JPH11154071A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make a trial printing of each one copy and confirm the printing quality before printing the remaining copies. SOLUTION: A command analyzing means 22 analyzes the contents of printing data from a host device 1. When a trial print mode command is present, a printing data storage means 25 holds received printing data and a reprinting means 24 performs control for outputting the held print data to an image forming means 26. Then a printing means 27 performs a trial printing. A command from the host device 1 is received again and when the command analyzing means 22 judges that the received command is a reprinting suspension command, the reprinting means 24 releases the held print data. When the received command is a reprinting command, the reprinting means 24 acquires the held print data and performs control for reprinting.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printer, and more particularly to a printer which receives data from a host device such as a host computer and prints the data on a print medium.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a printer device, there is a printer device that performs a test print to make an operator confirm a print result and then performs a main print. As such a printer device, there is one described in, for example, JP-A-7-29936. The printer device stores one page of image data from the host device in the image buffer, and holds the image data even after the completion of the test printing. Then, when the reprint is designated on the operation panel or a predetermined time has elapsed, the held image data is printed again. Such a printer does not need to re-receive print data from a higher-level device when performing actual printing.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-222227 discloses a technique in which print data is transferred to a printer via a file server and a printer server in response to a request from a terminal on a network. The file server stores the print data that has been printed, and transmits the print data from the file server to the print server at the time of reprinting, thereby enabling reprinting. According to such a printer, it is not necessary to retransmit print data from the terminal to the file server when reprinting.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION However, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-2
The printer described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 99936 performs test printing for printing position confirmation and the like when printing a series of documents of a plurality of pages. Therefore, the number of sheets that can be confirmed by test printing is limited to the first page. Further, the setting for performing test printing and the setting of the number of copies, and the execution of reprinting or the determination of printing stop must be made on the operation panel of the printer device. Further, when printing a document of a plurality of pages, it is necessary to perform an operation for each page. In addition, since a re-print is performed after waiting for a certain time and there is no reset operation, there is a problem that the whole print processing speed is reduced by waiting for a certain time every time one page is printed. In the printer described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 8-222227, a file server and a printer server are required for reprinting, and reprinting is limited to printing on a network. Further, since the print data transmission source is simply replaced by the file server and the print server from the terminal, and the printer device receives the same print data a plurality of times, the print data is transmitted when the printer device starts reprinting. There is a problem that it takes time for re-reception.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a printer capable of reprinting a multi-page document without re-receiving print data from a host device. With the goal.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a printer apparatus comprising: a print data storage unit for storing print data of a plurality of pages received from a host apparatus; a test print of the received print data; Reprint execution means for acquiring and reprinting. Further, the printer device includes command analysis means for analyzing a command for instructing test printing in the print data and a command for instructing reprinting received after completion of the test printing. The command analysis means analyzes the print data including the print conditions for the test print and the print conditions for the reprint, and the reprint execution means reads the print data stored in the print data storage means, and executes the print conditions for the reprint. It may be configured to perform reprinting based on this. The command analysis means analyzes a command for instructing reprinting including the printing conditions at the time of reprinting, and the reprinting execution means reads out the print data stored in the print data storage means and reprints in the command for instructing reprinting. The reprinting may be performed based on the printing conditions at the time. The command analysis means analyzes a command instructing the stop of reprinting, and the reprint execution means releases the print data stored in the print data storage means in accordance with the command instructing the stop of reprinting. Is also good.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing functional blocks of a printer device according to the present invention. The printer device 2 connected to the higher-level device 1 such as a personal computer receives print data from the higher-level device 1 and
Communication means 21 for notifying the printer of the status of the printer
And command analysis means 22 for analyzing the received print data and control commands and controlling the operation panel 23.

[0008] Further, a reprint control means 24 for realizing the functions of test print, reprint (main print) execution and reprint stop.
And a print data storage unit 27 including a storage device 28 for storing print data. The image processing apparatus further includes image generation means 26 for processing print data and developing the image into an image, and print execution means 27 for actually printing the developed image on paper.

Next, the operation of the printer device 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. When the bidirectional communication unit 21 receives the print data from the host device 1 (step S1), the command analysis unit 22 analyzes the contents of the print data and checks whether a test print mode command is stored (step S2). . If there is a test print mode command, the process proceeds to step S3 to perform processing for test print, and if there is no test print mode command, normal printing is performed (step S4). In step S3, the print data storage unit 25 holds the received print data, and the reprint execution unit 24 performs control to output the held print data to the image generation unit 26. Then, the print execution unit 27 performs test printing (step S5).

After the end of the test printing, a printing standby state is set. Then, a command from the host device 1 is received (step S6). When the command analysis unit 22 determines that the received command is the reprint stop command (step S7), the reprint execution unit 24 releases the held print data (step S12). If the received command is not the reprint execution command, the process returns to step S6 and returns to the command waiting state. If it is determined that the received command is a reprint execution command, the reprint execution unit 12 acquires the held print data (step S9) and executes control for reprinting (step S10). . Then, the reprint execution unit 12 determines whether or not the specified number of copies have been printed (step S11). If the number of copies is less than the specified number, the print data is acquired and printed again to realize printing of the specified number of copies (step S11). Steps S9 and S10). After printing all the copies, the print data is released (step S12).

