Digital printer control system

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of digital printers, and discloses a digital printer control system which comprises a cloud server and a plurality of digital printers. Edge nodes used for collecting and processing operation information of the corresponding digital printers are deployed on the digital printers. The cloud server is in communication connection with the digital printers through the communication module and is used for distributing the received printing tasks to the corresponding digital printers based on the operation information and the dynamic scheduling parameters; and the digital printers are used for receiving the printing tasks and then performing rip processing and typesetting processing on the to-be-printed pictures in the printing tasks through the rip module and the typesetting module in the control board card in sequence, and then the printing control module controls the corresponding digital printers to perform printing operation. Dynamic load balancing of a plurality of digital printers can be realized, and the printing efficiency can be improved by integrating the multifunctional modules into the printer control board card.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the technical field of digital printers, and particularly to a control system for digital printers. Background Art

[0002] The control systems of current digital printers mainly adopt manual operation modes, and there are significant efficiency bottlenecks in their working processes. Specifically, when the system receives a printing order, the operator needs to manually determine the printing materials according to the printing requirements and then select the corresponding printing device. In addition, each digital printer needs to be physically connected to a computer to run. After receiving the printing image, the operator needs to import the image into RIP (Raster Image Processor) software through the computer for preprocessing, and then manually complete the image layout work. After the layout is completed, the operator needs to manually import the processed image into the control software to generate a printing task, and finally send the task to the specified digital printer to execute the printing operation.

[0003] This operation mode highly dependent on manual intervention has two main problems: First, the entire process takes a long time to process, and due to the large number of manual operation links, the error rate remains high; Second, since the selection of printers completely depends on manual judgment and there is a lack of a scientific and reasonable device allocation mechanism, the device load distribution is uneven, some printers are in an overloaded state for a long time, while other devices are idle, seriously affecting the overall device utilization rate and production efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, an embodiment of this application provides a control system for digital printers, including: a cloud server, and multiple digital printers; wherein, a communication module, a rip module, a layout module, and a printing control module are integrated on the control board of each of the digital printers;

[0005] An edge node for collecting and processing the operation information of the corresponding digital printer is deployed on each of the digital printers;

[0006] The cloud server is communicatively connected to the digital printers through the communication module, and is used to allocate the received printing tasks to the corresponding digital printers based on the operation information and dynamic scheduling parameters;

[0007] Each of the digital printers is used to, after receiving the printing task, sequentially perform rip processing and layout processing on the to-be-printed picture in the printing task through the rip module and the layout module in the control board, and then control the digital printer to perform a printing operation through the printing control module.

[0008] In an optional embodiment, the control board further includes a processing module; the edge node includes a sensor module;

[0009] The sensor module includes a variety of sensors, which are used to collect the operation information of the digital printer and send the collected operation information to the processing module; the operation information includes consumable remaining amount information and working status information;

[0010] The processing module is used to judge the operation condition of the digital printer based on the operation information, and then adjust the current digital printer according to the operation condition.

[0011] In an optional implementation manner, the edge node further includes an image acquisition device arranged above the printing material;

[0012] The image acquisition device is used to acquire an image of the printed product and send it to the processing module, so that the processing module performs defect detection on the image of the printed product;

[0013] The processing module is further used to, when detecting that the image of the printed product has defects, adjust the printing parameters of the digital printer according to the defect type.

[0014] In an optional implementation manner, when the cloud server allocates a printing task to the corresponding digital printer, it is specifically used to determine the target digital printer of the current printing task according to the operation information and dynamic scheduling parameters, in combination with a scoring model; wherein, the dynamic scheduling parameters include the physical distance between the order placing address and the digital printer, service level, and electricity price information.

[0015] In an optional implementation manner, the cloud server is further used to construct a prediction model based on historical order data to determine the peak period of orders according to the prediction model, and determine the digital printers that need to be pre-loaded based on the peak period of the orders, and send a pre-loading instruction to the control board of the corresponding digital printer a preset time before the start of the peak period.

[0016] In an optional implementation manner, the system further includes a monitoring terminal;

[0017] The cloud server is further used to analyze the operation information of all the digital printers to judge whether the energy consumption of each digital printer is abnormal, and send the abnormal information to the monitoring terminal;

[0018] The monitoring terminal is used to receive the abnormal information and send an abnormal maintenance instruction to the corresponding digital printer through the cloud server when abnormal maintenance of the corresponding digital printer is required.

[0019] In an alternative embodiment, the monitoring terminal is further configured to display the operation information of each of the digital printers.

[0020] In an alternative embodiment, the control board further includes a communication module;

[0021] The communication module is configured to receive the printing task sent by the cloud server; wherein, the printing task includes the picture to be printed and the printing requirements;

[0022] The RIP module is connected to the communication module and is configured to perform RIP processing on the picture to be printed received by the communication module to generate corresponding PRN data;

[0023] The layout module is connected to the communication module and the RIP module and is configured to perform layout on the PRN data according to the printing requirements to generate printing data;

[0024] The printing control module is configured to control the printer main body connected to the control board to print the printing data.

[0025] In an alternative embodiment, the control board further includes a color optimization module;

[0026] The color optimization module is connected to the RIP module and is configured to perform popular color replacement processing on the picture to be printed when the printing requirements include color optimization requirements, and send the picture to be printed after color processing to the RIP module.

[0027] In an alternative embodiment, the control board further includes a trimming and alignment module;

[0028] The trimming and alignment module is configured to perform an alignment operation on the picture to be printed when it is recognized that the angle of the boundary line of the picture to be printed is deviated, and trim the area outside the boundary line of the picture to be printed according to the printing requirements.

