Print processing system and control method

Abstract

To allow extended functions provided by various printing devices to be used in a print processing system in which installation of desktop applications is restricted and only a class driver is included.SOLUTION: A print processing system includes: acquisition means for acquiring print setting information which is information identifying print setting held by an image processing device from the image processing device via a class driver; display means for displaying a print setting screen on the basis of the print setting information; transmission means for transmitting print setting information on print setting selected by a user on the print setting screen to the image processing device via the class driver; and execution means for executing print processing on the basis of the print setting information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a print processing system and a control method for displaying print settings of an image processing apparatus on a client device. [Background technology]

[0002] The V4 printer driver provided by Windows (registered trademark) places importance on security, so access to the registry is restricted. The registry is a non-volatile data area on the OS that manages printer driver setting information, etc. By restricting access to the registry, the installation of desktop applications that can access resources such as the registry is also restricted. Desktop applications are applications that are installed using installers provided by each application vendor, and include drivers specific to various printing devices.

[0003] In contrast, only store apps whose access to the registry is restricted in advance may be installed on client computers that have a V4 printer driver. Store apps (Windows Store applications) are applications that are installed only from a dedicated site called Windows Store.

[0004] The V4 printer driver can also provide a class driver that supports multiple printing devices with a single printer driver. The class driver realizes output to the printing device provided by the vendor by using standard print commands adopted by different models of printing devices. In other words, the printing functions realized by the class driver are limited to the standard functions of the printing device, and do not include all of the printing functions that the printing device has. By including the class driver in the OS in advance, it becomes possible to make print requests to the printing device as long as the standard printing functions are available, even with a V4 printer driver that has restrictions on the installation of printer drivers specific to various printing devices.

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses an information processing usage management system that determines whether an image processing device is one that can be used by a class driver. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6170864 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In the case of security-conscious operating systems such as Windows 10, only the standard functions of printing devices can be used even if a class driver is pre-installed in the OS. In other words, on a client computer equipped with an OS such as Windows 10, the extended functions of various printing devices can be used, and in this case, the print setting information of the extended functions can be managed by the printing application, and the desired extended functions can be provided to the user. However, the prior operations of setting all the extended functions of various printing devices in the printing application and having them managed are cumbersome.

[0008] In consideration of the above problems, the present invention aims to enable the use of extended functions provided by various printing devices in a printing processing system in which the installation of desktop applications including drivers specific to various printing devices is restricted and only class drivers are included. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] A print processing system having a client device including an image processing device that executes a print process, and a class driver that converts data that is the subject of the print process into print data and sends a print command for executing the print process to the image processing device together with the print data using standard functions, wherein the client device has an acquisition means that acquires print setting information, which is information that specifies the print settings of the image processing device, from the image processing device via the class driver, a display means that displays a print setting screen based on the print setting information acquired by the acquisition means, and a transmission means that transmits the print setting information of the print settings selected by a user on the print setting screen displayed by the display means to the image processing device via the class driver, and the image processing device has an execution means that executes the print process based on the print setting information transmitted by the transmission means. Effect of the Invention

[0010] The above-described method makes it possible to use extended functions provided by various printing devices in a print processing system in which installation of desktop applications is restricted and only class drivers are included. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] Network configuration diagram in this embodiment [Diagram 2] A software configuration diagram of a print processing system in a client computer 100. [Diagram 3] Printer 200 hardware configuration diagram [Figure 4] Printer 200 software configuration diagram [Diagram 5] Flowchart of modern print dialog display process in embodiment 1 [Figure 6(A)] Flowchart of PrintCapabilities acquisition process [Figure 6(B)] Flowchart of print execution process [Figure 7] Flowchart of UWP application print setting UI display process in the second embodiment [Figure 8] Flowchart of desktop application print setting UI display process in the third embodiment [Figure 9] Flowchart of UI display process of a print start application in the fourth embodiment [Figure 10] Flowchart of UI display process of a print start application in the fifth embodiment [Figure 11] Example of print settings screen for UWP app and modern print dialog [Figure 12] Print setting screen example for OS-provided and vendor-provided UWP apps [Figure 13] Example of print settings screen for desktop app [Figure 14] Example of the print settings screen for the UI of the application launched when printing [Figure 15] Preset registration screen example [Figure 16] Examples of PrintCapabilities and Print Tickets in this Example [Figure 17] Example of preset list information in this embodiment [Figure 18] Box print screen example DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0013] [Example 1] 1 is a network configuration diagram of a print processing system according to the present invention. The print processing system includes a client computer 100 and a printer 200 that receives print data in a page description language (hereinafter, PDL) format and executes printing. The printer 200 is assumed to be compatible with the print data format and data transmission protocol supported by the standard print function of the OS.

[0014] The various devices constituting the print processing system are connected and capable of communicating via a network 300, such as a LAN. The printer 200 may be a single-function printer (SFP) equipped with only a printing function, or a multifunction printer (MFP) equipped with a printing function, a scanning function, and a copying function, and there is no particular restriction on the functions that the printer 200 has.

[0015] FIG. 1A is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a client computer 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. A CPU 101 controls the entire client computer 100 according to a program stored in a ROM 1021, a RAM 1022, or an auxiliary storage device 105. The RAM 1022 is also used as a work area when the CPU 101 performs various processes. The auxiliary storage device 105 stores an application (hereinafter, an app) 1051, a device app 1052, an OS 1053, and the like. The app 1051 and the device app 1052 can be added to the auxiliary storage device 105 via a CD-ROM or USB memory (not shown) or a network 300. A device app is a dedicated application for supporting the functions of a V4 printer driver, and a specific example of the device app is WSDA (Windows Store Device App). When a V4 printer driver is installed, a WSDA associated with a store app is automatically installed.

[0016] Input devices such as a keyboard 108 and a pointing device 109 represented by a mouse or touch panel are devices that allow the user to give various instructions to the computer via the input I / F 103. The output I / F 104 is an interface for outputting data to the outside, and outputs data to an output device such as a monitor 110. The printer 200 is connected via a network 300 that is connected via a communication I / F 106. A system bus 107 is a common data system bus that is used to exchange data between the hardware modules that make up the client computer 100.

