Print control method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of computer, especially to a printing control method and device. After detecting a printing task instruction, printing data is acquired, the printing data is converted into page image data, then a printing mark is created for the page image data, the page image data is segmented into multiple printing paragraphs, and one printing paragraph and the printing mark associated with the printing paragraph are sent to an image forming device based on a printing order each time, so that the image forming device performs a printing operation on the printing paragraph based on the printing mark. The method converts the printing data into the image forming device and segments the printing data into multiple printing paragraphs, achieves the effect of outputting PCL language, and makes the image forming device perform the printing operation smoothly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of printer technology, and more particularly to a printing control method and apparatus. Background Technology

[0002] Today, image forming devices such as printers typically handle print jobs based on Printer Control Language (PCL). The host device connected to the image forming device outputs the print job in PCL language, and the image forming device executes the print operation after receiving the print job. As an industry standard, PCL language makes printing operations economical and efficient.

[0003] However, for some operating systems that do not support outputting PCL language, the processing of printing tasks may not meet user needs in certain aspects, thus affecting the user experience. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention provides a printing control method and apparatus that converts printing data into page image data and divides it into multiple printing segments to achieve the effect of outputting PCL language, thereby enabling the image forming apparatus to smoothly perform the printing operation.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a printing control method, comprising:

[0006] After detecting the print job command, acquire the print data;

[0007] Convert the printed data into page image data;

[0008] Create print identifiers for the page image data, and divide the page image data into at least one print segment, wherein each print segment has its own associated print identifier;

[0009] Based on the printing order, a printing segment and its associated printing identifier are sent to the image forming apparatus each time, so that the image forming apparatus performs a printing operation on the printing segment based on the printing identifier.

[0010] In one embodiment, creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes:

[0011] Create corresponding print image start and print image end markers every N rows, and divide the page image data of each page into multiple print segments, each print segment containing N rows.

[0012] In one embodiment, creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes:

[0013] Detect whether the printed paragraph contains blank lines;

[0014] If a print segment contains blank lines, then create corresponding print image start and end markers at the blank lines, and further divide the corresponding print segment into multiple new print segments.

[0015] In one embodiment, creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes:

[0016] For any page's image data, create a print page start marker;

[0017] Determine the starting line of the paragraph to be printed, and create a print image start identifier and a print image read identifier at the starting line;

[0018] Determine the end line of the printed paragraph and create a print image end marker at the end line;

[0019] If the ending line of the current print paragraph is the last line of the current page, then create a print page end marker; otherwise, perform the operation of determining the starting line of the print paragraph again.

[0020] In one embodiment, determining the starting line of the printed paragraph includes:

[0021] If the current line is the X*N+1th line, then the current line is determined as the starting line of a printed paragraph, where X is a non-negative integer;

[0022] If the current line is not blank and the line preceding the current line is blank, then the current line is determined as the starting line of a printed paragraph.

[0023] In one embodiment, determining the end line of the printed paragraph includes:

[0024] If the current line is the X*Nth line, then the current line is determined as the end line of a printed paragraph, where X is a positive integer;

[0025] If the current line is not blank and the line following the current line is blank, then the current line is determined as the end line of a printed paragraph.

[0026] In one embodiment, converting the printed data into page image data includes:

[0027] The protocol of the print driver file PPD is set to the data format TBCP for the printer driver, so that the general-purpose printing system CUPS can convert the print data into the page image data.

[0028] Secondly, embodiments of the present invention provide a printing control device, comprising:

[0029] The acquisition module is used to acquire print data after detecting a print task command;

[0030] The conversion module is used to convert the printed data into page image data;

[0031] The segmentation module is used to create print identifiers by segmenting the page image data into at least one print segment, wherein each print segment has its own associated print identifier;

[0032] The sending module is configured to send one printed segment and its associated print identifier to the image forming apparatus each time, based on the printing order, so that the image forming apparatus performs a printing operation on the printed segment based on the print identifier.

[0033] Thirdly, embodiments of the present invention provide an electronic device, including:

[0034] At least one processor; and

[0035] At least one memory communicatively connected to the processor, wherein:

[0036] The memory stores program instructions, and the processor can execute the method provided in the first aspect by calling the program instructions.