[0029] Embodiments of the present application have the following beneficial effects: By communicating with multiple digital printers through a cloud server, the present application can manage multiple digital printers simultaneously and receive the operating information of each digital printer. Then, by analyzing the operating information of each digital printer and the dynamic scheduling parameters corresponding to the print orders, dynamic load balancing among multiple digital printers 0 can be achieved, thus effectively solving the problem of unbalanced resource allocation. In addition, by integrating the communication module, RIP module, and layout module into the control board of the digital printer, when performing printing work, the cloud server only needs to send the user's printing task to the control board. After receiving the printing task, the control board can automatically process and layout the picture to be printed. Through this setting, automatic RIP and layout can be achieved in this embodiment, saving the manual operation process, and thus significantly improving the printing efficiency and quality. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for the embodiments. It should be understood that the following drawings only show some embodiments of the present application and should not be regarded as limiting the scope. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other related drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0031] Figure 1 FIG. 1 shows a schematic structural diagram of a digital printer control system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a schematic structural diagram of a digital printer control board according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 3 FIG. 3 shows a schematic flowchart of a color optimization module for color-optimizing a picture to be printed according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 4 FIG. 4 shows a schematic flowchart of a layout module for laying out a picture to be printed according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0035] MAIN ELEMENT SYMBOL DESCRIPTION: 100 - cloud server; 200 - digital printer; 210 - control board; 211 - RIP module; 212 - communication module; 213 - layout module; 214 - print control module; 215 - color optimization module; 216 - cropping and deviation correction module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[0036] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments.

[0037] Generally, the components of the embodiments of the present application described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings here can be arranged and designed in various different configurations. Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present application provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the present application claimed, but merely represents the selected embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without creative efforts belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0038] In the following text, the terms "including", "having" and their cognates that can be used in various embodiments of the present application are only intended to represent specific features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components or combinations of the foregoing items, and should not be construed as first excluding the existence of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components or combinations of the foregoing items or increasing the possibility of one or more features, numbers, steps, operations, elements, components or combinations of the foregoing items. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third", etc. are only used for distinguishing descriptions and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0039] Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical terms and scientific terms) used here have the same meaning as commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the various embodiments of the present application belong. The terms (such as those defined in a general-use dictionary) will be interpreted as having the same meaning as the contextual meaning in the relevant technical field and will not be interpreted as having an idealized meaning or being overly formal, unless clearly defined in the various embodiments of the present application.

[0040] Next, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, some embodiments of the present application will be described in detail. Without conflict, the following embodiments and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0041] In the prior art, the digital printer system mainly relies on a manually dominated operation mode. The specific process is as follows:

[0042] Order receiving and classification: After receiving an order through a chat software, manual classification is carried out by a human according to the picture type and paper type, and the task is assigned to the corresponding machine operator.

[0043] Preprocessing and RIP: The printer needs to be connected to a computer to run. The machine operator manually imports the pictures to be printed into the rip software on the computer connected to the printer. After obtaining the pictures processed by rip, manual typesetting work still needs to be carried out.

[0044] Print task generation: The machine operator imports the typeset file into the printer control software, generates a print task, and sends the task to the printer connected to the computer.

[0045] Print execution and monitoring: Each printer must be staffed on-site by a dedicated person who can monitor the equipment's working status in real time through the print control software interface.

[0046] In summary, the digital printer system in the prior art has the following technical defects:

[0047] High reliance on manual labor: From classification, image processing, typesetting to monitoring, a large amount of manual intervention is required, resulting in low processing efficiency (average processing time per order exceeds 15 minutes) and a high error rate (misclassification rate exceeds 5%).

[0048] Unbalanced resource allocation: The lack of a dynamic scheduling mechanism resulted in significant differences in device utilization. Some devices were overloaded (over 85%), while others were less than 30% utilized.

[0049] Data silos: Task status data is stored in a decentralized manner, making global optimization impossible. Furthermore, there is a risk of data loss after a power outage, and the historical data integrity rate is less than 30%.

[0050] Unstable quality: Since the entire printing process basically requires manual participation, the error rate will be relatively high.

[0051] High operation and maintenance costs: Dedicated maintenance technicians are required based on the number of devices. If an abnormality occurs and the maintenance personnel are unable to resolve it, the system is difficult to recover immediately and cannot be repaired remotely.

[0052] Based on this, the present application proposes a digital printer control system. In the present application, after receiving the print task, the cloud server 100 analyzes the operating information and dynamic scheduling parameters of each digital printer 200, and then can assign the current print task to the appropriate digital printer 200, that is, the assigned printer can not only ensure that the print task is completed within the specified time, but also balance the load rate of each digital printer 200. In addition, the present application integrates the rip and typesetting functions into the printer control board 210, thereby achieving that when performing digital printing, no additional hardware equipment (such as a computer) is required to perform rip processing, typesetting, and other operations on the printed image. The printer's own control board 210 can directly rip the printed image and automatically typeset it according to customer needs, thereby saving hardware costs and labor costs, and improving printing efficiency.

[0053] The digital printer control system is described below with reference to some specific embodiments.

[0054] Figure 1 Shows a schematic structural diagram of a digital printer control system according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0055] Exemplarily, the control system includes a cloud server 100 and a plurality of digital printers 200. The plurality of digital printers 200 are all communicatively connected to the cloud server 100, that is, one cloud server 100 can manage a plurality of digital printers 200 simultaneously. The digital printer 200 includes a control board 210 and a printer body; the control board 210 is built into the printer body and is used to control the digital printer 200 to perform printing work.