[0017] 2 is a block diagram showing the software configuration of the printer 200. The OS of the printer 200 has, as functions, an OS standard print function 10531, a print manager 218, a standard print communication unit 219, an OS standard UI management unit 10532, and a print-time startup application launcher 10533. The OS standard print function 10531 is a function that temporarily holds print data in spool data in XPS (XML Paper Specification) format until the print process is executed, and prints it.

[0018] A GDI to XPS conversion module 207 is a function for converting data drawn by GDI into spool data in XPS format held by the OS standard printing function 10531. GDI is a graphics component that generates a print image of a printer.

[0019] The OS standard printing function 10531 is a function that converts spool data in XPS format, created by a print instruction from an application, into PDL data and outputs it to the printer 200. This time, PDL is taken as an example of a standard page description language, but PDF (Portable Document Format) and PWG-Raster, which are adopted by Mopria, the standard for mobile printing, can also be used, and the form is not important.

[0020] The standard print communication unit 219 can control communication with the print manager 218 and the OS standard print function 10531 that access the printer 200, and the OS standard print function 10531 performs print processing via the standard print communication unit 219. The print manager 218 also communicates with the printer 200 through the standard print communication unit 219 to obtain information on supported functions and setting value information. The standard print communication unit 219 communicates with the printer 200 using a standard communication protocol such as IPP (Internet Printing Protocol). Using a standard communication protocol makes it possible to communicate with a plurality of different printers.

[0021] The desktop app 201 and the UWP app 202 are applications stored as the app 1051 in the auxiliary storage device 105. The UWP app 202 is an application that operates on the Universal Windows Platform (UWP) introduced in Windows 10, and has an expanded operating environment compared to the store app. The following embodiments will be described using the UWP app 202 as an example, but the UWP app 202 can also be realized by replacing the UWP app 202 with a store app.

[0022] A user uses input devices such as a keyboard 108 or a pointing device 109 such as a touch panel / mouse to execute printing processing from a desktop application 201 or a UWP application 202 displayed on a monitor 110 of an output device.

[0023] <Printing process> The printing process will now be explained with reference to Figure 2. The printing process is mainly carried out by carrying out three processes in sequence: printer selection, creation of print settings, and conversion of drawing data.

[0024] First, the user selects the printer 200 on which the user wants to print. This selection process results in the selection of the OS standard print function 10531 that corresponds to the printer 200. A print queue is used to select the printer 200 (OS standard print function 10531). Before executing printing, the user generates a print queue, which is a unit for managing the printer's device information and default print settings. When the user selects the generated printer queue, the OS standard print function 10531 linked to that printer queue is selected.

[0025] The application 1051 includes the desktop application 201 and the UWP application, and secures a memory area for print setting data on the RAM 1022. The application 1051 acquires PrintCapabilities 250 from the standard print setting management unit 208, and creates print setting data based on the acquired PrintCapabilities 250. The created print setting data is stored in the RAM 1022. PrintCapabilities 250 is data that describes a list of print functions and selection items that can be set in the OS standard print function 10531 in XML format based on a format defined by the OS, and is generated by the standard print setting management unit 208.

[0026] The OS standard UI management unit 10532 and the device application 1052 provide a print setting UI based on PrintCapabilities 250. The desktop application 201 uses a binary DEVMODE 203 as print setting data, and the UWP application 202 uses a print ticket 204 described in the XML format of a markup language. The DEVMODE 203 is a structure provided by the OS, and stores files such as print setting data in a format that the desktop application 201 can use for printing. The print setting data includes functions supported by the OS standard print function 10531, and the standard print setting management unit 208 creates the print setting data using a standard print function definition file 209 that defines the corresponding functions.

[0027] These print setting data are set in an extended print setting unit 10522, which is a print setting UI for UWP applications provided by the standard print setting management unit 208 or the device application 1052. The OS standard print function 10531 changes settings corresponding to the DEVMODE 203 or the print ticket 204 in accordance with the settings in the extended print setting unit 10522. In the case of the print ticket 204, since the print settings are described in XML format, it is possible for the UWP application 202 to directly rewrite all the setting values, but it is also possible to rewrite them using the extended print setting unit 10522, which is a UI of the device application 1052.

[0028] Once the print settings have been finalized, the user executes print processing from an application. When executing print processing from the desktop application 201, drawing data is sent to a GDI to XPS conversion module 207, and an XPS spool file 206 is created. At this time, the GDI to XPS conversion module 207 converts the print settings acquired from a standard print setting management unit 208 from a DEVMODE 203 into a print ticket 204.

[0029] On the other hand, when printing is performed from the UWP application 202, the UWP application itself generates an XPS file, or the OS 1053 (FIG. 1B) generates an XPS file in response to a drawing command from the UWP application. In either case, an XPS spool file 206 is generated during the printing process.

[0030] After an XPS spool file 206 is generated in response to a print instruction from the desktop application 201 or UWP application 202, a standard print processing unit 212 renders the XPS spool file 206 and converts it into PDL data. The PDL data is managed by a print manager 218 that manages the schedule of print processing, and print jobs are registered one after another in a queue. When the printer 200 is ready to print, the print jobs are sent to the printer 200 via a standard print communication unit 219 in the order in which they were registered in the queue.

[0031] The standard print processing unit 212 transmits the setting contents specified in the print ticket 204 included in the XPS spool file 206 to the standard print communication unit 219. The standard print communication unit 219 transmits the received setting contents to the printer 200 via a standard communication protocol, and the print setting information held by the standard print setting management unit 208 and the device application 1052 is reflected in the print processing. The print setting information here is the print setting information selected by a user operation on the print setting UI.

