . For example, for each sheet, sheet attribute information of the sheet and identification information for identifying the sheet attribute information are associated with each other, and these pieces of information are stored in an external device such as the server 14 or the like. When the identification information is obtained from the object, the paper attribute information associated with the identification information is obtained from the external device. The reading device 12 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device, or the image forming apparatus 10 receiving the identification information from the reading device 12 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device. Note that the sheet attribute information may be stored in the image forming apparatus 10 or the reading apparatus 12 . In this case, the image forming apparatus 10 and the reading apparatus 12 specify paper attribute information associated with the identification information acquired by reading the object.

For example, a barcode indicating paper attribute information is read by the reading device 12, which is a barcode reader, so that the paper attribute information is acquired from the barcode. A two-dimensional code indicating paper attribute information is photographed by the reading device 12, which is a camera, or read by the reading device 12, which is a scanner, so that the paper attribute information is acquired from the two-dimensional code. good too. The paper attribute information may be obtained from the RF tag by reading the RF tag with an RF compatible reader. A character string or an image indicating paper attribute information is photographed by the reading device 12, which is a camera, or read by the reading device 12, which is a scanner, and character recognition processing and image analysis processing are executed to obtain the paper attribute information. Information may be obtained. For example, when a barcode, two-dimensional code, character string, image, or the like is printed on the exterior of the paper, or when an IC tag such as an RF tag is attached to the exterior of the paper, these are read by the reading device 12. Paper attribute information is obtained by reading. Of course, an object such as a bar code may be printed on an article other than the wrapping paper, or an IC tag may be attached. Similarly, when an object such as a barcode indicates identification information for identifying paper attribute information, the paper attribute information is acquired by reading the object such as a barcode with the reading device 12. .

A sheet of paper may be photographed by the reading device 12, which is a camera, and attributes of the sheet of interest may be estimated by applying image analysis processing to image data generated by the photographing. For example, the paper size, paper type, paper weight, etc. are estimated based on the paper size, paper quality, etc. represented by the image data. This estimation may be performed by the reading device 12, may be performed by the image forming device 10, or may be performed by an external device such as the server 14 or the like.

The reading device 12 is used, for example, when allocating sheets to trays provided in the image forming apparatus 10 . Note that the reading device 12 may be included in the image forming apparatus 10 .

Also, the image forming apparatus 10 may communicate with the server 14 via the communication path N. FIG. The communication path N is, for example, a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network), the Internet, or the like.

The server 14 is a device that stores a plurality of pieces of stock information. The stock information is information indicating correspondence between paper attribute information of paper and print parameters relating to printing executed on the paper. Stock information corresponds to an example of setting information. A plurality of pieces of stock information having different printing parameters may be generated for one piece of paper attribute information.

The print parameters are information indicating settings related to printing by the image forming apparatus 10, and are, for example, parameters for controlling printing by the image forming apparatus 10 and parameters related to printing conditions. Specifically, the print parameters include the fixing temperature by the fixing device included in the image forming apparatus 10, the aligner roll pressure for adjusting the inclination of the paper, the side registration correction value, the transfer current adjustment value, and the paper curl correction. value, an adjustment value for the paper folding position, and the like. The printing parameters correspond to an example of image forming parameters.

For example, printing parameters are associated in advance with the paper attribute information. For example, the user may set each attribute indicated by the paper attribute information, set each value included in the print parameter, and associate the paper attribute information and the print parameter. Also, based on the attributes of the paper, print parameters associated with the paper attribute information of the paper may be determined. Further, one or more print parameters associated with each piece of paper attribute information may be determined based on the usage history of each print parameter for each paper attribute. For example, printing parameters that are frequently used by each user may be associated with paper attribute information as recommended printing parameters, and stored in the server 14 as recommended stock information. A plurality of recommended print parameters with different degrees of recommendation may be determined for one piece of paper attribute information, and a plurality of pieces of recommended stock information may be generated and stored in the server 14 . Further, as in the third embodiment described later, the recommendation level determined based on the relationship between the paper attribute information and the printing parameters is associated with the stock information indicating the correspondence between the paper attribute information and the printing parameters. may be Also, each user who used the stock information may evaluate the stock information, and the degree of recommendation may be determined based on the evaluation. Stock information whose recommendation level is equal to or higher than a threshold may be determined as recommended stock information.

Note that the server 14 may not be used. Further, the plurality of pieces of stock information described above may be stored in advance in the image forming apparatus 10 .

The configuration of the image forming apparatus 10 will be described in detail below.

The printing unit 16 is an example of an image forming unit, and is configured to print an image based on image data to be printed on paper supplied from the tray 18 . Printing an image on paper corresponds to an example of forming an image on paper.

The tray 18 is a member that accommodates paper to be supplied to the printing section 16 . The tray 18 is one element that constitutes a supply section that supplies paper to the printing section 16 . A plurality of trays 18 are provided in the image forming apparatus 10 .

The detection unit 20 is configured to detect that the tray 18 has been opened and that the tray 18 has been closed. The detection unit 20 is, for example, a sensor that detects opening and closing of the tray 18 . The detection unit 20 detects opening and closing of each tray 18 . To open the tray 18 means to pull out the tray 18 from the main body of the image forming apparatus 10, for example. Even if the entire tray 18 is not pulled out from the main body of the image forming apparatus 10 and a part of the tray 18 is pulled out, the detection unit 20 may detect that the tray 18 is opened.

The reception unit 22 is configured to receive assignment of sheets to the tray 18 from the user. For example, when the user uses the UI unit 26 to perform an operation to allocate paper to the tray 18 , the reception unit 22 receives the allocation and allocates paper to the tray 18 . Allocating paper to the tray 18 means associating the tray 18 with the attribute of the paper accommodated in the tray 18 . The reception unit 22 associates the tray 18 with the attributes of the sheets accommodated in the tray 18, and causes the storage unit 28 to store information indicating the association.

The accepting unit 22 may also accept assignment of print parameters to the tray 18 from the user. For example, when the user performs an operation for allocating print parameters to the tray 18 using the UI unit 26 , the reception unit 22 receives the allocation and allocates the print parameters to the tray 18 . Allocating print parameters to the tray 18 means associating the tray 18 with the parameters for printing executed on the sheets accommodated in the tray 18 . The reception unit 22 associates the tray 18 with the printing parameters for the sheets accommodated in the tray 18, and causes the storage unit 28 to store information indicating the association. The printing unit 16 prints an image on the paper according to the print parameters associated with the tray 18 containing the paper to be printed.

As another example, the reception unit 22 may receive assignment of stock information to the tray 18 from the user. For example, when the user performs an operation to allocate stock information to the tray 18 using the UI unit 26 , the reception unit 22 receives the allocation and allocates stock information to the tray 18 . Allocating the stock information to the tray 18 means associating the tray 18 with the stock information. The reception unit 22 associates the tray 18 with the stock information, and causes the storage unit 28 to store information indicating the association. The printing unit 16 prints an image on the paper accommodated in the tray 18 designated as a print target according to the print parameters included in the stock information associated with the tray 18 .

As another example, the accepting unit 22 may accept assignment of print parameters to paper from the user. For example, when the user uses the UI unit 26 to perform an operation for allocating print parameters to the paper, the reception unit 22 receives the allocation and allocates the print parameters to the paper. Allocating print parameters to a sheet means associating the sheet with parameters for printing executed on the sheet. The reception unit 22 associates the paper with the printing parameters for the paper, and causes the storage unit 28 to store information indicating the association. The printing unit 16 prints an image on the paper according to the print parameters associated with the paper.

The communication unit 24 is a communication interface and has a function of transmitting information to other devices and a function of receiving information from other devices. The communication unit 24 may have a wireless communication function, or may have a wired communication function. For example, the communication unit 24 may communicate with an external device such as the server 14 via a network such as a LAN or a communication path N such as the Internet, or use short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). You may communicate with other devices by

The UI section 26 is a user interface section and includes a display section and an operation section. The display unit is a display device such as a liquid crystal display. The operation unit is an input device such as a keyboard, input keys, operation panel, or the like. The UI unit 26 may be a UI unit such as a touch panel having both a display unit and an operation unit.

The storage unit 28 is one or more storage areas that store various types of information. Each storage area is configured by, for example, one or a plurality of storage devices (for example, physical drives such as hard disk drives and memories) provided in the image forming apparatus 10 . For example, image data to be printed is stored in the storage unit 28 .

The storage unit 28 also stores tray management information and stock management information.

The tray management information is at least information for managing the correspondence between the tray 18 and the attribute of the paper for each tray 18 . For example, for each tray 18, tray identification information for identifying the tray 18 and paper attribute information indicating the attributes of the paper assigned to the tray 18 are associated, and these pieces of information are used as the tray management information. include. The tray identification information is, for example, information indicating the number, name, etc. of the tray 18 .

For example, when paper is assigned to the tray 18 by the user, the tray identification information of the tray 18 and the paper attribute information of the paper are associated and included in the tray management information. This association processing is performed by the reception unit 22 . Information indicating that the paper has been assigned by the user may be associated with the tray identification information.

The tray identification information of the tray 18 to which the paper is not assigned may be associated with paper unassigned information indicating that the paper is not assigned, or may not be associated with the information. .

A predetermined sheet may be assigned in advance to the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned the sheet. That is, the tray identification information of the tray 18 may be associated in advance with predetermined paper attribute information. In this case, the tray identification information of the tray 18 may be associated with unassigned paper information indicating that paper is not assigned by the user, or the paper attribute information may be associated with a predetermined paper attribute information. Information indicating temporary paper attribute information may be associated. When the user assigns the paper to the tray 18, the tray identification information of the tray 18 is associated with the paper attribute information assigned by the user. If paper unassigned information or information indicating that the paper attribute information is predetermined temporary paper attribute information is associated with the tray identification information of the tray 18, these information are deleted. This association processing and deletion processing are performed by the reception unit 22 . The predetermined provisional sheet attribute information is hereinafter referred to as "temporary sheet attribute information".

The stock management information is information for managing stock information indicating correspondence between paper attribute information and print parameters for each paper. Stock management information includes one or more pieces of stock information. For example, a plurality of pieces of stock information with different printing parameters are generated for one piece of paper attribute information and included in the stock management information. The paper attribute information and the print parameters may be associated in advance, or may be associated with the paper attribute information and the print parameters by the user assigning the print parameters to the paper. For example, paper attribute information and print parameters are associated in advance and included in stock management information as stock information. The recommended stock information described above may be included in the stock management information. Also, the stock information may be acquired from the server 14 and included in the stock management information.

As another example of the tray management information, each tray 18 is associated with tray identification information for identifying the tray 18 and stock information, and these pieces of information are included in the tray management information. may That is, for each tray 18, tray identification information for identifying the tray 18, paper attribute information indicating the attributes of the paper, and print parameters are associated with each other, and even if these information are included in the tray management information. good. In this case, the printing unit 16 prints the image to be printed on the paper accommodated in the tray 18 according to the printing parameters associated with the tray 18 .

For example, when the user assigns the stock information to the tray 18, the tray identification information of the tray 18 and the stock information are associated and included in the tray management information. This association processing is performed by the reception unit 22 . Information indicating that the stock information has been assigned by the user may be associated with the tray identification information.

The tray identification information of the tray 18 to which stock information is not assigned may be associated with unassigned stock information indicating that stock information is not assigned, or may be associated with no information. good too.

Predetermined stock information may be assigned in advance to the tray 18 to which no stock information has been assigned by the user. That is, predetermined stock information may be associated in advance with the tray identification information of the tray 18 . In this case, the tray identification information of the tray 18 may be associated with unallocated stock information indicating that stock information has not been allocated by the user, or the stock information may be associated with predetermined stock information. Information indicating that it is provisional stock information may be associated. When the user assigns the stock information to the tray 18, the tray identification information of the tray 18 is associated with the stock information assigned by the user. If stock unallocated information or information indicating that the stock information is predetermined temporary stock information is associated with the tray identification information of the tray 18, these information are deleted. This association processing and deletion processing are performed by the reception unit 22 . The predetermined stock information is hereinafter referred to as "temporary stock information".

When the user designates a tray 18 to which stock information is not assigned by the user and instructs execution of printing, the printing unit 16 is included in the temporary stock information associated with the tray 18. An image is printed on the paper accommodated in the tray 18 according to the print parameters.