[0056] An edge node for collecting and processing the operation information of the corresponding digital printer 200 is deployed on each digital printer 200. Through the deployed edge node, the operation information of the corresponding digital printer 200 can be collected. The operation information includes, but is not limited to, consumable remaining amount information and working status information. After obtaining the consumable remaining amount information and the working status information, the edge node can analyze the consumable remaining amount information and the working status information. On the one hand, it can judge whether the current digital printer 200 is abnormal. On the other hand, when allocating the corresponding digital printer 200 for the printing task subsequently, it can be reasonably allocated according to the analysis result and in combination with other information.

[0057] Exemplarily, the edge node includes a sensor module, and the control board 210 further includes a processing module; the sensor module includes a variety of sensors, which are used to collect the operation information of the digital printer 200 and send the collected operation information to the processing module; the operation information includes consumable remaining amount information and working status information; the processing module is used to judge the operation condition of the printer body based on the operation information, and then adjust the current digital printer 200 according to the operation condition.

[0058] In this embodiment, the edge node is a computing unit close to the digital printer 200, which is used to execute local data collection, processing, and decision-making tasks. By sinking part of the computing power to the "edge" of the network, it can reduce the dependence on the cloud, reduce latency, and improve the response speed and reliability of the system. It can be understood that in this embodiment, the edge node is directly deployed on the digital printer 200, which can quickly collect and process data without waiting for the response of the cloud server 100.

[0059] The sensor module in the edge node may include, but is not limited to, setting a temperature sensor near the print head to obtain the temperature of the print head; setting a speed sensor near the mechanical transmission component to collect the running speed of the mechanical transmission component; setting a flow sensor at the print head to achieve the collection of the inkjet volume; a load rate monitor to record the current working state of the digital printer 200; an environmental sensor to monitor environmental parameters such as temperature, humidity, and vibration around the printer; and a print material detector to identify the type of paper currently loaded.

[0060] After the respective acquisition devices of the sensor module acquire the operation information of the digital printer 200, it is sent to the processing module of the control board 210. Among them, the operation information includes the working state of the printer body and the remaining amount of consumables. The working state information includes, but is not limited to, temperature and humidity information around the printer, vibration conditions, load rate, print material type, etc. After receiving the operation information, the processing module processes the operation information to determine whether the digital printer 200 has an abnormality, such as insufficient ink, overloading, excessive vibration amplitude, etc. If an abnormal situation occurs, the digital printer 200 can be directly adjusted accordingly. In this way, rapid abnormality determination can be achieved without waiting for the response of the cloud server 100.

[0061] When the control board 210 determines that the digital printer 200 has an abnormality, a reminder notification can be sent to the monitoring terminal through the cloud server 100, and at the same time, a solution suggestion can also be provided. Through this setting, manual intervention can be reduced, production efficiency can be improved, and the operation safety of the printer can be ensured. In addition, users can also view the operation status of each digital printer 200 in real time through the monitoring terminal.

[0062] In some embodiments, the edge node further includes an image acquisition device disposed above the print material; the image acquisition device is used to acquire an image of the printed product and send it to the processing module so that the processing module performs defect detection on the image of the printed product; the processing module is further used to, when detecting that the image of the printed product has a defect, adjust the printing parameters of the printer body according to the defect type.

[0063] It can be understood that the image acquisition device can be a camera, which is installed above the printing material of the digital printer 200 and is used to capture images of the printed products in the printing area at fixed time intervals (such as multiple times per second) to ensure coverage of the entire printing process. After obtaining the printed product images, they are sent to the processing module for image processing and defect detection. Image processing usually includes, but is not limited to, denoising, enhancing contrast, etc. Defect detection usually involves using image processing algorithms to analyze the pre-processed images to identify possible defects. The main detection contents include, but are not limited to: color deviation, detecting whether the color of the printing area is consistent with the expectation; irregular shape, checking whether there is shape distortion caused by uneven inkjet; missing area, confirming whether there is an unprinted part; blurring or ghosting, judging whether the printing is clear and correct. When a defect is detected, the system will automatically adjust the printing parameters according to the specific defect type. For example: if it is found that the inkjet volume is insufficient, the system will increase the inkjet volume in the corresponding area; if it is found that the print head position is offset, the system will adjust the position of the print head to ensure that it is aligned with the correct area, etc. Through real-time defect detection in this embodiment, the steps of manual verification can be reduced, labor costs can be saved, and the qualification rate of printed products can be effectively improved, and the rejection rate can be reduced.

[0064] The cloud server 100 is communicatively connected to the digital printer 200 and is used to allocate the received printing tasks to the corresponding digital printer 200 based on the running information and dynamic scheduling parameters. It can be understood that in this embodiment, when allocating tasks to the digital printer 200, it is not manually allocated, but is reasonably allocated based on the current running information and dynamic scheduling parameters of each digital printer 200.

[0065] Exemplarily, when the cloud server 100 allocates the printing task to the corresponding digital printer 200, it is specifically used to determine the target digital printer 200 of the current printing task according to the running information and dynamic scheduling parameters in combination with the scoring model.

[0066] It can be understood that after the cloud server 100 receives the running information (such as ink remaining amount, load rate, etc.) and dynamic scheduling parameters (including but not limited to the physical distance between the order placement address and the digital printer 200, service level, electricity price information), it performs a weight scoring on each digital printer 200 according to the preset scoring model. Among them, the scoring model can be W i 1 i +βC i +γP i +···; in the model, W i is the weight score of the i-th digital printer 200, D i 、C i 、P o···represent the influence factors of the respective parameters of the i-th digital printer 200; α, β, γ···respectively represent the weight coefficients of each weight scoring influence factor.