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a printer device that specifically realizes the functional blocks shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the printer device 2 is connected to the host device 1 via an input / output interface 130. In the ROM 120, an image generation program 121, a print control program 122, a command analysis program 12
3, a two-way communication program 124, a printer control program 125, and a print data management program 126 are stored. The CPU 100 executes those programs while using the RAM 110. The RAM 110 includes a reception buffer 111 used by the bidirectional communication program 124 and the input / output interface 130,
There is an image buffer 112 for storing an image generated by the image generation program 121, and a work area 113 used by the program in the ROM 120.

The printer control program 122 controls the printer unit 141 via the printer control interface 140. The operation panel 151 is connected to the panel control interface 150, and panel operations are converted into commands and processed by the command analysis program 123.
The print control program 122 performs test printing and reprinting using the command analysis program 123 and the print data management program 126. The print data management program 126 stores the print data in the fixed disk drive 161 via the disk control interface 160. I do.

Next, the structure of print data used in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The print data created by the higher-level device 1 includes a print data header 200, document data 210, and a print data footer 220. The print data header 200 and the print data footer 220 each start with a command header 290 and end with a command footer 291. By doing so, the document data 210 is identified. Print data header 20
0 and the print data footer 220
1 and 221 for specifying the printer settings at the time of printing and after printing, respectively. The setting command 201 in the print data header 200 includes a standby time (time-out time) after the completion of the test print, an operation after the specified standby time has elapsed (after the time-out), and a reprint mode specification command 202 for specifying the number of copies to be reprinted. In addition to the above, a setting command 203 for specifying a printer setting at the time of reprinting is included. Further, the command header 200 includes document information 204 such as a document owner, a document name, and a job ID.

Next, the configuration of the reprint execution command will be described with reference to FIG. The reprint execution command starts with the command header 290 and ends with the command footer 291 similarly to the print data header 200 in the print data. The document information 204 matches the information in the print data. The reprint command 205 is used to specify reprint execution or cancellation.

The operation of the printer shown in FIG. 3 will be described below. The print data such as that shown in FIG.
Is stored in the reception buffer 121 via the input / output interface 130. Then, it is analyzed by the command analysis program 123.

As a result of the analysis, if the reprint mode = ON, the print control program 122 uses the print data management program 126 to store the print data in the fixed disk drive 161 via the disk control interface 160. . Then, the image is developed in the image buffer 112 by using the image generation program 121, and the printer unit 141 is transmitted via the printer control interface 140.
Test printing is performed.

With the print data as shown in FIG. 4, test printing is performed with the settings of paper size = A4, paper tray = tray 1, print quality = draft. After the completion of the test printing, the printer control program 125 receives the notification of the completion of the test printing from the printer control interface 140, and notifies the host apparatus 1 of the command waiting by the two-way communication program 124. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the timeout time, that is, the time waiting for a command is 30 seconds. Therefore, if there is no reprint command from the host device during this time, reprint is automatically started. The reprint execution command or the operation on the operation panel 151 as shown in FIG. 5 is analyzed by the command analysis program 123. When reprint = execution is specified by the reprint execution command, the print control program 122 acquires print data on the fixed disk drive 161 using the print data management program 160. Then, reprinting is performed.

In the print data as shown in FIG. 4, reprinting of 10 copies is performed with the settings of paper size = A4, paper tray = tray 2, print quality = high quality. After reprinting is completed or when reprinting = stop, the print data management program 126 releases the print data on the fixed disk drive 161 for the next printing.

In the print data storage means 25,
It is also possible to use a RAM instead of the fixed disk drive 161. Since the access speed to the RAM is much higher than that of the fixed disk drive 161, the time consumed for writing and reading the print data storage means 25 can be greatly reduced. Further, if a part of the print data to be recorded on the fixed disk is recorded in the reception buffer and the work area in the RAM, the number of accesses to the fixed disk is reduced, and in the case of small-size print data, the fixed disk is completely accessed. It is possible to perform reprinting at high speed without any problem.

Also, when the host device 1 is a fixed disk or R
By installing an interface that allows direct access to the print data stored in the AM, the print data can be saved or replaced. For example, it is possible to prepare print data of a document such as a form that may be printed many times in advance, and to perform only reprinting without test printing.

The reprint executing means 24 can be configured to change the setting at the time of test printing and perform reprinting.
In that case, the paper size,
Reset information such as the designation of the paper tray and the number of copies is included. Then, the command analysis program 123 which is the command analysis means 22 executes such a reprint execution command 2
By analyzing 05, the setting at the time of test printing is changed and the setting is changed so that printing is performed again. For example, according to the reprint execution command shown in FIG. 6, after the test printing is completed, printing can be performed again with the settings of paper size = B5, paper tray = tray 3, and print quality = standard by the setting command 207. Also, the reprint mode command 20
6 can also be different from the reprint mode command 202 in the print data.