Paper attribute information and stock information not assigned to the tray 18 may be stored in the storage unit 28 . For example, the storage unit 28 may store paper attribute information obtained by reading an object with the reading device 12, stock information obtained from the server 14, or stock information created by the user. The user may assign paper attribute information and stock information stored in the storage unit 28 to the tray 18 .

Note that in the first embodiment, the stock management information does not have to be stored in the storage unit 28 . Further, it is not necessary to assign print parameters to the paper or tray 18 .

The control section 30 is configured to control the operation of each section of the image forming apparatus 10 . The control unit 30 also includes a display control unit 32 .

The display control unit 32 is configured to control display of various information. For example, when a tray 18 to which no sheets have been assigned by the user is opened, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a screen prompting the user to perform operations necessary for assigning sheets to the tray 18. to display. When the tray 18 to which the user has assigned paper sheets is opened, the display control unit 32 does not display the screen on the display unit. Hereinafter, the screen prompting the user to perform the operations necessary for allocating the sheets to the tray 18 will be referred to as the "first prompt screen".

More specifically, when the detection unit 20 detects that the tray 18 has been opened, it outputs the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 to the display control unit 32 . The display control unit 32 refers to the tray management information stored in the storage unit 28 to determine whether the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 is associated with the paper attribute information of the paper assigned by the user. determine whether or not

For example, when paper attribute information is not associated with the tray identification information, when temporary paper attribute information is associated with the tray identification information, or when paper unassigned information is associated with the tray identification information. If the tray identification information is associated with information indicating that the temporary paper attribute information is associated with the tray identification information, the display control unit 32 causes the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 to display: It is determined that the paper attribute information of the paper assigned by the user is not associated. In this case, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the first prompting screen.

On the other hand, when paper attribute information is associated with the tray identification information, when information indicating that the paper is assigned by the user is associated with the tray identification information, or when the tray identification information is associated with If the paper non-allocation information is not associated, or if the information indicating that the temporary paper attribute information is associated with the tray identification information is not associated, the display control unit 32 It is determined that the tray identification information of the tray 18 is associated with the paper attribute information of the paper assigned by the user. In this case, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit.

Operations required for allocating paper to the tray 18 are, for example, reading an object such as a bar code, two-dimensional code, or RFID with the reading device 12, or inputting paper attribute information by the user.

The first prompting screen may be a screen that explicitly informs the user of the execution of the operation, or a screen that does not explicitly inform the user of the execution of the operation. It may be a screen that makes it easy to understand.

A screen that explicitly tells the user to execute an operation is, for example, a screen that displays a message such as "Please read an object such as a bar code." This is the screen that clearly informs the user.

Also, for example, when the user needs to input paper attribute information on a screen, the input screen corresponds to an example of a screen that allows the user to understand the operation. A screen for transitioning to the input screen may be displayed before the input screen is displayed. For example, when a screen showing a message such as "Do you want to assign?" or "Do you want to enter paper attribute information?" When the user presses the "OK" button or "Yes" button displayed on the screen, the screen transitions to the input screen. The screen for transitioning to the input screen also corresponds to an example of the first urging screen. The concept of not displaying the first prompting screen also includes not displaying a screen for transitioning to the input screen.

Further, for example, when a user needs to photograph an object with a camera in order to acquire paper attribute information, the screen during photographing corresponds to an example of a screen that allows the user to understand the operation. For example, a screen during shooting may be displayed on a terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet PC having a shooting device such as a camera. Also, a UI screen for operating the image forming apparatus 10 may be displayed on a terminal device such as a smartphone or a tablet PC. A screen during shooting may be displayed on such a device. For example, when the detection unit 20 detects that the tray 18 has been opened, information indicating that fact is transmitted from the image forming apparatus 10 to the terminal device. In the terminal device that has received the information, the camera is activated, and the screen being photographed is displayed on the terminal device. For example, a message such as "Place the object in the frame" may be displayed on the screen during the shooting. Also, before the camera starts up, a screen showing a message such as "Do you want to start the camera?" A screen may be displayed. A screen showing such a message also corresponds to an example of the first urging screen. The concept of not displaying the first prompting screen also includes not displaying a screen showing such a message. Paper attribute information is acquired by photographing an object such as a barcode or a two-dimensional code with a camera. Note that the terminal device may be an example of the reading device 12 .

Note that the display control unit 32 may transmit the data of the first prompting screen to the terminal device used by the user, and cause the terminal device to display the first prompting screen. A terminal device is, for example, a PC, a tablet PC, a smart phone, a mobile phone, or the like. Note that the address information (e.g., e-mail address, etc.) of the destination terminal device is stored in the storage unit 28 in advance. Thus, the first prompting screen may be displayed on the image forming apparatus 10, or may be displayed on another apparatus such as a terminal device. Also, the first prompting screen may be displayed on the reading device 12 .

Even if the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned paper is opened, if an error occurs in the tray 18, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the first prompting screen. It doesn't have to be. The error is, for example, an error related to the paper accommodated in the tray 18 . Specifically, the error is either a paper jam, paper out, or paper size error. If an error has occurred in the tray 18 itself, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display a first urging screen.

Further, even if the user opens the tray 18 to which no sheets have been assigned, if the reading device 12 is not connected to the image forming apparatus 10, the display control unit 32 displays the first prompting screen. It does not have to be displayed on the display unit. For example, when the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10 and the control unit 30 recognizes that the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10, the display control unit 32 first prompts Display the screen on the display. If the control unit 30 does not recognize that the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit. For example, even if the reading device 12 is physically connected to the image forming apparatus 10, if the control unit 30 does not recognize the reading device 12, the display control unit 32 displays the first urging screen. Do not display it in the department.

Further, as an example different from the example of displaying the first prompting screen, when a tray to which stock information has not been assigned by the user is opened, the display control unit 32 assigns stock information to the tray 18. A screen may be displayed on the display unit of the UI unit 26 to prompt the user to perform the necessary operations. When the tray 18 to which the user has assigned stock information is opened, the display control unit 32 does not display the screen on the display unit. Hereinafter, the screen prompting the user for the operation necessary for allocating the stock information to the tray 18 will be referred to as the "second prompt screen".

More specifically, when the detection unit 20 detects that the tray 18 has been opened, it outputs the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 to the display control unit 32 . The display control unit 32 refers to the tray management information stored in the storage unit 28 to determine whether the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 is associated with the stock information assigned by the user. to decide.

For example, when stock information is not associated with the tray identification information, when temporary stock information is associated with the tray identification information, or when unallocated stock information is associated with the tray identification information. , or when information indicating that the temporary stock information is associated with the tray identification information, the display control unit 32 assigns the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 by the user. It is determined that the received stock information is not associated. In this case, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the second prompting screen.

On the other hand, when stock information is associated with the tray identification information, when information indicating that the stock information is assigned by the user is associated with the tray identification information, or when the tray identification information is associated with When the unallocated stock information is not associated, or when the information indicating that the temporary stock information is associated with the tray identification information is not associated, the display control unit 32 displays the opened tray. It is determined that the stock information assigned by the user is associated with the 18 tray identification information. In this case, the display control unit 32 does not display the second prompting screen on the display unit.

Operations required for allocating stock information to the tray 18 are, for example, reading an object such as a bar code, two-dimensional code, or RFID with the reader 12, or inputting stock information by the user.

As with the first prompting screen, the second prompting screen may be a screen that explicitly informs the user of the execution of the operation, or may be a screen that allows the user to understand the operation that the user should perform. These screens may be displayed on the terminal device or reading device 12 used by the user.

Further, when an error related to the sheets stored in the opened tray 18 has occurred, the display control unit 32 does not have to display the second prompting screen on the display unit. If an error has occurred in the tray 18 itself, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display a second prompting screen.

Further, even if the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned stock information is opened, if the reading device 12 is not connected to the image forming device 10, the display control unit 32 displays the second urging screen. may not be displayed on the display unit.

Note that the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit to display the first prompting screen and the second prompting screen even when a plurality of trays 18 are opened by the user. For example, the acquired paper attribute information and stock information may be associated with the tray 18 opened last, the tray 18 opened first, or the tray 18 selected by the user. It may be associated with the tray 18, or may be associated with the tray 18 in which no paper-related error has occurred.

When changing the association of paper attribute information and stock information with the tray 18, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display a screen for performing the change operation. For example, when the user gives an instruction to display the screen using the UI unit 26, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the screen.

Hereinafter, the first embodiment will be described in more detail with specific examples.

An example of the object will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 shows an example of an exterior of the paper. A bar code 36, which is an example of an object, is printed on the outer covering 34 of the paper. The barcode 36 indicates paper attribute information of the paper wrapped in the outer packaging 34 . The paper attribute information is acquired from the barcode 36 by reading the barcode 36 with a barcode reader, which is an example of the reading device 12 . The reading device 12 outputs the paper attribute information to the image forming device 10 .

The control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 may acquire from the server 14 one or more pieces of stock information including the sheet attribute information acquired from the barcode 36 by communicating with the server 14 . The control unit 30 may acquire one or more pieces of recommended stock information from the server 14 . Of course, the control unit 30 may acquire one or more pieces of stock information including the paper attribute information from the storage unit 28 .

The barcode 36 may indicate identification information (for example, management number, management ID, etc.) for identifying paper attribute information. In this case, the identification information is acquired from the barcode 36 by reading the barcode 36 with the reader 12 . The reading device 12 outputs the identification information to the image forming device 10 . For example, identification information and paper attribute information are associated with each paper and stored in the server 14 . The control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 acquires paper attribute information associated with the identification information acquired from the barcode 36 from the server 14 . The control unit 30 may acquire from the server 14 one or a plurality of pieces of stock information including the sheet attribute information. Note that the reading device 12 may acquire the paper attribute information and the stock information from the server 14 and output them to the image forming device 10 .

Barcode 36 may indicate one or more recommended stock information. In this case, the bar code 36 is read by the reader 12 to acquire one or more pieces of recommended stock information from the bar code 36 . One or more pieces of recommended stock information are output from the reading device 12 to the image forming device 10 .

As examples other than the bar code 36, a two-dimensional code, a character string indicating paper attribute information, other images, or the like may be printed on the exterior 34, and an IC tag such as an RF tag may be printed on the exterior 34. may be attached. Paper attribute information and stock information are obtained by reading a two-dimensional code, a character string, an image, an IC tag, or the like with the reading device 12 .

Objects such as barcodes 36, two-dimensional codes, character strings, or other images may be printed on other paper or objects instead of being printed on the exterior 34, or may be displayed on the display device. good too. Also, an IC tag such as an RF tag may not be attached to the exterior 34, but may be attached to another sheet of paper, article, or the like.

A specific example of the tray management information will be described below. FIG. 3 shows an example of the tray management table. The tray management table is an example of tray management information.

In the tray management table, a management ID, information indicating the number of the tray 18, and paper attribute information of the paper assigned to the tray 18 are associated with each tray. The number of the tray 18 corresponds to an example of tray identification information.

For example, "tray 1" is associated with "paper attribute 1", which is paper attribute information. "Paper attribute 2", which is paper attribute information, is associated with "tray 2". "Paper attribute 3", which is paper attribute information, is associated with "tray 3".

The paper size associated with "tray 1" is "A4" and the paper type is "plain paper". Paper attribute information other than these (for example, paper weight, etc.) is also associated with "tray 1". When the user performs an operation for allocating a sheet to the tray 18, the receiving unit 22 associates the sheet attribute information of the sheet with the tray identification information of the tray 18 and registers them in the tray management table.

Temporary paper attribute information is associated in advance with the tray 18 to which paper attribute information is not assigned by the user.

FIG. 4 shows another example of the tray management table. In this tray management table, for each tray, a management ID, information indicating the number of the tray 18, paper attribute information of the paper assigned to the tray 18, and print parameters assigned to the tray 18 are stored. are associated. Stock information is composed of paper attribute information and printing parameters. That is, for each tray, information indicating the name of the tray 18 and stock information assigned to the tray 18 are associated.

For example, "tray 1" is associated with "stock 1", which is stock information. "Tray 2" is associated with "stock 2", which is stock information. "Tray 3" is associated with "stock 3", which is stock information.