[0067] When determining the printer to be allocated, the influence factors of the weight score can be determined first. Each influence factor represents one parameter in the running information and dynamic scheduling parameters. For example, when the regions where the digital printers 200 are located are different, the physical distance, electricity price information, service level, and load rate can be selected as the influence factors. If the digital printers 200 are at the same address, the electricity price information, service level, and load rate can be selected as the influence factors. The following takes the physical distance, electricity price information, service level, and load rate as the influence factors for illustration. At this time, W i = αD i + βC i + γP i + δF o ; where, W i is the weight score of the i-th digital printer 200, D i can be the influence factor of the physical distance. The farther the physical distance is, the smaller D o is. C i can be the influence factor of the electricity price information. The lower the electricity price is, the larger C i is. P i can be the influence factor of the service level. The more urgent the printing task is, the larger the value of P i is. F i can be the influence factor of the load rate. The larger the load rate is, the smaller the value of F i is; α, β, γ, δ are the weight coefficients of the corresponding influence factors respectively. It should be noted that the above selection of the influence factors of the weight score is only exemplary, and the specific influence factors can be determined according to needs. Through the above method, the sequence of the digital printers 200 corresponding to the current printing task can be determined. The larger the weight score is, the more forward it is. When allocating the digital printer 200, the printing task is usually allocated to the digital printer 200 with the largest weight score. It should be noted that when determining the target digital printer 200 of the printing task, it is first necessary to determine whether the printing material of the printer is suitable, and determine the target printer among the digital printers 200 with suitable printing materials. For example, the width of the picture to be printed is 2 meters, but some digital printers 200 can only print pictures with a width of 1.6 meters and below. At this time, when determining the target digital printer 200, the digital printer 200 that can only print pictures with a width of 1.6 meters and below needs to be excluded.

[0068] The digital printer 200, after receiving a printing task, sequentially performs RIP processing and layout processing on the to-be-printed picture in the printing task through the RIP module 211 and the layout module 213 in the control board 210, and then the print control module 214 controls the corresponding digital printer 200 to perform a printing operation. It can be understood that after the cloud server 100 determines the digital printer 200 to be used for the printing task, it sends the printing task (including the to-be-printed picture and printing requirements) to the target digital printer 200. The target digital printer 200 can directly perform RIP processing on the to-be-printed picture through the RIP software integrated in the control board 210, and then, according to the printing requirements, perform layout processing on the RIP-processed to-be-printed picture. After the layout processing, a printing task is generated, and then the corresponding digital printer 200 is directly controlled by the print control module 214 to perform a printing operation on the printing task.

[0069] Exemplarily, the control board 210 includes: a RIP module 211, a communication module 212, a layout module 213, and a print control module 214.

[0070] The communication module 212 is used to communicate with the cloud server 100 to receive the printing task sent by the cloud server 100.

[0071] The communication module 212 is a module integrated with wireless communication. The wireless communication can be, but is not limited to, 4G, 5G, wifi, ZigBee, LoRa, etc., and thus can realize the communication connection with the cloud server 100. When printing work needs to be performed through the digital printer 200 connected to the control board 210, the user can send the picture to be printed and the printing requirements to the cloud server 100 through a mobile terminal such as a mobile phone or an ipad.

[0072] The RIP module 211 is connected to the communication module 212 and is used to perform RIP processing on the to-be-printed picture received by the communication module 212 to generate corresponding PRN data.

[0073] Among them, RIP (Raster Image Processor), the main function of the RIP module 211 is to perform RIP processing on the picture. RIP processing refers to processing the picture into dot matrix data that can be recognized by a computer and a printing machine. It can be understood that RIP is to convert printing data into rasterized images or dots, convert the pixel points in the computer into ink dot information required for printing, and this ink dot information can be recognized by the board of the printer, so that the printer output device can print on the printing material.

[0074] Exemplarily, in this embodiment, the RIP module 211 is integrated in the control board 210. That is to say, when performing digital printing, it is not necessary for the user to first transfer the picture to be printed to a computer and then perform RIP processing on the picture to be printed through the RIP software installed on the computer. Instead, the RIP module 211 is directly integrated on the control board 210. The user only needs to transfer the picture to be printed to the control board 210. After the control board 210 receives the picture to be printed, it can automatically perform RIP operations on the picture to be printed and generate corresponding PRN data after performing RIP processing on the picture to be printed.

[0075] The layout module 213 is connected to the communication module 212 and the RIP module 211, and is used to generate print data after laying out the PRN data according to the printing requirements.

[0076] Since users usually need to print multiple different pictures or print multiple copies of the same picture, it is necessary to layout the pictures to be printed at this time. In the prior art, the layout work is usually also carried out on a hardware device (such as a computer) connected to the printer. In this application, when the user sends a picture to be printed through an external terminal, the printing requirements can be sent together. The printing requirements can include, but are not limited to, the printing quantity of each picture, layout requirements, etc. After the RIP module 211 processes the picture to be printed, the layout module 213 can layout the picture to be printed according to the printing requirements. When performing layout, it can layout the picture to be printed immediately after the RIP module 211 processes one picture to be printed, or it can perform unified layout after all the pictures to be printed transmitted by the current user have been RIP processed. It can be understood that in this embodiment, the layout of the picture to be printed is also directly processed in the control board 210 without manual participation.

[0077] The print control module 214 is used to control the printer main body connected to the control board 210 to print the print data.

[0078] Since in the prior art, after performing RIP and layout on a picture through a computer, it is also necessary to send the laid-out data to the control board 210 through the print control software installed on the computer, and then the control board 210 can control the printer to print. In this application, by integrating both the RIP module 211 and the layout module 213 on the control board 210, it not only saves the process of the user performing RIP processing on the picture on the computer and the layout process, but also saves the process of the user transmitting the laid-out print data to the control board 210 through the print control software and sending a print instruction to the control board 210.

