Printer, client terminal, printing system, and method for controlling these components, and program

Abstract

To allow a user to appropriately set a paper feeding direction and an image rotation angle during IPP printing.SOLUTION: A printer receives a print job in a format according to an Internet printing protocol (IPP) from a client terminal, and performs printing on the basis of the received print job. The printer has: communication means that communicates with the client terminal; control means that causes display means to display a first guide screen presenting the combination of a paper feeding direction and the rotation angle of an image to be printed that may be established in the sheet size of sheets loaded on a paper feeding mechanism; and generation means that generates first information indicating the combination of the paper feeding direction and the rotation angle determined through the first guide screen. The communication means transmits the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a printing system that uses IPP. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, when a print job is input from an information processing device such as a PC or a mobile terminal to a printing device, a printing system that uses a general-purpose printing protocol provided in the OS of the information processing device without going through a dedicated printer driver provided by a vendor has become widespread. IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) is known as an example of a printing protocol (standard protocol) based on a standard in such a general-purpose printing system. In a printing system using this IPP, a PDL (Print Description Language) conforming to IPP, such as PWG-Raster or PDF, is used to instruct a printer to print. In the case of PWG-Raster, for example, the terminal is required to rotate the original image to be printed appropriately according to the paper feed direction that the printer's paper feed tray can support, convert it into a raster image for printing, and send it to the printer. Non-Patent Document 1 specifies a method of constructing database information based on a combination of paper size, paper type, paper feed tray, paper feed direction, and image rotation angle as a printer's capability response, and acquiring the database information from the terminal by IPP. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0003] [Non-Patent Document 1] “PWG5100.7—2023 IPP Job Extensions v2.1”, The Printer Working Group, 2023, p.39 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For example, when printing on an envelope, there are patterns for writing the address side vertically and horizontally, and furthermore, depending on the printer specifications, the envelope may be fed with the flap at the front / rear end or fed from the long side.When there are multiple combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle when printing like this, it was difficult for the user to set the appropriate paper feed direction and image rotation angle for the target printer. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] The printing device of the present disclosure is a printing device that receives a print job in a format conforming to IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) from a client terminal and prints based on the received print job, and is characterized in that it has a communication means for communicating with the client terminal, a control means for causing a display means to display a first guide screen that presents combinations of paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed that can be achieved for the paper size of paper set in a paper feed mechanism, and a generation means for generating first information indicating the combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the first guide screen, and the communication means transmits the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal. Effect of the Invention

[0006] According to the technique of the present disclosure, a user can appropriately set the paper feed direction and image rotation angle when using an IPP printing system. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] A diagram showing an example of the configuration of a printing system using IPP [Diagram 2] Block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the client terminal [Diagram 3] A diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printing device. [Figure 4] A diagram showing the hardware configuration of a printing device. [Diagram 5](a) to (c) are diagrams explaining the flow when feeding and printing on long envelopes from the rear tray. Diagram showing the paper orientation when loading long envelopes in the rear tray. [Figure 6] (a) to (d) are diagrams explaining the process of feeding and printing on a square envelope from the manual feed tray. [Figure 7] A table for explaining combinations of paper feed directions and image rotation angles for common papers. [Figure 8] A table for explaining the combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle for various envelopes. [Figure 9] Example of an IPP Attribute Response Packet for Media Database Information [Figure 10A] An example of an IPP attribute response packet for paper feed completion information [Figure 10B] An example of an IPP attribute response packet for paper feed completion information [Figure 11] A flowchart showing the flow of processing related to setting paper in a target printer when paper is set first. [Figure 12] An example of media database information [Figure 13] (a) and (b) are examples of guide screens for setting the paper feed direction correctly. [Figure 14] A flowchart showing the process flow when making print settings using a driver on a client terminal. [Figure 15] An example of the print settings screen [Figure 16] An example of the print settings screen [Figure 17] A flowchart showing the process flow for setting paper in a target printer when a print job is received. [Figure 18] (a) to (c) are examples of guide screens for properly setting paper in a printing device. [Figure 19] 13 is an example of a response packet for media database information according to the first modification example. [Figure 20] 13 is an example of a packet when transmitting PDL data according to the second modification example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, a mode for carrying out the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings, etc. Note that the following embodiment does not limit the technology of the present disclosure, and all configurations described in the following embodiment are not necessarily essential to the means for solving the problem. [Embodiment 1] <System configuration> Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a printing system using IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) according to this embodiment. The printing system in Fig. 1 is composed of a PC terminal 100 as a client terminal, a mobile terminal 200, a printing device 300 as a printer, a printing device 400, and a communication network 500 that connects these devices. The communication network 500 includes the Internet. The PC terminal 100 communicates with the printing device 300 / 400 via a wired LAN and a router included in the communication network 500. The mobile terminal 200 communicates with the printing device 300 / 400 via a wireless access point included in the communication network 500.

[0009] Printing device 300 has a cassette 310 and a rear tray 312 as a paper feed mechanism, and is capable of feeding envelopes from rear tray 312. Here, the direction in which envelopes can be fed from rear tray 312 is limited to only the short side. On the other hand, printing device 400 has a cassette 410 and a manual feed tray 412 as a paper feed mechanism, and is capable of feeding envelopes from manual feed tray 412. Here, the direction in which envelopes can be fed from manual feed tray 412 is limited to either the short side or the long side.

[0010] When printing using IPP (hereafter referred to as "IPP printing"), the user starts the OS standard print driver of the terminal and acquires information about each printer on the communication network in order to determine the differences in the paper feeding capabilities of the printers as described above. Then, based on the acquired information, the OS standard print driver implements print settings, appropriately rotates the original image to be printed as necessary, generates a raster image for printing, and sends it to the printer.

[0011] In this embodiment, a case will be described in which IPP printing is performed on an envelope that has a flap and can have multiple directions (vertical and horizontal) for addressing, using the printing device 300 or the printing device 400. Note that, although this embodiment will be described taking an example in which IPP is used as the communication protocol, the present invention is not limited to this, and can also be applied to a printing service that uses other general-purpose printing protocols, such as WSD (Web Services on Devices).

[0012] <Hardware configuration> Figures 2 to 4 are diagrams showing examples of the hardware configuration of each device constituting the printing system of Figure 1. The hardware configuration of each device will be described below.

[0013] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a client terminal common to the PC terminal 100 and the mobile terminal 200. The CPU 101 reads out a program from the ROM 102, the internal storage device 104, and the external storage device 105, develops the program in the RAM 103, and controls the operation of the entire terminal via the system bus 109. The ROM 102 stores the control program of the CPU 101, etc. The RAM 103 temporarily stores programs and image data, and provides a work area for high-speed processing of the terminal. The internal storage device 104 and the external storage device 105 store an operating system (OS), various application programs, image data, etc. An OS standard print driver (hereinafter simply referred to as a "driver") is initially installed in the PC terminal 100 and the mobile terminal 200. The operation unit 106 controls, for example, a keyboard or a mouse in the PC terminal 100, or, for example, a touch panel in the mobile terminal 200, to receive instructions from the user. The display unit 107 is a liquid crystal display or the like that presents various information to the user. The communication unit 108 connects to a communication network 500, connects to an Internet provider, and performs data communication with the printing device 300 and the printing device 400. Note that with regard to the connection to the communication network 500 and security, known methods such as mDNS, HTTP, IPP, and TLS are used.