[0037] Fourthly, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer-readable storage medium comprising a stored program, wherein the program, when executed by a processor, implements the method provided in the first aspect.

[0038] In this embodiment of the invention, after detecting a print task instruction, print data is acquired, converted into page image data, and then a print identifier is created for the page image data. The page image data is then divided into multiple print segments, and the print segments and their corresponding print identifiers are sent to the image forming apparatus so that the image forming apparatus can perform a print operation on the print segments based on the print identifiers. This method converts print data into page image data and divides it into multiple print segments, achieving the effect of outputting PCL language, enabling the image forming apparatus to successfully perform the print operation. Attached Figure Description

[0039] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0040] Figure 1A flowchart of a printing control method provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 2 A flowchart of another printing control method provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a printing control device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0044] To better understand the technical solutions in this specification, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0045] It should be understood that the described embodiments are merely some, not all, of the embodiments in this specification. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments in this specification without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of this specification.

[0046] The terminology used in the embodiments of this invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of this specification. The singular forms “a,” “the,” and “the” as used in the embodiments of this invention and the appended claims are also intended to include the plural forms unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0047] PCL (Printer Language) is a common printer language, and constructing a PCL code requires adherence to specific printer language standards. PCL standards include standard instructions such as: print job start identifier, print page start identifier, print page end identifier, print font start identifier, print font read identifier, print font end identifier, print image start identifier, print image read identifier, print image end identifier, and print job end identifier. PCL is described by fonts (TEXT) and images (IMAGE), so PCL printers can parse image data. This solution converts print data into image data and sets PCL print identifiers, enabling the image forming device to parse and print. For example, current Mac systems only support PS and GDI languages ​​and do not support outputting PCL. Therefore, the method provided by this invention can implement PCL printing on Mac systems. The specific implementation process of this invention will be described in detail below.

[0048] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating a printing control method provided in an embodiment of the present invention. This method can be applied to a host device (personal computer), such as... Figure 1 As shown, the method may include:

[0049] Step 101: After detecting the print task instruction, obtain the print data.

[0050] In a printing scenario, the user can edit print data through the host device and then trigger a print job command. After detecting the print job command, the host device acquires the print data. If the host device supports outputting PCL language, it can directly send the print data to the image forming apparatus, which can then parse the print data and execute the print operation.

[0051] Step 102: Convert the print data into page image data.

[0052] Since the host device does not support outputting PCL language, it needs to convert the acquired print data into page image data. Optionally, the host device can directly convert print data into page image data using the universal printing system CUPS. This function requires the user to modify the parameters beforehand, setting the protocol of the print driver file PPD to the printer driver's data format TBCP.

[0053] Step 103: Create print identifiers for the page image data by dividing the page image data into at least one print segment, wherein each print segment has its own associated print identifier.

[0054] The host device needs to create print identifiers for the page image data. These print identifiers are used to divide the page image data into at least one print segment and to instruct the image forming device to perform the corresponding printing operation. The host device can first divide the page image data into multiple pages, and then divide each page into multiple print segments, with each print segment having its own associated print identifier.

[0055] In one embodiment, when dividing the print segment, the host device can create corresponding print markers every N lines, including a print image start marker and a print image end marker, dividing the page image data of each page into at least one print segment, with each print segment containing N lines. N can be set in advance according to actual needs, and the total number of lines per page can be a multiple of N. Furthermore, considering that the page image data contains blank lines, the host device can further divide the print segment to eliminate blank lines. Specifically, this can include: detecting whether a print segment contains blank lines; if a print segment containing blank lines exists, then creating corresponding print image start markers and print image end markers at the blank lines, and further dividing the corresponding print segment into multiple new print segments. Removing blank lines can effectively improve printing efficiency.

[0056] Step 104: Based on the printing order, one printing segment and the printing identifier associated with that printing segment are sent to the image forming apparatus each time, so that the image forming apparatus performs a printing operation on the printing segment based on the printing identifier.

[0057] Since the storage space of the image forming apparatus is small, in order to prevent the page image data from exceeding the storage space, the printed segments obtained after dividing the page image data and the print identifier associated with each printed segment need to be sent to the image forming apparatus in the order of printing so that it can perform subsequent printing operations.