[0079] In some embodiments, such as Figure 2As shown in the figure, the control board 210 further includes a color optimization module 215; the color optimization module 215 is connected to the RIP module 211, and is used for performing trendy color replacement processing on the picture to be printed when the printing requirement includes a color optimization requirement, and sending the picture to be printed after color processing to the RIP module 211.

[0080] Exemplarily, when printing a color picture, in order to make the printed product more beautiful, the control board 210 of this embodiment further integrates a color optimization module 215, which can perform trendy color optimization on each color in the picture to be printed by combining the predicted trendy color library. The function of this color optimization can be selected by the user or not. When the user sends the printing requirement of the picture to be printed to the control board 210, the user can directly send whether to use color optimization together. If the user sends a color optimization instruction, before the RIP module 211 of the control board 210 performs RIP processing on the picture to be printed, the color optimization module 215 first performs trendy color replacement processing on the picture to be printed.

[0081] In some embodiments, as Figure 3 shown, when the color optimization module 215 performs trendy color replacement on the picture to be printed, the specific implementation steps include:

[0082] Step S310, extract the color elements in the picture to be printed.

[0083] When receiving the picture to be printed, if color optimization needs to be performed on the picture to be printed, the color optimization module 215 automatically identifies the main color elements (such as the main color, secondary color, background color) in the picture to be printed through image processing technology.

[0084] Step S320, perform similarity matching between each color in the color elements and the colors in the trendy color library to obtain the target replacement color for each color in the color elements from the trendy color library, and perform corresponding replacement.

[0085] Among them, the construction of the popular color library is obtained by analyzing historical orders through a popular color analysis model. Specifically, when training the popular color analysis model, the training samples used are the printing records of users extracted from historical orders, including information such as picture files, color selections, and consumable usage. The features extracted from the printing records include the color elements, color distribution patterns, and color saturation in each picture; the color elements are the main colors (usually the top 3-5 dominant colors) of each picture extracted through image processing algorithms (such as K-means clustering); the color distribution pattern is obtained by statistically analyzing the proportion of each color in the picture and its spatial distribution (such as background color, foreground color, edge color, etc.); the color saturation is obtained by calculating the saturation value of each color in the picture. In addition, the user's geographical location information and time information in the order information also need to be extracted. The obtained information such as time, region, color elements, color distribution patterns, and saturation is input into a machine learning model (such as a regression model, a deep learning model) to train the model, and then a popular color analysis model is obtained. Through the trained popular color analysis model, the popular colors and probability distributions in the next few months or within a year can be predicted. The popular color library can be formed through the popular colors and the probability distribution of each popular color.

[0086] In this step, the color optimization module 215 performs similarity matching between the main color elements in the picture and the popular colors in the predicted popular color library, and selects the color that is the closest but more in line with the popular trend for replacement.

[0087] Step S330, fine-tune the picture to be printed obtained after color replacement according to the color optimization algorithm to obtain the picture to be printed after color processing.

[0088] During the replacement process, in order to ensure that the new color is consistent with the overall style of the original picture and does not damage the visual effect of the picture. In this embodiment, color optimization algorithms such as genetic algorithms and particle swarm optimization can be used to fine-tune the replaced colors.

[0089] It should be noted that when performing color optimization, multiple alternative color schemes can be generated and sent to the user's terminal device for the user to choose. In this way, the user's choices and feedback will be recorded and used to further train the popular color analysis model to improve the future prediction accuracy.

[0090] In addition, based on the popular color prediction results, it can also guide the user's consumable procurement. For example, if it is predicted that the demand for blue-based colors increases during a certain period, the system will recommend that the user purchase more blue ink in advance. Such a prediction not only helps the user avoid shortages or surpluses of consumables, but also optimizes inventory management and reduces costs.

[0091] In some embodiments, the printing requirements include the printing quantity and layout requirements of each picture to be printed.

[0092] The typesetting requirements include typesetting according to the principle of saving printing materials, custom typesetting, typesetting according to the selected typesetting template, and typesetting according to the combined principle of printing efficiency and saving printing materials.

[0093] If the typesetting requirement is to typeset according to the principle of saving printing materials, the typesetting module 213 is used to generate printing data by typesetting the PRN data corresponding to all the pictures to be printed according to the greedy filling strategy based on the size and quantity of each picture to be printed.

[0094] When the user is not in a hurry to get the printed product, this typesetting principle can be selected, so as to obtain the optimal typesetting to save printing materials. Under this typesetting principle, the specific typesetting process is as Figure 4 shown, including:

[0095] Step S410, extracting the size information of each picture to be printed.

[0096] Step S420, sorting all the pictures to be printed from largest to smallest according to the area of each picture to be printed, and arranging the PRN data corresponding to the pictures to be printed in sequence according to the sorting to generate printing data.

[0097] Exemplarily, information such as the length and width of each received picture to be printed is extracted, and the pictures to be printed are sorted according to the area of the pictures, so that larger pictures can be processed preferentially. In this embodiment, the control board 210 is for the digital printer 200, and its printing material is usually set in a roll, so the length of the printing material does not need to be determined, and only the width of the printing material needs to be determined. When typesetting, first arrange the picture with the largest size, and then arrange the subsequent pictures in sequence. After arranging each picture to be printed, calculate the remaining blank area between the pictures to be printed once, and rotate the next picture to be printed in combination with the remaining blank area when arranging the next picture to be printed to minimize the remaining blank area.

[0098] If the typesetting requirement is to typeset according to the combined principle of printing efficiency and saving printing materials, the typesetting module 213 is used to generate printing data by sequentially typesetting the PRN data corresponding to all the pictures to be printed according to the preset typesetting order.