[0014] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printing device 300. The CPU 301 reads out a program from the ROM 302 or the internal storage device 313, expands it in the RAM 303, and controls the operation of the entire printing device 300 via the system bus 315. The ROM 302 stores data such as the control program executed by the CPU 301, data tables, and an embedded operating system (OS) program. The CPU 301 performs software execution control such as scheduling, task switching, and interrupt processing under the management of the embedded OS stored in the ROM 302. The RAM 303 is composed of a static random access memory (SRAM) or the like, and data is held by a primary battery for data backup (not shown). The RAM 303 stores program control variables and the like whose data should not be erased. The image memory 304 is composed of a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or the like, and accumulates image data. A part of the memory is used as a work area for executing software processing. The data conversion unit 305 performs necessary conversion processing on the input image data, such as analyzing the page description language (PDL) and developing character data into CG. Here, the PDL may be any PDL that complies with IPP, such as PWG-Raster, PDF, JPEG, and PCL. Among these PDLs that comply with IPP, there are rotation-compatible types that can include designations regarding image rotation, such as PDF, and rotation-incompatible types that cannot include designations regarding image rotation, such as PWG-Raster. Therefore, if the target printer only supports the latter rotation-incompatible PDL, the terminal side needs to convert the original image into a raster image in a state in which the original image is rotated in an appropriate direction and provide it to the printer. The various processes disclosed in this embodiment are based on the premise that there are two different types of PDL formats used in IPP printing, a rotation-compatible type and a rotation-incompatible type. The reading control unit 306 performs various image processing, such as binarization processing and halftoning processing, on the image signal obtained by the reading unit 308 optically reading the document and converting it into electrical image data, via an image processing control unit (not shown), and outputs high-definition image data.The display operation unit 308 is composed of a minimum number of keys such as numeric input keys, mode setting keys, a decision key, and a cancel key, as well as LEDs (light-emitting diodes) and a 7-segment display, and is used to present information to the user and accept instruction inputs. The print control unit 309 converts the image data to be printed into high-definition image data by performing various image processes such as smoothing, density correction, and color correction via an image processing control unit (not shown), and outputs the image data to the print unit 311. The cassette 310 is composed of one cassette that holds paper of a predetermined size, and feeds paper from the cassette that corresponds to the paper size specified in the print job. The cassette is equipped with a paper presence / absence detection sensor that detects whether paper is loaded or not, and a paper width sensor that detects the width of the loaded paper. The rear tray 312 is also equipped with a paper presence / absence detection sensor and a paper width sensor. Regardless of the paper size, the cassette 310 and the rear tray 312 are limited to feeding paper only from the short side of the paper, and do not support feeding paper from the long side of the paper. Depending on the printer specifications, the rear tray 312 may not have a paper width sensor. In that case, when the paper presence / absence detection sensor detects paper, a list of paper sizes may be displayed on the display operation unit 307, and the user may specify the paper size that the printer has set. The communication control unit 314 connects to the communication network 500 and performs communication control such as connection to an Internet provider. Note that well-known methods such as mDNS, HTTP, IPP, and TLS are used for connection to the communication network 500 and security. The internal storage device 313 is, for example, a HDD, and is used to store size information and image data of paper set in the cassette 310 and rear tray 312.

[0015] 4 is a block diagram showing the hardware configuration of the printing device 400. The printing device 400 and the printing device 300 share much of the same hardware configuration. A description of the common hardware configuration will be omitted, but the main differences are the cassette 410, the manual feed tray 412, and the finishing device 415, which are outlined below.

[0016] The cassette 410 included in the printing apparatus 400 is a multi-stage type composed of a plurality of cassettes, and it is possible to stack sheets of different sizes for each cassette. The manual feed tray 412 is located on the right side surface when viewed from the front of the printing apparatus 400, and is also capable of feeding paper from the long side of the sheet. Feeding paper from each cassette constituting the cassette 410 is only possible from the short side of the sheet and does not support feeding from the long side. On the other hand, the manual feed tray 412 is configured to support both feeding from the long side and feeding from the short side of the sheet. The finishing device 415 is a mechanism that performs finishing processes such as a stapling function, a folding function, and a hole punching function on the printed sheet.

[0017] <Flow of IPP Printing> Next, regarding the flow when performing IPP printing using the PWG-Raster format in the PDL, taking the case of printing an address on an envelope as an example, each of the printing apparatus 300 and the printing apparatus 400 will be described.

[0018] ≪Case of Printing Apparatus 300≫ Figures 5(a) to (c) are diagrams showing possible patterns when feeding and printing a long-size No. 4 envelope from the rear tray 312 of the printing apparatus 300. As described above, the paper feeding direction when using the rear tray 312 of the printing apparatus 300 is limited to only the short side. And when printing an envelope, the paper feeding direction is further limited with respect to the flap portion as well, as shown in Figures 5(a) to (c). That is, it does not support feeding with the flap portion of the envelope as the leading edge of the sheet, and the user needs to set the envelope so that the flap portion of the envelope is located at the rear end with respect to the rear tray 312.

[0019] FIG. 5(a) is a diagram showing the printing flow when the addressee is written vertically on the front side of the envelope. The original image of the character string that is the addressee is portrait. Then, the driver of the terminal needs to rotate the original image to the appropriate orientation (i.e., the orientation in which the characters face forward when the flap part of the envelope is facing up), convert it into a raster image, and send it to the printing device 300. Now, since it is necessary to feed the envelope so that the flap part of the envelope is always located at the rear end relative to the rear tray 312, the driver rotates the portrait original image 180 degrees and sends the PDL data of the portrait raster image that is inverted upside down to the printing device 300. Then, the user sets the envelope in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300 so that the flap part is at the rear end. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the rear tray 312 and the orientation of the raster image are in the correct relationship, and the printing result as intended by the user can be obtained.

[0020] FIG. 5B is a diagram showing the printing flow when the address is written horizontally on the front of the envelope and the flap part of the envelope faces left when the printed address is viewed from the front. The original image of the character string that is the address is landscape. The driver of the terminal must rotate the original image to the appropriate orientation (i.e., the orientation in which the characters are tilted 90 degrees clockwise with the envelope flap part facing up), convert it into a raster image, and send it to the printing device 300. Since the envelope needs to be fed so that the flap part is always located at the rear end relative to the rear tray 312, the driver sends PDL data of a portrait raster image obtained by rotating the landscape original image 90 degrees to the left to the printing device 300. The user then sets the envelope in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300 so that the flap part is at the rear end. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the rear tray 312 and the orientation of the raster image are in the correct relationship, and the printing result as intended by the user can be obtained.

[0021] FIG. 5(c) is a diagram showing a printing flow in the case where an address is written horizontally on the front of an envelope and the flap part of the envelope faces the right side when the printed address is viewed upright. The original image of the character string that is the address is landscape. The driver of the terminal must rotate the original image to an appropriate orientation (i.e., an orientation in which the characters are tilted 90 degrees counterclockwise with the envelope flap part facing up), convert it into a raster image, and send it to the printing device 300. Since the envelope needs to be fed so that the flap part is always located at the rear end relative to the rear tray 312, the driver sends PDL data of a portrait raster image obtained by rotating the landscape original image 90 degrees to the right to the printing device 300. The user then sets the envelope in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300 so that the flap part is at the rear end. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the rear tray 312 and the orientation of the raster image are in a correct relationship, and the printing result as intended by the user can be obtained.

[0022] As described above, in any of the patterns in Fig. 5(a) to (c), the orientation of the raster image of the PDL data received by the printing device 300 will be portrait. The IPP layer does not contain information that allows the driver to understand how the original image has been rotated. Therefore, the driver of the terminal writes information on the paper feed direction and image rotation angle into the header information of the PDL data and sends it. Based on the header information of the received PDL data, the printing device 300 determines which of the cases in Fig. 5(a) to (c) applies in order to print in the correct orientation, and then prints.

