Information processing apparatus, method, and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing apparatus that can present hierarchical user interface display.SOLUTION: An information processing apparatus communicable with a printer comprises: first acquisition means that acquires information on a medium supported by the printer; second acquisition means that acquires first display wording for a user interface corresponding to the information on the medium acquired by the first acquisition means; third acquisition means that acquires second display wording displayed to be higher than the first display wording in the hierarchy based on the information on the medium acquired by the first acquisition means; and display means that displays a hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display wording acquired by the second acquisition means and the second display wording acquired by the third acquisition means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, method, and program. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a printing device that receives print data from a communication terminal via a network and forms an image on a sheet based on the received print data. It is also known to generate print data to be sent to a printing device using a printer driver (or a print application) designed for use with an individual printing device. In recent years, it has also become known to generate print data based on a standard specification without relying on a printer driver (or a print application) designed for use with an individual printing device. The standard specification, Internet Printing Protocol (IPP), has been disclosed, and various operating systems are equipped with a standard driver that generates print data according to IPP.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a technique for easily displaying a desired setting item by changing the hierarchical structure of a hierarchical setting menu. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-91987 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in a configuration that generates print data based on the standard specifications, it may not be possible to provide a hierarchical menu. Therefore, in a configuration that generates print data based on the standard specifications, it is required to be able to provide a hierarchical user interface display.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide an information processing device, method, and program that are capable of providing a hierarchical user interface display. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, the information processing device of the present invention is an information processing device capable of communicating with a printing device, and is characterized in that it comprises a first acquisition means for acquiring information of a medium supported by the printing device, a second acquisition means for acquiring a first display wording for a user interface corresponding to the information of the medium acquired by the first acquisition means, a third acquisition means for acquiring a second display wording to be displayed as a higher hierarchy than the first display wording based on the information of the medium acquired by the first acquisition means, and a display means for displaying a hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display wording acquired by the second acquisition means and the second display wording acquired by the third acquisition means. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, a hierarchical user interface display can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a printing system. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 illustrates a hardware configuration of a printing apparatus. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration in a host computer. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram of IPP communication between a host computer and a printing device. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a print setting screen. [Figure 6] 13 is a flowchart showing a process in a host computer. [Figure 7]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a request and a response in IPP communication. [Figure 8] 11A and 11B are diagrams showing a message catalog file and a paper setting command. [Figure 9] 5 is a flowchart showing a process in the printing device. [Figure 10] 1A and 1B are diagrams illustrating an IPP-compliant database, a conversion table, and a display list. [Figure 11] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a data structure. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 illustrates a user interface screen for accepting a printer registration instruction. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Note that the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. Although the embodiments describe a number of features, not all of these features are essential to the invention, and the features may be combined in any manner. Furthermore, in the attached drawings, the same reference numbers are used for the same or similar configurations, and duplicated descriptions are omitted.

[0011] [Embodiment 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printing system. In FIG. 1, a host computer 101 is an example of an information processing device, and includes an input interface 110, a CPU 111, a ROM 112, a RAM 113, an external storage device 114, an output interface 115, and an input / output interface 116. Input devices such as a keyboard 118 and a pointing device 117 are connected to the input interface 110. The keyboard 118 and the pointing device 117 can accept user operations on a user interface screen, for example, and are hereinafter collectively referred to as an operation unit. A display device such as a display unit 119 is connected to the output interface 115. The display unit 119 can display a user interface screen in this embodiment. The display unit 119 may be configured as a touch panel and can accept user operations. The NETIF 120 is a network interface, and performs control for transferring data between the computer and an external device via a network.

[0012] The CPU 111 performs overall control of the host computer 101. The ROM 112 is a non-volatile memory and stores, for example, an initialization program. The external storage device 114 stores application programs, an operating system (OS), print data generation software, and various other data. The RAM 113 is a volatile memory and is used as a work memory when various programs stored in the external storage device 114 are executed, and enables the various programs to run within the host computer 101.

[0013] The external storage device 114 may also store management software for managing media information of the printing device 102. The user can use the management software to register media information to the printing device 102 or the printer driver. Specifically, for example, the management software downloads media information supported by the printing device 102 from a server (not shown) based on an instruction from the user, and registers the media information to the printing device 102 or the printer driver. The user can use the management software to add new media information to the printing device 102, and can display the new media information selectably on the setting screen of the printer driver. The user can also customize the media information downloaded from the server using the management software, and register it in the printing device 102 as, for example, custom paper. In this case, the user can also set a name on the management software. Note that the media information includes, for example, information such as a media ID, a category, thickness, ink drying time, ink usage amount, profile, and calibration. In the case of custom paper, the name set by the user is also included. When media information is registered in the printing device 102 by the management software, a media setting command shown in FIG.

[0014] In this embodiment, the CPU 111 executes processing according to the procedure of the program stored in the ROM 112, thereby executing the functions of the host computer 101 described below and the processing related to the flowchart described below. The printing device 102, which is a device, is communicably connected to the host computer 101 via the input / output interface 116. Here, the host computer 101 and the printing device 102 are configured separately, but they may be configured as one information processing device. The printing device will be described as an inkjet printer that prints by ejecting ink onto a paper surface, but printing may be performed by other methods (for example, electrophotographic method). The host computer 101 may be a desktop personal computer, a smartphone, or a notebook computer. When the host computer 101 and the printing device 102 are connected via a network, the network may be a wired network, a wireless network, or a network including both. The network may also include a device other than the host computer 101 and the printing device 102, such as a router that operates as an access point.