[0058] In this embodiment of the invention, the host device converts the print data into page image data, sets print identifiers to segment the page image data, which can achieve the effect of outputting PCL language. During the segmentation process, blank lines are removed, which can improve the overall printing efficiency.

[0059] In one embodiment, the specific steps for the host device to create a print identifier may include: (1) creating a print page start identifier for any page image data; (2) determining the starting line of the print segment and creating a print image start identifier and a print image read identifier on the starting line; (3) determining the ending line of the print segment and creating a print image end identifier on the ending line; (4) if the ending line of the current print segment is the last line of the current page, then creating a print page end identifier; otherwise, performing the operation of determining the starting line of the print segment again. Specifically, when determining the starting line of the print segment, if the current line is the X*N+1th line, then the current line is determined as the starting line of a print segment, where X is a non-negative integer; if the current line is not a blank line and the line preceding the current line is a blank line, then the current line is determined as the starting line of a print segment. When determining the ending line of the print segment, if the current line is the X*Nth line, then the current line is determined as the ending line of a print segment, where X is a positive integer; if the current line is not a blank line and the line following the current line is a blank line, then the current line is determined as the ending line of a print segment. For example, if the current page contains 50 lines and N is set to 10, the host device can divide the current page into 5 print segments, each containing 10 lines. The first print segment contains lines 1 to 10, with line 1 as the start line and line 10 as the end line. The second print segment contains lines 11 to 20, with line 11 as the start line and line 20 as the end line, and so on. The fifth print segment contains lines 41 to 50, with line 41 as the start line and line 50 as the end line. When X is 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4, five start lines can be determined; when X is 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, five end lines can be determined. Furthermore, if lines 3 and 6 are both blank lines, the host device needs to further segment the page using blank lines as delimiters. Lines 2 and 5 meet the end line condition (the current line is not blank and the line following the current line is blank), and lines 4 and 7 meet the start line condition (the current line is not blank and the line preceding the current line is blank). The host sets a new print flag for the first print segment and divides it into 3 print segments: lines 1 to 2 form one print segment, lines 4 to 5 form another print segment, and lines 7 to 10 form yet another print segment.

[0060] Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating another printing control method provided in an embodiment of the present invention. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the method may include:

[0061] Step 201: Modify the printing parameters.

[0062] Modify the printing parameters of the host device (set the PPD protocol to TBCP) so that CUPS can read the printing parameters and process the printing data into page image data.

[0063] Step 202: Create a print function identifier.

[0064] The print function identifier can be a Printer Job Language (PJL) command, used to declare that subsequent print identifiers are PCL commands, instructing the image forming device to perform the corresponding print operation.

[0065] Step 203: Create a print job start identifier.

[0066] Create a print job start marker at the beginning of the entire print job.

[0067] Step 204: Create a print page start marker.

[0068] Create a print start marker at the beginning of each page.

[0069] Step 205: Obtain page image data.

[0070] The host device retrieves the previously converted page image data.

[0071] Step 206: Create a print image start marker.

[0072] Step 207: Segment the image, create print image reading markers, and print paragraphs.

[0073] Step 208: Create an end marker for the printed image.

[0074] A print image start marker is created at the beginning of each print paragraph, and a print image end marker is created at the end of each print paragraph to separate the page image data. A print image read marker is used to read a specified number of bytes of page image data to obtain the print paragraph.

[0075] In one embodiment, the host device can remove blank lines at this point in time. The specific method includes: checking each line of the page image data for blank lines (checking if a line of data is 0xFF). If it is not a blank line, a print start marker is created; after encountering a blank line or the X*Nth line, a print end marker is created. If it is a blank line, the check of the next line is skipped until all page image data has been checked. Typically, N can be set to 256.

[0076] Step 209: Determine if the current line is the last line of the current page.

[0077] If yes, proceed to step 210; otherwise, return to step 206.

[0078] Step 210: Create a print page end marker.

[0079] When the host device detects that the current line is the last line of the current page, it creates a page end marker.

[0080] Step 211: Determine if the current page is the last page.

[0081] If yes, proceed to step 212; otherwise, return to step 204.