[0023] <In the case of the printing device 400> 6(a) to 6(d) are diagrams showing possible patterns when feeding and printing on a square No. 2 envelope from the manual feed tray 312 of the printer 400. As described above, when using the manual feed tray 412 of the printer 400, the paper can be fed from either the short side or the long side. Also, the envelope can be fed with its flap portion positioned at the leading edge of the manual feed tray 412, or discharged with its flap portion positioned at the trailing edge. Here, only the case where the original image of the addressee's character string is portrait is described, but printing is done according to a similar concept when the original image is landscape.

[0024] FIG. 6(a) shows a printing flow in which an envelope is fed from the short side of the envelope with the flap part at the rear end to the manual feed tray 412 while the flap part of the envelope is on top when the printed addressee is viewed from the front. The original image of the character string that is the addressee is portrait. The driver of the terminal must rotate the original image to an appropriate orientation (i.e., an orientation in which the characters face forward with the envelope flap part facing up), convert it into a raster image, and send it to the printing device 300. In order to feed the envelope with the flap part at the rear end to the manual feed tray 412, the driver rotates the portrait original image 180 degrees and inverts it upside down, and sends PDL data of a portrait raster image to the printing device 400. The user then sets the envelope in the manual feed tray 412 of the printing device 400 with the flap part at the rear end. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the manual feed tray 412 and the orientation of the raster image are in a correct relationship, and the printing result as intended by the user can be obtained.

[0025] FIG. 6B shows a printing flow in which an envelope is fed from the short side of the envelope to the manual feed tray 412 with the flap part at the leading edge while the flap part of the envelope is placed on top when the printed addressee is viewed from the front. In order to feed the envelope to the manual feed tray 412 with the flap part at the leading edge, the driver converts the portrait original image as it is (image rotation angle: 0 degrees) into a raster image and sends the PDL data to the printing device 400. Then, the user sets the envelope to the manual feed tray 412 of the printing device 400 with the flap part at the leading edge. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the manual feed tray 412 and the orientation of the raster image are in a correct relationship, and the printing result is as intended by the user. Note that, unlike the case of FIG. 6A, an offset occurs in the printing start position of the original image by the width of the flap part. Therefore, the flap part may be printed by folding it inward.

[0026] 6C shows the flow of printing when the flap part of the envelope is on the top when the printed addressee is viewed from the front, and the envelope is fed into the manual feed tray 412 from the long side with the flap part on the right side of the feed direction. In this case, the envelope is fed so that the flap part is on the top with respect to the feed direction going to the left in the drawing, so the driver sends PDL data of a landscape raster image in which the portrait original image is rotated 90 degrees to the right to the printing device 400. Then, the user sets the envelope in the manual feed tray 412 of the printing device 400 with the flap part on the right side of the feed direction. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the manual feed tray 412 and the orientation of the raster image are in a correct relationship, and the print result is obtained as intended by the user.

[0027] 6(d) shows the flow of printing when the long side of the envelope is fed into the manual feed tray 412 with the flap part facing left in the paper feed direction, with the flap part facing up when the printed addressee is viewed from the front. In this case, the envelope is fed with the flap part facing down in the paper feed direction going to the left in the drawing, so the driver sends PDL data of a landscape raster image in which the portrait original image is rotated 90 degrees to the left to the printer 400. Then, the user sets the envelope in the manual feed tray 412 of the printer 400 with the flap part facing left in the paper feed direction. As a result, the orientation of the envelope fed from the manual feed tray 412 and the orientation of the raster image are in a correct relationship, and the print result is as intended by the user.

[0028] <Operating conditions when printing> Figures 7 and 8 are tables summarizing the operating conditions when printing in the printing device 300 / 400. Figure 7 is a table for A4 and Letter, which are representative examples of common paper, and Figure 8 is a table for Nagagata No. 4, Kakugata No. 2, and DL, which are representative examples of envelopes. In the tables of Figures 7 and 8, a "◯" mark indicates compatibility, and a "X" mark indicates incompatibility. Based on the combinations of compatible items shown in these tables, media database information, which will be described later, is generated.

[0029] First, the four items included in the tables of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, "paper feed mechanism," "original image orientation," "paper feed direction," and "image rotation angle," will be described.

[0030] "Paper feed mechanism" indicates the contents of the paper feed means equipped in each printer, and it is shown that printing device 300 has cassette 310 and rear tray 312, and printing device 400 has cassette 410 and manual feed tray 412. Note that, since the paper feed tray (rear tray 312 or manual feed tray 412) is used exclusively when printing on envelopes, the cassette is omitted from the table in Fig. 8 as a "paper feed mechanism."

[0031] "Original image orientation" indicates the orientation of the original image referenced as the file to be printed on the print settings screen that is displayed when the driver is started, and can take the value "Portrait" or "Landscape". For example, if the file to be printed is a photograph, and the user selects "Landscape" on the print settings screen, the original image of the photograph is previewed in landscape orientation. In this case, if the orientation of the original image is initially saved as "Portrait", and "Landscape" is selected on the print settings screen, the image will be rotated 90 degrees to the left when previewed.

[0032] "Feed direction" indicates the orientation in which paper or envelopes are fed, depending on the printer's paper feeding mechanism, and can take the values ​​"short-edge-first" or "long-edge-first".

[0033] "Image rotation angle" indicates the image rotation angle when PDL data is sent from the terminal in a non-rotation-compatible PDL format (e.g. PWG-Raster). Possible attribute values ​​are 0 degrees (portrait), 180 degrees (reverse-portrait), 90 degrees left (landscape), and 90 degrees right (reverse-landscape).

[0034] <For A4 or Letter> When printing on "A4" or "Letter" paper, once the "original image orientation" is determined for either the cassette 310 or rear tray 312 of the printing device 300, one combination of "paper feed direction" and "image rotation angle" is determined. For example, when the paper used is "A4" and the "original image orientation" is "landscape," the rear tray 312 only supports paper feeding from the short side (see FIG. 7). Therefore, the "image rotation angle" at this time is determined to be one, "90 degrees left" (see FIG. 7).

[0035] The same is true for the printing device 400, and for both the cassette 410 and the manual feed tray 412, when the paper size is "A4" or "Letter", once the "original image orientation" is determined, one combination of "paper feed direction" and "image rotation angle" is determined. For example, when the paper used is "A4" and the "original image orientation" is "landscape", the manual feed tray 412 only supports paper feeding from the long side (see FIG. 7). Therefore, the "image rotation angle" in this case is determined to be one, "0 degrees".

[0036] <In the case of an envelope> When printing on a "long envelope No. 4", "square envelope No. 2", or "DL envelope", both printing device 300 and printing device 400 determine the "original image orientation", but this does not necessarily mean that there is only one combination of "paper feed direction" and "image rotation angle". In this embodiment, there are three possible combinations for printing device 300:

[0037] 1) Original image orientation: portrait, short edge first, rotation angle: 180 degrees 2) Original image orientation: landscape, short edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees left 3) Original image orientation: landscape, short edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees to the right In the case of the printing device 400, the following eight combinations exist.

[0038] 1) Original image orientation: portrait, short edge first, rotation angle: 180 degrees 2) Original image orientation: portrait, short edge first, rotation angle: 0 degrees 3) Original image orientation: portrait, long edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees to the right 4) Original image orientation: portrait, long edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees left 5) Original image orientation: landscape, short edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees left 6) Original image orientation: landscape, short edge first, rotation angle: 90 degrees to the right 7) Original image orientation: landscape, long edge first, rotation angle: 0 degrees 8) Original image orientation: landscape, long edge first, rotation angle: 180 degrees For example, consider the case of printing on a No. 4 long envelope using rear tray 312 of printing device 300. In this case, even if the "original image orientation" is determined to be "landscape" and the "paper feed direction" is determined to be "paper feed from the short side," there are still two possibilities for the "image rotation angle," namely, "90 degrees to the left" and "90 degrees to the right." This means that when the driver generates a print job in a format that complies with IPP, even if the "paper size," "paper feed mechanism," "original image orientation," and "paper feed direction" are all determined, the "image rotation angle" cannot be narrowed down to one.