[0015] 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the printing device 102. The printing device 102 includes a CPU 201, a ROM 202, a RAM 203, a communication unit 204, an operation unit 205, a printing unit 207, a paper feed unit 208, a finishing unit 209, and a disk device 210. The ROM 202 is a non-volatile memory in which control programs and data are stored. The RAM 203 is a volatile memory that is used as a work memory or the like when various programs are executed, and various programs can run within the printing device 102. In this embodiment, the CPU 201 executes processing in accordance with the procedures of the programs stored in the ROM 202, thereby executing processing in the printing device 102.

[0016] The disk device 210 is a storage unit configured, for example, by a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid state drive (SSD), and stores programs and data. In this embodiment, the printing device 102 has a media database in the disk device 210. The media database is a database that stores media information of media supported by the printing device 102. The media database is configured from media information transmitted from the above-mentioned management software of the host computer 101. For example, the media database stores information included in a media setting command in FIG. 8(c), which will be described later. In other words, the information included in the media setting command in FIG. 8(c) is registration information for registering in the media database.

[0017] The communication unit 204 is a network interface and controls data transfer between external devices via a network. The network may be a wired network, a wireless network, or a network including both. The communication unit 204 is capable of performing communication compatible with the communication standard of the network (Ethernet, WiFi (registered trademark), etc.).

[0018] The operation unit 205 includes, for example, a touch panel and buttons, and can accept user operations. The display unit 206 is a display device and can display various user interface screens. For example, the display unit 206 can display the status of the printing device 102. The display unit 206 may be configured as a touch panel and include the operation unit 205. The printing unit 207 includes a recording head that ejects ink droplets from a nozzle and an ink supply unit that supplies ink, and forms an image on a recording medium (media) such as paper fed from a paper feed unit 208. In the following, the paper may be described as an example of the recording medium.

[0019] The paper feed unit 208 can feed, for example, cut paper or roll paper, and feeds the paper to the printing unit 207 in response to an instruction from the CPU 201. The finishing unit 209 performs finishing processing (finishing) of the paper printed by the printing unit 207. The finishing unit 209 includes, for example, a stapler that staples each piece with a staple, a cutter that cuts the roll paper at a specified position, a laminator that laminates the paper, and the like. For example, the finishing unit 209 may be configured to apply a special transparent ink for the purpose of creating a glossy look or improving weather resistance. The processing of the finishing unit 209 is controlled by an instruction from the CPU 201. The disk device 210 is a large-capacity storage device such as a hard disk or SSD, and stores print data and the like sent from the host computer 101.

[0020] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a software configuration in the host computer 101. FIG. 3 shows a configuration in the case where the extended application 303 is associated with the print data software 302. The print data generation software 302 is software that is included in advance in the OS (not shown) of the host computer 101, and is, for example, an Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) Class Driver, which is a standard driver. In other words, the print data generation software 302 becomes available at the stage where the OS is installed in the host computer 101. On the other hand, the extended application 303 is software that is not included in advance in the OS. Therefore, for example, a user operates the host computer 101 to download the extended application 303 from a server (not shown) via a network and install it. Also, when the printing device 102 is connected to the host computer 101, the CPU 111 acquires device identification information from the printing device 102. Then, the CPU 111 may acquire the extended application 303 corresponding to the acquired device identification information from the server via the network and install it. In other words, the print data generation software 302 and the extended application 303 are held in the host computer 101 as separate files. Note that the print data generation software 302 and the extension application 303 may be updated and upgraded, but these update processes are also performed at different times. That is, the timing at which the host computer 101 acquires the print data generation software 302 is different from the timing at which the extension application 303 is acquired. Also, the trigger at which the host computer 101 acquires the print data generation software 302 is different from the trigger at which the extension application 303 is acquired. Note that when the extension application 303 is installed, the OS associates the print data generation software 302 with the extension application 303. The extension application 303 described in this embodiment includes a print setting screen extension unit 304, a layout extension unit 305, and a preview unit 306.

[0021] The operation of the extension application 303 may be terminated each time the processing of each unit is completed. In that case, the OS will launch the extension application 303 each time a request to use each unit is received. Another form may also be used. For example, when the processing of the print setting screen extension unit 304 is completed, the OS may terminate the operation of the extension application 303, but even when the processing of the layout extension unit 305 is completed, the OS may keep the extension application 303 running.

[0022] The layout extension unit 305 and the preview unit 306 will be described. The layout extension unit 305 performs layout processing based on intermediate data before processing by the print data generation software 302. The intermediate data is data generated based on a print instruction output from an application 301 such as a document creation application, and is, for example, data in XML Paper Specification format (data in XPS format). For example, the layout extension unit 305 provides a layout printing function (also called Nin1 printing) that arranges and prints multiple pages on one surface of a sheet of paper. In addition, the preview unit 306 can execute at least one of displaying and editing the print data generated by the print data generation software 302. In addition, each unit of the extension application 303 can display a user interface screen (UI screen), but it is not necessary to display the UI screen. For example, the layout extension unit 305 may only edit the intermediate data without displaying the UI screen, and output the edited intermediate data to the print data generation software 302. If the layout extension unit 305 is capable of displaying a UI screen, for example, a preview screen including a setting area for changing a preview image and print setting information based on intermediate data may be displayed.

[0023] Here, the process from when a print instruction is received from the user until print data is sent to the printing device 102 will be described.

[0024] A user issues a print instruction via an application 301. The application 301 is software that creates the content (drawing data) to be printed. For example, it is a word processing application or a spreadsheet application. The application 301 displays a print setting screen provided by a print setting screen extension unit 304. An example of this print setting screen is the screen in FIG. 5, which will be described later. When the application 301 accepts a print request from a user, it issues a print instruction to the OS. The print instruction includes print setting information for instructing the operation of the print data generation software 302 and the printing device 102. The print setting information is also called a PrintTicket (hereinafter, "PT"). The user performs a setting process using a print setting screen provided by a print setting screen extension unit 304 provided by an extension application 303. The print setting information is generated by this setting process.