The paper size associated with "tray 1" is "A4" and the paper type is "plain paper". Paper attribute information other than these is also associated with "tray 1". Information indicating the fixing temperature and the like are associated with "tray 1" as print parameters. When the user performs an operation for allocating the stock information to the tray 18, the reception unit 22 associates the stock information with the tray identification information of the tray 18 and registers them in the tray management table.

When the paper accommodated in “tray 1” is selected as the paper to be printed, the printing unit 16 adds the paper accommodated in “tray 1” to the printing associated with “tray 1”. Print the image according to the parameters.

Temporary stock information is associated in advance with the tray 18 to which stock information is not assigned by the user.

In the first embodiment, the tray management table shown in FIG. 3 is used to allocate sheets to the tray 18 . Of course, also in the first embodiment, the tray management table shown in FIG. 4 may be used to assign stock information to the trays 18 .

Screens displayed when sheets are assigned to the tray 18 will be described below.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the main screen. The main screen 38 is a screen displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . The main screen 38 displays an apparatus image 40 schematically representing the image forming apparatus 10 and a list 42 . The list 42 is a list of paper attribute information stored in the storage unit 28 and includes one or more paper attribute images 44 . The paper attribute image 44 is an image (such as an icon) representing paper attribute information stored in the storage unit 28 . For example, a paper attribute image 44 representing "paper attribute 1" or the like is displayed. The user may select a paper attribute image 44 on the main screen 38 and change the paper attribute information represented by the selected paper attribute image 44 , or operate the paper attribute image 44 to transfer the paper attribute information to the tray 18 . may be associated. Note that a paper attribute image representing the temporary paper attribute information may be displayed.

The list 42 is a list of stock information stored in the storage unit 28, and may include one or more stock images. A stock image is an image (such as an icon) representing stock information included in the stock management information. For example, a stock image representing "stock 1" or the like may be displayed. The user may select a stock image on the main screen 38 and change the stock information represented by the selected stock image, or may associate stock information with the tray 18 by manipulating the stock image. A stock image representing the temporary stock information may be displayed.

When the user opens the tray 18 to which paper is not assigned, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a first prompting screen. Here, it is assumed that no paper is assigned to "tray 1" by the user, and that "tray 1" is opened by the user. That is, in the tray management table, "tray 1" is not associated with the paper attribute information assigned by the user. Temporary paper attribute information may be associated with "tray 1".

FIG. 6 shows an example of the first prompting screen. For example, the display control unit 32 causes the main screen 38 to display a display window 46, which is a display area where messages and the like are displayed. The display window 46 displays a message prompting the user to perform operations necessary for allocating paper to "Tray 1". The display window 46 corresponds to an example of the first prompting screen. Also, the display window 46 corresponds to an example of a screen that explicitly informs the user of the execution of the operation. Specifically, a message indicating that "Tray 1" has been opened and that the opening has been detected, or a message such as "Please scan the bar code" is displayed on the display window 46. be.

When the user presses the "OK" button on the display window 46 and then reads the bar code 36 with the reading device 12, the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information obtained by the reading. The receiving unit 22 associates the received sheet attribute information with the tray identification information of "tray 1", and registers this information in the tray management table shown in FIG. Note that even if the user presses the "OK" button after reading the barcode 36 with the reading device 12, the reception unit 22 reads the paper attribute information acquired by the reading and the tray identification information of "tray 1". may be associated with.

When the user presses the "cancel" button on the display window 46, the paper attribute information is not associated with "tray 1". When "tray 1" is associated with temporary paper attribute information, the temporary paper attribute information is used as the paper attribute information of "tray 1".

As an example different from the example of displaying the first prompting screen, when the user opens the tray 18 to which stock information is not assigned, the display control unit 32 displays the second prompting screen on the display unit of the UI unit 26. may be displayed. For example, it is assumed that "tray 1" is not assigned stock information by the user and "tray 1" is opened by the user. That is, in the tray management table, "tray 1" is not associated with the stock information assigned by the user. Temporary stock information may be associated with "tray 1".

In this case, similarly to the display window 46 shown in FIG. 6, a message prompting the user to perform operations necessary for allocating stock information to "Tray 1" is displayed. Specifically, a message such as "Please scan the bar code" is displayed.

When the user presses the "OK" button on the display window and then reads the bar code 36 with the reading device 12, the receiving unit 22 receives the paper attribute information obtained by the reading. The control unit 30 acquires stock information (for example, recommended stock information) including the accepted paper attribute information from the storage unit 28 or the server 14 . The reception unit 22 associates the stock information with the tray identification information of "tray 1" and registers this information in the tray management table shown in FIG. Even when the user presses the "OK" button after reading the barcode 36 with the reading device 12, the reception unit 22 may associate the stock information with the tray identification information of "tray 1". .

When the user presses the "cancel" button on the display window, the stock information is not associated with "tray 1". When "tray 1" is associated with temporary stock information, the temporary stock information is used as the stock information for "tray 1".

FIG. 7 shows an example of a screen that allows the user to understand the operations that the user should perform. When the user opens the tray 18 to which paper is not assigned, the display control unit 32 causes the display window 48 that is the display area to be displayed on the main screen 38 . The display window 48 is an input screen for the user to input paper attribute information. The display window 48 is an example of a screen that allows the user to understand the operation that the user should perform. The display window 48 displays input fields for inputting paper attribute information. The user inputs information indicating the paper size, paper type, etc. in each entry field.

When the user inputs the paper attribute information on the display window 48 and presses the "OK" button, the receiving unit 22 receives the input paper attribute information. The control unit 30 associates the received sheet attribute information with the tray identification information of "tray 1" and registers this information in the tray management table shown in FIG.

The control unit 30 may acquire stock information including the received paper attribute information from the storage unit 28 or the server 14 . In this case, the reception unit 22 associates the stock information with the tray identification information of "tray 1" and registers this information in the tray management table shown in FIG.

When the user presses the "cancel" button on the display window 48, the paper attribute information is not associated with "tray 1". When "tray 1" is associated with temporary paper attribute information, the temporary paper attribute information is used as the paper attribute information of "tray 1". When "tray 1" is associated with temporary stock information, the temporary stock information may be used as the stock information for "tray 1".

The display control unit 32 may display a message such as “Are you sure you want to allocate?” When the user gives a screen transition instruction, the display control unit 32 may display the display window 48 on the main screen 38 .

As an example different from the example in which the first prompting screen is displayed, when the user opens the tray 18 to which stock information is not assigned, the display control unit 32 causes the user to input the stock information in the same manner as the display window 48. A screen for input may be displayed on the display unit. The reception unit 22 associates the stock information input by the user with the tray identification information of the opened tray 18, and registers this information in the tray management table shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 shows another example of a screen that allows the user to understand the operations that the user should perform. For example, when the detection unit 20 detects that the tray 18 has been opened, the control unit 30 transmits information to that effect to the terminal device 50 registered in advance as a destination. The terminal device 50 has a photographing device such as a camera. In the terminal device 50 that received the information, the camera is activated and the image is captured, and the screen during the image capture is displayed on the display section of the terminal device 50 . The user takes an image of the paper with a camera, and an image 52 of the paper is displayed on the screen. Paper attribute information is acquired by photographing an object such as a barcode or a two-dimensional code with a camera. A message such as "Please place the object in the frame" may be displayed on the screen. Also, a message such as "Do you want to start the camera?" may be displayed on the screen before the camera is started.

When the paper attribute information is acquired by the reading device 12, the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a confirmation screen for the user to confirm the acquired paper attribute information. FIG. 9 shows an example of the confirmation screen. The sheet attribute information acquired by the reading device 12 is displayed on the confirmation screen 54 . For example, information indicating paper size, paper type, paper weight, etc. is displayed. The confirmation screen 54 may also be displayed when the user inputs paper attribute information on the input screen shown in FIG. Further, when the stock information is acquired by reading the target object with the reading device 12, a confirmation screen displaying the acquired stock information may be displayed.

Display processing of the first prompting screen will be described below with reference to FIG. 10 . FIG. 10 shows a flowchart showing the display processing.

First, the user opens the tray 18 (S01). The detection unit 20 detects that the tray 18 has been opened, and identifies the tray 18 that has been opened.

Next, the control unit 30 determines whether or not the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming apparatus 10 (S02). The connection may be established by wired communication using a cable, or may be established by wireless communication.

If the reading device 12 is not connected to the image forming device 10 (S02, No), the display processing ends. In this case, the first prompting screen is not displayed. For example, if the control unit 30 does not recognize that the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming device 10, the display processing ends.

If the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming device 10 (S02, Yes), the process proceeds to step S03. For example, when the control unit 30 recognizes that the reading device 12 is connected to the image forming device 10, the process proceeds to step S03.

If the function of displaying the first prompting screen is not valid (S03, No), that is, if the function is invalid, the display process ends. For example, information indicating whether the function is valid or invalid is stored in the storage unit 28 . The user can use the UI unit 26 to enable or disable the function.

If the function of displaying the first prompting screen is valid (S03, Yes), the process proceeds to step S04.

If no error has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 (S04, Yes), the display control unit 32 determines whether or not the user has assigned paper to the tray 18 opened by the user (S05).

If the user has assigned paper to the tray 18 opened by the user (S05, No), the display process ends. In this case, the first prompting screen is not displayed. For example, in the tray management table shown in FIG. 3, if the tray identification information of the opened tray 18 is associated with the sheet attribute information assigned by the user, the display process ends. If tray 18 has already been assigned paper, it is inferred that the user opened tray 18 for a reason other than the assignment of paper to tray 18 . Since display of the first prompting screen is presumed to be unnecessary, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit.

If the user has not assigned paper to the tray 18 opened by the user (S05, Yes), the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a first prompting screen (S06). For example, the display window 46 shown in FIG. 6, the display window 48 shown in FIG. 7, and the like are displayed. These display windows may be displayed on the terminal device. Also, the screen shown in FIG. 8 may be displayed on the terminal device.

If an error has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 (S04, No), the process proceeds to step S07. An error occurring in the image forming apparatus 10 is detected by the control section 30 .

If the error that occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is a paper jam error in the tray 18 opened by the user (S07, No), the display process ends. In this case, the first prompting screen is not displayed. Since it is presumed that the user opened the tray 18 to clear a paper jam, it is presumed that the first prompting screen is unnecessary. Therefore, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit.

If the error that has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is not a paper jam error in the tray 18 opened by the user (S07, Yes), the process proceeds to step S08.

If the error that has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is that the tray 18 opened by the user has run out of paper (S08, No), the display process ends. In this case, the first prompting screen is not displayed. A paper-out error is, for example, a paper-out error that occurs during printing. Since it is presumed that the user opened the tray 18 to replenish the tray 18 with paper, the first prompting screen is presumed to be unnecessary. Therefore, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit.

If the error that occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is not an error that the tray 18 opened by the user is out of paper (S08, Yes), the process proceeds to step S09.

If the error that has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is the error of the wrong paper size of the tray 18 opened by the user (S09, No), the display process ends. In this case, the first prompting screen is not displayed. If the size of the paper associated with the tray 18 is different from the size of the paper actually accommodated in the tray 18, a paper size error occurs. It is presumed that the user opened the tray 18 in order to replace the paper accommodated in the tray 18 with paper having the size associated with the tray 18 . Therefore, it is presumed that the first prompting screen is unnecessary. Therefore, the display control unit 32 does not display the first prompting screen on the display unit.

If the error that occurred in the image forming apparatus 10 is not the error of the wrong paper size of the tray 18 opened by the user (S09, Yes), the process proceeds to step S05. And the process after step S05 is performed. In other words, even if an error has occurred in the image forming apparatus 10, if the error that has occurred does not correspond to any of the errors specified in steps S07 to S09, the processes after step S05 are executed. be done. For example, if the error that has occurred is an error in the tray 18 itself, the process from step S05 onwards is executed.

Note that when an error does not occur in the tray 18 opened by the user (for example, “tray 2”) and an error occurs in a tray 18 other than “tray 2” (for example, “tray 1”), the user If the user has not assigned paper to the tray 18 that has been opened, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display a first prompting screen. That is, when an error occurs in "tray 1", if the user opens "tray 2" in which no error has occurred, the display control unit 32 displays the first urging screen on the display unit. Let

As another example from the above, if the user has not assigned stock information to the opened tray 18 (S05, Yes), the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit to display a second prompting screen. (S06). If stock information is assigned to the opened tray 18 by the user (S05, No), the display control unit 32 does not display the second prompting screen on the display unit. Further, when an error specified in any one of steps S07 to S09 has occurred, the display control unit 32 does not display the second prompting screen on the display unit.