[0082] Step 212: Create a print job end marker.

[0083] If the current page is the last page, a print job end marker is created to end the entire print job; otherwise, a print page start marker is recreated, and the subsequent process is executed.

[0084] The host device performs PCL encapsulation on all printed segments through the above steps (a broken line of data can also be considered a printed segment), enabling the image forming apparatus to parse each printed segment. Furthermore, the host device effectively improves printing efficiency by removing blank lines.

[0085] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a printing control device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. This device can be used as a specific equipment to implement the printing control method provided in the embodiment of the present invention, such as… Figure 3 As shown, the device may include: an acquisition module 310, a conversion module 320, a segmentation module 330, and a transmission module 340.

[0086] The acquisition module 310 is used to acquire print data after detecting a print task instruction.

[0087] The conversion module 320 is used to convert print data into page image data.

[0088] The segmentation module 330 is used to create print markers, dividing the page image data into multiple print segments.

[0089] The sending module 340 is used to send the printed paragraph and the corresponding print mark to the image forming apparatus so that the image forming apparatus can perform a printing operation on the printed paragraph based on the print mark.

[0090] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 The electronic device shown is merely an example and should not impose any limitation on the functionality and scope of use of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0091] like Figure 4As shown, the electronic device is represented in the form of a general-purpose computing device. The components of the electronic device may include, but are not limited to: one or more processors 410, memory 430, and communication bus 440 connecting different system components (including memory 430 and processor 410).

[0092] Communication bus 440 represents one or more of several bus architectures, including a memory bus or memory controller, peripheral bus, graphics acceleration port, processor, or local bus using any of the various bus architectures. Examples of these architectures include, but are not limited to, Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) buses, Micro Channel Architecture (MAC) buses, Enhanced ISA buses, Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local buses, and Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) buses.

[0093] Electronic devices typically include a variety of computer-readable media. These media can be any available media that can be accessed by the electronic device, including volatile and non-volatile media, and removable and non-removable media.

[0094] Memory 430 may include computer system readable media in the form of volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) and / or cache memory. The electronic device may further include other removable / non-removable, volatile / non-volatile computer system storage media. Although Figure 4 Not shown, a disk drive for reading and writing to a removable non-volatile disk (e.g., a "floppy disk") and an optical disc drive for reading and writing to a removable non-volatile optical disc (e.g., a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital video disc read-only memory (DVD-ROM), or other optical media) may be provided. In these cases, each drive may be connected to the communication bus 440 via one or more data media interfaces. The memory 430 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g., at least one) of program modules configured to perform the functions of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0095] A program / utility having a set (at least one) of program modules can be stored in memory 430. Such program modules include—but are not limited to—an operating system, one or more application programs, other program modules, and program data. Each or some combination of these examples may include an implementation of a network environment. The program modules typically perform the functions and / or methods described in the embodiments of the present invention.

[0096] The electronic device can also communicate with one or more external devices, one or more devices that enable a user to interact with the electronic device, or any device that enables the electronic device to communicate with one or more other computing devices (e.g., network interface card, modem, etc.). This communication can be performed through communication interface 420. Furthermore, the electronic device can also communicate through a network adapter (…). Figure 4 (Not shown) communicates with one or more networks (e.g., Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), and / or public networks, such as the Internet). The aforementioned network adapter can communicate with other modules of the electronic device via communication bus 440. It should be understood that, although... Figure 4 Not shown, other hardware and / or software modules can be used in conjunction with electronic devices, including but not limited to: microcode, device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays, disk arrays (Redundant Arrays of Independent Drives; hereinafter referred to as RAID) systems, tape drives, and data backup storage systems.

[0097] The processor 410 executes various functional applications and data processing by running programs stored in the memory 430, such as implementing the printing control method provided in the embodiments of the present invention.

[0098] This invention also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions that cause the computer to execute the printing control method provided in this invention.