[0025] The OS generates intermediate data based on the output data and print setting information from the application 301 based on the print instruction, and starts the layout extension unit 1005 of the extension application 303. The output data from the application 301 is, for example, data in a Graphic Device Interface format (GDI format data) or data in an XML Paper Specification format (XPS format data). The intermediate data includes drawing data and print setting information corresponding to the content to be printed. The OS generates data in an XPS format as intermediate data based on, for example, the GDI data output from the application 301. When the application 301 outputs data in an XPS format as output data, the OS may pass the data in the XPS format as it is to the layout extension unit 305. When the application 301 outputs data in an XPS format as output data, the OS may generate data in an XPS format by modifying the data in the XPS format that is the output data. The layout extension unit 305 edits the drawing data based on the drawing data included in the generated intermediate data and the print setting information generated, for example, by a screen shown in FIG. 5 to be described later. The layout extension unit 305 outputs the edited drawing data to the print data generation software 302. The print data generation software 302 generates and outputs print data that can be interpreted by the printing device 102, based on the print setting information generated based on the print settings by the user and the edited drawing data.

[0026] Next, the OS starts the preview unit 306 of the extension application 303. The preview unit 306 acquires the print data generated by the print data generation software 302 and displays a print preview. After the user confirms that the print result is the desired one through the print preview, the user instructs the start of printing using the UI screen of the print preview. When the preview unit 306 receives an instruction from the user to start printing, it outputs the print data. The print data output from the preview unit 306 is sent to the printing device 102. The printing device 102 prints on a medium based on the print data sent from the host computer 101.

[0027] With the above configuration, the extended application 303 can realize a layout function and a print preview function that the print data generation software 302 does not have. The configuration of the extended application 303 is not limited to having all of the above functions, and may have only some of the functions or other functions. The extended application 303 may also be simply called printing software. As described above, the extended application 1003 can be said to have at least one of the following functions: a function to display a setting screen, a function to edit input data to the print data generation software 302, and a function to display print data.

[0028] The operation of this embodiment will be described below as an operation of the extension application 303 using communication according to a predetermined protocol, i.e., IPP communication. However, a part of the operation may be realized as an operation of a standard driver that is standardly installed in the OS.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram of IPP communication executed between the host computer 101 and the printing device 102. In S101, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 accepts a printer registration instruction from a user via an operation unit. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of a user interface screen for accepting a printer registration instruction. The screen shown in FIG. 12 is displayed, for example, when "Printer" is selected from the setting menu of the OS of the information processing device 101. The screen in FIG. 12 displays a list of registered printer names together with icons showing the appearance of the printers and status information. For example, FIG. 12 shows that Office Printer1 and Office Printer2 have already been registered and are in an online state. The "+" button in FIG. 12 is a button for accepting an instruction to add a printer. That is, the printer registration instruction is accepted, for example, by accepting the "+" button on the screen in FIG. 12.

[0030] Upon receiving the printer registration instruction, in S102, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 generates a printer attribute get operation 701 in Fig. 7(a) and sends it to the printing device 102. Upon receiving the printer attribute get operation 701, the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 generates a printer attribute response 702 in Fig. 7(b) and sends it to the host computer 101 in S103. The CPU 201 of the printing device 102 refers to the IPP-compatible database 1000 in Fig. 10(a) and sets the media-type attribute values ​​of all media compatible with the printing device 102 in the printer attribute response 702.

[0031] Fig. 10(a) shows the database structure of an IPP-compatible database 1000. The IPP-compatible database 1000 is generated by the process of Fig. 9, which will be described later, and is stored in the ROM 202, the RAM 203, or the disk device 210 of the printing device 102. The IPP-compatible database 1000 stores the following in association with each other: - Unique ID (GUID) of the media -media-type attribute value used in IPP communication with host computer 101 A flag indicating whether the attribute value is standard-defined or vendor-defined. Media Category - Display text for the media's user interface 9, IPP-compatible media information is generated based on the media information in the media database and stored in IPP-compatible database 1000. Thus, in this embodiment, printing device 102 holds an IPP-compatible database that defines media supported by printing device 102 as attribute values ​​that can be specified in IPP communication.

[0032] 7A shows an example of a get printer attributes operation 701 sent from the host computer 101 in S102. The get printer attributes operation 701 is a request to obtain printer attributes, and requests the printing device 200 to respond with the following printer attributes in IPP communication.

[0033] Copies - supported ·document-format-supported ·media―supported ·media-type-supported ·media―source―supported ·printer―strings―languages―supported FIG. 7B shows an example of a printer attribute response 702 sent from the printing device 102 in S103. The printer attribute response 702 is a response to a printer attribute obtainment request corresponding to the printer attribute obtainment operation 701, and indicates capability information of the printing device 102. The Status-Code attribute successful-ok indicates that the obtainment request was successful. The copies-supported attribute "1-999" indicates that printing up to a maximum of 999 copies can be specified. The document-format-supported attribute indicates that documents in PDF, JPEG, and PWG-Raster formats can be processed. The media-supported attribute indicates the media sizes that can be fed into the printing device 102.