[0032] The device application 1052 includes an extended print setting unit 10522, a print-time startup application unit 10521, a tile application unit 10523, and a device application communication unit 10524, and is an application for extending the functions of the printer 200. The print-time startup application unit 10521 has a function for displaying a print preview, etc. on a UI when called from a print-time startup application launcher 10533 during printing, and a function for editing the XPS spool file 206, and can realize the extension of the print processing function of the printer 200.

[0033] The tile application unit 10523 is a function of an application that is started from an application list such as the OS start menu separately from the printing process, and also has a function of guiding the user to the management screen of the printer 200 or a website for support information of the printer 200.

[0034] The device application communication unit 10524 is a function that enables each module of the device application 1052 to communicate with the printer 200. The above is the operation of each module when the print process is executed.

[0035] <Hardware configuration of the printer 200> 3 is a diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printer 200. A CPU 1101 outputs an image signal as output information to a printing unit (printer engine) 1108 via a printing unit I / F 1106 connected to a system bus 1104 based on a control program or the like stored in a ROM 1103 or an external memory 1110.

[0036] The network I / F 1105 performs network communication such as Wifi and Ethernet (registered trademark). The CPU 1101 is capable of communication processing with the client computer 100 via the network I / F 1105, and is configured to be able to notify the client computer 100 of information about the printer 200, etc. The RAM 1102 functions as the main memory, work area, etc. of the CPU 1101, and is configured so that the memory capacity can be expanded by an optional RAM connected to an expansion port (not shown). The operation unit 1109 is an operation panel on which switches and LED displays for operation are arranged. The external memory 1110 stores various setting value information and the like managed by the printer 200 that is set by the operation unit 1109, etc.

[0037] <Printer 200 software configuration> 4 is a block diagram showing the functions of the printer 200. A data communication unit 2001 receives print jobs and various requests from the client computer 100, executes predetermined processing, and then responds to the client computer 100. A print job management unit 2002 temporarily stores print jobs received by the data communication unit 2001 in the external memory 1110, and sequentially issues instructions to execute print processing via a printing unit 2003. The printing unit 2003 executes print processing according to the settings of the print job in accordance with the instructions from the print job management unit 2002. A preset management unit 2004 manages preset list information, which is a combination of multiple pieces of print setting information called presets stored in a preset DB 2005.

[0038] 17 shows an example of preset list information 1700. The preset list information includes a preset name 17001, a preset ID 1702, print setting information 1703, and a print-time startup application startup setting 1705. The print-time startup application startup setting 1705 is a flag indicating whether or not to start the print-time startup application unit 10521 when printing.

[0039] The preset ID 1702 is identification information that uniquely identifies a preset. The print setting information 1703 includes print setting information that is an extended function of the printer 200 that is not supported by the OS standard print function 10531. The preset list information 1700 shown in Fig. 17 includes double-sided printing, color mode, staple, box printing, bookbinding printing, saddle stitching, and toner saving.

[0040] For example, the preset 1704 is assigned the preset name "Box Printing - No. 10" and the preset ID "4CF97CE2-8F47-49FE-BFE5-A021EAD1AF8D." In addition, the print settings of the preset 1704 specify double-sided printing "ON" and box printing "ON." When the preset 1704 is specified, the print job received by the data communication unit 2001 is not executed immediately, but is stored in an area of ​​the external memory 1110 called a box. The storage areas of the boxes are managed by number, and in the case of the preset 1704, box number 10 is specified. The print job stored in the box is displayed on a screen 1800 as shown in FIG. 18 via the operation unit 1109 of the printer 200. The screen 1800 includes a box number area 1801, a document list 1802 stored in a box selected in the box number area 1801, and a print button 1804. The user selects "10", which is the box number specified at the time of printing, in a box number area 1801 on a screen 1800. When a box number is selected, a list 1802 of documents saved in the selected box number is displayed. When the user further selects a document 1803 and presses a print button 1804, the document 1803 is printed via the printing unit 1108.

[0041] Returning to the explanation of Fig. 4, the extended function permission setting 2007 holds a setting as to whether or not the administrator permits use of the extended functions of the printer 200. The UI unit 2006 provides a UI for changing the settings of the extended function permission setting 2007 and the settings of the preset DB. These are the functions of the printer 200.

[0042] <Preset registration process> A registration process of a preset managed in the preset DB 2005 of the printer 200 will be described. In this embodiment, an example of registration via a UI provided by a tile application unit 10523 included in the device application 1052 will be described. The registration form is not limited to this, and any form may be used as long as the preset is registered in the printer 200 in advance. For example, the preset may be registered via a UI provided by a UI unit 2006 of the printer 200.

[0043] FIG. 15A is an example of a screen 1501 that is displayed when the tile application unit 10523 of the client computer 100 is started. The screen 1501 displays a printer list 1502 that displays a list of printers linked to the device application 1052. When an icon 1503 linked to the printer 200 is selected, the screen transitions to a screen 1505 shown in FIG. 15B. FIG. 15B is a screen that displays links to various functions related to the printer 200. The screen 1505 displays a support information button 1506, a remote UI button 1507, and a preset registration button 1508. When the support information button 1506 is pressed, the screen transitions to a website screen for support information of the printer 200. When the remote UI button 1507 is pressed, the screen transitions to a management screen provided by the printer 200 via a web browser. When the preset registration button 1508 is pressed, the screen transitions to a screen 1520 shown in FIG. 15C.

[0044] The screen 1520 includes a registered preset list 1521 , a preset registration button 1522 , a registered preset name 1523 , a preset print setting information area 1524 , and a close button 1525 .

[0045] In the registered preset name 1523, the name of the preset to be registered can be specified. In the registered preset list 1521, a list of the names of the presets stored in the preset DB 2005 of the printer 200 is displayed. In the print setting information area 1524, print setting items including settings of the printer 200's extended functions that are not supported by the OS standard print function 10531 are displayed. After the user specifies the desired print settings in the print setting information area 1524, the user presses the preset registration button 1522. When the preset registration button 1522 is pressed, the tile application unit 10523 transmits a preset registration request to the printer 200 via the device application communication unit 10524. At that time, the registered preset name 1523 and the setting value information specified in the preset print setting information area 1524 are transmitted to the printer 200. When the data communication unit 2001 of the printer 200 receives the preset registration request, the data communication unit 2001 registers the specified preset name and the print setting information together with a newly generated unique preset ID in the preset DB 2005 via the preset management unit 2004. The list of presets registered in the preset DB 2005 is shown in FIG.