[0039] <Printer capability response> Next, a packet when the printing device 300 / 400 responds with its capabilities will be described. FIG. 9 shows an example of an IPP attribute response packet for media database information of the printing device 300, with a portion of the packet excerpted. FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B show an example of an IPP attribute response packet for paper feed completion information of the printing device 300. In IPP, two attributes, media database (media-col-database) and paper feed completion (media-col-ready), are defined. In each attribute, a media supply property (media-source-properties) attribute is defined. Furthermore, the media supply property attributes include a paper feed direction (media-source-feed-direction) attribute and an image rotation (media-source-feed-orientation) attribute. In this case, the attribute value that the paper feed direction attribute can take is "long edge (long-edge-first)" or "short edge (short-edge-first)". Also, the image rotation attribute can have the following attribute values: "0 degrees (portrait)", "180 degrees (reverse-portrait)", "90 degrees left (landscape)", and "90 degrees right (reverse-landscape)".

[0040] The capability response of the media database information using the response packet shown in FIG. 9 is made regardless of whether paper is actually set in the paper feed mechanism. Therefore, it can be said to be a static database information response. In contrast, the capability response of the paper feed completion information using the response packet shown in FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B is made by extracting the type and size of paper actually set in the paper feed mechanism, and the paper feed direction and image rotation angle corresponding to the set paper. Therefore, it can be said to be a dynamic database information response. The description contents of the paper feed completion information are usually a narrowed-down version of the description contents of the media database information.

[0041] <<Media database information response packet>> In the example of the media database information response packet in FIG. 9, only the information about the No. 4 envelope and A4 from the rear tray 312 is described, and the remaining description is omitted. Looking at the description about the No. 4 envelope, the attribute value of the feed direction (media-source-feed-direction) in the media supply properties (media-source-properties) is only "Short-Edge-First". This is consistent with the contents described in the table in FIG. 7 above. Meanwhile, the attribute values ​​of the image rotation (media-source-feed-orientation) in the media supply properties (media-source-properties) are described as "reverse-portrait(6)", "landscape(4)", and "reverse-landscape(5)". This also matches the contents described in the table in FIG. 7 above. The values ​​in parentheses are values ​​that correspond one-to-one with the respective contents, as defined in the IPP specifications of the PWG standard.

[0042] <Paper feed completion information response packet> The difference between the response packet shown in FIG. 10A and the response packet shown in FIG. 10B is whether a No. 4 long envelope is set in the rear tray 312 when the ability response for the paper feed completion information is performed. In the example of the response packet shown in FIG. 10A, the attribute value of the paper feed direction (media-source-feed-direction) is only "Short-Edge-First", and the attribute value of the image rotation (media-source-feed-orientation) is also only "reverse-portrait". That is, the combination of the paper feed direction and the image rotation angle is limited to one. On the other hand, in the example of the response packet shown in FIG. 10B, it cannot be limited to one in this way. First, regarding the attribute value of the paper feed direction (media-source-feed-direction), it is also only "Short-Edge-First". However, the attribute values of the image rotation (media-source-feed-orientation) are described as three, namely "reverse-portrait", "landscape", and "reverse-landscape". That is, for the ability response when the print job has been sent but a No. 4 long envelope has not yet been set in the rear tray 312, there are multiple possible combinations of the paper feed direction and the image rotation angle.

[0043] <IPP Print Processing Flow> When actually performing IPP printing, there are cases where paper is set in the target printer first and then the driver instructs printing, and cases where the driver instructs printing first and then paper is set in the target printer. Hereinafter, the processing flows of each case will be described.

[0044] ≪Case of Setting Paper First and Then Giving a Print Instruction≫ 11 is a flowchart showing the process flow for setting paper in the target printer when paper is set prior to sending a print job. This flow is realized by CPU 301 / 401 of printing device 300 / 400 reading a specific program from ROM 302 / 402, expanding it in RAM 303 / 403, and executing it. In the following explanation, the symbol "S" means a step. In the following explanation, rear tray 312 of printing device 300 and manual tray 412 of printing device 400 are collectively referred to as "paper feed trays."

[0045] In S1101, a paper presence / absence detection sensor detects that paper has been set in a cassette or paper feed tray, which is a paper feed mechanism.

[0046] In S1102, the width of the set paper is detected by a paper width sensor in the paper feed mechanism that has detected that paper has been set.

[0047] In S1103, it is determined whether there are multiple paper size candidates that the device can handle based on the detected paper width. For example, since the short side of A4 and the long side of A5 are the same, 210 mm, when the detected paper width is 210 mm, there is a possibility that A5 paper is set from the long side and a possibility that A4 paper is set from the short side, and there are multiple paper size candidates. In this way, both cases are assumed, where the long side is placed against the paper width sensor and where the short side is placed against the paper width sensor, and if it is not possible to determine which case it is based on the detected paper width alone, the process transitions to S1104. On the other hand, if there is only one paper size that can be inferred from the detected paper width (for example, if the paper width is 216 mm, there is no candidate other than letter size), the process transitions to S1105. In addition, in the case of a specification in which the paper feed direction is limited to only the short side, such as the printing device 300 of this embodiment, for example, it is possible to clearly indicate on the paper feed tray itself that the paper feed direction is only the short side, and in this step, the judgment can be made by excluding the paper width when paper is fed from the long side.

[0048] In S1104, a selection screen is displayed that allows the user to select the size (=paper orientation) of the actually loaded paper from among the paper size candidates estimated from the detected paper width. Here, the printing device 300 of this embodiment does not support paper feeding from the long side. In such a case, a warning mark "!" may be displayed together with the paper size that corresponds to paper feeding from the long side. Then, if the user selects an incompatible paper size regardless of the warning, a message such as "The paper size is invalid. Please load the paper in the correct orientation" may be displayed. When the selection of a compatible paper size from the paper size candidates is accepted, the process transitions to S1105.

[0049] In S1105, the media database information is referenced to obtain media information that matches the size of the paper that has been set. Here, the media database information is generated and initialized, for example, when the printer is turned on, and is stored in advance in the internal storage device 313. FIG. 12 shows an example of the media database information of the printing device 300. For each paper size that the printing device 300 can handle, information on the paper width, paper length, paper feed mechanism, paper feed direction, image rotation angle, and paper type is specified. Here, the reason why "plain paper" is registered in addition to "envelope" as the paper type for long-form No. 4 is to take into consideration the convenience of the user when printing an envelope. Also, depending on the OS, "envelope" may not be handled as a type of paper type, and in this case, "plain paper" may also be registered as the paper type for the envelope. Now, if a long-form No. 4 envelope is set in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300, a search is performed for "paper size = long-form No. 4" in the media database information of FIG. 12, and records No. 1 to No. 6 are extracted.

[0050] In S1106, the content of the next guide screen display to be executed is determined based on the record extracted from the media database information in S1105. Specifically, if there are multiple possible "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" identified from the extracted record, the process transitions to S1107, and if there is only one combination, the process transitions to S1108. In the case where a No. 4 long envelope is set in rear tray 312 of printing device 300 described above, the following three combinations exist, so the process transitions to S1107.