[0034] The media-type-supported attribute indicates the type of media supported by the printing device 102. In FIG. 7B, auto (automatic selection), stationery (plain paper), and envelope are standard definition keyword values ​​defined in the standard specification PWG5101.1-2013-PWGMediaStandardizedNames2.0. Display text for displaying the standard definition keyword values ​​is stored in advance in the ROM 112 of the host computer 101. On the other hand, values ​​other than the standard definition keyword values ​​are vendor-defined attribute values. For example, in the case of “com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16”, the vendor-defined attribute value consists of “com.example” and “photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16”. Here, “com.example” is the DNS-Name, and “photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16” is the Base-Name. Furthermore, Base-Name consists of the category part "Photo" and the remaining part "4065A3725632BC55BE16". The category part "Photo" matches the above-mentioned standard definition keyword value, and its display text is stored in advance in ROM 112 of the host computer 101. In other words, the host computer 101 can obtain the display text for the standard definition keyword value without making a request to the printing device 102. On the other hand, the host computer 102 obtains the display text for the vendor-defined attribute value by making a request to the printing device 102.

[0035] The media-source-supported attribute indicates the type of paper feed inlet that the printing device 102 has. In this example, it indicates that auto (automatic), main (main paper feed inlet), tray-1 (first tray), and tray-2 (second tray) are supported.

[0036] The printer-strings-languages-supported attribute indicates the types of display text languages ​​supported by the printing device 102. Fig. 7(b) indicates, for example, that the printing device 102 supports Japanese (ja) and English (en).

[0037] 7(a) and 7(b), as well as FIGS. 7(c) to 7(f), which will be described later, are merely examples and may include information other than that shown in the figures. Upon receiving the printer attribute response 702, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 stores the printer attribute value included in the printer attribute response 702 in the RAM 113. In S104, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 selects a language from the printer-compatible languages ​​included in the printer attributes, generates a printer attribute acquisition operation 703 in FIG. 7(c), and transmits it to the printing device 102. The selection of the language of the display text may be based on, for example, the display language of the user interface screen specified by the user on the print setting screen. Here, it is assumed that Japanese is selected.

[0038] Fig. 7(c) shows an example of a get printer attributes operation 703 sent from the host computer 101 in S104. The get printer attributes operation 703 is a request to obtain printer attributes, and requests the printing device 102 to respond with the printer-strings-uri attribute value in IPP communication. "attributes-natural-language=ja" in Fig. 7(c) means that the address of the Japanese message catalog is requested.

[0039] When the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 receives the printer attribute acquisition operation 703, in S105, it generates a printer attribute response 704 in Fig. 7(d) and transmits it to the host computer 101. The printer attribute response 704 has a URL corresponding to the requested language (Japanese) set as the printer-strings-uri attribute value.

[0040] FIG. 7D shows an example of a printer attribute response 704 sent from the printing device 102 in S105. The printer attribute response 704 is a response to a printer attribute acquisition request corresponding to the printer attribute acquisition operation 703. The status-code attribute "successful-ok" in FIG. 7D indicates that the acquisition request was successful. "printer-strings-uri=http: / / 192.168.115.10 / strings / ja.txt" indicates the address of the requested Japanese message catalog file. Upon receiving the printer attribute response 704, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 issues an HTTP GET method to the URL of the printer-strings-uri attribute value included in the printer attribute response 704 in S106. This makes it possible to acquire the display text to be displayed on the user interface screen.

[0041] 8A. Then, in S107, the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 sends the requested Japanese message catalog file 801 to the host computer 101.

[0042] The CPU 201 of the printing device 102 refers to the media database 1000 in FIG. 10(a). Then, for the "standard definition=FALSE" line, the character string "media-type" is combined with the media-type attribute value of the corresponding media to form the left side, and the corresponding Japanese character string is combined with "=" to form the right side. For example, for the third line (category=photo, Japanese=glossy gold) of the IPP-compatible database 1000, the information of the first line of the message catalog file 801 is obtained. The CPU 201 of the printing device 102 repeats the above process for all supported media, and generates the message catalog file 801 in FIG. 8(a).

[0043] 8A is a diagram showing an example of a Japanese message catalog file 801. The left side of "=" is defined as "attribute-name.keyword-value". For example, the first line specifies that the "com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16" keyword in the media-type attribute value is to be displayed as "glossy gold". Similarly for the other lines, all of the display wording (in Japanese) of the vendor-defined keywords included in the media-type-supported attribute of the printer attribute response 702 are defined in the message catalog file 801.

[0044] If the IPP client supports multiple language switching, S104 to S107 can be repeated to acquire text in multiple different languages. For example, when the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 selects English as the language of the display text, it generates and transmits to the printing device 102 an operation 705 for acquiring printer attributes in FIG. 7(e) instead of the operation 703 for acquiring printer attributes.

[0045] Figure 7(e) shows an example of a get printer attributes operation 705 sent from host computer 101. Like get printer attributes operation 703, get printer attributes operation 705 is a request to obtain printer attributes, and requests printing device 102 to respond with the printer-strings-uri attribute value. "attributes-natural-language=en" in Figure 7(e) means that the address of the English message catalog file is requested.

[0046] The CPU 111 of the host computer 101 can acquire the printer attribute response 706 of FIG. 7(f) in which a URL corresponding to English is set in the printer-strings-uri attribute value.

[0047] Figure 7(f) shows an example of a printer attribute response 706 sent from printing device 102. Printer attribute response 706 is a response to a printer attribute get request corresponding to get printer attributes operation 705. The status-code attribute "successful-ok" in Figure 7(f) indicates that the get request was successful. "printer-strings-uri=http: / / 192.168.115.10 / strings / en.txt" indicates the address of the requested English message catalog file.

[0048] When the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 receives the printer attribute response 706, in S106 it issues an HTTP GET method to the URL of the printer-strings-uri attribute value included in the printer attribute response 706. This makes it possible to obtain the display text (in English). When the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 receives the HTTP GET method, in S107 it sends the requested English message catalog file 802 to the host computer 101.