[0099] When the user pays attention to printing efficiency, this typesetting principle can be selected, so as to balance the two indicators of printing efficiency and material saving. Under this typesetting principle, the specific typesetting process is: starting from the upper left corner of the canvas in sequence according to the received order of the pictures to be printed, and generating printing data by typesetting the pictures to be printed in the layout mode from left to right.

[0100] It can be understood that under this typesetting principle, the pictures to be printed are arranged in sequence. When arranging, the first picture to be printed is arranged starting from the upper left corner. When arranging the next picture to be printed, according to the remaining blank area on the right side or below the previous picture to be printed, the next picture to be printed is adaptively rotated in combination with the size of the next picture to be printed, so as to minimize the remaining blank area. That is to say, when arranging the next picture to be printed, if there is still space on the right side of the previous picture to be printed, first check whether the remaining space on the right side can accommodate the next picture to be printed. When determining, since the length and width of the picture are different, if it cannot be placed when placed horizontally, the picture can be tried to be rotated. If it still cannot be placed after rotation, the next picture to be printed is placed below the previous picture to be printed.

[0101] In addition, the typesetting requirement can also be custom typesetting. In this case, the user can log in to the cloud control platform through an external terminal, and then set the typesetting requirement. For example, it can be set that each picture to be printed is directly arranged in sequence from top to bottom.

[0102] Furthermore, some typesetting templates can also be set in the typesetting module 213, and the user can directly select existing templates for typesetting.

[0103] The automatic typesetting module 213 of this embodiment can automatically perform print typesetting layout on multiple pictures, thereby reducing manual intervention. It can automatically calculate the optimal typesetting plan according to the number, size and content of the pictures uploaded by the user to achieve fast and efficient print output.

[0104] In this embodiment, by integrating the communication module 212, the rip module 211, and the typesetting module 213 into the control board 210 of the digital printer 200, when performing printing work, after receiving the picture to be printed and the printing requirement, the control board 210 can automatically perform rip processing, typesetting processing, etc. on the picture to be printed. Through this setting, this embodiment can eliminate the computer equipment in the prior art and reduce the hardware cost. In addition, since automatic rip and typesetting can be achieved, the manual operation procedure is saved, and thus the printing efficiency can be significantly improved. Further, the control board 210 of this embodiment is also integrated with a color optimization module 215. Through this setting, each main pigment in the picture to be printed can be replaced with the closest popular color in the predicted popular color library and fine-tuned in combination with the overall situation of the picture, so as to improve the color matching effect of the printed product.

[0105] In some embodiments, the control board 210 further includes an OCR classification module, which can analyze the picture to be printed to determine the type of the picture to be printed, and then match suitable printing materials in the subsequent process.

[0106] In some embodiments, such as Figure 3As shown, the control board 210 further includes a trimming and rectifying module 216; the trimming and rectifying module 216 is used to perform a rectifying operation on the picture to be printed when it is recognized that the angle of the boundary line of the picture to be printed deviates, and trim the blank area of the picture to be printed according to the printing requirements.

[0107] Exemplarily, the trimming and rectifying module 216 first needs to analyze the boundary features of the picture to be printed. Image processing algorithms (such as edge detection algorithms) can be used to extract the contour information of the picture. Once it is found that the boundary line of the picture to be printed is not horizontal or vertical but has a certain angular deviation, the system will determine that the picture needs to be rectified. Then, according to the recognized angular deviation value, a rotation operation is performed on the picture to be printed to restore the boundary line to the correct direction. After the rectification is completed, the layout of the picture is further analyzed to identify the area outside the boundary line that exceeds the user's printing requirements. Finally, according to the user's printing requirements (such as typesetting rules or size limitations), these areas outside the boundary line are automatically trimmed, making the picture more compact and meeting the expectations. In this embodiment, by automatically correcting the angular deviation, printing errors caused by picture tilt are avoided; in addition, trimming the redundant area outside the boundary line can reduce the waste of printing materials, especially in large-scale printing tasks; furthermore, users do not need to manually adjust the picture direction or trim the useless area, greatly simplifying the printing process.

[0108] In some embodiments, the embedded Ubuntu operating system is deployed in the control board 210, and the functions of each module in the control board 210 are executed by the processor in the control board 210.

[0109] It should be noted that in addition to deploying the Ubuntu operating system in the control board 210, other open-source, stable, and secure operating systems, such as Debian, Fedora, etc., can also be used. Using this open-source and stable operating system in this embodiment can reduce the dependence on a specific operating system and improve the compatibility and scalability of the device.

[0110] Among them, the processor can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. The processor can be a general-purpose processor, including at least one of a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a network processor (NP), a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, and discrete hardware components. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor, etc., which can implement or execute the various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application.

[0111] The control board 210 further includes a memory for storing computer programs executed by each module in the control board 210. The memory can be, but is not limited to, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), etc. Among them, the memory is used to store computer programs, and after receiving the execution instruction, the processor can execute the computer program accordingly.

[0112] In some embodiments, the cloud server 100 is further configured to build a prediction model based on historical order data to determine the peak period of orders according to the prediction model, and determine the digital printers 200 that need to be pre-loaded based on the peak period of orders, and send a pre-loading instruction to the control board 210 of the corresponding digital printer 200 at a preset time before the start of the peak period.

[0113] Exemplarily, this embodiment extracts key information from historical order records, including: the time distribution of orders (such as hours, dates, seasons, etc.), the change trend of the order volume in different time periods, user preferences (such as printing types, consumable demands, etc.), geographical location information (such as demand differences in different regions). These data will be organized into a structured form for subsequent analysis. Then, machine learning or statistical methods can be used to model the historical order data to predict the future order peak periods. The input features of the model may include: time factors (such as a certain period of the day, a certain day of the week, holidays, etc.), regional factors (the order volume in some regions may be affected by specific activities or festivals), user behavior patterns (for example, some users are used to submitting large batches of orders at fixed times). The target output of the model is to predict the order volume and distribution within a certain future time period.