[0051] Combination 1: Feed direction=short-edge-first Rotation angle=reverse-portrait Combination 2: Feed direction=short-edge-first Rotation angle=landscape Combination 3: Feed direction=short-edge-first Rotation angle=reverse-landscape In S1107, a guide screen for correctly setting the paper feed direction and the image rotation angle is displayed on the operation display unit of the target printer, with multiple possible "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" as options. FIG. 13(a) is a diagram showing an example of a guide screen for correctly setting the combination of the paper feed direction and the image rotation angle, including the orientation of the flap part of the envelope, from the above-mentioned three combinations. In the guide screen of FIG. 13(a), a thick arrow 1300 indicates the direction (paper feed direction) when setting the paper. The user can operate the left and right arrow buttons 1301 on the guide screen to move the dashed frame 1302, and select the intended "combination of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" from the options. In the guide screen of FIG. 13(a), the alphabets "P" and "L" in each picture imitating an envelope are the initials of "Portrait" meaning vertically long and "Landscape" meaning horizontally long, respectively. The image rotation angle in each option is represented by the orientation of these alphabet letters on the screen. Note that as long as the user can understand the requested image rotation angle, the image may be expressed by illustrations imitating sentences or landscapes instead of the initial letters of the alphabet. When the user has finished making the selection and presses the OK button 1303 in the guide screen, the process transitions to S1109.

[0052] In S1108, a guide screen for correctly setting the paper feed direction and image rotation angle according to one possible "combination of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" is displayed on the operation display unit of the target printer. FIG. 13(b) is an example of a guide screen for correctly setting the paper feed direction including the orientation of the flap portion of the envelope. If there is only one combination of paper feed direction and image rotation angle, a guide screen showing the appropriate paper feed direction is displayed. When the user confirms that the paper is set correctly and presses the OK button 1304, the process transitions to S1109. On the other hand, if the user presses the Cancel button 1305, this process is interrupted.

[0053] In S1109, paper feed completion information is generated based on a user operation (selection operation or confirmation operation) received via the operation display unit. If a guide screen with options is displayed, the selection value based on the user's selection operation is obtained, and paper feed completion information is generated by narrowing down the description content of the media database information. In the example of the guide screen shown in FIG. 13(a) above, the dashed frame 1302 is located in a position that surrounds the central envelope design. If the OK button 1303 is pressed in this state, paper feed completion information is generated that has been narrowed down to "Combination 2" from the above-mentioned "Combination 1 to Combination 3".

[0054] The above is the content of the process in the target printer when paper is set first.

[0055] Next, the print setting when a print instruction is given from the terminal to the target printer will be described. FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the flow of processing when the print setting is performed by the driver of the PC terminal 100 or the mobile terminal 200. Prior to the start of this flow, the driver detects surrounding printers by mDNS via the communication network 500 and performs the initial settings required to use the detected printer. Specifically, the above-mentioned media database information response packet is acquired, an instance of a print icon, and IPP port information and print property information for OS standard printing are registered. The acquired media database information is stored and held in the internal storage device 104. This flow is realized by the CPU 101 of the PC terminal 100 / mobile terminal 200 reading a predetermined program from the ROM 102, expanding it in the RAM 103, and executing it. In the following description, the symbol "S" means a step.

[0056] In S1401, the driver is started, and a print setting screen is displayed on the display unit 107, which allows the user to give a print instruction for a document file created by a word processing / image editing application or the like.

[0057] In S1402, the latest information for using the target printer is acquired by IPP communication via communication network 500. Specifically, in order to acquire a capability response regarding the presence or absence of paper loaded in the detected printer, the response packet of the above-mentioned paper feed completion information is acquired.

[0058] In S1403, it is determined whether or not the paper feed completion information was successfully acquired from the target printer. For example, if a response packet for the paper feed completion information was requested but IPP communication failed, or if paper was not set and the paper feed completion information was empty, it is determined that the paper feed completion information acquisition failed. If paper is set in the target printer and the paper feed completion information acquisition was successful, the process transitions to S1404, and if it was unsuccessful, the process transitions to S1405.

[0059] In S1404, the obtained paper feed completion information is referenced, and in S1405, media database information stored and held in advance is referenced.

[0060] If the PDL type available on the target printer is a rotation-incompatible type such as PWG-Raster, then as described above, the terminal must rotate the original image to an appropriate orientation, convert it to a raster image, and then transmit the PDL data. Therefore, in S1406, the next process to be executed is determined based on whether the PDL type available on the target printer is a rotation-compatible or rotation-incompatible PDL. If the PDL type available on the target printer is a rotation-incompatible PDL, the process transitions to S1407. On the other hand, if the PDL type available on the target printer is a rotation-compatible PDL, the process transitions to S1409.

[0061] In S1407, it is determined whether there are multiple possible "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" based on the paper feed completion information referenced in S1404 or the media database information referenced in S1405. When the determination is made based on the paper feed completion information, the number of possible "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" for the paper size detected in the target printer is counted. If the result of the determination is that there are two or more possible "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle", the process transitions to S1408, and if there is only one, the process transitions to S1409.

[0062] In S1408, options for a given item in the currently displayed print setting screen are displayed based on two or more possible combinations. Specifically, options for each item such as "print orientation" and "image rotation angle" are displayed based on the setting value selected / input by the user and the paper feed completion information or media database information acquired from the target printer.

[0063] In S1409, the setting value for each item is acquired, and a preview image generated based on the setting value is displayed. The user can visually check whether the paper feed direction and image rotation angle are correct from the displayed preview image. If there is no problem after checking the preview image, the user completes the print settings by pressing an OK button (not shown), and then presses a print execution button (not shown). This causes a print job to be sent from the terminal to the target printer. Note that the configuration may be such that only printers that support non-rotation-compatible PDLs are detected prior to S1401, and the processing of S1406 is omitted.

[0064] The above is the content of the print setting process when a print instruction is given from a terminal to a target printer in which paper is set. A more detailed explanation will now be given with a concrete example.

[0065] FIG. 15 is an example of a print setting screen in the case where the PDL type is PWG-Raster and a No. 4 envelope is set in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300 prior to a print instruction. In this case, it is assumed that no paper is set in the cassette 310. The setting value of the item "paper size" is "No. 4" and the setting value of the item "original image orientation" is "Landscape". The "original image orientation" may be automatically set based on the image analysis results of the driver or upper application. Then, the preview area 1501 displays a preview image according to the setting value of the item "original image orientation" of "Landscape". In this example, the "combination of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" corresponding to "No. 4" is narrowed down to the above-mentioned "combination 2" using the paper feed completion information acquired from the printing device 300. As a result, the setting value of the item "print orientation" is automatically determined to be "from the short side (rotated 90 degrees left)". The setting value of the item "feed mechanism", "rear tray", is also automatically determined by the paper feed completion information. Furthermore, a preview image visually showing how to set paper in the "rear tray" is generated based on the result of the above narrowing down and displayed in the preview area 1501. In this example, the narrowed down image rotation angle (90 degrees left) is expressed by the orientation of the alphabet "L" representing "Landscape", but it may be expressed by the orientation of, for example, a text or an illustration imitating a landscape. Even if the user does not understand the meaning of each item of the print settings, the auxiliary information displayed in the preview area allows the user to visually grasp the relative positional relationship of the original image with respect to the paper feed tray, and to easily check whether the paper has been fed correctly. Note that the preview image does not necessarily have to be displayed within the print settings screen, and may be displayed in a separate window, for example. In the specific example of FIG. 15, the user only needs to select the setting values ​​of two items, "paper size" and "original image orientation", on the print settings screen, and the setting value of the item "print orientation" is automatically determined.In other words, the system prevents the user from mistakenly selecting a paper feed direction or image rotation angle that is not supported by rear tray 312 of printing device 300, thereby preventing printing errors related to paper feed direction and image rotation angle.