[0046] By the above process, the user can register a preset that reflects the user's preferred settings in the printer 200 via the client computer 100.

[0047] <Mode for displaying the modern print dialog> A form in which an extended function of the printer 200 is used in an environment in which a class driver is used will be described. In this embodiment, a form in which a list of presets is displayed and presented on a setting screen (modern print dialog) provided by an OS standard UI management unit 10532 of the OS 1053 will be described as an example.

[0048] Fig. 11(A) is an example of a print setting screen of the UWP application 202, which is a drawing application. A document including a text and a drawing is displayed in Fig. 11(A), and is the target of print processing. Processing when a print instruction is executed on a screen 1130 provided by the UWP application 202 will be described using the flowchart of Fig. 5. The processing described in this embodiment is realized by loading a program recorded in the auxiliary storage device 105 into the RAM 1022 in response to a user operation, and executing it by the CPU 101.

[0049] When an instruction to display the modern print dialog is given on the screen 1130 (S501), the UWP application 202 transmits an instruction to display the modern print dialog to the OS 1053 (S502). When the OS 1053 receives the display instruction, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 requests the OS standard print function 10531 to acquire PrintCapabilities (S503). As a result, the OS standard print function 10531 executes a process to acquire PrintCapabilities (S504). The process of acquiring PrintCapabilities will be described later.

[0050] The OS standard UI management unit 10532 acquires PrintCapabilities from the OS standard print function 10531 (S505). The OS standard UI management unit 10532 that has received PrintCapabilities displays a modern print dialog (S506). An example of the modern print dialog 1150 is shown in FIG. 11(B). The modern print dialog 1150 has a printer selection control 1151 that allows the user to select a printer available in the OS 1053, and in FIG. 11(B) the printer 200 is selected. In addition, the modern print dialog 1150 has a print preview area 1152 that allows the user to check the print result on the screen, and a print setting area 1153 that allows the user to select print settings that are supported by the OS standard print function 10531.

[0051] After the modern print dialog 1150 is displayed, the OS standard printing function 10531 determines whether the PrintCapabilities acquired in S504 includes psk:JobPreset (preset) (S507). Figure 16 shows an example of PrintCapabilities. "psk:" written at the beginning of each definition indicates a name space and is intended to distinguish it from definitions in other name spaces. Figure 16 shows that "psk:JobPreset" is included, so the process proceeds to S508.

[0052] If it is determined that psk:JobPreset is included, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 displays a preset setting control 1155 on the modern print dialog 1150 as shown in Fig. 11(C) (S508). The preset setting control 1155 lists the character strings of the psk:PresetName property of each Option included in psk:JobPreset of PrintCapabilities 1600 (Fig. 16). This allows the user to check and select a preset name from the list of preset names registered in the printer 200 on the modern print dialog. On the other hand, if it is determined in S505 that psk:JobPreset is not included, the process proceeds to S509 without displaying the preset setting control 1155.

[0053] After the print settings including presets are determined on the modern print dialog 1150, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 receives an instruction to press the print button 1154 from the user (S509). After the print button 1154 is pressed, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 generates a print ticket based on the print settings set in the modern print dialog 1150 (S510). The print ticket 1610 in FIG. 16(B) is an example of the print ticket generated in S508. The print orientation "portrait" selected in the modern print dialog 1150 is reflected, and in the Feature 1611 of the print ticket 1610, a setting value "psk:Portrait" indicating that the print orientation is portrait (vertical orientation) is set. Also, the setting content of the preset selected in the modern print dialog 1150 is reflected, and "ns0000:Preset01" is specified in the Feature 1612 of the print ticket 1610. In addition to the setting value information illustrated in FIG. 16(B), the print ticket 1610 can include the setting value information of the functions supported by the OS standard printing function 10531.

[0054] The OS standard UI management unit 10532 returns the print ticket to the UWP app 202 together with the print request (S511). The UWP app 202 acquires the print request and the print ticket from the OS standard UI management unit 10532 (S512) and generates print data (S513). This print data is in XPS format and includes a print ticket containing print setting information and drawing data generated by a drawing application.

[0055] When the print data is generated, the UWP app 202 instructs the OS standard printing function 10531 to execute printing (S514). The printing execution process of S514 will be described later. The above is the display process of the modern print dialog.

[0056] <Acquisition Process of Print Capabilities> 6A, a process for the OS standard printing function 10531 to acquire PrintCapabilities from the printer 200 will be described. The process for the printer 200 described in this embodiment is realized by loading a program recorded in the external memory 1110 into the RAM 1102 and executing it by the CPU 1101.

[0057] First, the standard print setting management unit 208 of the OS standard print function 10531 receives a PrintCapabilities acquisition request (S520), and transmits a request instruction for a preset list to the printer 200 via the standard print communication unit 219 (S521).

[0058] The data communication unit 2001 of the printer 200 receives the preset acquisition request (S522). Upon receiving the preset acquisition request, the preset management unit 2004 acquires the extended function permission setting 2007 (FIG. 17) (S523). The preset management unit 2004 determines whether the use of the extended function is permitted based on the setting value of the extended function permission setting 2007 (S524). If it is determined that the use of the extended function is permitted, the preset management unit 2004 acquires the preset list information 1700 stored in the preset DB 2005 (S525). The preset management unit 2004 returns the acquired preset list information 1700 to the OS standard printing function 10531 via the data communication unit 2001 (S526). On the other hand, if it is determined in S524 that the extended function is not permitted, the preset management unit 2004 returns the preset list information in an empty state to the OS standard printing function 10531 (S527).