[0114] According to the results of the prediction model, the time periods with relatively high expected order volumes (i.e., peak periods) can be identified. Then, before the peak period arrives, the cloud server 100 will evaluate which digital printers 200 are most suitable for undertaking the upcoming tasks. The selection criteria may include but are not limited to: the current status of the printer (such as whether it is idle, whether the consumables are sufficient), the performance indicators of the printer (such as printing speed, supported material types), geographical location. After selecting the digital printers 200 that need to be pre-loaded, for the expected printing tasks, at a preset time (such as 30 minutes or 1 hour in advance) before the peak period, the cloud server 100 will send a pre-loading instruction to the selected digital printers 200. The pre-loading instruction is used to trigger the control board 210 of the printer to perform the following operations: load necessary driver programs and configuration files, preheat the printing device to ensure fast response, check and replenish consumables (remind for replenishment if the ink is found to be insufficient). This embodiment can enable the digital printers 200 to perform pre-loading in advance by predicting the peak period, and can immediately start the printing task after receiving the order, thereby improving the response speed and reducing the user waiting time.

[0115] In some embodiments, the system further includes a monitoring terminal; the cloud server 100 is further configured to analyze the operation information of all digital printers 200 to determine whether the energy consumption of each digital printer 200 is abnormal, and send the abnormal information to the monitoring terminal; the monitoring terminal is configured to receive the abnormal information and send an abnormal maintenance instruction to the corresponding digital printer 200 through the cloud server 100 when abnormal maintenance of the corresponding digital printer 200 is required.

[0116] It can be understood that since the cloud server 100 can receive the operation information of each digital printer 200, the cloud server 100 can make a horizontal comparison of the operation information of each digital printer 200, and then determine the digital printer 200 with a relatively large difference in energy consumption from other digital printers 200. For example, the cloud server 100 can receive 5 digital printers 200, namely A, B, C, D, and E. On the basis of a roughly the same task volume, the ink consumption of A is much more than that of the other four digital printers 200. In this case, the cloud server 100 will determine that the ink consumption of the digital printer 200 is abnormal, and then send the abnormal information to the monitoring terminal. The monitoring terminal can issue an alarm indication so that the user can know the abnormal situation in time. The user can select whether to process the abnormality or when to process it through the monitoring terminal, and when it is necessary to process the abnormality, send an abnormal maintenance instruction to the corresponding digital printer 200 through the cloud server 100.

[0117] In some embodiments, the monitoring terminal is further configured to display the operation information of each digital printer 200. It can be understood that the monitoring terminal can be communicatively connected to the cloud server 100. After the cloud server 100 receives the operation information of each digital printer 200, it can be transmitted to the monitoring terminal for display. The display form is not limited and can be set as needed. By displaying the operation information of each digital printer 200, the monitoring terminal enables the user to clearly understand the operation status of each digital printer 200.

[0118] In some embodiments, not only can the digital printer 200 itself judge its own operation status according to the operation information, but the cloud server 100 can also judge the operation status of the corresponding digital printer 200 according to the operation information of each digital printer 200 received. However, the digital printer 200 itself can judge its own operation status in real time, with high efficiency. In this way, when a failure occurs, a failure reminder can be given in time and corresponding adjustment measures can be taken. Since the cloud server 100 needs to receive the information of multiple digital printers 200, it does not need to make a judgment in real time. It can be set to make a judgment once every preset time interval i. If it is judged that a certain digital printer 200 has a failure, the judgment frequency of this digital printer 200 is increased. If it is judged that this digital printer 200 still has a failure within the preset time, it means that the digital printer 200 itself has not adjusted the failure problem. At this time, the cloud server 100 sends an alarm indication for this digital printer 200 to the monitoring terminal so that the user can view this digital printer 200 in time.

[0119] In some embodiments, the cloud server 100 may store data throughout the life cycle of each order. For example, when an order is received, it can record the specific materials to be printed, printing requirements, the user who placed the order, the time of placing the order, etc. After allocating the corresponding digital printer 200, it is necessary to record which digital printer 200 the current order corresponds to, what processing has been done to the printing materials in the order before printing, etc. After printing is completed, the completion time will be recorded. When delivering the printed materials to the user, the delivery time will be recorded, etc. The data at each process node must be ensured to be complete, and this embodiment can also support smart contracts and cloud storage in the canal, thereby enhancing data security and business continuity.

[0120] In this application, the cloud server 100 is communicatively connected to multiple digital printers 200, and thus can manage multiple digital printers 200 simultaneously and receive the operation information of each digital printer 200. Then, by calculating the operation information of each digital printer 200 and the dynamic scheduling parameters corresponding to the printing order in combination with the scoring model, dynamic load balancing among multiple digital printers 200 can be achieved, thereby effectively solving the problem of unbalanced resource allocation. In addition, in this application, by integrating the communication module 212, the rip module 211, and the layout module 213 into the control board 210 of the digital printer 200, when performing printing work, the cloud server 100 only needs to send the pictures to be printed and printing requirements in the user's printing order to the control board 210. After receiving the pictures to be printed and printing requirements, the control board 210 can automatically perform rip processing, layout processing, etc. on the pictures to be printed. With this setting, this embodiment can eliminate the computer equipment in the prior art, reduce the hardware cost. In addition, since automatic rip and layout can be achieved, the manual operation procedures are saved, and thus the printing efficiency and quality can be significantly improved. In addition, the cropping and alignment module 216 in this application can crop the area outside the boundary lines of the pictures to be printed, and in combination with the layout principle in this application, the utilization rate of printing materials can be effectively improved. Further, in this application, the digital printer 200 itself can determine whether it has a fault based on its own operation information, and can give an alarm and locate the cause of the fault when there is a fault. In addition, the cloud server 100 can also analyze based on the operation information received from each digital printer 200, and can not only perform horizontal analysis, but also analyze the fault conditions of each digital printer 200 separately to timely understand the potential risks of the digital printer 200. Through this way of remote assistance and predictive maintenance, the operation and maintenance cost can be significantly reduced.