[0066] <The case where you give print instructions first and then load the paper later> The flow when making print settings in the driver of the terminal and issuing a print instruction to the target printer is as shown in the flowchart in Figure 14 above. Therefore, the following explanation will focus on the differences when making print settings in the driver of the terminal before loading paper into the target printer. Here, we will explain an example of printing on a square No. 2 envelope using the manual feed tray 412 of the printing device 400 after making print settings in the driver and sending PWG-Raster PDL data. Since the manual feed tray is generally not a paper feed type that can hold a large amount of paper, a user who wants to perform IPP printing from a remote terminal will load paper into the manual feed tray after making the necessary print settings and sending a print instruction.

[0067] FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of the display state of the print setting screen in this case. Now, in the initial print setting screen displayed when the driver of the terminal is started, the user has selected "square No. 2" as the setting value of the item "paper size". And, no paper is set in the cassette 410 and the manual feed tray 412 of the printing device 400. Therefore, acquisition of the paper feed completion information fails (No in S1403), and options are displayed for the predetermined items based on the media database information (S1405, Yes in S1406, Yes in S1407, S1408). That is, "portrait" and "landscape" are displayed as options for the item "image orientation", and "cassette" and "manual feed tray" are displayed as options for the item "paper feed mechanism" in a pull-down menu. Furthermore, when the paper feed direction is from the long side, the image rotation angle is either 90 degrees left or 90 degrees right, and when the paper feed direction is from the short side, the image rotation angle is either 180 degrees or 0 degrees. Therefore, these four options are displayed in a pull-down menu as choices for the item "Print orientation." The user's selections of "Manual Feed Tray," "Portrait," and "From Long Side (Rotate 90° Right)" are highlighted, and a preview image reflecting these user selections is displayed in preview area 1601. The user can refer to the displayed preview image to properly place a square No. 2 envelope in manual feed tray 412.

[0068] <Printer behavior when receiving a print job> Next, the process flow for loading paper in the target printer when a print job is received from a terminal will be described with reference to the flowchart in Fig. 17. The flow in Fig. 17 is realized by the CPU 301 / 401 of the printing device 300 / 400 reading a specific program from the ROM 302 / 402, expanding it in the RAM 303 / 403, and executing it. In the following explanation, the symbol "S" means a step.

[0069] In S1701, a print job (Create-Job command) sent by the terminal is received by the communications control unit 314 / 414. As a result, a job ID is issued and returned to the terminal that sent the print job.

[0070] In S1702, the IPP attributes of the received print job are obtained. The IPP attributes include information such as paper size, paper type, PDL type, paper feed mechanism, double-sided / single-sided printing, etc. Whether information on the image rotation angle is included in the IPP attributes depends on the driver, and may or may not be included.

[0071] In S1703, the PDL data associated with the above-mentioned job ID and transmitted by the terminal is received by the communication control unit 314 / 414.

[0072] In S1704, header information of the received PDL data is obtained. The header information contains a LeadingEdge attribute indicating the page feed direction and an Orientation attribute indicating the image rotation angle. These two attributes correspond to the above-mentioned media-source-feed-direction attribute and media-source-feed-orientation attribute in the IPP attributes, respectively. In other words, the attribute values ​​of the LeadingEdge attribute and Orientation attribute described in the header information are the same as the possible values ​​of the above-mentioned two attributes in the IPP attributes. More reliable information on the image rotation angle can be obtained from the attribute value of the Orientation attribute described in the header information.

[0073] In S1705, information indicating the setting status of paper in the paper feed mechanism is obtained. For example, based on the paper size indicated by the IPP attribute of the print job and the attribute values ​​of the above two attributes in the header information of the PDL data, paper feed completion information stored in the RAM 303 / 403 is searched for. Alternatively, the output values ​​(detection results) of the paper presence / absence detection sensor and the paper width sensor provided in each paper feed mechanism are obtained.

[0074] In S1706, based on the information indicating the paper setting status acquired in S1705, it is determined whether paper of the same size as the paper size specified in the print job (paper size indicated by the IPP attributes) is already set in a specified paper feed mechanism. Here, "specified paper feed mechanism" means a specific cassette or paper feed tray specified in the print job, or a cassette or paper feed tray that meets the conditions when the paper feed destination is specified as "automatic" in the print job. If paper of the specified paper size is set in the specified paper feed mechanism, the process transitions to S1707, and if it is not set, the process transitions to S1709.

[0075] In S1707, the media database information is used to search whether there are multiple "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle" that can be achieved for the paper size specified in the print job.

[0076] In S1708, it is determined whether or not to display the guide screen based on the search result in S1707. If there are two or more "combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle", the process proceeds to S1709 to display the guide screen. On the other hand, if there is only one "combination of paper feed direction and image rotation angle", it is determined that the paper is set properly, so it is determined that there is no need to display the guide screen, and the process ends without proceeding to S1709. A specific example of a case in which the guide screen is not displayed is when a No. 4 long envelope is set in the rear tray 312 of the printing device 300 so that it is fed from the short side, and then a print instruction is issued from the terminal specifying an image rotation angle of "180°". This is because when an envelope has already been set in the rear tray 312 from the short side (detected in S1706), there is only one valid image rotation angle, "180°" (see the table in FIG. 8 above).

[0077] In step S1709, a guide screen is displayed that visually shows an appropriate paper feeding method according to the current paper setting situation. A specific example of the guide screen that is displayed is shown below.

[0078] <<Example of the guide screen displayed when the paper size specified in the print job has not been loaded (paper will be loaded later) (1)>> For example, suppose that a print instruction is given to the printing device 400 specifying the paper size as "square No. 2", the paper feed mechanism as "manual feed tray", the paper feed direction as "feed from long edge", and the image rotation angle as "90 degrees to the right", but an envelope has not yet been set in the manual feed tray 412. In this case, a guide screen as shown in FIG. 18A is generated and displayed based on information grasped from the IPP attributes of the print job and the header information of the PDL data (No in S1706, S1709). Now, the paper size is specified as "square No. 2" and the paper feed mechanism as "manual feed tray" in the IPP attributes. Then, "long-edge-first" is written as the value of the LeadingEdge attribute in the header information, and "portrait" is written as the value of the Orientation attribute. Based on this information, the printing device 400 generates and displays a guide screen as shown in FIG. 18A, which encourages the user to set a square No. 2 envelope in the manual feed tray from the long edge. At this time, the orientation of the letter "P" on the image of a square No. 2 envelope drawn on the guide screen indicates that the raster image (portrait) to be printed will be rotated 90 degrees to the right. When the sensor detects that the paper has been set according to the guide screen, printing according to the print job and PDL data begins. In this way, by presenting the relative positional relationship between the paper feed tray, the orientation of the paper icon, and the image rotation angle to the user as auxiliary information, it becomes possible to print in the correct direction. Note that the guide screen in FIG. 18(a) may further include information indicating the position of the flap, which can be inferred from the paper size, paper feed direction, and image rotation angle.

[0079] <<Example of the guide screen when the paper size specified in the job has not been loaded (paper will be loaded later) (2)>> As mentioned above, the Orientation attribute in the header information is not always written in. Therefore, if the value of the LeadingEdge attribute can be obtained from the header information but the value of the Orientation attribute cannot be obtained, a guide screen with an envelope-like image without superimposed text, as shown in Figure 18(b), can be displayed.