A modification of the first embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 shows an example of the configuration of a terminal device. The terminal device 56 is, for example, a device such as a PC, a tablet PC, a smart phone, or a mobile phone. Also, the terminal device 56 may be a portable terminal device such as a tablet PC, a smart phone, or a mobile phone. The terminal device 56 corresponds to an example of an information processing device.

In the modified example, the terminal device 56 acquires paper attribute information and stock information by reading the target object, and transmits the paper attribute information and stock information to the image forming apparatus 10 . Further, the terminal device 56 may associate paper attribute information and stock information with the tray 18 . In this case, the terminal device 56 transmits information indicating the association to the image forming device 10 . The configuration of the terminal device 56 will be described in detail below.

The reading unit 58 is a photographing device such as a camera. The reading unit 58 may be a bar code reader or a reader compatible with IC tags such as RF tags.

The communication unit 60 is a communication interface and has a function of transmitting information to other devices and a function of receiving information from other devices. The communication unit 60 may have a wireless communication function or may have a wired communication function. For example, the communication unit 60 may communicate with the image forming apparatus 10 and the server 14 via a network such as a LAN or a communication path N such as the Internet, or may communicate with other apparatuses by using short-range wireless communication or the like. may communicate with

The UI section 62 is a user interface section and includes a display section and an operation section. The display unit is a display device such as a liquid crystal display. The operation unit is an input device such as a keyboard and input keys. The UI unit 62 may be a UI unit such as a touch panel having both a display unit and an operation unit.

The storage unit 64 is one or more storage areas that store various types of information. Each storage area is composed of, for example, one or a plurality of storage devices (for example, physical drives such as hard disk drives and memories) provided in the terminal device 56 . The storage unit 64 may store tray management information and stock management information.

The reception unit 66, like the reception unit 22, is configured to receive assignment of sheets to the tray 18 and assignment of stock information from the user. The reception unit 66 may associate the tray identification information with the paper attribute information, or may associate the tray identification information with the stock information. Note that the receiving unit 66 does not have to be provided in the terminal device 56 when the allocation process is not performed in the terminal device 56 . For example, there is a case where the image forming apparatus 10 performs allocation processing and the terminal device 56 does not perform allocation processing.

The control section 68 is configured to control the operation of each section of the terminal device 56 . The control unit 68 also includes a display control unit 70 .

The display control unit 70 is configured to control display of various information. For example, when the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned paper sheets is opened, the display control unit 70 causes the display unit of the UI unit 62 to display a first prompting screen. As another example, when a tray 18 to which stock information has not been assigned by the user is opened, the display control section 70 may cause the display section to display a second prompting screen. Further, the display control unit 70 may display an operation UI for operating the image forming apparatus 10 on the display unit of the UI unit 62 .

For example, when the detection unit 20 of the image forming apparatus 10 detects that the user has opened the tray 18, the control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 outputs information indicating that the tray 18 has been opened and 18 tray identification information to the terminal device 56 . For example, the address information (e.g., e-mail address information) of the terminal device 56 is pre-stored in the storage unit 28 of the image forming apparatus 10, and the control unit 30 sends the above information to the destination indicated by the address information. Send.

If no paper is assigned to the opened tray 18 , the display control unit 70 causes the display unit of the UI unit 62 to display a first prompting screen. The process of determining whether or not paper is assigned to the tray 18 may be performed by the image forming apparatus 10 or may be performed by the terminal device 56 . Further, when an error related to paper has occurred in the tray 18, the display control unit 70 does not have to display the first urging screen on the display unit.

The display control unit 70 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 62 to display the display window 46 shown in FIG. 6 and the display window 48 shown in FIG. . Further, the control unit 68 may activate a camera that constitutes the reading unit 58 and cause the camera to take an image. In this case, the screen shown in FIG. 8 or the like is displayed on the display section of the UI section 62 .

As another example, when stock information is not assigned to the opened tray 18 , the display control unit 70 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 62 to display a second prompting screen. The process of determining whether stock information is assigned to the tray 18 may be performed by the image forming apparatus 10 or may be performed by the terminal device 56 . Further, when an error related to paper has occurred in the tray 18, the display control unit 70 does not have to display the second urging screen on the display unit.

<Second embodiment>
An image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment will be described below. An image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment has the same configuration as the image forming apparatus 10 according to the first embodiment, and corresponds to an example of an information processing apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment may not have the detection unit 20 . Also, the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment does not have to perform the display processing according to the first embodiment. That is, in the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment, when the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned paper or stock information is opened, the first prompting screen and the second prompting screen are displayed on the display unit. It does not have to be displayed. Of course, the image forming apparatus according to the second embodiment may perform display processing according to the first embodiment. The image forming apparatus 10 according to the second embodiment will be described in detail below. Below, among a plurality of configurations included in the image forming apparatus 10, configurations related to the second embodiment will be described in detail.

The reception unit 22 receives paper attribute information of paper. For example, the paper attribute information is acquired by reading the object with the reading device 12 . The reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information. As in the first embodiment, the paper attribute information may be acquired from the object itself, or the identification information may be acquired from the object and the paper attribute information may be acquired from an external device such as the server 14. . The control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device, or the reading device 12 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device. When the terminal device 56 reads the object and transmits the sheet attribute information from the terminal device 56 to the image forming apparatus 10 , the reception unit 22 receives the sheet attribute information transmitted from the terminal device 56 .

As another example, the receiving unit 22 may receive stock information. Stock information is acquired by a method similar to that of the first embodiment. For example, the control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 acquires stock information including paper attribute information accepted by the accepting unit 22 from the storage unit 28 or the server 14 . The reception unit 22 receives stock information acquired by the control unit 30 . As in the first embodiment, the reception unit 22 may receive one or more pieces of recommended stock information.

In the second embodiment, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a screen for the user to perform an operation for allocating sheets to the tray 18 . For example, when the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information, the display control unit 32 displays a screen for the user to perform an operation to assign the paper attribute information to the tray 18, and the paper attribute information and the candidates for the allocation destination. A screen showing a plurality of trays 18 (hereinafter referred to as a “sheet allocation operation screen”) is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . Further, when the reception unit 22 newly receives paper attribute information while the paper allocation operation screen is displayed on the display unit, the display control unit 32 receives the paper attribute information newly received by the reception unit 22 as It is further displayed on the paper allocation operation screen.

For example, on the paper allocation operation screen, a plurality of pieces of paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22 and a plurality of trays 18 are displayed. of trays 18 are commonly displayed.

If the paper attribute information newly received by the receiving unit 22 is the same information as the paper attribute information displayed on the paper allocation operation screen, the display control unit 32 determines the paper attribute information newly received by the receiving unit 22. Information may not be displayed on the paper allocation operation screen.

As another example, the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a screen for the user to perform an operation for allocating the stock information to the tray 18 . For example, when the receiving unit 22 receives stock information, the screen is a screen for the user to perform an operation to allocate the stock information to the trays 18, showing the stock information and a plurality of trays 18 as candidates for allocation (hereinafter referred to as (which will be referred to as a “stock allocation operation screen”) is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . Further, when the reception unit 22 newly receives stock information while the stock allocation operation screen is being displayed on the display unit, the display control unit 32 changes the stock information newly received by the reception unit 22 to the corresponding stock information. It is further displayed on the allocation operation screen.

For example, on the stock allocation operation screen, a plurality of pieces of stock information received by the reception unit 22 and a plurality of trays 18 are displayed. 18 are commonly displayed.

When the stock information newly received by the receiving unit 22 is the same information as the stock information displayed on the stock allocation operation screen, the display control unit 32 changes the stock information newly received by the receiving unit 22 to the corresponding stock information. It does not have to be displayed on the stock allocation operation screen.

Display processing of the paper allocation operation screen will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 12 shows a flowchart showing the display processing.

First, the user uses the reading device 12 to read the barcode of the paper assigned to the tray 18 (S10). For example, the barcode 36 shown in FIG. 2 is read by reader 12 . Thereby, the paper attribute information is acquired, and the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information. Of course, as in the first embodiment, paper attribute information may be acquired by reading a two-dimensional code, an RF tag, a character string, or the paper itself.

When the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a paper allocation operation screen (S11). A plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for assignment of paper attribute information are displayed on the paper assignment operation screen. Further, the reception unit 22 causes the storage unit 28 to store the received paper attribute information.

If there is no paper attribute information that has been read (S12, No), the display control unit 32 displays the paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22 on the paper allocation operation screen (S13). For example, when another paper attribute information is not displayed on the paper allocation operation screen, or when the already read paper attribute information is not stored in the storage unit 28, the display control unit 32 receives the information received by the reception unit 22. Display the paper attribute information on the paper allocation operation screen.

If there is paper attribute information that has already been read (S14, Yes), the process proceeds to step S14.

If the paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22 is the same information as the paper attribute information already displayed on the paper allocation operation screen (S14, Yes), the display control unit 32 selects the paper received by the reception unit 22. The attribute information is not displayed on the paper allocation operation screen (S15). That is, when the paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 is the same information as the read paper attribute information, the display control unit 32 displays the paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 on the paper allocation operation screen. don't let

If the paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22 is not the same information as the paper attribute information already displayed on the paper allocation operation screen (S14, No), the display control unit 32 displays the paper received by the reception unit 22. The attribute information is displayed on the paper allocation operation screen (S13).

The stock allocation operation screen is also displayed in the same manner as the paper allocation operation screen. That is, when the user reads the barcode 36 with the reading device 12 and the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information, the control unit 30 stores the stock information including the paper attribute information in the storage unit 28 as in the first embodiment. or from the server 14 . When the reception unit 22 receives the stock information acquired by the control unit 30, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a stock allocation operation screen. When there is no paper attribute information that has been read, the display control unit 32 causes the stock information received by the reception unit 22 to be displayed on the stock allocation operation screen. For example, when another stock information is not displayed on the stock allocation operation screen, or when stock information including read paper attribute information is not stored in the storage unit 28, the display control unit 32 causes the reception unit 22 displays the received stock information on the stock allocation operation screen. If the stock information received by the reception unit 22 is the same as the stock information already displayed on the stock allocation operation screen when there is already read paper attribute information, the display control unit 32 causes the reception unit 22 Do not display the received stock information on the stock allocation operation screen. If the stock information received by the reception unit 22 is not the same as the stock information already displayed on the stock allocation operation screen, the display control unit 32 displays the stock information received by the reception unit 22 on the stock allocation operation screen. display.

The second embodiment will be described in more detail below with specific examples.

An operation for assigning paper attribute information to the tray 18 will be described below. The paper allocation operation screen will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 13 shows an example of the paper allocation operation screen. Paper attribute information is obtained by reading an object such as a barcode, two-dimensional code, or RFID by the reading device 12, and when the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information, a paper allocation operation screen 72 is displayed on the UI unit 26. displayed in the

The paper allocation operation screen 72 has a read information display field 72A, a paper attribute display field 72B, a tray display field 72C, and an allocated paper display field 72D. The tray display field 72C and the assigned paper display field 72D are associated with each other.

Object identification information for identifying the object read by the reading device 12 is displayed in the read information display field 72A. The object identification information is, for example, information indicating a number, an ID, a name, and the like. The object identification information is information acquired by reading the object with the reading device 12, and is information included in the paper attribute information, for example.

Paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 by reading the object with the reading device 12 is displayed in the paper attribute display field 72B. In the paper attribute display field 72B, for example, a part of the information included in the paper attribute information may be displayed, or information for identifying the paper attribute information (for example, information indicating a number, ID, name, etc.) may be displayed. may be displayed.

The tray display field 72C displays the tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for assignment of the paper attribute information.

Information for identifying the sheet attribute information assigned to the corresponding tray 18 is displayed in the assigned sheet display field 72D. Information indicating that no paper attribute information is assigned to the tray 18 (for example, character string "unassigned") is displayed in the assigned paper display column corresponding to the tray 18 to which no paper attribute information is assigned.

The user operates the object identification information displayed in the read information display field 72A and the paper attribute information displayed in the paper attribute display field 72B on the paper allocation operation screen 72, thereby selecting the tray 18 to be assigned. can be assigned paper attribute information.