[0049] 8B shows an example of an English message catalog file 802 sent from the printing device 102. The left side of "=" is defined as "attribute-name.keyword-value". For example, the first line specifies that the "com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16" keyword of the media-type attribute is to be displayed as "Photo Paper Plus Glossy". Similarly for the other lines, the display wording (in English) of the vendor-defined keywords included in the media-type-supported attribute value of the printer attribute response 702 are all defined in the message catalog 802.

[0050] When the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 receives the message catalog file 801, it creates a printer queue in S108 and completes the registration of the printer. The same applies when the message catalog file 802 is received.

[0051] In S109, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 accepts an instruction to call up a print setting screen from the user via the operation unit. In S110, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 displays the print setting screen 500 of FIG. 5 on the display unit 119, and enables acceptance of a print instruction from the user.

[0052] 5(a) to 5(d) are diagrams showing print setting screens displayed on the display unit 119 of the host computer 101 after an instruction to call up a print screen is accepted. The print setting screen 500 in Fig. 5(a) to 5(d) is displayed by the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 drawing the screen based on programs and data stored in the ROM 112 or RAM 113. The print setting screen 500 is provided, for example, by the print setting screen extension unit 304 in Fig. 3.

[0053] 5A shows the initial screen of print setting screen 500. Using setting display switching menu 501, the user can switch between settings displayed on the screen, such as print settings, detailed settings, and maintenance. Item 502 is an item for accepting media size selection, and the user can change the media size to any media size supported by the printer, including the default value of A4, by selecting from drop-down menu 503. The media sizes selectable from drop-down menu 503 are determined based on the media-supported attribute included in printer attribute response 702.

[0054] An item 504 is an item for receiving a media type setting, and the user can change the media type by selecting it in a drop-down menu 505. The media types selectable in the drop-down menu 505 are determined based on a media-type-supported attribute included in the printer attribute response 702.

[0055] A cancel button 506 cancels the issuance of the print job when pressed by the user. A confirm button 507 is a print start button, and when pressed by the user, the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 starts printing assuming that an instruction to start printing has been accepted.

[0056] Check box 511 is a check box for receiving a selection of whether or not to perform category display. When check box 511 is ON, CPU 111 of host computer 101 controls to perform category display, which will be described later, and when check box 511 is OFF, controls not to perform category display. CPU 111 of host computer 101 stores ON / OFF information of check box 511 in RAM 113.

[0057] Other information may be included in the screens of Fig. 5(a) and Fig. 5(b) to 5(d) described later. For example, a drop-down menu may be displayed that allows the user to change the paper feed source. In this case, the paper feed sources selectable in the drop-down menu are determined based on the media-source-supported attribute value included in the printer attribute response 702.

[0058] FIG. 5B shows a drop-down menu screen when displaying categories on the display unit 119 of the host computer 101. When the check box 511 is ON, the drop-down menu 508 displays the display text for each option, namely, automatic selection, plain paper, photo paper, envelope, other, and disc. Furthermore, a ">" mark is displayed for each option except automatic selection, indicating that there is a lower level. This hierarchical display is performed based on the display list 1002 of FIG. 10C. That is, the category column of the display list 1002 displays the corresponding Japanese display text for each overlapping content from the top, that is, in the order of "stationery", "photo", "envelope", "other", and "disc". However, as an exception, "auto" is not displayed as a category, and the display text "automatic selection" is displayed. The display list 1002 will be described later.

[0059] Fig. 5(c) is a screen showing how photo paper has been selected from the category drop-down menu. A media type selection area 509 is displayed next to the category "photo paper", in which the display words "gloss gold", "gloss platinum", and "matte photo paper" are displayed. This corresponds to the display words (in Japanese) "gloss gold", "gloss platinum", and "matte photo paper" that correspond to the category "photo" in the display list 1002 of Fig. 10(c). In other words, the display in Fig. 5(c) is performed based on the display list 1002, and the Japanese display words for media with the category value "photo" are displayed in order.

[0060] In this embodiment, by displaying as in Fig. 5(c), for example, it is displayed that the above three types of media are in the category "photo paper." Also, since the number of media types displayed at one time is reduced, it is possible to improve the convenience for the user when making a selection.

[0061] Fig. 5(d) is a drop-down menu screen when categories are not displayed. When check box 511 is OFF, drop-down menu 510 displays all media types supported by printing device 102. Here, "Auto Select", "Plain Paper", "Gloss Gold", "Gloss Platinum", "Matte Photo Paper", "Envelope", "Art Paper", "Japanese Paper", "Recommended Discs", and "Other Discs" are displayed. The display in Fig. 5(d) is based on display list 1002, and Japanese display text for all media included in display list 1002 is displayed in order.

[0062] Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the processing in the host computer 101 in S102 to S108 and S110 in Fig. 4. The processing in Fig. 6 is realized, for example, by the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 reading and executing the programs and data of the print setting screen expansion unit 304 stored in the ROM 112 or RAM 113. The processing in Fig. 6 is started when the user issues an instruction to register the printer in S101 via the operation unit.

[0063] In S201, the CPU 111 transmits a printer attribute acquisition operation 701 to the printing device 102 to acquire a printer attribute response 702. The CPU 111 stores in the RAM 113 the media-type attribute values ​​of all media supported by the printing device 102, which are set in the printer attribute response 702. Note that S201 corresponds to S102 to S103 in FIG.

[0064] In S202, the CPU 111 determines whether the printer attribute response 702 supports the display of vendor-defined display text. Specifically, for example, if the printer-strings-languages-supported attribute value exists in the printer attribute response 702 and includes a valid value, the CPU 111 determines that the display of vendor-defined display text is supported. If it is determined that the display of vendor-defined display text is supported, the process proceeds to S203. On the other hand, if it is determined that the display of vendor-defined display text is not supported, the process proceeds to S204.