[0080] <<Example of the guide screen when the paper size specified in the job has already been loaded (paper has been loaded first)>> For example, suppose that a print instruction is given to the printing device 300 specifying the paper size as "No. 4 long," the paper feed direction as "feed from short side," and the image rotation angle as "90° left," and a No. 4 long envelope is set in the rear tray 312 so that it is fed from the short side. In this case, it can be determined in S1706 that a No. 4 long envelope has already been set in the rear tray 312 from the short side. In this case, the rotation angle of the raster image has three possibilities: 180° if the original image is portrait, and 90° left or 90° right if the original image is landscape (see the table in FIG. 8 described above). Therefore, a guide screen is generated and displayed to prompt the user to confirm whether a print job and PDL data specifying an image rotation angle that matches the orientation of the paper that has already been set have been generated and transmitted (Yes in S1706, Yes in S1708, S1709). FIG. 18C is an example of a guide screen with a message prompting the user to make a confirmation. If the user has generated and sent the appropriate print job and PDL data, the user presses an OK button 1801, which starts printing according to the print job and PDL data. On the other hand, if the user presses a Cancel button 1802, the printing is interrupted.

[0081] The above is the flow of processing related to the setting of paper in the target printer when a print job is received.

[0082] <Variation 1> For example, some printer models cannot print envelopes unless the flap is fed at the rear end (see FIG. 5(a) above). In the print setting screen for IPP printing using such a printer, it is desirable to set the default setting value to rotate the raster image 180 degrees, but there is no clear rule in IPP. Therefore, a feed angle default attribute ("media-source-feed-orientation-default") is provided as one of the attributes of the media supply properties (media-source-properties) of the media database information, and a response is made. FIG. 19 shows an example of a response packet for media database information according to this modification. In the response packet shown in FIG. 19, "media-source-feed-orientation-default" is added directly under "media-source-feed-orientation" in "media-source-properties", and its value is set to "6". The driver of the terminal may refer to the value of the paper feed angle default attribute of such a received response packet to display "From the short side (rotated 180 degrees)" as the default value of the item "Print orientation" on the print setting screen when printing on an envelope. Alternatively, when displaying options for the item "Print orientation" on the print setting screen (S1409 in the flow of FIG. 14), "From the short side (rotated 180 degrees)" may be displayed at the top, and "From the short side (rotated 180 degrees)" may be selected as the default setting unless it is changed.

[0083] <Variation 2> In the above embodiment, the printer that receives the print job acquires the values ​​of the LeadingEdge attribute and the Orientation attribute from the header information of the PDL data, and generates and displays a guide screen according to the situation at the time of reception (see FIG. 17). At this time, the guide screen may be displayed only when it is confirmed that the values ​​of the LeadingEdge attribute and the Orientation attribute included in the header information of the PDL data are reliable. As a specific method, for example, flag information indicating the reliability of the above two attribute values ​​is added separately when transmitting the PDL data. Then, the printer side controls the display of the guide screen only when it is confirmed that the reliability of the above two attribute values ​​is high based on the flag information. FIG. 20 is an example of a packet when transmitting PDL data according to this modified example. In FIG. 20, the pwg-raster-document-leading-edge-reflected attribute is an attribute indicating the reliability of the value of the LeadingEdge attribute, and "true" indicating high reliability is entered as the flag value. Additionally, the pwg-raster-document-orientation-reflected attribute is an attribute that indicates the reliability of the value of the Orientation attribute, and contains the flag value "true", which indicates high reliability. If the reliability is low, the value "false" is contained. Based on this flag information indicating reliability, it is determined whether the driver version supports the writing of header information for the paper feed direction and image rotation angle. If the flag value is false (or no flag information is included), control may be exercised so that the guide screen is not displayed.

[0084] As described above, this embodiment allows the user to load paper appropriately into the target printer and perform IPP printing. In particular, when printing on an envelope, there is no need to worry about whether to feed the paper with the flap at the front or rear end. Note that, although this embodiment has been described using an envelope as an example, it can also be applied to other paper sizes that have multiple combinations of paper feed direction and image rotation angle, such as postcards and greeting cards. (Other Examples) 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.

[0085] The present disclosure also includes the following configurations and methods. [Configuration 1] A printing device that receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from a client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, A communication means for communicating with the client terminal; a control means for controlling a display means to display a first guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for a paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating means for generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the first guide screen; having The communication means transmits the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal. A printing device comprising: [Configuration 2] the control means displays the first guide screen presenting a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be realized for a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism as options when there are a plurality of combinations; the generating means generates the first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined based on a user's selection operation for the plurality of combinations presented on the first guide screen. 2. The printing device according to configuration 1. [Configuration 3] the control means displays the first guide screen presenting a combination of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be realized in a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism when the number of combinations is one; the generating means generates the first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined based on a user's confirmation operation for the one combination presented on the first guide screen. 2. The printing device according to configuration 1. [Configuration 4] a storage means for storing second information that defines a combination of the paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be established for each paper size; A combination of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be achieved for a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism and that is presented on the first guide screen is identified by referring to the second information. 4. The printing device according to configuration 2 or 3. [Configuration 5] A printing device as described in any one of configurations 1 to 4, characterized in that the control means causes the display means to display a second guide screen indicating a paper feeding method according to the paper setting status in the paper feeding mechanism at the time the print job is received. [Configuration 6] The printing device described in configuration 5, characterized in that the control means obtains an attribute value of a paper feed direction and an attribute value of a rotation angle of the image to be printed from header information of the PDL data related to the received print job, and displays the second guide screen on a display means. [Configuration 7] The printing device described in configuration 6, characterized in that the control means determines whether to display the second guide screen based on information indicating reliability of the attribute value of the paper feed direction and the attribute value of the rotation angle of the image to be printed, which are included in the header information of the PDL data. [Configuration 8] A printing device as described in any one of configurations 5 to 7, characterized in that if paper of the paper size specified in the print job is not set in the paper feeding mechanism at the time the print job is received, the control means causes the display means to display the second guide screen prompting the user to feed paper of the paper size specified in the print job in the paper feeding direction specified in the print job. [Configuration 9] The printing device described in configuration 6, characterized in that when paper of the paper size specified in the print job is set in the paper feed mechanism at the time the print job is received, and there are multiple combinations of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle of the image to be printed, the control means causes the display means to display the second guide screen prompting confirmation of whether a rotation angle that matches the orientation of the set paper is specified in the print job. [Configuration 10] The printing device described in configuration 6, characterized in that when paper of the paper size specified in the print job is set in the paper feed mechanism at the time the print job is received, and the number of combinations of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle of the image to be printed is one, the control means does not display the second guide screen. [Configuration 11] A client terminal for providing a print job in a format conforming to the IPP (Internet Printing Protocol) to a printing device, A communication means for communicating with the printing device; a control means for causing a display means to display a print setting screen for generating the print job; having the control means, when there are a plurality of combinations of paper feed directions and rotation angles of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are identified by the capability response of the printing device acquired by the communication means, displays options for items corresponding to the paper feed directions and the rotation angles on the print setting screen; 1. A client terminal comprising: [Configuration 12] 12. The client terminal according to configuration 11, wherein the control means causes the options to be displayed when a PDL format available on the printing device is a format that cannot include designation regarding image rotation. [Configuration 13] 13. The client terminal according to configuration 12, wherein the format incapable of including the specification regarding image rotation is PWG-Raster. [Configuration 14] 14. The client terminal according to any one of configurations 11 to 13, wherein the control means further causes the display means to display a preview image based on a setting value selected from the displayed options. [Configuration 15] The client terminal described in configuration 11, characterized in that when the capability response includes default values ​​for the paper feed direction for a specific paper size and the rotation angle of the image to be printed, the control means displays the default values ​​in the items corresponding to the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen when the specific paper size is specified. [Configuration 16] A printing system in which a client terminal and a printing device are connected via a network, The printing device receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from the client terminal, and performs printing based on the received print job, a control means for controlling a display means to display a guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for a paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating means for generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the guide screen; a communication means for transmitting the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal; having The client terminal includes: A communication means for communicating with the printing device; a control means for displaying a print setting screen for generating the print job on a display means, and when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are specified by a capability response of the printing device acquired by the communication means, the control means displays options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen; having A printing system comprising: [Method 1] A method for controlling a printing device that receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from a client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, comprising: a control step of displaying on a display means a first guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for the paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating step of generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the first guide screen; a transmission step of transmitting the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal; 13. A method for controlling a printing device, comprising: [Method 2] A method for controlling a client terminal for providing a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) to a printing device, comprising: obtaining a capabilities response from the printing device; a control means for causing a display means to display a print setting screen for generating the print job; Including, In the control step, when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are identified by the capability response of the printing device acquired in the acquisition step, options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen are displayed. 23. A method for controlling a client terminal comprising: [Method 3] A control method for a printing system in which a client terminal and a printing device are connected via a network, comprising: The printing device receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from the client terminal, and performs printing based on the received print job, The printing device, a control step of displaying on a display means a guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for the paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating step of generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the guide screen; a transmitting step of transmitting the first information generated in the generating step in response to a request from the client terminal; The client terminal, obtaining a capabilities response from the printing device; a control step of displaying a print setting screen for generating the print job on a display means, and when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are specified by the capability response of the printing device acquired in the acquisition step, displaying options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen; Including, A method for controlling a printing system comprising: [Configuration 17] A program for causing a computer to function as the printing device according to any one of configurations 1 to 10. [Configuration 18] A program for causing a computer to function as a client terminal according to any one of configurations 11 to 15. [Configuration 19] 17. A program for causing a computer to function as the printing system according to claim 16.