[0121] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing the computer program used in the control board 210 described above. For example, the computer-readable storage medium may include, but is not limited to: various media such as USB flash drives, external hard drives, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), magnetic disks, or optical discs, etc., that can store program codes.

[0122] In several embodiments provided by the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can also be implemented in other ways. The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the flowcharts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings show the possible architectures, functions, and operations of devices, methods, and computer program products according to multiple embodiments of the present application. In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagram may represent a module, a program segment, or a part of code, and the module, program segment, or part of code contains one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function. It should also be noted that in alternative implementations, the functions marked in the blocks may occur in a different order than marked in the accompanying drawings. For example, two consecutive blocks may actually be executed substantially in parallel, and they may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending on the functions involved. It should also be noted that each block in the block diagram and / or flowchart, as well as the combination of blocks in the block diagram and / or flowchart, can be implemented by a dedicated hardware-based system for performing the specified functions or actions, or can be implemented by a combination of dedicated hardware and computer instructions.

[0123] In addition, in each embodiment of the present application, the various functional modules or units may be integrated together to form an independent part, or each module may exist alone, or two or more modules may be integrated to form an independent part.

[0124] If the above functions are implemented in the form of software functional modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a part of this technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a smart phone, a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in various embodiments of the present application.

[0125] As described above, it is only the specific implementation manner of this application. However, the protection scope of this application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by this application can easily think of changes or substitutions, which should all be covered within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A digital printer control system, characterized in that, Including: A cloud server and multiple digital printers; among them, a communication module, a rip module, a layout module, and a print control module are integrated on the control board of each digital printer; an edge node for collecting and processing the operation information of the corresponding digital printer is deployed on each digital printer. The cloud server is communicatively connected to the digital printer through the communication module, and is used to allocate the received print task to the corresponding digital printer based on the operation information and dynamic scheduling parameters. Each of the digital printers, after receiving the print task, sequentially performs rip processing and layout processing on the to-be-printed picture in the print task through the rip module and the layout module in the control board, and then controls the digital printer to perform a printing operation through the print control module.

2. The digital printer control system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control board further includes a processing module; the edge node includes a sensor module. The sensor module includes a variety of sensors, which are used to collect the operation information of the digital printer and send the collected operation information to the processing module; the operation information includes consumable remaining amount information and working status information. The processing module is used to judge the operation situation of the digital printer based on the operation information, and then adjust the current digital printer according to the operation situation.

3. The digital printer control system according to claim 2, wherein, The edge node further includes an image acquisition device arranged above the printing material. The image acquisition device is used to acquire an image of the printed product and send it to the processing module, so that the processing module performs defect detection on the image of the printed product. The processing module is further used to, when detecting that the image of the printed product has a defect, adjust the printing parameters of the digital printer according to the defect type.

4. The digital printer control system according to claim 2, wherein When the cloud server allocates the print task to the corresponding digital printer, it specifically is used for: Determining the target digital printer of the current print task according to the operation information and dynamic scheduling parameters, in combination with a scoring model; wherein, the dynamic scheduling parameters include the physical distance between the order placing address and each digital printer, the service level, and the electricity price information.

5. The digital printer control system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cloud server is further used to construct a prediction model based on historical order data, to determine the peak period of orders according to the prediction model, and determine the digital printers that need to be pre-loaded based on the peak period of the orders, and send a pre-loading instruction to the control board of the corresponding digital printer a preset time before the start of the peak period.

6. The digital printer control system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The system further includes a monitoring terminal. The cloud server is further used to analyze the operation information of all the digital printers to judge whether the energy consumption of each digital printer is abnormal, and send the abnormal information to the monitoring terminal. The monitoring terminal is used to receive the abnormal information and, when abnormal maintenance of the corresponding digital printer is required, send an abnormal maintenance instruction to the corresponding digital printer through the cloud server.

7. The digital printer control system according to claim 6, wherein, The monitoring terminal is further used to display the operation information of each digital printer.

8. The digital printer control system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control board further includes a communication module. The communication module is used to receive the printing task sent by the cloud server; wherein, the printing task includes the picture to be printed and printing requirements; The RIP module is connected to the communication module and is used to perform RIP processing on the picture to be printed received by the communication module to generate corresponding PRN data; The layout module is connected to the communication module and the RIP module and is used to generate printing data after typesetting the PRN data according to the printing requirements; The printing control module is used to control the printer main body connected to the control board to print the printing data.

9. The digital printer control system according to claim 8, characterized in that, The control board further includes a color optimization module; The color optimization module is connected to the RIP module and is used to perform popular color replacement processing on the picture to be printed when the printing requirements include color optimization requirements, and send the picture to be printed after color processing to the RIP module.

10. The digital printer control system according to claim 8, characterized in that, The control board further includes a cropping and alignment correction module; The cropping and alignment correction module is used to perform alignment correction on the picture to be printed when it is recognized that the angle of the boundary line of the picture to be printed is deviated, and crop the area outside the boundary line of the picture to be printed according to the printing requirements.

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