[0065] In S203, the CPU 111 communicates with the printing device 102 to obtain a URL of the language selected by the host computer 101. Then, the CPU 111 accesses the URL to obtain a message catalog file in which display text is described. For example, in the case where Japanese and English are supported, the CPU 111 first generates a request 703 for obtaining a Japanese message catalog file and transmits it to the printing device 102. In the request 703, attributes-natural-language=ja and requested-attributes=printer-strings-uri are set. By receiving a response 704 to the request 703, the CPU 111 obtains a URL corresponding to Japanese, in this example, http: / / 192.168.115.10 / strings / ja.txt. Then, the CPU 111 accesses the URL to obtain a Japanese message catalog file 801. Next, the CPU 111 generates a request 705 for obtaining an English message catalog file and transmits it to the printing device 102. The request 705 has attributes-natural-language=en and requested-attributes=printer-strings-uri set. The CPU 111 receives a response 706 to the request 705 and acquires the URL, http: / / 192.168.115.10 / strings / en.txt, which corresponds to English. The CPU 111 then accesses the URL to acquire the English message catalog file 802.

[0066] When the host computer 101 has finished acquiring the message catalog files for all the languages ​​selected, the process proceeds to S204.

[0067] In S204, the CPU 111 generates the display list 1002 as follows. The CPU 111 determines whether each keyword of the media-type-supported attribute value acquired in S201 matches a known standard definition keyword value. For example, "auto", "stationery", "photographic", and "disc" are known as known standard definition keyword values. If it is determined that the keyword matches, the CPU 111 sets the standard definition flag to "TRUE" and sets the category to the keyword value itself. For example, if the media-type-supported attribute value acquired in S201 is "Stationery", the CPU 111 determines that the keyword matches a known standard definition keyword value. Then, the standard definition flag is set to "True" and the category is set to the keyword value "Stationery". However, "auto", which means automatic selection, is an exception and no category is set. The CPU 111 then acquires display text for each language for the standard definition keyword value from a known database stored in advance in the ROM 112 or the RAM 113.

[0068] On the other hand, if it is determined that the keyword does not match a known standard definition keyword value, it may be a vendor-defined keyword. Therefore, the keyword value is divided by a hyphen "-" into a DNS-Name and a Base-Name. For example, if the media-type-supported attribute value acquired in S201 is "com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16", the CPU 111 divides the attribute value. That is, the CPU 111 divides the attribute value into a DNS-Name of "com.example" and a Base-Name of "photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16". Furthermore, if the Base-Name contains a "-", the CPU 111 further divides the attribute value into a category "photo" and an identifier "4065A3725632BC55BE16". Also, the Japanese display text corresponding to the attribute value is recorded in the message catalog file 801 acquired in S203.

[0069] When the media-type attribute value is "com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16", the wording to be displayed is specified in the line of the message catalog file 801 that states "media-type.com.example-photo-4065A3725632BC55BE16". In this example, it is "glossy gold". Since the category "photo" is a standard definition keyword value, the display wording for each language is obtained from a known database that is pre-stored in the ROM 112 or the RAM 113. Then, the CPU 111 generates information that associates the media-type-supported attribute value, a flag indicating whether or not it is a standard definition, a category, and the display wording. By repeating such processing for the media-type-supported attribute value, the display list 1002 is generated. In the display list 1002, the display wording is specified for both Japanese and English, but it may be for only one of the languages.

[0070] In S205, CPU 111 determines whether or not to perform category display of media. For example, if check box 511 is ON, CPU 111 determines to perform category display and proceeds to S206, whereas if check box 511 is OFF, CPU 111 determines not to perform category display and proceeds to S207. Also, if an error occurs in S204 where display list 1002 is generated, CPU 111 may determine not to perform category display.

[0071] In S206, the CPU 111 generates GUI display data based on the display list 1002 generated in S204. First, the CPU 111 generates a hierarchical structure of display text data based on the display list 1002. FIG. 11 shows a hierarchical structure generated based on the display list 1002. Note that FIG. 11 shows a case where the host computer 101 selects Japanese from the printer-compatible languages ​​acquired in the printer attribute response 702. As shown in FIG. 11, in the case of the display list 1002, a two-level hierarchical structure is generated in which the display text of the vendor-defined attribute value is positioned in a lower level (child element) of the display text (standard definition keyword value) of the category in the upper level (parent element). Then, the CPU 111 generates GUI display data capable of hierarchical display based on the generated hierarchical structure. For example, display data for displaying the drop-down menu 508 in FIG. 5B is generated as GUI display data capable of hierarchical display. The order of display phrases of categories in the hierarchical structure may be, for example, the order of appearance of the media_type_supported attribute values ​​acquired in S103 of Fig. 4. Alternatively, it may be based on the order preset in a database that stores display phrases of standard definition keyword values ​​held in the ROM 112 by the host computer 101. After S206, the process of Fig. 6 ends.

[0072] On the other hand, if it is determined in S205 that the category display is not to be performed, the process proceeds to S207, where GUI display data is generated based on the display list 1002 generated in S204. For example, if the host computer 101 has selected Japanese from the printer-compatible languages ​​acquired in the printer attribute response 702, the CPU 111 displays a list of display text in the Japanese column of the display list 1002. For example, display data for displaying the drop-down menu 510 in FIG. 5(d) is generated. The order of the display text at that time may be, for example, the order of appearance of the media_type_supported attribute value acquired in S103 in FIG. 4, or may be alphabetical order. After S207, the process in FIG. 6 ends.