As described above, printing can be performed again under different conditions by designating different printing conditions after the completion of the test printing. Therefore, when the result of the test printing is not good, for example, the usage such as performing the test printing again under another printing condition can be realized. Further, a reprint mode command 206 is added, and in step S11 in the flowchart of FIG.
By returning to T6 and changing to the command waiting state, it becomes possible to repeatedly execute test printing with different settings.

In the above embodiment, the printer 2
In the case where the test print mode command is stored in the print data received from the higher-level device 1 by the two-way communication unit 21, the command analysis unit 22 determines the existence thereof, and the print data storage unit 25 Test print execution means (reprint execution means 24) holding print data of
After printing a plurality of pages, the printer enters a print standby state. Then, the two-way communication unit 21 notifies the host device 1 that the test printing is completed in the printer device 2 and the printer device 2 is in the standby state. Then, the command received by the two-way communication means 21 from the host device 1 is transmitted to the command analysis means 2.
If the reprint execution command is determined to be a reprint execution command by the print data storage unit 25,
Prints the specified number of copies repeatedly using the print data held by. On the other hand, if the command analysis unit 22 determines that the received command is a reprint stop command or if reprinting of the specified number of copies is completed, the reprint stop unit (reprint execution unit 24) The print data stored in the storage unit 25 is released, and printing is completed.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to reprint a multi-page document without receiving print data again from the host device. Also, test print settings,
Since the determination of execution or cancellation of the main printing can be instructed from the host device 1, the overall printing processing speed can be improved. Further, when reprinting a plurality of pages, a reprint function can be realized even in a non-network environment without requiring a file server and a print server.

[0025]

As described above, according to the present invention, a printer device is provided with a print data storage means for storing print data of a plurality of pages received from a higher-level device, and a print device for storing print data received after trial printing. And a reprint execution unit for acquiring and reprinting the print data obtained.
This has the effect of enabling test printing of the entire document of a plurality of pages.
Therefore, compared to a device that can perform test printing only on the first page, the operator can check the print quality and printing position of the entire document, and a printer device that can exhibit the original test printing function is provided. Will be provided. Further, a test print and a reprint of a plurality of pages can be performed even in a non-network environment without requiring a file server and a printer server.

In the case where the apparatus is provided with command analysis means for analyzing a command for instructing test printing in the print data and a command for instructing reprinting to be received after the completion of the test printing, a command from a higher-level device is interpreted. In addition, reprinting can be determined, printing can be performed continuously without requiring confirmation operation for each page, and the printing speed of test printing of a plurality of pages can be improved.

The command analysis means analyzes print data including print conditions for test printing and printing conditions for reprinting,
If the reprint execution unit is configured to read out the print data stored in the print data storage unit and perform reprinting based on the printing conditions at the time of reprinting, the command from the higher-level device is interpreted. Reprinting can be determined, and the printing speed of test printing of a plurality of pages can be improved.

The command analysis means analyzes a command for instructing reprinting including printing conditions at the time of reprinting, and the reprinting execution means reads out the print data stored in the print data storage means and issues a command for instructing reprinting. In the case where the reprinting is performed based on the printing conditions at the time of reprinting, the reprinting can be performed under conditions different from those at the time of test printing.

The command analyzing means analyzes the command instructing the stop of the reprint, and the reprint executing means releases the print data stored in the print data storing means in accordance with the command instructing the stop of the reprint. In such a case, the print stop can be determined from the host device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing functional blocks of a printer device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the printer device.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a printer device that specifically realizes functional blocks.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of print data.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of a reprint execution command.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing another configuration example of the reprint execution command.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 upper device 2 printer device 21 bidirectional communication means 22 command analysis means 23 operation panel 24 reprint execution means 25 print data storage means 26 image generation means 27 print execution means 28 storage device

Claims (5)

[Claims] A print data storage unit for storing print data of a plurality of pages received from a higher-level device, and a reprint execution unit for obtaining print data stored after trial printing of the received print data and reprinting the print data. Equipped printer device. 2. The printer device according to claim 1, further comprising command analysis means for analyzing a command for instructing test printing in the print data and a command for instructing reprinting received after completion of the test printing. 3. The command analysis means analyzes print data including print conditions for test printing and printing conditions for reprinting, and the reprint execution means reads out the print data stored in the print data storage means. 3. The printer according to claim 2, wherein reprinting is performed based on printing conditions at the time of reprinting. 4. A command analysis means for analyzing a command for instructing reprinting including a printing condition at the time of reprinting, and a reprint execution means for reading out the print data stored in the print data storage means. 4. The printer device according to claim 2, wherein reprinting is performed based on printing conditions at the time of reprinting in a command for instructing printing. 5. A command analysis unit analyzes a command instructing stop of reprinting, and a reprint execution unit releases print data stored in the print data storage unit in accordance with the command instructing stop of reprinting. The printer device according to claim 2, wherein