In the example shown in FIG. 13 , “barcode 1”, which is an example of the object, is read by the reader 12 . The read information display field 72A displays object identification information indicating that the read object is "barcode 1". The sheet attribute information obtained by reading the "barcode 1" is displayed in the sheet attribute display field 72B. The paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 1" is "paper attribute 1". Information indicating "paper attribute 1" and some information included in the paper attribute information are displayed in the paper attribute display column.

When another target object is read by the reading device 12 while the paper allocation operation screen 72 is being displayed on the display unit, the display control unit 32 reads the other target object and causes the reception unit 22 to accept it. The obtained paper attribute information is further displayed on the paper allocation operation screen 72 .

For example, it is assumed that the reader 12 has read a “barcode 2”, which is an example of an object. "Barcode 2" is a barcode different from "Barcode 1". By reading "barcode 2", paper attribute information different from the paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 1" is acquired.

As shown in FIG. 14 , the display control unit 32 further displays the paper attribute information acquired by reading the “barcode 2” on the paper allocation operation screen 72 . The read information display column 72A further displays object identification information indicating that the newly read object is "barcode 2". The sheet attribute information obtained by reading the "barcode 2" is further displayed in the sheet attribute display field 72B. The paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 2" is "paper attribute 2". In the paper attribute display field 72B, information indicating "paper attribute 2" and some information included in the paper attribute information are further displayed.

As described above, the paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 1" and the paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 2" are displayed on the same paper allocation operation screen 72. be. When another object is read by the reading device 12 , the paper attribute information acquired by the reading is further displayed on the paper allocation operation screen 72 .

When multiple pieces of paper attribute information are acquired, the multiple pieces of paper attribute information and the multiple pieces of tray identification information are displayed on the same paper allocation operation screen 72 . In other words, a plurality of trays 18 selected by the user as allocation targets are commonly displayed for any sheet attribute information.

For example, paper attribute information is assigned to the tray 18 by a drag-and-drop operation. FIG. 15 shows how the assignment operation is performed.

As indicated by an arrow 74, the user uses the UI unit 26 to associate the object identification information of "barcode 1" displayed in the read information display field 72A with the assignment destination "tray 1". (that is, the object identification information is dragged to the assignment paper display column 72D), and the object identification information is arranged in the assignment paper display column 72D (that is, the target drop the item identification information onto the assigned sheet display field 72D). As a result, "paper attribute 1" associated with "barcode 1" is assigned to "tray 1". The reception unit 22 associates the paper attribute information “paper attribute 1” with the tray identification information of “tray 1” and registers it in the tray management table. For example, "tray 1" and "paper attribute 1" are associated and registered in the tray management table shown in FIG.

Similarly, as indicated by an arrow 76, the object identification information of "barcode 2" is dragged to the assigned paper display field 72D associated with "tray 2" and dropped on the assigned paper display field 72D. being manipulated. As a result, "paper attribute 2" associated with "barcode 2" is assigned to "tray 2". The reception unit 22 associates the paper attribute information “paper attribute 2” with the tray identification information of “tray 2” and registers it in the tray management table. For example, "tray 2" and "paper attribute 2" are associated and registered in the tray management table shown in FIG.

Note that the drag-and-drop operation is only an example of the allocation operation. For example, when the user selects the object identification information to be allocated (for example, "barcode 1") and the tray identification information to be allocated (for example, "tray 1") on the paper allocation operation screen 72. (For example, when a click or touch operation is performed), the reception unit 22 associates the selected paper attribute information (for example, "paper attribute 1") with the tray 18 (for example, "tray 1") to perform tray management. You can register in the table. Paper attribute information and tray identification information may be selected by other methods. Also, the paper attribute information to be assigned and the tray identification information to be assigned may be selected by voice of the user.

As described above, a plurality of pieces of paper attribute information and a plurality of trays 18 as allocation candidates are displayed on the same sheet allocation operation screen 72, and for any piece of paper attribute information, a plurality of trays 18 as allocation candidates are displayed. are displayed in common.

When the user presses the "Complete" button displayed on the paper allocation operation screen 72, the reception unit 22 associates the paper attribute information displayed in the allocated paper display field with the allocated paper display field. may be associated with the tray 18 that is Further, when the "Complete" button is pressed, the display control section 32 may erase the paper allocation operation screen 72 from the display section. In other words, the display control unit 32 continues to display the paper allocation operation screen 72 on the display unit until the “complete” button is pressed. Attribute information may also be added.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 13 , the operation of assigning the paper attribute information to the tray 18 may be performed while one piece of paper attribute information is displayed on the paper assignment operation screen 72 .

Further, in a state where "barcode 1" has already been read and the paper attribute information "paper attribute 1" is displayed on the paper allocation operation screen 72, "barcode 1" is newly read by the reading device 12. When the paper attribute information “Paper attribute 1” is acquired, the display control unit 32 does not display the later acquired paper attribute information “Paper attribute 1” on the paper allocation operation screen 72 . In other words, the display control unit 32 does not cause the same sheet attribute information to be displayed on the sheet allocation operation screen 72 . The same is true for "barcode 2". In this way, when the same barcode is read multiple times by the reading device 12 , the display control unit 32 does not display the same multiple pieces of paper attribute information on the paper allocation operation screen 72 .

The display control unit 32 may not erase the paper attribute information from the paper allocation operation screen 72 even after the user performs an operation to assign the paper attribute information to the tray 18 and the reception unit 22 accepts the operation. The reception unit 22 associates the sheet attribute information with the tray 18 . Further, when the user performs an operation to assign the paper attribute information to another tray 18 , the reception unit 22 accepts the operation and associates the paper attribute information with the other tray 18 .

For example, when the user performs an operation (for example, a drag-and-drop operation) to assign "paper attribute 1" to "tray 1", the reception unit 22 associates "tray 1" with "paper attribute 1", Register in the tray management table shown in FIG. Even after this operation is performed, the display control unit 32 does not erase the paper attribute information “tray 1” from the paper allocation operation screen 72 . Thereafter, when the user performs an operation (for example, a drag-and-drop operation) to assign "paper attribute 1" to "tray 2", the reception unit 22 associates "tray 2" with "paper attribute 1", Register in the tray management table shown in FIG. In other words, the user performs the operation of assigning to “tray 2” using “paper attribute 1” which has already been assigned to “tray 1”. In this way, at the stage where the operation for allocating the paper attribute information to the tray 18 is performed, the display control unit 32 does not erase the paper attribute information to be operated from the paper allocation operation screen 72 . Then, an operation to assign the paper attribute information to another tray 18 is accepted.

In the examples shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, a plurality of pieces of paper attribute information and a plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation are displayed on the same sheet allocation operation screen 72. A display window may be displayed for each piece of acquired paper attribute information, and a plurality of trays 18 serving as allocation destination candidates may be displayed in each display window. Assignment of paper attribute information to the tray 18 is performed separately in each paper attribute information display window. That is, when a plurality of different barcodes are read and a plurality of different pieces of paper attribute information are obtained, a plurality of display windows are displayed on the display unit of the UI unit 26, and each display window displays a sheet of paper to the tray 18. Assignment of attribute information is performed.

For example, when the "barcode 1" is read by the reader 12 and the paper attribute information "paper attribute 1" is obtained, the display control unit 32 assigns the paper attribute information "paper attribute 1" to the tray display field 72C. A display window showing the paper display field 72D is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26. FIG. The tray display field 72C and the assigned paper display field 72D are the same as the display fields shown in FIG. The tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation is displayed in the tray display field 72C. Assignment of the paper attribute information “paper attribute 1” to the tray 18 is performed on the display window for “paper attribute 1”.

Further, when the “barcode 2” is read by the reading device 12 and the paper attribute information of “paper attribute 2” is acquired, the display control unit 32 displays the paper attribute information “paper attribute 2” and the tray display field 72C. A display window showing the assigned paper display field 72</b>D is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . The tray display field 72C and the assigned paper display field 72D are the same as the display fields shown in FIG. The tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation is displayed in the tray display field 72C. Assignment of the paper attribute information “paper attribute 1” to the tray 18 is performed on the display window for “paper attribute 1”.

The display window for "Paper attribute 2" is a different display window from the display window for "Paper attribute 1". That is, the display window for "Paper attribute 1" and the display window for "Paper attribute 2" are displayed separately on the display unit. The display control unit 32 may cause the display window for "Paper attribute 1" and the display window for "Paper attribute 2" to overlap each other or may be displayed side by side on the display unit.

As another example, stock information may be assigned to trays 18 . An operation for allocating stock information to the tray 18 will be described below. The stock allocation operation screen will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 16 shows an example of the stock allocation operation screen. Paper attribute information is acquired by reading an object such as a bar code, a two-dimensional code, or an RFID by the reading device 12, and stock information including the paper attribute information is acquired from the storage unit 28 or the server 14. 22 receives the stock information, a stock allocation operation screen 78 is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . For example, one or more pieces of recommended stock information including the paper attribute information are stored in the storage unit 28 or the server 14, and the control unit 30 acquires the one or more pieces of recommended stock information from the storage unit 28 or the server 14. do. By reading the object with the reading device 12 in this way, the recommended stock information is acquired. Of course, stock information other than recommended stock information may be displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78 .

The stock allocation operation screen 78 has a read information display field 78A, a recommended stock display field 78B, a tray display field 78C and an allocation stock display field 78D. The tray display field 78C and the allocated stock display field 78D are associated with each other.

Similar to the read information display column 72A shown in FIG. 13, the read information display column 78A displays object identification information for identifying the object read by the reading device 12. FIG.

The recommended stock display field 78B displays recommended stock information obtained by reading the object with the reading device 12 . In the recommended stock display field 78B, for example, a part of the information included in the recommended stock information may be displayed, or information for identifying the recommended stock information (for example, information indicating a number, ID, name, etc.) may be displayed. may be displayed.

The tray display field 78C displays the tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for assignment of the paper attribute information, similarly to the tray display field 72C shown in FIG.

Information for identifying the stock information assigned to the corresponding tray 18 is displayed in the assigned stock display field 78D. Information indicating that stock information is not assigned to the tray 18 (for example, a character string “not assigned”) is displayed in the assigned stock display column corresponding to the tray 18 to which no stock information is assigned.

On the stock allocation operation screen 78, the user operates the object identification information displayed in the read information display column 78A and the stock information displayed in the recommended stock display column 78B, thereby allowing the tray 18 to be allocated. Stock information can be assigned.

In the example shown in FIG. 16, a “barcode 1”, which is an example of an object, is read by the reader 12. In the example shown in FIG. The read information display field 78A displays object identification information indicating that the read object is "barcode 1". The recommended stock display field 78B displays the recommended stock information obtained by reading the "barcode 1". The recommended stock information acquired by reading "Barcode 1" is "Stock 1". In the recommended stock display field 78B, information indicating "stock 1" and some information included in the recommended stock information "stock 1" (for example, information indicating paper size, etc.) are displayed. The recommended stock information "Stock 1" is information indicating the correspondence between the paper attribute information acquired by reading "Barcode 1" and the recommended printing parameters for printing on paper having the paper attribute information. be.

A plurality of pieces of recommended stock information including paper attribute information acquired by reading "barcode 1" are stored in the storage unit 28 or the server 14, and when the plurality of pieces of recommended stock information are acquired, the display control unit 32 may, for example, display the plurality of recommended stock information in the recommended stock display column 78B by a pull-down method or the like, or may display the plurality of recommended stock information side by side in the recommended stock display column 78B.

When another object is read by the reading device 12 while the stock allocation operation screen 78 is being displayed, the display control unit 32 stocks the recommended stock information acquired by reading the other object. It is further displayed on the allocation operation screen 78 .

For example, it is assumed that the reader 12 has read a “barcode 2”, which is an example of an object. "Barcode 2" is a barcode different from "Barcode 1". By reading "barcode 2", recommended stock information different from the recommended stock information obtained by reading "barcode 1" is obtained.

As shown in FIG. 17, the display control unit 32 causes the stock allocation operation screen 78 to further display the recommended stock information acquired by reading the “barcode 2”. The read information display column 78A further displays object identification information indicating that the newly read object is "barcode 2". The recommended stock display field 78B further displays recommended stock information obtained by reading "Barcode 2". The recommended stock information obtained by reading "barcode 2" is "stock 2". In the recommended stock display field 78B, information indicating "stock 2" and some information included in the recommended stock information of "stock 2" (for example, information indicating paper size, etc.) are displayed. The recommended stock information “stock 2” is information indicating the correspondence between the paper attribute information acquired by reading the “barcode 2” and the recommended printing parameters recommended for the paper having the paper attribute information.