[0073] Next, the process of generating the IPP-compatible database 1000 in the printing device 102 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0074] Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing the process of generating an IPP-compatible database 1000 in the printing device 102. The process in Fig. 9 is realized, for example, by the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 reading and executing a program or data stored in the ROM 202 or RAM 203. The process in Fig. 9 starts, for example, when the CPU 201 receives a media setting command 803 from the host computer 101 via the communication unit 204.

[0075] Fig. 8(c) is a diagram showing an example of a media setting command 803 that the CPU 111 of the host computer 101 sends to the printing device 102. Fig. 8(c) also shows an example of a media setting command for adding one type of media so that it can be printed.

[0076] "add-media" on the first line indicates that this is an instruction to add a media type. "mediagroup=0" on the second line indicates that the media group belongs to 0 (plain paper). The third line indicates a media-specific ID, which is shown, for example, as a 128-bit random value. The fourth line indicates the display name to be displayed on the user interface screen. The fifth and subsequent lines are parameters to be referenced during printing, which show, for example, a lookup table for color processing. The above information may be defined based on the settings on the setting screen of the management software of the host computer 101, media information obtained from the server by the management software, etc.

[0077] When the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 receives the media setting command 803 from the host computer 101, it stores it in a media database stored in the ROM 202. Then, as described below, the CPU 201 of the printing device 102 generates attribute values ​​that can be specified in IPP communication based on the media information specified in the media setting command 803 for the IPP-compatible database 1000, and adds the generated attribute values ​​to the IPP-compatible database 1000.

[0078] In S301, the CPU 201 acquires one record of data from the media database stored in the ROM 202. One record includes a media group, a media unique ID, a name, and print parameters, as shown in FIG.

[0079] In S302, CPU 201 acquires a standard definition keyword value used in IPP communication from the media group. The media group is recorded as a numerical value from 0 to 5, for example, and CPU 201 acquires a standard definition keyword value of IPP corresponding to the numerical value by referring to conversion table 1001 in FIG.

[0080] 10B is a diagram showing an example of a conversion table 1001, in which media groups are associated with standard definition keyword values ​​(categories) used in IPP communication to which the media groups belong. The conversion table 1001 is stored in the ROM 202, RAM 203, or disk device 210 of the printing device 102. For example, when the media group is 0, it is converted to "stationery", when it is 1, it is converted to "photographic", when it is 2, it is converted to "envelope", when it is 3, it is converted to "disc", when it is 4, it is converted to "film", and when it is 5, it is converted to "other". The converted IPP standard definition keyword value is the category.

[0081] In S303, the CPU 201 judges whether or not the character string obtained by combining the DNS name "com.example" indicating the vendor definition, the category keyword (standard definition keyword value), and the media ID with a hyphen "-" is within a predetermined length. In this embodiment, it judges whether or not the character string is within a predetermined length of, for example, 38 to 40 characters. If it is judged to be within the predetermined length, the process proceeds to S304, and if it is judged not to be the predetermined length, the process proceeds to S305. The reason for judging whether or not the character string is within the predetermined length is that there may be a restriction on the length of a keyword that can be processed depending on the specifications of the host computer 101. For example, if the keyword becomes too long, a malfunction will occur in processing, so by making the keyword equal to or shorter than the predetermined length, such a malfunction can be avoided.

[0082] In S304, the CPU 201 performs processing to shorten the media unique ID so that the character string formed by combining the DNS name "com.example" indicating the vendor definition, the category keyword, and the media unique ID with a hyphen "-" is within a predetermined length. For example, the hyphens in the media unique ID are deleted, starting from the right end, so that the length does not exceed the predetermined length.

[0083] In step S305, the CPU 201 combines the DNS name “com.example” indicating the vendor definition, the category keyword, and the media unique ID with a hyphen “-”, and writes the combined data in the IPP-compliant database 1000 as a record.

[0084] In S306, the CPU 201 judges whether or not all records in the media database have been processed. If it is judged that all records have not been processed, the process from S301 is repeated. On the other hand, if it is judged that all records have been processed, the process in FIG. 9 is terminated.

[0085] As described above, according to this embodiment, a hierarchical menu can be displayed in a printing system that uses IPP communication, thereby enabling the user to easily select the desired media type, thereby improving convenience.

[0086] The present invention can also be realized by a process in which a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above-described embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in a computer of the system or device read and execute the program. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that implements one or more of the functions.