Claims

1. A printing device that receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from a client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, A communication means for communicating with the client terminal; a control means for controlling a display means to display a first guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for a paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating unit configured to generate first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the first guide screen; having the communication means transmits the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal. A printing device comprising:

2. the control means displays the first guide screen presenting a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be realized for a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism as options when there are a plurality of combinations; the generating means generates the first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined based on a user's selection operation for the plurality of combinations presented on the first guide screen.

2. The printing device according to claim 1.

3. the control means displays the first guide screen presenting a combination of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be established for a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism when the number of combinations is one; the generating means generates the first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined based on a user's confirmation operation for the one combination presented on the first guide screen.

2. The printing device according to claim 1.

4. a storage means for storing second information that defines a combination of the paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be established for each paper size; a combination of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of the image to be printed that can be obtained for a paper size of the paper set in the paper feed mechanism and that is presented on the first guide screen is identified by referring to the second information; 4. The printing apparatus according to claim 2 or 3.

5. 2. The printing device according to claim 1, wherein the control means causes the display means to display a second guide screen showing a paper feeding method according to a paper setting status in the paper feeding mechanism at the time when the print job is received.

6. The printing device according to claim 5, characterized in that the control means acquires an attribute value of a paper feed direction and an attribute value of a rotation angle of the image to be printed from header information of the PDL data related to the received print job, and displays the second guide screen on a display means.

7. The printing device according to claim 6, characterized in that the control means determines whether to display the second guide screen based on information indicating the reliability of the attribute value of the paper feed direction and the attribute value of the rotation angle of the image to be printed, which are included in the header information of the PDL data.

8. The printing device according to claim 5, characterized in that if paper of the paper size specified in the print job is not set in the paper feeding mechanism at the time the print job is received, the control means causes the display means to display the second guide screen prompting the user to feed paper of the paper size specified in the print job in the paper feeding direction specified in the print job.

9. The printing device according to claim 6, characterized in that, when paper of the paper size specified in the print job is set in the paper feed mechanism at the time the print job is received, and there are multiple combinations of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle of the image to be printed, the control means causes the display means to display the second guide screen prompting confirmation of whether a rotation angle that matches the orientation of the set paper has been specified in the print job.

10. The printing device according to claim 6, characterized in that, when paper of the paper size specified in the print job is set in the paper feed mechanism at the time the print job is received, and the number of combinations of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle of the image to be printed is one, the control means does not display the second guide screen.

11. A client terminal for providing a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) to a printing device, A communication means for communicating with the printing device; a control means for causing a display means to display a print setting screen for generating the print job; having the control means, when there are a plurality of combinations of paper feed directions and rotation angles of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are identified by the capability response of the printing device acquired by the communication means, displays options for items corresponding to the paper feed directions and the rotation angles on the print setting screen; 1. A client terminal comprising:

12. 12. The client terminal according to claim 11, wherein the control means causes the options to be displayed when a PDL format available on the printing device is a format that cannot include a specification regarding image rotation.

13. 13. The client terminal according to claim 12, wherein the format incapable of including the specification regarding image rotation is PWG-Raster.

14. 14. The client terminal according to claim 11, wherein the control means further causes the display means to display a preview image based on a setting value selected from the displayed options.

15. The client terminal according to claim 11, characterized in that when the capability response includes default values ​​for the paper feed direction for a specific paper size and the rotation angle of the image to be printed, the control means displays the default values ​​in the items corresponding to the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen when the specific paper size is specified.

16. A printing system in which a client terminal and a printing device are connected via a network, The printing device receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from the client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, a control means for controlling a display means to display a guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for a paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating unit that generates first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the guide screen; a communication means for transmitting the first information generated by the generation means in response to a request from the client terminal; having The client terminal includes: A communication means for communicating with the printing device; a control means for displaying a print setting screen for generating the print job on a display means, and when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are specified by a capability response of the printing device acquired by the communication means, the control means displays options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen; having A printing system comprising:

17. A method for controlling a printing device that receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from a client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, comprising: a control step of displaying on a display means a first guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for the paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating step of generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the first guide screen; a transmitting step of transmitting the first information generated in the generating step in response to a request from the client terminal; 13. A method for controlling a printing device, comprising:

18. A method for controlling a client terminal for providing a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) to a printing device, comprising: obtaining a capabilities response from the printing device; a control step of displaying a print setting screen for generating the print job on a display means; Including, In the control step, when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are identified by the capability response of the printing device acquired in the acquisition step, options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen are displayed.

23. A method for controlling a client terminal comprising:

19. A control method for a printing system in which a client terminal and a printing device are connected via a network, comprising: The printing device receives a print job in a format conforming to the Internet Printing Protocol (IPP) from the client terminal and performs printing based on the received print job, The printing device, a control step of displaying on a display means a guide screen presenting combinations of possible paper feed directions and rotation angles of the image to be printed for the paper size set in a paper feed mechanism; a generating step of generating first information indicating a combination of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle determined via the guide screen; a transmitting step of transmitting the first information generated in the generating step in response to a request from the client terminal; The client terminal, obtaining a capabilities response from the printing device; a control step of displaying a print setting screen for generating the print job on a display means, and when there are a plurality of combinations of a paper feed direction and a rotation angle of an image to be printed that can be realized in the printing device, which are specified by the capability response of the printing device acquired in the acquisition step, displaying options for items corresponding to each of the paper feed direction and the rotation angle on the print setting screen; Including, A method for controlling a printing system comprising:

20. A program for causing a computer to execute the printing device control method according to claim 17.

21. A program for causing a computer to execute the client terminal control method according to claim 18.

22. A program for causing a computer to execute the printing system control method according to claim 19.

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