As described above, the recommended stock information obtained by reading "barcode 1" and the recommended stock information obtained by reading "barcode 2" are displayed on the same stock allocation operation screen 78. be. When another object is read by the reading device 12 , the recommended stock information acquired by the reading is further displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78 .

When a plurality of pieces of stock information are acquired, the pieces of stock information and the pieces of tray identification information are displayed on the same stock allocation operation screen 78 . That is, for any stock information, a plurality of trays 18 selected by the user as allocation targets are commonly displayed.

For example, stock information is assigned to the tray 18 by a drag-and-drop operation. FIG. 18 shows how the assignment is made.

As indicated by an arrow 80, the user uses the UI unit 26 to associate the object identification information of "barcode 1" displayed in the read information display field 78A with the allocation destination "tray 1". The object identification information is dragged to the assigned stock display column 78D, and the object identification information is dropped onto the assigned stock display column 78D. As a result, "stock 1" associated with "barcode 1" is assigned to "tray 1". The reception unit 22 associates the recommended stock information “stock 1” with the tray identification information of “tray 1” and registers it in the tray management table. For example, "tray 1" and "stock 1" are associated and registered in the tray management table shown in FIG.

Similarly, as indicated by an arrow 82, the object identification information of "barcode 2" is dragged to the allocated stock display field 78D associated with "tray 2" and dropped onto the allocated stock display field 78D. being manipulated. As a result, "stock 2" associated with "barcode 2" is assigned to "tray 2". The reception unit 22 associates the recommended stock information “stock 2” with the tray identification information of “tray 2” and registers them in the tray management table. For example, "tray 2" and "stock 2" are associated with the tray management table shown in FIG.

Note that stock information may be assigned to the tray 18 by an operation other than the drag-and-drop operation, as in the case of assigning the paper attribute information to the tray 18 . For example, on the stock allocation operation screen 78, the user may select stock information to be allocated and tray identification information to be allocated, or the user may select these pieces of information by voice. good too.

As described above, a plurality of pieces of stock information and a plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation are displayed on one stock allocation operation screen 78, and for any piece of stock information, a plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation are displayed. are displayed in common.

When the user presses the "Complete" button displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78, the reception unit 22 associates the stock information displayed in the allocation stock display field 78D with the allocation stock display field 78D. It may be associated with the attached tray 18 . Further, when the "Complete" button is pressed, the display control section 32 may erase the stock allocation operation screen 78 from the display section.

Note that, as shown in FIG. 16, the operation of allocating stock information to the tray 18 may be performed while one piece of stock information is displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78 .

In addition, in a state in which "barcode 1" has already been read and the stock information "stock 1" is displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78, "barcode 1" is newly read by the reading device 12 to display the stock information. When “stock 1” is acquired, the display control unit 32 does not display the stock information “stock 1” acquired later on the stock allocation operation screen 78 . In other words, the display control unit 32 does not display the same stock information on the stock allocation operation screen 78 . The same is true for "barcode 2". In this way, when the same bar code is read multiple times by the reading device 12 , the display control unit 32 does not display the same multiple pieces of stock information on the stock allocation operation screen 78 .

The display control unit 32 may not erase the stock information from the stock allocation operation screen 78 even after the user performs an operation to allocate the stock information to the tray 18 and the reception unit 22 receives the operation. The reception unit 22 associates the stock information with the tray 18 . Also, when the user performs an operation to assign the stock information to another tray 18 , the reception unit 22 accepts the operation and associates the stock information with the other tray 18 .

For example, when the user performs an operation (for example, a drag-and-drop operation) to assign "stock 1" to "tray 1", the reception unit 22 associates "tray 1" with "stock 1" and registered in the tray management table shown in . Even after this operation is performed, the display control unit 32 does not erase the stock information “stock 1” from the stock allocation operation screen 78. FIG. After that, when the user performs an operation (for example, a drag-and-drop operation) to assign "stock 1" to "tray 2", the reception unit 22 associates "tray 2" with "stock 1" and registered in the tray management table shown in . In this way, at the stage where the operation for allocating the stock information to the tray 18 is performed, the display control unit 32 does not erase the stock information to be operated from the stock allocation operation screen 78 .

The display control unit 32 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a display window for each piece of stock information obtained by reading, in the same manner as the display window in which the paper attribute information allocation operation is performed. Each display window displays a plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation. Assignment of stock information to trays 18 is performed separately in each stock information display window.

For example, when "barcode 1" is read, a display window showing stock information "stock 1", a tray display field 78C, and an allocated stock display field 78D is displayed. When the "barcode 2" is read, a display window showing the stock information "stock 2", the tray display field 78C and the allocated stock display field 78D is displayed. The display window for "Stock 1" and the display window for "Stock 2" are separate display windows. The stock information "stock 1" is assigned to the tray 18 on the display window for "stock 1". The stock information "stock 2" is assigned to the tray 18 on the display window for "stock 2". These display windows may be displayed in an overlapping manner or may be displayed side by side.

Modifications of the second embodiment will be described below.

In the modified example, the display control unit 32 simultaneously displays a plurality of paper attribute information acquired by reading a plurality of objects and a plurality of trays 18 as allocation destination candidates side by side on the display unit. , only some of the print parameter candidates associated with each piece of paper attribute information are displayed on the display unit. When the user gives an instruction to display another candidate for the print parameter, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the other candidate.

A modification of the second embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 19 and 20. FIG. 19 and 20 show an example of the allocation operation screen according to the modified example of the second embodiment.

The allocation operation screen 84 according to the modification of the second embodiment has a reading information display field 84A, a paper attribute display field 84B, a recommended print parameter display field 84C, a tray display field 84D, and an allocation display field 84E.

Similar to the read information display column 72A shown in FIG. 13, the read information display column 84A displays object identification information for identifying the object read by the reading device 12. FIG.

The paper attribute display column 84B displays the paper attribute information obtained by reading the target object with the reading device 12 in the same manner as the paper attribute display column 72B shown in FIG.

The recommended print parameter display field 84C displays the recommended print parameters included in the recommended stock information acquired by reading the target object with the reading device 12 . In the recommended printing parameter display field 84C, for example, a part of information included in the recommended printing parameters may be displayed, or information for identifying the recommended printing parameters (for example, information indicating numbers, IDs, names, etc.). may be displayed.

The tray display field 84D displays the tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for assignment of paper attribute information and recommended print parameters.

Information for identifying the paper attribute information assigned to the corresponding tray 18 and information for identifying the assigned recommended print parameters are displayed in the assignment display field 84E.

Here, the target objects "Barcode 1" and "Barcode 2" have already been read by the reader 12, and one or more pieces of recommended stock information corresponding to "Barcode 1" and "Barcode 2” has been acquired.

As shown in FIG. 19, in the reading information display column 84A of the assignment operation screen 84, the object identification information indicating "barcode 1" and the object identification information indicating "barcode 2" are displayed. ing. The sheet attribute information obtained by reading the "barcode 1" and the sheet attribute information obtained by reading the "barcode 2" are displayed in the sheet attribute display column 84B. The paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 1" is "paper attribute 1". The paper attribute information obtained by reading "barcode 2" is "paper attribute 2".

In the recommended printing parameter display field 84C, one or more recommended printing parameters included in one or more recommended stock information acquired by reading "barcode 1" and "barcode 2" can be read. and one or more recommended print parameters included in the one or more recommended stock information acquired in .

For example, by reading "barcode 1", "recommended stock 1", "recommended stock 2", and "recommended stock 3" are obtained. That is, the recommended stock information "recommended stock 1", "recommended stock 2", and "recommended stock 3" are recommended stock information including paper attribute information acquired by reading "barcode 1". 1” is the recommended stock information for the paper. These pieces of recommended stock information are stored in the storage unit 28 and the server 14 . The recommended stock information 'recommended stock 1' includes the recommended print parameter 'print parameter 1'. The recommended stock information 'recommended stock 2' includes the recommended print parameter 'print parameter 2'. The recommended stock information “recommended stock 3” includes recommended print parameters “print parameter 3”. These print parameters are the recommended print parameters for paper with "Paper Attribute 1".

Also, by reading "barcode 2", "recommended stock 4" and "recommended stock 5" are acquired. In other words, the recommended stock information "recommended stock 4" and "recommended stock 5" are recommended stock information including paper attribute information acquired by reading "barcode 2", and the paper having "paper attribute 2" This is the stock information recommended for These pieces of recommended stock information are stored in the storage unit 28 and the server 14 . The recommended stock information 'recommended stock 4' includes the recommended print parameter 'print parameter 4'. The recommended stock information 'recommended stock 5' includes the recommended print parameter 'print parameter 5'. These print parameters are the print parameters recommended for paper having "Paper Attribute 2".

The display control unit 32 simultaneously displays all of the acquired paper attribute information and the tray identification information of all the trays 18 provided in the image forming apparatus 10A side by side on the allocation operation screen 84 . That is, all the obtained paper attribute information are displayed side by side in the paper attribute display field 84B, and all the tray identification information are displayed side by side in the tray display field 84D.

Even if there are a plurality of recommended printing parameters for "paper attribute 1", the display control unit 32 displays some of the recommended printing parameters included in the plurality of recommended printing parameters in the recommended printing parameter display field. . The display control unit 32 may display the recommended printing parameter with the highest degree of recommendation among the plurality of recommended printing parameters in the recommended printing parameter display field, or may display the recommended printing parameters arranged at the top in numerical or name order. The printing parameters may be displayed in the recommended printing parameter display field. The same applies to "paper attribute 2". Note that the recommendation level may be a recommendation level calculated according to a third embodiment described later, may be determined based on the number of times the stock information is used, or may be determined based on the user's evaluation of the stock information. may be

In the example shown in FIG. 19, for "paper attribute 1", "print parameter 1" is displayed in the recommended print parameter display field. For example, "printing parameter 1" is a printing parameter included in "recommended stock 1," which has the highest degree of recommendation among "recommended stock 1," "recommended stock 2," and "recommended stock 3." For "paper attribute 2", "printing parameter 4" is displayed in the recommended printing parameter display field. For example, "printing parameter 4" is a printing parameter included in "recommended stock 4", which has the highest degree of recommendation among "recommended stock 4" and "recommended stock 5". Thus, one print parameter is displayed for each paper attribute.

The user can assign “print parameter 1” to the tray 18 by performing a drag-and-drop operation on “print parameter 1” to the assignment display field 84E. The reception unit 22 associates “print parameter 1” with the tray identification information of the tray 18 to which it is assigned, and registers information indicating this association in the tray management table shown in FIG. Further, when “printing parameter 1” is assigned to tray 18, “paper attribute 1” associated with “printing parameter 1” may also be assigned to the same tray 18. FIG. That is, the reception unit 22 associates the "paper attribute 1" with the tray identification information of the tray 18 to which the "printing parameter 1" is assigned, and outputs the information indicating the association as shown in FIG. Register in the tray management table. Of course, other paper attribute information may be assigned to the tray 18 assigned "printing parameter 1." “Print Parameter 4” may be assigned to tray 18 in the same manner.

Other printing parameters that are not displayed are displayed according to, for example, a pull-down method. For example, when the user specifies (for example, clicks or touches) "printing parameter 1" displayed in the recommended printing parameter display field 84C on the allocation operation screen 84, the arrow 86 in FIG. As shown, the display control unit 32 causes the assignment operation screen 84 to display a list of "print parameter 1", "print parameter 2", and "print parameter 3" associated with "paper attribute 1". The user can assign the print parameter to the tray 18 by selecting the print parameter from the list and dragging and dropping the selected print parameter to the assignment display field 84E. The same is true for "printing parameter 4".

Note that print parameters and paper attribute information may be assigned to the tray 18 by an operation other than the drag-and-drop operation.