[0059] The standard print setting management unit 208 of the OS standard print function 10531 acquires preset list information (S528). The standard print setting management unit 208 generates PrintCapabilities by adding the preset list information acquired in S528 to the functions supported by the OS standard print function 10531 (S529). FIG. 16A is an example of PrintCapabilities generated in S529. In PrintCapabilities 1600, a list of functions supported by the OS standard print function 10531 and configurable items of each function are defined in XML format. In Feature 1601, a definition of the print orientation setting supported by the OS standard print function 10531 is described, and psk:Portratit and psk:Landscape are defined as setting items. In addition to the setting value information exemplified in FIG. 16A, PrintCapabilities 1600 can also include setting value information of functions supported by the OS standard print function 10531.

[0060] PrintCapabilities 1600 also includes Feature 1602 (psk:JobPeset), which is a definition of a list of presets registered in the preset DB 2005 of the printer 200. Feature 1602 also includes a setting value "psk:None" (Option 1603) for when a preset setting is not used, and a set preset "ns0001:Preset01" (Option 1604). Option 1604 corresponds to preset 1704 in FIG. 17, and the preset name (psk:PresetName) stores the preset name of preset 1704, "Box Printing - No. 10." Furthermore, the preset ID (psk:PresetID) stores the preset ID of preset 1704, "4CF97CE2-8F47-49FE-BFE5-A021EAD1AF8D."

[0061] When the printer 200 returns an empty preset list in S527, do not include "psk:JobPeset" in PrintCapabilities1600. As a result, the user cannot use the preset.

[0062] When PrintCapabilities is generated in S529, the standard print setting management unit 208 returns PrintCapabilities to the client computer 100 that is the request source (S530). The above is the acquisition process for obtaining PrintCapabilities from the printer 200.

[0063] <Print execution process of OS standard printing function> The printing execution process in the printer 200 will be described using the flowchart of FIG. 6(B). This flow is executed when the print setting UI is displayed based on the PrintCapabilities acquired by the OS standard printing function 10531 in FIG. 6(A), and the OS standard printing function 10531 receives a print request by a user operation on the print setting UI.

[0064] The standard print processing unit 212 of the OS standard printing function 10531 receives a print request from the UWP app 202 together with print data (S551). The standard print processing unit 212 converts the XPS rendering data included in the received print data into PDL data (S552). The standard print processing unit 212 generates a print job based on the print setting information of the print ticket included in the print data and the PDL data generated in S552 (S553).

[0065] The standard print processing unit 212 determines whether the print ticket includes psk:JobPreset (S554). If it is determined that psk:JobPreset is included, the standard print processing unit 212 determines whether psk:None is specified in psk:JobPreset (S555). If it is determined that psk:None is not specified, the standard print processing unit 212 sets the preset ID specified in the print ticket for the print job (S556). In this embodiment, it is assumed that the preset ID "4CF97CE2-8F47-49FE-BFE5-A021EAD1AF8D" included in Feature 1612 of the print ticket in FIG. 16(B) is specified.

[0066] The standard print processing unit 212 transmits the print job to the printer 200 via the standard print communication unit 219 (S557).

[0067] If it is determined that the print ticket does not include psk:JobPreset (S554-NO), or if it is determined that psk:None is specified in psk:JobPreset (S555-YES), the process proceeds to S557 without setting a preset ID for the print job.

[0068] The data communication unit 2001 of the printer 200 receives the print job (S558). The print job management unit 2002 determines whether the print job includes a preset ID (S559). If it is determined that the print job includes a preset ID, the print job management unit 2002 acquires the preset list information 1700 registered in the preset DB 2005 via the preset management unit 2004 (S560). The print job management unit 2002 determines whether the acquired preset ID has been registered in the preset list information 1700 (S561). If it is determined that the acquired preset ID has been registered, the print job management unit 2002 acquires the print setting information 1703 linked to the acquired preset ID using the preset list information 1700 (S562). The print job management unit 2002 instructs the printing unit 2003 to execute printing based on the print setting information (S563).

[0069] If it is determined that the print job does not include a preset ID (S559-NO), or if it is determined that the acquired preset ID has not been registered in the preset list information (S561-NO), the print job management unit 2002 instructs the printing unit 2003 to execute printing without reflecting the preset settings (S564). This completes the print execution process.

[0070] Through the above-described processing, the user can specify a preset displayed in the modern print dialog to cause the printer 200 to execute print processing using an extended function that is not supported by the OS standard print function 10531.

[0071] [Example 2] In this embodiment, a different form of displaying a preset list using a print setting UI of a UWP application will be described as an example.

[0072] FIG. 12A is an example of a print setting screen of a modern print dialog 1200 displayed by the UWP application 202, which is a drawing application. Up to this point, it is the same as FIG. 11B shown in the first embodiment. The modern print dialog 1200 has an other settings button 1201 for displaying a print setting UI for the UWP application. By pressing the other settings button 1201, a UI provided by the OS standard UI management unit 10532 (FIG. 12B) or a UI of the extended print setting unit 10522 (FIG. 12C) is displayed. In this embodiment, a preset list (1211, 1221) is displayed on the screen shown in FIG. 12B or (C).

[0073] 7, a process when the Other Settings button 1201 is pressed on the modern print dialog 1200 will be described. The process described in this embodiment is realized by loading a program recorded in the auxiliary storage device 105 into the RAM 1022 in response to a user instruction and executing the program by the CPU 101. Note that the same steps as those already described are given the same numbers as the already described steps, and descriptions will be omitted unless otherwise specified.

[0074] When the UWP application 202 receives a press of the other settings button 1201 (S701), the UWP application 202 requests the OS standard UI management unit 10532 to display a print setting UI for the UWP application (S702).

[0075] When the OS standard UI management unit 10532 receives a display request for the print setting UI for the UWP application (S703), it determines whether the vendor-provided device application 1052 is installed in the client computer 100 (S704). If it is determined that the device application 1052 is installed, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 requests the extended print setting unit 10522 of the device application 1052 to display the print setting UI for the UWP application (S705).