[0099] The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium may be any combination of one or more computer-readable media. A computer-readable medium may be a computer-readable signal medium or a computer-readable storage medium. A computer-readable storage medium may be, for example,—but not limited to—an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any combination thereof. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media (a non-exhaustive list) include: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer disk, a hard disk, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or flash memory, optical fiber, portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage device, magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination thereof. In this document, a computer-readable storage medium may be any tangible medium containing or storing a program that may be used by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0100] Computer-readable signal media may include data signals propagated in baseband or as part of a carrier wave, carrying computer-readable program code. Such propagated data signals may take various forms, including—but not limited to—electromagnetic signals, optical signals, or any suitable combination thereof. Computer-readable signal media may also be any computer-readable medium other than computer-readable storage media, capable of transmitting, propagating, or transmitting programs for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

[0101] The program code contained on a computer-readable medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including—but not limited to—wireless, wire, optical fiber, RF, etc., or any suitable combination thereof.

[0102] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Moreover, without contradiction, those skilled in the art can combine and integrate the different embodiments or examples described in this specification, as well as the features of different embodiments or examples.

[0103] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this invention, "a plurality of" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0104] Any process or method description in the flowchart or otherwise herein can be understood as representing a module, segment, or portion of code comprising one or more executable instructions for implementing custom logic functions or processes, and the scope of preferred embodiments of the invention includes additional implementations in which functions may be performed not in the order shown or discussed, including substantially simultaneously or in reverse order depending on the functions involved, as should be understood by those skilled in the art to which embodiments of the invention pertain.

[0105] In the embodiments provided by this invention, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0106] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or in the form of hardware plus software functional units.

[0107] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A printing control method, characterized in that, include: After detecting the print job command, acquire the print data; Convert the printed data into page image data; Create print identifiers for the page image data, and divide the page image data into at least one print segment, wherein each print segment has its own associated print identifier; Based on the printing order, a printing segment and its associated printing identifier are sent to the image forming apparatus each time, so that the image forming apparatus performs a printing operation on the printing segment based on the printing identifier; The step of creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes: Create corresponding print image start and print image end markers every N rows, and divide the page image data of each page into multiple print segments. Each print segment contains N rows, where N is a positive integer.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes: Detect whether the printed paragraph contains blank lines; If a print segment contains blank lines, then create corresponding print image start and end markers at the blank lines, and further divide the corresponding print segment into multiple new print segments.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of creating print identifiers for the page image data and dividing the page image data into multiple print segments includes: For any page's image data, create a print page start marker; Determine the starting line of the paragraph to be printed, and create a print image start identifier and a print image read identifier at the starting line; Determine the end line of the printed paragraph and create a print image end marker at the end line; If the ending line of the current print paragraph is the last line of the current page, then create a print page end marker; otherwise, perform the operation of determining the starting line of the print paragraph again.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Determining the starting line of the printed paragraph includes: If the current action is the Xth If there are N+1 lines, then the current line will be determined as the starting line of a printed paragraph, where X is a non-negative integer; If the current line is not blank and the line preceding the current line is blank, then the current line is determined as the starting line of a printed paragraph.

5. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Determining the end line of the printed paragraph includes: If the current action is the Xth If there are N lines, then the current line will be determined as the end line of a printed paragraph, where X is a positive integer; If the current line is not blank and the line following the current line is blank, then the current line is determined as the end line of a printed paragraph.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of converting the printed data into page image data includes: The protocol of the print driver file PPD is set to the data format TBCP for the printer driver, so that the general-purpose printing system CUPS can convert the print data into the page image data.

7. A printing control device, characterized in that, include: The acquisition module is used to acquire print data after detecting a print task command; The conversion module is used to convert the printed data into page image data; The segmentation module is used to create print identifiers by segmenting the page image data into at least one print segment, wherein each print segment has its own associated print identifier; The sending module is configured to send one printed segment and the associated print identifier to the image forming apparatus each time based on the printing order, so that the image forming apparatus performs a printing operation on the printed segment based on the print identifier; The segmentation module is specifically used to create corresponding print image start markers and print image end markers every N rows, dividing the page image data of each page into multiple print segments, each print segment containing N rows, where N is a positive integer.

8. An electronic device, characterized in that, include: At least one processor; as well as At least one memory communicatively connected to the processor, wherein: The memory stores program instructions, and the processor invokes the program instructions to execute the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium includes a stored program, wherein the program, when executed by a processor, implements the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 6.

Images