JPH08320771A - Information processing network - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To freely specify a sorter bin of a printer from a user terminal as to the system wherein a common printer is shared by plural user terminals. CONSTITUTION: The printer driver of a user terminal specifies a bin and bin specification information is sent out to the printer together with print data. The printer detects the bin specification information and prints a mark sheet for bin specification prior to the printing of the print data. This mark sheet is read by a sensor to specify the bin, and print sheets which is printed thereafter are discharged to the specified bin.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information processing network system, and more particularly to an information processing apparatus including a plurality of information processing apparatuses and a network printer having a plurality of bins which are commonly provided to the plurality of information processing apparatuses. It relates to a processing network system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A network printer of this type receives print data in common from user terminals, which are a plurality of information processing apparatuses (personal computers, etc.) connected to a network, and prints sheets by a sorter for each user terminal. It sorts and outputs.

In this case, there are various methods for allocating the print sheet of which user terminal to which bin of the sorter. For example, a method of associating each sorter bin corresponding to each host interface connected when the power is turned on, or (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-8501), a method of sending the address of a personal computer used for a bin of a sorter before sending print data from a host (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-97417).
Issue gazette).

[0004]

With such a conventional method, it is not possible to arbitrarily specify the bin of the sorter from each application program of the user terminal. Since the sorter bins are specified based on the specifications of individual terminal devices, there is a restriction that the user must use the sorter bins accordingly, and the bins to which the print sheets are output to the network printer are limited. It has the drawback that the designation cannot be changed arbitrarily and remotely.

This is because once set by the hardware itself or the hardware information, it will be used in that state thereafter in the system.

Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve the above problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to arbitrarily specify the bin of the sorter of the printer from the application program in the user terminal. It is to provide an information processing network system capable of performing the above.

[0007]

According to the present invention, an information processing network system including a plurality of information processing apparatuses and a printer provided in common to the plurality of information processing apparatuses and having a plurality of bins. Each of the information processing devices has means for sending out bin designation information for designating a bin of the printer together with print data, and the printer is configured to print the bins prior to printing the print data. And a means for printing a mark sheet for bin designation based on designation information, and a means for reading a bin designation mark of this mark sheet to determine a designated bin and sending a print sheet of subsequent print data to this designated bin. A characteristic information processing network system is obtained.

[0008]

In the print driver of the application program, the bin of the sorter is designated, and the bin designation information is sent to the network printer together with the print data. Prior to printing, the network printer prints a mark sheet for bin designation based on the bin designation information, reads the bin designation of this mark sheet, and determines the designated bin. The print sheet is sent to this designated bin and discharged.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an information processing network system to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied. Multiple user terminals 3
A network printer 2 is commonly provided (only one is shown in the figure for simplification), and a plurality of bins 1 (Bin1 to Bin) are provided in a sorter of this printer 2.
5) is attached.

In the application program in each user terminal 3, the printer driver can specify the bin to which the print sheets of this application are discharged. FIG. 2 shows the state of the bin specification screen 4 of this printer driver. There is. In this example, the designation (5) is made for the bins 2 and 5.

When the print data is transmitted to the network printer 2 via the printer driver, the bin designation information designated in FIG. 2 is also transmitted at the same time. Printer 2
Then, prior to printing the print data, the bin designation mark sheet 6 as shown in FIG. 3 is printed based on the bin designation information.

The bin designation mark sheet 6 is provided with a synchronization mark 8 and mark patterns 10 at positions corresponding to the bins 1 to 5 with the synchronization mark 8 as a reference, and the positions corresponding to the bins designated by the bin designation information. The mark pattern is marked (painted in black) and printed. Following this bin designation mark sheet 6, a sheet 7 on which print data is printed is sent out.

At this time, the bin designation mark sheet 6 is shown in FIG.
The mark 10 is optically read by the mark sensor 9 to detect the mark 10, and the designated bin is recognized by the distance from the synchronization mark 8, as shown in FIG. The subsequent print sheet 7 is discharged to the recognized designated bin.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing the processing of the printer driver of the user terminal 3, in which the bin designation as shown in FIG. 2 is made by the printer driver (step 51).
When there is a print instruction (step 52), the bin designation information is sent to the network printer together with the print data (step 53).

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing the processing of the network printer 2. The bin designation information sent together with the print data is detected (step 61), and the bin designation mark sheet 6 is printed (step 62). The printed bin designation mark sheet 6 is read by the optical mark sensor 9 to identify the designated bin (steps 63 and 64). Thereafter, the subsequent print sheets 7 are sequentially discharged to the specified designated bin (step 65).

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the user can freely specify the bin of the printer to be used, it is particularly effective when the network printer is used in a form shared by a plurality of users. It is a thing. Further, since the bin designation is performed by printing the bin designation mark sheet, the commonality of the network printer can be enhanced without depending on the printer, the printer language, the hardware, and the like.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system block diagram to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a screen of a printer driver.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of print output.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of detection of a bin designation mark sheet.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a processing flow of a printer driver.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a processing flow of a network printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 bin of sorter 2 network printer 3 user terminal 4 bin designation screen 5 bin designation 6 bin designation mark sheet 7 print output 8 synchronization mark 9 mark sensor 10 mark

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. An information processing network system including a plurality of information processing apparatuses and a printer having a plurality of bins which are provided in common to the plurality of information processing apparatuses, each of the information processing apparatuses. Has a unit for sending out bin designation information for designating a bin of the printer together with print data, the printer prior to printing the print data, a mark sheet for bin designation based on the bin designation information. An information processing network system comprising: a means for printing a print sheet, and a means for reading a bin designation mark of the mark sheet to determine a designated bin and sending a print sheet of subsequent print data to the designated bin. 2. The information processing network system according to claim 1, wherein the mark sheet is a mark sheet having an optical pattern, and the mark sheet is optically read.