[0076] When the extended print setting unit 10522 receives a display request for the print setting UI for the UWP application (S706), it determines whether the device application 1052 is associated with the OS standard print function 10531 (S707). Specifically, in the process of S707, if the device application 1052 is associated with a printer driver (not shown) provided by the vendor, it is determined that the device application 1052 is not associated with the OS standard print function 10531. If it is determined in S707 that the device application 1052 is associated with the OS standard print function 10531, the extended print setting unit 10522 requests the OS standard print function 10531 to perform a process of acquiring PrintCapabilities (S708). In S708, the process of FIG. 6A described above is executed.

[0077] When the extended print setting unit 10522 acquires PrintCapabilities from the OS standard print function 10531 (S709), the extended print setting unit 10522 determines whether or not psk:JobPreset is included in PrintCapabilities (S710). If it is determined in S710 that psk:JobPreset is included, the extended print setting unit 10522 displays the print setting UI 1220 for the UWP application as shown in FIG. 12C (S711). In S711, the extended print setting unit 10522 adds and displays the preset setting control 1221 shown in FIG. 12C. In the preset setting control 1221, the character strings of the psk:PresetName property of each Option included in psk:JobPreset in PrintCapabilities 1600 are listed.

[0078] On the other hand, if it is determined in S710 that psk:JobPreset is not included, the preset setting control 1221 is hidden, and the extended print setting unit 10522 displays the UWP application print setting UI 1220 (S712).

[0079] If it is determined in S707 that the device app 1052 is not associated with the OS standard printing function 10531, that is, if it is determined that the device app 1052 is associated with a printer driver provided by the vendor, the extended print settings section 10522 displays a print settings UI for UWP apps for the printer driver provided by the vendor (S713).

[0080] In each print setting UI displayed in S711 to S713, the extended print setting unit 10522 receives an instruction from the user to press the OK button 1222 (S714). After the OK button 1222 is pressed, the extended print setting unit 10522 generates a print ticket that reflects the contents set on the print setting UI 1220 for the UWP application (S715). The extended print setting unit 10522 transmits the generated print ticket to the UWP application 202 (S716).

[0081] If it is determined that the vendor-provided device application 1052 is not installed (S704-NO), the OS standard UI management unit 10532 requests the OS standard print function 10531 to acquire PrintCapabilities (S717). In S717, the PrintCapabilities acquisition process (FIG. 6A) described above is executed.

[0082] When the OS standard UI management unit 10532 acquires PrintCapabilities (S718), the OS standard UI management unit 10532 determines whether or not psk:JobPreset is included in PrintCapabilities (S719). If it is determined that psk:JobPreset is included, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 displays the print setting UI 1210 for UWP applications provided by the OS as shown in FIG. 12B (S720). In S720, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 adds and displays the preset setting control 1211 shown in FIG. 12B. The preset setting control 1211 lists the character strings of the psk:PresetName property of each Option included in psk:JobPreset in PrintCapabilities 1600.

[0083] If it is determined in S719 that psk:JobPreset is not included in PrintCapabilities, the OS standard UI management unit 10532 displays the UWP application print setting UI 1210 with the preset setting control 1211 hidden (S721).

[0084] When the print settings including the presets are confirmed on the print setting UI 1210 for UWP applications by pressing the OK button 1212 (S722), the OS standard UI management unit 10532 generates a print ticket that reflects the contents set on the print setting UI 1210 for UWP applications (S723). At that time, the setting value of the preset setting control 1211 is reflected in the psk:JobPreset written in the print ticket. The OS standard UI management unit 10532 returns the generated print ticket to the UWP application 202 (S724).

[0085] The UWP application 202 acquires a print ticket reflecting the settings in the UWP application print setting UI 1210 or the UWP application print setting UI 1220 (S725). When the UWP application 202 receives an instruction from the user to press the print button 1202 on the modern print dialog 1200 (S726), the UWP application 202 generates print data (S727). The print data generated in S727 includes the print ticket acquired in S725. When the print data is generated, the UWP application 202 performs the print execution process (FIG. 6B) described above (S513).

[0086] The above is the process when the Other Settings button 1201 is pressed on the modern print dialog 1200. According to this embodiment, the user can specify a preset on the UI (1210 or 1220) that is displayed when the Other Settings button 1201 is pressed, and cause the printer 200 to execute print processing using an extended function that is not supported by the OS standard print function 10531.

[0087] [Example 3] In this embodiment, a form in which a list of presets is displayed on a print setting UI provided by the OS standard print function 10531 will be described.

[0088] Fig. 13A is an example of a print setting UI displayed on the desktop application 201, which is a drawing application. When the preset tab (1301) is selected, a screen showing a list of presets is displayed. The form in which the list of presets is displayed in Fig. 13B is the present embodiment.

[0089] 8, a process will be described when an instruction to display a print setting UI for a desktop application is given on screen 1135 provided by desktop application 201. This process is realized by loading a program recorded in auxiliary storage device 105 into RAM 1022 in response to an instruction from a user, and executing it by CPU 101. Note that the same steps as those already explained are given the same numbers as the already explained step numbers, and explanations will be omitted unless otherwise noted.

[0090] First, the desktop application 201 receives an instruction to display detailed settings on the screen 1135 provided by the desktop application 201 (S801). The desktop application 201 requests the standard print setting management unit 208 to display a print setting UI (S802).

[0091] When the standard print setting management unit 208 receives a request to display the print setting UI (S803), after acquiring a preset list in S521 to S528, the standard print setting management unit 208 displays a desktop application print setting UI 1300 as shown in Fig. 13A (S804). The desktop application print setting UI 1300 displays setting items that correspond to the OS standard print function 10531. Also, while the preset tab 1301 is displayed in Fig. 13A, it is also possible to consider a form in which the preset tab is not displayed if the use of the extended function is not permitted as determined in S524.