Also in the second embodiment, as in the modification of the first embodiment, the terminal device 56, which is an example of an information processing device, may execute the processing according to the second embodiment. That is, when the paper attribute information is acquired by reading the object by the reading device 12 or the reading unit 58 of the terminal device 56, the display control unit 70 of the terminal device 56 performs the paper allocation operation shown in FIG. The screen 72 is displayed on the display section of the UI section 62 of the terminal device 56 . When another object is read and another sheet attribute information is obtained, the display control unit 70 further displays the other sheet attribute information on the sheet allocation operation screen 72 as shown in FIG. . Then, as shown in FIG. 15, when paper attribute information is assigned to the tray 18 by the user, the control unit 68 of the terminal device 56 stores information indicating the correspondence between the paper attribute information and the tray identification information for image formation. Send to device 10 . Information indicating the association is registered, for example, in the tray management table shown in FIG.

As another example, the terminal device 56 may assign stock information to the trays 18 . That is, when the stock information is acquired by reading the target object, the display control unit 70 causes the display unit of the UI unit 62 to display the stock allocation operation screen 78 shown in FIG. When another stock information is acquired by reading another object, the display control unit 70 further displays the other stock information on the stock allocation operation screen 78 as shown in FIG. 17 . Then, as shown in FIG. 18 , when the user assigns the stock information to the tray 18 , the control unit 68 transmits information indicating the correspondence between the stock information and the tray identification information to the image forming apparatus 10 . Information indicating the correspondence is registered, for example, in the tray management table shown in FIG.

As still another example, the assignment operation screen 84 shown in FIG. 19 may be displayed on the display section of the UI section 62 to assign paper attribute information and print parameters to the tray 18 .

<Third Embodiment>
An image forming apparatus according to the third embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 21 shows an example of the configuration of an image forming apparatus 10A according to the third embodiment. The image forming apparatus 10A corresponds to an example of an information processing apparatus.

The image forming apparatus 10A further includes a recommendation level calculation unit 88 in addition to the components of the image forming apparatus 10 described above. The image forming apparatus 10</b>A may not have the detection unit 20 . Further, the image forming apparatus 10A does not need to execute the display processing according to the first embodiment. That is, in the image forming apparatus 10A, even if the first prompting screen and the second prompting screen are not displayed on the display unit when the tray 18 to which the user has not assigned paper or stock information is opened, good. Of course, the image forming apparatus 10A may perform display processing according to the first embodiment. Also, the image forming apparatus 10A does not need to execute the display processing according to the second embodiment. That is, in the image forming apparatus 10A, the paper allocation operation screen 72 (see FIG. 13) and the stock allocation operation screen 78 (see FIG. 16) may not be displayed. Of course, the image forming apparatus 10A may perform display processing according to the second embodiment. The image forming apparatus 10A will be described in detail below. Below, among a plurality of configurations included in the image forming apparatus 10A, configurations related to the third embodiment will be described in detail.

The reception unit 22 receives paper attribute information of paper. For example, the paper attribute information is acquired by reading the object with the reading device 12 . The reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information. As in the first embodiment, the paper attribute information may be acquired from the object itself, or the identification information may be acquired from the object and the paper attribute information may be acquired from an external device such as the server 14. . The control unit 30 of the image forming apparatus 10 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device, or the reading device 12 may acquire the paper attribute information from the external device. When the terminal device 56 reads the object and transmits the sheet attribute information from the terminal device 56 to the image forming apparatus 10 , the reception unit 22 receives the sheet attribute information transmitted from the terminal device 56 .

The display control unit 32 is configured to selectively display the stock information including the paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 on the display unit of the UI unit 26 . The display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display, for example, stock information including paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 from among a plurality of pieces of stock information stored in the storage unit 28 . The display control unit 32 may cause the display unit to display the stock information including the paper attribute information accepted by the accepting unit 22 from among the plurality of pieces of stock information stored in the server 14 . The stock information including the paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 is acquired from the server 14 by the control unit 30, for example, as in the first embodiment.

As in the second embodiment, the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a stock allocation operation screen for allowing the user to allocate stock information to the tray 18 . For example, when the reception unit 22 receives paper attribute information, the stock allocation operation screen 78 shown in FIG. 16 may be displayed on the display unit.

The recommendation level calculator 88 is configured to calculate the recommendation level of stock information based on the relationship between paper attribute information and printing parameters. For example, the recommendation level calculation unit 88 may calculate the recommendation level based on the relationship between the paper attribute information and the printing parameters related to the paper jam, or may calculate the recommendation level based on the relationship between the paper attribute information and the print parameters related to the paper jam. The degree of recommendation may be calculated based on the relationship with the parameters. Specifically, stock information in which paper jams are less likely to occur has a higher degree of recommendation. In other words, the combination of paper attributes and print parameters that makes paper jams less likely to occur when an image is printed on paper having the attributes indicated by the paper attribute information included in the stock information according to the print parameters included in the stock information. higher recommendation. Also, stock information with higher image fixability has a higher degree of recommendation. In other words, when an image is printed on paper having the attributes indicated by the paper attribute information included in the stock information in accordance with the print parameters included in the stock information, the combination of the paper attributes and the print parameters that provides high fixability of the image. higher recommendation. Since fixability is related to image quality, the degree of recommendation regarding fixability can also be said to be the degree of recommendation regarding image quality. Further, the recommendation level calculation unit 88 may calculate the recommendation level regarding productivity based on the relationship between the paper attribute information and the printing parameters.

The recommendation degree calculation unit 88 may calculate the recommendation degree for one or more pieces of stock information stored in the storage unit 28, or calculate the recommendation degree for one or more pieces of stock information acquired from the server 14. may

For example, when the reception unit 22 receives paper attribute information, the recommendation degree calculation unit 88 targets one or more pieces of stock information including the paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22, Alternatively, the degree of recommendation with the printing parameters included in each of the plurality of pieces of stock information is calculated.

Further, the recommendation degree calculation unit 88 may determine a ranking according to the degree of recommendation for each piece of stock information. The higher the degree of recommendation, the higher the ranking given to the stock information.

The display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display the recommendation level calculated by the recommendation level calculation unit 88 for each piece of stock information in association with the stock information. Further, the display control unit 32 may cause the display unit to display a ranking according to the degree of recommendation. The user can use the UI unit 26 to select stock information to be assigned to the tray 18 from one or more pieces of displayed stock information, and assign the stock information to the tray 18 . At this time, the user may select stock information to be assigned to the tray 18 by referring to the recommendation level associated with the stock information. Further, the display control unit 32 may display the degree of recommendation of each piece of stock information on the stock allocation operation screen.

Processing by the image forming apparatus 10A according to the third embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. FIG. 22 shows a flowchart showing this process.

First, the user reads the barcode on the paper with the reading device 12 (S20). For example, the barcode 36 shown in FIG. 2 is read by reader 12 . Thereby, the paper attribute information is acquired, and the reception unit 22 receives the paper attribute information. Of course, as in the first embodiment, paper attribute information may be acquired by reading a two-dimensional code, an RF tag, a character string, or the paper itself.

Next, the control unit 30 acquires one or a plurality of pieces of stock information including the paper attribute information accepted by the accepting unit 22 from the storage unit 28 (S21). The control unit 30 may acquire from the server 14 one or more pieces of stock information including paper attribute information. If the user generated stock information by associating paper attribute information with print parameters in the past, the stock information may be stored in the storage unit 28 or the server 14 . In addition, the control unit 30 transmits the paper attribute information received by the receiving unit 22 to a server equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) or cloud computing, and obtains a plurality of pieces of recommended stock information selected by the artificial intelligence. good too.

When a plurality of pieces of stock information are acquired by the control unit 30 (S22, Yes), the recommendation level calculation unit 88 calculates paper attribute information included in the stock information (i.e., paper attribute information received by the reception unit 22) for each piece of stock information. information) and the printing parameters included in the stock information, the degree of recommendation is calculated (S23).

When there is a plurality of pieces of stock information with the same degree of recommendation among the pieces of stock information (S24, Yes), the display control unit 32 determines the display order of the pieces of stock information with the same degree of recommendation according to a predetermined condition. (S25). The display control unit 32 may determine the display order based on the number of times the stock information is used, or may determine the display order according to the name order of the stock information. For example, stock information with a higher number of times of use may have a higher display order.

Next, the display control unit 32 selectively displays the pieces of stock information acquired in step S21 on the display unit of the UI unit 26 (S26). At this time, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the degree of recommendation calculated in step S23 for each piece of stock information in association with the stock information. In addition, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display each piece of stock information according to the display order based on the degree of recommendation. For example, stock information with a higher degree of recommendation is displayed higher. A plurality of pieces of stock information having the same degree of recommendation are displayed according to the display order determined in step S25.

If there are no pieces of stock information with the same recommendation level among the pieces of stock information (S24, No), the display control unit 32 displays the pieces of stock information acquired in step S21 on the display unit of the UI unit 26. It is selectively displayed (S26). At this time, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit to display the degree of recommendation calculated in step S23 for each piece of stock information in association with the stock information. For example, stock information with a higher degree of recommendation is displayed higher.

When a plurality of pieces of stock information have not been acquired by the control unit 30 (S22, No), that is, when one piece of stock information has been acquired by the control unit 30, the display control unit 32 displays the piece of stock information in the UI unit. 26 is displayed (S26).

Hereinafter, the third embodiment will be described in more detail with specific examples.

The stock management table will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 23 shows an example of the stock management table. The stock management table is a table for managing stock information, and is an example of stock management information stored in the storage unit 28, for example. The stock management table may be a table for managing stock information stored in the server 14. FIG. Also, the stock management table may be a table for managing the stock information stored in the storage unit 28 and the stock information stored in the server 14 . Also, the stock management table may be a table for managing the stock information stored in the storage unit 28 and the stock information acquired from the server 14 .

In the stock management table, for each piece of stock information, the management ID, the information indicating the name of the stock information, the paper attribute information included in the stock information, and the printing parameters included in the stock information correspond. attached. FIG. 23 shows information indicating paper size, information indicating paper type, and information indicating paper weight as an example of a part of paper attribute information. In addition, although not shown, the paper attribute information includes information indicating the color of the paper, information indicating the presence or absence of coating, information indicating the presence or absence of punch holes, and the like. The printing parameters include fixing temperature, aligner roll pressure, side registration correction value, transfer current adjustment value, paper curl correction value, and paper folding position adjustment value.

A plurality of pieces of stock information having the same sheet attribute information may be generated and registered in the stock management table by associating a plurality of different print parameters with the same sheet attribute information. Also, by associating the same print parameter with a plurality of different paper attribute information, a plurality of pieces of stock information having different paper attribute information may be generated and registered in the stock management table. As described above, the user may associate the paper attribute information with the print parameters, or the paper attribute information and the print parameters may be associated in advance. For example, a plurality of users may associate paper attribute information with print parameters to generate a plurality of pieces of stock information, and the pieces of stock information may be stored in the storage unit 28 or the server 14 .

Further, when the recommendation degree calculation unit 88 calculates the recommendation degree of each piece of stock information, the recommendation degree may be registered in the stock management table. Information indicating ranking according to the degree of recommendation may also be registered in the stock management table.

The print parameter setting screen will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 24 shows an example of the print parameter setting screen. For example, when the user gives an instruction to display a print parameter setting screen using the UI unit 26 , the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display the print parameter setting screen 90 . A setting item for each value included in the print parameter is displayed on the print parameter setting screen 90 , and the user can set each value included in the print parameter on the print parameter setting screen 90 . The print parameters set here are associated with the paper attribute information selected by the user, and stock information indicating the association is stored in the storage unit 28 or the server 14 . Note that each setting item shown in FIG. 24 is merely an example, and other setting items may be displayed and set by the user.

Calculation of the degree of recommendation will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. FIG. 25 shows a method of calculating the recommendation level. FIG. 25 shows a calculation method focused on paper jam, a calculation method focused on fixability, and a calculation method focused on productivity. FIG. 25 shows the recommendation level values. The higher the value, the higher the recommendation.

For example, the degree of recommendation is calculated based on the relationship between the paper type and the fixing temperature during printing. Specifically, when the paper is thin paper, if the fixing temperature is too high, paper jam may occur at the fixing/peeling portion. Therefore, a lower recommendation is made for the combination of thin paper and high fusing temperature. For example, if the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is "thin paper" and the fixing temperature indicated by the print parameter is "high temperature", the recommendation level for the combination of the paper type and fixing temperature is "-3". be. Note that "thin paper" is paper having a thickness equal to or less than a predetermined thickness. "High temperature" means a temperature equal to or higher than a predetermined temperature.