[0087] The disclosure of the present embodiment includes the following information processing device, method, and program. (Item 1) An information processing device capable of communicating with a printing device, a first acquisition means for acquiring information on media supported by the printing device; A second acquisition means for acquiring a first display message for a user interface corresponding to the information of the media acquired by the first acquisition means; a third acquisition means for acquiring a second display message to be displayed as a higher level than the first display message based on the information of the medium acquired by the first acquisition means; a display means for displaying a hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display message acquired by the second acquisition means and the second display message acquired by the third acquisition means; An information processing device comprising: (Item 2) 2. The information processing device according to item 1, wherein the third acquisition means acquires the second display message based on a portion of information included in the information of the media. (Item 3) The information processing device further includes a storage unit configured to store a database in which the part of information is associated with the second display message, 3. The information processing device according to item 2, wherein the third acquisition means acquires the second display message associated with the portion of information based on the database. (Item 4) 4. The information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 3, further comprising a generation means for generating data for displaying the hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display text acquired by the second acquisition means and the second display text acquired by the third acquisition means. (Item 5) 5. The information processing device according to item 4, wherein the display means displays the hierarchical user interface screen based on the data generated by the generation means. (Item 6) The information processing device according to item 4 or 5, characterized in that the data generated by the generation means is data defined as a hierarchical structure in which the second display text is a parent element and the first display text is a child element. (Item 7) a fourth acquisition means for acquiring information from the printing device in which the information on the medium acquired by the first acquisition means and the first display text are associated with each other, 7. The information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 6, wherein the second acquisition means acquires the first display message based on the information acquired by the fourth acquisition means. (Item 8) 8. The information processing device according to item 7, wherein the second acquisition means acquires the first display text corresponding to each of a plurality of languages. (Item 9) 9. The information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 8, wherein the second display text is a text that represents a category of the media. (Item 10) 10. The information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 9, wherein the acquisition by the first acquisition means is performed through communication using a predetermined protocol. (Item 11) 11. The information processing device according to item 10, wherein the predetermined protocol is Internet Printing Protocol (IPP). (Item 12) 12. The information processing device according to item 11, wherein the media information acquired by the first acquisition means is a media-type attribute value of the IPP. (Item 13) An information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 12, characterized in that the acquisition by the first acquisition means, the acquisition by the second acquisition means, the acquisition by the third acquisition means, and the display by the display means are performed in an extension application that extends the functionality of a printer driver. (Item 14) 14. The information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 13, wherein the first display text is a text representing a medium provided by a vendor. (Item 15) A method executed in an information processing device capable of communicating with a printing device, comprising: a first acquisition step of acquiring information on media supported by the printing device; a second acquisition step of acquiring a first display wording for a user interface corresponding to the information of the media acquired in the first acquisition step; a third acquisition step of acquiring a second display message to be displayed as a higher level than the first display message based on the information of the medium acquired in the first acquisition step; a display step of displaying a hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display wording acquired in the second acquisition step and the second display wording acquired in the third acquisition step; The method according to claim 1, further comprising: (Item 16) 15. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the information processing device according to any one of items 1 to 14. (Item 17) A printing system including an information processing device and a printing device, The information processing device includes: a first request means for requesting information on media supported by the printing device from the printing device; a second requesting means for requesting, from the printing device, a first display message for a user interface corresponding to the information of the medium transmitted from the printing device in response to a request by the first requesting means; a third acquisition means for acquiring a second display message to be displayed as a higher level than the first display message transmitted from the printing device in response to a request by the second request means, based on the information of the medium; a display means for displaying a hierarchical user interface screen based on the first display message and the second display message; Equipped with The printing device includes: a storage means for storing a database in which the information of the media and the first display message are associated with each other; a first transmission means for transmitting the media information of the database to the information processing device in response to a request by the first request means; a second transmission means for acquiring information in which information on the media is associated with the first display message based on the database in response to a request from the second request means, and transmitting the acquired information to the information processing device; A printing system comprising: (Item 18) 18. The printing system according to item 17, wherein the printing device further comprises a generating means for generating the database. (Item 19) The printing device includes: a second database that registers media supported by the printing device; a receiving means for receiving registration information to be registered in the second database, 19. The printing system according to item 18, wherein the generating means generates the database based on the registration information received by the receiving means. (Item 20) 20. The printing system according to item 19, wherein the registration information includes at least one of a media group, a media ID, and a name. (Item 21) 21. The printing system according to item 19 or 20, characterized in that the media information is information compatible with the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP), and the registration information is information that is not compatible with the IPP.

[0088] The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and variations are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the following claims are appended to apprise the public of the scope of the invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0089] 101 host computer: 102 printing device: 111 CPU: 112 ROM: 113 RAM

Claims

1. A program for expanding the functionality of print data generation software stored in an information processing device, comprising: an acquisition means for acquiring media types supported by the printing device; a group identification means for identifying a group to which the media type belongs based on the media type acquired by the acquisition means; a wording specification means for specifying a display wording corresponding to the media type based on the media type acquired by the acquisition means; a control means for controlling the display means of the information processing device to display the group in accordance with the selection of an item for setting the media type to be used for printing, and for controlling the display means to display the display message based on the selection of the group; A program that allows a computer to function as a

2. The program described in Claim 1, characterized in that the group identification means identifies the group based on some information contained in the media type.

3. The program described in Claim 1, characterized in that the display text is obtained from the printing device.

4. The program described in Claim 1, characterized in that the control means controls whether or not to display the group in accordance with a user setting.

5. The program described in Claim 1, characterized in that the acquisition means acquires the media type by communication using a predetermined protocol.

6. The program described in Claim 5, characterized in that the specified protocol is Internet Printing Protocol (IPP).

7. The program described in Claim 6, characterized in that the media type is a media-type attribute value of the IPP.

8. A plurality of the media types are acquired by the acquisition means, the text specifying means specifies the display text for each of the plurality of media types; 2. The program according to claim 1, wherein the control means controls the display means to display the plurality of display messages belonging to the selected group based on the selection of the group.

9. The program described in Claim 1, characterized in that the print data generation software is software provided by the operating system of the information processing device.

10. A method executed in an information processing device, comprising: acquiring media types supported by the printing device; a group identification step of identifying a group to which the media type belongs based on the media type acquired in the acquisition step; a wording specification step of specifying a display wording corresponding to the media type based on the media type acquired in the acquisition step; a control step of displaying the group on a display means of the information processing device in accordance with selection of an item for setting a media type to be used for printing, and controlling the display means to display the display message based on the selection of the group; A method comprising:

11. An information processing device, an acquisition means for acquiring media types supported by the printing device; a group specifying means for specifying a group to which the media type belongs based on the media type acquired by the acquiring means; a wording specification means for specifying a display wording corresponding to the media type based on the media type acquired by the acquisition means; a control means for controlling the display means of the information processing device to display the group in response to selection of an item for setting a media type to be used for printing, and for controlling the display means to display the display message based on the selection of the group; An information processing device comprising:

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