[0092] The standard print setting management unit 208 evaluates the preset list information acquired in S528 and determines whether a preset is registered in the printer 200 (S805). If it is determined that a preset is registered, the standard print setting management unit 208 displays the acquired preset list information in the preset tab 1301 (FIG. 13B) (S806). The names of each preset in the preset list information are listed in the preset setting control 1305. If it is determined in S805 that the acquired preset list is empty or that the preset is not registered, the process proceeds to S807 without displaying the preset setting control 1305 in the preset tab 1301.

[0093] When the print settings are confirmed by pressing the OK button 1302 on the desktop application print setting UI 1300 (S807), the standard print setting management unit 208 generates a print ticket that reflects the print setting contents (S808). An example of the generated print ticket is shown in FIG. 16B. The setting value of the preset setting control 1305 is reflected in psk:JobPreset of the print ticket. The standard print setting management unit 208 converts the print ticket to a DEVMODE and then returns it to the desktop application 201 (S809).

[0094] The desktop application 201 acquires a DEVMODE that reflects the settings made on the desktop application print setting UI 1300 (S810). Next, the desktop application 201 receives a print execution instruction from the user on the screen 11350 (S811). The desktop application 201 specifies the DEVMODE, which is the print setting information acquired in S810, and executes printing via the GDI, which is a module of the OS 1053 (S812).

[0095] When the desktop application 201 executes printing, the GDI to XPS conversion module 207 converts the GDI drawing data received from the desktop application 201 into XPS data (S813). At that time, the DEVMODE specified in S812 is converted into a print ticket, which becomes print data that can be processed by the standard print processing unit 212. Once converted into print data, the OS standard print function 10531 instructs the standard print processing unit 212 to execute printing (S814). The print execution process of S814 has already been explained with reference to FIG. 6B. This concludes the flow from when the list of presets is displayed on the print setting UI provided by the OS standard print function 10531 to when print execution processing is performed.

[0096] According to this embodiment, by specifying a preset via the detailed setting display displayed by the desktop application 201, it is possible to cause the printer 200 to execute print processing using an extended function that is not supported by the OS standard print function 10531.

[0097] [Example 4] This embodiment illustrates a process of presenting a preset list on a UI provided by a print startup application unit included in the device application 1052. In this embodiment, a case where a print instruction is received via a UWP application will be described as an example, but the present embodiment can also be applied to a case where a print instruction is received via a desktop application 201.

[0098] 9, a process when printing is executed from the UWP application 202 will be described. The process described in this embodiment is realized by loading a program recorded in the auxiliary storage device 105 into the RAM 1022 in response to a user instruction and executing it by the CPU 101. Note that the same steps as those already described are given the same numbers as the already described steps, and descriptions will be omitted unless otherwise specified.

[0099] The UWP application 202 receives a print execution instruction from the user on the screen of the UWP application 202 (S901). The UWP application 202 requests the OS 1053 to execute printing (S902).

[0100] The OS 1053 receives a print execution request from the UWP application 202 (S903). The print-time startup application launcher 10533 determines whether a print-time startup application exists in the client computer 100 based on an instruction from the OS 1053 (S904). Specifically, this process is performed based on whether a print-time startup application section 10521 exists in the device application 1052.

[0101] If it is determined that a print-time launch application exists, the print-time launch application launcher 10533 requests the print-time launch application unit 10521 to launch the application (S905). When requesting launch, the print-time launch application launcher 10533 transmits the XPS data generated by the UWP application 202 and the print data of the print ticket to the print-time launch application unit 10521. When the print-time launch application unit 10521 launches, the print-time launch application unit 10521 requests the OS standard print function 10531 to acquire PrintCapabilities (S906). The process of acquiring PrintCapabilities is as described in FIG. 6A.

[0102] The print-time startup application unit 10521 acquires PrintCapabilities from the OS standard print function 10531 (S907). The print-time startup application unit 10521 displays a print-time startup application setting UI 1400 as shown in Fig. 14 (S908). The print-time startup application setting UI 1400 includes a setting area 1401 for setting functions such as a page aggregation function and a stamp printing function supported by the print-time startup application unit 10521.

[0103] The print startup application unit 10521 determines whether or not psk:JobPreset is included in the PrintCapabilities acquired in S907 (S909). If it is determined that psk:JobPreset is included, a preset setting control 1402 as shown in FIG. 14 is displayed on the print startup application setting UI 1400. The preset setting control 1402 lists the character strings of the psk:PresetName property of each Option included in psk:JobPreset. If it is determined that psk:JobPreset is not included in the PrintCapabilities (S909-NO), the preset setting control 1402 is not displayed on the print startup application setting UI 1400.

[0104] When the settings are confirmed on the print-time launch application setting UI 1400 by a user operation, the print-time launch application unit 10521 receives an instruction from the user to press the print button 1403 or the cancel button 1404 (S911). The print-time launch application unit 10521 determines whether the button pressed in S911 is the print button 1403 (S912). If it is determined that the print button has been pressed, the print-time launch application unit 10521 generates a print ticket that reflects the contents set on the print-time launch application setting UI 1400, and updates the print data (S913). At that time, the setting value of the preset setting control 1402 is reflected in psk:JobPreset in the print ticket. The print-time launch application unit 10521 returns the print data updated in S913 to the OS 1053, and requests printing to be executed (S914). The print-time startup application launcher 10533 receives a print execution request together with print data from the print-time startup application unit 10521 (S915), and instructs the OS standard print function 10531 to execute printing (S916). The print execution process in S916 is as described in FIG.

[0105] If the print button has not been pressed (S912-NO), that is, if it is determined that the cancel button 1404 has been pressed, the print start application unit 10521 cancels the print job (S917). After that, the process returns to the print start application launcher 10533, but the print execution process is not performed and the process ends.

[0106] The above is a form in which the preset list is displayed on the UI provided by the print startup application unit.

[0107] [Example 5] The print-time startup application unit 10521 of the device application 1052 can provide functions such as a function for changing the layout, such as page layout printing, in which multiple pages are printed on one sheet of paper, and bookbinding printing, and a function for adding image data such as stamps, by processing the XPS spool file provided by the OS 1053 at the time of printing. However, since the setting values ​​managed in the preset DB 2005 and the functions managed by the device application 1052 are managed by different entities, for example, even if the functions of the printer 200 are available as presets on the modern print dialog, the functions realized by the print-time startup application 10521 must be set separately on the setting screen of the device application (WSDA), which makes the operation cumbersome.