Also, the degree of recommendation is calculated based on the relationship between the paper type and the skew adjustment value of the paper. Specifically, when the paper is coated paper, increasing the aligner roll pressure suppresses the occurrence of paper jams. For example, if the paper is coated paper, it is recommended to set the aligner roll pressure above the first threshold. Further, when the paper is thin paper, the occurrence of paper jams can be suppressed by reducing the aligner roll pressure. For example, if the paper is thin, it is recommended to set the aligner roll pressure below the second threshold. If the aligner roll pressure indicated by the print parameter for the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is outside the recommended pressure range for the paper type, the recommendation level for the combination of the paper type and the aligner roll pressure is "-3". be. For example, when the paper is coated paper and the aligner roll pressure indicated by the printing parameters is less than the first threshold, the recommendation level is "-3". When the paper is thin paper and the aligner roll pressure indicated by the printing parameters is equal to or greater than the second threshold, the recommendation level is "-3".

Further, when the paper is colored paper (that is, paper other than white paper), enabling the side registration correction tends to cause paper jams. For example, if the paper color indicated by the paper attribute information is a color other than white (that is, the paper is colored paper) and the print parameters indicate that side registration correction is enabled, the paper color and side registration The recommendation level for the combination with the correction setting value is "-3".

Also, if the combination of paper attribute information and printing parameters results in low productivity, the recommendation level for productivity is set to a low value.

For example, if the paper is an OHP film and there are restrictions, the recommendation level for productivity is "-4". In order to fix the image on the OHP film, it is recommended to lengthen the fixing time by the fixing device (that is, to slow down the fixing speed). For example, it is recommended to slow down the transportation speed of the OHP film. In that case, the time required for fixing becomes long, and productivity decreases. By shortening the fixing time, the productivity is increased, but the fixability of the image to the OHP film is lowered. That is, the image quality of the printed image is degraded.

For example, if the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is OHP film and the fixing time indicated by the print parameter is long (for example, if it is equal to or greater than the threshold value), the productivity is low, so the recommendation level for productivity is set to a low value. be done. For example, the recommendation level for productivity is "-4". In this case, since the fixability is good, the recommendation level for the fixability is set to a high value. For example, the recommendation level for fixability is "0".

If the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is OHP film and the fixing time indicated by the print parameter is short (for example, less than the threshold value), the productivity does not decrease, so the recommendation level for productivity is set to a high value. be. For example, the recommendation level is "0". In this case, fixability deteriorates, so the recommendation level for fixability is set to a low value. For example, the recommendation level for fixability is "-3".

When the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is embossed paper, the degree of recommendation is calculated in the same manner as when the paper type is OHP film.

Also, if there is a prohibition regarding the operation setting of the fixing device, the recommendation level for productivity is "-4". For example, if a paper that requires a long fixing time is used to fix the image on the paper, the productivity will be low. Productivity is increased when paper is used that does not require a long fixing time to fix the image to the paper. For example, if the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is plain paper, there is no need to lengthen the fixing time. Therefore, the recommendation level for the combination of the paper type and the operation setting of the fixing device is set to a high value. For example, the recommendation level is "0". If the paper type indicated by the paper attribute information is OHP film or embossed paper, it is necessary to lengthen the fixing time. Therefore, the recommendation level for the combination of the paper type and the operation setting of the fixing device is set to a low value. For example, the recommendation level is "-4".

The calculation method shown in FIG. 25 is only an example, and the recommendation level is calculated from the viewpoint of paper jams, fixability, and productivity for combinations of paper attributes and printing parameters not shown in FIG. .

The recommendation degree calculation unit 88 calculates the recommendation degree of stock information by summing the recommendation degrees of each item. Taking the example shown in FIG. 25, the recommendation level calculation unit 88 calculates, for each piece of stock information, a recommendation level related to fixing temperature, a recommendation level related to aligner roll pressure, a recommendation level related to side registration correction, and a recommendation level related to productivity. The recommendation levels are summed up, and the total is determined as the recommendation level of the stock information. Further, the recommendation degree calculation unit 88 may determine a ranking according to the degree of recommendation for each piece of stock information.

FIG. 26 shows a display example of stock information. For example, when the user gives an instruction to display stock information using the UI unit 26, the display control unit 32 causes the display unit of the UI unit 26 to display a screen 92 shown in FIG. A screen 92 displays a list of stock information registered in the stock management table. In addition, the display control unit 32 causes the screen 92 to display the recommendation level in association with the stock information for each piece of stock information. The display control unit 32 may cause the screen 92 to display a ranking corresponding to the degree of recommendation for each piece of stock information in association with the stock information.

In the example shown in FIG. 26, "stock 1", "stock 2" and "stock 3" are shown. "Stock 1" has a recommendation level of "0" and a ranking of "1st". "Stock 2" has a recommendation level of "-1" and a ranking of "2nd". "Stock 3" has a recommendation level of "-2" and a ranking of "3rd". Stock information with a ranking of “first” is stock information with the highest degree of recommendation, and stock information with a lower ranking is stock information with a lower degree of recommendation. The display control unit 32 displays each piece of stock information on the screen 92, for example, in order of recommendation, that is, in order of ranking. In addition, when there is a plurality of pieces of stock information with the same degree of recommendation, the pieces of stock information are displayed in order of name, number of times of use, or the like.

The display control unit 32 may cause the screen 92 to display the tray identification information of each of the plurality of trays 18 that are candidates for allocation. In this case, the user may assign stock information to trays 18 on screen 92 .

Also in the third embodiment, the tray allocation operation screen according to the second embodiment may be displayed. For example, even if the stock allocation operation screen 78 shown in FIGS. 16 and 17 is displayed, and the degree of recommendation and ranking associated with the stock information are displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78 for each piece of stock information. good.

Displaying the degree of recommendation and ranking of each piece of stock information makes it easier for the user to understand which piece of stock information should be selected, compared to displaying only a plurality of pieces of stock information.

The recommendation level calculation unit 88 may change the recommendation level for each piece of stock information according to the number of times the stock information is used. Further, the recommendation level calculation unit 88 may change the recommendation level for each user according to the number of times the stock information is used by the user. For example, the recommendation level calculation unit 88 calculates the recommendation level of each stock information calculated based on the relationship between the paper attribute information and the printing parameters, according to the number of times each stock information is used by the user who has logged in to the image forming apparatus 10A. to change. The higher the number of uses, the higher the recommendation.

In the first and second embodiments, the recommended stock information may be determined based on the recommendation level calculated by the recommendation level calculation unit 88 . For example, the recommended stock information may be stock information whose recommendation degree calculated by the recommendation degree calculation unit 88 is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold.

In the example shown in FIG. 16, the display control unit 32 causes the stock allocation operation screen 78 to display only the stock information with the highest degree of recommendation among the plurality of pieces of stock information, and the stock information is displayed by the user. When specified (for example, when clicked or touched), other stock information may be displayed on the stock allocation operation screen 78 according to the pull-down method.

In the example shown in FIG. 19, the display control unit 32 causes the allocation operation screen 84 to display only the printing parameters included in the stock information with the highest recommendation level, and the printing parameters are specified by the user. (eg, clicked or touched), other print parameters may be displayed on the assignment operation screen 84 according to the pull-down method (see FIG. 20).

The processing according to the third embodiment may be executed by a terminal device having the recommendation level calculation unit 88 . For example, the terminal device 56 shown in FIG. 11 may be provided with the recommendation degree calculation unit 88, and the terminal device 56 may calculate the recommendation degree of each piece of stock information. The stock information and the degree of recommendation may be displayed on the display section of the UI section 62 of the terminal device 56 . Also, the terminal device 56 may allocate stock information to the trays 18 .

<Other embodiments>
At least two of the first, second, and third embodiments described above may be combined.

For example, when the first embodiment, the second embodiment, and the third embodiment are combined, when the tray 18 is opened and paper is not assigned to the tray or stock information is not assigned , a screen prompting for allocation (for example, the display window 46 shown in FIG. 6) is displayed on the display section of the UI section 26 . When an object such as a barcode is read by the reading device 12 or the like, the paper allocation operation screen shown in FIG. 13 and the like and the stock allocation operation screen shown in FIG. 16 are displayed. The stock allocation operation screen displays the degree of recommendation associated with stock information for each piece of stock information.

The functions of the image forming apparatus 10, the image forming apparatus 10A, and the terminal device 56 are realized by cooperation of hardware and software, for example. Specifically, the image forming apparatus 10, the image forming apparatus 10A, and the terminal device 56 have one or more processors such as a CPU (not shown). The one or more processors read and execute a program stored in a storage device (not shown), thereby realizing the functions of the image forming apparatus 10, the image forming apparatus 10A, and the terminal device 56. FIG. The program is stored in a storage device via a recording medium such as a CD or DVD, or via a communication path such as a network. As another example, the functions of each unit of the image forming apparatus 10, the image forming apparatus 10A, and the terminal device 56 may be implemented by hardware resources such as processors, electronic circuits, or ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits). A device such as a memory may be used in its implementation. As still another example, the functions of each unit of the image forming apparatus 10, the image forming apparatus 10A, and the terminal device 56 may be implemented by a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or the like.

10, 10A image forming apparatus, 12 reading device, 16 printing unit, 18 tray, 20 detection unit, 22 reception unit, 32 display control unit, 88 recommendation degree calculation unit.

Claims (8)

receiving means for receiving attribute information of paper on which an image is to be formed;
A screen for allowing a user to allocate the attribute information received by the receiving means to a tray containing paper when the receiving means receives the attribute information, wherein the attribute information and a plurality of trays serving as candidates for allocation are provided. and a display control means for causing the display means to display a screen showing
has
An object whose attributes can be specified by reading with a reading device is read by the reading device to acquire attribute information of the paper, and the reception means receives the acquired attribute information. ,
While the screen is displayed on the display means, when the reading device newly reads an object and the reception means newly receives attribute information, the display control means displays the further display the attribute information newly received by the receiving means;
Information processing equipment. The display control means causes the display means to display the screen showing a plurality of pieces of attribute information and a plurality of trays,
The screen commonly displays a plurality of trays selected by the user as allocation targets for any attribute information.
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized by: The display control means allows the user to display the first attribute information without erasing display of the first attribute information from the screen even after receiving an operation by the user to assign the first attribute information to the first tray. accept an operation to assign to the second tray;
3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: When the attribute information newly received by the reception means is the same attribute information as the attribute information displayed on the screen, the display control means displays the attribute information newly received by the reception means on the screen. do not display above
4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 3, characterized by: The screen is a screen for a user to perform an operation for assigning a correspondence between paper attribute information and image forming parameters to a tray,
The display control means further displays the candidate for the association on the screen;
5. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized by: The display control means arranges and simultaneously displays on the screen the plurality of read attribute information and the plurality of trays as candidates for allocation, and image forming parameter candidates associated with each attribute information. causes only a portion of the to be displayed on the screen,
6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, characterized by: an image forming means for forming an image on paper;
a plurality of trays for accommodating sheets on which images are to be formed by the image forming means;
receiving means for receiving attribute information of paper;
a screen for performing an operation for allocating the attribute information received by the receiving means to a tray when the receiving means receives the attribute information, the screen showing the attribute information and a plurality of trays as candidates for allocation; Display control means for displaying on the display means;
has
An object whose attributes can be specified by reading with a reading device is read by the reading device to acquire attribute information of the paper, and the reception means receives the acquired attribute information. ,
While the screen is displayed on the display means, when the reading device newly reads an object and the reception means newly receives attribute information, the display control means displays the further display the attribute information newly received by the receiving means;
Image forming device. the computer,
receiving means for receiving attribute information of paper on which an image is formed;
A screen for allowing a user to allocate the attribute information received by the receiving means to a tray containing paper when the receiving means receives the attribute information, wherein the attribute information and a plurality of trays serving as candidates for allocation are provided. Display control means for causing the display means to display a screen showing
function as
An object whose attributes can be specified by reading with a reading device is read by the reading device to acquire attribute information of the paper, and the reception means receives the acquired attribute information. ,
While the screen is displayed on the display means, when the reading device newly reads an object and the reception means newly receives attribute information, the display control means displays the further display the attribute information newly received by the receiving means;
program.

Images