[0108] In view of these problems, this embodiment will explain a method for managing functions realized by the printing startup application 10521 in the print set DB 2005, and a method for registering presets in the printing startup application 10521. Here, it is assumed that, among the functions that can be specified in the preset list information 1700, the printing startup application 10521 has a bookbinding printing function.

[0109] The process when printing is executed from the UWP application 202 will be described with reference to the flowchart in Fig. 10. The process described in this embodiment is realized by loading a program recorded in the auxiliary storage device 105 into the RAM 1022 in response to a user operation, and executing the program by the CPU 101. Note that the same steps as those already described are given the same numbers as the already described steps, and descriptions thereof will be omitted unless otherwise specified.

[0110] The processing of S901 to S905 activates a print-time startup application unit 10521. The print-time startup application unit 10521 acquires a print ticket from the print data received in S905 (S1001). The print-time startup application unit 10521 acquires preset list information 1700 from the printer 200 (S1002). Each piece of preset information in the acquired preset list information 1700 includes a print-time startup application startup setting 1705.

[0111] The print-time startup application unit 10521 determines whether or not the print ticket acquired in S1001 includes psk:JobPreset (S1003). If it is determined in S1003 that psk:JobPreset is included, the print-time startup application unit 10521 acquires the setting contents linked to the psk:PresetID of psk:JobPreset specified in the print ticket from the preset list information acquired in S1002 (S1004). The print-time startup application unit 10521 determines whether or not the value of the print-time startup application startup setting 1705 acquired in S1004 is ON (S1005). If it is determined in S1005 that it is ON, the process executes the processes of S908 and S911 to S917, and then ends the process.

[0112] On the other hand, if it is determined in S1005 that the function is not ON, the print-time start application unit 10521 determines whether or not the function related to the print-time start application unit 10521 is valid among the settings acquired in S1004 (S1006). In this embodiment, assuming that the function related to the print-time start application unit 10521 is bookbinding printing, if the bookbinding printing setting of the print setting information 1703 is ON, it is determined in S1006 that the function related to the print-time start application unit 10521 is valid. If it is determined in S1006 that the function is valid, the print-time start application unit 10521 applies the valid function and updates the print data (S1007). In this embodiment, the print-time start application unit 10521 performs layout processing for bookbinding printing on the print data passed from the print-time start application launcher 10533, and then executes the processes of S914 to S916 and ends the process.

[0113] On the other hand, if it is determined in S1003 that psk:JobPreset is not included, the print startup application unit 10521 determines whether or not the preset list information 1700 acquired in S1002 contains a preregistered preset (S1008). If it is determined in S1008 that a registered preset exists, the process of S914 to S916 is executed, and then the process ends. Here, the registered preset refers to a preset registered via the screen of FIG. 15 described later.

[0114] If it is determined in S1008 that the registered preset does not exist, the print startup application unit 10521 displays a preset registration screen 1530 as shown in FIG. 15D (S1009). The preset registration screen 1530 includes a registered preset list 1521, a preset registration button 1522, a registered preset name 1523, a preset print setting information area 1524, a next time hidden check box 1531, a print button 1532, and a cancel button 1533. If the next time hidden check box 1531 is checked and the print button 1532 is pressed to execute printing, the preset registration screen 1530 will not be displayed the next time printing is performed even if the preset is not registered. When the user registers a preset, the user specifies the preset name to be registered in the registered preset name 1523, specifies the desired print settings in the preset print setting information area 1524, and then presses the preset registration button 1522.

[0115] The print-time startup application unit 10521 receives an instruction from the user to press any one of the preset registration button 1522, the print button 1532, and the cancel button 1533 (S1010). Next, the print-time startup application unit 10521 determines whether the button pressed in S1009 is the preset registration button 1522 (S1011). If it is determined in S1011 that the button is the preset registration button 1522, the print-time startup application unit 10521 transmits a preset registration request to the printer 200 via the device application communication unit 10524 (S1012). At this time, the information specified in the registered preset name 1523 and the preset print setting information area 1524 is transmitted to the printer 200. When the data communication unit 2001 of the printer 200 receives the preset registration request, the specified preset name and print setting information are registered in the preset DB 2005 together with a newly generated unique preset ID via the preset management unit 2004. After the processing in S1012, the process returns to S1010 and continues.

[0116] On the other hand, if it is determined in S1011 that the button is not the preset registration button 1522, the processes in S911 to S917 are executed, and then the process ends.

[0117] The processing of this embodiment makes it possible to generate print data and perform print execution processing using the functions of the device application 1052 and functions managed as presets in the printer 200.

[0118] [Other Examples] The object of the present invention can also be achieved by executing the following process: A storage medium on which program code of software that realizes the functions of the above-mentioned embodiments is stored is supplied to a system or device, and a computer (or a CPU, MPU, etc.) of the system or device reads out the program code stored in the storage medium. In this case, the program code read out from the storage medium itself realizes the functions of the above-mentioned embodiments, and the program code and the storage medium on which the program code is stored constitute the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0119] 100 client computers 200 Printers 1051 App 10531 OS standard printing function 1052 Device Apps

Claims

[Claim 1] an image processing device that executes a printing process; a class driver that converts data to be printed into print data and transmits a print command for executing the print process using a standard function to the image processing device together with the print data; a client device including: A print processing system having: The client device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires print setting information, which is information that specifies print settings of the image processing device, from the image processing device via the class driver; a display means for displaying a print setting screen based on the print setting information acquired by the acquisition means; a transmission means for transmitting the print setting information of the print setting selected by the user on the print setting screen displayed by the display means to the image processing device via the class driver; The image processing device includes: an execution unit that executes the print process based on the print setting information transmitted by the transmission unit,

Images